A guide to implementing mobility in field services management, including how to choose the device, operating system, platform and applications.

1. • Cognizant 20-20 Insights
Mobility in Field Services Management:
Part Two (of a Two-Part Series)
Criteria for field services organizations to consider when selecting
a mobile platform: applications, device, OS, architecture and
implementation approach.
Executive Summary
In the first part of this white paper, we saw
how mobility can be a solution for some of the
key strategic and tactical field service delivery
challenges. Also, we learned from real-world
case studies how to revolutionize a field service
organization through the three plays of mobility. To achieve these business needs, however, a
field service organization must develop a mobile
ecosystem by addressing some of the basic
infrastructure and functional requirements. This
calls for selecting the right FSM solution with the
right implementation approach.
This paper looks at:
•
How to prioritize field service functionalities to
decide which must go mobile first.
•
Technology selection that will enable organizations to implement the next wave of mobile
applications and satisfy emerging technology
requirements.
•
A four-step strategy to “go mobile.”
cognizant 20-20 insights | october 2013
Selecting the Right FSM Solution:
Functionality Prioritization and
Technology Selection
Before embarking on the journey of implementing an FSM solution, it is important to do a preliminary analysis of the user base (by segment)
and ecosystem and the intended functional
and technical requirements. Industrial manufacturers that want to successfully implement a
mobility solution in field services management
should clearly understand user adoption of the
mobile solution by segregating the FSM functionalities based on the user role and the productivity
improvements/business benefits offered by the
functionalities.
Best-Case User Adoption and
Prioritization
The success of any solution depends on its adoption by end users. Automation of repetitive and
time-consuming tasks will lead to smoother adoption of the solution and leverage the resources’
(FSM’s) intellectual property, thereby improving
job satisfaction, morale and company loyalty.
Segregating the functionalities based on roles will
help to design mobile apps based on the specific
requirements of the role; this will directly impact

2. productivity. Thus, usability analysis will enable
faster adoption. The role-based mobile apps in
field services management can be positioned as
part of a larger “enterprise-level apps store” from
which users can install apps based on their roles
and functions. (For more insights on this subject,
see our white paper “Enterprise Mobile Apps:
How Role-Based Apps Will Drive Productivity and
Transformation in Manufacturing Companies.”)
Figure 1 illustrates key stakeholders in FSM
and some of the basic functions they need to
perform regularly. Enabling these functionalities
on mobile devices will enhance coordination and
control of day-to-day operations. This will support
increased business transparency by tracking key
performance indicators and achieving higher
levels of customer satisfaction.
At the same time, it is important to prioritize which
functionality to transition to mobile first. This can
be achieved by mapping functionalities against the
potential business benefits. Figure 2 (next page)
provides a matrix for developing an FSM solution
roadmap. For successfully deploying mobility
in FSM, an enterprise ideally should prioritize
those functionalities that are high on user adoption. This will help develop a culture of carrying
out various business transactions over mobile
devices. Next, those functionalities that are high
on strategic importance and competitive advantage must be targeted.
Technology Selection: Architecture,
OS and Hardware Conundrum
For successfully deploying a mobile application,
an organization needs to identify and define
business processes that would be suitable for
mobile apps. The feature and functional requirements would differ based on the target audience.
As part of the preliminary analysis and from
a technology perspective, a brief analysis can
be done to select the right mobile platform,
then decide on the suitable architecture and
finally choose the right mobile hardware device
(feature phone, smartphone, tablet or industrial
grade handheld), if not a bring your own device
(BYOD) approach. On one hand, native applications for conducting niche engineering test and
analysis by field engineers and analysts are being
widely developed for rugged mobile devices.
On the other hand, role-based apps are being
widely developed for smartphones and tablets.
Hence, a thorough analysis and a collective view
of the mobile platform, architecture and device
are essential for developing and deploying a
mobility-based FSM solution.
FSM: Role-Based Mobile Apps
Customer
Service Desk
Service Manager
Work Management
Service Engineer
Field Visit
Administrator
Internal Service Ticket
• Customer service
request generation.
• Service request
status tracking.
• Service ticket
landscape, FSE
location and
skill matrix.
• Service contract
and SLAs.
• Assignment work flow.
• Electronic expense
claims mgmt.
• Electronic time
sheet mgmt.
• Electronic invoice
authentication.
• Dashboard for
reporting.
• Inspection, diagnostic
and testing.
• On-site access to
contracts & service
history, knowledge
portal.
• Access to the
inventory levels &
spare parts booking.
• Quote generation.
• Enable instant
electronic
transmission of billing
information.
• Cross-sell/up-sell.
• Renew expiry of AMC.
• Digital signature.
• Notification services
(e-mails and SMS).
• Access control
system.
• Multilingual
support system.
• Customer contact
data management.
Figure 1
cognizant 20-20 insights
2

