In the third excerpt from a recent white paper published by Appify we discuss the resources and technology investments for field service....
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Nov 26, 2020 • Features • White Paper • field service management • Leadership and Strategy • Appify
In the third excerpt from a recent white paper published by Appify we discuss the resources and technology investments for field service....
Want to know more? Field Service News Subscribers can access a White Paper on this topic on the link below.
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We asked respondents what resources are currently being provided to enhance the work and on-site performance of their service teams. Nearly 60% of field technicians replied with "online self-paced education (60%)," "peer-to- peer mobile communication tools (55%)," or "mobile technology (57%)."
Very few field technicians (13%) report using augmented reality (AR) software, and fewer than one-third (31%) report leveraging in-person classroom resources.
What Resources Are Being Provided to Enhance Team Performance
How Would You Rate the Mobile Technology You Are Using to Service Your Customers?
Responses to these questions can provide organizations with a better understanding of the types of resources technicians may need moving forward. A venture capital firm's survey found that 80% of the global workforce is deskless1. And, despite these workers' reliance on mobile devices, they rarely seem to be considered when it comes to new technology advancements.
For example, just 5.48% of our field technician respondents feel their mobile technology is "excellent." And, while a majority (54.79%) feels their mobile technology is "good, it gets the job done," a further one-quarter say their mobile technology is "average and just OK."
Are You Looking to Invest in New Technology for Your Service TeamS Post-COVID-19?
Technology investments might be in order, given those challenges. But, 62.9% of managers and above said "no investments planned" when asked if they are looking to make investments in new technology to support their team post pandemic (though we may again here consider the pandemic to equate with any future upheaval organizations may encounter).
How Much Are You Budgeting for New Technology to Support Your Service Teams post COVID-19?
To help determine the types of investments that may help technicians, we asked them to rank,in order of importance, the features they need from their mobile application in the field. Two-thirds (62%) or more of the respondents felt work order information, communication with customers, and maintenance procedures and knowledge base were "very important."
While customer communications and work order information are likely available to field technicians currently, it seems that their tools may be lacking the ability to pass down the organic knowledge base. When a 25-year veteran technician retires, does their domain knowledge leave with them?
Technology decision making must take into account non-traditional forms of data, such as institutional knowledge, in order to provide field technicians with the information and skills they need to succeed.
Look out for the next feature in this series coming next week where we discuss how to measure field service readiness.
However, www.fieldservicenews.com subscribers can read the full white paper now by hitting the button below.
If you are yet to subscribe you can do so for free by hitting the button and you can access the white paper instantly upon completing the registration form!
Further Reading:
- Read more about Leadership & Strategy @ www.fieldservicenews.com/leadership-and-strategy
- Read more about Digital Transformation @ www.fieldservicenews.com/blog/tag/digital-transformation
- Find out more about Appify @ appify.com
- Follow Appify on Twitter @ twitter.com/AppifyInc
Nov 19, 2020 • Features • White Paper • field service management • Leadership and Strategy • Appify
In this second excerpt from a recent white paper published by Appify, now available at Field Service News, we provide an analysis on how to measure field service readiness...
In this second excerpt from a recent white paper published by Appify, now available at Field Service News, we provide an analysis on how to measure field service readiness...
Want to know more? Field Service News Subscribers can access a White Paper on this topic on the link below.
If you have yet to subscribe click the button below to join 30K of your field service management professional peers and subscribe now to access this content and our entire premium content library now!
Data usage note: By accessing this content you consent to the contact details submitted when you registered as a subscriber to fieldservicenews.com to be shared with the listed sponsor of this premium content Appify who may contact you for legitimate business reasons to discuss the content of this white paper, as per the terms and conditions of your subscription agreement which you opted into in line with GDPR regulations and is an ongoing condition of subscription.
How field technicians rate their Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and other service equipment is especially crucial as all must now adopt additional, more stringent workplace safety protocols. Seventy-two percent (72.6%) of field technicians and managers rate the quality of the PPE they use to service their customers as "good" or "very good," an encouraging sign.
This suggests field technicians and management have a shared understanding of what makes for effective PPE.
How Would You Rate The Quality of the PPE You Are Using to Service Your Customers?
How Would You Rate The Quality of Equipment You Use to Service Your Customers?
How Ready Are Your Service Teams to Service Customers Post COVID-19?
Many respondents don’t feel that the pandemic will impact their field readiness. We asked respondents to rate how ready service teams will be to go on-site to service customers post COVID-19. Field technicians responded, on average, with a rating of about 8.3.
IMPROVING WORK ORDER MANAGEMENT EFFICIENCY
The current societal disruption may very well cause ongoing changes to the types of work orders technicians service. When people stop using hotels en masse, there is less of a need for maintenance. Textile factories have likely seen an uptick in machine usage due to the demand for cloth masks. Those machines will need more frequent attention than they did in the past.
We may see spikes in work orders for industries that previously relied on only semi-regular maintenance visits. Other industries will demonstrate a marked drop in demand for their equipment.
Currently, field technicians see about 50 orders or fewer in one month. Forty-four percent of field technicians report receiving fewer than 50 work orders in one month.
How Ready Are Your Service Teams to Service Customers Post COVID-19?
There is a range of time frame durations for these work orders. More than one-third (39%) of field technicians have work orders stretching over multiple days, 35% have work orders that last one day, and 25.97% have work orders that last a few hours.
How Long Does It Take to Complete a Work Order?
The volume of these orders and the duration they last may shift dramatically in the coming months. How organizations respond to changing demands will likely dictate future success.
Look out for the next feature in this series coming next week where we discuss resources and technology investments for Field Service.
