Talk is Cheap, and a Picture is Worth 1600 Words

I get lots of comments from prospective customers about “going paperless” using tablets and smartphones.  In many cases, however, they are talking about simply making the technicians in the field type character information into digital forms that otherwise would have been paper.  Maybe if you are going to go “paperless” you should reconsider how you […]

Never Miss a Service – Managing Recurring Services

There are two keys to profitable service operations – job service density and job route density.  I discussed job route density in a previous post entitled “Field Service Scheduling – Kill the “Where-wolf” that’s eating your profits.”  Using a mapping tool simultaneously with a job scheduling calendar helps minimize drive time relative to work time. […]

Track the Truck? Track the Tech!

Fleet tracking has become very popular due to low cost GPS and software as a service (SaaS) solutions.  I believe the same trends that are driving fleet tracking adoption – low cost/low hassle SaaS and real time feedback – will drive a new wave of technician tracking via the smartphone.  Fleet tracking is an important […]

Smartphones are Smart Business

If you have been looking for an excuse to arm your field techs with smartphones, I am going to give you several in this blog post. The goal of any business expenditure is to make your business more competitive by lowering costs, improving customer service, or increasing revenue.  I believe an investment in smartphones for […]

Field Service Scheduling – Kill the “Where-wolf” that’s eating your profit

Field service scheduling is hard because it involves both time AND space.  You can’t decide “when” until you know “where.”  And knowing “where” is not just one location.  The scheduler needs to see ALL jobs on a calendar AND on a map simultaneously to make good decisions for the schedule.   In most cases, “where” actually […]