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Well Change is certainly a major theme in this edition of Field Service News. In fact it seems to be permeating every inch of the industry right now.

So let’s start at the obvious point. Managing Change (or change management). All too often in our industry we talk about the benefits of implementing a new field service management system or a new mobile workforce management solution or an enterprise mobility management system or whatever we want to call it today.

We get caught up in new technologies, new acronyms and new promises of even greater productivity improvements, efficiency savings, happy staff, happy customers and a generally all round better life experience for anyone within touching distance.

How excited we all are to get away from our spread sheets and post it notes and boldly step into the twenty first century with both feet.

Yet we rarely talk about how we are going to make that leap from a to b. It’s not just a case of handing out a bunch of new devices and switching all the old ones off. Do that and you may as well have invested a fortune in a bunch of really nice looking paperweights, because without proper roll out amongst your team you can bet a pretty penny or three that at the first hurdle a huge majority of your workforce, will turn their backs on their new tools and revert back to how things were before.

[quote]I actually know of one example where an engineer who when he was given a shiny new iPad to do his work on he would still do everything on paper and then spend an extra half an hour to an hour in his van evry night completing the administration on his iPad.

Try and stop them and they will find ingenious ways of working around the new tools. Why? Despite what it may sometimes feel like it is not because they are desperately trying to make your life harder. In fact in most cases they are probably working that little bit harder themselves. Staying extra to upload the information onto the new ‘thingy’ at the end of the day.  I actually know of one example where an engineer who when he was given a shiny new iPad to do his work on he would still do everything on paper and then spend an extra half an hour to an hour in his van evry night completing the administration on his iPad. In his mind his priority was to get the job done first and then deal with the admin.

 

Had this particular organisation gone through a more thorough Change Management program then perhaps our earnest engineer could have seen that this device was as much an investment in him and making his life easier throughout the day rather than an additional duty to attend to and the poor chap could have got home for his supper on time!

One company whop absolutely got it right when it comes to Change Management is Tyco led admirably by the highly impressive Sharon Moura, VP of IT Transformation and Strategy. I’ve had the pleasure of writing a series of articles based around her work in rolling out the ServiceMax field service management solution and she has an uncanny knack of being able to translate things into very simple concepts yet simultaneously covering every inch of ground so no stone is unturned and their are minimal hiccups along the way to a successful IT implementation. You can read more about this in our feature ‘Are you ready for change’ which begins on page 18.

A different type of change is also on the cards for a number of companies including manufacturing giant Siemems. This time however the change is a looming spectre over an ageing workforce that needs a succession plan for somebody to come and taker over otherwise there could be some very serious crises as we begin to enter the second decade of this new millennium.

Siemens who predict they need to increase their existing workforce by an additional 50 field engineers by 2020 to meet current demands, yet face losing up to 100 engineers through retirement are certainly not alone in this predicament. However, they are certainly being both pro-active and innovative about finding the solutions. Having heard the excellent Martin Hotass speaking at the most recent Service Community event on this topic it is clear that they are doing everything they can to remedy the situation and in our interview with Graeme Coyne we look a little closer at what those remedies are. It is certainly an issue you should be aware of today because it will bite you hard when tomorrow comes if you don’t have plans in place like the good folk at Siemens do.

Finally as we continue to stay with the theme of Change there are plenty of changes required in some of the field service organisations that completed our recent survey into field service management standards.

Whilst there were some positives that came out of the research, especially around actually validating the benefits of real-time telematics and other elements of field service management system through some hard and fast data, there were some really quite worrying trends highlighted that suggest a real disconnect between how we judge our standards and how our customers perceive us.

In today’s world of smart phones and sat navs it’s almost impossible to not know where you are at any given time yet unbelievably 43% of companies still have staff getting lost on a regular basis. Even more unbelievable is that 5% have staff turn up at the wrong address every week! Occasionally is forgivable perhaps but a weekly occurrence is an issue that needs to be seriously addressed when your workforce are field professionals. You can find out more about this research in our main feature, which begins on page 23.

Finally if your in Amsterdam this month at either the Field Service Europe or AfterMarket conferences do come and say hello!

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We end our exclusive series on Change Management with a look at the final stage of Sharon Moura’s five step approach to change management leading through the adoption cycle…

Across this six part series we have looked at change management in depth, beginning with a look at the key principals of change management, before looking in detail at how Sharon Moura, VP of IT Transformation and Strategy with Tyco approached the change management process when implementing ServiceMax’s field service management system.

