ARCHIVE FOR THE ‘future-of-field-service’ CATEGORY

Field Service News Editor-in-Chief Kris Oldland takes the opportunity to catch up with Tomasz Sinkiewicz, Comarch at the recent Field Service Medical conference shortly after he'd given a great presentation about why connectivity and not mobility was the dominant buzz word currently in the medical sector.

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Oneserve, field service management software specialist based in Exeter, UK has announced a key strategic partnership with machine learning and predictive analytics specialist BiG Consultancy. The partnership will see the companies enhance and accelerate Oneserve Infinite, Oneserve’s Predictive Service Management offering.

Whilst many continue to talk around the prospects and future potential of machine learning and predictive analytics, this partnership make it a reality.

Chris Proctor, CEO at Oneserve,  who was listed in the Field Service News #FSN20 list of key influencers this year, explains more: “Today we live in a world where our cost palatability is decreasingly rapidly, whilst customer expectations of service delivery are increasing at a seismic pace, driven largely by technology and innovations in our ‘consumer’ lives.

“By looking outside the conventional confines of traditional field service principles, technologies and systems we have been able to learn and bring on board a number of solutions and make them accessible to our customers,” concluded Proctor.

 

Initially the Oneserve team looked into the potential of IoT, but found that whilst it provided a decent tool as an edge based trigger, essentially customers could be told that there was a problem without being able to do much about it; there was still going to be a significant downtime, but with perhaps just more time to try and work out how to manage it.

It was when in 2016 that Oneserve began to see what the alignment of a holy trinity of technologies, Big Data, IoT and Artificial Intelligence, could mean to customers that the true potential of a solution began to become clear.

“We’ve used Artificial Intelligence within our current scheduling engine for some time,” explained Proctor.

“However, combining the three provided the ability to look much wider and understand the relationships between failures and the contributing factor. This in turn, provided capabilities that could predict failure months in advance, a hugely significant step for us. In some industries, the costs associated with a responsive breakdown repair job can be as much as 20 times higher than the planned job.”

Partnering with BiG was a key part in Oneserve’s strategy to accelerate developments in this area and develop meaningful, real-world use cases where it could deliver significant advantages to customers. BiG has worked successfully with high profile customers in the past in this type of area including the likes of CrowdCube, The MoD, the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter programme and Microsoft.

BiG co-founder, Gerry McNicol commented. “BiG is excited to be partnering with FSM leaders Oneserve on this innovative project. The combination of Predictive Asset Maintenance and Field Service Management is a fantastic example of how real benefit can be gained for both customer and supplier.

 

“It’s a superb use case for IoT and Machine Learning technology showing tangible and measureable benefits. Once you’ve seen it in action you wish you’d done this sooner,” McNicol concluded.

“So far we’ve been working to predict failures using our system to prevent them and to use deep learning within our existing product to optimise ‘job’ success,” commented Proctor. “Providing users with the ability to know when a given task is going to fail and why, allows for changes to be made pre-emptively. However, we have huge plans at harnessing the power of Oneserve Infinite and Deep Learning in an increasing number of ways and BiG will be critical part of that.”

Oneserve Infinite is able to provide customers with:

• A system that can autonomously recognise a ‘failure event’ with significantly more warning, ensuring that the relevant teams are notified and operatives are scheduled efficiently to undertake planned maintenance to prevent downtime.
• Detailed maintenance schedules of work that will be required over a given time
• ‘Asset Commercial Viability’ projections to help companies understand the remaining useful lifespan on their assets
• On a Service Management platform this technology transforms ‘Responsive Breakdown Repairs’ into ‘Planned Maintenance Events, offering customers, and indeed, theirs, with vast cost efficiencies and a level of service excellence that will set the benchmark for the future

 

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Paul Whitelam, VP Product Marketing, ClickSoftware, outlines five key technologies he believes will soon be shaping our industry...

The field service industry continued its rapid transformation in 2016, with emerging technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT) and predictive analytics increasingly changing how field service suppliers manage their workforce.

Service-centric businesses are constantly looking for new ways to meet customers’ growing demand for convenient and communicative customer service.

