#first time fix

by Christopher Esselborn

Field service has come a long way since its traditional ‘break-fix’ model, but customers are still demanding more from their service providers.  It is no longer enough to just send out a technician, clients expect resolution right away. So how can you take advantage of this trend in your operational efforts? Here are 3 tips to improving your first call resolution rates.

1. Use All Your Resources

When business is booming, it can be nearly impossible to get a technician who has the right set of skills to the job site.  Service centers, however, can overcome this dilemma by using an appropriate mobile software solution.

By using a mobile solution like, SvcForce, field technicians are able to troubleshoot problems in real time with experts in their back office or with their peers in the field via video conferencing technology.

This ability to communicate information ‘visually’ greatly expedites resolution by allowing techs to show-not just ‘describe’-the root of the problem, to an expert.  In today’s world, there is no more room for miscommunication or for waiting on an email, results are needed immediately.

2. Calendars Aren’t Just an Asset for Your Back Office

It’s no surprise that calendars are a business-critical aspect of scheduling for dispatchers, in any service organization.  They are used to help the back office track and guide the flow of service workforce resources in relation to demand in order to be as efficient as possible.

Field technicians can reap those same benefits and more when given access to the same information. Improved arrival time on site and route optimization quickly come to mind, but let’s not forget about the time saved avoiding phone bottlenecks and office visits.

Techs that use SvcForce have access to their daily, weekly and monthly schedules.  New jobs enter the system as ‘alerts’ and are automatically queued into the system so you never have to worry about missing another job.

3. Information, Information and More Information

Technicians are now expected to know everything about their client and their machines - even if they have never personally worked with the customer before.  This means equipment history, service level agreements, new regulations and more are imperative for success.

Mobile software provides the proper framework and information to take advantage of the ever changing landscape of competitive field service.