ClickSoftware, the leading provider of field service management software, has announced a number of new customer wins and updates from the second quarter of 2018.
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Oct 05, 2018 • Management • News • ClickSoftware • field service • field service management • gartner • Service Management • Click Field Service Edge • Mark Cattini • Managing the Mobile Workforce
ClickSoftware, the leading provider of field service management software, has announced a number of new customer wins and updates from the second quarter of 2018.
The company announced several new customers in a range of industries and geographies, including Enbridge Gas New Brunswick, Lloyds Pharmacy Clinical Home, IFM Restoration, and Lattelecom, as well other leading service companies. In the most recent quarter, ClickSoftware also signed a new agreement with a longtime partner, Diabsolut FSM, to resell its cloud-based field service management product, Click Field Service Edge in North America.
In May, the company enhanced its flagship offering, Click Field Service Edge, to further improve efficiency and effectiveness on the day of service by uniquely incorporating real-time traffic data into the scheduling process. Field Service Edge now automatically updates the schedule if an unexpected event impacts the planned route to the next task, such as a traffic accident or road closure, and proactively incorporates live traffic conditions whenever schedules are updated to further increase efficiency and operational insight.
“Field service today requires unprecedented agility to achieve service levels that both exceed customer expectations and are cost effective for the business,” said Mark Cattini, CEO of ClickSoftware. “Delivering measurable impact to service businesses is only possible through a combination of real-world experience and state-of-the-art computer science, and we are delighted to see our customers validating our approach.”
In March, ClickSoftware received industry recognition from Gartner, with the highest product score for the “High-Volume and Volatile Schedules” use case in Gartner’s 2017 Critical Capabilities for Field Service Management* report.
“We believe the achievement reflects the company’s commitment to delivering solutions that enable service organizations to predict and plan for exceptional customer experiences,” said Cattini.
*Gartner, Critical Capabilities for Field Service Management, Jim Robinson, Jason Wong, Michael Maoz, March 27, 2018
Note: Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in its research publications, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designation. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartner's research organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.
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Oct 04, 2018 • News • field service • field service management • field service technicians • GE Digital • Service Management • servicemax • Software and Apps • software and apps • Managing the Mobile Workforce
ServiceMax from GE Digital, a leading provider of field service software, today announced a major new release of Predix ServiceMax Field Service Management (FSM), a next-generation field service offering that brings new ways of working to all...
ServiceMax from GE Digital, a leading provider of field service software, today announced a major new release of Predix ServiceMax Field Service Management (FSM), a next-generation field service offering that brings new ways of working to all professionals in service delivery. Recognized as one of the most comprehensive and visionary FSM solutions, the newest ServiceMax offering gives service technicians greater autonomy, empowers dispatchers with more robust decision-making tools, and helps companies better plan and execute complex service projects.
“By delivering innovative field service solutions, our customers are able to achieve higher service efficiency and a better experience for their customers – while remaining competitive in an increasingly crowded market,” said Scott Berg, CEO, ServiceMax from GE Digital. “Responding to evolving customer needs and executing on our long-standing commitment to service innovation and thought leadership, we are excited to introduce our next-generation field service solution.”
Leading the market in customer response, ServiceMax FSM 18.3 addresses three key pillars in next-generation field service work, including technician autonomy, dispatcher empowerment and complex work execution.
Granting Technicians Greater Autonomy
Traditionally, technicians receive guidance from a central dispatch in a linear and prescriptive manner. As the face to customers, field service engineers need the flexibility to make decisions that best serve customer needs. Giving technicians and contractors the ability to make autonomous decisions on a mobile device without depending on the central dispatch supports more confident and effective execution of work – ultimately helping them be more responsive to customer needs.
ServiceMax FSM 18.3 is the company’s fourth-generation mobile application and the culmination of its history and experience in empowering and enabling service technicians. Today’s service operations rely increasingly on combinations of third-party and on-staff service teams, requiring a higher grade of usability, easy adoption and a variety of mobile devices. This new release represents a consumer-style field service mobile app running on the device of their choice.
