Professor Tim Baines of Aston University, looks back across his personal 30 year journey with servitization whilst looking forward to an industry defining event in the servitization space taking place in Birmingham later this year…

My first article on servitization was published in the late 1990s. Of course, we didn’t call it servitization then, rather the article talked about something called Total Service Manufacture. I didn’t think of it as anything special, I was simply trying to understand different competitive strategies that manufacturers might adopt - at that time Western manufacturers were being bombarded with outsourcing and offshoring ‘no brainer’ advice. ‘Do services’ was my reaction!

Focus on Services

Reflecting on the past 20 years, it is interesting to see how this focus on services has grown. Take the term servitization; first it was a case of ‘what is this word’, then ‘how do you spell it’, moving to ‘we do it already’, and now ‘this could help, tell me more’. Each stage in our evolution of understanding servitization brought with it its own challenges, and bizarrely we are now perhaps in the most dangerous phase. 

Manufacturing businesses are recognising that servitization is a valuable phenomenon, and those that sell technologies and services to this industry are asking how they can get on the bandwagon. We now see re-branding and re-styling everywhere. Companies that used to sell technology and systems that enable efficient spare part delivery to field service engineers, are now promoting themselves as ‘partners on your servitization journey’. Yet in practice, nothing has changed in what they offer. It happened with Lean and it’s happening now with servitization. Pollution is all around us! 

So where do you look now for real thought leadership? Well, I am biased, but I’ve dedicated my working life to what I believe in, and that is the university system. You see, a fundamental role of a Business School is to educate business.

This education is based on research, evidence and logic, and a translation of the broad body of science into digestible and reliable chunks of knowledge. This is what we do at Aston for servitization and advanced services, and we have a duty to be custodians of these concepts. What we need to do right now, is to overcome the pollution and ensure that industry is set on a reliable and informed understanding of servitization.

 

"The World Servitization Convention has been designed to raise awareness and the adoption of servitization and advanced services..."

 

This is why we have created the World Servitization Convention. This convention will be different to every field service conference or trade show you might consider attending this year. Firstly, it is coupled with the Spring Servitization Conference – the established research conference for the international academic community. Secondly, it has a series of industry keynotes and panel sessions from true industry leaders in this space – Thales, Rolls-Royce, Baxi, Goodyear, Alstom, Legrand, Domino, Mazak, etc. And we have an equally impressive range of small businesses – KoolMill, AE Aerospace, UV Light, CHH ConeX. 

Thirdly, the is the exhibition where over 20 manufacturers are sharing (not selling!) what they do in this space: Heat-as-a-service, Health-as-a-service, Mobility-as-a-service. Not just talking about servitization, but demonstrating what this looks like in practice. Finally, the convention is covering a comprehensive range of topics: from service strategy to finance, and digital technologies to business model innovation. A true one-stop-shop.

The World Servitization Convention has been designed to raise awareness and the adoption of servitization and advanced services. It is targeted at the owners, executives and senior management of manufacturing, engineering and technology businesses. This is a not-for-profit event hosted by the Advanced Services Group (ASG) at the Aston Business School.

This event is funded in part by a carefully selected group of four partners; IFS, DLL, Blueprint AMS and Servitly. Just like our manufacturing exhibitors, these sponsors are genuine thought leaders in this space and have worked closely with the Aston team to ensure the event fulfils its objective.

So, all you need to know about servitization will be in one place in September.

The World Servitization Convention brings together the global community of leading servitization researchers and business executives to advance their servitization strategies, experience demonstrations of the technologies enabling advanced services and transform the future of manufacturing. This three day convention in Birmingham, UK really is intended to move you forwards on your servitization journey; delivering a true outcome rather than just selling you things!

 

To find out more about the event  and to register, please visit www.advancedservicesgroup.co.uk/wsc2020

UK based non-profit knowledge sharing group the Service Community which Field Service News is proud to partner with has recently announced one of the most diverse events they have organised in the last couple of years.

The next Service Community event will be hosted by the Cambridge Service Alliance at the Institute for Manufacturing (a division of the University of Cambridge’s Department of Engineering) on the 19th April 2018.

