Technology is changing the way employers and employees interact in every industry. Now, this same technology is in the hands of farmers — and it’s changing the way operations are run.

Labor is the largest single expenditure for greenhouse operators. I’ve seen workflow managed by spreadsheets, clipboards, whiteboards, and not at all. A grower we work with who manages over 100 acres has employees scan barcodes associated to task categories when they complete a task, which then creates a list of completed tasks in an excel spreadsheet. It’s a pretty nifty way to look at completed work. It also points out a big gap in how greenhouses manage workflow.

Managing work doesn’t have to be difficult. Managing your crops and workers should be simple. There should be an easy way to allocate work, track performance, and forecast needs.

Now there is.

We spend a lot of time on the farm working with our growers and understanding how they use Agrilyst. When workflow is managed well, our growers reduce costs. So we’ve made workflow management a priority of ours.

We’re excited to launch our mobile app today, a brand new tool to help growers manage greenhouse workflow.

Mobile changes the game for greenhouse growers. Here’s how:

  • Manage workflow at scale. Supervisors can allocate work by zone, crop, or employee. We recommend setting up tablets at work stations so employees can complete work directly where they’re completing it.
  • Track more data. Mobile means more data tracked and easier tracking. Enter inventory counts, enter crop notes, store yield data, and more right from your phone.
  • Accountability and Trust. With more workers using Agrilyst to complete tasks, there will never be any doubt as to what did or did not get done. Supervisors can receive an email or text report at the end of the day with a summary of work completed and what tasks are overdue.
  • Crop traceability. With Agrilyst Mobile, you can scan batch barcodes to pull up crop data seamlessly. Add notes, change schedules, enter harvest information, add photos, and more simply by scanning the barcode using your device’s camera. There’s no need for a separate scanner.

We believe in better workflow management. Agrilyst Mobile is the first of many tools we’ll be releasing to help greenhouse operators reduce the cost of labor and manage workflow more efficiently.