Skilling up for Digital

Jul 07, 2020 • Features • Digital Transformation • Field Service Engineer Training • Si2 partners • Managing the Mobile Workforce

Competencies needed to get your workforce digital ready refer not only to technology, but more importantly to people’s skills. In short, Digital Transformation is less about technology and more about people writes Julia Moeller of Si2 Partners...

“Technology is always about doing more with less, yet that combination is effective only, if you pair technology with the right human skills.”

- As quoted in the recent article by Harvard Business Review: “Digital Transformation Is About Talent, Not Technology”

Why Do We Need Digitalization?

The storing and processing of data is increasingly being deployed by companies to increase productivity and/or revenue to build competitive advantage. It is not only about building technology capability, but normally leads to new ways of working.

This may lead to resistance from Service Engineers who have been in the field for decades, happy with the way things have been handled.

This makes it critical as you embark on your change programme and brief your team, that you clearly describe your reasoning, the „why“ behind new technology, explaining how it is not only a new way of working, but help them do a better job in a safer environment.

Why will this help the Field Technician to do a better job? If you as an employer can answer this question, your staff will be much more likely to be intrinsically motivated to not only carry new hardware, but also gladly use it. New hardware or new technology could mean the Field Service Engineer gets information needed for a warranty or repair job easier and faster, maybe find a sales brochure or digitally sign off service reports and new orders.

In order to best support your Field Technician, you as a company have to be set-up for digitalization as well. Not only does it include equipment and training for all staff, but also organizational support and the digitalization of internal processes. Most importantly, when using new tools, the Field Technician needs to be able to rely on it. There is nothing worse than standing in front of a broken machine, not being able to use your shiny new tool.

The answer is the organization has to think about the whole application up front (customer happy with access, HSE, connectivity etc). Often, I have found that a trial is essential in proving the solution to be workable.

Furthermore organizational support needs to go hand in hand with what is being promoted. For example for a client who wants to have documents signed digitally, the organization must have the processes and authorization that enables this process.

Concerning the necessary skillset needed for employees, according to the World Economic Forum the Future of Jobs Report states that active learning and learning strategies as well as creativity, originality and initiative will be more important in 2022 than they were in 2018. What is striking is that complex problem solving, critical thinking and analysis are becoming less important as more and more equipment has built in diagnostics and the capability for remote analysis. What we see is that behavioral skills such as using emotional intelligence to be able to sense what the customer needs, are being values which are on the rise.

Screenshot 2020-07-05 at 11.11.19 Source: Future of Jobs Survey, World Economic Forum

Another, new, skill – Technology design and programming- suddenly ranges in the top 5 for 2022, however wasn’t mentioned at all in the list of important skills for 2018. Nowadays the hard skill of coding becomes very relevant, because software is contained in all technology and devices used today.

To successfully leveraging digital tools, field technician’s competencies can be summarized in three major areas: Character, Technology and Experience.

Character; especially curiosity for learning new things and soft skills such as initiative in helping a client are important.
Technology; in particular the interaction of mechanical, electronic and control systems is becoming increasingly critical for FSEs to understand.
Experience; cannot always be substituted by training. Training and working with your team will be key to raising their proficiency in using your digital tool set. Although generation X and Y tend to be more pro digitization; what many fail to understand is that this group will still have to be trained in order to be successful in the field. The only difference between this generation and more experienced personnel is the way we train them.

The ‘modern learner’ appreciates peer-to-peer interaction and sharing experiences more than bosses preaching from the top. What is more; in order to get important information across, keep in mind the modern learner won’t watch videos longer than 4 minutes, unlocks their smartphone up to 9 times an hour and gets interrupted as often as every 5 minutes. Easy to understand, the modern learner is impatient and easily distracted. (Bersin and Deloitte)

In spite of this 80% of workforce learning happens via on the job interaction with peers, teammates and managers. Here, a clear vision is needed. This provides your team with clear expectations of the technical & behavioral skills they need to develop, and different learning options that suit the specific needs of team members. Often this leads to a personalized training matrix for each team member, which should be reviewed on a yearly basis.

In conclusion: Lead by example, share experiences, give sufficient organizational support and of course the right hardware you will give your Field Service Engineers the right competencies needed to be digital ready!