Empowering the Dispatcher
Additionally, service organizations have evolved the role of service dispatchers. Most do not plan to replace their dispatchers with automated scheduling algorithms – but they do want to free them from the mundane task of day-to-day scheduling to focus on complex, strategic decision making. To support this, ServiceMax FSM 18.3 gives dispatchers tools to be more effective – with software serving up recommendations at every step.
Where dispatchers previously relied on their experience and intuition about how to deploy technicians, this FSM offering delivers a new user experience for the dispatchers and planners called Service Board. Featuring an intuitive UI and significant added functionality over the existing Dispatch Console, the Service Board adds new features that support more efficient planning, scheduling and dispatching. This solution gives dispatchers the flexibility to deal with escalations or problems, focusing on more sophisticated work where human decision making is required.
Addressing Complex Work
Not all types of service jobs are the same; they range from short duration and low complexity, such as cable TV installations in the consumer world, too much more complex and sophisticated service calls, as in the manufacturing and energy space. Major projects – overhauls, equipment decommissioning, installations and upgrades – can be highly complex. Additionally, industries such as power and utilities, aviation, and oil and gas must follow strict regulatory requirements. As service organizations look to expand their service offerings, they must be able to effectively manage service jobs that span multiple days, require multiple technicians, and even work done in multiple shifts. ServiceMax FSM 18.3 offers a new way of solving these challenges.
The new FSM solution helps service organizations scale this complex work, giving companies the ability to define standard or complex shift plans. This includes jobs with multiple technician skill sets, management of multiple resources, and situations when technicians must work on a job for days rather than hours. Additionally, FSM 18.3 can incorporate data from predictive maintenance software, such as GE Digital’s Predix Asset Performance Management, giving companies greater understanding of an equipment condition for highly complex assets.
“It is no longer working to just focus on ‘what’s wrong’ when delivering service in the field. Smart service organizations are working to focus on what RIGHT looks like for the customer, delivering reliable uptime rather than just fast response and resolution times” says Vele Galovski, VP of Field Services Research for the Technology Services Industry Association (TSIA). “To accomplish that, you need to really empower your employees with the right tools that help them get their jobs done. ServiceMax’s new capabilities capitalize on this trend, and it is great to see ServiceMax, now as part of GE, continue to focus on features that matter for our field service members.”
Availability
The new capabilities introduced in ServiceMax FSM 18.3 are currently available in beta. During this beta period, ServiceMax is working closely with select customers to refine use cases and the product experience, after which the features will become generally available in the first quarter of 2019. For more details about ServiceMax FSM 18.3, click here.
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Oct 03, 2018 • Features • contact centre • mplsystems • omni channel • field service • field service management • IFS • Service Management • Service Triage • Software and Apps • omnichannel • Customer Satisfaction and Expectations • Managing the Mobile Workforce
Across the last few weeks, we've run a mini-series of excerpts of from the latest white paper from IFS we take a look at how communication is changing and technology is evolving.
Across the last few weeks, we've run a mini-series of excerpts of from the latest white paper from IFS we take a look at how communication is changing and technology is evolving.
In the first feature in the series, we looked at how when it comes to communications, Customers Want It Their Way . In the second instalment, we explored how Complexity Is a Distraction to Delivering your Target Customer Experience.
Now in the third and final excerpt in this series we discuss "How to Reverse the ‘It’s Getting More Complex and Expensive’ Trap" that so many field service companies can fall into...
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So far we have explored two points of view: the customer and the advisor. The customer’s adoption of technologies that enables an always connected, real-time responsive lifestyle has set an incredibly high bar for organisations to match. In particular, smartphones simplify the business of getting things done. An obsessive design focus on ‘one-click access has set expectations for simple, immediate engagement.
"Choice in communication channels is often offered in a fragmented way. Tactical procurement of ‘the next channel’ means they operate without the ability to orchestrate conversational continuity across channels and devices..."
However, organisations are yet to match this sophistication. Choice in communication channels is often offered in a fragmented way. Tactical procurement of ‘the next channel’ means they operate without the ability to orchestrate conversational continuity across channels and devices.
