New Research from Field Service News and ServiceMax Finds Data-Driven Digital Transformation Prevalent Among Field Service Organizations
Report Shows Digital Transformation in Full Swing, Yet More Than Half Admit They Are Still Not Using Data Effectively, Limiting Likelihood of Cross-Department Collaboration, Development of Outcome-Based Services, and Improved Performance
While the field service industry has firmly grasped digital transformation and data-driven approaches to service design and delivery, limited systems of record continue to restrict the effective use of the asset data gathered, according to new research conducted by Field Service News (FSN) and supported by ServiceMax, a leader in asset-centric field service management software. However, the study showed that, amongst those organizations where data is being shared across the business units, there is a greater likelihood of cross-department collaboration, development of servitization and improved performance.
The global benchmarking report, The Impact of Asset Data Flow Beyond the Silo of Field Service Operations, was developed through interviews with over 230 field service leaders from a variety of different industry verticals including manufacturing, utilities, telecommunications, power generation, healthcare, med-tech, security and many others. The core focus was to understand how prevalent the sharing and use of asset data (data that has deep and rich value for the entire business) is within service organizations, or whether the data remains within a silo of operations. In addition, FSN explored whether the movement of data across an organization is a significant factor in enabling greater cross-department collaboration, which is an indicator of an organization’s appetite and capability to adopt servitization.
“While digital transformation is well underway across our industry, the truth still holds that, no matter how sophisticated the tools we use are, they remain merely an enabler for service transformation,” said Mark Wilding, VP of Global Customer Transformation at ServiceMax. “Those who work to break down barriers and promote each department working together toward a collective, data-driven goal can drive servitization and outcome-based solutions, among other significant business benefits.”
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The study findings revealed several key trends and correlations, including:
- The field service industry is going through a period of transition and has firmly grasped digital transformation and data-driven approaches to adapt and evolve.
- The vast majority (82%) of organizations are now able to receive asset data. However, more than half (57%) of organizations admit to not using this data effectively within the field service unit.
- Similarly, sharing asset data across different business units is prevalent, with 81% of companies doing so. Yet, 34% state that its use is limited by disparate systems of record. An equal mix of inadequate processes and technology (63%) are called-out as the culprits.
- Perhaps the most revealing finding was that amongst organizations where data is shared across the business units, there is a greater likelihood of cross-department collaboration, development of servitization and improved performance. When looking at only the responses from organizations who state they have some adoption of servitization, the sharing of asset data across a business is universal, with 100% of respondents stating this is the case within their company.
“We are living in a time when data underpins all aspects of excellence within a service-centric organization, yet often the ability to take meaningful and actionable insights from the data available remains a challenge,” said Kris Odland, Editor-in-Chief from Field Service News. “Modern systems and processes are more important than ever before, as they can help facilitate integration and collaboration for those organizations willing to rethink the status quo. We look forward to soon completing the final phase of this study that will combine qualitative insights with the quantitative benchmark data from this study to provide the big picture.”
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