Consumerization And Its Impact On Field Service

By Sumair Dutta, chief customer officer, The Service Council, www.theservicecouncil.com, sd@theservicecouncil.com

The trend of consumerization reaches beyond the mobile device realm.

The impact of consumerization in field service is often understated, in that it is often limited to the increased use of consumer devices in field service workforces. The Service Council’s (TSC) research shows that nearly 50 percent of organizations are now providing their field service agents with a smartphone as their primary work device. Of those looking to incorporate new device types into their field service ecosystem, 52 percent are looking at smartphones with 36 percent investigating the feasibility of the tablet form factor. In addition to use by field service agents, tablets and smartphones are also being adopted by field service managers and leaders in order to review real-time performance, make day-to-day adjustments, and plan for future service work.