A similar fragmentation has also occurred with enterprise CRM deployments. These have an enduring reputation for being hard to deliver. Scaled down ambitions then tend to target a more pragmatic focus on the individual needs of functional teams. This makes personalised service a much more complex task for advisors who are still expected to be knowledgeable about any event across a customer’s lifecycle.
Organising customer data by functional priorities has meant CRM is failing to keep pace with expectations for informed, low effort customer service engagement. Operationally it is just too hard for advisors to locate and assess the context of a customer’s situation on the fly. Both customer and organisation suffer in terms of poor customer experience and ROI.
Instead, this is how customer data should be used.
At the point of initial customer contact, a rich mix of relevant data is used for automated decision making. The aim is to direct customers to their ‘best’ resource. In an omni-channel context, this could be live assistance, self-service or proactive service. The triggers for selecting the ‘best’ resource will depend on the demands of each customer journey and how each customer reacts during that journey.
As a rule of thumb:
- Repeatable customer needs at definable points of a journey can be anticipated and therefore offered as a proactive service.
- Whenever things typically become complex, emotional or require some form of relationship nurture, live assistance is best.
- Anything else is a candidate for 24x7, instant self-service.
As far as live assistance is concerned, the ‘best’ advisor experience is that data and workflow is proactively pushed to them at the right points during each customer journey. The function of an effective unified desktop is to make the complex look simple. As a result, advisors are less distracted and can remain in full rapport with each customer and their needs.
This simplification demands a single screen of information that will adapt as the conversation flows. What previously required toggling across multiple screens is now condensed into a single overview - with duplicated and inconsistent data entry a thing of the past.
Some of this design intent is achieved through visual layout: for instance just one inbox for all voice and text enquiries, one view of interaction and transaction history etc. All of which makes for the kind of intuitive user experience that advisors already expect from their mobile technologies.
However, there is also some clever stuff that happens before any customer information is brought to the advisor’s attention. In the design quest of presenting only the most simple and relevant view, an advanced unified desktop will combine many data sources into a single stream.
As previously mentioned, holistic customer insight is seldom held in one system of record or offered by a functional view. And hard-won experience tells us that the ‘rip and replace’ strategy of turning many legacy systems into a single consolidated version seldom works out as planned.
"Modern ‘digital glue’ such as data aggregation models and APIs can ‘mashup’ multiple data sources and present the advisor with everything they need..."
Instead, there are less risky ways of achieving the same goal. Modern ‘digital glue’ such as data aggregation models and APIs can ‘mashup’ multiple data sources and present the advisor with everything they need.
Sometimes an even greater focus is needed around how customer information is organised and displayed. What about those instances when first-time resolution does not happen within a single session? Maybe the process that supports a customer journey inevitably takes time, such as making an application or a claim or trying to recover lost property. Maybe the customer or organisation has to find more information or do something else to reach a decision. All of which takes more time.
This is where case management comes into its own. It draws boundaries around this type of customer situation and attributes the relevant data, interactions, transactions and workflow for easy ongoing reference. This is especially important when there are multiple points of customer contact, which are progressed by different employees, who need to easily reference previous steps in the customer journey without expecting customers to provide the narrative.
This form of grouping is enabled by one of the defining functions of an omni-channel framework. So-called ‘universal queuing’ will organise all voice, text and workflow items into a single management system instead of treating them as separate queues. As a result, integrated views of activities over time are automatically generated and presented to the advisor, saving time and effort for all concerned. This ability is however untypical in a CRM centric approach.
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Oct 02, 2018 • Hardware • News • Enterprise Mobility • field service • field service management • Getac • rugged • rugged tablets • Service Management • Field Worker • HAZLOC • OTEX • Managing the Mobile Workforce
A new fully-rugged solution purpose-built for the challenging conditions and uncompromising demands of those working within hazardous industries
A new fully-rugged solution purpose-built for the challenging conditions and uncompromising demands of those working within hazardous industries
Getac announced last week the launch of the new F110-Ex fully-rugged tablet, as an enhancement to its popular F110 model, designed to deliver unrivalled efficiency, reliability and safety to workers in hazardous environments.
