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Beyond the Data: Beyond the Data: Virtual Field Service and the New Paradigm of Service Delivery (2021)
Having conducted an extensive research study in partnership with Salesforce, we explored how the field service sector has shifted towards remote-service delivery since the pandemic.
Here in the concluding report in this study, we share with you the insights from two in-depth debrief sessions and a series of follow up interviews with a selection of respondents, to help you as a field service management professional have as complete a picture as possible of the seismic changes our industry is set to move through.
Areas of discussion within this report include:
- Is remote service delivery set to become the default approach of the new normal?
- What does the varying sophistication of tools being used for remote service delivery mean for your organisation?
- Why field service companies must avoid an inside-out approach that can be a barrier to effortlessness
- Has the pandemic led to an acceleration of our increasing Uberised world?
- Reduced overheads are a benefit for service providers, but do customers necessarily want cheaper service?
Research Report: Understanding Virtual Field Service: Is Remote First the Default of the New Normal? (2021)
In the latest research report conducted by Field Service News we spoke to over 140 field service management professionals worldwide to begin to comprehend the magnitude and potential impact of the sector's shift towards remote services as a result of the pandemic...
Findings revealed in the report include:
- Remote service capabilities have become pervasive since the pandemic - 87% of field service companies currently offer remote services as part of their service offering.
- The shift to remote service delivery is set to be a long-term adjustment - 48% of field service state that remote-service delivery has become the default means of delivering first-level service.
- There is already an emerging best-in-class category regarding remote service delivery - despite widespread adoption of remote service delivery, currently only 2% of companies are using augmented reality when doing so.
- Customer skills shortages must be overcome - 30% of field service companies cite that their biggest challenge to delivering remote services is a a lack of required skills on the customer side, even when guided.
- Faster service is a benefit for service providers and their customers - 89% of field service companies believe that the key benefit of remote service delivery for their organisation is speed of service and 93% believe this is also a key benefit for their customers.
- What we might sacrifice if we go too fast - 81% of field service companies believe the engineer 's position as a trusted advisor could be diminished if they spend less time on customer sites.
Beyond the Data: Benchmarking the New Normal from Year Zero (2021)
Having published both our preliminary report and a two part video debrief session on a groundbreaking research project that spoke to over 230 field service leaders, Field Service News Research has returned to a selection of our respondents in a series of in-depth interviews to unearth the crucial considerations emerging beneath these headline findings.
Here in this final report from this study, we are pleased to share with you insights from both the in-depth debrief session and these follow up interviews, to help you as a field service management professional have as complete a picture as possible of the seismic changes our industry is set to move through in the coming years.
The points given further consideration in this study include:
- Has the mood of optimism amongst the SMBs of the field service sector diminished as the pandemic drags on?
- Are the dynamics of customer-centricity set to change or are they the foundations of the new normal?
- Will the new normal see a sustained focus on service as a key differentiator?
- What does the rise of remote service mean for on-site delivery?
- We have built the foundations for connected field service, now we must begin to actually use it
- Reactive-Proactive-Servitized. Is this the natural evolutionary path of service design?
- Digital Transformation has met the acceleration of global disruption
Each of these areas are discussed in great detail in this exclusive 16 page report that offers essential reading for all field service management professionals.
Benchmarking the new normal from year zero (2020)
In the widest research report ever conducted by Field Service News we spoke to over 230 field service management professionals worldwide to understand what trends are emerging as we collectively build the new normal.
Now, in this exclusive 20 page report, published in partnership with FieldAware and authored by Field Service News Editor-in-Chief, Kris Oldland we present the findings for you to benchmark your own organisational position against the findings of this essential research. Findings revealed in the report include:
- The financial impact of the pandemic - 57% of companies have faced issues with customers being unable to pay for services.
- The changing dynamic of customer relations in a post-pandemic world - 63% of companies have had to implement a method of prioritisation for service calls as a result of the pandemic.
- Pressure on service operations - 78% of service companies are under pressure to reduce your service costs or increase the services provided within the same fee structure.
- Service remains a key differentiator - 70% of field service professionals believe this remain the case in a post-pandemic world.
- Rapid adoption of Remote-Services - 76% of companies have the ability to offer remote service/touch free delivery to their customer base.
- The value of in-person service delivery remains - 48% of field service management professionals believe customers will still perceive a greater value in a face to face service engineer call than remote services after recovery.
Overcoming the Impact of Covid-19 in Field Service (2020)
Exclusive report based on emerging best practices from the global field services industry...
We are about 6 months into the Covid-Crisis, and it still is uncertain how long the governmental restrictions and limitations will be in force. It is also hard to predict how long and deep the economic impact will be and what other impacts the crisis will have on our industries. Nevertheless, there are strong signs COVID-19 is here to stay for a while.
Previous crises have taught us that during and after a crisis, leading innovators set themselves apart from the stagnating laggards. Leading innovators continue with more radical and viable innovations which are aligned with the changing environment and industries. They are less vulnerable for the changes and are better able to reap the benefits of the new opportunities.
Understanding the Metrics that Matter (2019)
Our world is changing before our very eyes. At every junction parts of our lives, both personal and working are becoming digitalised, automated and optimised. While this is something being seen across almost all vertical industries, the field service sector is very much at the coal face, feeling the wind in our faces as this rapid evolution into a new paradigm of industry spirals around us at full pace.