In doing so Moura applied five key steps which we have looked at in depth in this series. These were “assessing the change”, “engaging the head and the heart”, “creating a change agent network”, “leading through resistance” and here we look at the last of these steps “leading through the adoption cycle”

There is also a white paper that accompanies this series which you can access by clicking here

Looking at the adoption lifecycle Moura identifies four key segments that we should be aware of as the full adoption cycle of our change management program is completed.

These are:

• Early Adopters
• Majority
• Laggards
• Naysayers

Lets have a look at each of these in a little more detail.

Early Adopters

Moura is a clear believer in the power of utilising a core peer group of field engineers as early adopters when deploying technology as it offers a great opportunity to further improve adoption further down the line too.

“If there is any opportunity to bring early adopters in using the technology or even if it is just getting them in and seeing it you should do so” she explains “They can share their excitement at the deployment out amongst their peers”

Indeed early adopters are likely to give your change management program that ‘buzz’ amongst the staff that will see you move rapidly along the adoption lifecycle.

As Moura comments “What we can do here is we can highlight what the adoption will get them. The “what’s in it for me” and we can communicate the rationalisation of the change, “the why” and then we can build on the excitement generated by the change”

“Its great to have early adopters they’ll really help you gain momentum and quickly move to the next step of the adoption lifecycle.”

Majority

The next step is to get the majority of our workforce adopted. Now this isn’t as simple as switching their old systems off and their new systems on, which is a dangerous oversight to make and why many change management projects are either long, arduous processes or ultimately just fail.

If your staff are struggling to use your new solution then it will not be long before they are finding work-rounds. Before you know it spread sheets and post it notes are being used and your new system has become a burden on your field engineers when you it was supposed to improve efficiency.

 

Remember that your workers are generally focussed on doing their job and doing it well – this is why you employ them, so it’s not a case of them deliberately not using the new system for any other reason than they do not understand how to use it as part of their workflow.

To avoid this is therefore important that support continues throughout the adoption lifecycle. It is absolutely crucial that you are constantly reinforcing the benefits of the new system and perhaps one of the best ways of doing this is to highlight every win that comes as a result of the new solution.

Moura comments “Communicate the early adopter stories to the majority. Who’s using the system, what type of insight did they gain, where they able to do something faster? Keep a customer happier?”

Another tip Moura suggests is to ask each of the early adopters to tell at least two of their peers about the new system. “Get them to tell them what they learnt, what you know and your excitement around this initiative. That will help you to get the majority of employees adopting the new solution”

Laggards

It’s just a fact of life that some people will only make a switch at the very end of the cycle. Whether they don’t feel they have the time to pay attention to the switch or whether it’s just that they are reliant on seeing demonstrable benefit before they can commit to change it is certain there will be some laggards in your change management program, regardless of the change.

However, for your change management program to be successfully completed to achieve its maximum effect then you must give this group close attention.

 

“This is really where managers need to be front and centre going one on one with these empoyees” comments Moura

“It’s also a great opportunity for some of the early adopters to act as peer coaches. Assign a coach to these groups of laggards either one on one or in small groups to help them through the change” she added.

It’s also important to continue the work you began in the previous stage in the adoption lifecycle (Majority) in championing ach and every win and to remember to continue using multiple channels, whether it be company memo, social media or coffee room notice boards.

Nay Sayers

And finally we come to the last category in the adoption lifecycle, the Nay Sayers. These are those that just won’t be swayed. Unfortunately there comes a time in all change management programs when the effort put in begins to vastly outweigh the value you are getting out of it. At this point we need to evaluate the benefit of convincing these die-hard naysayers.

“My recommendation is to ignore the naysayers,” advises Moura. “Recognise when the pursuit is not worth the effort and make alternate plans”

This series of features on Change Management are accompanied by a white paper in the subject, which is available by clicking here and completing the brief registration form.

 
Click here to download the accompanying white paper

This series is sponsored by:

 

As Field Service News Editor, Kris Oldland continues our exclusive series looking at Change Management we move onto the third major consideration when undertaking a change management program, establishing a change agent network...

There is also a corresponding white paper on this subject, which you can access by clicking this link and completing the brief registration form.

First of all lets have a quick recap. This series is focussed on managing change within your organisation and is based around the approach Sharon Moura, VP of IT Transformation and Strategy with Tyco took when the fire and safety giant moved to the ServiceMax field service management system.

Part one of the series explored some of the key principals of Change Management, including a look at some of the well-known approaches such as Kotter, Prosci and Lewin as well as looking at the five step approach which Moura took and which we are looking at in more detail in this series. In the following features we looked firstly at “Assessing the Change” and then the third feature of this Change Management series looked at “Engaging the Head & Heart”.

