From WhatsApp to Gripp, the Hidden Costs of Inefficient Communication

In the field
3 min read
Published on
June 29, 2024

One of the farms adopting Gripp was having some serious team communication problems they never really understood. Chalk it up to the status quo state of team communication and collaboration tools inside of Ag.  Farmers learn to put up with a lot because nothing else exists and soon it becomes the way to do business, eroding time and cost without a second thought.

Here’s the gist, throughout the week this farm owner keeps a personal WhatsApp list of to-dos and tasks that crop up during the week, small jobs, repairs, aggregate hauls – pretty normal stuff that comes up.  Every Sunday night he goes into his shop’s conference room where there’s a big white board and writes down the next week’s jobs, often adding the previous week’s jobs to the list that were not completed, which takes time because he experiences the “infinite scroll” problem in WhatsApp, i.e. scrolling up over the previous week’s chat to discern who did which jobs and what is left over. You see, he uses the white board to go over the jobs with his team every Monday morning then his team disperses to tackles these jobs but also their “regular” farming jobs which always bring a constant flow of chaos and unexpected monkey wrenches.

“Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face.” – Mike Tyson

Because the team is rarely back in the shop together, they use WhatsApp group to communicate status on which jobs were picked up and completed, to answer additional questions, as well as communicate about all the other happenings on the farm.  You might ask why the whiteboard?  Great question, well, this owner is conscious of his team’s family time and sending out WhatsApp messages on Sunday night resulted in some very angry and disappointed wives and children.

The wasted time and inefficiencies just became part of doing business, never understanding what a better tool or process might look like that was easy to track, easy to communicate and easy to use.

Gripp addresses these issues by providing a centralized platform for organizing tasks and fostering transparent communication. While a whiteboard is convenient, Gripp offers accessibility from anywhere via smartphone, ensuring real-time, accurate record-keeping. Employees can easily file reports, communicate about tasks, ask questions and complete to-dos by scanning QR codes on assets and logging the correct information. Once a report has been filled, it immediately gets documented in your Gripp workspace, allowing a manager to prioritize and oversee the operation as necessary.  

Each Gripp asset, activity and to-do has its own dedicated chat stream, simplifying communication compared to scattered messaging apps. This organized approach ensures all information relevant to assets is documented and readily accessible, enhancing operational efficiency and knowledge management on your farm.

Gripp consolidates essential farm information—such as communicated updates, equipment reports, and task completions—into one accessible platform. Say goodbye to paper records and disorganized methods; Gripp streamlines operations, replacing clipboards and whiteboards with efficient digital solutions.

Streamline your farm's workflow, improve decision-making, and simplify information management—all from the palm of your hand.

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