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Whilst technology can play a big part in improving the efficiency of a field service operation, nothing is as important as ensuring your field service managers are fully armed to do their job. With this in mind we have teamed up with specialist field service training organisation SGSA to bring this series that looks at some of the key concepts that make a good field service manager great. 

The topics included in this series, written by SGSA's Senior Consultant Steve Brand, are based around the content of SGSA's 4 and half day, university standard training course for field service managers and Field Service News readers are eligible for a discounted attendance. Further details, a discount code and links to registration are all included at the bottom of the page...

Field Service Managers often work their way up through the ranks and learn a management style through trial and error or from their managers and their managers’ manager.  Although ‘on-the-job’ training is useful when learning technical skills, it is a risky approach when training managers.  Managers need to be able to hit the ground running, i.e., they need to be competent managers as soon as they first have responsibility of leading other members of staff.  If not, new managers can unwittingly drive down employee productivity during the process of developing their management style.

Frederik Herzberg’s influential survey on employee motivation in 2003 found that the second greatest cause of employee dissatisfaction is how they are supervised.  Untrained managers are often oblivious to how their behaviours are driving down the motivation and commitment of good employees and can mistakenly believe that decreases in performance is an employee problem rather than a management problem.

Continuing our series of four articles, here are two more powerful management tips to help Field Service Managers improve working relationships with their engineers and increase productivity.

Concept #3: Use Fair Process

Employees want to be given the chance to speak their minds.  They need to know that their opinions are being considered and they have a degree of influence in what happens at work.

If managers want the team to be committed to the task then they have to use the three steps of fair process: the engagement of employees, the explanation of why the decision is what it is and clearly explaining what is expected from them as a result of that decision.  If employees are shown that the company’s decision making process has been considerate of their views then they are much more likely to give their full cooperation to a decision, even when they disagree with that decision.

The opposite is also true.  Without fair process, even a decision that benefits the engineers can be difficult to implement.  Fair process should be conducted at every level of the organisation; however, the reality is that managers are often asked to implement decisions that have been handed down to them without their input.

 

In such situations, and even when the rationale for such decisions is not understood, the management approach is to just pass the decision down to the engineers with the implicit command of Just Do It.  Managing staff in this way lowers trust and, as trust goes down, productivity decreases and costs increase (The Speed of Trust: The One Thing that Changes Everything, Stephen Covey, 2006).

But it doesn’t have to be this way.  The best practice is to get input into decisions from the engineers as early on in the process as possible.  Managers must find time to explain the business problem or other reason behind why a change is needed and then engage the team in finding the solution.  Even if the solution has already been decided, input should be sought from the engineers on how to implement the change with the least amount of impact on them personally.  Just as important, is providing feedback on how the decision was altered as a result of employee input.

If managers do not do this then employees are unlikely to volunteer their ideas the next time that they are asked.  Fair process does not need to be an onerous task; it can be achieved in one hour or one month depending on the size of the change being proposed.

Concept #4: Build a Values System

Given the huge number of correct and incorrect ways there are to behave at work, it would be an impossible and pointless task trying to teach them all to a team of field service engineers.

There is also the grey area of an acceptable behaviour in one company being considered unacceptable in another.  For example, going home when the last scheduled service call for the day has been completed may be acceptable in Company A.  However, in Company B, the field service engineer is expected to return to base until the end of the day.

The problem then arises when a new hire goes home after his last call because that’s what he’s always done.  He isn’t aware that his behaviour is unacceptable unless another field service engineer takes the time to helpfully explain ‘how it works here’.  In most cases employees know how to behave properly so repeatedly telling them what they should be doing makes the manager appear controlling and untrusting of employees’ intentions.

 

The values system provides a framework for the kinds of behaviour that are acceptable and unacceptable and also how people are expected to behave towards each other.

When implemented correctly it forms the base on which mutual trust can be established between managers and employees and also between the employees and each other.  The first key to building an effective values system is to keep it short and simple.

This allows it to be easily remembered and referred to.  An example of a simple but powerful value systems would be these guiding principles: Work Hard; Do What’s Right; Treat Others How They Want to Be Treated.  Everything that a field engineer does at work is likely to be a good, poor or indifferent example of one or more of these principles.

If someone is cherry-picking jobs then that isn’t working hard; if someone is consistently late then that that isn’t doing what’s right.  The manager’s responsibility is to lead by example and every time he sees a correct or incorrect behaviour, to inform the engineer which of the principles has been supported or violated. By acting in this way, field service engineers quickly learn what to do more and less of in a supportive manner and go on to use their common sense before making a decision about what they should or shouldn’t be doing.

 

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Could you or your colleagues benefit from attending the next SGSA Field Service Manager Course?

The Field Service Manager program is dynamic and interactive, with students frequently working in small groups, presenting findings and working on the course case study.

The program is four and a half days of course content and university-level instruction and learning that is focused on managing a field service operation.

If you want to see more information or register for the course you can do so by clicking here

PLUS! Field Service News subscribers receive a 10% discount on the course fee when quoting reference FSN0223.

Terms and conditions apply

 

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Whilst it is often the selling point of specialist field service technology, improving productivity can also be achieved through good management. So as part of a new series from Steve Brand, Senior Consultant with field service training specialists SGSA, we look at eight key management concepts that can help you improve the productivity of your mobile workforce.  