In many industrial sectors, extreme temperatures, poor weather conditions and close contact with dangerous substances are all factors to contend with daily. Workers need devices they can rely on for efficient field maintenance, accurate safety checks and equipment monitoring tasks. IT failure not only has a significant impact on productivity, it also puts lives at risk.
The new F110-Ex fully-rugged tablet has been designed with this in mind. Featuring an 11.6-inch sunlight readable display and weighing just 1.49kg, it is both versatile and compact providing reliable operation in the field. MIL-STD810G and IP65 water and dust resistance certifications ensure seamless operation in wet, dirty environments, while an operating temperature range of -21°C to +60°C ensures full functionality in even the most extreme conditions.
The F110-Ex features intrinsic safety design limiting electrical and thermal energy output to a level below that required to ignite hazardous atmospheric mixtures. Like all of Getac’s Ex fully-rugged tablets it is certified to ATEX, UL913 and IECEx standards, for complete operator safety.
Powering digital transformation
Advances in AI and IoT technologies are powering digital transformation across all industrial sectors and the F110-Ex allows those businesses working in hazardous environments to fully benefit from productivity and process improvements and migrate legacy paper-based documentation to live and even cloud solutions.
Chris Bye, President at Getac U.K. Ltd, comments, “The F110-Ex enables users to safely collect and send digital data, capture images and even engage in video communication in high-risk environments, helping enterprises complete the last mile of digital transformation.”
Exceptional performance and security
Equipped with the 7th generation Intel Kaby Lake Core processors and multi-factor security mechanisms, the F110-Ex provides exceptional computing power and secure authentication. Full data protection is provided by Windows 10, with an optional face recognition camera compatible with Windows Hello, as well as barcode scanner and (LF/HF)RFID reader.
As one of the top rugged solution providers, Getac offers a comprehensive portfolio of vertically integrated solutions for all types of extreme operating conditions. In addition to the new F110-Ex, Getac’s fully rugged tablet portfolio includes the EX80, ZX70, T800 and other ATEX-certified models, all delivering exceptional ruggedness and performance for hazardous industries.
Availability:
The new F110 will be available to buy from 27th September 2018. For more information, please visit: www.getac.com
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Oct 01, 2018 • News • Research • field service • field service management • Service Management • Software and Apps • software and apps • API • SimPRO • Managing the Mobile Workforce
Trade service businesses now have the ability to become experts with job management software thanks to simPRO’s new learning resource.
Trade service businesses now have the ability to become experts with job management software thanks to simPRO’s new learning resource.
The ‘simPRO Learning | Toolbox’ is the job management software company’s latest global product release, specifically designed to educate and support clients who are seeking short-term answers or long-term knowledge about the technology they use for coordinating business operations.
The new solution offers a growing library of essential resources, including how-tos and standard workflow practice materials, which can be learned at any pace. The online materials are self-directed, interactive and delivered in short, five-minute topics, supporting users in just-in-time learning to get the knowledge when needed. Users also have the ability to complete entire courses on specific simPRO knowledge or workflows. All materials reinforce the learning experience with knowledge checks.
simPRO Global Head of Customer Success, Erika Entz, said simPRO Learning | Toolbox was developed as a supportive resource for time-poor customers who wish to stay up to date with business demands.
[quote float="left"]This is a major stepping stone for simPRO customers, to gain a deeper understanding of our job management software, which has become integral to the trade service industry[/quote]“This is a major stepping stone for simPRO customers, to gain a deeper understanding of our job management software, which has become integral to the trade service industry,” she said.
“The learning toolbox allows businesses to enhance their simPRO knowledge anytime, anywhere. The learning materials will help businesses get new team members up to speed faster, and the self-directed learning allows users to become job management software experts in their own right.”
Ms Entz said the simPRO Learning Toolbox’s wide variety of resources would help simPRO to provide job management software that will lead businesses to future success, and help to make modern software a more accessible mainstream tool in the trade services industry.