In many ways, this could be put down to the fact that for a long-time field service as a sector has embraced the two core factors driving our industry forward - technology and people.
But as we enter these unchartered waters, how do we know what metrics should be our guides to whether we are getting things right?
In this exclusive, Field Service News research report, we look at the responses of over 150 field service leaders who are facing such challenges and look to establish the metrics we should be measuring as we move to a world of digitalisation and servitization?
Research Report: Trends in Spare Parts Management (2018)
Conference producer Copperberg have recently spoken to over 60 aftermarket professionals as part of their research. Here we take a brief look at some of the core trends reflected within that research...
It was with great interest that we took a look at the insights from a recent research project undertaken by Copperberg.
The research was conducted online across the last month primarily to Copperberg’s own audience of conference delegates.
Some key facts revealed include: 91% of respondents see Inventory Management as being important in the next 12 months, 32% of respondents see Parts Pricing as being very important in the next 12 months, 66% of respondents see eCommerce as being important in the next 12 months
Research Report: Changing Face Of Field Service Engineer (2018)
Field Service News and ServiceMax have undertaken a research project to take a deep dive into how the role of the field service engineer is evolving. Here we bring you the key findings and trends revealed by this research...
Our industry is rapidly evolving. Technology is continuously pushing the boundaries of field service efficiency whilst simultaneously customer expectations are becoming ever more demanding.
This report looks into this exclusive research and explores the trends revealed to build a picture of what the Field Service Engineer of 2022 (incredibly only five years away) will look like and explore what role the growing importance of technology in field service delivery will play in shaping the way we approach acquiring, training, and developing talent within the field service sector.
Has field service finally moved to the cloud? (2016)
Field Service News Benchmarking project assess the migration for on-premise to cloud based field service management services and delivery...
In this white paper, co-published by Field Service News and ClickSoftware, we review the data from our latest research, providing year-on-year comparative analysis to identify what new trends have emerged and how attitudes towards the Cloud have evolved amongst senior management within the field service industry.
Research findings include:
- Over a third of companies are now using Cloud based Field Service Management (FSM) systems
- The rate of adoption of Cloud based FSM systems has increased dramatically year-on-year with almost three times as many companies moving to the Cloud in 2015/2016 than did in 2014/2015
- The move to the Cloud appears to be directly aligned to the move away from legacy systems with over two thirds of companies that are still using on-premise FSM solutions working with FSM systems that are at least three years old
- Similarly, of those using Cloud based FSM solutions, a third have made the move within the last six months - which would suggest that not only is the rate of adoption of Cloud based FSM solutions increasing, but it is doing so at a quicker pace than in previous years
Research Report: Field Service, Mobility and the Cloud (2015)
An exclusive Field Service News research report exploring if, how and why field service companies are using the Cloud and mobile in 2015..
As far back as 2015, cloud computing had been a key topic in field service circles for some time.
In fact it seemed every time we read about a company implementing a new service management system it is mentioned that they opted for a Cloud based solution.
Indeed the benefits of the Cloud are well documented. Less reliance on IT, built in disaster recovery, regular and free updates, lower overheads, and so on and so forth, but how have the trends predicted in this report stood the test of time?
Research Report: A bunch of Cowboys? (2015)
Our exclusive research highlights some worrying trends in field service standards, but hold on partners as there may just be some good news just over the horizon...
Over a period of 2 months’ Field Service News conducted a research project sponsored by TomTom Telematics which aimed to explore the standards of field service companies. Are they improving or are they falling?
Is it that standards as a whole are now under greater scrutiny than ever before as we all become more and more expectant on getting results as soon as we look for them now that we inhabit an age of instant information thanks to the internet? And what about those companies that are pulling ahead of the competition and not only delivering to their customers’ expectations but exceeding them and delighting them?
What tools are they using to do so? What about those falling behind the pack – what are they getting so wrong?
Research Report: SaaS in the Field Service industry (2014)
Whilst cloud computing as a concept can trace it’s origins back over 60 years to large academic and corporate entities of the 1950’s, it is fair to say that the emergence of the cloud as a viable means of distributing business critical software remains a relatively new concept and certainly a very twenty first century one...
In theory field service would seem to be an area that would benefit greatly from the cloud. The ability to give remote access to systems for mobile workers is obviously advantageous, whilst also the more manageable subscription based fees that Cloud based, Software as a Service (SaaS) solutions offer, mean that for the first time smaller and medium sized organisations are able to access the sophisticated service management solutions, that in the age of CAPEX only installations, were the reserve of just the largest enterprises. So has the field service industry leapt into the cloud feet first?
Or is there still some reluctance until the technology proves itself robust enough to be trusted with software as business critical as ERP, CRM and other systems that are used to manage the mobile workforce?
Research Report: Software in Field Service: Benchmarking report (2014)
Across April and May of this year (2014) Field Service News in partnership with mplsystems undertook a research project to assess the current usage of field service and service management software...
The aim of this research was to establish what types of software are currently being used, how effective this software is, where there is room for improvement and finally what technologies the next generation of service software might incorporate.
The survey was split into four categories. Three of which were focussed on areas deemed to be the key elements of service management software i.e. scheduling systems, integration and interaction and management reporting.
The final section of the survey looked at future developments including which technologies that are currently on the horizon, are expected to appear in service management software within the next few years.
Current Studies
