5 ways to reduce field technician frustration
Field technicians are your feet in the streets. They are the face of your company and the first point of contact for your customers, but they are often frustrated. Research in 2021 from The Service Council found that 70% of field technicians said both customer and management demands have intensified. They are being pressured to work faster, spending too much time looking for information, and trying to stay on top of a mountain of paperwork and administrative tasks.
To make the situation worse research has found 45% of field technicians report current tools are not fast enough and 38% can’t access all the needed information.
Field service software offers a way to reduce field technician frustration. Let’s look at 5 ways the ExpandIT Field Service Solution can help:
1. Digital forms
Paperwork is a field technicians’ nemesis. Filling out, tracking and submitting paper forms uses up a ton of valuable time each day. Using ExpandIT software, paper is eliminated by using digital forms that cannot be misplaced, ripped, or rained on. Signatures and paperwork are not forgotten by making them a mandatory part of the service process.
Digital forms expedite communication between the field and the office, reducing the need for field technicians to go into the office just to drop off paperwork. The ExpandIT form builder is easy to use and enables you to create custom forms with drop down boxes and predefined answers. Data can be exported, or reports created to meet government or customer specific requirements.
2. Information access
ExpandIT Field Service software puts information at your service technicians’ fingertips - digitally. It integrates with Microsoft Dynamics ERP systems. This means data is updated in real-time and can be retrieved as required, enabling service technicians to prepare more effectively for a service visit and increase first time fix rates. They can access customer history and view all jobs scheduled for any given day, week, or month. For individual jobs the service technician can see the scheduled time, location, planned material and messages from the dispatcher.
3. Track time and materials digitally
Tracking time and materials on paper is prone to error and creates huge delays in processing of invoices. Using ExpandIT’s software organizations can digitize this process, enabling field technicians to easily register time usage, consumption of parts, and other expenses or fees. Time usage is logged automatically, including travel to/from a job. All jobs show their current status, and when the job is done the service technician can, if needed, go through the consumption with the customer and clarify any misunderstandings. As soon as a job is complete the data flows all the way through to invoicing in just a matter of minutes.
4. Messaging capabilities
Real-time information is critical for both field technicians and customers. Technicians need to know if appointment times have changed, if there are special requirements or instructions relating to a job, and more. Using the messaging capabilities in ExpandIT, organizations can send messages to a team, group, or individual with a general announcement, important health/safety updates or job specific info. This ensures there are no delays in the sharing of information and reduces the requirement for technicians to come into the office.
5. Online or offline access
Field technicians often find themselves in locations, whether deep inside a factory or a remote geographic area, where the Internet isn’t accessible. Reverting to paper forms in those situations is cumbersome, prone to error and less than ideal. With ExpandIT, field technicians can work online or offline. Service orders can be edited anytime or anywhere. Time usage, consumption of parts and more can be logged when offline and synced once Internet is available.
ExpandIT provides a Field Service Management solution for real-time data access and mobile technology that makes it possible to reduce field technician frustration and improve customer satisfaction.
The ExpandIT solution is cloud-based and accessible from any location, at any time, on any device. Whether on a tablet in a factory or on a mobile phone in the field, ExpandIT software provides access to critical job information and the ability to track key job-related tasks.
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