Enterprise Mobility is not new – but it’s on a huge trajectory upward. World class companies have been working for years to run their businesses. Why – one word – CONTENT.
But let’s look back at how this has become so relevant. Ever wonder how the copier repairman knows where to be at a given time? The company that makes the copy machine has likely offered your company 
a maintenance contract, and maybe even tied to it an SLA (Service level agreement) which guarantees that if something happens to the machine they will have someone there to fix it within a set amount of time. Innovative companies with business models such as this implemented some sort of early stage mobility years ago to notify the field technician where they need to be and when – avoiding many phone calls to/from the tech and the dispatcher. But, when the repairman arrived, he still had to bring his manuals for reference and more likely call someone for more assistance. The benefits of mobile technology stopped when he walked in the door.
If you were to view those solutions today, they may seem crude – but they were functional. This was the basis for how many world class companies cut their teeth on mobility in the early days – meeting the challenge of adding real time communication with employees not sitting at a desk. (Take a read through the ‘Mobile Futures Today’ blog here on MM written by Brian Philbin – he’s a life long field service veteran).
Today, dispatching employees and automation of communications are table stakes for mobility. The key now is providing all the information which is needed by users of mobile applications – about the call, the customer, all onsite equipment, and information the tech may need to complete the job and service the customer.
Let’s think about what has driven the wide consumer adoption of mobile devices. There was a time when someone might carry a cell phone for communication, an MP3 player to listen to music, a newspaper, a book, and some pictures of their children. If they were traveling on business they may also be carrying their boarding pass, and printed driving directions for when they arrive at their destination.
Today, all this content can be within a single device. THIS, along with content drive mobile apps is what has driven the meteoric rise of mobile devices in the consumer space.
Apply this to the example of a field service technician. The tech may be dispatched via a mobile application, then when he arrives at the customer location he checks in on his device. He then has real time access to dynamic technical documentation of the customer’s equipment. As he interacts with the electronic documentation, he can watch videos of others with tips on making the repair. He can access rich content knowledge bases and collaborate with peers and gain from their expertise. He visually navigate replacement parts and simply the image which needs to be replaced and he is immediately reordering the part. He can be presented with the maintenance history of all the machines onsite and determine if there are others that should be checked, or preventive maintenance required.
Over the past years, some of this has been capable through the deployment of ruggedized laptops. These have proven slow to boot up, lacking effective battery life and at times more difficult to use compared to the value they provide. Mobile touch screen smartphones and tablet devices are the perfect solution.
The field tech IS the face of your organization to the customer. The goal is to maximize his efficiency, provide ongoing research and training on the job and ensure the highest quality as the tech closes each call. 
Executing on preventive maintenance and other non-urgent work orders while onsite improve efficiency and ultimately improve customer satisfaction. This also improves worker satisfaction when they can be prepared for each customer interaction and know that they have the proper knowledge to complete each call on the first visit.
So as you think about how to support your field teams, think about not just getting them to the job, but rather how they can be supported on the job.
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Tags: Business Mobility, Enterprise Mobility, Field Automation, Field Service, Human Centered Mobility, Increase Customer Satisfaction, iPad, Matt Torgersen, Mobile Field Service, Mobility - General, Pragmatic Mobility, Tablets
