End-to-end analysis of Clearstory's product architecture mapped against the T&M Work Orders & Change Order Log specs, with coverage gaps and recommended enhancements.
| Field | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Project Title | Yes | Picker with search + "Create New" inline. Projects have: title, job number, contract value, customer info, address, team members |
| Cost Code | No | Free text |
| T&M Tag Title | Yes | Short title for the tag |
| Description of Work | Yes | Rich text editor: bold, italic, underline, ordered/unordered lists, indent, clear formatting |
| Dates of Work Performed | Yes | Multi-date picker with green pill chips, "+" to add, "×" to remove |
| Customer Reference Number | No | Free text |
| Photos & Documents | No | 0/50 limit. Camera, Photo Library, Files (JPEG, PNG, PDF). Separate Photos and Documents sections |
| Column | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Worker Name / Description | Yes | "Add Worker" picker from imported labor rates, or manual entry |
| Qty of Workers | Yes | Numeric, defaults to 1 |
| Date of Work | No | Per-row date picker (for multi-day tags) |
| Straight Time (hrs) | No | Decimal hours |
| Overtime (hrs) | No | Decimal hours |
| Double Time (hrs) | No | Decimal hours |
| Premium Time (hrs) | No | Decimal hours |
| Premium OT (hrs) | No | Decimal hours (scrolls right) |
| Section | Columns | Add Options |
|---|---|---|
| Materials | Material Name*, Unit of Measure*, Qty of Unit* | "Select Materials" (from project list), "Add Blank Row", "Bulk Edit" (paid only) |
| Equipment | Equipment Name*, Pieces of Equipment*, Unit of Measure | "Select Equipment" (from project list), "Add Blank Row", "Bulk Edit" (paid only) |
| Component | Details |
|---|---|
| Summary View | All info fields read-only + Labor/Material/Equipment/Other tables with totals |
| "Other" Category | 4th line-item type: Other Name*, Qty of Other*, Unit of Measure*, Qty of Unit |
| Preview Tag | In-app PDF rendering with full layout: header, info, line items, T&C, signature blocks |
| Self-Signature | Touch canvas, timestamp: "Signed by [Name] on [Date] at [Time] [TZ]" |
| Add Signer | Two modes: "Select a Signer" (search existing) or "Add a Signer" (name, email, company, type) |
| Signer Type | Radio: Optional or Required |
| Signing Order | Toggle to enforce sequential signing |
| Email Message | Custom message included in signature request email |
| Send Signed Copy | Distribution list for completed signed document |
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Draft | Created but not submitted/signed |
| Pending | Submitted, awaiting signature(s) |
| Signed | All required signatures collected |
| Disputed | Customer disputes the tag |
| Void | Cancelled/voided |
| Converted | Converted to Change Order Request |
| Feature | Details | UIS-20 Relevance |
|---|---|---|
| CN Types | Pricing Request CN, Authorize T&M Work Downstream CN | Out of Scope |
| File Attachments | Unlimited file size (drawing packages, bulletins) | Out of Scope |
| Tracking | See which subs opened email, downloaded files | Out of Scope |
| Reminders | One-click bulk reminders to non-responding subs | Out of Scope |
| Cost Forecasting | Enter estimate per sub; compare to actuals in real-time | Out of Scope |
| Sub Response | "No Cost Impact" (1-click) or upload/create COR | Out of Scope |
| Audit Trail | Activity feed with complete access/change history | Out of Scope |
| Appello Exclusive | Why It Matters |
|---|---|
| Equipment/Asset Module | Link WOs to specific equipment with QR codes. Full asset history and troubleshooting. Clearstory has zero asset management. |
| Scheduling Integration | Job schedule, daily schedule, user schedule, calendar scheduling. Schedule WO follow-ups. Clearstory has no scheduling. |
| Timesheet Integration | WO labor flows into timesheets for payroll. Clearstory tracks hours but has no timesheet/payroll path. |
| Job Costing & Financials | Full financial suite: budgets, SOV, progress invoicing, holdbacks, job costing reports. Clearstory only tracks COR-level amounts. |
| Custom Forms & Safety | Form builder, mobile form submission, safety forms with geolocation. Clearstory has none. |
| Training Records | Worker certifications, expiry tracking, PDF export for customer packages. Not in Clearstory. |
| Clearstory Feature | UIS-20 Spec | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| T&M Tags | |||
| 5-step mobile wizard | WO-8 | Covered | UIS-20 has 6 steps; consider merging photos into Step 1 |
| Desktop tag creation | WO-3 | Covered | Flyout form vs full-page wizard |
| T&M Log (Sent view) | WO-5 | Covered | Similar list with filters and summary panels |
| T&M Log (Received view) | — | Out of Scope | Requires multi-tenant GC/sub model |
| Rich text description editor | — | Missing | Clearstory has bold/italic/lists; add to WO-3 and WO-8 |
