Company says its photo and video-based app can help reduce contact between technicians and customers.

XOi Technologies have made access to their Vision app free to new customers until September 1 in an effort to support the service sector during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Lockdowns

With lockdowns being implemented globally alongside initiatives such as social distancing the number of physical service calls are being reduced. It means the use of remote technology in the sector is becoming more prominent.

XOi’s cloud-based application uses Vision uses photo and video documentation with real-time remote video support which the firms says can cut down customer and engineer interactions.

“Going completely remote simply isn’t an option for the field service industry, where site visits are just part of the job,” XOi’s CEO Aaron Salow said. “But with technology like ours, it’s possible to reduce the face-to-face interactions that technicians experience on calls. By offering wider access to XOi, we feel like we’re doing our part to keep the industry we serve engaged, connected, and productive during a difficult period.”

As the virus takes a firmer hold on infrastructure Salow hoped the decision to offer their technology free of charge would affirm the wellbeing of the company’s community. “Our top priority is the health and safety of our own employees, workers in the contracting industry, and our customers and partners,” he said. “These are difficult circumstances for the communities we serve. We see an opportunity to reach out to them and offer something that can help their team members and customers stay safe while also supporting their businesses during a period of financial strain.”

 

For details on the offer, visit http://www.xoi.io/xoi-offer/ contact Nick Hughes at nhughes@xoi.io for further information.

Louise Robertson from Localz outlines some of the challenges the mobile workforce face during the pandemic and ways of negating its impact.

 

Covid-19 means we are living in an extraordinary time; we are hyper-aware of who we are interacting with on a day-to-day basis. This is further heightened by the need to reduce the number of people we connect within the real world. Human movement has been restricted to assist with #flattenthecurve.

Essential services must continue to function and mobile workers need to keep the infrastructure working. Roadside assistance, plumbers fixing broken heating and boilers, electricians restoring power, utility personnel performing essential maintenance, healthcare workers attending to in-home patients, and deliveries of everyday essentials.

Confinement is rapidly altering consumer expectations, activities, and motivations, this will impact the customer perception of different brands in different ways. (Day 3 and I am crawling the walls of my home office) Keep in mind you have an opportunity to excel (or fail) because customer expectations are high now with so much emotion and uncertainty.

 

The delivery of service and products has changed 

Everyone is brainstorming isolated customer scenarios to build a customer-centric approach in the face of Covid19. Consider:

Changes to customer needs and journeys

There is no longer ‘business as usual.’ Customer awareness, concern, and reaction to the virus is rapidly shifting expectations and needs. Growing government restrictions will impact customer demands.

Be proactive now with information for customers

Over-communicate with customers and employees who are concerned and demanding information. Use agile, personalised daily communications to keep teams updated, protected and positive.

Put the isolated customer at the centre of your plan. Address how you can help customers keep themselves safe in this pandemic and address their concerns and fears. Conveying what your brand is doing to ensure a safe service or shopping experience in physical locations can earn trust (and business).

Information that will reassure customers can include:

• Advance identification of the mobile worker sent to the consumer: photo, name, vehicle registration number, relevant licence credentials, and even body temperature readings.
• Pre-arrival information, job details, accurate ETAs, and tracking maps that update in real-time. The customer can be prepared to socially distance themselves.
• Real-time two-way communications between the mobile worker and the consumer enabling contactless property access and sharing of last-minute details.
• The issuing of unique one-time PINs enables deliveries and service appointments to be authorised, approved and completed in a contactless manner as there is no need for any physical contact or signing on a device.
• For product deliveries ‘to the doorstep’, customers can advise a safe place, can track precise arrival, and can be notified of delivery completion - helping to reduce concerns about goods being left outdoors.

Communication in action

You can proactively collect feedback from customers in real-time to monitor how your field team is coping.

How your brand responds to questions like this will vary wildly based on your category. Reviewing the tone of your marketing and communications plans at this time is important. You have to pull planned communications which are out of sync with the crisis. (Cruise offers and restaurant experiences)

Gartner says, "Listen to your customers": CX and customer insight leaders are in a better position than others in the organization to understand how customer needs and expectations are swiftly changing.

Real-Time Feedback

Attitudes and perceptions will change very rapidly, so it will be essential to establish real-time feedback monitoring and reporting. People who were not taking the virus seriously a week ago are doing so today. Simply put, month-old data on customer attitudes and perceptions of your service may as well be decade-old data. Have full visibility of your mobile workers to keep abreast of changes that may occur day-to-day in the coming weeks and months.

Where your brand depends on real-world delivery of products and services plan...

• How you will serve customers if those are curtailed?
• Will you need to implement testing or provide masks to customers?
• How will you deal with customers who exhibit symptoms? Must your employees in every location understand and interact with local health officials?
• How can you use communications to support people who are quarantined?
• Can you shift to contactless digital delivery of field services?
  
  

Answers to these questions are not easy since they involve issues of product, logistics, inventory, supply chain, and operations. These questions are not only relevant for brands in the most immediately affected categories, like health products and travel. These questions can and will impact your customers and your brands in the coming months.

