Allow Fieldworkers to Create New Bookings

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Allow Fieldworkers to Create New Bookings

In many field-service businesses, technicians need to create bookings on the go—while they’re onsite, between jobs, or when an urgent request comes in. OctopusPro lets you control this with a simple permission: Allow fieldworkers to create new bookings.

Fieldworker booking creation and management overview diagram

When enabled, fieldworkers can create bookings from the Fieldworker App (and any enabled fieldworker portal access), and those bookings immediately appear in your admin dashboard—so office staff can review, adjust, dispatch, and follow up without delays.

Table of contents

What this permission does

The Allow fieldworkers to create new bookings permission determines whether a fieldworker can create a brand-new booking record (job/work order) directly from the Fieldworker App.

When enabled:

  • Fieldworkers can create bookings while in the field, without needing the office to do it for them.
  • New bookings instantly appear in your admin dashboard for visibility and follow-up.
  • You can still control what fieldworkers can see and change (pricing, customer list access, approvals, custom services, etc.).

When disabled:

  • Fieldworkers can still view and manage assigned bookings (based on your permissions), but they can’t create new ones.
  • New bookings must be created by office/admin users (or via other flows like online booking / inquiry conversion, depending on your setup).

Benefits and best-fit use cases

Enabling fieldworker booking creation is ideal when speed matters—but you still want structure and control.

  • Faster response times: technicians can log urgent jobs immediately (e.g., emergency callouts).
  • Better customer experience: the customer gets booked right away instead of “we’ll call you back.”
  • Fewer admin bottlenecks: office staff don’t need to manually create every job.
  • Cleaner job tracking: each visit is recorded as a proper booking, improving reporting and accountability.

Common examples:

  • Technician finishes a job and sells an add-on service for the same week
  • Onsite assessment turns into an immediate service booking
  • Emergency/after-hours callout needs to be logged instantly
  • Property/strata work: technician creates bookings while moving between sites

How to enable the permission (admin setup)

To allow fieldworkers to create new bookings:

  1. Go to Settings → General Settings → Fieldworkers Permissions.
  2. Enable Allow fieldworkers to create new bookings.
  3. (Recommended) Configure the related controls and notifications (see sections below).
  4. Click Save.

Allow fieldworkers to create new bookings toggle in Fieldworker Permissions

Fieldworker workflow (create a booking)

Once enabled, fieldworkers can create a booking in a few steps (exact labels may vary slightly by app version):

  1. Open the Fieldworker App.
  2. Go to Bookings.
  3. Tap Create a New Booking (or the + button).
  4. Select the Customer (from your database) or create a new customer (only if you allow it).
  5. Add Service(s), Date/Time, and any required fields (notes, custom fields, checklists, etc.).
  6. Review the booking details and tap Confirm / Save.

Fieldworker app booking creation screen (example)

Tip: If your fieldworkers can’t find a customer, it’s usually because customer database access is restricted. See the “Recommended related permissions” section below.

Recommended related permissions (control & security)

Letting fieldworkers create bookings works best when you pair it with the right supporting permissions—so you get speed and control.

Notifications (stay in the loop)

To ensure nothing slips through the cracks, enable notifications when a fieldworker creates a booking. This keeps office staff aware of newly created jobs for review, dispatch, and customer follow-up.

Common notification options:

  • Email notification: receive an email when a booking is created by a fieldworker.
  • Admin portal notification: receive an in-app/admin notification when a booking is created by a fieldworker.

Admin notification example when a fieldworker creates a booking

What office/admin staff should review

Bookings created by fieldworkers should still follow your internal quality checks—especially for pricing, service scope, and scheduling accuracy.

Recommended checks:

  • Customer record: confirm customer details are correct (and merge duplicates if needed).
  • Service selection: confirm the correct service(s) were chosen and any required custom fields/checklists are completed.
  • Date/time: confirm booking date/time and duration are accurate and don’t conflict with availability.
  • Pricing & charges: review totals, discounts, surcharges, travel fees, and add-ons (based on what fieldworkers are allowed to edit).
  • Assignment: confirm the correct fieldworker (or crew) is assigned, if your workflow requires dispatch review.

Admin portal view booking details page example

Best practices

  • Train fieldworkers on data quality: especially customer names, addresses, and required booking notes.
  • Reduce duplicate customers: enable customer database search first, and encourage “search before create.”
  • Standardize services: use a clean service catalogue and restrict custom services if you want consistency.
  • Protect margins: require office approval for edits if fieldworkers shouldn’t change pricing/scope.
  • Use photo requirements for quality control (optional): require “before/after” photos for certain services:

Troubleshooting

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