Being at one of the world’s leading service research organisations means that we hope to mix the very best in thought leadership, with practical hands-on experiences of transforming service businesses. Each discussion will be approximately 40 mins enabling you to discuss real issues with real people.  We are also very lucky to have a The Digital Manufacturing Tour, where you will have a chance to hear about the research initiatives that the IfM are undertaking on digitalisation in manufacturing.

In addition to a speaker from the CSA, we have leaders from MARS, Oracle and Fujifilm joining us to discuss and share experiences on how they have tackled some of their key service business challenges.

How to register

You can reserve your place by sending an email to info@service-community.uk. We will then contact you to confirm registration and will send out the joining instructions nearer to the event.

Please feel free to forward this information to colleagues who you think would be interested. We look forward to seeing you in April

Agenda for the 19th April 2018

12.00 - 13.00: Meet at the Institute of Manufacturing at Cambridge University
13.00: Nick Frank: Welcome

The Impact of Big Data and Machine Learning technologies on developing Customer Experience in manufacturing companies Dr Mohamed Zaki: Deputy Director of the Cambridge Service Alliance will introduce the work the Cambridge Service Alliance does and share recent research he has undertaken into Customer Experience development

Leading Service to a Trusted Advisor Culture:  Ashley Weller: UK Service Director at Mars drinks will share his own journey in driving sustainable cultural change

The Digital Manufacturing Tour

Coffee & Networking break

Real World Challenges of implementing Augmented Reality in Field Service Adil Kabel: Technical Support Manager, at Fuji Film responsible for EMEA 2nd line support for Wide Format Digital Printers will share his experiences of running two pilot projects in the Field Service organisation looking at 'glasses' and handheld augmented reality apps

Benefits and Challenges of Self Service models - Stephen Darkes Snr Process Analyst: Global Systems Remote Support at Oracle: Steve will give us some insights into the different Self-Service support models that Oracle have introduced to enhance customer satisfaction and make their business more cost-effective.  He will cover a range of models, from the use of community forums for Diagnosis and Resolution to the development of Customer Replaceable Units for hardware.  He will share his experiences of the range of benefits that self-service brings, as well as the challenges of implementation.  Many businesses can make their customer support more effective through self-service business models.

17.00 Networking Drinks

Reserve your place by sending an email to info@service-community.uk. We will then contact you to confirm registration and will send out the joining instructions nearer to the event.

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Ahead of his presentation at the forthcoming Field Service Medical conference being held in La Jolla, California next month, Matthew Boretti from Teleflex Americas shares his thoughts on technology innovation, healthcare consolidation, and how these are changing customer expectations in the medical device industry...

Which major field service and customer centricity trends have you observed in the medical device industry this year?

Our customers are continually being asked to do more with less. This is particularly difficult as they are already operating on razor thin margins, so they really need help beyond product solutions to help them find new ways to reduce costs while improving care to their patients in the same process. No easy feat. In short, they expect more from their suppliers. And, they are hiring bright people to drive these results, so suppliers must come to the table well prepared to have these discussions. They want to understand the value-added performance programs and education we can offer their staff.

Have your customers’ expectations drastically evolved in view of the latest technological innovations? How are you keeping up with all the changes?

They really have. And, I believe the reason their expectations have increased is they are consumers like everyone else, so they are getting used to one-click shopping through services like Amazon which also offers hassle free returns and same day delivery! It’s crazy how simple things are becoming and how the world of instant gratification and self service has become so prevalent. For this reason, Teleflex is investing heavily into customer experience design, which certainly involves evolving our systems and technology capabilities. Measuring results is critical. Fortunately, the technology makes it easier to track information.

Has healthcare consolidation impacted your operations in any way?

It has, both on the customer side and in respect to competition. As hospitals and hospital systems consolidate, we often see their desire to standardise purchasing decisions, which provides both opportunities and risks. We also see consolidation on the supplier side, which can change how we view our competition. We may have suppliers that were partners yesterday, who we now see as competitors.

What should field service leaders do to meet rising expectations of connected and empowered customers?

They need to find ways to respond more quickly to their customer needs and offer opportunities for low-impact self-service.

Which direction do you see your company heading in the next five years?

We need to design systems and processes that will deliver a radically simple interface with customers. We need to transform our culture into one where all employees view every interaction as an opportunity to exceed customers expectations. Ultimately, we need to create an environment where we are obsessed with making every interaction with our customers a positive experience.

