Short answer

Add the contractor as a user on your account (a Field Operative is the usual role, or a shared company login where a firm sends different people), then assign the jobs to them. They complete each job on the mobile app with a photo, so instead of waiting for an email to say "done", you get a dated, photo-backed record against the asset. The most reliable way to make it stick is to write "log completed work in Civic.ly" into the contract or tender so it's an expectation from day one.

Detail

Contractors — grounds/grass cutters, bin-emptying firms, play-inspection contractors — are outside your own team, so the goal is oversight and evidence, not micromanagement.

1. Add them as a user. A Field Operative role lets them see and complete the tasks assigned to them without changing your wider setup. For a firm that sends whoever is available, a single shared company login works (the same pattern councils use for a shared depot device) — the account represents the company, not one named person.

2. Assign the work to them. Assign the jobs (or a routine's sub-tasks) to the contractor's account so the work lands on their task list. If you don't own the asset (e.g. verges or car parks owned by the principal authority that you maintain anyway), you can still model it and assign jobs to it — that builds a defensible record of the work you or your contractor did.

3. Require proof at completion. When the contractor completes a job on the app they can attach a photo and, where a checklist is attached, record a condition (e.g. a grass-height or bin-fullness reading). That timestamp-plus-photo is the evidence trail — it replaces chasing an email and answers "did they actually do it, and when?"

4. Make it contractual. The single biggest predictor of a contractor sticking with it is putting it in the tender / contract: "assigned work is logged and signed off in Civic.ly." Set that expectation before the contract starts rather than asking a firm to change habits mid-term.

Watch-outs

  • A shared login attributes every completion to that one account — fine for "the company did it", but you won't see which individual did which job. Use per-person accounts if that matters.
  • Give them only what they need. A Field Operative should see their assigned work, not your whole account; check the role scope before handing over a login.
  • You still own the schedule. The contractor completes tasks; you (or a supervisor) set up the routine/jobs and assign them. A contractor account isn't an admin.
  • Some third-party assets aren't yours to fix — log those as jobs/defects with the responsible company in the title so the record is clear when you report it back to them.