Mobile Computing Thought Leadership

  1. Key Success Requirements For Field Service Management 2/20/2020

    It can be challenging to understand which field service management (FSM) features can best lead to specified business benefits. Mapping out an FSM strategy and comparing different FSM solutions can be difficult because so many FSM capabilities are complementary. One way to understand different kinds of FSM capabilities is by partitioning them into three categories: in the field, intelligent capabilities, and optimization.

  2. AWE Show Report: Inching Closer To Reality 8/21/2019

    The 2019 Augmented Wearables Expo (AWE) took place in sunny Santa Clara, Calif. This year’s AWE 2019 featured a large “play area” dedicated to entertainment-oriented use cases. With more than 7,000 attendees, 250 exhibitors, and 300 speakers, AWE pulled in a large crowd over its three-day run. AWE is primarily oriented toward smart glasses hardware and software, though other forms of novel interfaces are included. Smart suits and smart fabrics, including innovative applications of haptic technology, have their place in the conference, expanding the scope of “solutions” on display.

  3. Apple Device Management For Small And Medium Businesses 5/10/2019

    With a renewed focus on mobile devices in the work environment, Apple has become the device of choice in small and medium businesses.

  4. How Mixed Reality Technology Transforms Knowledge Management In Field Service 2/13/2019

    Field service management becomes more complicated every year. Companies face rising expectations from customers who demand instant service delivery and professionalism. At the same time, businesses complain about insufficient resources to manage the tasks and young employees demanding advanced tools supporting their work. With these obstacles, delivery of excellent service and earning customers’ trust become areas of concern.

  5. Mobile Field Force Enablement Drives Business Value 11/15/2018

    The pre-mobile enabled field service organization, which is quite common despite available technologies and almost ubiquitous connectivity, is one that still relies heavily on manual processes and paper-based forms for field service delivery. At best, this traditional organization may use multiple spreadsheets for data entry and job tracking. Due to the lack of a mobile process, field service directors and managers have no insight into the locations of their field techs, the status of jobs in progress, or real-time data on which to escalate or downgrade problems.

  6. Examining The Current And Future States Of Field Mobility 11/2/2018

    Field service organizations (FSOs) were among the earliest adopters of mobile computers and continue to find new ways to take advantage of this technology as mobility systems evolve and improve. As the pace of change accelerates, however, FSOs have had to reevaluate their mobile deployment and upgrade strategies. Whereas in the past, rugged mobile devices were almost uniformly based on the Windows environment and remained in service five years or more. The accelerated introduction of new software and hardware features has made it necessary to leverage different operating systems, more flexible hardware platforms, and cloud-based software models.

  7. What A Consumer-Grade Mobility Strategy Really Costs Enterprises With A Field-Based Workforce 10/12/2018

    Technology has done wonders for business in the last 20-plus years, especially mobile technology. Tablet, laptop and even handheld computers have completely transformed the notion of field service and, therefore, customer service. Customer questions can be answered and problems can be solved by technicians in a matter of minutes – not days, weeks or months. Ideas from the best, brightest and most skilled workers can be applied, even if they are hundreds of miles away from the actual job site. 

  8. Best Practices FSOs Operate Differently To Maintain Their Best-in-Class Status 9/28/2018

    What Makes Best Practices FSOs Different from All Others? And How Do You Get There in the First Place?

  9. The Service Mobile Digital Mission: Beyond Work Orders 9/27/2018

    We rely on the “work order” to complete the call transaction and capture service data. Work orders are important and recognized as the nucleus of field service operations. Leaders today, however, have other business drivers ranging from selling services to technician recruiting and retention on their mind as they learn to think beyond the work order. The Mobile Digital Mission (MDM) is the business process and technology architecture that goes beyond work orders and addresses major service business objectives.

  10. The Field Service7℠ Approach To Operations Excellence 9/27/2018

    The purpose of this white paper is to describe the highly specialized approach to ensuring technology implementation success and accelerating ROI. Effective technology implementation and ROI achievement in field service depend on sound change management practices. Field service change management addresses the unique dynamics and characteristics of work performed by field technicians.