If you would like to know more about how to get your Field Service team ready for the digital age, then please contact Julia Moeller @ julia.moeller@si2partners.com

Why Field Service Must Invest in Digital Transformation

Jul 06, 2020 • Features • Digital Transformation • Salesforce

We’re at a defining moment for field service management — invest in digital transformation or risk getting left behind writes Gary Brandeleer, Senior Director of Product Management, Field Service Lightning at Salesforce...

Sketching calendars on whiteboards, managing schedules on spreadsheets, and sending mobile workers into the field with clipboards and mounds of paper forms means we’re not giving customers the same level of convenience, personalization, and connectivity in field service they receive in their daily lives. Eighty-four percent of customers say the experience a company provides is as important as its products and services, and that shift is reflective of business consumers as well.

If you’re a business consumer, you still request pick-up via a ride-sharing app, get assigned a driver instantly, see where they are on a map, receive notifications, and leave real-time feedback. The same should be true for your field service appointment.

The business world needs to catch up to what we’re experiencing as consumers. The future of field service needs to be digitally connected from your business to your customer, but transformation can’t happen overnight. So, how do you take the steps now to future-proof field service management?

Invest In YOUR Mobile Workforce

Businesses aren’t competing with products anymore — they’re competing with experiences. Delivering in-person service is a competitive differentiator because it connects your company directly with customers, establishing a relationship now and for the future. But the service experience must be streamlined: 89% of service decision-makers say the experience a customer has with a mobile worker is a reflection of their brand.

Seventy-one percent of service decision-makers are already making significant investments with improved technologies and increased headcount. Despite this prioritization, mobile workers still face challenges:

Only 50% report having access to a connected device
Nearly half (49%) still toggle between screens to complete tasks
Forty-five percent have wasted significant time because of inaccurate or outdated job information

Your mobile workforce must have access to current customer information and tasks to turn a critical, vulnerable moment with a customer into an opportunity for loyalty.

In the next section, we’ll discuss how an investment in a connected field force solution drives efficiencies and improves productivity in the field.

Leverage A Connected Field Service Solution

Digital transformation connects your entire workforce and drives consumer-like experiences. A connected workforce solution unifies customer data, from service history to communications preferences, for a complete view that’s shared across the entire field service operation. This streamlines communication with customers, drives efficiencies for dispatchers, and gives mobile workers the information they need to resolve cases faster:

Be customer first. Customers want the flexibility to self-schedule from your site or app. Self-scheduling capabilities allow customers to make, change, and update requests – just as they would schedule a pick-up with a ride-sharing app.
Automate notifications. Customers don’t want to be kept in the dark on the status of their appointment. Similar to receiving updates when their driver is nearby, customers get notifications about their mobile worker. Location tracking and artificial intelligence (AI) work together on the backend to power these automated notifications, keeping customers in the loop, and free up dispatchers from fielding calls on location status.
Intelligently schedule. Dispatchers no longer spend time searching for the next-available mobile worker based on time, skill, location, equipment and manually scheduling appointments. Through a workforce field scheduling tool with intelligent capabilities, scheduling is automated to help dispatchers ensure route optimization and on-time appointments.
Seamlessly reschedule. In the event an appointment needs to be rescheduled, a customer can make updates through an online portal, app, or on their favorite channel of communication. Dispatchers see the change as soon as it comes in and easily reassign mobile workers in the field with real-time notifications.
Empower mobility in the field. Mobile workers need the ability to understand an issue before they step on-site and communicate with the team back at the contact center. With mobile capabilities, workers in the field get visibility into current job information, schedules, inventory, tasks, and customer data from their phones. They can also log updates before, during, and after the visit and leverage offline capabilities when Wi-Fi or data is unavailable to download customer information.
Close the feedback loop. Customers easily provide feedback via your site, app, or another preferred channel on everything from whether the issue was resolved to whether their technician was polite and easy to work with.

