What Is Field Services Management?

Management becomes more complex when employees work outside the office. HVAC, health care, construction, and other industries dealing with similar issues often need to consider how to best approach field services management (FSM). Managing field employees efficiently increases customer satisfaction, increases employee engagement, and reduces costs. Check out these trends for FSM.

Field Service Management: What Is It?

The term ‘field service’ refers to any service performed outside of the employee’s workplace. Using software, workflows, and communication solutions, field service management manages field services, employees, and equipment.

How does field service work? Employees are sent to a customer’s location in order to provide services or install equipment. Customer satisfaction is the ultimate goal while maintaining service levels and improving efficiency.

Takeaways from the study

With field service management, it is possible to automate key processes such as auto-filling work order forms, sending status updates to customers, dispatching, monitoring assets and scheduling routine maintenance of important machinery.

Developing a field service management strategy means focusing on cost, the customer experience, processes that can be digitized, and defining roles.

By utilizing machine learning, connected devices, and data generated by these solutions, field service management will benefit greatly in the future.

An explanation of Field Service Management

Field service management includes mobile employees, service techs, drivers, work-from-home employees, and sales representatives. A FSM solution coordinates various departments’ software (such as a CRM), employees, and assets.

What Are the Benefits of Field Service Management?

Poor communication, delays, and inconsistent service are not liked by customers. Effective customer service requires coordination across systems and employees. By using field service management software, companies can respond more quickly to changes in customers’ needs and internal policies.

The current impact of field service management

Business, customer base, employee needs, and external environments determine the current state of field service management. How can these solutions help?

As the workforce becomes more mobile and works from home, FSM solutions evolve. Software solutions have led to dramatic improvements in productivity, cost, and service.

Online tools and help desks are available to customers with the latest FSM software during non-business hours. Information like the arrival time of a service technician or delays can be relayed to customers immediately without the hassle of phone calls or unhelpful automated attendants.

Management of field service vs. mobile workforce

Any employee who works outside the office is considered part of the mobile workforce. Field service workers perform on-site, on-demand jobs at customers’ sites as part of the mobile workforce.

Field service management benefits

Improve customer service and manage costs with field service management. A field service management solution enables employees to handle tasks more efficiently.

Field service management has many benefits, including:

• Workflow processes that are standardized: Having employees (whether in the field or not) use standardized workflow processes has a direct impact on employee efficiency and service. Coordinating work is especially difficult when employees aren’t in a central location. Customer service is improved when employees are cohesive.
• There will probably be some reduction in physical paperwork. As an alternative, field service management can utilize an electronic document management system (EDMS) to reduce paperwork and manual work, eliminating the need for obsolete filing systems, overhead, and supplies.
• Scheduling seamless: Transparent and dynamic scheduling minimizes conflicts, establishes better customer service, and reduces wasted time. Customers experience short wait times and have an overall better experience.