2017 is likely to bring continued change and innovation, with new technologies reshaping service operations and delivery. It’s a great time to examine what’s in store for the industry this year, and what field service leaders might want to have on their radar. Here are five technologies set to improve the field service industry in 2017:

1) Machine learning and AI

Machine learning (when algorithms evolve and improve over time) and artificial intelligence (AI) also drove new changes in 2016.

With the ability to better process, interpret, and learn from data, more services suppliers can be predictive instead of reactive, and will be able to automate the tasks that don’t need human input. Increasingly sophisticated forecasting driven by machine learning will drive efficiency increases and cost savings.

2) Reaping the rewards of new realities

Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) were a major force last year. Even though virtual and augmented reality are predominantly used in games such as Pokémon Go and The Lab, both are being adopted more widely in a workplace context to enhance employee productivity and customer experiences.

In 2017, an increasing number of field service engineers will start to see VR and AR initiatives being introduced to support their training and day-to-day work.

 

As experienced engineers age out of the workforce and businesses try to maximise existing resources, VR and AR will increasingly play a role in enabling training, remote coaching, and viewing more information on each task via wearables.

3) Connected customers

As our recent research showed, customer expectations are growing rapidly around the world. The demand for fast, friendly and high quality service that also fits with customers’ busy and varying schedules is becoming the norm. And, aware of the mobile-led technologies that now exist to support a higher level of service delivery, field service customers are voicing demand for engineer location tracking and up-to-the-minute communications.

This communication between the customers and engineers will give customers the ability to share photos, preferences and job information with technicians before their visit, sharing important information that will expedite the service delivery. Customers will also be able to share their customer experience with their provider after the visit, offering feedback that can inform future service decisions.

Field service suppliers that do not start to think seriously about modernizing their operations in 2017 in this way will see an impact on their ability to compete.

4) A smarter field service

A device is labelled ‘smart’ if it can connect to other devices through the Internet of Things.

This year, smart will become smarter and advancements in machine learning will create new opportunities for the field service industry.

There will be improved inter-connectivity of smart devices, which will enable field service engineers to use their smart devices to contact more experienced engineers when they need guidance.

 

This will improve engineers’ knowledge and skills, and also deliver better customer experiences through increased ‘first-time-fix’ resolutions.

Smart technology will also accelerate preventative maintenance, alerting the customer and technician when there is an issue with a piece of equipment before the customer needs to make the call.

Usage patterns and failures are therefore easier to recognise and plan for, minimising interruptions and failures when a device is connected through smart technology.

5) Autonomous vehicles will drive innovation

Autonomous vehicles are already being trialled in some parts of the world, but 2017 will be the year when the business masses start to investigate their potential in the context of business gain.

This goes a step beyond assisted driving, which is already allowing field service engineers to predict traffic and avoid routes that will slow down their journey. Autonomous vehicles can also reduce the number of multiple visits from engineers by delivering the necessary tools to the engineer onsite, or providing the required tools to the customer if the machine can be self-fixed.

 

In short, self-driving cars or drones could present a field service industry game changer and as autonomous vehicle technology improves—and in-country legislation relating to their use is put in place —discussions around the benefits these offer to industry suppliers will gather pace amidst the race to innovate.

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The 'uberization' of field service is a topic gaining much traction of late, could the gig economy alleviate pressures for field service companies meeting ever increasing customer expectations of shorter appointment windows or will it present too much of a challenge in terms of maintain brand standards in an age where customer satisfaction reins supreme?

This excellent infographic from ClickSoftware reveals some interesting findings from a recent research project they've undertaken on this topic...

 

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Want to know more? A full white paper based on this research is available to Field Service News subscribers. If you are a field service professional you can subscribe now for free and get this white paper sent straight to your inbox. Simply click here to subscribe now!

 

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Sumair Dutta, Chief Customer Officer, Service Council takes a look at some of the key areas of focus field service organisations need to consider in order to deliver success in 2017...

Annual predictions and forecasts are an interesting activity/discipline. I like to think of them as annual affirmations as strategic investments don’t necessarily change year-over-year.