“simPRO is dedicated to supporting our current and future customers with a variety of learning resources to ensure we enable our customers to get the most out of their software.”
“We regularly update and add new content, providing our customers with just-in-time learning in our new simPRO Learning Toolbox in addition to other learning resources, such as the simPRO Help Guide, videos and Walk Me Throughs to learn more about our groundbreaking solutions.”
The self-paced microlearning materials are available to users anywhere, anytime with internet access.
The simPRO Learning | Toolbox is included with simPRO customer’s user licenses, and comes at no extra costs and launched on 26 September 2018.
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Oct 01, 2018 • Features • Asset Management • Future of FIeld Service • field service • field service management • GE Digital • Internet of Things • IoT • Service Management • servicemax • Servitization • Vanson Bourne • Managing the Mobile Workforce
Are Outcome Based Services a key topic for you?! There is a white paper on this topic available to fieldservicenews.com subscribers. Click the button below to get fully up to date now!
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Asset and service data will be a crucial element of making this transition to a more outcome-based business model. However, at present, surveyed organisations are not accessing the full potential of this data due to their inconsistent use of digital tools and technology. While 98% of respondents report that their organisation uses automated digital tools and technology to aid the collection and utilisation of asset service data, only around half or fewer state that these tools are used in the collection (51%), aggregation (43%) or analysis (52%) stages of the process.
This intermittent use of automated technologies is not only opening the door for inefficiencies but is also directly leading to difficulties with data collection and utilisation. Around four in ten respondents report that when it comes to the management of access to asset service data in real time (40%), aggregating asset service data in a structured way (39%), analysing asset service data (41%), and sharing asset service data analysis with the rest of the business (42%), their organisation either needs huge improvements in these areas, a complete overhaul or that they simply do not do this at all yet.
The difficulties regarding asset and service data are exasperated further by the 59% of respondents who agree that their organisation is held back from the successful analysis of data because the quality of it is usually poor.
Struggles are rife throughout the entire process, right from who is collecting it and how they do this, down to how it is being analysed and shared across the business. How can these organisations possibly expect to make any informed, strategic decisions using the data that is readily available to them if the process is so disjointed, outdated and underdeveloped digitally?
Lack of Data Confidence
And these struggles have led to a distinct lack of confidence among surveyed decision makers and their colleagues, with only 50% of respondents reporting that they or other service leaders in their organisation completely trust the asset service data that they have access to. But this will need to change because asset and service data is becoming an ever more integral part of organisations, and this is summed up by the 85% of respondents who agree that service asset data should be central to strategic decision making.
The requirement to boost trust levels is especially pertinent in those organisations where the C-suite is already using asset service data today (39%) or have plans to in the future (34%) because they will need to be able to trust in the data in order to make well-informed decisions for the business.
The use of asset and service data by the C-suite will also serve to set an example for leaders across other departments that this is the best way forward for the organisation.
Glaring Skills Gap
However, it is not just these deep-lying trust issues that are a concern for organisations, which is clear from the fact that only 22% of respondents are willing to admit that the IT and field service functions in their organisation work together completely effectively to achieve the goal of better data utilisation.
This lack of collaboration is compounded by a glaring skills gap whereby over three quarters (77%) of surveyed decision makers concede that the pace of data intelligence digitally collected by their organisation’s assets is outpacing the skills of those responsible for actually utilising the data.
Further to this, more than four in ten respondents report that the skills of engineers (45%) and the skills of management (44%) are a cause for concern when it comes to using data produced by advanced technologies (such as a digital twin) meaningfully. This should set alarm bells ringing for organisations because they are struggling with skills among both their employees on the ground and those higher up the organisation as well. It seems that even with the implementation of the appropriate technology for the collection and utilisation of asset and service data, there will still be work to be done in order to extract as much value as possible – this will likely need to be in the form of a rigorous training program.
