Would you settle for a standard form in which your field staff collect details of their tasks at the customer’s facilities? Or do you want to go much further? If you read on you will discover how.
When our staff has performed field tasks at a given customer’s premises, we often settle for a standard form that includes basic information on the task, the details of the customer and the premises, and the tasks performed as well as any spare parts changed.
It is true that this entire process is performed digitally using mobile devices (usually a laptop or tablet). This is certainly a great improvement over other organisations that still use paper forms that the workers or other administrative staff then have to copy at the office.
But… what if we go far beyond this?
Connected forms, which are recorded in real time in a centralised manner
We are talking about providing our personnel with the ability to collect information as they are performing their tasks so that it is available to their coordinators in real time. And of course, in the event of communication issues, these data can be stored off-line and then eventually synchronized with the organisation’s central database.
By having this information, which may have to do with…
- requests for instruments or spare parts,
- access to resources, databases, experts,
- proposed improvements for customers (why not some commercial work linked to a service visit?),
- the organisation of follow-up visits, tracking or preventive maintenance
…the supervisors will be able to coordinate the work of all their teams better. This will make them more productive; it will speed up the supply of parts and improve customer satisfaction by providing a service that goes far beyond a simple call, whether it is a reactive or proactive visit.
Smart procedures that automate tasks
And we can still go beyond this… We can provide our field staff with forms designed in such a manner that they can automate tasks, without the intervention of a coordinator by setting up rules to associate certain actions depending on the type of task, taking into account the specialty, the field involved or the contract signed with the customer, or depending on the SLA/urgency that we have arranged. In this way, we will also be helping the staff to make decisions, speed up processes and limit possible mistakes.
An advanced analytics system to learn from experience and mistakes
To respond to all these situations, our Task4work solution has a powerful editor with which we can create different types of forms, and associated actions based on the data entered. Then, once all the information has been gathered, the Task4work Analytics module will perform an advanced analysis. Based on this research work, we will be able to make the most of real work experiences and of possible errors.
Our Field Service Management solution can provide you with the information, control and speed to manage your field teams. Would you like to try it without obligation?