Catering & Facility Services - Managing service providers with Flexopus

Workplaces and offices only function when all processes run optimally and all employees can focus on their tasks. Modern offices are full of talented and versatile people, yet bringing in third-party providers remains essential for some jobs.

Whether it's catering, IT services, or cleaning: in many areas, bringing in external support is the right decision. With Flexopus, you can easily digitize, manage, and integrate service providers and third-party vendors into your workplace management.
This allows you to keep track of all current and future service providers and manage the entire process from invitation to completion within Flexopus.

Catering & Facility Services with Flexopus

With Flexopus Catering & Services, you can register, record, and commission service providers paperlessly and easily. Any conceivable third-party provider can be included directly in the planning without leaving the familiar Flexopus work environment.

In combination with the room booking system, entire meetings can be planned from start to finish: from the appetizer catering at the beginning to the cleaning service afterward - with Flexopus, you stay in control.

Catering or service booking process

The catering or service booking process takes place within the familiar Flexopus application environment. Similar to booking workstations or meeting rooms, the booking tile can be accessed directly from the home page.

In the user-level booking overview, catering and service bookings appear alongside all future bookings. Additionally, all data can always be viewed and managed via the admin area.

The actual process involves simple steps, though there are several ways to submit a booking:

Individual booking of catering and services

1. Select “Catering & Services”
2. Enter details (title, date, location, provider, and notes)
3. (Optional) Select position
4. Save

The assigned contractor receives the order directly via email. All details (title, date, location, notes) are included.

Adding catering & services via room booking

This requires activating the event management option. This expands the simple room booking into an event creation feature, allowing for more detailed planning of meetings and gatherings. A catering or service order can also be added to these events:

1. Select “New Event”
2. Enter details (name, date, time, location)
3. Select “Add service order”
4. Enter details (location, provider, notes)
5. Save

Once saved, the created event is stored along with the catering & service order and filed in the booking overview. The contractor is notified via email and receives all necessary details regarding the order.

Book catering and services directly in Outlook

With the Flexopus Outlook add-in, employees can request additional services such as catering or external service providers directly when booking a room. The booking is made in the same step as the appointment and room selection, ensuring all relevant requirements are captured centrally in Outlook. This allows for better meeting preparation, reduces internal coordination, and ensures all required resources are coordinated in time.

Setting up contractors for catering & services

Every contractor must be set up in the admin area at the start. This allows administrators to keep track of all registered contractors and manage them accordingly.

In addition to provider details, associated buildings and specific service items can also be managed here. This ensures users only see what is actually offered, preventing incorrect bookings.

There is also an overview of all active orders, which can be viewed retroactively. This makes it possible to verify who was in the building on which day, should retroactive contact be necessary.

Service provider features

The Catering & Service module adds another tile to the familiar Flexopus application. Activating the module provides a variety of useful features:

Catering and service providers

Manage service providers that perform services in your building. This could be, for example, an external catering company providing food for meetings, a janitorial service performing regular inspections, or an IT service desk handling IT-related issues.

Manage offered services

Service providers and their items can be managed in the admin area. Almost anything can be configured here as needed, from beverages and rental equipment to cleaning, seating arrangements, or waste disposal services.

Manage orders

As an administrator, you can manage catering and facility services easily and intuitively. All orders can be viewed in real-time and flexibly adjusted via the "Service Providers" tab.

Approve orders

Determine role holders and their access permissions for external service providers. This allows you to decide which third-party providers require approval and keep track of expenses using the cost center feature.

Limit orders

Define the parameters for catering and facility service orders yourself. You have full control over orderable quantities, how far in advance orders must be placed, and how late changes can be made.

You have full control over the functions, utility, and limitations regarding your configured service providers, allowing you to personally define the framework within which third-party providers can be used and booked.

Use Cases for Catering & Facility Services

The use cases for catering and facility services are diverse, ranging from simple orders to extensive work requests, and can take any form or level of complexity.

Case 1

For example, if one of your employees makes a mistake and the dishwasher in the office kitchen breaks down, you can avoid endless back-and-forth communication by having a plumbing or maintenance company already saved in the admin area. To keep track of costs, every new request requires approval from the location manager first.

The employee handles the request independently, ensures the responsible parties are present on the day of the order, and manages the entire workflow themselves. Ultimately, the administrator only needs to approve the request and assign it to the correct cost center.

Case 2

A major meeting is coming up. A new contract partner is visiting in person with several representatives. You want the visit to run smoothly and be as comfortable as possible. Using the room booking system, you create a new booking as the admin.

You add all the necessary employees and also want to arrange for light catering. Due to the large number of people, you also need to reconfigure the seating in the meeting rooms. The meeting is scheduled to start at 9 a.m.

You add two service bookings to the room reservation: one for catering with 10 pretzels at 8:45 AM. The seating arrangement should be handled the evening before, so you adjust the time for this request accordingly and schedule the company for 5:30 PM the previous day.

With one click, you make the room booking, inform all participating employees, and commission both service providers at the same time. The meeting is now fully prepared and documented in Flexopus, keeping you in complete control.

‍

Benefits of Catering & Facility Services

Integrating catering and facility services into your workplace management system offers numerous advantages. Flexopus allows you to use this feature seamlessly and integrate it intuitively into your daily work routine:

• App Integration:

Bookings can also be made and managed via the user area in the Flexopus Android and iOS app.

• Keep an Eye on Costs:

With order limits and cost center assignments, you can keep track of all expenses, even when multiple people are booking.

• User-Friendliness:

The booking process is consistent with existing workflows, meaning the feature can be used by everyone immediately.

• Multifunctional:

There are multiple ways to make bookings, and all required services can be defined according to your specific needs.

• Provider Management:

The list view of all service providers allows for easy access and a clear overview.

• Building assignment:

Providers can be assigned to specific buildings. This ensures that bookings are only made where intended.

• Categories:

Orderable products can be organized into categories to keep the ordering process as simple and efficient as possible.

• GDPR compliant:

As with all Flexopus products and services, data is processed in Germany in strict accordance with GDPR and ISO27001 standards.

Fazit

With Flexopus, companies can manage their catering and facility services simply and efficiently without losing control. Integrating these services into the workplace management system enables seamless planning and organization of external service providers – whether for meetings, events, or daily tasks. Thanks to the user-friendly interface, flexible customization, and full transparency regarding orders and costs, administrative effort remains minimal while the quality of services is always guaranteed. Flexopus not only contributes to smooth office operations but also ensures that every detail, from booking to billing, is handled professionally and to the highest quality standards.