An Appetite for Automation
A lack of collaboration between teams, an ever-increasing skills gap and an inconsistent use of the appropriate technology, leading to trust issues could become a recipe for disaster in these organisations if not addressed quickly.
The need for automated digital tools has rarely been clearer, and respondents recognise this. Only 7% believe that automating the process of collecting and utilising asset service data is not at all required because all data manually entered by service engineers is structured and entirely usable. Whereas over four in ten (43%) report that the automation of this process in their organisation is required to a huge extent, or that it is completely required because manually entered data never/rarely provides value.
Organisations will need to utilise automated digital tools more consistently if they are to progress, but they will also need to upskill their workforce and address any collaboration issues internally. These three areas are crucial if asset and service data is to be utilised to its full potential and this will ultimately underpin the successful transition to an outcome-based business model.
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Sep 26, 2018 • WorkMobile • field service • field service management • Service Management • Uncategorized • Grace Landsacapes • Managing the Mobile Workforce
A national commercial landscaping company has dramatically increased its efficiency and improved its environmental credentials after embracing digital transformation.
A national commercial landscaping company has dramatically increased its efficiency and improved its environmental credentials after embracing digital transformation.
Since adopting the WorkMobile mobile data capture app, Grace Landscapes has saved many hours’ worth of filing and data inputting time each month and greatly reduced its paper waste.
Grace Landscapes, which has a head office in Yorkshire, is one of the forerunners in the commercial landscaping sector. Established in 1978, it has grown from one to more than 120 members of staff based in four different locations, with an annual turnover of £6million.
Previously, the company’s field workers relied on paper-based forms and handheld cameras to capture information on landscaping and maintenance projects.
This resulted in a cumbersome paper trail, with a three to four-day wait to receive paperwork back by mail. The information then needed to be manually inputted into its CRM system and filed away in a time-consuming process.
Grace Landscapes recognised that it could benefit from a digital solution to help manage its data more effectively, and as it decided to upgrade its company mobiles to smartphones, began to look into ways that they could be used to their full potential.
After trialling WorkMobile’s cloud-based application for eight weeks with just four users, Grace Landscapes now has a permanent licence for each of its 40 field workers and supervisors.
[quote float="left"]After trialling WorkMobile’s cloud-based application for eight weeks with just four users, Grace Landscapes now has a permanent licence for each of its 40 field workers and supervisors. [/quote]With the help of WorkMobile’s flexible form designer, information can now be sent back to the Grace Landscapes head office instantly, along with photographs. With this information automatically integrated into the CRM and saved in the correct file, it not only saves time but also leaves less room for human error.
Team members can now search for completed jobs and other data within seconds, something that could previously have taken members of staff many hours to do.
It has also greatly enhanced the company’s reporting capabilities, making it much easier and quicker to find out, for example, how many jobs each person has done, to see any outstanding work, or to check the risk assessments for each site.
Neil Pix from Grace Landscapes said: “Once we realised how much time and money our previous method of data capture was really costing us, we made it a priority to find a more sophisticated, digital solution.
“WorkMobile’s app was exactly what we were looking for, and the results we’ve seen have actually exceeded our expectations.”
All these factors have improved Grace Landscapes efficiency and enabled us to spend money on other areas of the business.
“We pride ourselves on being an environmentally responsible business, and even established our own on-site recycling facility over 10 years ago, so the major reduction in paper waste is a fantastic added bonus.”
Colin Yates, chief support officer of WorkMobile, said: “We’re delighted that Grace Landscapes has seen such immediate, tangible benefits from using our mobile data capture solution.
“Our goal is always to help businesses revolutionise the way they work, saving them time and money while also helping them to become more sustainable.
“With just a few simple changes, Grace Landscapes has embraced digital transformation and completely eliminated its reliance on outdated physical paperwork.”
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Sep 26, 2018 • Features • contact centre • mplsystems • omni channel • field service • field service management • IFS • Service Management • Service Triage • Software and Apps • Managing the Mobile Workforce
As part of a new mini-series of excerpts of from the latest white paper from IFS we take a look at how communication is changing and technology is evolving.