3. Selecting Hardware
popular with service engineers. Handheld
terminals are good for barcode and RFID
tracking but their screen size is too small to
view reports and graphs or do sizable data
entry. These limitations are overcome by
rugged portable tablets with large screen
displays and better processors. These rugged
devices also come with plug-and-play features
widely used for capturing large amounts of
data from industrial equipment.
Selection of a mobile device is driven by
environmental, security and functional application requirements. Additionally, parameters such
as screen display requirements, device form
factors, communications protocols and network
requirements play a key role in the selection
of the most suitable hardware for the intended
business purpose and audience. For example:
•
Smartphones: These are easily available and
easily portable with a wide range of choice in
terms of operating systems and rich device
features; they have, however, limitations in
terms of screen size to view reports and tables
and do sizable data entry.
•
Tablets: The above-mentioned limitations
of smartphones can be overcome by using
tablets but these are not rugged enough to
be used in harsh industrial environments.
Quick Take
Both smartphones and tablets are popular
among senior executives for viewing reports,
monitoring performance dashboards, etc.
•
Rugged devices: Mobile devices such as
handheld terminals and rugged tablets that
can withstand harsh environments are primarily suitable for industrial use and are quite
Selecting an Operating System
In order to reach the widest possible audience, a
field service organization has to consider some
of the key parameters mentioned in Figure 3
(next page) when choosing an operating system
and the mobile device. For example, Android and
Apple iOS devices provide an enhanced user
experience given their rich device features such
as sharper display, richer colors, higher resolution camera that can be used for viewing detailed
reports and scanning and graph rendering on the
fly. An OS like Blackberry is high on data security.
Security and data vaulting: The need to safely
store data on a mobile device and any external
storage (e.g., SD cards) is a key requirement
for any mobile worker with access to company
information. Therefore, one of the important
FSM: Prioritizing Mobile-Based Functionalities
Field Fault Report
Cross-Sell/Up-Sell
Real-Time Transmission of Billing Details
Renewal of Expiring AMC
Electronic Approval of Services
Done by Customer
Competitive Advantage
Quotation Generation
Spare Parts Inventory
Visibility/Warehouse
Management
Service Ticket
Status Tracking
BI Reports
Electronic Expense Report Filing
Electronic Time Sheet Filing
Ticket Allocation &
Work Flow Management
Google Map
Integration &
FSE Positioning
Alerts & Notification Services
Barcode/RFID Reader
User Adoption
Figure 2
cognizant 20-20 insights
3

4. criteria in selecting a device/OS is the ability to
granularly select data that needs encryption
and that does not. Also, the robustness of the
OS and its vulnerability to being hacked or being
tampered with is a key security consideration.
impacted by the loss of productivity related to a
malfunctioning or out-of-service device. So, the
choice of device and OS has to be directly related
to the usage model and targeted audience.
Defining Architecture
User experience: An unexpected OS crash,
freezing or reboots in a mobile device will cause
work to be lost and lower overall workforce
productivity. An organization should make sure
that any mobile OS for its mobile workforce
should be evaluated for its reliability and ability
to withstand the rigors of field services.
Range and bandwidth: With the availability of
high bandwidth connectivity (HSDPA and HSUPA
3G, 4G/LTE), a new range of advanced mobile
applications are coming to the market. However,
in a field services user environment the kind of
connectivity that exists (3G, 4G, WiFi, etc.) will
be key in selecting a device and an OS. Also, full
offline capabilities that allow the user to work
without connectivity and synchronize all the
data once they are back online should be a key
consideration.
Manageability: The device OS should be able
to remotely manage various aspects such as
device monitoring, locking/disablement, display
of device characteristics, uploading, software
updates, etc. This feature is very important for
various OS upgrades and for managing a device
in the event it is stolen or lost or is being used for
an unauthorized data transfer.
Market share: An organization should not invest
in a device or an OS with a declining market
share. The risk associated with such an investment will span support and OS upgrades. The
total cost of ownership (TCO) has little to do with
the hardware and software cost itself. It is mostly
Mobile OS Selection
Available
Operating Systems
•
•
•
•
•
Android
iOS (Apple)
Blackberry
Windows Mobile
Symbian
Evaluation Parameters
• Security and
Data Vaulting
• User Experience
• Range and Bandwidth
• Manageability
• Market Share
• Rich Device Features
Systems for a field services organization can be
enabled on mobile devices to ensure the right
fit for the business purpose and overall business solution for the target user segments. However, there are different solution architectures
available for mobile enablement of senior executives and field service engineers. More insights on
this topic are beyond the scope of this paper, but
a key consideration is to define an architecture
framework that is scalable enough to develop
a variety of applications to meet the business
requirements. Also, the architecture framework should be able to address key technology
challenges such as:
•
Easing the complexity involved in accessing
and processing of heterogeneous enterprise
data sources for mobile enablement.
•
Reducing the complexity involved in
synchronization of enterprise data sources
with mobile devices.
•
Facilitating work in a connectionless environment: online and offline mode capability and
automatic data synchronization on establishment of network connectivity.
•
Mobile applications and devices deployment,
security and manageability.
•
Enabling system integrators (SIs) and
independent software vendors (ISVs) to
leverage various technology stacks of mobile
platforms to meet the mobility needs of a field
service organization.
Implementation Approach
Organizations often assess their current IT
systems and then develop a strategy for mobile
enablement. Any such strategy or roadmap needs
to be customized to the organization’s requirements to ensure success. The mobility initiative
in field services needs to be driven at an enterprise level to take advantage of economies of
scale, ensure faster business buy-in and lower
costs. Figure 4 (next page) provides a suggested
Figure 3
cognizant 20-20 insights
4