Now in this fourth instalment in our Change Management series we look at an area, which personally I believe to be perhaps, the most integral element to ensuring any change management program you undertake is a success. This is what Moura defines as building a change agent network. So lets look at this concept in a little more detail…

Understanding what a Change Agent is and why they are key to Change Management:

Well another term for a Change Agents would be Peer advocates and Gartner’s Elise Olding neatly sums up the approach stating,

“Change resistance is a myth. Employees support enterprise goals when they understand what needs to be done. Peer advocates put a face on change and leverage trusted informal leaders to create understanding among employees and influence organisational change”

In simplest terms when we are facing a change to our daily working lives, it’s not some distant figure from the boardroom that will convince us that this change has our interest at heart, it’s the people sat around us, those who we work with on a daily basis, our colleagues, our direct supervisors, our peers.

Indeed studies undertaken by change management specialists Prosci identified that the most effective communicators of change by a hefty margin were an employee’s immediate supervisor. However it is often the case that this tier of middle management is often left out of the change management process, more often than not because their primary role within the company absorbs of all their time. However. This is definitely not the way a successful change management program should flow.

 

These middle managers are absolutely key to establishing your change agent network and enabling the success of your change management program.

As Moura herself comments “If you are going to bring that level of middle management into the change management process at all, which of course you need to do, then they need to make sure change management is their number one area they should be spending their time on”

However, it is not just those in middle management that can form part of your change agent network. We touched on an example in the last feature within this series on change management to highlight some of the tools of persuasion that can be used to engage with employees on an emotional level. That example was for us to take a selection of end user employees such as field engineers and to bring them into the decision making process when selecting the new hardware to roll out to the field.

This is in effect building a change network in itself as you can almost guarantee if this group will feel both empowered and obligated to push through the change amongst their peers. Some of them may be supervisors and mid-level management; however, they could equally be regular employees.

What is important for your change management project is that they are (or have the potential to be) leaders and influencers amongst their peers. Active mouthpieces for why the change is a benefit to their peers on the individual level, so these are the audience you need to convince first. Show them that they will see and feel the benefit of your change management program and they will help spread the gospel amongst the wider staff.

Another key aspect of this approach is that by creating a change agent network your are opening up additional layers of information to assess how your change management program is being accepted and adopted as you move through the roll out. Feedback from your project team as to how you are progressing is of course important and expected. However, feedback from the employees is equally important as you can amend and adapt your strategy where necessary in response to what’s being well received and what is not.

 

As we mentioned in a previous feature within this series Change Management is an on-going process of evaluation and alteration, not a one shot effort. Similarly you must remember that change management is not about hard and fast rules that will work every time. Change management is about people and therefore different factions of your workforce, may adapt quicker than others. Certainly there is no “one-size-fits-all’ approach to either change management itself or the way you communicate it.

What makes a good Change Agent:

So who in your organisation would make a good change agent? A few suggestions as to what makes a good change agent are:

• A willingness to embrace change
• The desire to participate
• Good team players
• Mature responsible attitude
• Effective communicators
• Credible at grass roots level[/unordered_list]

Deploying your Change agent network:

Finally it’s worth taking time to consider how you will structure your change agent network. One of the most efficient means of doing so would likely be to distribute your change agent network within streams that each relate to a specific division within the business. For example, field engineers, dispatch, sales etc. In fact this is the approach that Moura took when rolling out ServiceMax to her team at Tyco.

“We created change agents by work streams” she explains “then we put change agent leaders in place in those work streams.”

“The responsibilities of those leaders was to anticipate issues, act as a sounding board for the organisation, provide suggestions and recommendations as to how we address the change, and of course communicating the change to the end users.”

This last point i.e. communicating the change is of course the primary reason for their endeavours and where they truly come into their own.

Simply ‘translating’ the reason your organisation is going through this change management process from corporate speak and into the workers language and outlining what is in it for them will take you a long way towards a successful change management project. Having that translation come from trusted and respected members of their work force will take it even farther.

Remember the lesson from the previous feature… change management is about people and people like people like them.

Therefore establishing a change agent network is absolutely integral to the success of your change management program. 

Download the white paper that accompanies this series

This series on Change Management is sponsored by:

Our exclusive series looking at Change Management written by Field Service News Editor Kris Oldland continues as we look at engaging with individuals on the emotional level to help reduce their fear of change... 

There is also a corresponding white paper on this subject, which you can access by clicking this link and completing the brief registration form.

