Tedious. Time-consuming. Extremely inefficient.
These are just a few of the frustrating downsides of a manual process. As it relates to field technicians, creating a new Word doc every time they’re scheduled to go to a service appointment, for example, would probably qualify as “tedious.”
But still, every service organization must communicate data among team members, departments, and customers. Often, organizations share this information by exchanging documents such as reports, work orders, and invoices – and most manually create them.
In short – automation is key.
According to a recent study by The Service Council, 46 percent of field technicians said paperwork and administrative tasks were the worst part of their day. Furthermore, the same study found that nearly 30 percent of technicians were also dissatisfied with the time it took them to look for information.
Automation of such processes allow these highly skilled professionals to focus on providing outstanding service to customers rather than performing these menial, headache-inducing administrative tasks. And considering 89% of companies are expected to compete mostly on the basis of customer experience in 2016, a happy customer-focused workforce is imperative in the highly competitive field service industry (Gartner Surveys Confirm Customer Experience is the New Battlefield).
Organizations that automate administrative processes also benefit from scalability, lower risk of error, increased compliance and other substantial long-term gains.
Following are a few of the biggest benefits for organizations that automate their administrative processes.
Improve accuracy
Incorporating technology to automate administrative tasks allows you to streamline processes and greatly increase the accuracy of the data communicated within your organization and to customers.
Have you ever had a technician scheduled to come to your home to perform a repair only to find out the paperwork was incorrect and they need to reschedule the service appointment? A recent study by Forrester found that 73 percent of consumers say that valuing their time is the most important thing a company can do to provide them with good service. Having to reschedule a four to eight hour window for service is the last thing customers want to do and can result in customers switching providers.
Save time and money
Many times organizations dedicate one resource to perform manual tasks. This can be costly as the employee can inadvertently become a bottleneck in the process because other teams can’t complete their work until that step is completed. If a dispatcher is unable to provide field agents with information regarding repairs that are scheduled to be completed on that day, the field agent is unable to move forward. Dedicating a resource to perform manual processes not only lacks the ability to be scalable but can also hinders a company’s ability to grow.
While setting up new technology to automate processes requires an upfront investment of time and money, the long-term savings and benefits are undeniable. Executives can spend the budget previously allocated to the manual process elsewhere, and departments and customers communicate far more effectively.
To learn more about automating administrative tasks and accelerating service to cash, join our webinar Nov. 15.
And to learn more about operational excellence and how these aspects work together to create a service system that is far greater than just the sum of its parts, check out our new free ebook.
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