Cloud ERP solutions offer significant potential for field service businesses. Increasingly available and affordable mobile technology gives asset management and facilities maintenance companies big opportunities to add value to their services and increase customer satisfaction and long-term engagement. Customers are fussy, however, and it is easy for them to switch providers if they are not happy with your levels of service. This is where embracing technology to support your customer service goals comes in, offering innovative solutions to meet the growing demands of asset management businesses.
Enhanced Mobility and Real-Time Data Access
One of the biggest benefits of cloud ERP solutions for field service management companies is the enhanced mobility that they offer. With real-time access to data from anywhere, engineers or technicians can make informed decisions on the spot. This increases efficiency and productivity, improves customer service, and enhances customer satisfaction.
Inventory Management and Control
Managing inventory can be a headache for any business without the right systems in place, and field service management companies are no different. The nature of the job means that technicians carry spare parts, which means that they need to know what spares they have available to complete the jobs they have booked. Cloud ERP systems offer this functionality, enabling each van to be set up as a ‘mobile warehouse’, with information on stock levels and location. This gives your remote workforce the ability to work more productively as they are not wasting time checking stock levels or trying to locate products. It also reduces the risk of a lack product or components and ensures they always have the necessary parts and tools, leading to fewer delays and increased first-time fix rates, which again contributes to increased customer satisfaction.
Streamlining Scheduling and Route Planning
Streamlining scheduling and route planning offers the potential for enormous efficiency gains as it minimises travel time between jobs, so therefore increases the number of jobs technicians or engineers can complete in their day. GPS tracking and automated scheduling enable managers to allocate tasks more effectively, ensuring the right resource reaches the right job at the right time.
Customer Satisfaction
Cloud ERP solutions are a transformative shift from ‘ways of old’. Digitising everything via apps that connect straight back to head office gives customers immediate responsiveness to their problems – whether that’s the immediate ability to order replacement parts or book a date for a return visit, customers don’t have to wait for the company to contact them again to arrange follow-ups. The integration of CRM and ERP solutions gives field service businesses greater insight to understand and meet their customer needs. Access to complete customer histories and preferences enables personalised service, which increases loyalty and customer satisfaction.
Cost Savings and Scalability
One of the advantages of cloud ERP solutions for all businesses is that they eliminate the need for large capital investments in infrastructure and ongoing maintenance costs. There is no need for in-house resources to maintain on-premise systems, which means those resources can either be redeployed into other more strategic areas or removed altogether, allowing businesses to reduce headcount overheads. Cloud ERP solutions are also scalable, which means that companies only pay for the resources they need at the time but can scale and adjust their resources according to their changing needs.
How SAP Business One and SAP Field Service Management Can Help
SAP Business One and SAP Field Service Management enable field service businesses to automate processes, reducing manual administration and duplication of data and effort by providing real-time job and customer information from anywhere. Productivity is increased by efficient route planning and management of parts to increase first-time fix rates and number of jobs that can be completed in a day. Cloud technology gives field service businesses the platform on which to build their future growth and success. For more information on how SAP Business One and SAP Field Service Management can help your field service business to increase efficiency, productivity and enhance customer satisfaction, please contact our friendly team now.