In part one of this series we looked at understanding what is change management and what steps should be taken to achieve a successful change management process, referring to the 5 step approach taken by Sharon Moura when global safety and security firm Tycho implemented ServiceMax’s field service management platform.

Part two looked at the first of these steps i.e. assessing the change. Now in part three of this exclusive series we look at the second of these steps, which Moura defines as “Engaging the head and the heart”

As we mentioned in the opening feature of this series the key to implementing a successful Change Management project lies in understanding the simple maxim that Change Management is all about people and managing individual responses to change.

For a change management program to be successful it is absolutely vital we acknowledge that change is about individuals, not organisations. Yes, the change will be driven by organisational needs and requirements, but individuals will implement it, individuals will determine its success.

Given this notion we must next consider how individuals will react to change. Successful change management is as much about feeling as it is about thinking. This is one of the key principals in the Kotter Change Management philosophy and is one that Moura also believes is an important step.

 

“People change when they see a truth that influences their feelings, a picture of the opportunities ahead, that can connect to the head and the heart” Moura explained in a recent webinar hosted by ServiceMax.

“It’s less about what they read, it’s less about analysis. That informs their thinking but it doesn’t inform their feelings” So how can we tap into each individual’s feelings, to help them take the emotional leap of faith that change requires? (Remember our natural instinct is usually to shy way from change as it is often feels like the less riskier option).

Well at least some if not all of Robert Cialdini’s six principals of influence are worth considering. In his famous best selling book Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion, Cialdini identified 6 principals that can be used to influence the decision making process of others. Each of which tap into emotional responses, rather than intellectual responses.

These principals are:

Reciprocity:

In layman’s terms the desire to pay back a favour. Let’s take an example here. A field service company decides that they need to roll out new mobile devices to their field engineers.

By involving a group of field engineers in the selection process on which devices the company will purchase, the company is showing these engineers that they are valued members of the team, that both they and their opinions are respected.

The engineers will likely feel a sense of gratification that the company sees them as such and in return for this show of respect, they will almost certainly reciprocate, becoming champions of the new technology amongst their peers when it is rolled out.

Commitment and consistency:

Cialdini believes we all have a deep desire to be consistent. So how does this sit with change when surely change is the antithesis of consistency? Well this doesn’t necessarily need to be the case.

In fact the reason for change is often likely to be to uphold a core consistency of your organisation. For example – “our company has prided itself on being the market leader for over 25 years, and to help us continue to be the leading organisation in our sector we will be implementing a new system that will enable us to be more efficient in how we deliver and manage our field service operations”

Whilst effective change management will result in new cultures and processes being established, holding onto core company values isn’t mutually exclusive and this can be a powerful tool in negating the perception of change.

Social Proof:

Perhaps one of the most widely known of Cialdini’s principals, largely because it is the most evident in our day to day lives, is social proof. If we see others enjoying the benefit of change, it will make our decision to buy-in to the change so much easier on an emotional level.

Our natural herd mentality of ‘if it’s OK for them I guess it’s OK for me’ kicks in.

Remember that group of field engineers who are reciprocating the company’s faith in them by championing the change…

Liking:

The next of Cialdini’s principals is again one that we all inherently know. We do things for and agree with people we like more than we do for people we don’t like. While it’s not the most ground-breaking statement in the world, it is undeniably true.

What is perhaps less obvious but still inherently true is that as a rule of thumb we tend to like people who are like us. Our peers are important influencers on us. Oh there’s that group of peer led champions again…

Authority:

Cialdini asserts that we feel a sense of obligation to people in positions of authority. So we should bring the top bosses into the equation? But doesn’t that contradict points 3 and 4?

Well yes it does if we look at authority in the traditional manner. However, what is authority? More to the point who can speak with authority – continuing our example, perhaps someone who understands both the requirements and processes of the field engineers and someone who has already had actual hands on experience with the new devices?

Authority comes in many guises and our group of peer-based champions are on the horizon once more.

Scarcity:

This final principal is perhaps the least likely to be incorporated into a traditional change management program as of course the end goal is to minimise the period of change as effectively and quickly as possible.

However, perhaps in the initial wave of roll out it could be good to promote the benefits so those that aren’t part of wave one are eagerly anticipating when they can be upgraded?

What we do see from the above example is that having a group of field engineers within the intial decision making process led to opportunities to meet at least five of Cialdini’s six principals. This group became champions for the Change Management program and what Moura refers to as a Change Agent Network something we will explore in the next feature in this series.

However, before we get to that point, lets explore just a little further how we can effectively engage with this group on the individual level, in both the head and the heart.

