Field Service Management Definition
Field service management consists of the management of drivers, vehicles, and equipment both on the way to and at a customer’s site when work is being performed. For example, overseeing a fleet of telecommunication service providers when they are out servicing their customers.
What is Field Service Management?
Field service management involves dispatching workers to a customer location to either install, maintain, or repair equipment or related systems. This type of management consists of overseeing all available resources to effectively coordinate any necessary work for your clients. This can include
scheduling work at a customer site, dispatching workers to the site, creating work orders and tracking completed work, and managing inventory and vehicles.
Field Service Management Solutions
Field service management solutions consist of software systems that allows companies to manage how, when, and where it provides services to its clients. These systems manage work orders, highlight upcoming hardware and software maintenance, and even offer diagnostics and troubleshooting services as well.
What is Field Service Management Software
To keep businesses running smoothly, field service management software takes on many of the rudimentary tasks that often take a lot of time to complete. Rather than have someone take the names and numbers of every client that needs services, then somehow scheduling everything effectively, field service management software automates this task, taking it out of the hands of the manager and keeping everything running smoother and more efficiently. This solution can also give managers a snapshot of who is out in the field, what vehicles and equipment are being used, employee workloads, and timelines for project completion.
Cloud Based Field Service Management
Cloud-based field service management solutions give service providers the ability to manage employees, track vehicles and equipment, provide real-time customer support, and broaden operations through a mobile app or an online portal. This gives managers the ability to perform their job anywhere, as long as there is an internet connection.
About the Field Service Management Market
Globally, the field service management market is projected to reach approximately $30 billion by 2031, according to Allied Market Research. The increase in demand for these solutions is being driven by a need for real-time visibility and an increase in the adoption of automation and digitized services, as well as the rise in the implementation of cloud solutions by more and more companies. The COVID-19 pandemic had an effect on this market, as it forced many to find safer ways to construct highways, homes, and industrial buildings.
Field Service Management Companies
There are several field service management companies that currently offer solutions, including Verizon Connect, Salesforce, Azuga Fleet, Skedulo, Jobber, Workiz, Oracle, and many others.
Benefits of Field Service Management
There are numerous benefits to utilizing field service management software, including digitizing paper processes, eliminating data silos, streamlining numerous systems into one platform, ability to access the system anywhere, providing proper customer relationship management, and simplifying scheduling and dispatching. Managers can also automate inventory management and ordering, create better visibility into each job/project, and eliminate billing errors.
Challenges in Field Service Management
While these systems can reduce many of the headaches that service provider companies face, they still exist. Properly scheduling projects that come in from customers is sometimes easier said than done. Sometimes it takes more than one visit to properly fix a customer problem, which costs your company more in man hours, fuel, and so on. While safety is expected while on the job, it is not guaranteed, and with the types of services provided by field technicians, the job can be dangerous at times, especially when not performed properly.
Future of Field Service Management
For most companies, customer satisfaction is first and foremost in their minds, now and into the future. Ensuring that your customers are happy is the most effective way to increase business and ensure profits continue. Many companies are currently struggling to find and retain skilled workers. This may change, as technology continues to automate many services, but the investment in new technologies, such as augmented and/or virtual reality, might bring in more technicians into the fold.
Does LifeSaver Mobile Work With Field Service Management?
LifeSaver Mobile has lots of fleet customers that are in field service management, where field service technicians are operating commercial vehicles. Our cell blocking technology is implemented in these commercial vehicles to protect drivers behind the wheel from mobile distraction.