We look forward to your presentation at the upcoming Field Service Medical 2018 forum. What do you think about this year’s program – which topics and sessions will be most helpful in helping you achieve the goal of being 100% customer centric in your field service operations?

I’m really excited about the program and the sessions being offered. It very much aligns to the trends and areas we see as important in our business. It will be tough choosing the sessions to attend given the many options.

Customer centricity is set to be a hot topic at Field Service Medical 2018, taking place in La Jolla, California, this coming February. Download the Field Service Medical 2018 Agenda to learn more.

Interested in attending? Field Service News subscribers can get an exclusive 20% discount to this event. If you are a field service practitioner then you can apply for a complimentary subscription by clicking here and we'll send you your discount code across on email straight away

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moreMomentum organises several Momentum Impulse Sessions in Europe and the USA. Executive peers from various manufacturing industries exchange practices, challenges and ideas how to accelerate the business innovation and change and drive success into the digital service economy...

Rapid changes

It has never been a better time to be in the manufacturing industry than nowadays. New technology like big data, algorithms, augmented reality, artificial intelligence and many more are rapidly being adopted by people and organisations.

How to thrive in such a disruptive world

No doubt there exciting opportunities for manufacturing companies. With the new intelligence from the massive amount of data from connected devices and equipment they can create new value for their customers. They can enhance their value propositions and adopt new business models.

However, it’s not only the manufacturing companies that pursue these opportunities. New business are entering the into the market. These new entrants do not have metal, electronics and mechanics in their DNA, but data, algorithms and turning this into value. Besides the well-known companies like Amazon and Google there are many smaller companies moving rapidly. This is changing the competitive arena big time.

When we look at how manufacturers innovate their business and drive change, we see that many encounter 3 key problems which cause them to fall behind competition.

• Change is slow, whether it is small change or more radical changes, there seems to be a lot of energy getting lost in resistance and fighting resistance
• They are stuck in “business-as-usual”. Most innovations are about incremental improvement of current products, services and capabilities.
• Leaders and employees who see the opportunities, threats and lack of progress in their company experience they have no influence to accelerate change.

4 winning habits for momentum

It is mission-critical for manufacturing companies to accelerate business innovation and change for future success. Our research in 89 companies in 2016 identified 4 winning habits for momentum.

• Direction: Everyone shares a clear and succinct picture of changes in the industry, where the company is heading and what needs to change over the coming years. They all understand how they can contribute to the change, and ultimately, fit in.
• Dialogue: Across all teams and levels there is a constructive and forward-looking dialogue on performance, progress, priorities and aligned actions. Everyone feels secure and confident to adapt and try new approaches.
• Decision-making: Everyone has the power to make decisions within their role, to adjust, perform and improve. There are adequate guiding principles to ensure coherence and alignment of all decisions.
• Discovery: Everyone is aware of (potential) trends, opportunities and threats and the best practices available. They spend time in exploring, testing and learning. There is more focus on new things which go beyond the current core business, which is imperative for future success.

Interactive Momentum Impulse Session

moreMomentum organises a series of Momentum Impulse Sessions throughout Europe and USA. During these full day sessions, executives will discuss the 4 winning habits for momentum, their practices and challenges with business innovation and change and will identify opportunities how to accelerate change in their business.

Key-topics:

• Winning habits and strategies which make a (continuous) business innovation easy and quick
• Key obstacles and typical pitfalls for rapid business innovation and change
• Strategic priorities to accelerate business innovation and change and maximise chances for success

You will get valuable input for further developing the right innovation and change strategy and boosting your service innovation!

Upcoming sessions are:

• January 24 in Birmingham (UK) - £375
• March 21 in Munich (Germany) - €425
• May 14 in New York (USA) - $595
• May 23 in Eindhoven (The Netherlands - €425

 

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Field Service News readers receive 30% discount. Enter FSN as promotional code to secure your discount.

Book your seat for your preferred session now.

 

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About moreMomentum:

moreMomentum is an international consulting, training and coaching company which works with manufacturing companies to get more momentum into their ongoing business innovation and change. They exists to accelerate the transition of industrial manufacturing into the digital service economy.

 

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Tomorrow's Smart Factory Expo is undoubtedly the UK’s biggest setting for the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) and will play host to more than 4,000 decision-makers and senior executives, with every single sector of the industry represented.

