I joined ServiceMax about two months ago and immediately got to work on a new product launch. Nothing like being thrown into the water to learn to swim, right? Well, today is the big day and this release is a good* one. (*For a marketer like me, a good release is one where I have exciting innovations to talk about.)
The short version is that we’re rolling out a number of significant updates to our Field Service Management suite based on feedback from more than 400 customers. In doing so, we’re expanding the level of intelligence available to those out fixing things as well as business managers back at HQ.
Now for the bigger story:
Measuring service performance
Most software products today can provide some sort of reporting dashboard that highlights various data points of interest – and our existing software already provided reports and dashboards tracking the quantity of work orders, inventory levels, warranty expirations, etc. That’s all fine and good but truly measuring and tying field service info to business performance requires a quantum leap that until now wasn’t easy to do without significant custom coding.
What’s more, different organizations will define metrics in their own ways, which requires the platform to accommodate differing degrees of customization. That’s why our release introduces a new product called Service Performance Metrics that measures key performance indicators (KPIs) through a customizable engine. Among the metrics that the new product can track are Mean Time To Complete, Utilization, Attach Rate, First Time Fix Rate, etc. Most of the metrics require a customization that reflects how the customer defines the approach to measurement. Take something like utilization – is it based on billable hours or on time spent on customer site? Does travel count as utilization? Do you include planning and prep work back in the office? Every organization will answer these questions differently. Being able to do this is a major benefit that enables our customers to measure and benchmark the performance of their services organization in true business terms.
Embracing mobile-first field service
It’s no secret that mobile is absolutely key in today’s field service world. Technicians service and repair products in the field, so why shouldn’t there be management software that can support the entire field service business process join their screwdrivers and hard hats? And I mean every step in the process, from scheduling and routing, work orders and customer-history data, to information about installed products, ordering spare parts, and dealing with returns, and even capturing the customer’s signature and tracking time, material and expenses. Because field service is often done in remote locations off the beaten path, the mobile field service app needs to handle all of that without internet access.
The ServiceMaxMobile Field Service app gives technicians the full spectrum of capabilities at every step of the field service delivery process – all from one’s pocket. What’s more, ServiceMax has an unrivaled offline support, enabling engineers to work remotely, independent from network access. With the Spring ’16 release, this app is now available on additional mobile devices and operating systems. Most notable are the additions of support for Windows hybrid devices like the Surface tablet as well as a new, optimized experience for Android tablets (available as a restricted access release).
Smooth rollout of field service deployments
The ServiceMax platform is an enterprise application, helping run some of the most demanding field service organizations around the world. Many enterprises commonly require a degree of customization or at least consideration for their specific business requirements. But that doesn’t necessarily mean a lengthy professional services engagement.
Also included in this release is a new offering we’re calling ServiceMax Catalyst. In a nutshell, it’s an implementation package that provides a wealth of pre-configured service processes, operational visibility and functionality. Combine that with the unmatched expertize, best practices and methodology of our professional services team and our customers get up and running in no time.
Other awesome stuff
The number of innovations across the ServiceMax Field Service Management platform continues to grow. Notably, we have expanded the list of available languages by adding Finnish. Voitko puhua omalla alalla palvelua?
We’ve optimized the dispatch console using “background loading” to make it approximately 60 percent faster. We’ve streamlined the user experience on mobile devices using new calendar configuration, data purge and better ProductIQ search capabilities. Most of all, we’ve heard our customers loud and clear and addressed many of their requests across all parts of the product suite.
Today’s a big day and I couldn’t be more excited to share it with you. To learn more about what’s new from ServiceMax, click here.
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