 In Moura’s own words:

“Think about using story telling as a way to engage the head and the heart, producing report after report or communication after communication will not help here at all.” [quote float="right"]Producing report after report or communication after communication will not help here at all.

“Individual conversations are effective, small group conversations are effective and you should be topping and tailing all communications with  - why is this changing and what is in it for me”

 

And it is in this last sentence that we find perhaps the ultimate persuasive tool i.e. “What’s in it for me” If we can understand the pain points of our employees, whether it be field based or office based staff, if we can show them a picture of how this Change Management program will help them eliminate these problems in their daily lives, if we can show them that this change is as much about investing in them and making their lives easier as it is about increasing efficiency etc, then they are almost certainly going to be feel more open to the change.

If we get there, then we are on the right track for getting the emotional buy-in we need from these individuals to make this whole change management project a success.

Download the white paper that accompanies this series

This series is sponsored by:

Our exclusive series looking at Change Management written by Field Service News Editor Kris Oldland continues with a focus on assessing the change as the first step towards a successful change management program. This series is sponsored by ServiceMax

There is also a corresponding white paper on this subject, which you can access by clicking this link and completing the brief registration form.

In part one of this series we looked at understanding what is change management and what steps should be taken to achieve a successful change management process.

We took a brief look at some of the better-known change management approaches including the Prosci, Kotter and Lewin models. We also referred to the 5-step approach that Sharon Moura applied when global safety and security firm Tycho implemented ServiceMax’s field service management platform.

These five steps were; assessing the change, engaging the head and the heart, creating a change agent network, leading through the resistance and finally leading through the adoption cycle. Today we will examine the first of these steps… assessing the change. First we must understand exactly what will be changing. At first glance this may seem like stating the obvious, however this question runs far deeper than the initial surface change of implementing a new technology. What else will be changing in your organisation as a result?

It is absolutely vital that you take a holistic approach to understanding the level of impact that the Change Management project you are undertaking will have. You must consider how the culture, people, structure, process and tools are all set to change as a result of your project, in order to minimise the disruption on your business and accelerate adoption times. 

Culture:

First up how will the culture in your organisation be affected? This is perhaps the hardest and most complex of the considerations you will have to face as often the impact of change is subtle or even invisible at first. However, it is also perhaps the most important as the culture of a business, i.e. how the employees, management and even the business as a whole pull together, is key to on-going business success.

If there is a negative change in the culture of your organisation, its effect will be deeply felt and will have an adverse effect on company wide performance if left unchecked. Therefore it is imperative that you consider the impact on culture your change management project will have in your organisation. Will there be new behaviours within your workforce? Will these be felt amongst workers based in the office, field based workers or both? Will expectations change – from both employee and management perspectives?

 

Will these expectations be in-line with the actual reality and how will these change the dynamic between senior and middle management, and between middle management and employees? Will the change lead to greater transparency in how field engineers spend their day?

How will they react to that change? Will they feel your trust in them is diminished (big-brother is always watching) or will they feel more valued as you invest in the tools required to make their jobs easier? All of these questions and many more relate to the culture of a business, which is an often-overlooked yet crucial element in Change Management and where you must start, when assessing the impact of change to your business as a whole

People

Leading very much on from cultural change we must next consider the people change also. For example will there be any changes to the way teams are laid out? Will there be new management structures needed to be put in place? Of course one of the flip sides of implementing any technology to improve productivity will be that if the implementation is successful you may need less people to achieve the same workload.

Will staff need to be reallocated to different divisions of your organisation or will you need to explore the possibility of redundancies? Similarly when we look specifically at field service management one of the greatest benefits of implementing modern field service management solutions is that we can open up new streams of revenue directly from the field. Will this change the way we reward our people? Also will it mean that new divisions will be in closer contact? Again a people consideration when we think of how to employ best communication practices.

Structure

Once again structure leads on very much from people. As we can see the considerations for assessing the full impact of a Change Management project are wholly integrated. This is an important fact to comprehend as whilst understanding one facet can lead to greater comprehension of the whole, similarly overlooking one element can equally lead to overlooking other challenges that could rear their heads further down the line.

So how will your structure change? In the point above we looked at the impact on people of potentially creating new teams and adding or removing management layers but what will this mean from a business perspective? New reporting lines may need to be considered for example and new responsibilities may need to be clearly outlined.

It is important to understand how these changes will be shaped and to communicate any new responsibilities early with clear delineation and definition.

Also what about relationships with providers and vendors? Will the change in structure mean that there will be closer ties between field staff and your providers perhaps?