Partnered with the government, major industry bodies, universities and over 100 exhibitors, the event will showcase the UK manufacturing industry’s world-class professionals and solution providers and gives exhibitors and attendees a platform to see the latest technological advances and discuss the ground-breaking innovations that are the driving force behind 4IR.

Over 100 of the top innovative industry leaders have signed up to exhibit, including Aptean, Cisco, Dell EMC, IBM, Proto Labs, Rockwell Automation, XMPRO and many more.

Solutions Theatres Spotlight

The Solution Theatres will provide conference-style learning where attendees will see over 90 free presentations from companies including: Rolls Royce, BAE Systems, BMW Group, Jaguar Land Rover and Tata Steel.

The Solution Theatres will be broken into four different technology zones:

• Digital Transformation
• Smart Factory
• Industrial Internet
• Industrial Automaton

The Leaders Conference

Running alongside Smart Factory Expo is the Leaders Conference, as with Smart Factory Expo, there are plenty of reasons to attend:

• Following the success of 2016, this is now the event to attend, established as the most comprehensive source of information within the sector.
• An ideal platform for attendees and teams to collaborate and focus their learning experience from experts in the precise area of their industry.
• Features over 120 of the manufacturing industry’s highest level leaders and gives attendees the chance to learn and network with top tier contributors and listen to manufacturing specialists.

Here are just a few of the top speakers presenting at Leaders Conference:

Simon Bradley, VP Global Head of Innovation & Cyber Security – Airbus

An internationally recognised technology leader and driver of innovation and transformation within global organisations, Simon brings a powerful blend of skills and proven capabilities to enable companies to drive forward with vision and deliver on the requirements of key stakeholders.

As Vice President, Head of Innovation Works Systems & Products and latterly as Head of Global Innovation Network within The Airbus Group, Simon has helped build a strong cohesive brand for Research & Technology strategy and development. The Airbus Group was named in the Thomson Reuters 100 Top Innovative Companies list and ranked #30 in the world for Research & Development in 2013 with a spend of 3.1Bn€. His portfolio within The Airbus Group for research covers a wide range of subjects and is global in its scope.

From System & Software Engineering, Virtual Reality & Simulation, Applied Mathematics, Information Technology & HPC, Big Data & Visual Analytics, Maintenance & Services through to Cyber & Homeland Security. In 2015 Simon took on his newest role as Vice President, Product & Cyber Security Program Directorate – helping to protect Airbus Group products, facilities, ICT equipment and people.

Nicholas Leeder, Director PLM and Standards – SKF Group

With the growth of digital opportunities and the new industrial revolution of Industry 4.0, many companies are struggling to understand what this means for them. Nick thrives at this new intersection of business & digital technology, exploiting his practical and professional experiences to drive business results. He is also an internationally recognised speaker around the challenges of these digital transformations.

He is a business and technology leader with a ‘Big 4’ pedigree & over 20 years of global management experience, work for and with some of the most innovative businesses in the world.

Nick operates at ‘C-Level’, accountable for complex operational transformations with enabling technology digital strategies, shaping & leading the delivery of these changes. He brings wide-ranging business & technology experience, as well as transferable industry insights, particularly from industrial, consumer products & high technology sectors. He is the Director of Product Lifecycle Management for SKF Group, having driven the transformations ranging from "Digital Twin", Industry 4.0 and "Smart" Data.

Gunther Boehner, Director of Assembly – BMW Group

His first role with the group was based in BMW Plant Munich as a Process Planner for the Assembly. Since joining the BMW Group Gunther gained experience in many roles including Group Leader Assembly line, involvement in the Quality Project “Zero Rework”, Supplier Quality Management, Leader Project VPS (Value Added Production Systems) BMW Assembly, General Manager for Assembly and General Manager for logistics both based in BMW Plant Regensburg.

In 2014 he moved to Oxford to take up the post of General Manager for Assembly where the MINI is produced. In January 2016 he became the Director of Assembly leading about 2500 associates to build approximately 1000 cars per day.

Gunther’s areas of speciality are extensive knowledge of Value Added Production Systems, and the Kaizen (Lean) Principles.

Before joining the BMW Group he was an Officer in the German Army for 10 years.