Define Success Metrics

It’s no secret that digital transformation requires an investment in resources and technology to deliver the experiences all customers expect. To gauge whether it is working, companies can measure effectiveness against a core set of metrics:

Improved first visit resolution. When mobile workers have visibility into all pertinent customer information and tasks, they are able to get to resolutions faster. If a mobile worker is unable to resolve an issue, they can even connect with a remote expert to walk them through a resolution, decreasing the likelihood of repeat visits.
Decreased call volume. When customers have the choice to reach out through preferred channels and receive updates on their appointments automatically, call volume diminishes. Dispatchers are free to focus on top priorities and assign cases versus providing status updates.
Minimized windshield time. Workforce field scheduling reduces the time in which mobile workers spend unassigned to tasks because dispatchers have a full view of who is available in the field. For less complex cases, customers can even connect with a remote agent directly to fix an issue, minimizing truck roll.
Increased opportunity. Mobile workers can help identify new opportunities out in the field for incremental revenue. For example, if a customer has a need for a costly repair or a new part, a mobile worker can walk them through their options and next steps.
Improved customer satisfaction. A connected solution puts the customer first, from the minute they schedule an appointment to the moment a mobile worker walks out the door. By putting in place the capability to receive feedback directly from customers, you’ll know firsthand what the experience was like and gather the information you need to improve processes and training.

The future of field force management is now. If you’re ready to take the steps to future-proof your field service operation, learn how to connect your entire workforce with Field Service Lightning.

IFS Study: IT Project Failures Result In 2-3 Year Recovery Period

Jul 03, 2020 • News • Digital Transformation • IFS • Covid-19 • Market Research

Of decision-makers that experienced a digital transformation project failure, 25% experienced financial loss alongside a number of other damaging implications.

While today’s macro-economic disruption has failed to dampen digital transformation plans, when diving deeper into the ramifications surrounding project success and failure, the need to get transformation ‘right’ becomes imperative, according to a global research study from IFS .

THE long-term impact Of it project failure

While 58 percent of respondents plan to increase digital transformation spending, it’s the numbers surrounding the success of previous projects that demonstrate the severity of getting it ‘wrong’. The research highlights the long-term implications of IT project failure, with 34 percent of all respondents expressing it took two to three years to recover from project failure and 92 percent stating it took more than a year. Under the weight of today’s macro-economic pressures, businesses simply don’t have that amount of time to waste.

The reality is that, when IT programs fail, executive heads roll. The impact can be hard and long-lasting with damage felt across UK respondents in areas such as reduced headcount (20 percent), loss of customers (24 percent), financial loss (25 percent) and a loss of market share (23 percent). The latter results were consistent across the six global regions with a quarter experiencing both loss of customers and financial loss.

Those in the UK that experienced failures also experienced negative impacts including complete shutdowns of critical business departments (18 percent). The fear of failure impacted subsequent projects too, 26 percent were deterred from investing in similar projects, and half (46 percent) had budgets cut in other areas. In the face of COVID-19 recovery, and with the Centre for Policy Studies ‘After the Virus’ report championing innovation as a recovery response, the repercussions of such failures could be more damaging now than ever.

"While many people might assume that respondents concerned with the current economy would pull back on technology spending, the reality is that investment is increasing..."

While reported plans to invest in digital transformation indicate businesses are being proactive in the face of disruption, data suggests that making those investments will pay off. The majority of respondents said past digital transformation projects were successful, using a number of different assessment measures. Demonstrating that the benefits outweigh the negatives, success was achieved in on-time completion (71 percent globally) and delivering expected results (53 percent across all six regions).

While many people might assume that respondents concerned with the current economy would pull back on technology spending, the reality is that investment is increasing. The survey data indicates that, during these dynamic times, plans to increase spending on digital transformation tracks closely with concerns about economic conditions disrupting the business. In fact, the survey indicates that people concerned with economic disruption were 20 percent more likely to plan increased spending on digital transformation.

“The study confirms that many companies are wisely using the global downturn to divert resources to technological renewal and innovation,” IFS Industries Senior Vice President Antony Bourne said. “As the majority of businesses are adapting to the anticipated economic recovery, and not permanently scrapping digital transformation initiatives, there is reason to believe that companies with a progressive mindset toward technology investment will be well equipped to rebound. While enterprise software will doubtlessly play a role in accelerating recovery, it is important to remember its vital role in helping companies here and now. Providing the necessary process transparency and analytics to ensure effective and informed decision-making is critical in these trying times. Nothing less than a considered and resolute attitude toward adopting digital transformation will help companies thrive, now and in the future.”

Digitalisation + Customer-Centricity: 2 Pillars of the New Normal

Jul 02, 2020 • Features • Digital Transformation • Salesforce • The Field Service Podcast • Covid-19 • michael kuebel

In the final excerpt from season 5 episode 3 of the Field Service Podcast, Lukas Fahnroth of Koenig and Bauer and Michael Kuebel of Salesforce discuss why digital transformation and customer-centricity must form the foundations of the new normal we...