Again a much-vaunted benefit of modern field service systems is the ability for field service staff to see inventory in real time and order relevant parts when needed. Whilst this is of course an excellent benefit it will alter the structure of your business and therefore how your organisation adapts to accommodate this change must also be considered.

Click here to read page two of this feature...

We also suggest you download a copy of the corresponding white paper “5 principals of change management in field service" Click here for the white paper.

 
This series is sponsored by:

 

From Tesla’s electric cars to Siemens’ MRI machines, high-tech devices gather all kinds of data to indicate equipment health. Is the equipment running out of capacity? Is it low on fuel? Is there a problem with the disk drive? The shift in technology means a shift in skill-set for field service engineers. The team at smartvan.com explore this topic further

All of this data is valuable to the technicians who service the equipment, but only if they know how to interpret the information, which is why the shortage of skilled workers in the field is more pressing than ever.

This year 55 percent of hiring managers say they’re having difficulty filling jobs in installation, maintenance and repair occupations, according to a CareerBuilder study. There’s a race between technology and the skills needed to keep up with it, especially for technicians.

CONNECTED DEVICES’ IMPACT ON FIELD SERVICE

If the recent media obsession with the Internet of Things is any indication, we’ll soon live in a world where every device has the ability to talk to other machines—and to humans.

For technicians, it means their roles are becoming more proactive and less reactive. Instead of waiting until a part breaks to fix it, they’ll know well in advance that a screw is loose, for example, and catch an impending failure before it occurs.

New technology also is shifting more field service work from physical to mental labour. “Computers and other digital advances are doing for mental power—the ability to use our brains to understand and shape our environments—what the steam engine and its descendants did for muscle power,” Massachusetts Institute of Technology professors Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee write in their book “The Second Machine Age: Work, Progress, and Prosperity in a Time of Brilliant Machines.”

FUTURE AUTO MECHANICS

BMW’s vision for how its engineers will service cars offers a look at how connected devices are changing work. Jack Stewart, presenter of the BBC’s Science in Action series, paints a picture: “Instead of reaching for any of the shiny silver tools on his cart, the mechanic picks up a pair of what looks like sunglasses with connected buds for his ears. He glances back over to the engine, and this time he sees each component highlighted in bright colors, and is given computer-generated instructions on what to disassemble, in what order.”

In this scenario, the engineer needs an understanding of the technology at play, including how to execute the augmented reality system and interpret the computer-generated information.

EFFORTS TO BRING SKILLS UP TO PAR

As technology advances, some companies are backing efforts to retrain their workforces and help the next generation of workers acquire the science, technology, engineering and math skills that roles in the field will require.

MasTec, a Coral Gables, Fla.-based infrastructure engineering and construction company, helps veterans transfer skills to become wireless technicians. The company works with Warriors 4 Wireless, which provides training and advanced certification for veterans to build new careers in the telecommunications industry.

Cisco, purveyor of Internet of Everything ideas, runs a “Networking Academy,” which offers certificate courses to help people across industries build and maintain computer networks. “These programs ensure Cisco, its customers and partners have the talent they need to transform their business through the Internet of Everything,” according to the CareerBuilder study press release.

In April, Siemens donated nearly $660 million in software to a dozen technical schools and colleges in Massachusetts to help train a new generation of workers in advanced manufacturing.

As field service organizations look for and develop future talent, they’ll benefit from having employees whose skills complement those of the cutting edge technology the company uses. In other words, as Wired editorKevin Kelly put it, “You’ll be paid in the future based on how well you work with robots.”

It’s a brave new world for service technicians and field service engineers (FSE) these days — they’ve got iPhones and tablets to manage their work, some are driving cool hybrid vans, and even the equipment they fix can talk to them and tell them what’s wrong.

Beyond all that, the service-tech demographic is changing rapidly: service technicians from yesteryear (the days of clipboards, parts manuals and pagers) are getting sunsetted. A younger, more tech-savvy BYOD-generation service tech is beginning to fill the void. The next-gen service tech is also learning a bunch of critical new skills.

“The ability to accurately forecast what customers want and need is one of the more valuable aspects of field service today,” says Denis Pombriant of Beagle Research. Client knowledge and intuition comes not only from new tools that collect and analyze data, it also comes from a set of interpersonal skills each new technician in the field should be versed in.

Here are 3 skills areas that matter most:

PROACTIVE SALESMANSHIP

Service strategist Alex Alexander put it plainly: “There’s nobody that has more impact on future purchases of service or products than field service engineers.”