However, www.fieldservicenews.com subscribers can read the full white paper now by hitting the button below. If you are yet to subscribe you can do so for free by hitting the button and you can access the white paper instantly upon completing the registration form!
Further Reading:
- Read more about Leadership & Strategy @ www.fieldservicenews.com/leadership-and-strategy
- Read more about Field Service Management @ www.fieldservicenews.com/field-service-management
- Find out more about Appify @ appify.com
- Follow Appify on Twitter @ twitter.com/AppifyInc
Nov 17, 2020 • Features • Cognito iQ • White Paper • Digital Transformation • field service management
This final excerpt from a recent white paper published by Cognito iQ outlines a seven-step process to take you from strategy to execution, so you can achieve exceptional field service...
This final excerpt from a recent white paper published by Cognito iQ outlines a seven-step process to take you from strategy to execution, so you can achieve exceptional field service...
Want to know more? Field Service News Subscribers can access a White Paper on this topic on the link below.
If you have yet to subscribe click the button below to join 30K of your field service management professional peers and subscribe now to access this content and our entire premium content library now!
Data usage note: By accessing this content you consent to the contact details submitted when you registered as a subscriber to fieldservicenews.com to be shared with the listed sponsor of this premium content Cognito iQ who may contact you for legitimate business reasons to discuss the content of this white paper, as per the terms and conditions of your subscription agreement which you opted into in line with GDPR regulations and is an ongoing condition of subscription.
Step 1 - Analyse Current Situation
The first step in improving anything is to understand the current situation. To do this you need accurate, timely data about what is actually happening on the frontlines of field service.
The principle of value stream mapping, which comes from the discipline of lean manufacturing, is a useful concept to help guide this step. Your goal in analysing the current situation is to identify value - as defined by your customers’ needs - and then to map the value stream, which is all of the steps and processes that you undertake to deliver that value. Then you can look for bottlenecks, so you can eliminate any wasteful steps. In addition, if there is data missing, you can identify ways to fill the gaps.
The analysis requires data. In recent years, many field service operations have undergone some degree of digital transformation, which for many has meant that they have gone from having limited data about field service - knowing just whether the job was done, and the customer had paid - to having too much data that they can’t analyse or make sense of. Not only is there mobile data that tracks field service technicians’ whereabouts, and progress on any task, and gathers feedback from customers, but there is also a wealth of internal data such as from ERP or CRM systems, financial data, call centre information, repair data and customer emails. Combined with data about parts and assets, some of which comes directly from IoT enabled equipment, you end up with a complex mix of structured and unstructured data, which is often hard to makes sense of.
The most effective way to identify patterns in the data is to use data science techniques such as machine learning.
For example, using machine learning in the analysis of asset and parts data enables you to take a structured approach to asset lifecycle management. If you can spot patterns in repairs and revisits, you can start to predict and prevent failures. Again, generic tools can make some headway here, but field service specific tools have algorithms that have been programmed with field service knowledge which are better at surfacing genuine opportunities.
Step 2 - Set Aligned Goals
There was a time when in many businesses, the service operation was viewed as a cost centre, a necessary, but expensive, functional department.
This view is outdated; today, companies understand that field service is integral to the business. Field service technicians are not only the face of the brand, they are able to build relationships with customers and have opportunities to generate revenues through cross selling and upselling.
In the same way, there is a growing recognition that field operations goals need to be integrated with wider organisational goals. The opportunities identified in step one need to be prioritised based on a number of factors: which can easily be actioned, which have the greatest improvement potential, which offer the greatest return on investment, which are the low hanging fruit. But overarching all of this is the need for opportunities to align with overall company goals.
Furthermore, at this stage, there is a need to understand what the ROI of change will be, and to quantify the risk of not changing. If you can put a financial value on your goals, it will help you to make the business case for the investments you will need to make, both directly in terms of expenditure on the technology to drive change, and indirectly in terms of the time you will need to commit.
Step 3 - Define Metrics for Success
Once the current situation is analysed, opportunities to improve are surfaced, and goals set, aligned to the company strategy, you then need to decide how to act to meet those goals.
You are moving into the tactical stage of the seven-step process, and are focusing on practical actions that you and your team can take. The questions you need to answer at this stage are:
- What are the processes, practices, controls and levers that you can alter to influence performance?
- Which metrics that support these levers, need to move to indicate improvement?
- What are the thresholds for improvement - how much do the metrics have to move?
Once you have defined the metrics and set thresholds, you can use them to define employee KPIs, and you will be ready for the next challenge which is to change the behaviour of your employees in accordance with the new goals.
Step 4 - Engage and Motivate Employees
Change is hard, and it goes better when everyone is on board. In order to ensure that employees change their behaviour and work towards the goals you have defined, you will need to have the data to monitor performance.
You probably have an instinct for which of your field workers are the best performers, but your analysis of performance metrics will give you hard evidence, and also help evaluate why they are the best. You probably also know which workers consistently fail to hit their targets. Analysis will show you what to do to help them improve –and to monitor their progress. Once you know the drivers of excellence, you can replicate them throughout the organisation, working with employees to improve skills and capabilities where needed.
It also helps if employees understand the wider company strategy and how their own performance indicators and goals align. We recommend adopting OKRs, a method used by Google to align organisational strategy with individual goals and improve performance.
OKR stands for Objectives and Key Results — the process by which leaders and their teams set ambitious, measurable goals each quarter — are a critical component of how Google’s leaders managed Google’s growth from day one. By focusing on a few priorities, identifying the metrics that measure progress towards those goals, and quantifying the impact of that progress, OKRs equipped teams at Google with what they needed to think big, get alignment across the organisation, and execute on their ambitious plans.