Want to hear more? Head over to our podcast library @ www.fieldservicenews.com/podcasts and look for Series Five, Episode Three 'Adaptability, Customer-Centricity and Recovery ft. Lukas Fahnroth & Michael Kuebel'

Digital Transfomation Must Simplify Field Service Management

Koenig and Bauer have been an example of excellence and dynamism in reacting to the Covid-19 challenges that we've all faced. Salesforce, as their technology provider were also instrumental in allowing them to make that shift. But the digital transformation for Koenig and Bauer had happened a long time ago, which is part of the reason why they were so agile and nimble and reactive in the first place.

However, one of the things that really came to the fore when Koenig and Bauer's Lukas Fahnroth and Salesforce's Michael Kuebel joined us on the Field Service Podcast was also the importance of customer centricity.

It was interesting during that conversation to see a number of areas echoed that have become something of a recurring theme emerging from the examples of companies that were able to ride the wave of turmoil we have all faced.

"It's not just making sure that your employees are safe, but also making sure that this partnership between a company and the employees is a steady one and that is a good partnership..."

- Lukas Fahnroth, Koenig and Bauer.

For example, we have seen a simple dual focus amongst companies towards customer centric thinking and providing a safe operating environment for our employees and our customers as well.

In many ways we have perhaps had to condense our thinking into these more simplified, less complex kind of thought processes. Empowerment is another of these themes that keeps returning to the top of the discussion - especially in the field service role itself. We have seen a lot of autonomy being given towards the engineers. Of course, what is empowering them to do that and to have that degree of autonomy in the field is the flow of data brought about by digital transformation and platforms such as Salesforce's Field Service Lightning.

At the heart of the matter, this is what digitalisation is really all about. Taking away unnecessary complexity and facilitating better decision making by making the processes we undertake simpler and more effective.

"It is really [providing] the simplification towards those partnerships," comments Lukas Fahnroth of Koenig and Bauer. "It's not just making sure that your employees are safe, but also making sure that this partnership between a company and the employees is a steady one and that is a good partnership. I think what we'll see after the crisis to stay is the fact that those partnerships with internal and external stakeholders will really become the most relevant business goal."

What will recovery from Covid-19 look like? (Podcast Highlights)

Jun 30, 2020 • Features • Digital Transformation • Salesforce • The Field Service Podcast • Covid-19 • michael kuebel • customer centricity

One company that stood as something of a beacon for the many of us in the field service sector struggling in the face of the global lockdowns was Koenig and Bauer, whose agile mindset allowed them to adapt quickly to the situation. In this excerpt from the Field Service Podcast, Koenig and Bauer's Lukas Fahnroth and Michael Keubel of Salesforce discuss what recovery might look like for field service companies and how we can get there.

Want to hear more? Head over to our podcast library @ www.fieldservicenews.com/podcasts and look for Series Five, Episode Three 'Adaptability, Customer-Centricity and Recovery ft. Lukas Fahnroth & Michael Kuebel'

A NEW NORMAL OF AGILITY FOR THE FIELD SERVICE INDUSTRY

In many ways it is our collective responsibility now to ensure that after all of the challenges we've faced and all of the heartbreaks people have seen across the last few months, we grasp the nettle and hold on tightly to the good that has come from the global lockdowns.

There is a lot of talk about the recovery but what exactly should that look like and how do we get there? How can we use the last few months as a catalyst for embarking on an ongoing continuous improvement journey? What does the conversation look like now in terms of the conversations you're having with customers? Is there a specific strategy or approach we must adopt as we look towards recovery and how you help your customers' customers as well?

"One of the important things that happened during the crisis for us was that we've extended a lot of the digital offerings we've had in place. We've improved on them in many instances" says Lukas Fahnroth, Koenig and Bauer. "So the conversation for us currently revolves around further extending those actions we've taken and also keeping them in place, even if the crisis disappears. For example, for the hotline services, we've extended the video support calls. A lot of the offerings we've put out there, like the customer community with the analytics functionality, is really something that our customers have got used to, and that we at Koenig and Bauer now see as essential. So we're going to see a lot of those actions stay in place and keep this digital innovation momentum in place in order to further develop our digital strategy, even after the crisis disappears."