The topics included in this series are based around the content of SGSA's 4 and half day, university standard training course for field service managers and Field Service News readers are eligible for a discounted attendance. Further details, a discount code and links to registration are all included at the bottom of the page...

Back in the 1970’s, management best practices were revolutionised by Peter Drucker’s work; it has endured, withstanding the test of time. New books on management best practices are published almost weekly but despite new terminology, they are based on the same fundamental principles. Drucker’s golden rules remain unchanged:

• Define the mission
• Set the vision
• State the goals
• Empower
• Communicate
• Use metrics carefully
• Treat employees as a valued resource

So what else, can Field Service Managers do to ensure their team members are highly motivated and committed to delivering high performance?

In this series we will present eight concepts that have the potential to improve the way Field Service Managers lead and organise their teams. Correctly applied, these concepts will result in improved productivity and employee motivation/satisfaction.

We begin with two less common but very powerful management tips to help Field Service Managers improve their relationships with their engineer and increase productivity.

Concept #1: Close the ‘Knowing-Doing’ Gap

Many organisations suffer from the ‘Knowing-Doing’ gap. Some managers seem to be forever attending meetings and conference calls; the output from which is often talk rather than action.

As managers talk more and more, less and less actually gets done! We see some leaders discussing the metrics incessantly, telling others what is wrong with the business, spouting the latest business-speak or techno-gabble, drawing up plans for projects that never get off the ground and even criticising their peers. These are all forms of Smart Talk.

Smart talk abounds in the work place and leads nowhere.  It occurs at all levels of the organisation and can be seen wherever employees attempt to sound knowledgeable or confident by being critical or negative, or by using overly complex language for simple concepts.  The “that won’t work because…” statements, ridicule of others’ suggestions or using phrases such as the ‘Transformation to a Virtual Organisation Project’ when all we want to do is give mobile devices to staff, are all examples of smart talk.  The impact of smart talk is that it adds confusion, hinders problem solving and prevents knowledge sharing.

 

There are a number of ways to eliminate Smart Talk. Firstly, take time to explain the thinking behind initiatives and changes. Secondly, ensure all company messages, directives and objectives are short and simple; never use a written paragraph when a spoken sentence will do.  And finally, create an environment of trust and respect amongst the staff.

Field service engineers must feel that they can promote their ideas without fear of criticism or ridicule. Focusing on what went wrong, who is to blame or why something won’t work is self-defeating.  The key to success is to put aside what went wrong and focus on what we want or what needs to happen next.

Concept #2. Putting the Team’s Whole Brain to Work

Efficient problem solving requires a group of individuals who see the world differently from each other, to work together in a constructive manner.  The key is to identify these differences and to help individuals with opposing perspectives and styles, to work together.

For example, so called ‘left-brained’ thinkers tend to approach a problem in a logical, analytical way.  ‘Right-brained’ thinkers rely on more non-linear, intuitive approaches.  Some people prefer to work together to solve a problem; while others like to gather and process information by themselves.  Abstract thinkers need to learn about something before they experience it; for experiential people the opposite is true.  It is important to remember that these different approaches are preferences rather than skills.

Two field service engineers with different cognitive preferences, when faced with the same problem, may reach an identical solution at the same time, but use very different thought processes.  Neither approach should be considered superior. The challenge for Field Service Managers is to understand these subtle cognitive differences and that engineers with differing approaches may clash or struggle to work together effectively, without intervention.

 

There are many diagnostic tools available to identify these preferences and report back with various levels of detail.

Field Service Managers who do not understand this concept or know their engineers’ default style, may fail to create an environment where innovative solutions are produced quickly.  In order to take full advantage of these differences, the manager must carefully select which engineers work together on problems.  In most situations, a mixed group will considers more options and the final solution will be better of better quality, than any, one engineer would have produced on their own.

The downside of this approach however, is its potential to create friction.  To ensure success in whole-brain problem solving, the manager must take time to define the goal and the rules of engagement; the conflict should not be personal. It is a common mistake to think that a group of people will work together as an effective team when left to their own devices.

In fact, teamwork only happens when leaders create the opportunities for teamwork and effectively manage the process.

The Field Service Manager program is dynamic and interactive, with students frequently working in small groups, presenting findings and working on the course case study.

The program is four and a half days of course content and university-level instruction and learning that is focused on managing a field service operation.

If you want to see more information or register for the course you can do so by clicking here

PLUS! Field Service News subscribers receive a 10% discount on the course fee when quoting reference FSN0209.

Terms and conditions apply

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As the organisers of the Field Service Solutions Theatre at this year’s Service Management Expo, Field Service News was on hand to speak exclusively to a number of leading industry professionals straight as they stepped off the theatre podium. In this video series we are pleased to bring you the highlights from the Field Service Solutions Theatre.

Here we hear from Isobel Ven der Vegt giving us an overview of what field service managers need to do in order to get the most out of the training they give their staff beyond just booking them onto the course. This includes analysis and evaluation of training as well as something Van der Vegt defines as the transfer of learning to ensure that what is being developed in the class room is taking into the field.