In some instances, organisations are looking to expand on what they’ve been doing.

I believe the four primary areas of focus that will yield success in 2017 will be:

1. Increasing Predictability
2. Enhancing Efficiency
3. Identifying New Opportunities
4. Empowering Customers with Access and Information

The internal investments in data, automation, talent development, and engagement process realignment must be aligned with these objectives .

In each of the four focus areas, I’d like to share an activity or investment that’s likely to be top of mind.

Increasing Predictability

Focus Initiative: Executing on Predictive Models.

In our research, we’ve found that most organisations have used investments in IoT or analytics to increase their efficiency.

They are finally turning an eye to the predictive power of this information and in building delivery models to support predictive service. Effective delivery models (over-the-air, self-service, remote assistance, partner-based support, field support) of predictive support can be built on the existing reactive infrastructure, but do require an investment in training, communication, and change management. To that end, the service organisation needs the support of other business groups, mainly R&D, IT, and Sales and Marketing.

Emerging Initiative: Going deeper into customer feedback data to predict future events and avert negative outcomes.

Enhancing Efficiency

Focus Initiative: Better Use of Better Information.

Over the past five years, service organisations have made significant investments in mobility to empower the field service staff and in unified desktops to empower contact center staff.

In these investments, organisations have focused on making sure that all information necessary was available at the front-lines. The problem was that the information wasn’t available in context, making it difficult for front-line staff to use this information.

To tackle the glut of information on the front-end, we do see organisations re-evaluate technology investments to ensure that the right information is prioritised for front-line staff. Outside of technology, we actually see a great deal of investment into the structure and design of training programs and content to ensure that front-line agents are able to act on information that is made available to them.

Emerging Initiative: Evaluating Augmented or merged reality in field service and in training as it enhances the reach and scale of a centralised expert model and drives more from available and experienced talent.

Identifying New Opportunities

Focus Initiative: Diving into Installed Base Management.

While organisations are always on the lookout for new customers and new services to sell to those customers, there is an increasing recognition of the need to accomplish more with the existing installed base. In this, organisations are focusing their analytical minds on the portfolio of existing customers and the products and services that might be needed to improve retention and increase customer value.

Emerging Initiative: The development of customer care (customer success) teams that enable a consistent communication with customers to uncover pain points, challenges, and opportunities.

Empowering Customers with Information and Access

Focus Initiative: Improving Ease and Reducing Effort.

Motivational speakers often state that a differentiated experience comes from the ability of an organisation to surprise and delight its customers. In equipment-centric service the word surprise isn’t looked at as a positive.

Yet, there is a greater push from equipment manufacturers (and other organisations) to improve the experience that’s delivered to customers. Some of this can be attributed to consumerised experiences delivered by the likes of Uber and Amazon. Organisations we work with are looking to make it easier for customers to do business with them and this correlates with reducing customer angst and effort in seeking and acting on information.

Emerging Initiative: The use of messaging as a communication channel in on overall interaction portfolio to offer customers a greater degree of choice and convenience.

2017 is going to be anything but predictable. Yet the recipe for service success doesn’t change much.

Customers continue to take charge with increasing demands and expectations and organisations must respond with clinical efficiency internally and value filled interactions and touch points with customers.

 

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Bill Pollock, President, Strategies for GrowthSM guides us through how he sees the future of our industry shaping up in the next few years...

As we enter the uncharted waters of 2017, it becomes increasingly important for Field Service Organisations (FSOs) to understand the specific impact that the next 12 months (and beyond) will have on the quality of their field service operations.

In fact, the future state of Field Service Management (FSM) will depend largely on what strategic actions global FSOs plan to take in the next 12 months or so.

Since these actions will be directly linked to the multitude of drivers that are most likely to influence decision making within the global services community, this would be a good place to start.