Step 5 - Make Changes to Processes
Once you have decided on the metrics to focus on, you can begin to make changes. These changes can be at any level. They can be to processes or procedures, in which case they will require everyone to know about and follow them.
They can be to documentation, giving people new information, or to the website, to change customer behaviour. They can impact the field service technicians directly, or indirectly - the example below involved a small change to the call centre script, not to engineering processes - but it had a big impact on a key performance metric for engineers.
There are many barriers to implementing change. Even if you have employees on board and the whole company aligned around the strategy, it can be hard to know which changes to prioritise, how they will affect other metrics, how much it will cost to implement the changes, and what will be the return on investment. At this stage, modelling the likely impact is invaluable, as it will help you prioritise.
Step 6 - Observe and Analyse Outcomes
Once improvements have been implemented, the next step is to observe the impact on performance and analyse the outcomes.
As a service leader you need to have full visibility of what is happening in the field in real time, so you and your team can make adjustments and prevent incidents before they arise. Ideally you should be able to see, at a glance, the status of all your key metrics, and be alerted if any are in jeopardy as well as any variations from the plan for the shift. Short interval control is another technique used in lean manufacturing to drive improvements, during each shift; with access to field service data and analytics tools to gain insight in real time, service managers can adopt this approach. This approach is also adapted from agile software development environments which advocate testing and learning with real customers, in real time, using data to assess the impact of each change.
Also, as you make the changes, capture those that are driving improvements, as well as those that are having little direct impact, but may impact further down the line. You might want to pilot in one region, capturing what has worked and what has not. You can then use the region staff as ambassadors of change across the broader organisation.
As well as acting in real time to change outcomes during the shift, you need to be able to analyse the impact of changes over time, so you can see whether improvements have been effective and if you need to dial up changes, dial down, or try something else. You can even conduct controlled experiments by using AB testing - trying two different approaches with different, randomly chosen sets of technicians, or in different regions, to see which improvements work the best.
Step 7 - Feedback and Adjust
This is the step where the value of the data driven approach comes into its own.
Taking the outcomes of improvements, and feeding back into the data for analysis at step one creates a feedback loop, enabling you to test and learn, freeing you from having to make gut decisions, and harnessing the power of continuous improvement to get to exceptional field service.
With a continual improvement approach, the £500K or more you could save in productivity isn’t a one-off. You can use that saving to do more, or to reduce headcount in year one, and also expect to see a similar improvement and saving in years two, three and onward. The goalposts are always moving in field service, as technology advances, competitors improve and customer expectations increase, so there will always be improvements you can make, regardless of the quality of your service at this moment.
TAKING THE FIRST STEP
So now you know the seven steps, what are you waiting for? It’s easy to describe, but not so easy to do.
In reality, getting to exceptional will require you to have the following:
- high quality, accurate, real-time data
- the ability to analyse the data to gain insight, both in real time, and in retrospect
- the experience to decide how to apply the insight
- the foresight to model the impact of changes and the ROI of planned actions
- the insight to know what exceptional looks like, and to set appropriate benchmarks
- the agility to test changes and learn from the outcomes
- the leadership to drive through improvements and manage change throughout the organisation
We know that field service leaders are a talented bunch, but that is still a tall order. Fortunately, there is no pressure to take all seven steps at once. Getting to exceptional is a long-term process and just taking the first step will deliver business benefits. So how do you take that first step? Advances in technology mean that there is support available. Digital transformation means so much more than just digitising paper-based processes, or automating manual processes. We believe that all of the hundreds of decisions that are made every day in field service operations can and should be driven by data and analysis, not by gut instinct, or expediency.
For many companies, the digital transformation challenge has moved on from being able to collect the data, to knowing how to analyse it, and what actions to take. Advances in AI such as machine learning mean that we can start to automate the process of continuous improvement. The goal should be that the system can spot a problem and recommend a fix without human intervention, and then track that change through the organisation and drive adoption in the field. The future of field service belongs to those companies that can adopt advanced analytics, together with smart business approaches, to use data to drive exceptional field service.
Field Service News subscribers can read the full white paper now by hitting the button below. If you are yet to subscribe you can do so for free by hitting the button and you can access the white paper instantly upon completing the registration form!
Further Reading:
- Read more about Digital Transformation @ www.fieldservicenews.com/digital-transformation
- Read more about Cognito iQ on Field Service News @ www.fieldservicenews.com/cognito-iq
- Find out more about Cognito iQ @ www.cognitoiq.com
- Follow Cognito iQ on Twitter @ twitter.com/Cognito_iQ
Nov 12, 2020 • Features • White Paper • field service management • Leadership and Strategy • Appify
In a new series of excerpts from a recent white paper published by Appify we analyze the impact of change within the modern field service organization...
In a new series of excerpts from a recent white paper published by Appify we analyze the impact of change within the modern field service organization...
Want to know more? Field Service News Subscribers can access a White Paper on this topic on the link below.
If you have yet to subscribe click the button below to join 30K of your field service management professional peers and subscribe now to access this content and our entire premium content library now!
Data usage note: By accessing this content you consent to the contact details submitted when you registered as a subscriber to fieldservicenews.com to be shared with the listed sponsor of this premium content Appify who may contact you for legitimate business reasons to discuss the content of this white paper, as per the terms and conditions of your subscription agreement which you opted into in line with GDPR regulations and is an ongoing condition of subscription.
