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In today’s digital world, it is just impossible to ignore the impact of technology on a workplace. With the trending demand for an all-in-one service management solution, field service mobility has become crucial to manage comprehensive field service processes.

If you are in an industry that provides doorstep services to its customers and you are looking forward to manage your field service in a better way, a field service software can be your best bet.

But before you go ahead and spend your hard earned dollars to purchase some software or get your own custom field service management app, it is essential for you to know the basic modules that make up a decent field service software.

Automating your processes in the right manner not only helps in improving customer experience but also lead to an increase efficiency in the field and provides huge return on investment.

In this post, we have explained what constitutes a field service management app. Along with the 5 modules that are the building blocks of a field service management app, we have also discussed the features of each of these 5 modules. Any field service app that is built over these 5 modules has the ability to be integrated in any industry vertical.

Related Reading: Do You really need a Field Service Management App? Find Out Here!

Modules of Field Service Management App

Field Service Management App provides end-to-end management customized to the company’s field service operations. Today, right from the creation of work order to the feedback from the customer regarding the work order delivery, companies use a Field Service Management App.

But they are achieving a mobile and connected field service based operation only because the technology modules are properly in place. So, what are those modules or the building blocks that help inherent the automation of a robust mobile solution?

Let us have a look at the list of all 5 modules that should be an essential part of every field service software.

#1. Work Order Creation: The first module in any field service software is for the creation of a work order. The front end helps a customer request service and hence a work order is automatically created.

Once created the work has to be assigned to a field executive. The Work Order creation helps create a link between the front end office and the field executives. A good field service management software should be able to create a work order as soon as a service request from the customer is received. The moment a work order is created, it should be dispatched to your field executive, irrespective of his location. In order words, when the work order is received by your service provider in the field, you should know about that in the office. It should also be able to provide you the possibility of tracking the work order status, job progress, etc.

Field service software can be credited with improving the customer experience before and after a job. When a work order is assigned, a field service software allows the staff member assigned the booking to see all the relevant information about the customer and thus, know him in advance. This allows the executive relate to the customer’s requirement in a more efficient way improving customer experience.

The customers find your services more valuable and thus, would like to be associated with you. The technicians’ access to the knowledge of important information about your customer’s sites, equipment and service history will definitely keep you ahead of your competitors.


#2. Notification Manager for Field Executive: The second module in a field service software acts as a Notification Manager for Field Executive. As soon as a work order is created, the admin has the ability to assign the order to someone in the staff. It can be done automatically or manually, but your field service software should have a notification manager so that the person in the field can receive a notification about new order. This helps both the admin with the complex scheduling and the field executive with planning his work in a better way and execute efficiently. All details about the work are thus received by the field executive through mobile app. It reduces time and effort to manage the schedule while increasing accuracy for billing.

This mobile automation also eliminate the time a field technician would need to fill in the manual timesheet on a daily or weekly basis.

The notification manager is often customized as a two-way communication. On one hand, the field executive is notified of the task assigned while on the other hand, the customers are notified by an alert that their service request has been assigned to a field executive.

This not only helps them estimate the time of arrival of the field executive but if needed, they may even communicate with him. Overall, a notification manager in a field service management app helps manage the field activity centrally, reducing infrastructure costs and administrative efforts.

#3. Order Execution by Field Staff: The third module, Order Execution by Field Staff, helps the field executive get the full visibility of the assigned job, its geological location, logistics requirements and equipment.

It helps him view the location of the work order through maps, view past history of the customer, a guide to execute the task, check inventory in real time and seamless communication with backend team.

Real time chat can be an added feature in this module. With an efficient field service management app, the field technicians can now complete an assigned job in one trip because since they have the prior knowledge of the inventory they would need to complete their tasks, they carry it with them.

A Field Service Management software has changed the customer service within the industry. Now the field service executives have a mobile device loaded with field service software that has everything available at the touch of a button. Whether it’s the service history or the inventory details, equipment information, etc., they have access to it all. They’re also able to note down any new issues, keeping everyone in the company updated in real time, and making the customer feel like they’ve been heard. Such field service management app are known to improve the ‘right first time’ approach and customer experience.

You cannot expect any field executive to have a solution to every problem, so it’s extremely helpful to have resources within the app for reference.

It can be more like a knowledge centre wherein if in case a technician comes across a problem, he has the ability to research product resources saving him time and energy. 

This will not only keep your customers delighted but will also give them gain confidence in the working of their service provider. Streaming some videos on “how to…..” assuming various situations or posting of the success stories of earlier field executives can be extremely useful. Offer your field executives mobile access to information for increasing their productivity and service quality.

#4. Proof of Delivery: Once the job is done, the fourth module in a good service management app should be to collect the proof of delivery. Barcode, QR code scanner, digital signatures or the ability to take photograph are some features that can be included in the POD module.  Geo-fencing module helps to capture the employee location and time stamp for each delivery. Email, SMS is sent to client upon successful delivery/task completion.

This module benefits in the form of increased customer satisfaction, elimination of paperwork, signature capture, reduced bill backs due to lost signatures and reduced time spent on calls with customers due to customer self-service options.

#5. Feedback & Ratings: Another important module in a field service software is to collect feedback and rating from the customer. The 5th module helps build trust among customers and even helps supervisors to easily track the feedback and the quality of work done by field service executives.

Ratings are saved on the server and available for future. In this digital era, with so many service providers, the very first perception that a customer forms about any company is from the reviews left by those who have already availed its services in the past. A good feedback and rating can do wonder in terms of bringing in the business and the companies should make sure that they keep delivering good quality work to maintain their ratings.

Conclusion

We have mentioned the 5 basic modules of a great field service software. Each module may have various customizations depending on your industry type and workflow. Every field service app or software is built over these 5 modules, but the cost depends on customizations & features under each module.

Field service software have pre-built features in each module and hence cannot be customized. If you are looking for a great technology to manage your field service workforce, you should go for a custom field service app. A customized Field Service Management App will be tailor-made to the requirements of your business and thus, will prove to be more productive in comparison to a field service software. It will facilitate the business to improve the standard of the services and the workforce productivity, which will ultimately lead to better growth. With a customized field service app you are sure to see the improved productivity and increased profitability enhancing overall customer satisfaction.