Resources are shifting as companies change their focus from solving broken touchpoints to addressing distinct and urgent customer needs and flexing to address severe operational, manufacturing, or logistics issues. Under normal conditions, CX leaders fight to secure and keep resources, but in the coming months, their ability to use customer insight to inform urgent decisions and support shifts in priorities will be more important than maintaining a steady course.

“In this extraordinary period of time, it has never been more important to address the fears of consumers who are literally locked in and worried about everyone they interact with. Reassuring them with frequent communication so they know exactly who to expect, the steps you’ve taken to keep them safe, precisely when you’ll arrive and enabling them to communicate their precise instructions for access is not just important, it’s vital. Without this, you may well find you’re locked out.”

(Tim Andrew, Co-Founder, CEO Localz)

NB This article was inspired by an article from Augie Ray of Gartner which you can read here. 

---

Take a look at these videos to see how Localz is helping during the pandemic in terms of communication, feedback and team visibility.

 

Members' community release content covering forecasting, scheduling and flexibility to help companies plan during outbreak.

Business community The Forum have introduced a suite of free digital modules to help businesses with continuity throughout the Covid-19 pandemic.

Virtual collaboration

The content, packaged as as series of learning academy modules, webinars and a virtual collaboration, will cover homeworking strategies, forecasting, scheduling and flexibility

The programme began yesterday (24 March) and concludes on 16 April with a networking call for members to share experiences.

Paul Smedley, Founder and Chair of The Forum hopes the content can strengthen business' resolve during this period. "It’s during times like this when you need to remember you are part of a community of best practice, so don’t be alone. The Forum is your friendly, safe environment for sharing ideas, top tips and pitfalls to avoid.

"In this time of uncertainty its important that we collaborate and work together, bringing together ideas and use this time as an opportunity to learn and continue to raise standards."

AI firm join list of firms offering free usage of tools during pandemic.

RevTwo have made their AI-powered tool Navigator free of charge for the remainder of 2020 to support field service firms during the Covid-19 outbreak.

 

Avoid call-outs

The Navigator tool uses AI, which the firms says, enables technicians, call center agents and machine operators to resolve service issues faster. It comes at a time when large-scale social distancing and self-isolation means engineers are having to find different ways to complete tasks while avoiding call-outs.

"We believe that empowering end-users to resolve issues can help service and support teams in many important ways," a statement from the company explained. "Especially in these uncertain times, helping service techs avoid making some site visits is even more important."

The outfit have joined an array of companies offering their resources to the service sector during the pandemic including ServiceMax, Augmentir and Safeture.

"COVID-19 will be beaten with the cooperation of millions of hands doing their part," Dale Calder, RevTwo's CEO and Founder urged. "In that spirit, we have decided to make RevTwo Navigator free for customer self-service for the rest of 2020."

Navigator is available today on the Apple Store. You can download it here. Android support will be available March 30.

Fleet solutions provider give free access to SmartFlow Driver and Subcontractor Management Apps during pandemic.

Microlise has announced it will be making its SmartFlow driver and workflow management app free of charge to existing customers.

The app will be provided free of charge for the duration of the Coronavirus crisis, both to customers not currently using SmartFlow, and to those customers who already use the application, with any increase beyond typical usage incurring no additional charges.

Easing Supply Chain Pressure

The announcement comes as increased levels of consumer buying, fuelled by Covid-19, adds pressure to a supply chain which is already at operating at a high-level. Furthermore, these heightened levels are expected to continue for longer than traditional peak periods.

SmartFlow, the firms says, is a simple mobile application that supports customers to track the location of temporary or third-party drivers, manage tasks, workflows and communications, and collect proof of delivery information. Users are able to provide the App to subcontractors or contract-based drivers, with set-up taking just minutes, with all the collected data feeding directly into the Microlise solution in place.

Commenting Nadeem Raza, Microlise CEO said: “Our customers are depending on our mission-critical systems as never before. We are doing all we can to support their efforts and have identified SmartFlow as a valuable support tool in the current climate. SmartFlow will allow our customers to add additional capacity, secure in the knowledge that they can manage the operational impact in an efficient, effective and transparent way. We are working closely with our customers during this time to proactively identify areas where Microlise can provide additional support - SmartFlow is just one offering that can be quickly deployed to support operators who need to bring additional drivers on-stream.”

Lightweight, fully rugged device optimises mobile productivity in a wide range of demanding industrial field environments...

Getac has announced the launch of the ZX70 G2, a fully rugged, highly portable tablet that’s purpose built to boost productivity and decrease downtime for mobile field professionals in the utilities, manufacturing and transport & logistics (T&L) sectors.

The ZX70 G2 builds on the proven track record of Getac’s popular ZX70 tablet, bringing fully rugged design, next generation connectivity and powerful computing performance together in a lightweight and compact design. The result is a mobile device that’s both highly reliable, and easy to operate over long periods, in environments ranging from the factory/warehouse floor to remote outdoor facilities and assets.

The ZX70 G2 features a powerful Android OS and innovative Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 660 platform which offers fast computing alongside low power consumption, meaning users can work for longer between charges – an essential requirement for effective field work. Inbuilt next generation Wi-Fi and Bluetooth functionality keeps workers connected, while the powerful 8MP/12MP front/rear cameras make it easy to accurately document activity and receive remote expert support whenever required.