 

The results of Strategies For GrowthSM‘s (SFGSM) 2016/17 Field Service Management Benchmark Survey reveal that the top drivers cited as influencing FSOs today may be categorised into three main areas:

1. Customer demand and/or preferences
2. Need to improve service workforce utilisation, productivity and efficiencies
3. Internal mandate to drive increased service revenues

When asked to cite the top three drivers currently influencing their ability to effectively manage field services operations, 56% of respondents cite customer demand for quicker response time, and nearly one-third (32%) cite customer demand for improved asset availability.

However, the need to improve workforce utilisation and productivity is also cited by a majority (51%) of respondents as a top driver, followed by the need to improve service process efficiencies (39%).

An internal mandate to drive increased service revenues is then cited by 31% of respondents as one of their top three drivers.

Once the key market drivers are firmly identified, FSOs need to create – and implement – the most effective strategic planning actions to address them head-on.

As reported in the SFGSM survey, the most commonly implemented strategic actions, currently, are:

• 48% Develop and/or improve KPIs used to measure field service performance
• 40% Invest in mobile tools to support field technicians
• 36% Automate existing manual field service processes and activities
• 31% Integrate new technologies into existing field service operations
• 30% Provide additional training to field service technicians and dispatchers
• 26% Improve planning and forecasting with respect to field operations
• 25% Increase customer involvement in Web-based service process
• 24% Provide enterprise-wide access to important field-collected data

These data strongly suggest that there is a pattern of synergy among the top four cited strategic actions that builds a foundation for all of the other actions that will ultimately be taken by the organisation; that is, that nearly half of the FSOs comprising the global services community already recognise the need to build and/or improve their KPI ¬-measurement program – this is essential!

This is the first step!

However, along with the development and/or improvement of a KPI program, nearly as many organisations also recognise the need to invest in state-of-the-art mobile tools to support their technicians in the field, while concurrently, automating their existing manual field service processes and activities to provide an enterprise-wide foundation for collecting data and information, and disseminating this process to field technicians (and, in many cases, to their customers) on an as-needed basis.

Further, about one-third of FSOs recognise the need to integrate new technologies into existing field service operations to make it all come together.

 

This synergy is built on, first, ensuring that there is an effective KPI measurement program in place, and using that program to establish a benchmark, or baseline, for measuring the organisation’s current field service performance.

Second, there needs to be a comprehensive internal effort to bring the technical aspects of services operations into the current (and future) timeframe – this can be done mainly by investing in an effective package of mobile tools to support the field force.

Finally, it will be the integration of these new technologies (e.g., mobility applications, the IoT, wearables, 3D printing, Augmented Reality (AR), etc.) into the overall mix of resources and tools deployed by FSOs that will empower the field force do their jobs more productively and efficiently.

The desired results, of course, would be the improvement of service delivery performance and the resultant improvements in the levels of customer satisfaction (and retention). Even the concept of Servitization, or the “transformation process in which a manufacturer shifts from a product-based business model to a services-based business mode”, could not exist in its present form without the power of the IoT behind it. In fact, it may be argued that there would be no Servitization without the IoT!

Among the many benefits that an IoT-powered Servitization model brings to the table are:

• Provides a competitive advantage with respect to the organisation’s ability to offer a state-of-the-art, differentiated, services offering that may also be “branded”, thereby providing an additional means for marketing and promoting its services to a hungry-for technology services marketplace.
• Yields increased margins for the services organisation, resulting both from improvements made on the supply side (e.g., by cutting the costs of delivering services through remote means) and the demand side (e.g., the ability to charge a premium price for premium services); etc.
• Provides the ability to more evenly forecast, predict and realise revenue streams through the implementation of remote diagnostics and predictive modeling.
• Fosters more meaningful partner relationships with customers through the sharing of equipment service data/ information, and allowing customers to be more proactive in the ultimate service and support of their installed base of equipment (e.g., initiating service calls, ordering parts, tracking problem resolution, etc.).[/unordered_list]

The future looks particularly bright for the global services community! How do we know that?

Because the future is already here – especially among the more progressive – and aggressive – FSOs that will likely lead the rest of us through these uncharted waters in 2017 and beyond.

It just looks like now may be the time for all of us to follow their lead!

 

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US telecoms giant AT&T recently shared that the company has been using drones to inspect conditions of its 65,000 cellular towers across the US.