As Fahnroth alludes, the digital acceleration of the last few months has been dramatic, not just for Koenig and Bauer, who were already on the path very much anyway, but for many, many other companies. In essence we've already begun the process of building a new normal and that new normal is much more digital centric than what came before.

"Salesforce is offering help here. Using our own platform, we have created a new product suite that we call work.com, which is the probably the first product on the market for organising reopening of businesses and especially addressing these topics..."

-Michael Kuebel, Salesforce

"We can split the Covid-19 crisis into three phases that we see," explains Michael Kuebel, Salesforce.

"One is the fact that most of us have been stabilising and gone through a process to make sure we keep operations running, and I think Koenig and Bauer is a brilliant example of that. We have other clients in many industries that cope very well with stabilising but now they're going to the next phase which is a reopening phase, which also needs a different type of effort, and that is a muscle we haven't yet trained.

"We need to organise a safe return to the workplace by making sure that we don't overfill our offices. We must make sure that we can trace contacts of people in case somebody gets a positive test result, then you can trace back and understand who they met with, allowing you to inform customers to make sure you don't spread the virus any further, keeping transparency.

"Salesforce is offering help here. Using our own platform, we have created a new product suite that we call work.com, which is the probably the first product that is on the market for organising reopening and especially addressing these topics.

"The last phase, once we're all out of the crisis, is going to be continuing the growth path. When we look at the capabilities and the success factors, we feel that leadership in the crisis, out of the crisis and after the crisis is paramount. Lucas was very eloquently elaborating that people, employees, customers and society are watching carefully what leaders are doing and what their priorities are.

"Customer engagement is a super important pillar. Empowerment of people is something that I think is here to stay. And last but not least, business agility. Agility is easily said but difficult to do, especially when you look at Manufacturing. My background is Manufacturing and when it's about products and safety, excellence and perfection is the ultimate goal. Now suddenly, with agility, speed is the ultimate goal.

"I think customers have quickly become used to some new experiences and services. I think that mindsets have changed and if you then have platforms and the right tools, this can enable agility to meet these new mindsets. I think that's here to stay and this will be the muscle that we train today that we will use in the future to establish growth."

The Importance of Being Close to Your Customers at Times of Crisis

Jun 25, 2020 • Features • Digital Transformation • Salesforce • The Field Service Podcast • Covid-19 • michael kuebel • customer centricity

In this excerpt from the Field Service Podcast, Salesforce's Michael Keubel and Koenig and Bauer's Lukas Fahnroth discuss why the concept of customer-centricity was critical in being able to navigate the tricky waters of 2020.

Want to hear more? Head over to our podcast library @ www.fieldservicenews.com/podcasts and look for Series Five, Episode Three 'Adaptability, Customer-Centricity and Recovery ft. Lukas Fahnroth & Michael Kuebel'

Customer Satisfaction Has to be More than a Tick-Box Exercise in Field Service Management

In a recent episode of the Field Service Podcast, Kris Oldland, Editor-in-Chief, Field Service News was joined by Michael Kuebel of Salesforce and Lukas Fahnroth of Koenig and Bauer as the two discussed how they worked together to ensure Koenig and Bauer were able to remain resilient not only within their own business but also to be there to offer support when their customers needed them most.

One of the things that really came through in that conversation was the importance of being close to the customer and certainly Koenig and Bauer were able to ride the storm while simultaneously being a rock for their own customers during the Covid-19 lockdowns. However, even this 200 year old company was challenged by these unprecedented times. As Fahnroth explained; "We have seen a lot of innovations being supercharged at Koenig and Bauer because of the crisis and we've always been an innovative company, but Covid-19 really changed the way everything looks and has reset our goals in many, many instances."

However, despite those pressures the German printing manufacturer remained resolute and this is something that Kuebel strongly aligns with Koenig and Bauer's strong sense of importance in customer service and placing the customer at the heart of what they do.

"I get enthusiastic when I hear what Lucas is saying and when I see what Koenig and Bauer are doing. I really see the potential when I talk to customers and we have initial discussions where they want to talk about customer centricity. But sometimes I feel that service leaders can feel that customer centricity is just a buzzword - but for me, what Lukas has explained with Koenig and Bauer, you can see what customer centricity actually means. What an organisation looks like, that really puts the customer in the centre.

"This is really impressive and this is, for me, a brilliant example where customer centricity is so much more than a buzzword..."