Alexander and others aren’t championing technicians in hopes they will put salespeople out of business, in fact, quite the contrary — now salespeople actually have their own workforce in the field, as well. And, as opposed to door-to-door salesmen, service techs are actually being invited into customer homes and places of business. Instead of being turned away by clients and dismissed for a cold-call — technicians are there for a purpose. If they perform their other duties efficiently and successfully, a client is certainly more apt to be open to learning about new products and practices from the company.

Engagement goes a long way. If you can provide your field workers with pertinent client information before they arrive on-site, they can use this information to personalize their service and create a more meaningful relationship with the client. Plus, if you already know what they’ve bought — you’re less likely to try to sell something they already have or don’t need. Attention to detail when it comes to clients is important and shouldn’t fall solely on your company’s sales team.

SOCIAL SKILLS AND CUSTOMER SERVICE

Customers must feel comfortable with the people they allow into their space. Conversation is key to customer service and client comfort. Of course, speed is tantamount — everyone’s busy — but small talk can create a level of trust between your worker and the client.

People are more inclined to raise an issue in person and when they are feeling more comfortable, so arm your field workers with the appropriate customer service tools and information. Clients may raise an issue totally unrelated to the service call, but if your service technician brushes the query aside because they don’t know how to respond, trust (and maybe even the client) will be lost.

MASTERY OF MOBILE TECH

Next-generation field service is powered by the cloud — no longer by file folders, clipboards and your teams in the field need to reflect that.

Not just in the new toolset they carry around (rugged tablets, GPS devices, smartphones), but in how those tools change their behaviour and productivity — being able to pull up a parts diagram on a smartphone display, tapping into parts inventories, filling out job orders on the fly.

Not only is new technology helping FSEs learn more about their clients, it is also helping them complete tasks more proficiently. Because technology is constantly evolving, being able to adapt and learn how these new tools work is a must for today’s field tech.

People with a vested interest in the happenings of the technology world will be more enthusiastic to try new gadgets or implement a new system. Be wary of the technicians that are set to sticking to the “old ways” — this will only slow down the inevitable and can cause fissures between the tech and the customers as well as the techs themselves

 

 

Resource: Five key steps to make field service profitable PLUS James Automation Case Study
Format: PDF
Abstract: Is field service seen as a cost centre at your business? Providing field service can be a complex process, but that does not have to mean it’s unprofitable. Every field service interaction is an opportunity to not only delight customers, but also increase revenue. This resource covers five easy steps to get your field service organisation in the black this year, as well as a case study of how one field service organisation did so. click here to download this resource now.  

Making field service profitable:

Operating a service division as a profit centre rather than a cost centre has been at the top of the agenda for service professionals for many, many years. After the global economic downturn in 2008 companies cut margins as far as possible to remain competitive, making the shift to profit centre even more prominent and important.Whilst the economy has improved somewhat the ability to establish service revenue streams remains a priority, and with the technology now available acting as an enabler the move to profit centre continues at pace. With this in mind ServiceMax have put together a handy guide for companies looking to turn their service division into a profit powerhouse. The guide, which includes a case study from James Automation detailing how they increased service revenue by 30% is available to download here.

The resource also lists the key steps that you should consider if you are going to make field service profitable which include:

1. Just say no to giving away free service – a fairly obvious point but one that gets overlooked by so many companies. If your field service engineers have no visibility into whether your customers have an up to date warranty then they are either potentially missing sales opportunity  or worse giving your valuable service away for free.
2. Optimise scheduling – One of the biggest areas that field service companies can see profit drain away is through inefficient scheduling of their engineers. With modern scheduling systems being far more affordable than before it really is inexcusable for companies to still be operating with a white board and an exel spreadsheet.
3. Never lose parts ever – parts logistics can sound somewhat overwhelming, but it needn’t be. Essentially it’s just a case of keeping track of your own assets. For field service organisations who service high value equipment with expensive parts this is especially critical. Knowing your inventory in real time is essential to keeping a healthy bottom line.
4. Market better, sell better – like all businesses, you need to shout about your successes. If you have customers that value your service you absolutely need to make it easy for them to continue buying it. Defining the value proposition of your service offerings is critical and they must be clearly articulated by everything and everyone that talks to your customers. This of course includes your field service engineers so be sure to train and incentivise them to sell services in the field.
5. Go mobile – Field service is of course an inherently mobile job – so modern mobile tools are of course a natural fit for the industry. Whether it is smartphones, tablets or laptops it is important to match the right hardware and software to your own specific field service needs. The benefits of going mobile will be seen across the board and will not only improve productivity but make your field service engineers lives easier – for which they will certainly thank you.[/ordered_list]

To find out more about these five steps as well as how James Automation were able to improve there field service revenue by 30% and decreased their revenue leakage by 20% click the link below.

