Handle urgent, unplanned jobs without blowing up your schedule

Create the work order, mark it ad-hoc, and let the nearest available technician pick it up — no reshuffling the whole plan.

With Ad‑hoc planning in OutSmart you easily respond to notifications that were not previously planned. Think of a leaking tap or a non‑urgent fault that still needs to be solved quickly. You create the work order, mark it as ad‑hoc and place it in the list of available jobs.

Over 20.000 happy daily users

How do field technicians pick up ad-hoc jobs?

OutSmart's ad-hoc planning software solves one of the biggest challenges in field service: responding to urgent, unscheduled jobs without disrupting the rest of your team's day.

Employees in the field see via the app which ad‑hoc work orders are open in their area. If they have time left, they pick one up immediately. This way you use capacity optimally, reduce travel time and surprise customers with fast service – without the planner having to reschedule everything.

Ad‑hoc planning makes your organisation more flexible and customer‑oriented. It helps you fill gaps in the planning efficiently and ensures that unexpected jobs are handled quickly and smoothly. This keeps the workflow going and strengthens your service quality.

How does ad-hoc planning work in a real scenario?

A plumbing company receives a report of a leaking tap. The planner marks this as an ad‑hoc job. A technician who finishes earlier sees the job on the map and picks it up immediately so the customer is helped the same day.

Benefits

Flexible – respond to unexpected assignments
Smart use of capacity – employees pick up jobs in their area themselves
Less travel time – work smart with a radius around the location
Faster service – customers helped faster and better

3232784

Work orders per year

5172

Customers trust OutSmart

Years of experience

Try OutSmart completely free for 14 days!

Frequently asked questions about OutSmart ad-hoc planning

What is ad-hoc planning in field service management?

Ad-hoc planning lets dispatchers create unscheduled work orders on the spot and make them available to nearby field technicians. Instead of manually reassigning jobs, engineers in the area see open tasks in their app and can pick them up immediately, keeping service fast and capacity fully used.

How does OutSmart handle ad-hoc work orders?

In OutSmart, a planner marks a new job as ad-hoc and it instantly appears as an available work order on a map view in the mobile app. Technicians who have spare time or are nearby can claim the job themselves, eliminating back-and-forth calls and reducing travel time significantly.

Who is ad-hoc planning software designed for?

Ad-hoc planning tools are ideal for plumbing, HVAC, electrical, and facility maintenance companies that regularly deal with urgent or unexpected customer requests. Any organisation with field staff that needs to respond to same-day faults or reactive service calls will benefit from this approach.

What is the difference between ad-hoc planning and regular scheduling?

Regular scheduling assigns work orders in advance to specific technicians at specific times. Ad-hoc planning creates an open pool of urgent or unscheduled jobs that available field staff can self-assign based on proximity and capacity, making the overall planning process more resilient and responsive.

How does ad-hoc planning reduce travel time?

OutSmart displays open ad-hoc jobs on a map so technicians pick up work closest to their current location. This proximity-based matching reduces unnecessary driving, cuts fuel costs, and means customers get faster service — all without the planner having to manually optimise each route.

Does OutSmart integrate with other field service tools?

Yes. OutSmart connects ad-hoc planning with digital work orders, time tracking, invoicing, and CRM. Completed ad-hoc jobs automatically generate a digital report the customer can sign on-screen, and the data flows directly into back-office administration and accounting integrations.

Is there a free trial for OutSmart ad-hoc planning?

OutSmart offers a 14-day free trial with no credit card required. During the trial you get full access to ad-hoc planning, digital work orders, scheduling, and the mobile app. More than 5,000 companies already use OutSmart to manage field operations daily.

Can field technicians self-assign ad-hoc jobs in the app?

Yes. Technicians open the OutSmart mobile app, see a list or map of available ad-hoc jobs in their area, and tap to claim one. This self-service model reduces planner workload, keeps technicians productive during idle time, and improves first-time fix rates for reactive jobs.

What types of jobs are typically handled as ad-hoc work orders?

Common examples include leaking taps, broken heating units, faulty alarms, and other reactive faults that must be handled the same day but were not on the original schedule. Ad-hoc planning is particularly valuable for maintenance and repair companies that guarantee fast response times to customers.

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