When a customer reports a malfunction or breakdown of equipment, or when new equipment needs to be installed at a customer’s location, field service managers jump into action. These individuals are responsible for scheduling service appointments, assigning the technician with the right skills and equipment to the job, planning efficient routes to job sites, communicating with technicians and tracking jobs through to completion. This process, called dispatching, is critical in field service, and it’s a responsibility that can make or break a customer’s experience with a company.
What Is Dispatching in Field Service?
Dispatching in field service is the process of assigning and scheduling tasks to field service technicians. Field service technicians are skilled professionals who provide customers with on-site support, such as for equipment maintenance, repairs and installations. The dispatching process involves the coordination of a variety of duties: Managers must assign and schedule tasks to technicians based on location, skill set and urgency, often using tools and technologies that optimize routes to minimize travel time, avoid traffic delays and maximize cost-savings. They also monitor and track the progress of field service technicians, as well as maintain records of service activities, such as work orders, service reports, customer communications and technician notes.
Key Takeaways
- Dispatching is critical to ensure a timely and thorough response to service requests.
- The dispatching process includes assigning and scheduling tasks to technicians, planning routes, tracking progress and maintaining records of service activities.
- Managers must assess a problem’s urgency, severity and impact on the customer’s business when prioritizing jobs.
- Technology that automates technician dispatching, tracks performance and streamlines customer communications helps improve the overall field service experience.
16 Tips for Dispatching Field Service Techs
Dispatching field service technicians requires careful planning and strategic thinking. The following best practices can help managers handle the complexities and nuances of dispatching, which range from who to hire and how to plan schedules to building relationships, communicating and finessing customer expectations.
1. Hire the Right People
Field service managers need skilled individuals on their teams to deliver the best service experience to their customers. That’s why it’s so important for managers to hire the right people. Field service technicians should possess strong communication skills, a high level of professionalism and the technical expertise to address a customer’s needs in, optimally, one visit. Hiring skilled technicians means service calls will be handled efficiently, accurately and with the satisfaction of the customer in mind.
2. Prioritize Triage in Your Process
Managers should systematically evaluate and categorize service requests based on such factors as how urgent a problem is, the severity of that problem and the potential impact that problem could have on the customer. By prioritizing triage, critical issues can be addressed quickly, reducing disruptions to customers’ operations.
3. Front-Load Your Technician’s Workdays
Scheduling high-priority tasks early in the day helps technicians focus on critical issues while they are fresh and focused. Because many field service operations involve service-level agreements, which define response times and resolution targets for service requests, front-loading a technician’s workday ensures that these issues will be addressed properly and within the appropriate time frame. It also helps technicians maximize their productivity.
4. Focus on Route Optimization
Fast response time is a top priority for businesses today, which is why field service managers must attempt to minimize technicians’ travel time. Route optimization involves mapping the most direct, cost-effective way for technicians to get from one service call to another, plus allowing for possible stops to pick up equipment, parts or tools. By focusing on the quickest route to a service call, companies can conserve on fuel consumption and wear and tear on their technicians’ vehicles, including breakdowns. It also lets technicians spend more time on billable tasks and less time traveling between appointments. Focusing on route optimization can amount to significant cost savings, and technology can help in this regard. In fact, research shows the market for route optimization software is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 11.56% between 2022 and 2030.
5. Use Technology to Keep Customers in the Loop
Certain tools and technologies, such as software for field service management and dispatch, enable managers and technicians to communicate back and forth more easily and effectively. These technologies often support real-time communication features in mobile apps or provide central portals that allow technicians to update job statuses. They also make it easier for technicians to communicate with clients about appointment arrival times, potential delays, billing and upcoming appointments.
6. Automate and Track Your Processes
Automating repetitive tasks frees up field service managers to focus on work of higher value. Some of the tasks that can be automated include work order management, scheduling and dispatching, route optimization, reporting and analytics, and inventory management. Automating and tracking these processes ultimately helps managers improve operational efficiency. Indeed, automation is a growing area in field service management: By 2025, more than two-thirds of field service work will be scheduled by machine-learning-informed algorithms and bots, up from 25% in 2020, according to Gartner.
7. Analyze Competition and Market Pricing
Having knowledge and awareness of other field service businesses that offer similar services, as well as how they are pricing their services, gives managers insight into the dynamics of the field service industry and helps them assess the value of the services they provide. By identifying market trends, customer preferences and emerging competitors, for example, managers can make decisions about how to adapt their strategies accordingly. Understanding competitors’ pricing enables managers to set pricing for their own services that ensures both profitability and value for customers.
8. Know Your Team
To forge good relationships, build trust, demonstrate respect and sustain strong communication, field service managers should strive to establish genuine rapport with their team members. Ways to do this include scheduling time to catch up with each one, holding after-work outings or events, and offering assistance if a person seems to be struggling or feels overwhelmed. By getting to know people individually, field service managers can better understand their teams’ overall strengths, weaknesses and skills. These insights can help managers assign tasks effectively, optimize team performance and provide tailored support and training when needed.
9. Participate in Training Programs
Training programs provide field service managers with opportunities to enrich their skills, stay updated on best practices and learn new technologies. By participating in training, managers can learn how to better perform their jobs and even position themselves for career advancement and other opportunities within the organization.