- Michael Kuebel, Salesforce

"I was at an event earlier this year called Koenig and Bauer 4.0 and I initially thought this would be an event all about digitalisation. But it was an event where Koenig and Bauer over the course of a couple of days invited hundreds if not thousands of customers from all over the world, to bring them together and explain to them and discuss with them what Koenig and Bauer is doing on the digitalisation forefront. To explain to their customers how such changes would make their life easier and help them to make their printing production run more efficiently. It was all focused on the 'what's in it for you.'

"It was not a show of 'these are the nice features that we have' or 'aren't we an innovative company', but it was really only focused on what's in it for you. I spoke to some of Koenig and Bauer's customers that day and they were really very, very positive seeing that and seeing how much effort a company like Koenig and Bauer puts into a transformation and how they emphasise that customer success is paramount to everything that they do.

"This is really impressive and this is, for me, a brilliant example where customer centricity is so much more than a buzzword," Kuebel adds.

Kuebel's enthusiasm will surely only be mirrored by Koenig and Bauer's own customer base, who will have benefited greatly from the print manufacturer's continuing focus on customer satisfaction across all of their thinking. Indeed, as Kuebel outlines there is a world of difference between those companies who treat customer centricity as a buzz-word and those who have it etched within their DNA. It is perhaps at times of crisis that we see this the most.

As Warren Buffet would often quip "it is when the tide goes out that you see who is swimming naked.' With a 200 year pedigree based on innovation and rock solid business ethics, you can put a hefty wager that Koenig and Bauer won't be caught out by the changing tides that Covid-19 has brought us.

What are the Right Technology Investments for the Service Next Normal?

Jun 23, 2020 • Features • Digital Transformation • Technology • Covid-19

IDC's Aly Pinder discusses what the next stage of field service could be and what technology can help ride the uncertainty.

The service world, like our daily personal lives, have been greatly impacted by the past few months. Supply chains have been strained. Financial markets have seen dramatic swings in valuation. Lives have been personally changed forever. The field service operation has had to deal with all these aspects of the crisis and more.

Technology Pivoting in Service

But now that we, in some cases, can say we are past the first or second phase of this pandemic, what will be our 'next' normal? I say 'next', as I believe it would be a bit naive to think we will just have one 'new' normal as things continue to evolve at a rapid pace. From my perspective, the next normal will be a determination by service leaders and organizations as to a longer-term strategy for the next two plus years which incorporates risk assessments for future global disruptions and customer impacts and what technology and processes changes are needed.

Short-term many manufacturers and service organizations conducted stress tests and operational adjustments to ensure mission critical assets and equipment were prioritized and customers who had essential status could be provided the appropriate level of service to meet customer needs. But longer term, service leaders will need to rationalize the pre-pandemic momentum, interest, and hype around some of the technologies at the forefront of digital transformation taking field service from a manual, paper-based set of processes to the autonomous and augmented technician of the future?

IDC believes, based on some compelling data we are refreshing every two weeks, that IT spend on projects will take a bit of a dip in the coming quarters. However, some projects and investments will actually accelerate to meet the next normal that manufacturers and service organizations will face in the last part of this year and into the early part of next. For manufacturers, technologies around remote access, mobility, and enterprise social will see the biggest increase in demand.

"The expectation that every field technician has a tablet or smart glasses is a bit premature..."

This should come as no real shock to most of us, the ability to resolve issues remotely, on a mobile device, or glean knowledge through shared collaboration are a key component to keeping technicians out of harm's way or avoid missing an SLA because a customer's site cannot be accessed as a result of new protocols.

Remote access

In recent IDC Manufacturing Insight's research, just about one-third of equipment are considered IoT-connected today and therefore have a unique IP address and software within them to enable service and product performance information to be communicated over a wireless network. This percentage was only expected to rise to just under half of all equipment in three years. In order to meet the needs of remote monitoring, connectivity, and resolution investments will need to be made to accelerate these numbers of connected assets. In a post-COVID-19 world access to products and assets for the field service team will become a critical differentiator with regard to critical assets and 99%+ uptime goals.

Mobility

This may seem like a trivial investment for many readers of technology publications but a number of large, mid-size, and small organizations still work in a world of paper or manual processes. The expectation that every field technician has a tablet or smart glasses is a bit premature. But the need to have real or near-real time data at one's finger tips to make split second decisions will be an opportunity for service organizations over the coming months and quarters. Inefficient and manual processes and the delays they lead to won't be tolerated by customers that expect to move to 100% or higher levels of production as soon as businesses can re-open.