 

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Advanced registration is closed but tickets are still available on the door for £45 Find out more @ www.tmsmartfactoryexpo.com

 

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With the newly rebranded Field Service Management Expo (formerly Service Management Expo) now just two weeks away Chris Edwards, Director Field Service Management, UBM gives us a look at what to expect from the newly rebranded Field Service Management Expo in it's fourth consecutive year in London's ExCel

 

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If you haven't registered yet it's free do so on the following link www.servicemanagementexpo.co.uk/FSN

 

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Off the back of an electrifying 2016 show, we wanted to ensure we deliver even more for 2017 and went straight to the industry to identify how. This has resulted in a name change to reflect the profile of our visitors and make sure that Field Service Management Expo mirrors this important market.

Focusing on a new theme, this year’s event; “starts and ends with the customer”, addressing our industries current pain point that delivering a seamless, exemplary customer experience is all important. Therefore we have concentrated a significant amount of our seminar programme along this topic. The Field Service Theatre will include over 12 hours of seminar and workshop content over the 3 days, exploring the customer journey, recruitment, IoT, the customer experience and RoSPA dedicated workshops on fleet management and driver safety.

 

Headlining a programme boasting more than 25 sessions is this year’s Inspirational Speakers, who will be focusing on the theme of strength, resilience and defying the odds. Featuring Dame Kelly Holmes, Professor Brian Cox OBE and Simon Weston CBE, each will deliver an inspiring session on the obstacles they’ve faced, solutions they’ve found and how the results have allowed them to march on.

Also new to 2017, visitors will have the opportunity to meet like-minded professionals in dedicated networking sessions, which finish each day in the Field Service Theatre.  Topics for discussion will include, ‘powering intelligent service delivery’ and ‘Removing business silos and engaging with your customer’

It promises to be another amazing year for Field Service Management Expo and the team and I can’t wait to welcome the entire service management industry, as you and your peers network, learn and identify innovative cost saving solutions in an incredibly fun and energetic week. We’d also love to hear your feedback and hope you’ll join the conversation on social media, so tweet us @FSMExpo using #FSME17

What to expect:

1:2:1 Meetings Programme

The complimentary matchmaking tool enables visitors and exhibitors to search and connect with each other before the show, allowing you to manage your event schedule.

• Arrange meetings at exhibitors’ stands or in one of the dedicated Meeting Lounges
• Search thousands of contacts by job title, products and services, buyer/seller activities and market sector
• Make the most of your time at the show, pre-arrange meetings and open the door to new business opportunities

Find out more at: www.servicemanagementexpo.co.uk/visit/meet-suppliers

 

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Dedicated Networking Bookending the day

Its visitor’s opportunity to expand their service management industry community and discuss trends and pain points with like-minded peers. Topics will range from ‘Powering intelligent service delivery’ and ‘An agile field service operation’ to Digital marketing transformation and ‘Removing business silos and engaging with your customers’

Session will take place in the Field Service Theatre at the beginning and end of each day.

 

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Field Service Theatre  Sponsored by IFS/ FSM

Through a mix of networking sessions, seminars and debate, this theatre will explore the service management customer journey. Sessions will focus on: ‘the customer experience in the service management industry’, ‘IoT’, ‘proactive maintenance’ and ‘recruitment’. Afternoons will be dedicated to fleet safety with RoSPA-led sessions each day.

Sessions will include:

• Delighting the customer with service excellence
• Driver Behaviour – why it’s important within your business
• Can a focus on customer experience really make a difference?
• Embracing millennials in the workplace
• Customer experience excellence in the service industry. Ideas and tips to make a critical difference

Get first-hand experience with over 100+ products and solutions

Discuss your project needs and learn about tried and tested implementation when you meet the product technicians. Plus, discover a range of suppliers across the entire service management chain including IFS, Protean Software, iTouch Vision, MPL Systems, BigChange Apps, Mix Telematics and more.

Inspirational Speakers

Our biggest inspirational line-up ever, featuring Double Olympic gold medallist, Dame Kelly Holmes; Rock star physicist Professor Brian Cox OBE; and Falklands War veteran, Simon Weston CBE are coming to inspire and motivate you in the Keynote Theatre between 20-22 June.

• Build your motivation by emulating the work-ethic that led to double Olympic medals from Dame Kelly Holmes and discover more on her work on numerous mental health boards
• Explore the universe with Professor Brian Cox OBE, and expand your mindset beyond the day-to-day aspects of your role
• Be inspired by a story of triumph and courage, from Falklands war hero, Simon Weston CBE, and turn adversity into opportunity

When are where?