10. Be Open to Feedback
To be able to adapt to changing conditions and continue to motivate and support their teams, field service managers need to understand what they do well and where they can improve. Managers can seek feedback by holding team meetings where members can share their suggestions or concerns, via anonymous surveys, through one-on-one check-ins or by means of an employee suggestion box, for example. Receptivity to feedback — from customers, managers and colleagues — paves the way for managers to improve their skills, knowledge and performance, ultimately improving the satisfaction of their teams and, in turn, customers.
11. Prepare Your Technician’s Schedule in Advance
When field service managers create a schedule for technicians ahead of time, it ensures that technicians’ time will be allocated appropriately. Scheduling prioritizes tasks, allows sufficient time for each job and minimizes downtime between appointments. By planning in advance, technicians and managers can map out the most direct and punctual routes to job sites, which keeps jobs running smoothly and customers happy.
12. Cultivate Internal and External Relationships
Developing and maintaining strong relationships — both internally with field service technicians and other business stakeholders and externally with customers, suppliers, business partners and peers — fosters collaboration and employee engagement while increasing customer satisfaction.
Internal collaboration with team members and other departments, for example, encourages knowledge sharing, refines resources and promotes best practices, leading to more efficient service delivery. Investing in team members boosts morale and helps identify skills teams may be lacking. Cultivating external relationships builds trust and rapport with customers and external stakeholders, prompting increased loyalty and repeat business. These relationships can also lead to new business opportunities, partnerships and collaborations.
13. Optimize Technician Scheduling
By deploying field service technicians in the most efficient manner, managers keep operations running smoothly and ensure that technicians maximize the number of service calls they can cover each day. Optimizing schedules involves assigning tasks based on technician availability, skill sets, locations and current workloads. Among the benefits of intelligent resource allocation: less travel time between locations, improved customer satisfaction through shorter wait times and lower operational expenses.
14. Use One Channel of Communication
Using multiple methods of communication — phone, email, text, portals, websites, etc. — increases the risk of confusion or misunderstanding. It also forces technicians and managers to monitor and respond to multiple channels, which drags down workflows. The better solution is to have a centralized platform for all relevant interactions and information. Another benefit of using a single channel of communication is easy access to past conversations and documentation, not to mention streamlined security due to minimized risk of unauthorized access.
15. Set Realistic Service-Call Expectations
Setting realistic service-call expectations involves providing customers with accurate information about the timing, duration and outcome of service calls. This might include an arrival window for technician visits, estimating the duration of the service call based on the complexity of the issue, and setting expectations for the outcome of the service call, such as what the technician will likely accomplish during the visit. Setting realistic timelines and achievable goals up front helps rein in customer expectations and avoids overpromising or underdelivering on the service call. It also builds trust and credibility with the customer and lessens stress and pressure on the technician.
16. Review Completed Jobs
After a field service technician has completed a job, the manager should review the details to confirm that the work has met required standards and specifications and that all tasks have been accomplished. This is also the time to solicit and review customer feedback on the services provided so that managers can gauge performance. Other data that may be helpful to review includes first-time fix rates, mean time to repair and customer satisfaction. This information can reveal opportunities for streamlining processes and improving service quality. Reviewing completed jobs also allows managers to identify any recurring issues that may require further investigation.
Deliver Seamless Field Service Experiences to Customers and Employers With NetSuite
Providing top-notch experiences for both employees and customers is crucial in the field services industry. NetSuite Field Service Management ensures satisfaction for all by streamlining the process of scheduling and dispatching technicians and teams to customers’ sites based on expertise, proximity and availability. The solution boosts productivity by providing field staff with access to all the information needed to complete a job, which helps increase first-time fix rate. The software also paves the way for timely services that can solve the customer’s problem in one visit, while providing operational insights that improve decision-making and reduce costs, enabling the business to maintain its competitive edge.
Effective dispatching is key to field service success. By hiring the right people, optimizing routes, automating processes, cultivating internal and external relationships and more, field service managers can improve service delivery and, in turn, customer satisfaction. This strategic approach, backed by intelligent software, not only enhances the efficiency of operations but also contributes to a stronger bottom line by boosting productivity, reducing costs and fostering customer loyalty through reliable service.
#1 Cloud ERP
Software
Field Service Dispatch Tips FAQs
How do you dispatch efficiently?
Dispatching involves meticulous planning and scheduling. It also requires effective communication and the use of the right tools and technologies to properly assign field service technicians to the right job.
What makes a successful dispatcher?
Successful dispatchers should be excellent multitaskers, understand how to prioritize well, be organized and be able to adapt to any situation.
What are the basics of dispatch?
The basics of dispatch include assigning and scheduling tasks to technicians based on location, skill set and urgency. Tools and technologies are used to optimize routes to minimize travel time and maximize cost-savings. Dispatch also involves tracking the progress of field service technicians and maintaining records of service activities, such as work orders, service reports, customer communications and technician notes
What is the single most important skill a dispatcher should have?
Dispatchers should have good organizational skills in order to coordinate all the moving pieces of field service.
What are the commonly used dispatching rules?
The commonly used dispatching rules are first come, first served and shortest travel distance first.
What is the first step in the dispatch process?
The first step in the dispatch process is to coordinate resources, followed by optimizing routes and ensuring effective communication.
