Construction Action Items That Come From the Job Chat

Every job runs on small promises. "I'll get the electrical sub's revised number by Thursday." "Can someone confirm the inspection time?" On most jobs those lines go into a group text and nobody tracks them, so the follow-up only happens when somebody remembers.

#Action items without the extra step

In CooperBuild, each job has a chat linked to the project. About a minute and a half after people post, the chat is scanned for commitments, things someone is waiting on, meetings and approvals.

• It picks an owner. When it's confident, it creates an action item and assigns it to one of the people in the room. That person gets an in-app notification and a push.
• It goes on the project. The card has "Done" and "Make a task". "Make a task" puts it on the linked project's task list, and the two statuses stay in sync.
• It asks when it isn't sure. If it can't tell whether something is finished, the chat asks "Did you mean…?" before closing it. If it's sure, it closes the item itself.
• It leaves some chats alone. Muted chats, direct chats with assistants and chats shared with another company are skipped.

#What this looks like on a real week

Picture a tenant improvement job. On Monday the owner's rep asks for two more exam rooms. The super posts a photo of the wall that would move and writes, "Need a revised electrical number before we price this." The PM answers, "I'll get the electrical sub's revised number by Thursday."

In a group text, that promise sits there until someone scrolls back up. In a CooperBuild project chat, an action item appears a minute or two later. The PM is the owner, and the PM's phone gets a push. One tap on "Make a task" puts it on the job's task list next to everything else due that week.

On Thursday the PM posts the number. If the chat is confident the item is done, it closes it. If it isn't sure, it asks "Did you mean…?" first, so nothing drops off the list by accident. Meanwhile the estimator can ask an assistant in the same thread what the current estimate carries for electrical, without leaving the conversation.

#Assistants in the same thread

You can @mention an assistant like Tony · Estimating in a project-linked chat to look up that job's estimate, bids or pay apps. Several assistants can work in one thread at the same time, and each one sees and does only what the person asking can. Admins decide who in the group may ask assistants.

Some work waits for you. When card charges need matching, the Reconciliation approval card in chat has Approve, Decline and Snooze. Assistants can also ask multiple-choice questions right in the thread.

#A team chat app built for the field

• One group per job, linked to up to 20 projects, with up to 512 members
• Invite subs or owner's reps by email
• Photos, video, voice notes, files and PDFs, location, contacts and polls, up to 30 attachments per message
• Read receipts, "seen by", typing indicators and search
• Web, iPhone and Android, with push notifications

#Related reading

• Why chat agents belong inside the OS
• The estimate is the company

#FAQ

#What are construction action items?

They're the follow-ups a job runs on: commitments, answers someone is waiting for, meetings and approvals. Each one needs an owner and a due point.

#Does CooperBuild create action items from chat on its own?

Yes. It scans project chats shortly after people post, creates items it's confident about, assigns an owner from the group and notifies them.

#Can an action item become a task?

Yes. "Make a task" puts it on the linked project's task list, and the statuses stay in sync.

#Can assistants see everything in the company?

No. Each assistant sees and does only what the person asking can, and admins control who may ask assistants in each group.

#Do assistants need approval?

Some work, like matching card charges, waits for your approval in chat. Assistants can only do what the person asking is allowed to do.

#Can I find an old decision in chat?

Yes. Search inside chat finds past messages.

Start free (opens in a new tab) and link your first job chat to a project.