As part of a new mini-series of excerpts of from the latest white paper from IFS we take a look at how communication is changing and technology is evolving. In the first feature in the series we looked at how when it comes to communications, Customers Want It Their Way .At the end of that article we asserted that in truth, we live in a world of five generations of consumers and employees. The choice of communication channel is ours. We pick whichever works for us. And by the way, if you think letter writing is dead just ask any complaints team!
So what does this mean? Does it condemn organisations that want to do the right thing by their customers to every increasing cost? The answer depends on what generation of infrastructure you are using...
Are improving your communication channels a key issue for you?! The full white paper on this topic available to fieldservicenews.com subscribers. Click the button below to get fully up to speed!
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While a choice of voice and text has been available to all current generations, their accessibility and immediacy has been transformed over the last forty years: from landline to smartphone, from letter to instant messaging. Our preferences tend to be based on the dominant channel(s) within our peer group.
But before we start to look at that, there is another stakeholder’s point of view that needs to be included beyond that of the customer. No prizes for guessing that the advisors’ experience matters in equal measure. Once routing and triage business rules have matched customer need with the best qualified, available person, your advisors assume prime responsibility for the quality of outcome and the customer’s retained memory of the service experience.
That’s a lot to get right, especially with five generations of customers and personas to take into consideration. In fact, it requires single-minded concentration and attention on the unique needs and expectations of each customer to nail those deliverables consistently.
While we might imagine that multi-tasking is the obvious way through a busy day, it has a price. Our attention span is finite. Split it too far amongst competing tasks and something has to suffer. More often than not it’s the nuances of each individual customer need that is missed when advisors find their focus and listening power distracted by the logistics of helping the customer towards their outcome.
"There are many triggers for losing focus on the customer experience. For instance, desktops can rapidly become a mosaic of overlapping application windows as information and workflow is requested and generated..."
There are many triggers for losing focus on the customer experience. For instance, desktops can rapidly become a mosaic of overlapping application windows as information and workflow is requested and generated.
Moreover, these are not consistent interfaces. They can range from mainframe style green screens to back-office ERP systems and cloud CRM interfaces. Legacy organisations typically expect advisors to toggle between half a dozen screens for certain customer jobs. There are even some sectors with double-digit complexity when additional third-party applications are used, such as customer eligibility checks.
Navigating all this is a daunting challenge for anyone just arriving at a new contact centre. They have the challenge of live engagement layered with the unfamiliarity of multiple systems and their idiosyncrasies. No wonder that much contact centre induction time is soaked up in systems familiarisation and training at the expense of customer experience skills.
On top of all that, it is not uncommon for larger contact centres to endure 20%+ annual attrition rates. Given the learning curve just described, a continual drag on performance and service reputation is created that is hard to overcome.
Finally, one of the most common complaints against the contact centre versus a typical online experience is that organisations never remember customers’ profile and history, despite asking for it multiple times. ‘Know me’ is a key mantra in digital economies.
But within the fast moving dynamics of a live engagement, advisors cannot be expected to hunt down relevant customer information in order to personalise an interaction. Even when captured in CRM, that information can remain hidden from view nestled behind multiple tabs and menus. No wonder we still hear the ‘system is slow today’ apology as the search for relevant details continues in the background.
There are multiple negatives from this way of working.
More time has to be spent on each customer, which inflates headcount costs. It then gets worse if the outcome is failure to find the right answer or get something done
immediately. Handoffs to other teams generate more work, inflate inbound queues with progress checking customers and put a big dent in the quality of customer experience for those who suffer.
Advisor motivation takes a hit too, as the pressure mounts on working harder. Command and control culture is reinforced to meet targets and the chemistry of an empowered employee culture driving positive customer experience starts to dissolve as a result. The ongoing stress of being underequipped and unable to do your best can hollow out the enthusiasm of even the most dedicated advisor.
But the good news is that it is possible to work smarter as opposed to expecting the team just to work harder. Advisors have the same right as customers to expect low effort engagement. This happens when a great desktop experience is enabling the right customer experience.
