If you’ve been looking for Field Service Management Software you will already know that there is a bewildering selection of tools available today. Just like any other form of business technology, in order to determine whether a product is right for you and your business you need to understand exactly what’s important.
Here are just some of the key features that you should ideally be looking for when considering the purchase of Field Service Management Software.
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Centralised Customer Records
Centralising all customer records and making these readily accessible to everyone engaged in field service and customer support is enormously valuable. Ensuring all customer contacts, along with their addresses and contact details, are securely stored on the system means that everyone knows where they can find this vital information. Accompanying these details with customer’s service level agreements, contracts and purchase orders add further value to the customer records which can be viewed by field service personnel and those engaged in field service management. And logging details of all customer calls, field service assignments and the customer’s full service history provides a valuable resource that can help to quickly resolve issues when they arise.
Scheduling and Dispatch Management
Managing field service personnel resources can be very challenging so a key feature of any Field Service Management Software must be the ability to schedule and dispatch appropriate people and teams. Scheduling the right people from the most optimum location at the right time with the right skills is exactly what’s needed to deal with customer calls efficiently and effectively.
Route planning for field service teams is an aspect of dispatching which can be supported by the right software. This can save significant time and costs by carefully considering the locations and sequence of service call visits assigned to field service personnel.
Stock Control and Management
Field service organisations will often hold stocks of spare parts, replacement equipment and tools and these can be distributed across multiple sites and retained in a number of field service vehicles. Keeping track of this valuable inventory is another important aspect of effective field service management. Inventory optimisation provides cost savings and helps ensure that field technicians have exactly what they need in their vans when they visit client sites.
Business Intelligence Reporting
Field service activity generates a lot of valuable customer insight. A centralised system for recording details of all customer calls, the actions carried out by field service teams and importantly, the feedback derived from customers is invaluable.
A centralised field service management system should support the derivation of valuable reports, customised to meet specific needs. These reports would allow managers to assess productivity and identify areas in which improvements can be made. They might also highlight quotes issued by field service personnel in response to client requests and upsell opportunities identified while they were onsite.
Usability
The usability of any Field Service Management Software tool needs to be carefully considered. Software user experience is very subjective but well designed, intuitive user interfaces make some software packages a pleasure to use. Whereas poorly designed software with clunky user interfaces can actually be more of a hindrance than an aid. Always take time to assess and evaluate the usability of any prospective software product.
Summary
When considering which Field Service Management Software package to purchase there are many capabilities and attributes to consider. The bottom line is – take your time and assess them all thoroughly. And if possible, derive a short list of just a few and trial them side by side.