Many in the Field Service industry started their company with nothing but a toolbox and sporadic house calls. Some remained a solo operation, and others went on to work for large companies, such as DuPont or Canon. People who started with nothing but a wrench are now running profitable service companies or managing massive service teams within enterprise organizations.
These people, and the organizations for which they work, service everything from grocery store refrigerators to hospital MRI machines. And, when the pandemic hit, the industry felt the repercussions. Grocery store rushes meant more frequent refrigerator repair trips. Restaurants shutting down meant fewer trips to fix a fryer or stove.
The pandemic is just one example of societal upheaval the Field Service industry may encounter. And, any time an event impacts the way society at large uses these pieces of equipment, the industry must adapt.
We hope this report illuminates possible strategies and solutions for your organization as we all navigate through these unprecedented times.
About the Survey:
To understand just how people are coping with the current challenge, we polled more than 250 individuals in the industry—field technicians and company owners alike—from a variety of companies around the world to take the pulse of the industry.
We classify mid-market businesses as those that employ 50-500 people. Enterprises employ more than 500 people. Nearly 41% of respondents work for an enterprise-sized firm, and 58.98% of respondents work for either a mid-market or enterprise-size company.
Fifty-five percent of respondents are individual contributors or team leads. This group also includes respondents who have labeled themselves engineers. The group will be referred to as "field technicians" throughout this report.
Who Are the Business Process Decision Makers?
Parsing who is responsible for business process decisions—decisions ranging from how teams are dispatched to newly developed Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) guidelines—is the first step in mitigating any issues that hamper the delivery of services.For example, though 41% of respondents list themselves as individual contributors, 36% of respondents are themselves responsible for business process decisions. Thirteen percent of respondents are either C-level or owner or president of their company, but 25% of respondents say business owners or CEOs are responsible for business process decisions.
A slightly larger proportion of C-level people make business process decisions than there are C-level respondents in the survey. This isn't terribly surprising. Many businesses rely on executives and higher-level contributors to guide the organization forward. But, in an industry where field technicians have intimate knowledge of the job at hand, it seems reasonable to wonder whether they should have a larger say in business process decision making.
As organizations attempt to improve their decision making, they will often be tempted to purchase fix-it-all technologies and spend budget on tools that they feel will help them solve every issue. Despite the urge to fix everything at once, Field Service companies might instead determine one or two concerns to address and work their way forward from there.
BUSINESS PROCESSES AND DATA ACCESSIBILITY WITHIN FIELD SERVICE
Assuming companies have enough data to make intelligent decisions, reviewing business processes regularly should be high-level priorities for companies that wish to become more efficient.
More than one-third (31%) of respondents report that they review business processes every six months or even less frequently.
And what of the data used to inform business processes? It will be difficult to affect positive change with poor or inaccessible data no matter how frequently a company reviews its processes.
How Often Does Your Company Review Business Process Used to Service Your Customers?
A majority (53%) of field technicians rate the quality of their accessible data as either "good" or "very good." Fifty-nine percent of those in managerial roles believe their data is "good" or "very good."
At the other end of the spectrum, nearly 14% of field technicians rate their data as "poor" or "very poor." Companies will likely improve their business process decision making by coming to a better understanding of what makes poor data, poor and eliminating that information from their internal data sources.
How Would You Rate The Quality of Your Accessible Data?
It will be difficult to weed out low-value data if that information is not first accessible. Only one-quarter (26%) of field technicians describe their work-order data as "accessible through one single application."
Nineteen percent of field technicians describe their work-order data as either "accessible but inaccurate" or "inaccessible."
Another challenge exists. A majority (55%) of field technicians say their data is accessible but either through "a couple of apps" or "many apps."
How Would You Describe the Overall Accessibility to Work Order Data Which Enables You to Provide Services to Your Customers?
For Field Service organizations, data enters their systems in the form of manual data entry, paper transactions or mobile device data capture. Data types include information from invoices, work orders, parts, inventory, equipment- maintenance data, and so on. If managers and field technicians alike must jump from one application to the next to manage all of this information, it is likely they will encounter more errors and lower efficiency standards than if everyone had data accessible in one place. Technicians rely on mobile devices in the field.
But what if they enter a poor cellular coverage zone or the Wi-Fi on the jobsite goes down? What if the data input while offline doesn't sync when the device is able to connect to the network again?
Ensuring data is accurate requires a variety of different systems and devices to communicate, on and off-line. Doing so is impossible without a flexible solution that can integrate these sources and limit data-quality and accessibility issues.
Look out for the next feature in this series coming next week where we discuss how to measure field service readiness.
However, www.fieldservicenews.com subscribers can read the full white paper now by hitting the button below. If you are yet to subscribe you can do so for free by hitting the button and you can access the white paper instantly upon completing the registration form!
Further Reading:
- Read more about Leadership & Strategy @ www.fieldservicenews.com/leadership-and-strategy
- Read more about Field Service Management @ www.fieldservicenews.com/field-service-management
- Find out more about Appify @ appify.com
- Follow Appify on Twitter @ twitter.com/AppifyInc
Nov 02, 2020 • Features • Artificial intelligence • White Paper • Digital Transformation • field service management • Aquant
This final excerpt from a recent white paper published by Aquant analyses why distributing knowledge across the team is the missing link to creating a high-performace workforce...
This final excerpt from a recent white paper published by Aquant analyses why distributing knowledge across the team is the missing link to creating a high-performace workforce...
Want to know more? Field Service News Subscribers can access a White Paper on this topic on the link below.
If you have yet to subscribe click the button below to join 30K of your field service management professional peers and subscribe now to access this content and our entire premium content library now!