Enterprise collaboration

Collaboration isn’t only a technology for office workers that have had the privilege of a near-seamless transition to work from home. Field technicians will need to be able to share best practices and content with their peers, customers, and the back office in ways they hadn't before. From a talent and knowledge management perspective, junior field service technicians will need to be productive quickly to meet service demand and collaborative tools can aid in democratizing knowledge.

It is easy to say we are entering a period of a new or next normal. What is hard is to forecast how dramatically this disruption will impact IT investments for service; it is clear there will be a reaction. But in the wake of this current pandemic and preparation for global events of the future, manufacturers and service organizations must ensure they can maintain a level of quality service their customers demand even when access, data, or physical technicians isn't available. The optimist in me believes we will come out of this with a new-found strategy around technology to support our daily lives and our work lives. And field service won't be separate from this next normal. Stay safe and healthy.

Custom Field Service Software: Top 2020 Trends

Jun 23, 2020 • Software & Apps • News • Digital Transformation • Field Service Management Software • Synchroteam • Covid-19

These are undoubtedly unprecedented times, which have caused important changes for field service companies and the way they manage work with their custom field service software, like Synchroteam

Now that we’re already in mid-2020, it’s time to take a look back at the past six months and analyze the top trends in field service. A necessary time to take a break, reflect on what has happened so far and foresee possible effects on the remainder of 2020.

THE IMPACT OF COVID-19 IN FIELD SERVICE

Like it or not, COVID-19 is the main character in this year. The pandemic seems to be under control in some countries while some others are still facing a terrible battle against it. No matter what the current situation is in your area, the truth is that coronavirus is here to stay, at least for the time being - or until we have a reliable, safe medical treatment or vaccine.

The sanitary emergency has caused a huge impact across all industry sectors, of course and including field service. What’s more, the effects of these disruptions are expected to be deep-reach and long-term. It’s just something not even the most advanced custom field service software could have predicted.

We’ve already talked about how field service companies like yours can adapt to the new situation we’re living in 2020. In previous posts, we’ve covered important points such as keeping your technicians and customers safe, allowing working from home whenever possible, and making the most of the features included in your custom field service software to digitize all sorts of tasks.

The main takeaway of these articles, also considering the impact COVID-19 is having in the industry worldwide, is that now technology is more important than ever. While we’ve always defended the idea of a technology-based field service company, adopting the appropriate custom field service software right now can help your business communicate, operate and work through the coronavirus crisis without losing too much along the way.

IMPROVING OPERATIONS IN FIELD SERVICE

Another key element for field service companies in 2020 is optimization, especially when applied to daily tasks such as scheduling and team dispatching. Besides, these are precisely two areas in which the usage of a custom field service software can be more helpful.

When you rely on people’s memories (or just the good old pen and paper), you’re prone to mistakes. You don’t even need to be running a large company; a medium-sized team is already complicated enough to try to manage it on your own.

A proper custom field service software application can be the perfect ally in task scheduling and team dispatching. It helps you automate the whole process, thus making a better use of your time. And the more tasks you can fit in in your work hours, the more money you make - it’s as simple as that!

INVESTING IN TECHNOLOGY TO IMPROVE RESULTS

It’s not just a question of using a custom field service software in your company. In general terms, technology can help you improve many aspects in your daily business. And with the coronavirus pandemic, it has become even more important.

The adoption of tech solutions in field service means also, for instance, using mobile devices to access necessary information about your customers anytime, anywhere. Or making use of GPS devices in your vans to plan the best route to the next job - saving both time and fuel.

And what about technology in COVID-19 times? Well, think about being able to assess a customer’s HVAC installation in a video call, or sending your invoices via email in order to maintain social distance. Little changes in our daily working routines that may as well save lives!

An Example of Excellence in the Face of Adversity (podcast highlights)

Jun 23, 2020 • Features • Digital Transformation • Salesforce • The Field Service Podcast • Covid-19 • Leadership and Strategy • michael kuebel • customer centricity

Koenig and Bauer were an organisation who showed excellent agility, innovation and leadership during the pandemic. Here, Lukas Fahnroth explains how the embedded culture within the organisation helped them pivot and adapt so quickly.

