The Covid-19 pandemic drove almost all businesses to remote working and although the corporate world has come up with strategies to counter the challenges brought about by the pandemic, its impact is still visible on the way businesses are operating even today.
But, there are some businesses to whom the remote working approach is not new. These businesses, also known as field services have been operating remotely, with a field force since their inception.
It goes without saying that the operational processes and challenges of these businesses differ from ones having a traditional workforce with regular in-house teams. Of the many challenges faced by field forces, device errors are one of the most critical issues that enterprises struggle to tackle efficiently. When your business depends heavily on the efficient functioning of your field force, speedy remote device support becomes indispensable.
What is field service?
Businesses that require jobs to be performed outside traditional office spaces and generally have an on-field workforce are called field services. Logistics, Transportation, Delivery, Construction, Home repairs, etc. are some of the many field services that garner non-desk workers.
With so many important businesses functioning on-field comes the necessity for efficient management of their field force. Today’s tech-advanced world offers software built for seamless field service management designed to keep a track of all components of the field service operations such as location tracking, real-time analysis, team communication, catering to device errors and many more.
What are the implications of device downtime in field service operations?
Non-desk workers generally lack the provisions that traditional office spaces provide such as direct engagement with managers and colleagues, device and network provisions, instant IT availability, etc. However, advanced enterprise mobility strategies have helped businesses equip their on-field employees with smart devices to keep them connected on the go and ensure optimization of their tasks.
When operating on-field, employees tend to encounter several challenges, most common of which are device errors, network outages, server issues and human errors. As mobile businesses severely depend on devices for their operations and efficiency, device failures can lead to serious implications such as the following;
1. Revenue loss and SLA penalties
Every business today considers customer satisfaction as one of its prime deliverables. Several businesses furnish SLA (Service-level agreements) to find a common ground for the expectations set between businesses and customers. A business’s inability to fulfill the service expectations can lead to hefty penalties.
Since enterprises and remote employees depend heavily on corporate devices to maintain operation consistency, device errors or system failures can lead to a work pipeline collapse. As several processes are interdependent, businesses that operate on field services may see a considerable dip in their revenue and surge in SLA payouts.
2. Productivity loss
With technological advancements, every business, especially the ones hosting remote and on-field workforces rely on mobile devices with multiple software installed that help employees optimize their daily tasks & targets. Whether it is confidential data stored on the cloud, discussions with the managers remotely via communication apps or customer-facing systems, on-field employees depend on the smooth functioning of their work devices.
System failures without instant troubleshooting protocols can lead to delayed responses to the customer, overdue deliveries and great loss of productivity in employees.
3. Damaged brand reputation
Frequent miscommunication with customers, delayed services and responses, inability to maintain timelines and deadlines have long-term consequences on the brand image. In today’s competitive world, every business has to strive to make its services indispensable to the customers. Any business’s inability to counteract the challenges related to device downtime can create a negative brand image over the years.
Significance of instant remote support
Realizing the impairment of what a few hours of device downtime can cause, businesses are opting for smarter choices to enable instant remote support to their on-field employees. Efficient remote support from an organization’s IT teams can bring in;
1. Increased service efficiency
Remote support enables on-field employees to instantly connect with their organization’s IT teams to explain the device issues and help resolve them faster, to get their services back on track. This way, employees do not have to deal with prolonged device downtime and achieve their set deliverables and targets without hassles.
2. No lost opportunities
Excessive or frequent device downtime which may lead to customers being stood up eventually result in lost customers, as they begin losing confidence in your services. Also, in events of server downtime, several customers may not even be able to find your services leading to great business opportunities being lost. With lowered device and server downtime, businesses can aim to seize as many potential clients/customers as they can.
3. Improved customer satisfaction
As several field services demand on-field employees to have a constant customer-facing profile, even in events of system failures, organizations can help mend the severed connection between the field service agents and customers quickly. Glitches are a part of every process, so long as the issues are tackled efficiently and the targets are not delayed, a brand’s reputation remains intact along with customer satisfaction.
4. Reduced on-site troubleshooting expenses
The ability to offer remote support to on-field employees is a bigger boon for organizations, IT teams and the field force that it may appear. With remote support capabilities, organizations save large costs and IT admins are saved from frequent on-site visits that may incur in field services.
Conclusion
Time is of great essence in the corporate world, in field services even more so and hence a minor-looking aspect such as device downtime may lead to major loss of revenue and brand reputation. Several third-party remote support software and modern-day mobile device management (MDM) solutions offer a diverse set of remote support capabilities that ensure minimal downtime.
Scalefusion MDM is one such device and end-point management solution that helps IT admins leverage a plethora of instant support functionalities such as remote cast & control feature to take charge of the employee’s device screens by virtually mirroring them on their dashboards to resolve complex issues. IT admins can also record sessions, capture screenshots, conduct VoIP calls and create context-aware support tickets to resolve issues faster. Scalefusion makes it effortless for IT admins of organizations to extend instant troubleshooting regardless of the employee’s location.