Data usage note: By accessing this content you consent to the contact details submitted when you registered as a subscriber to fieldservicenews.com to be shared with the listed sponsor of this premium content Aquant who may contact you for legitimate business reasons to discuss the content of this white paper, as per the terms and conditions of your subscription agreement which you opted into in line with GDPR regulations and is an ongoing condition of subscription.
bridging the gap between where you are now and where you want to be
Now that you know where to look and what to look for in your service data, what's next?
Distributing knowledge across the team is the missing link to creating a high-performing and engaged workforce.
Once you understand:
How your workforce is performing individually
The size of a skills gap across the organization
The next step is to figure out how to bridge the gap between where you are now, and where you want to be. Artificial intelligence can get you there quickly and enable this transformative shift in the workplace.
Here’s how:
○ AI that understands your organization’s unique service language and can quickly analyze hidden data is the first step in turning service records into actionable information.
○ Next, using that data to map out your workforce and identify heroes and challengers gives you the insights that can’t be found by simply monitoring key KPI.
○ Converting your organization’s tribal knowledge (from your service heroes) into usable information and then combining that with your own service data creates a dynamic platform is the final clue to unlock hero status for everyone.
○ That democratized knowledge, which is as easy to access as a Google search, puts the power of your best experts in the hands of the whole team.
Read the full Aquant white paper which provides an analysis of field service KPIs and the state of the workforce skills gap.
www.fieldservicenews.com subscribers can read the full white paper now by hitting the button below. If you are yet to subscribe you can do so for free by hitting the button and you can access the white paper instantly upon completing the registration form!
Further Reading:
- Read more about Digital Transformation @ www.fieldservicenews.com/digital-transformation
- Read more about Aquant on Field Service News @ www.fieldservicenews.com/aquant
- Read more about Artificial Intelligence @ www.fieldservicenews.com/artificial-intelligence
- Find out more about Aquant @ www.aquant.io
- Follow Aquant on Twitter @ twitter.com/Aquant_io
Oct 26, 2020 • Features • White Paper • Digital Transformation • field service management • Aquant
This third excerpt from a recent white paper published by Aquant we see an interesting snapshot of the distance that exists between the highest and lowest performers on an organizational level and the consequences of an imbalance of knowledge within...
This third excerpt from a recent white paper published by Aquant we see an interesting snapshot of the distance that exists between the highest and lowest performers on an organizational level and the consequences of an imbalance of knowledge within each service team.
Want to know more? Field Service News Subscribers can access a White Paper on this topic on the link below.
If you have yet to subscribe click the button below to join 30K of your field service management professional peers and subscribe now to access this content and our entire premium content library now!
Data usage note: By accessing this content you consent to the contact details submitted when you registered as a subscriber to fieldservicenews.com to be shared with the listed sponsor of this premium content Aquant who may contact you for legitimate business reasons to discuss the content of this white paper, as per the terms and conditions of your subscription agreement which you opted into in line with GDPR regulations and is an ongoing condition of subscription.
the team snapshot: the distance between heroes and challengers within an organization
First, let’s take a step back. Seasoned service leaders spend a lot of time looking at data dashboards to put the clues together. You may have scanned all the individual KPI stats above and thought to yourself, “Our organization is in pretty good shape. We fall well within the average.”
The problem? Those above KPIs are only telling part of the story.
A better way to think about the success of a service team is to understand how big of a skills gap exists between your best technicians and underperformers. That will help you hone in on underlying service issues.
To determine the skills gap we calculated the percentage difference between heroes and challengers across all organizations. We divided it into:
-
Top performing organizations
-
Average performing organizations
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Poor performing organizations
Why The Skills Gap Matters:
A bigger distance between heroes and challengers leads to:
- Heavier workload on your already overburdened experts
- Increase in service costs
- Decrease in customer satisfaction
- Uptick in customer churn
- Less capacity for organizational resilience Negative impact on growth
DECREASE THE SKILLS GAP, INCREASE ROI
Advanced detective skills aren’t required to understand the benefits of a knowledgeable workforce.
Here is the cost savings associated with upskilling your workforce a little and a lot. 
Look out for the final feature in this series coming next week where we discuss the next steps to take now that you where and what to look in your service data.
However, www.fieldservicenews.com subscribers can read the full white paper now by hitting the button below. If you are yet to subscribe you can do so for free by hitting the button and you can access the white paper instantly upon completing the registration form!
Further Reading:
- Read more about Digital Transformation @ www.fieldservicenews.com/digital-transformation
- Read more about Aquant on Field Service News @ www.fieldservicenews.com/aquant
- Find out more about Aquant @ www.aquant.io
- Follow Aquant on Twitter @ twitter.com/Aquant_io
Oct 22, 2020 • Features • field service management • Technology • Managing the Mobile Workforce • hitachi • michael mendoza
The following article by Michael Mendoza, Director of Industry Solutions and Field Service at Hitachi, provides an overview of why taking care of an issue the first time is crucial to your field service business and includes actionable ways to fix...
The following article by Michael Mendoza, Director of Industry Solutions and Field Service at Hitachi, provides an overview of why taking care of an issue the first time is crucial to your field service business and includes actionable ways to fix first-time fix rate issues.