The ZX70 G2 also features the very latest MIL-STD-810H certification, ensuring it can easily stand up to the demands of modern field usage. This includes updated vibration resistance - an essential requirement for in-vehicle usage in the T&L sector where devices must remain fully operational during long trips over rough terrain.

“With the Getac ZX70 G2, we’ve taken one of our most popular rugged tablets and improved it in nearly every way to create a highly versatile new device that’s perfectly suited to life in the field,” says Chris Bye, President, Getac UK Ltd. “When working in challenging environments like those found in the utilities, manufacturing and T&L industries, workers need devices they can rely on regardless of location, weather conditions or time of day. The ZX70 G2 is purpose built to deliver just that, helping them get the job done as efficiently as possible.”

The ZX70 G2 comes with Getac’s three-year bumper-to-bumper warranty, covering accidental damage as standard, providing workers with the confidence to operate anywhere with peace of mind.

Helps reduce development time of custom apps from months to weeks or days and effectively manages digital transformation projects...
Panasonic has announced TOUGHBOOK Omnia, powered by MCL, a complete end-to-end mobile enterprise software solution for Panasonic TOUGHBOOK customers. The professional service helps businesses reduce time to market for custom line-of-business software applications and helps to effectively deliver digital transformation projects. It offers consultation, hardware, software, integration and support to deliver immediate visible productivity improvements across the mobile workforce.
“Managing software applications across multiple platforms and operating systems can be complex,” explains Jon Tucker, General Manager Solutions and Engineering for Panasonic TOUGHBOOK Europe. “Traditionally organisations manage a diverse range of mobile IT devices, form factors and operating systems, operating a very siloed approach. Ensuring everything is integrated and kept up to date across all hardware and software platforms can be costly and time-consuming.”
“TOUGHBOOK Omnia is a cost-effective, end-to-end software solution approach from Panasonic, that can future-proof and greatly speed-up custom application development and maintenance cycles for mobile business operations.”

Integration provides fleet operators with engine filter performance data in real time from within the Geotab platform...

Geotab, a global leader in IoT and connected transportation, and Donaldson, a global leader in the filtration industry, recently announced a new integration that will enable Geotab customer’s to utilize Donaldson’s wireless Filter Minder® monitoring system. A first-of-its-kind remote, wireless filter-monitoring system for trucks and heavy-duty equipment, Filter Minder provides real time engine filter performance data to help fleet operators optimize vehicle maintenance and improve productivity.
Wirelessly monitoring the condition of truck engine air filters, Filter Minder provides customers with visibility into the remaining life of engine air filters, plus additional performance data. Seamlessly integrating with the Geotab platform, which is utilized by more than 500,000 class 6, 7 and 8 trucks across North America, the Donaldson Filter Minder system works in tandem with a fleet’s telematics solution to help businesses save money through optimized filtration maintenance.
“With the cost of fleet ownership continually rising, we intentionally set out to offer a simple solution for fleet managers with visionary companies like Geotab to help optimize fleets,” said Nate Zambon, Director of the Donaldson Filter Minder product line. “By integrating our Filter Minder solution into the Geotab platform, fleets can now receive Donaldson’s comprehensive filter analytics along with the most advanced telematics data—from their laptop or mobile device—to help lower overall cost of ownership and improve individual vehicle or fleetwide maintenance processes and performance.”
Recently introduced, the Donaldson Filter Minder system utilizes a vehicle’s telematics system to send filter performance data to the cloud through wireless sensors and receivers and provides predictive analytics that inform fleet managers when filters are approaching the end of their optimal life.
“As a global company committed to optimizing fleet management at every level, Geotab is proud to join forces with a dynamic collaborator that shares our vision for a truly connected fleet,” says Scott Sutarik, VP Commercial Vehicle Solutions at Geotab. “Integration with Donaldson will enable Geotab to continue its mission to equip its customers with the most advanced telematics solutions, while helping us innovate for a cleaner future.”

 

A Field Service News' favourite, Cheryl-Anne Sanderson, joins Mark Glover for our latest podcast bringing ideas around networking, perception and nurturing young talent. 

It's been nearly a year since Cher made her debut on the Field Service Podcast. Since then a career move, a successful presentation at last year's FSN Connect, not to mention a well-deserved place in FSN's top 20 service individuals - the FSN20, has made the last 12 months, by her own admission, rather crazy. Yet despite the madness she has still found time to contribute thought-pieces for us on reframing networking and to make a second appearance on the podcast on nurturing young talent.

Cher's belief in guiding the next generation of leaders in service and FM remains undiminished and has possibly got stronger. She shares with us process her firm is undertaking when guiding through young, new recruits; and ponders if anything has changed around the perception of our sectors, a key metric when attracting new talent. She also explores some of the ideas raised in her article about networking.

As ever, it's a fascinating listen from one of the strongest most forward thinking voices in the sector. Listen now!

You can listen to Cher's previous podcast for us here and you can reach out to her on LinkedIn here.