Want to hear more? Head over to our podcast library @ www.fieldservicenews.com/podcasts and look for Series Five, Episode Three 'Adaptability, Customer-Centricity and Recovery ft. Lukas Fahnroth & Michael Kuebel'

Field Service Management, Driven By Customer service, Empowered by Digital Transformation

The story of Koenig and Bauer and how their early adoption of a digital transformation strategy allowed them to ride the troubling times brought on by the Covid-19 lockdowns, makes an excellent case study for what best practice can look like in field service. In a recent episode of the Field Service Podcast, Lucas Fahnroth discussed exactly what the culture was within the organisation and how they had been able to pivot during the crisis so effectively. Indeed, companies like Koenig and Bauer have led the way by showing how having an agile mindset within an organisation can be an essential component in success both in times of plenty and in times of famine.

But just how did Koenig and Bauer develop such an internal skill-set and what are the key attributes that empower them to be able to adapt so swiftly when presented with a seemingly insurmountable challenge?

Koenig and Bauer is the oldest manufacturer of printing presses in the world," Fanroth begins.

"That means we've got a 200 plus year history of constant innovation and constant pivoting, which from my standpoint has only been possible because Koenig and Bauer has constantly looked after our customers and put the customer in the centre of everything we do. The Covid-19 crisis really hit us obviously across our worldwide service operation. So it took a lot of care to work out how to deal with this in order to continue our 200 plus year success story of constant innovation and constant development.

"The way we at Koenig and Bauer see this crisis is actually as a sort of litmus test of our leadership where it really takes a clear vision in terms of not only how we see the crisis but also how we see our own role in these times of adversity and uncertainty. One thing is for certain - and that is that we will be judged by our response for years to come," Fahnroth adds.

"We've produced 100,000 face shields and are donating them as we speak. That's something internally we've done in order to give back to our community..."

- Lucas Fahnroth, Koenig and Bauer

"On the one hand we will be judged internally by our employees and also internal stakeholders, but also externally by our customers. Customer centricity means that we as a company need to be a good partner to our customers, and especially during those difficult times it's necessary to be a good partner and what we've done is to communicate this very early on to the stakeholders involved.

One of the things that shines through in the wider discussion with Fahnroth and Salesforce's Michael Kuebel who was also part of the discussion, is the importance of communication. As Fahnroth explains; "We've talked a lot to our customers. We've compiled a package of Covid-19 response actions to help our customers and to really fulfil that role of a good partner in these challenging times.

"We've made special offers to our customers, we've given free access to our analytics tools and our customer community. We have stayed in constant contact with our customers, and we really try to deliver those individual responses and those individual aids that our customers need in such times. We've extended our hotline services and we've brought in more subject matter experts."

While the focus on customer-centricity is important, even crucial, the truth remains however, that such an approach is far more easily facilitated by a modern digitalised approach to field service delivery.

"We have also digitalised the process," Fanhroth explains. "A lot of those actions have been developed or were being developed before the crisis - we actually had a couple of them already in place. But what Covid-19 did for us was really supercharge this development and the market launch for some of those features. For example, our hotline services have been extended and we've been working with video support for our customers for quite some time. However, we've really seen the spike in demand for those actions and we are really seeing adoption grow and further develop with those actions.

"So facing our customers, we've really seen a lot of those products, a lot of those features and services we've sometimes already had in place, be supercharged," he adds.

There is certainly a sense of community leadership that appears to also underpin much of the thinking within Koenig and Bauer.

"Coming back to our general strategy, as I said, we have to also keep in mind all our internal stakeholders," Fahnroth comments.

"So in order to fill this role of a real leadership, we've also thought a lot about our communities. Koenig and Bauer has used a lot of production and demo facilities and free capacities we've had to produce face shields for example. We've produced 100,000 face shields and are donating them as we speak. That's something internally we've done in order to give back to our community."

The very way in which Koenig and Bauer operate is also underpinned by a 200 year history of innovation, exactly as Fahnroth asserts and it is within that ingenuity that it would appear the secrets of success might lie.

"We've seen the way work looks like now at Koenig and Bauer," Fahnroth states. "We adopted G-Suite at the end of last year and we've seen a huge change in how people at Koenig and Bauer work now. It really is a change towards a more mobile way of working and a lot more collaborative. It's really changed a lot of the way communication and work at Koenig and Bauer looks and we're really glad to see that change of mindset," he adds.

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