When it comes to field service management, it’s essential to have the right technician for right the job. You not only want to make sure your technician is prepared with the appropriate equipment, you need the ability to easily and effectively schedule (or reschedule) your team.According to the Aberdeen Group, about 25% of service calls require at least one additional visit. Unfortunately, added appointments can be expensive, time-consuming (on both ends), and lead to an unsatisfactory customer experience.One of the best ways to manage these potential problems is to implement a field service management software that includes service locations, predictive maintenance, work order management, product inventory, scheduling — and more. Here’s how to use the latest technology to improve first-time fix rate challenges
8 COMMON REASONS WHY TECHNICIANS AREN'T ABLE TO FIX AN ISSUE THE FIRST TIME - AND HOW TO FIX THEM
1. Lack of the right spare parts. It’s important to ensure that field service technicians are well prepared with everything they need to complete the job. Even the absence of one part can delay fixing the issue, which would likely require at least one additional visit — and more of everyone’s time.Solution: Use the right software to organize service calls, diagnose what parts are needed, and check inventory to ensure that the right parts are in stock and available to get the job done the first time.
2. Depleted inventory and stock. It’s understandable that inventory may be depleted, but properly managing stock levels is an easy and efficient way to prevent a technician from being unprepared and having to reschedule or line up a second visit.Solution: Using data analytics, forecast which parts or tools you should restock.
3. Poor Planning and Communication inventory and stock. Clear, effective communication is crucial, no matter the business, organization, or industry — and field service technicians are no exception. Lapses in planning or communication can lead to ill-prepared technicians, rescheduling challenges, and inventory concerns about whether parts are in stock.Solution: It’s important to schedule the right technician for the right job, and be sure to know whether the parts are in stock and available. Keep tabs on your techs with GPS fleet tracking and other software to ensure that the visit won’t go over the allotted time or leave insufficient time to complete the next job.
4. Too much manual paperwork. According to the Service Council, 46% of field technicians say that paperwork and other administrative tasks are the most unfavorable parts of their daily responsibilities. Even though it’s required and essential, this part of the job can be inefficient and more time-consuming than needed.Solution: Digitize and automate as much of the paper-based process as you can so technicians can spend their time on other important responsibilities. Plus, creating a digital process can streamline procedures, create efficiencies within the workplace, and ensure that all the appropriate paperwork and files are organized and easily accessible.
5. Unanswered questions. A technician may have all the right tools, equipment, and inventory — but more information may be needed. How can you fully prepare field service technicians so they are equipped with the right answers?Solution: Connect technicians to the main office and provide them with real-time answers and updates, including the ability to look at Frequently Asked Questions on their devices so they can try and solve the issue by themselves.
6. Scheduling issues. It’s inevitable that calendars and agendas may need to be modified, but planning in advance and having the ability to easily adapt to last-minute changes is crucial.Solution: Provide your field service technicians with the ability to schedule future visits if they know something will need to be adjusted or replaced soon. This is important because it removes the need for technicians to call the office and have other employees schedule visits on their behalf. The right software will keep all schedules up to date to prevent double-booking.
7. Being unprepared. A basic customer expectation is that technicians are prepared. This means that you want someone to show up on time — and with the right parts and knowledge. Without any one of these components, an additional site visit is likely needed.
Solution: By using analytics, you can look into which technicians run into which issues. You can also determine which clients or jobs have a low percentage of first-time fixes. By analyzing the data, you can see if improvements are needed in inventory or scheduling — or if tech training could increase the first-time fix rates for clients across the board.
8. Inadequate software management training. The right knowledge, education, and training are essential for any expert or technician using management software. Without these, you will likely have to reschedule or add additional site visits, which will likely negatively impact scheduling, time, and budgets for everyone involved.Solution: Training techs to properly use field service management software is essential to fix any issues that may arise. If a technician doesn’t know how to use the tools, the job will likely not go well.
At the end of the day, it’s inevitable that issues may arise, but ensuring that you have the right field service management software will help effectively manage potential problems — which ultimately means more efficiency, productivity, and an overall happier customer service experience.
Further Reading:
- Read more about Managing the Mobile Workforce @ www.fieldservicenews.com/managing-the-mobile-workforce
- Connect with Michael Mendoza on LinkedIn @ www.linkedin.com/mikeoza/
- Find out more about Hitachi @ https://www.hitachi.us/
- Follow Hitachi on Twitter @ twitter.com/Hitachi_US
Oct 21, 2020 • Features • Software & Apps • Digital Transformation • field service management • craig greenhalgh
In this exclusive article for Field Service News, Craigh Greenhalgh, Research Analyst at Comparesoft, offers an analysis of field service management software available today and how businesses need to embrace digital transformation to gain a...
In this exclusive article for Field Service News, Craigh Greenhalgh, Research Analyst at Comparesoft, offers an analysis of field service management software available today and how businesses need to embrace digital transformation to gain a competitive edge.
We are at the peak of an evolutionary leap into the digital age with more than half of today’s businesses connected to the Internet of Things (IoT).
Entire industries are transforming to capitalise on the advances in field service management software and gain a competitive edge – increasing efficiency, slashing costs and meeting market demand for quicker and more comprehensive services.
Businesses still operating in the paper age must adapt soon if they are to survive the world’s transition into a brutal new age of cut-throat digital commerce.
Here’s how it all began, along with some insightful facts and figures on the shape of things to come in the immediate future of field service management.
how the internet of things came of age
The term Internet of Things (IoT) was introduced in 1999 by British technologist Kevin Ashton to describe networks and platforms which connect humans and the objects they interact with.Uptake was slow at first but increasing cross-industry dependence on intelligent software and smart devices has spurned explosive IoT growth over the past five years.
