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HVAC is usually one of the faster-moving field service verticals (clients need their locations cooled or heated immediately), but also one of the verticals least likely to adopt traditional FSM planning tools. According to research, 74% of HVACs don’t use any FSM software (such as a potential CRM) -- and the 26% that do use it tend to only use GPS-enablement technology. What are the benefits of a good CRM, then?

HVAC -- or heating, ventilation, and air conditioning -- is an industry within field service where time and efficiency are crucial. If a client’s heat goes down in the winter (in most parts of the world) or their AC goes down in the summer (ditto), it could mean millions of dollars of lost revenue and affected parts and machines if an HVAC technician can’t be dispatched quickly and fix the problem the first time out.

We’ve written many posts on the Optsy blog about using mobile and field service management tools to improve customer satisfaction, and obviously that makes sense: customers pay for your service and help drive revenue for your company.

Some of the bigger trends impacting field service management in the last few years (up to a decade) include mobility, or the more common use of smartphones in the field, and Internet of Things (IoT), or the idea of connected devices actually being able to send data themselves.

We’ve talked a lot on our Optsy blog about the importance of customer experience, or customer service, or just generally the idea of treating your customers well and making sure they (a) want to keep working with you and (b) might refer you to other potential customers. Customer experience is super-important right now in all facets of business, and it’s definitely at the forefront when it comes to field service -- because the heart of field service is really about interaction with customers. Your techs do this every single day.

Consider two possible scenarios for your field service management organization: Your technician shows up at a job site. He or she is on-time, has the correct inventory, and gets the job done. The on-site contact mentions something about another problem the company has been having. Your technician agrees to take a look free of charge before his or her next appointment. Your technician shows up at a job site. He or she is about 15 minutes late -- not too much but still late. He or she has the correct inventory, but there are a few questions about customer data and invoicing. The job is finished (good), but the on-site contact hurries your technician out, a bit frustrated. In a way, both situations above are positive -- in each case, first-time fix rate was achieved, and in each case, the job was done and was invoiced. Sure, in Example 2, the client is a bit more frustrated -- but 15 minutes late and a few questions will eventually fade as frustrating elements.

Building a field service management business is hard -- and remember, the building of said business is only a portion of your life. You still have friends and family to consider, as well as yourself. How do you balance it all?

Let’s start with the basics, as not everyone in business knows this (different organizations have different vocabularies): KPIs are “key performance indicators” or, ideally, things you track and analyze. What’s happening with those business elements is ultimately driving the bottom-line success of your business. Think of a well-known company like Amazon. A crucial “KPI” for it is website load time; if the website is taking forever to load, people will go and shop elsewhere. That’s the easiest way to think about it.

In 2016, many field service organizations are moving to a more fluid, paperless, mobile-and-cloud-based operations model. Before you begin the same journey, though, it’s important to understand why it needs to happen.

For far too many small businesses, the turnover rate in the field-service industry is exceptionally high. Part of the reason that turnover is so high lies in the fact that companies are simply not hiring the right candidates. From discovering what questions you need to ask to learning how to spot the ideal technician, the following post will help you hire smart in 2016 and the years to come!