The challenge is daunting. There are millions of cell towers in the US alone, all of which need to be inspected on a regular basis.

To begin with their is the genuine issue that these cell towers tend to make very attractive birdhourses. In fact cell towers offer convenient and reasonably safe homes for nesting birds. To make even more complicated, according to US federal environmental regulations, if the nesting species happens to be endangered, then teams must leave them be.

No a mast tower inspector’s life is not an easy one.

All this is a headache for telecoms firms and inspection providers alike, simply because current processes are so laborious.

Each tower is typically several hundred feet high requiring technicians to scale the mast via rope rigging. Unsurprisingly, despite best efforts, every year people are hurt in such operations due to weather, equipment and the aforementioned birds.

 

Of course, until a technician can get a close look at the tower, there’s also little indication as to what problem they may need to fix. This means multiple trips, increased downtime and elevated personal risk.

Drones, with their high-resolution cameras, can serve as a unique tool to provide an initial inspection for the technicians.

The majority of inspections are routine and don’t require a technician to scale the tower. The ability to do this remotely with a drone greatly increases the operational efficiency of the service providers, allowing them to identify towers with issues more quickly and minimising the amount of time they spend hanging from ropes from the side of towers.

Cell towers are technically sensitive equipment, with lots of wires, transmitters, and distribution boxes.

One commonly cited concern related to using drones for inspecting towers is the risk of a collision that cuts wires or damaging equipment. Deploying a drone with obstacle avoidance, such as DJI’s Phantom 4, along with an experienced operator are vital to safe operations.

Interestingly, DJI recently partnered with US service operator Measure Aero, a specialist in technical inspection work.

It will be interesting to see how the telecoms industry will be deploying drones over the next 12 -18 months.

With a variety of use cases and substantial safety and efficiency gains to be had, it is hard not to imagine adoption, and business, will be brisk.

 

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Note: This content first featured on www.dji.com 

 

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Kris Oldland, Editor-in-Chief talks exclusively to Jonathan Massoud, Divisional Director, Field Service, WBR about the key topics and discussions that took place at Field Service Medical held at Rancho Bernardo Inn, San Diego.

We also take a sneak peak at what to expect at this year's Field Service USA event being held in Palm Springs this April

 

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Thinking of attending Field Service USA this year? Field Service News subscribers are entitled to a 25% discount! 

Field service professionals can subscribe now for free here and then simply email the subscriber benefits team on subscriber.benefits@fieldservicenews.com to get your discount code!

 

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Who are the most influential people in the global field service sector that you need to pay attention to in 2017?

The Field Service News #FSN20 is our list of the individuals we believe will be key influencers in our industry across the next twelve months. Those included in the list have been selected by our own panel of industry insiders, who were given the simple criteria of identifying people who will have a significant impact on field service thinking.

However, more than just an annual list of 20 individuals the #FSN20 has grown since it’s launch to become a true celebration of excellence and innovation within our industry.

There are some familiar names and some new faces on this years list and as always we don’t expect everyone to agree with our selection – at it’s heart the #FSN20 was conceived as a tool to get everyone in our industry thinking about who it is that they have come across in the global field service sector that has made them think, who has made them question the accepted paradigms, who has inspired them to do just one little thing more in their own day to day role.

The #FSN20 is not just about the list our panel has put together. It is about fostering discussion that celebrates the unsung heroes of the field service sector. So look out for the online version of this list as well to take part in the debate.

But for now, ladies and gentleman and without further a do, in no particular order, we are pleased to introduce the #FSN20 of 2017…

 

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Click here to see page one of the 2017 #FSN20

 

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Nick Frank, Founder and Managing Partner Si2 Partners

Having worked as an international consultant for over 6 years, Nick founded Si2 Partners last year bringing a new approach to consultancy by offering services on demand.

Nick’s focus is on service strategy development, servitization business models, ecosystems, innovation management, service operations and service business development. He works with companies in a diverse range of industries including engineering, high volume manufacturing, equipment manufacturers and technology. A regular columnist in the trade press and a excellent speaker often to be found at industry conferences, Nick also plays a pivotal role in organising the conference sessions for the UK not-for-profit group The Service Community.