The number of publicly known IoT platforms has doubled to 620 since 2015, now connecting more than 22 billion devices around the world, according to data gathered at the end of 2019.That growth is expected to continue exponentially with increasing demand for smarter asset management, in the field and on factory floors, to help us humans make informed decisions from a distance – decisions that can save money and even lives.Market analysts say the trend is heading towards 50 billion devices connected to the IoT by 2030 with the total volume of data being stored and transferred in the region of 100 zettabytes (Zbs).Iot roots blossom into a trillion-dollar market
As a result, worldwide spending on the hardware and software connecting the Internet of Things is projected to hit US$1.1 trillion by 2023.
A significant sign of the paradigm shift underway from old to new management tools is that even the worldwide agricultural IoT market accounts for a whopping $30-billion slice of that trillion-dollar pie.Consumer spending on smart home systems worldwide hit US$ 115 billion in 2020 and is expected to rise to at least $150 billion over the next two years.On top of that, the IoT analytics market is projected to be worth more than $500 billion in the same period.On the mobile hardware development front, Panasonic is one of the many manufacturers tapping into the industrial IoT market. As seen with the launch of mobile devices aimed specifically at supporting the field service management sector. The rugged handheld Android devices come with an ANSI rating for hazardous locations. They also feature barcode and magstripe readers.
how businesses are benefitting from better field service management software
These unprecedented advances in the abilities of artificial intelligence have given birth to legions of industry-specific software solutions created to capitalise on this interconnectivity of emerging technologies. Here’s how progressive businesses are benefiting from smarter field management software solutions:
Increasing Productivity
Workers using mobile devices connected to warehouse inventory management software are much more productive. Zebra Technologies Corporation is arming warehouse workers with wearable tech, including head-mounted displays and ring scanners, which is claimed to increase productivity by 24%.
Meeting Customer Expectations & Boosting Brand Loyalty
Customer demands are the same across the board – from retail consumers tracking delivery packages in their living rooms to engineers collaborating on industrial megaprojects. They all expect instant access to real-time information to make informed decisions.
Cutting Unnecessary Costs
Cost savings with fluid asset management is a hugely beneficial side effect of using field service management software solutions. You save time and labour costs with instant updates from assets in the field, which helps schedule preventative maintenance and mitigate future repair costs.
Improving Workplace Safety
Human error is reduced with artificial intelligence in charge. Managers can take preventative measures to drastically reduce risks of breakdowns and accidents based on data from real-time measurements and calculations made remotely in the field.
Streamlining Accounting
Software and apps that can learn about your accounting requirements help keep your operations in compliance with local and regional regulations. Instant accounting also means shorter billing cycles and better cash flow management.
What are your options for field service management?
Today’s field service management solutions are a combination of hardware and software that provide a virtual workspace with cloud computing that can be accessed by tens of thousands of users at the same time from almost any location.The range of solutions is vast and often confusing. Field service managers need to consider their options depending on their company’s unique needs, budget and existing infrastructure.Digital field service management solutions are usually packaged and labelled in one or more of the following three ways:
IaaS - Infrastructure as a Service
Hardwired hardware in the form of servers and digital data storage space. The hardware can be physically located at your offices as an ‘on-premise’ network. The off-premise alternative is to pay for the use of servers operated by third-party data centres that provide cloud services available over the Internet. Examples include Amazon EC2, Google Compute Engine, Rackspace and Windows Azure.Massive cost savings is the main advantage for field service managers opting to outsource IaaS as there is no initial outlay for expensive hardware, no excessive power costs and no need to employ a dedicated IT team round the clock at your own premises.
PaaS - Platform as a Service
Developers use IaaS data centres to build, operate and host computing platforms ‘in the cloud’ that are accessible to designated users. The platforms make software tools available over the internet for a broad spectrum of industries.Apps, interfaces and operating systems can be built and used on these platforms, which these days can handle a variety of computer languages to store, manipulate and display data on almost any device.
Popular platforms include AWS Elastic Beanstalk, Windows Azure, Heroku, Force.com, Google App Engine and Apache Stratos
PaaS - Platform as a Service
Also referred to as ‘enterprise software’, SaaS solutions piggyback on the infrastructure and platforms as a service (IaaS and PaaS) mentioned above.Using third-party software as a service gives you a complete package of field service management solutions hosted in the cloud on remote servers and accessible over the internet.Everyday examples of SaaS in the virtual workplace include Google Apps, Dropbox, Salesforce, Cisco WebEx, Concur and GoToMeeting.The major advantage for managers using SaaS is not being responsible for any hardware or software maintenance, meaning massive cost savings and fewer headaches. The biggest challenge is deciding which software service to use that best suits your needs.5 types of field service management software
Field service management software solutions fall into five broad categories, each helping organizations manage various types of ‘assets’, which could be anything supporting operations such as buildings, machinery, vehicles, warehouse stock, raw materials or even human resources.Advanced SaaS solutions also allow you to tie in accounting operations to help shorten billing cycles by creating core financial reports in real-time such as profit and loss accounts, balance sheets and cash flow statements.Each of the five types of field management software listed below was developed for industry-specific purposes but their functions frequently overlap.
1. Asset Management Software
Used for tracking, accounting, inventory management and scheduling for a wide range of assets, including properties and facilities, equipment and machinery, IT hardware, software tools and apps, infrastructure assets, fleet assets and so on
2. CMMS Software
Computerized maintenance management systems (CMMS) are used to plan and schedule preventative and predictive maintenance as well as streamline reactive maintenance, especially for bespoke infrastructure and fleet operations.
3. Enterprise Asset Management Software
Enterprise asset management (EAM) software applications cover more aspects than maintenance schedules to maximise worker efficiency and minimise costs with features such as labour and materials management, access on mobile devices and work order management.
4. IT Asset Management Software
Software tools and apps in house and in the cloud to manage employee and IT department hardware.
