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Field Operations Management

What is Field Operations Management?

Stephen Taylor December 14, 2022August 18th, 20238 min read
Two construction workers wearing high visibility jackets and ppe with one holding laptop and pointing to screen in working area

Introduction to Field Operations Management

Field operations management is a critical part of many field service businesses. Across industries, there is a relentless demand for customer-centric solutions among firms, large or small. With a global market size of over $4 billion, the need for solutions that empower companies to improve their operational efficiency, reduce downtime, and better serve their customers has never been higher.
So to you, the reader, chances are you want to learn more about field operations management, especially as it continues to gather momentum across industries. This blog will provide a simple overview of what field operations management is, the growth and evolution of field operations management into the digital era, the features of a field operations management solution, and what it can do for your business. Let’s get started.

Definition of Field Operations Management

Field operations management, in practice, oversees the delivery of field service activities and processes outside the traditional office environment, or ‘in the field’. These off-site activities often involve coordinating field technicians’ workflows, developing plans and job schedules, communicating with team members, monitoring progress, and providing training and development opportunities where needed.
Connected devices and digital communications witnessed the advent of field operations management software, which expands the scope of what field operations management can do.
Industries with field technicians working on-site at customers or other remote locations use field operations management software to manage and track the progress of field operations, such as maintenance and repair work, installation projects, and inspections in real-time. Field operations managers and dispatchers can also use this software to manage the personnel and resources involved, such as scheduling and dispatching workers, tracking inventory and materials, and generating reports on the status of various operations. In the modern world, field operations management software can help organisations improve operational efficiency, reduce downtime, and better serve their customers. But this didn’t happen overnight… so where did it come from?

The History & Development of Field Operations Management

The concept of field operations management had its roots in the early 20th century when companies started to expand and operate on a larger scale. Some of the earliest examples of ‘modern’ field operations still around today include roadside assistance companies, like RAC or AAA, which have been offering modern field services since the early 20th century. At a larger scale is the historical use and application of field operations management in the utilities and infrastructure sectors, namely the generation and distribution of electricity. From Thomas Edison’s Pearl Street power station in Lower Manhattan to the sophisticated nationwide UK Grid, field operations management has always been integral to utilities and infrastructure.

As businesses grew and industries broadened, managing activities and processes outside of traditional office environments became increasingly important. Over time, field operations management has evolved and grown, with new technologies opening the door to field operations management software.

Technological Advancements & Field Operations Management
Advancing technology correlated with increased service complexity and capability enabled by field operations management software. In the past, managing field operations was a manual process involving disparate paper-based forms and spreadsheets. Naturally, being human, these were time-consuming and prone to errors. Once the internet and portable computers became mainstream, field operations management software could harness these new tech stacks to automate and streamline processes, bringing disparate operational management processes onto one platform.
Early versions of this software often consisted of simple scheduling and dispatch tools. However, over time, the technology has become more sophisticated and now includes many blue-chip features, such as real-time performance monitoring, mobile data capture and point-of-service triage and invoicing, and integration with other systems.
In modern field service, field operations management software is widely used in various industries to manage and coordinate the activities of field operations teams, ensuring service delivery is efficient and experience-led for the customer.

The Emphasis on Training & Development in Field Operations

Field operations software has facilitated an increased focus on training and development for mobile technicians. In the past, field operations managers often had to rely on workers with pre-existing knowledge and skills. Today, there is a greater emphasis on providing training and development opportunities to help workers improve their skills and stay up-to-date with the latest industry practices.

For field operations managers, their field workers must have the skills and knowledge to perform their jobs effectively and safely. Regular training and development opportunities can help upskill an entire workforce, with workers improving their skills and staying up-to-date with the latest industry practices.

Through using effective field operations management, the cycle of continuous improvement and workforce up-skilling leads to:

  1. Enhanced performance: Providing training and development opportunities can help field workers improve their performance and productivity, reducing the risk of SLA breaches and strains on customer relationships.
  2. Better job satisfaction: Training and development can help field workers feel more confident and competent in their roles, leading to increased job satisfaction and better engagement with tasks. The knock-on of increased job satisfaction is reduced attrition and churn among your skilled workforce. Field service organisations are particularly vulnerable to staff retention and supply issues.
  3. Risk reduction: Providing training and development can help field workers avoid mistakes and errors, which can help reduce the risk of accidents and other problems in the field. Furthermore, the mobile workforce’s capacity to complete niche or nuanced tasks increases with better training and on-site triage. More of your team can complete more tasks while remaining safe and compliant, driving first-time fix rates up and customer complaints down.

In short, field operations management has come a long way over the years and continues to evolve and meet the changing needs of businesses and industries. With the broader development of technologies and techniques, field operations managers gain even more tools and resources to help them succeed in their roles.

What are the features of effective field operations management?

With the scene set, now we will look at the features effective field operations management solutions should include. Here are the most critical elements you should know:
Dynamic Scheduling & Dispatch

This allows organisations to schedule and dispatch field technicians and other personnel to customer locations or job sites. The key benefit to organisations is the ability to schedule and dispatch the correct field worker to the right job, matched by skill. When arriving on-task, this ensures they have the correct skill level and equipment to complete service the first time.

Real-time Engineer Tracking

This allows your organisation to track the location and status of field technicians and their vehicles in real time. This valuable oversight enables you to manage field-based teams better with enhanced visibility of their whereabouts. Based on this, your office-based teams can make quicker, more precise decisions while ensuring engineers’ schedules are running smoothly.

Work Order Management

This allows your field operations managers to create, assign, and track work orders for field operations, such as maintenance and repair work. When applied, this feature automates field workforces’ schedules, activities, planned maintenance and preventative maintenance requests.

Field Service Intelligence

This is one of the more powerful features to be aware of. Field service intelligence enables your team to generate reports and infer insights on field operations’ historical, present and future performance. With this, you can drive meaningful gains in productivity and efficiency through your unprecedented view of all field service performance metrics currently taking place. This view uncovers previously hidden opportunities for service improvement, allowing your teams to make informed decisions that drive service delivery enhancements.

System Integration

Finally, a comprehensive solution should smoothly integrate with your existing back-office systems, including enterprise resource planning (ERP), enterprise asset management (EAM) and customer relationship management (CRM) systems.

Closing Thoughts

Ultimately, field operations management is crucial for ensuring that field activities are carried out efficiently and effectively. With the right solution and understanding of its features, field operations management software can help businesses achieve their goals and meet the demands of the experience-led field service of today. By implementing the right processes as part of a more significant digital transformation of field service delivery, field operations managers can help their organisations succeed in today’s fast-paced and competitive business environment.
Stephen Taylor

Stephen Taylor

Stephen Taylor, Head of Digital at Totalmobile, came on board in 2016 and brings over 20 years in digital marketing. Stephen is deeply versed in digital strategy and analytics. His SaaS and field service management expertise has made him a pivotal asset across Totalmobile sectors.

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