by Ian Stewart | Jun 29, 2012 | Field Service Spotlight
The national average for the price of self-serve regular gasoline is right around $3.50, down from its high a couple of months ago of just under $4. And considering how most cargo and service vans guzzle it down, that’s a ton of money spent every year just on...
by Darren Weiss | Jun 29, 2012 | Mobile & Tech
The first smartphone a lot of business users ever had was a BlackBerry. But the way things are going, their next one won’t be. Research In Motion (RIM), maker of BlackBerry, has had a rough go of it as of late. Facing declining market share and intense...
by Ian Stewart | Jun 28, 2012 | Field Service Spotlight
One great thing about working in the field is that you get to really interact with people out in the real world. That can be gratifying, and it can be grounding. And it can also be really funny. So we called around a bit to ask some local field service technicians to...
by Ian Stewart | Jun 27, 2012 | Mobile & Tech
Nest, makers of the popular “learning thermostat,” announced a deal on Monday with Texas utility Reliant, in which customers who sign up for two years of fixed-rate energy services receive one of the popular “smart” thermostats for free. Thus...
by Derek Korte | Jun 26, 2012 | Strategy & Leadership
Great — or at least not bad — customer service has become table stakes for top companies. Businesses can no longer survive by providing inadequate service, no matter how great their products may be. But what does good service actually look like, and why do most...
by Darren Weiss | Jun 25, 2012 | Strategy & Leadership
If an out-of-warranty dishwasher breaks down, there’s basically got three options (assuming you’re not the kind of person who can fix it yourself): 1. Call the manufacturer to schedule a repair; 2. Call the store you bought it from to ask about a repair or...
by Ian Stewart | Jun 25, 2012 | Mobile & Tech
Lots of field service technicians and dispatchers already use Google Maps to get directions to their next job. But now, with the release of Google’s new “Coordinate” program, they can use the same app to receive job details, check in and out, collect...
by Darren Weiss | Jun 22, 2012 | Mobile & Tech
By know you certainly know about — and almost definitely use — GPS. But the next stage of satellite positioning technology is already here, and for people who work out in the field, it may soon become ubiquitous. Whereas GPS technology uses satellites in orbit around...
by Ian Stewart | Jun 22, 2012 | Field Service Spotlight
Most of the time, 5 percent doesn’t sound like very much — it’s almost a rounding error. But for field service organizations, improving operations by even that modest number could be the difference between mediocrity and success. John Ragsdale, the vice...
by Derek Korte | Jun 21, 2012 | Strategy & Leadership
In a tepid economy and with increasing online competition, companies are turning to one business that can’t be outsourced to the Internet to trim costs and make money: customer service. We spoke with Kaihan Krippendorff, a business strategist, author of “Outthink the...
by Ian Stewart | Jun 20, 2012 | Mobile & Tech
Ever since Apple released its first iPad, sales of personal computers, and especially laptops, have come grinding to a halt. Consumers and businesspeople alike have instead moved toward tablets — almost exclusively the iPad. That’s been a pretty monumental...
by Sean Lyden | Jun 20, 2012 | Field Service Spotlight
Geek Squad is dubbed as a task force for big box retailer Best Buy that’s “dedicated to solving the world’s technology challenges.” But in the wake of recent management upheaval and ongoing fierce price competition (from Amazon, Walmart, and Costco, among...