5. Asset Tracking Software
Tracking the location and status of assets as well as information on who’s using them. Ideal for operations where assets are being moved about inside premises or in and out of premises.
survival of the fittest
The future success of field service management operations in 21st-century industries will be defined by how well they adapt to market demands. Only the fittest will survive by choosing the right tools to avoid becoming fossilised in a bygone era.Further Reading:
- Read more about Digital Transformation @ www.fieldservicenews.com/digital-transformation
- Connect with Craig Greenhalgh and Comparesoft on LinkedIn @ www.linkedin.com/comparesoft
- Find out more about Comparesoft @ www.comparesoft.com
- Follow Comparesoft on Twitter @ twitter.com/comparesoft
Oct 15, 2020 • Features • Digital Transformation • field service management • IFS • Sarah Nicastro
Sarah Nicastro, IFS, reflect’s on the recently published Gartner 2020 Magic Quadrant for Field Service Management and the positive trends it shows for our industry...
Sarah Nicastro, IFS, reflect’s on the recently published Gartner 2020 Magic Quadrant for Field Service Management and the positive trends it shows for our industry...
The Gartner 2020 Magic Quadrant for Field Service Management is a highly-anticipated piece of research each year, both for the vendors hoping they’ve achieved a prominent placement and for those in the industry who rely on the Magic Quadrant to help steer their technology investments for the upcoming year(s).
As I read through the Gartner 2020 Magic Quadrant for Field Service Management, I was impressed by the progress the report illustrated not only as it relates to the technology provided by the vendors evaluated but by the statistics that painted a picture of significant progress by service organisations.
I’ve been interviewing service leaders from businesses across a wide variety of industries for more than twelve years. What has been clear to me over the past few years is the seismic shift taking place as service becomes a strategic differentiator for businesses in almost every industry. My personal collection of conversation after conversation reveals immense progress is reflected in some of the research shared in the Gartner 2020 Magic Quadrant for Field Service Management.
OUTCOMES-BASED SERVICE TAKES HOLD
In Gartner’s strategic planning assumptions, shared at the beginning of the report, Gartner states that, “By 2025, over 50% of equipment manufacturers will offer outcomes-based service contracts that rely on access to digital twin data, up from less than 20% in 2019.”
In a later section of the report that shares survey results from 84 customers of 14 vendors evaluated, Gartner reveals that, “One third of respondents are already using this model, up from 19%, and 34% intend to offer this model within the next 12 to 24 months.” We know that Servitization and outcomes-based service are the future – but we also know they are not easy evolutions and take time.
SOFTWARE USE ADVANCES TO MEET SERVICE NEEDS
As service organisations continue on the path to outcomes-based service, more advanced technologies must enable the delivery of those outcomes. The software vendors featured on the Gartner 2020 Magic Quadrant for Field Service Management have evolved quite a bit over the last couple with some of the solutions becoming simultaneously more sophisticated and simpler to use.
Gartner shares two other strategic planning assumptions that reflect more advanced technology demands. First, “By 2025, 50% of field service management deployments will include mobile augmented reality collaboration and knowledge sharing tools – up from less than 10% in 2019.” We’ve seen even more enthusiastic adoption of AR since COVID-19 struck and I wouldn’t be surprised if the number in 2025 is even higher than 50%.
In the survey of 84 customers from the 14 vendors, 64% of respondents are using or plan to use knowledge management within 12 months. Both AR and knowledge management hold great potential in a number of critical areas for field service organisations: improving customer experience, increasing productivity, more efficient training, and the prevention of loss of uncaptured knowledge as older workers retire.
Gartner also shared that “algorithms and bots will schedule over two-thirds of field service work for field service providers dependent on automated schedule optimisation, up from less than 25% in 2019.” In the survey results, Gartner revealed that “Sixty-three percent of the respondents (up from 39%) indicated that they were already offering their customers a means to self-serve.”
Moreover, the report states that “In 2017, Gartner predicted that, by 2020, 10% of emergency field service work would be both triaged and scheduled by AI, up from less than 1% in 2017. Of the surveyed reference customers this year, 23% indicated that they already schedule some work automatically.” Respondents also stated that “the overall average number of technicians handled by each dispatcher was 47, compared with the 21 reported by respondents to the survey conducted for the 2019 Magic Quadrant.”
We see here an interest and readiness from field service organisations to leverage more advanced tools, which I believe stems from a recognition that doing so is essential in order to remain competitive and successful.
It’s also interesting to keep in mind that much of the work for this report was completed prior to the real impact of COVID-19. While the challenges of the pandemic are vast, I do also believe that once we’ve recovered, we will see an acceleration of innovation among field service organisations because navigating the challenges has resulted in more openness to change, increased agility, and greater recognition of the importance of technology.
Further Reading:
- Read more about Gartner’s Benchmarking Work in the Field Service Sector @ www.gartner.com/field-service-management
- Read more about Digital Transformation @ www.fieldservicenews.com/digital-transformation
- Connect with Sarah Nicastro @ www.linkedin.com/sarahhowland/
- Read more exclusive Field Service News articles from Sarah Nicastro @ www.fieldservicenews.com/sarah-nicastro
- Find out more about the services IFS offer to field service organisations @ https://www.ifs.com/uk/solutions/service-management/
- Follow IFS on Twitter @ https://twitter.com/IFSUK
Field Service News is published by 1927 Media Ltd, an independent publisher whose sole focus is on the field service sector. As such our entire resources are focused on helping drive the field service sector forwards and aiming to best serve our industry through honest, incisive and innovative media coverage of the global field service sector.
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