Assign the right engineer every time: a simple skills‑matching rota that lifts first‑time fix

Category: Case Studies & Playbooks • Niche: AI automations, scheduling, job management

• Jump to: Who this is for • What you will build • Quick wins • Step-by-step setup • Daily workflow • Metrics to track • FAQs

Who this is for

Owner-operators and ops managers running 5 to 50 engineers in electrical, HVAC, fire and security, plumbing, joinery or general maintenance across the UK. You want higher first-time fix, fewer miles, and less dispatcher stress.

What you will build

A light skills-matching rota that suggests the best engineer for each job based on:

• Required skills or tickets for the job, for example Gas Safe, NICEIC, IPAF, BAFE
• Distance and travel time
• Availability and current workload
• Customer or site preferences such as preferred technician

You can run this in Google Sheets plus Zapier or Make, and plug it into ServiceM8, Jobber, Tradify, SimPRO, Commusoft or BigChange.

Quick wins

• Add a mandatory “skills needed” field on every job. Even a simple tag such as Boiler, Fire alarm, 3 phase will stop random assignments.
• Use service zones to filter the list of eligible engineers. See SimPRO’s zones and preferred technicians features: https://helpguide.simprogroup.com/Content/Service-and-Enterprise/Zones.htm and https://helpguide.simprogroup.com/Content/Service-and-Enterprise/Preferred-Technicians.htm
• Share engineer headshots and a short bio with customers in confirmation messages to build trust and reduce no-shows. For WhatsApp confirmations, see our article: https://academy.trainar.ai/whatsapp-appointment-reminders-for-trades-message-templates-google-calendar-setup-and-a-7day-followup-plan

Step-by-step setup

1. Set up your skills register

Create a Google Sheet called Engineer Skills with these columns:

• Engineer name
• Mobile
• Home postcode
• Skills or tickets, for example Gas Safe, IPAF, PASMA, BAFE, EV, 3 phase
• Expiry dates where relevant
• Service zones, for example North, South
• Working hours and shift pattern

Tip: If you already have a training matrix, keep one source of truth. If not, grab our free template and expiry reminder guide: https://academy.trainar.ai/training-matrix-template-for-construction-free-excel-cscs-and-ipaf-expiry-reminders-and-an-automation-you-can-copy

2. Add a simple job intake form

Use your job system’s custom fields or a Google Form that feeds a Jobs sheet. Capture:

• Job type and description
• Site postcode
• Skills needed
• Access notes and risk flags
• Preferred technician if the client has one

3. Score the best engineer with an AI prompt

Use Zapier or Make to trigger when a new job arrives. Build a step that compiles a short list of available engineers, then score them. A safe starter prompt:

“You are helping a UK field service dispatcher. Score the following engineers from 0 to 100 for this job. Heavily weight required skills and valid tickets, then distance, then workload. If a preferred technician is listed, add 10 points. Return JSON with engineer name and score only. Job: . Engineers: <engineer list with skills, tickets, home postcode, current appointments>.”

Keep data minimal and non-sensitive. Do not send customer names or contact details to AI tools.

4. Push the suggested assignment to your job system

• ServiceM8, Jobber, Tradify: use their Zapier apps to update the job assignee.
• SimPRO, Commusoft, BigChange: if you cannot assign directly, post the top three suggestions into the job notes and notify your dispatcher to click assign.

5. Add travel and parts checks

• Auto-attach a Google Maps link for fastest route using the site postcode.
• If your job types consume regular parts, link to van stock. See our barcode van stock setup to avoid second visits: https://academy.trainar.ai/how-to-set-up-van-stock-control-with-barcodes-printers-labels-and-a-60-minute-setup

6. Confirmation and reminders

Send the customer a confirmation message with engineer name, ETA window and any prep needed. If you want WhatsApp confirmations and lower no-shows, see: https://academy.trainar.ai/jobber-to-whatsapp-uk-automate-booking-confirmations-with-makecom-and-cut-noshows

Daily workflow

1. Jobs land from phone, email, website or WhatsApp.
2. Zapier or Make scores the best engineer based on skills, distance, availability.
3. Dispatcher reviews and assigns in one click.
4. Customer gets confirmation and reminders.
5. Engineer completes job sheet with photos and parts used.
6. Invoice raised in Xero or your accounting tool.

Flow diagram

New job → Score engineers → Suggest top 3 → Dispatcher assigns → Confirm with client → Engineer attends → Job sheet + photos → Invoice

Metrics to track

• First-time fix rate. A practical target in UK field service is 75 to 85 percent, with best-in-class in the high 80s. See industry context from Field Technologies Online and Microsoft Dynamics: https://www.fieldtechnologiesonline.com/doc/first-time-fix-the-underappreciated-field-service-metric-0001 and https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/dynamics-365/blog/business-leader/2019/01/23/elevate-your-customer-experience-with-field-service-first-time-fix-rate
• Average miles per job and windshield time.
• No-show rate.
• SLA response and resolution times.

For public examples of UK first-time fix performance, see:

• Islington Council: housing repairs first-time fix performance: https://www.islington.gov.uk/housing/housing-annual-report/housing-performance
• Cambridge City Council: first visit repairs rate: https://www.cambridge.gov.uk/social-housing-performance-measures

Useful links and references

• SimPRO scheduling tools, zones and preferred technicians: https://helpguide.simprogroup.com/Content/Service-and-Enterprise/Scheduling-Tools.htm and https://helpguide.simprogroup.com/Content/Service-and-Enterprise/Preferred-Technicians.htm
• Oracle overview of construction scheduling concepts: https://www.oracle.com/uk/construction-engineering/construction-scheduling/

FAQs

What skills should we track for most engineering trades?

Start with Gas Safe, NICEIC, BAFE, IPAF, PASMA, F-Gas, EV charge point, Confined space, Asbestos awareness, CSCS. Add product brands you service.

How accurate is the AI scoring?

Treat it as a helper, not the boss. Weight skills and valid tickets highest. Keep a human in the loop. Review mis-assignments weekly and tweak the prompt weights.

Do we need a full integration to start?

No. You can start by posting top suggestions into job notes and assigning manually. Move to auto-assign once you are happy with the quality.

Will this help first-time fix on its own?

It helps a lot, but pair it with good parts availability and clear access notes. See our van stock control guide and WhatsApp confirmations linked above.

Data protection

Only send the minimum job detail to any AI or automation platform. Do not include customer names, emails or phone numbers. Keep your skills register in your own Google Workspace or Microsoft 365 with access controls.

Want to slash training times and increase revenue per Engineer? Join our Waitlist: https://trainar.ai/waitlist