Back in the day when mobiles were a brick in the pocket
and car phones were a luxury, the field service workers and managers
were the innovators of the industry and it was because their
businesses depended on it. Mobility may be a buzzword used to describe
executives and mobile device toys, but service is really at the heart
of the business revolution. It is a real application, delivering real
business benefits and producing hard cash savings. At the UK's leading
Service Management event, Service Management Europe, this is clearly
recognized as mobility is making all the headlines and Service is
setting the standards for the mobile industry. The return on
investment will be proved time and time again by our speakers and
there will be a few surprise benefits as well. Some of the seminar
programme highlights include:
Moving from a manual to an automated scheduling process, VODAFONE
Leveraging workforce management in the managed services business,
ERICSSON
Empowering BT's field workforce, BT ONE-IT
The benefits come from technology or, more truthfully, from a
range of integrated technologies. And there are some exciting new
offerings to be seen. Mobile resource management (MRM) company @Road
will be using SME for the European launch of its flagship GeoManager.
Proven already in the US, GeoManager is designed to deliver useful, on
demand location intelligent information that can empower businesses
with a commanding view of operational performance and control over
field service delivery at a lower cost of ownership. One of the majors
also looking to discuss mobility is BT's Field Force Automation (FFA)
team. Its portfolio spans the deployment, service and support of
handhelds or laptops; and resource management and scheduling
applications; through to a fully integrated mobile data and tracking
solution. The BT team will manage a customer's requirements from
concept through to a successful delivery, and points to a track record
of business transformation and process re-engineering, that
"complement the deployment of world-class mobility solutions."
Making its debut at SME comes mobile data and remote access
specialist Brand Communications, which will be revealing to the
service industry its new Apollo Location Based Services software,
offering customized, localized and real-time access to mobile
employees/devices out in the field. Apollo Location Based Services
provides field force management, navigational tools, dynamic routing,
emergency notification and also covers lone worker regulations. SME
regular, mobile communications expert Cognito will be showcasing its
mobile workflow service. While two of its customers, Scottish Borders
Housing Association and Homeserve Servowarm, are taking part in the
seminar program, another, RG Francis, will be showcased on the stand
via a video case study.
Mark Turner, the editor of Service Management magazine, said,
"Mobile applications are a fast growth area in service, and as more
and more companies realize the invaluable part their field service
teams have to play in their business, the integration of the latest
mobile technology will be what separates the best from the rest."
About Service Management Europe 2006, Birmingham NEC, 18-19
October 2006
Service Management Europe (www.servicemanagement.co.uk) is the
leading field service management exhibition. SME 2006 is for managers
and strategists for businesses who may employ a handful of engineers
or major operators with 1,000+ remote workers. It focuses on the
underlying issues common to all and allows managers to source the very
latest technologies, solutions and ideas.