5. Strategizing Implementation: Mobility
Create
Analyze
Ideate
Discover
• Idea collection.
• Business drivers
for mobility.
• Classification based
on mobile user
segment.
• Alignment with
growth iniitatives.
• Classification based
on MEAP/native/
Web tech parameters.
• Target processes.
• Target user
segments.
• Conceptualize future
state of business
and process impact.
• Feedback from
business users.
• Current field service
organization KPIs.
• Future state
field service
organization KPIs.
• GAP analysis.
• Business
applicability.
• FSM package
evaluation.
• Operational impact,
fitment, ROI.
• Technical feasibility.
• Mobility deployment
strategy.
• Opportunity
identification.
• Prioritze and
rationalize
opportunities.
• Architecture
definition.
• Long-term
implementation
roadmap.
• Identify short-term
possibilities or
“quick wins.”
• Identify avenues
for proof of concept.
• Organizational
change management.
• Governance through
KPI measurement and
monitoring.
Figure 4
rational approach to implementing a mobility solution for efficient management of a field
services organization.
reach by leveraging third-party services. In doing
so, mobility can be a key enabler for maintaining
consistent customer experience and preventing
warranty leakages.
Conclusion
Mobility is transforming entire industries,
including today’s field service organizations, into
more productive and profitable units that are
better positioned to generate revenue, reduce
costs and raise productivity while meeting customer demands, influencing brand perception
and delivering superior service. Field engineers
can not only have access to information anytime,
anywhere, but can collaborate more closely with
cross-functional and cross-border teams. This
will enable the development of a centralized
knowledge-based platform fueling innovation in
the design and service ticket resolution process.
Mobility strategy is aligned to an organization’s
pursuit of leanness while extending its customer
cognizant 20-20 insights
In today’s world, many field services organizations have a mobile-based solution in various
stages of implementation. Merely investing in
technology does not ensure improvements in key
KPIs (as discussed in part one of this white paper).
It is the designing and implementing of a truly
integrated mobility solution that delivers a true
competitive edge.
Although there is no one-size-fits-all mobile
solution for field services, there is a definite
sense of urgency to configure, build or enhance
field service organizations to keep up with the
changing marketplace and take advantage of this
enormous opportunity.
5

6. About the Authors
Amit Kumar Singh is a Senior Consultant with Cognizant Business Consulting and is a core team member
of the Manufacturing and Logistics Practice. He has successfully executed a project advising the client
on developing a “service information platform” facilitating collaboration, process harmonization and
new services introduction for its field service organization. Amit has an M.B.A. from SP Jain Institute
of Management and Research, Mumbai and a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering. He can be
reached at Amitkumar.Singh@cognizant.com.
William (Bill) Cogdill is a Senior Director and Consulting Partner within Cognizant’s Manufacturing and
Logistics Practice. He has over 40 years of marketing, operations and supply chain experience and is
part of the consulting leadership team responsible for setting the strategic direction for solutions that
address client challenges. Bill can be reached at William.Cogdill@cognizant.com | Linkedin: http://www.
linkedin.com/in/billcogdill | Facebook: William Cogdill (Bill Cogdill) | Google+: Bill Cogdill.
Karthik Natarajan is a Senior Manager of Consulting within Cognizant’s Manufacturing and Logistics
Practice. Karthik is part of the consulting leadership team and has over 12 years of technology and business consulting experience. He has led numerous business transformation and strategic projects across
the full spectrum of business processes. Karthik’s experience includes supply chain consulting, process
reengineering and IT strategy. He can be reached at Karthik.Natarajan@cognizant.com.
About Cognizant
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With over 50 delivery centers worldwide and approximately 164,300 employees as of June 30, 2013, Cognizant is a
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top performing and fastest growing companies in the world.
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