The essential question of mobilisation the research has looked to address is what connection between a management system and the field engineers is being made and how it was being exploited? The first question asked: ‘When considering a service management solution did you consider using a mobile solution with it?’  The two sets of results show little statistical variance with 78% in 2006 as compared to 75% currently indicating there was still a strong desire to use mobile solutions. 

There seems to be a significant shift towards recognising the value potential rather than just adapting the newest idea.  22% were not taking a mobile solution into consideration, for the same reasons as in 2006 that (in their opinion) mobile solutions were not properly developed or integrated into the type of solutions they were considering or they did not want to further complicate an implementation process and felt a mobile solution would be another cost on an already costly project.

What was interesting is that in answer to: ‘How has your opinion of the value of a mobile solution changed over the last 12 months?’  There was quite a significant change in opinion as to the value of the mobile solution.  

The results seem to imply that as software became familiar there had been a realisation that although mobilisation software could provide significant value, it wasn’t quite as good as the marketing had implied. This should not detract from the significant praise for the results being achieved, with appreciable impact on customer satisfaction, reduced overheads and reduced meantime to fix, as well as supporting responses to escalations through faster and more accurate communications.  

The increase to 49% of the respondents who stated that the value provided by mobile solutions had not increased seems to support those expressing scepticism of mobilisation and that it might be just another fad dreamt up by software providers to sell more of their product.  Those who felt the value had declined were smaller than last time so the verdict must be that mobilisation is here to stay.

The third question asked: ‘Over the next 12 months do you see mobile voice communications as becoming more/less/of same importance.’ Voice communications were regarded as less important than last year, and showing a similar swing to the response about full mobile solutions, reinforcing the thinking that most service operations have exhausted any benefits to be gained from connecting with the engineer during the day by phone; voice information was not regarded as effective as data information.  Just over 30% now consider voice communications are becoming more important in supporting the service environment, while over 50% consider the value of voice communications as having reached its maximum potential. 

This could reflect the stage at which their operation may be in the efficient use of the technology.  Most significantly, the number who thought it was decreasing in value and of less importance than other criteria had risen by 4% from 14% to 18% (quite an increase in relative percentage terms).  The reasons for this difference between mobile voice and full mobility were repeats of last year, and focused on the engineer’s ability to be on-line with data information and time-compressed communication at all times;  able to use the equipment as though always connected; passing on information effectively through the PDA - particularly with data presented in template form - with drop-downs to speed up the communication process and also control specific input. 

One respondent pointed out the benefits of the improved speed of call-to-cash and the ability to invoice a customer much more quickly and accurately and with less argument over invoices. Mobile phones and their costs have reduced, and so has the cost of PDAs.  PDAs and mobile phones are regarded as specifically designed to enable a quick, accurate and efficient two-way flow of information between engineer and office, and in addition, most now provide a total data/voice/tracking module providing an effective communication device for all pertinent information.

Having recognised the interest and movement towards full mobile solutions, it was necessary to examine why an operation would opt to introduce a mobile solution.  The answers again were varied, but the top three reasons were: 

* Increase in Service levels and Service level Agreement (SLA) achievement – last year 65%, this year 63%
* Increased visibility and control of the operation – last year 52%, this year 57%
* Increase in productivity – last year 48%, this year 52%

So little substantial change apart from a slight increased focus on visibility and productivity which has come as a bonus for those implementing systems  expecting a less positive reaction to the implementation of mobile solutions than was actually the case.

The fifth question again produced a mixed bag of responses, however there was a significant financial gain available by reducing communication costs - potentially a 50% improvement.

Trends established last year were continued; for example, reduced travel costs and appreciable customer service improvements were having a continued positive impact. Engineers could just download information and very little additional time need be spent on explanation, making communications much more efficient.  Travel costs had reduced from 32% to 29%, and better use of engineer time/improved productivity  from last year at 75% to this year at 79% and better customer service from 63% last year to 66% this year

Customer service again scored very highly in importance as did productivity improvement, underlining that for most service operations, the driving factors are to keep costs down and service up.  The overwhelming reason for introducing a full mobile solution in 2006 was to avoid failing service level agreements (SLAs) by having more visibility of potential failures and to provide the ability to act upon information quickly and efficiently, increasing the effective productivity of the operation. 

These considerations have not changed significantly over the year, but additionally raised was the ability to improve billing cycles as mobile solutions reduced the onus on the engineer to provide evidence and get work signed off while in attendance with a customer.  

The issue of customer and engineer satisfaction again raised much comment; the negative press originally associated with mobile solutions last year had proven to be unfounded and most service operation customers regarded them as a clear sign of investment by the supplier and evidence of their ambition to deliver better customer service.  Once engineers became used to the system and processes – as had happened previously with mobile phones and satellite navigation systems – engineers wondered how they managed before, and therefore became positive advocates. 

Integrated solutions placed slightly more emphasis on integrating a scheduling solution which has probably evolved through companies appreciating the value of effectively deployed engineers with good communication and rapid response.  The continued very high score again, for ‘integrated into a service management system’ does highlight the need, identified by most respondents, of the value of having joined-up systems. 

In summary, the research has reinforced that mobile solutions are considered a very important facet for those planning the service environment in the future.  Although some companies are treating the full mobile solution as a software tool which limits their ability to create a totally new process within their service delivery, more and more were seeing the value of treating it as a total solution, heralding new ways of working and opportunities to improve performance quite dramatically in the key areas of operational productivity and customer service levels. 

These new ways of working will continue to require a different mind-set by engineers and the whole business alike, as they work together in a more collaborative fashion, secure in the knowledge that they can now manage themselves more efficiently and effectively, to the benefit of all - especially the customer.  The continual focus on improved customer service as a result of mobilisation serves to highlight why customers value total commitment to service from their supplier through the service engineer, creating a rewarding and loyal relationship.