How to Share Company Documents With Field Staff

Sam starts on Monday. He is joining the roofing crew, and before he goes up a ladder he needs to have read the ladder safety sheet. The handbook is in a binder in the office. The safety sheet was emailed to the crew in March, and nobody is sure who still has it. The price list changed last week, and two of the crew are still quoting from the old one in a text thread.

This is the normal state of documents in a small business with people in the field. The files exist. They just aren’t on the phone of the person who needs them, and you can’t tell who has actually read them.

Company documents in NounDesk fixes that. You upload the file once, pick who gets it, and it appears on their work phone. When Sam opens the safety sheet, NounDesk records it, so you know he did.

What company documents is

Company documents is NounDesk’s mobile content management feature. Mobile content management is the plain idea of getting work files onto work phones and controlling who gets them.

You can share PDF, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, text, CSV and image files up to 50 MB each. That covers most of what a small business hands out: handbooks, safety sheets, price lists, job sheets and checklists.

For each document, you choose who can open it:

• Every employee, for things like the handbook.
• Device groups, such as Field crew, for the safety sheets that only apply to them.
• Named employees, for the price list that only two salespeople need.

Each person sees only what was shared with them.

How employees open documents

Employees use the Company documents app on their work phone. There is no password to remember and no NounDesk account to create.

1. They open Company documents and enter their work email.
2. A one-time code arrives in that email.
3. They type the code and see the documents shared with them.

The code lasts 10 minutes and works once. After signing in, they stay signed in on that phone for up to 30 days. Documents open in the phone’s browser or in the app that handles that type of file, such as a PDF viewer.

You can send staff the employee guide to opening company documents. It is written for them, not for admins.

See who opened what, and when

Every open is recorded. NounDesk shows which document was opened, by whom and when. The library also counts how many times each document has been opened.

This is the part that changes the conversation. When a supervisor asks whether the new starter has read the safety sheet, you check instead of guessing. When you update the price list, you can see who has opened the new one.

Tell your staff this up front. The employee app reminds them that opens are recorded, but it is better coming from you first. Our post on explaining device management to employees without scaring them has wording that helps.

How to set it up in NounDesk

You need to be an Owner or Admin to upload and edit documents.

1. Go to Documents, then Upload document.
2. Choose the File, check the Title, and choose Who can open it: Every employee, or Only the groups and employees I choose. Then select Upload.
3. Get the app onto phones. With a Google connection, select Add the app to managed Google Play, then mark Company documents as Required in a security policy. It installs like any other app. You can also copy the portal link and send it to staff.
4. Check each employee has a work email on their employee record. Without one, they can’t sign in.

To change a document’s title or audience later, use Edit. To take it down, use Remove. The full steps are in the company documents docs.

Sam’s first morning

Here is how it looks in practice. On Friday, you put Sam’s phone in the Field crew group and add his work email to his employee record. The handbook is already shared with everyone, and the ladder safety sheet is shared with Field crew.

On Monday, Sam opens Company documents, enters his work email, and types the code. Both files are there. He opens the safety sheet at 7:40, and that open is recorded. By the time he reaches the first job, you know he has it.

No binder, no forwarded email, no “did you get my text?”

Honest limits

Company documents is about getting the right files to the right people and knowing who opened them. It is worth being clear about what it does not promise.

• It does not stop every copy. Documents open on the device after sign-in. Share each file only with the people who need it. For phones that carry sensitive files, the data protection settings in a security policy can block screenshots, printing and USB file transfer.
• No offline copies. Documents are not stored on the phone for offline use. Staff need an internet connection to open them. If a crew works somewhere without signal, they should open what they need before they leave.
• Opening is not reading. NounDesk records that a document was opened, not how long someone spent on it or whether they understood it. For safety briefings, keep the sign-off conversation too.
• Employees need a work email. The one-time code goes to the email on their employee record. Someone without one can’t sign in.

What to do this week

1. Gather the five documents your staff ask for most. Usually that is the handbook, safety sheets, the price list and a job form.
2. Check every employee record has a work email.
3. Decide the audience for each document: everyone, a group, or named people.
4. Upload them and make the app Required in the security policy for field phones.
5. Tell staff how to sign in, and that opens are recorded. Send them the employee guide link.

FAQ

How do I get company documents onto employees’ phones?

Upload them in NounDesk and choose who can open them. Employees then open them in the Company documents app after signing in with a one-time code sent to their work email.

Can I share a document with just one team?

Yes. Share it with a device group, such as Field crew, or with named employees. Only those people see it in the app.

Can I see who opened a document?

Yes. Every open is recorded with the document, the employee and the time, and the library counts opens for each file.

Can staff open documents without signal?

No. Documents are not stored on the phone for offline use, so staff need an internet connection to open them.

Company documents sits alongside the rest of your phone management. Our Android MDM guide for small businesses covers the bigger picture, and the company documents feature page has more examples. For a wider look at running crews on phones, see managing technician phones.

If Sam’s safety sheet should be on his phone before his first job, try NounDesk.