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Sep 25, 2018 • Features • Asset Management • Astea • Future of FIeld Service • field service • field service management • Internet of Things • IoT • Field Service Solutions • Service Management Solutions • WBR Insights • Managing the Mobile Workforce
Adopting IoT as part of the greater service and business environment involves keeping up with industry changes as they take place. That means incorporating better measures when needs arise in any business area and keeping cost-effective solutions in...
Adopting IoT as part of the greater service and business environment involves keeping up with industry changes as they take place. That means incorporating better measures when needs arise in any business area and keeping cost-effective solutions in mind for future progress of the company as a whole.
Is IoT adoption a key topic for you?! There is a white paper on this topic available to fieldservicenews.com subscribers. Click the button below to get fully up to speed now!
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Already, 76% of companies are using IoT data analytics to establish product and/or process quality imperatives. Their decision makers can analyze IoT data to improve solution recommendations, feedback on installations, demonstrations, specific services, and others.
IoT also serves as a signifier for opportunities to improve more processes, such as identifying popular products and managing inventory.
Respondents believe data should be usable in decision making at a variety of business levels. In every case, a majority of companies have either adopted IoT for specific business functions or plan to do so in the next 24 months. But companies prioritize customer-facing initiatives—service, products, and satisfaction—over internal functions such as business projections and aligning service data with financials.
Customer Satisfaction & Loyalty:
73% of companies have incorporated IoT (42%) or plan to do so within 24 months (31%) for the purpose of customer satisfaction and loyalty. More companies have incorporated IoT for this purpose than for any other measured in the study.
With connected data, companies are able to understand and fulfil customer demands better thanks to improved communication. In this way, minor technological improvements can be made without delay or other consequences.
Service Processes & Optimization
Respondents agree that connected data and IoT have helped streamline processes across departments. By leveraging IoT data, they can measure efforts for overall growth through set channels, be they internal or service-driven.
Now, 41% of companies have incorporated IoT for process optimisation, a close second to customer satisfaction and loyalty. Thirty-six percent have already incorporated IoT with service processes; more companies plan to do so within 24 months (37%) than with any other business function measured.
Product Uptime
Companies’ attention to customer experiences carries over to product support, where one respondent cites “notable improvements” to uptime in both industrial and consumer-driven channels. One healthcare executive says IoT helps them sustain products “during times of higher demands, especially due to the fact that these are used during medical procedures.”
More than one-third of companies have incorporated IoT for product uptime (34%); more than one-quarter of companies have plans to incorporate IoT with product uptime (30%) within 24 months.
Business Projections & Decisions
IoT data can be applied to various business requirements and provide essential statistics to support managerial functions. Derivations from reliable signals allow for better judgements when making business projections and decisions.
Over one-third of companies have incorporated IoT for business projections and decisions (35%); more than one-quarter of companies have plans to incorporate IoT with business projections and decisions (27%) within 24 months.
Predictive Maintenance
Respondents’ ambitions for better response to maintenance needs extends to real-time automated reporting, a better understanding of their products’ “general maintenance structure,” and even signals for customers to be proactive—to seek out maintenance themselves.
Several respondents cite their use of predictive reporting for scheduling, sustainability, and research methods, among others. Only 32% of companies have leveraged IoT for predictive maintenance; however, 29% plan to do so within 24 months.
Aligning Service Data with Financials
Fewer companies have incorporated IoT to align service data with financials (26%) than any other business function in the study. But the data suggests this is a growth area. More companies (61%) are either planning to incorporate IoT in this way within 24 months or are interested in incorporating IoT in this way than with any other business function.
Despite the prioritization of functions that drive customer success, it is in business projections, business decisions, and aligning service data with financials that companies take an increasing interest in incorporating IoT. At least one-quarter of companies have already incorporated IoT for each of these purposes.
Is IoT adoption a key topic for you?! There is a white paper on this topic available to fieldservicenews.com subscribers. Click the button below to get fully up to speed now!
sponsored by:
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 who may contact you for legitimate business reasons to discuss the content of this content.
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