 

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Michael Blumberg, President of Blumberg Advisory Group, Inc

Michael Blumberg is the President of Blumberg Advisory Group and is a recognised expert in Field Service and Reverse Logistics in High-Technology industry.

Michael’s thought leadership, service system planning and strategy formulation are cited as having helped many organisations increase profits and he is a prolific author publishing a number of well received projects including white papers and educational video projects.

 

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Aly Pinder, Director of Member Research & Communities, The Service Council

In previous editions we had a rule that we would only include one person per organisation within the #FSN20. However, ever since Aly moved from the Aberdeen Group to The Service Council, we knew we would have to repeal the rule, as both Aly and Sumair are industry heavy weights in terms of analysis of our industry.

In his new role he will be looking to further enhance the already well established research projects undertaken by The Service Community and his addition to their team makes The Service Council one of the most important groups in the entire global field service sector.

 

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Tom Heiser, CEO, ClickSoftware

It may perhaps be unfair to comment that when Heiser took the reigns of the field service management software stalwarts ClickSoftware the company was perhaps at it’s weakest point in some years, indeed they remain a leading provider of field service management solutions at the forefront of the industry.

Yet, based on the sheer level of dominance that they once held and in light of the ever increasing quality of the competition in the field service management space, Heiser had little time to find his feet in the world of field service if he was to ensure the ClickSoftware brand remained as synonymous with delivering service excellence as it had to date - particularly in the natural uncertainty that an acquisition by a private equity firm can potentially cause. 

However, having seemingly spent little more than a few hours in his own office for the first six months as he flew around the world meeting analysts, influencers and customers alike Heiser certainly appears to have not only established a firm grasp of the industry at large but also where the future for field service management technology lies and under his guidance the outlook for the iconic ClickSoftware brand appears to be on a very positive footing once more...

 

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Marne Martin, CEO, ServicePower

With their next generation platform Nexus now firmly established within the market place ServicePower have re established themselves as a key company within the FSM solutions sector under the vision of Martin.

However, it is her focus on R&D that really continues to drive Service Power to the forefront of their sector. With a number of patents including a one focussed on quantum annealing that will see them developing cutting edge technology for the foreseeable future. Martin is also a very highly respected speaker on the international field service circuit

 

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Jim Baston, President of BBA Consulting Group Inc

Baston of BBA Consulting is the proponent of Proactive Service, and is a master when it comes to understanding the delicate relationship between service and sales and how companies can maximize that relationship to enhance profits. Author, Speaker and Consultant Baston is an intelligent and experienced leader within his field whilst being a true gentleman and pleasure to talk to, to boot.

 

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Kevin Jones Managing Director Computer Product Solutions, Panasonic Europe

Panasonic remain the undisputed leaders in the rugged space with the ToughPad and Toughbook brands synonymous with rugged computing. The Panasonic ToughBook20 is the worlds first fully rugged detachable and could just be the most perfect device for field service to date being both a tablet and a laptop.

Jones has spent a decade with Panasonic and has total responsibility for the entire ToughBook / ToughPad Products and Solutions in Europe, including Sales, Marketing, Engineering and Operations whilst also sitting concurrently on the board of Panasonic Manufacturing.

 

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Dave Yarnold, CEO, ServiceMax

Within less than a decade Yarnold has taken ServiceMax from start-up to being purchased by GE late last year for close to a Billion Dollars.

However, the meteoric rise of ServiceMax wasn’t solely about the technology. Yarnold has a true passion for the service and that passion has filtered down and shone through at all levels of the organisation, which was perhaps the secret source that put them at the top of the sector - having been recognised as the leading FSM solution provider in the most recent magic quadrant report.

Now as part of GE Digital, Yarnold has even bigger visions of how ServiceMax can play a role in building an operating system for the entire industrial sector of which service will be a key component.

Big ambitions?

Yes. But Yarnold is a man that could possibly just do it.

 

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Click here to see page three of the 2017 #FSN20

 

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