How the City of Burkburnett Modernized Work Order Management with ArcGIS Field Maps Tasks

In the previous article, we explored how ArcGIS Field Maps Tasks is emerging as a modern alternative to traditional workforce management systems as organizations move beyond legacy ArcGIS Workforce deployments.

While many agencies are still evaluating how to make this transition, the City of Burkburnett has already implemented a fully task-based work management system using ArcGIS Field Maps and ArcGIS Experience Builder.

The goal was to create a modern, connected system that improves coordination between office staff and field crews while providing supervisors with real-time operational visibility.

Understanding the City’s Needs

The City of Burkburnett required a single, centralized platform to manage field operations. The requirements were straightforward:

• Office staff needed to assign and track work efficiently
• Field crews needed a simple mobile experience to receive and complete tasks
• Supervisors needed real-time visibility into ongoing work

The underlying priority was clear: reduce operational complexity rather than add to it.

Building a Flexible Task Foundation

At the core of the solution was a task-enabled feature layer in ArcGIS Field Maps, which served as the operational backbone for all work management activities.

While Field Maps provides standard task fields out of the box, the City extended the data model to better reflect real-world operations. Additional fields were introduced to support:

• Task identification and tracking
• Priority and urgency levels
• Assignment details
• Work categories
• Notes and attachments
• Location-based context

This combination of standard and extended fields created a flexible foundation capable of supporting a wide range of workflows across departments.

Simplifying Field Work with Task Layouts

Task layouts and actions in ArcGIS Field Maps introduce structure into field workflows that would otherwise require manual updates across multiple fields. Without this structure, field users are often required to navigate complex forms and update several attributes during each step of a job, which can slow down work and lead to inconsistent data.

To address this, the solution uses task layouts to guide the field experience through a set of predefined actions.

Each action is designed to automatically update the required fields in the background, allowing users to focus on completing the work itself rather than managing the data model.

The most common actions include:

• Start Work
• Complete Task
• Add Notes
• Capture Photo

Each action triggers updates such as status changes, timestamps, and attribute tracking automatically.

The next section outlines how these layouts are configured in ArcGIS Field Maps

Configuring Task Layouts in Field Maps

Although it may appear complex initially, the setup follows a simple and repeatable process:

1. Open Field Maps Designer
2. Select the map and task-enabled layer
3. Open the Tasks tab
4. Select Add Layout
5. Enter a layout name
6. Assign the task status
7. Save the layout

Adding Actions to a Layout

Once a layout is created, actions are configured to define the user workflow:

1. Open the layout
2. Add actions from the Layout Elements pane
3. Configure action name and icon
4. Define field updates
5. Configure visibility rules if needed
6. Save the action
7. Repeat for additional actions
8. Arrange actions in the desired order
9. Set a Primary Action
10. Save the layout

The Primary Action plays a key role in simplifying the user experience by automating common updates such as status changes and timestamp recording.

Example: In Progress Layout

The In Progress layout includes:

• Pause (sets status to Paused)
• Finish Task (sets status to Completed)
• Manual: Notes
• Manual: Take Photo

This configuration enables field staff to pause, complete, and document work directly within a single interface.

You may notice that the layout elements only expose actions that are relevant and complementary to the current task stage. This reduces the chance of incorrect actions and guides users through the intended workflow. In practice, this proved to be one of the most important design decisions in the entire implementation.

This approach is repeated across all task statuses, ensuring a consistent and structured experience for field users.

A Better Field Experience

With task layouts in place, ArcGIS Field Maps becomes a complete field operations tool rather than just a mapping application.

Field crews can:

• Receive assignments
• Update task status with a single tap
• Capture photos and notes in the field
• Operate entirely within one mobile application

By reducing manual updates and eliminating the need to switch between tools, the system improves both speed and data consistency in field operations.

A Centralized Dispatcher Experience

To support office operations, the City created a custom dispatcher application using ArcGIS Experience Builder.

Rather than creating separate applications for each department, a single unified dispatcher interface was developed. This reduced administrative overhead and provided a consistent operational experience across the organization.

Role-Based Access Control

Access is managed through ArcGIS groups and roles:

• Dispatchers are assigned to department-specific groups
• Access to data is controlled through permissions
• Arcade expressions dynamically filter content based on user context

This ensures users only interact with work relevant to their responsibilities while maintaining a shared system architecture.

What Dispatchers Can Do Now

The Experience Builder application provides a complete operational view of field activity, including:

• Creating and assigning work orders
• Viewing tasks on an interactive map
• Tracking real-time field updates
• Monitoring workload distribution
• Identifying high-priority work

Dispatchers use the Experience Builder interface to create and assign work directly from the map or a centralized work list. A dispatcher can select a feature on the map, open a task form, and assign it to a crew in a single step. Once submitted, the task is immediately visible in ArcGIS Field Maps for field staff. 

Supervisors also benefit from dashboards that provide visibility into active work, completed tasks, and resource utilization.

What We Learned Along the Way

Since this was one of our first ArcGIS Field Maps Tasks implementations, a few key lessons stood out during the project. 

• Start with real workflows: Understanding how work is actually performed is more important than the technology itself.

• Keep field workflows simple: The most effective workflows minimize user interaction and maximize automation.

• Centralize where it makes sense: A single dispatcher interface reduces complexity and improves consistency.

• Let GIS drive operations: Spatial context improves decision-making for dispatchers, supervisors, and field crews while reducing manual intervention.

Results and Impact

The City of Burkburnett now operates a centralized, GIS-powered work management system that connects office staff and field crews in real time.

Key outcomes include:

• Faster assignment and completion of work
• Improved communication between teams
• Better operational visibility for supervisors
• Increased transparency through public-facing maps that keep residents informed about ongoing work
• A scalable framework for future growth
  

The City of Burkburnett's implementation demonstrates how ArcGIS Field Maps Tasks can be used to build a modern work management system that is both flexible and scalable. By focusing on streamlined workflows, automated actions, and centralized operations, the City created a foundation that can continue to evolve as operational needs change.