Dave Hart, vice president of global customer transformation at ServiceMax provides a tale of two field service companies and how listening to your field service techs is not only easier than ever but more important than ever also...

Here’s a tale of two field service companies — one that figured out how to build better products by tapping into their technicians’ on-the-ground experience, and another that didn’t and then paid the price.

First, the company that stumbled: Years ago, I worked for a manufacturer that released an update to one of its most popular products. There wasn’t anything wrong with the existing version: it was easy to use, rarely broke down and, when it did, it was simple to fix. The “new and improved” version, however, wasn’t well-designed and didn’t work as well. Our field service techs were left scratching their heads. “How could we get everything so right with one product and then so wrong with the next?,” they asked.

The reason was obvious: the research and development (R&D) teams and the service techs never spoke to each other. 

 

Now, for a different story: A large healthcare technology company has installed a knowledge management system on the smartphones, tablets and other assorted devices its tech carry with them on the road. The techs document what they and the customers experience with the products day in and day out. The information is delivered to the company’s product development team for consideration when updating the system — or even creating a new product altogether.

The lesson? Your service techs know your company’s products the best — even better than the customers do. They are on the ground every day and hear what customers like, and don’t like, about the product. They develop an intuitive sense for what can (and probably will) go wrong.

The Power of Data Collection in the Field

Unfortunately, the story of a product rollout that didn’t go according to plan is more the rule than the exception. The strange thing is, it doesn’t have to be that way. Collaboration between field service techs and product teams, such as R&D, has never been easier. Field techs carry smartphones, tablets and laptops in the field Communication apps such as Salesforce Chatter, Skype and Apple Face Time make it simple, fast and efficient for product developers to work with field service techs.

So while companies are embracing knowledge management systems on mobile devices, they’re not capitalising enough on the information that gets collected. The operations side see the real-time updates about product glitches or common customer gripes, but the research and development side doesn’t. That’s a huge missed opportunity.

Consider the healthcare company that I described above as the exception. So far, the company has collected more than a thousand product suggestions from field workers who use its mobile knowledge management technology. Both the technical support and product teams vet the suggestions, and share the most informative ones with the rest of the company.

How Service Tech Feedback Can Boost the Bottom-Line

Here’s a basic example of how technology-enabled collaboration between service techs and product developers can improve business. Say that a product has a fundamental problem or part that needs to be regularly replaced. Field techs can often spot design flaws that, if corrected, would reduce maintenance and repair times. If a product developer can look at a product from the tech’s perspective, everyone benefits — the company, its customers and the techs who service the equipment.

Multiply that across multiple products and service calls and you start to see the time and money savings. There’s an added benefit, too: like all employees, service techs want to be heard. Giving them a strong voice in how the products they work with every day are created goes a long way toward engaging them in all aspects of the business.

The healthcare company is a prime example of how companies can tap into their technicians’ vast product knowledge. Every field service company should follow its lead.

 

 

 

 ServicePower a market leader in field service management, have recently announced a new agreement with ServiceMax, the only global, completely native Force . com field service application in the industry. Another collaboration which could see users of both systems benefit...

The agreement sees ServiceMax integrating ServicePower’s patented schedule optimisation product, ServiceScheduling, which is acknowledged by many as being one of the leading leading optimisation technologies for large workforces, into OptiMax, ServiceMax’s workforce optimisation module available on the Force.com AppExchange.

This  integrated solution will enable the companies to provide a unified, sole vendor field management solution to a wide array of field service organisations, working across both geographies and industries such as medical devices, oil and gas, and utilities where customers are noted to be looking for the Salesforce CRM alongside highly developed optimisation capabilities.

Commenting on the agreement, Marne Martin, CEO of ServicePower stated:

 “Our relationship with ServiceMax creates a unique competitive offering in the field management industry, capitalising on the strength of our patented optimisation technology, and the breadth of the Force.com platform on which ServiceMax has built its 100% native solution.  As a single vendor solution for global field service organisations, we can provide clients productivity and efficiency improvements, in addition to Force.com’s CRM features through Optimax.  While increasing our penetration of the Force.com customer ecosystem, the partnership also expands our sales footprint to new geographies around the globe.”

CEO of ServiceMax.Dave Yarnold added:

“Our integration with ServicePower enhances the ServiceMax platform with industry recognised optimisation technology, further extending our ability to provide an end to end, field service management solution to the Force.com ecosystem, and beyond.”

For more information on ServiceMax click here visit their page in the Field Service News Online Directory which includes videos, news & features plus access to downloadable resources.