| Multi-date "Dates of Work" | WO-1 | Missing | Single dateOfWork in spec; add multi-date support |
| 50 photo+doc attachments | WO-8 | Partial | UIS-20 limits to 5 photos only; increase limit + add doc support |
| PDF preview before submit | — | Missing | High-value feature for field verification; add to WO-8 |
| PDF generation & branding | WO-4 | Partial | WO-4 mentions Print PDF action but no template spec |
| "Other" line-item category | — | Missing | 4th line-item type for miscellaneous items |
| Per-row dates on labor | — | Missing | Each labor row can have its own date in Clearstory |
| Rate auto-population | WO-2 | Covered | Appello uses system-wide Trade Levels; better than per-project |
| Bulk edit line items | — | Out of Scope | Clearstory gates behind paid tier; Phase 2 |
| Tag statuses (Draft→Signed→Converted) | WO-1 | Covered | UIS-20 has 7 statuses; reconcile naming |
| Customer reference number | WO-1 | Covered | Already in spec |
| Cost code assignment | WO-1 | Covered | Existing cost code system |
| Signatures | |||
| In-person touch signature | WO-3, WO-8 | Covered | Both have signature canvas |
| Required / Optional signer types | — | Missing | Clearstory distinguishes signer obligation; add to spec |
| Signing order enforcement | — | Out of Scope | Nice-to-have; defer to Phase 2 |
| Email-based remote signatures | — | Missing | Clearstory sends email with signing link; significant feature |
| Signed copy distribution | — | Missing | "Send signed copy to" email distribution list |
| Signer database (name, email, company) | — | Partial | UIS-20 captures signer name; add email + company |
| Change Order Requests | |||
| T&M → COR conversion | WO-7 | Covered | One-click conversion in both |
| T&M → Invoice generation | WO-7 | Covered | Both support invoice creation from WO |
| COR Log with statuses | WO-6 | Covered | Both have portfolio-wide CO log |
| Days aging tracking | WO-6 | Covered | statusChangedAt + avgDaysInReview |
| Contract summary (original + revised) | WO-6 | Covered | ContractSummary GraphQL type |
| PDF annotation & redline | — | Out of Scope | Browser-based PDF markup; complex feature |
| Real-time messaging per COR | — | Out of Scope | Chat-style messaging; Phase 2+ |
| COR version history | — | Out of Scope | Revision tracking |
| COR templates | — | Out of Scope | Consistency templates; Phase 2 |
| AI COR categories | — | Out of Scope | AI-powered categorization |
| Percent complete / WIP | — | Out of Scope | Work-in-place tracking |
| Backcharges | — | Out of Scope | Backcharge document creation |
| Sub-tier COR nesting | — | Out of Scope | Attach sub CORs to parent |
| Shareable COR log link | — | Out of Scope | Read-only shared view |
| Bulk COR upload | — | Out of Scope | Batch import |
| Change Notifications | |||
| CN creation & distribution | — | Out of Scope | GC-to-sub model; not applicable |
| Response tracking (opens/downloads) | — | Out of Scope | Email analytics |
| Cost forecasting vs actuals | — | Out of Scope | Budget comparison |
| Pricing deadline enforcement | — | Out of Scope | Deadline management |
| Appello Exclusives (Not in Clearstory) | |||
| Equipment / Asset module with QR codes | Existing | Exclusive | Link WOs to specific physical assets; scan QR to create WO |
| Job & daily scheduling | Existing | Exclusive | Schedule WO follow-ups and assign techs |
| Timesheet integration | Existing | Exclusive | WO labor → timesheets → payroll |
| Full financial suite (budgets, SOV, invoicing) | Existing | Exclusive | Job costing, progress invoicing, holdbacks |
| Custom forms & safety | Existing | Exclusive | Form builder, mobile submission, geolocation |
| Training records & certifications | Existing | Exclusive | Worker certs, expiry tracking, PDF packages |
Change single dateOfWork to a multi-date array with pill chips. Service work spans multiple visits. Clearstory does this with add/remove chips.
Clearstory supports 50 files including PDFs. Our limit of 5 photos is too restrictive. Support photos, PDFs, and increase to at least 30.
Clearstory's "Preview Tag" button lets the tech see the formatted document before collecting signatures. Critical for field verification and the April 15th demo.
Not in Clearstory at all. Add equipmentId FK on Job + "Create WO from Equipment" flow on both desktop and mobile. QR scan → equipment detail → create WO. This is Appello's competitive moat.
Clearstory has bold/italic/lists. Reuse existing rich text component from the Appello Forms system. Low effort, noticeable quality improvement.
Clearstory's signature model is more sophisticated: signer types, email-based collection, signed copy distribution. At minimum, add Required/Optional toggle and email delivery.
4th line-item type for items that don't fit Labor/Material/Equipment. Simple table: Name, Qty, Unit of Measure, Unit Cost. Adds flexibility.