How To Attract and Grow a Talented Field Service Team

Field service teams have helped customers navigate changing circumstances throughout the pandemic. They provided vital support and stability when customers needed it the most, and became the trusted face of brands.

A motivated and skilled field service team helps your business drive revenue and improve customer retention. However, talent attraction can be a challenge. That’s because the older generation of workers are retiring, so field service leaders have to think about how to attract younger workers. 

Here’s what organisations can do to attract and grow field service talent:

1. Reposition the field service team as a strategic asset

Service teams are no longer regarded as cost centres. According to 80% of decision makers, field service is key to their overall strategy. Seventy-five percent of decision makers say field service is driving significant revenue.

How so?

Service teams interact with customers and keep them happy. By providing excellent service, they can reduce churn. They can also help to upsell equipment. Salesforce research finds that  91% percent of customers are more likely to make another purchase after a great service experience.

Think of upselling as an extension of an outstanding customer experience — not just pushing more products in order to meet sales targets. Upselling develops from the trust your customers have in the organisation. Service agents have an important role in nurturing that trust. They can create starting points for sales and marketing to introduce new campaigns to receptive customers.

2. Empower your team with field service management technology

Field service workers expect to have the technology needed to get their jobs done well. Your best talent would be unlikely to stay if they have to make do with inferior or outdated tools.

One type of technology that would help field service workers immensely is a connected field service management solution. It gives agents, dispatchers, and mobile workers updated information. This includes customer data, job details, asset history, and warranties. Having full customer context is crucial. Without it, 79% of field service professionals say they can’t provide a great customer experience. 

With full customer context, field service teams can achieve a high First Time Fix Rate with:

• Automated dispatch based on mobile worker availability, skill set, and location (if an in-person visit is needed). This eliminates manual effort, scheduling errors, and any unintentional bias.
• Route management reduces time-to-site. It also automatically responds to schedule changes, whether it’s a late arrival or a new job request.
• Appointment Assistant automatically updates customers with an estimated time of arrival, pre-arrival checklist, and the mobile worker’s details.
• Digital work order management instantly tracks updates about an assigned job, assesses current inventory volumes, and reviews warranties.
• Visual Remote Assistant connects mobile workers at a job site with an experienced team member by video to collaborate on a resolution.

3. Look after your field service workers’ safety and wellness

Many organisations implemented new safety policies in 2020. Moving forward, here are more ways you can enhance the safety and wellbeing of customers and workers:

Not every issue requires a worker to go onsite to resolve it. Consider using alternative field service options such as Visual Remote Assistant. With Visual Remote Assistant, your workers can invite customers to an interactive video session and walk them remotely through the troubleshooting process. If the issue is more complex, customers can schedule an onsite visit for further support.

When customers make in-person appointments, let them know how to best prepare for a site visit. For example, you can request that they complete a short safety checklist beforehand. 

Finally, don’t forget to do regular checks on employee wellbeing. You can do monthly employee wellness surveys to understand the team’s health and wellbeing challenges. Use the data to address areas where employees are struggling. For example, if teams are struggling to get their work done because they don’t have the right tools, make arrangements to get them the equipment they need.

4. Show mobile workers their career potential

Eighty-five percent of mobile workers in high-performing teams say that they have a clear path for career growth, compared to just 39% of underperformers. 

Work with your field service team early in their careers to set short and long term career goals. Learning new skills is a crucial part of career development. Use digital learning platforms like Trailhead to upskill and reskill your team. In addition to technical skills, encourage them to learn relationship management, customer service basics, and even sales skills.

Another way to show your field service team that they are valued is to include them in decision-making. Field service workers might have valuable insights into how the business works or what customers want, which their colleagues at the office might not have. Don’t forget to reward your field service team when they do a great job. Rewards can be custom tools to use on the job, or opportunities to represent the company at high-end conferences.

You’ll want your field service workers to feel included and appreciated. Give them opportunities to level up and take on decision-making roles. Then your workers will be more likely to stay and grow with your organisation.

Read more about how to strengthen your field service management strategy.