• Dame Kelly Holmes: When & Where: 20 June, 11.30 – 12.30, Keynote Theatre
• Professor Brian Cox OBE: When & Where: 21 June, 11.30 – 12.30, Keynote Theatre
• Simon Weston CBE: When & Where: 22 June, 11.30 – 12.30, Keynote Theatre

 

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Register your place at Field Service Management Expo here; www.servicemanagementexpo.co.uk/FSN

 

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Service Management Expo has taken the decision to incorporate Field into their brand, and will now be known as Field Service Management Expo.

The new identity will come into effect immediately in the lead up to their expo on 20-22 June, ExCeL London. The new identity is to reflect research into the industry to make sure that Field Service Management Expo reflects this growing market.

This year’s event will focus on a new theme; it starts and ends with the customer.

"We’ve found from speaking to visitors and exhibitors alike that customer experience is all important in this industry and therefore have concentrated a significant amount of our seminar programme on this topic."says Chris Edwards, Brand Director for Field Service Management Expo

 

“The decision to embrace the field into our brand name is to show that we understand what the sector is evolving into and that we need to evolve with it. We’re showing our audience that they can have confidence in us in delivering the right exhibitors for them”

Field Service Management Expo will include over 12 hours of seminar content over their 3 day expo, exploring the customer journey and RoSPA dedicated workshops and exhibitors from every facet of the industry. Drawing in directors, CEO and senior decision makers, Field Service Management Expo continues to offer its visitor vital networking opportunities to discuss products and solutions.

“FSME will excel by primarily being an expo rather than a conference, so it provides a perfect platform for field service execs to get a look at a number of different solutions and vendors, check out software demonstrations and get their hands on some rugged hardware in one place” said Kris Oldland, Editor-in-chief for Field Service News.

Secure your place at Europe's leading event dedicated to both service management and the field services industry: http://www.servicemanagementexpo.co.uk/rebrand

 

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With a handy announcement from Gartner arriving just in time for their annual European conference Maximize Europe, ServiceMax were in buoyant mood across the two days in Amsterdam. Kris Oldland, Editor-in-Chief, Field Service News was on hand to get reaction from ServiceMax’s Dave Yarnold and Rick Gustafson...

With in excess of three hundred attendees sitting in the main hall of the Krasnopolsky Hotel in Amsterdam waiting for Dave Yarnold’s keynote speech, the mood in the ServiceMax camp was already on a high. However, what tipped the mood into one of true celebration was the announcement just a few days earlier that the San Francisco based company had just come out at the top of the pile of the much awaited Gartner Magic Quadrant Field Service report.

With a whole bunch of product innovations and customer success stories already lined up for the next two days - this recognition from Gartner really was perfectly timed - adding both a sense of gravitas and triumph to the sessions across the two days of Maximize Europe.

“We didn’t know when it [the Gartner announcement] was going to hit the street so everything you saw, the whole presentation around our model, our platform, our services, and our passion was already in place. But then we were able to insert the validation of all of that as well,” comments Dave Yarnold, CEO of ServiceMax as I caught up with him a little later in the day.

“It was a beautiful thing to be able to come here present our mission and our progress and then show that validation from a really credible third party - it was really fantastic. The timing was terrific,” he adds.

 

Indeed, one of the biggest factors in why the Gartner Magic Quadrants are so widely acknowledged as key industry benchmarks is that it they are not just based on a set defined group of criterion from one organisation, but also upon feedback from each company’s own clients. This is something that makes the recognition even more important for Yarnold.

“It’s the biggest thing,” he says. “Everybody meets with these analysts and everybody presents their products but where there the rubber meets the road is the references.”

“Being able to give the analysts lots and lots of accounts with lots of companies getting results from their operations and then of course the specific comments that were made in the report about large companies expanding their global roll outs and actually getting all kinds of great financial returns - those are the things that go beyond hype,” he adds.

However, one gets the feeling that even without the Gartner announcement, the conference would have been a very upbeat affair. Field Service News has now attended the last three Maximize Europe events in a row and there are considerably more people and more buzz about the place than there was at the inaugural event held in Paris just a few years ago.

“We changed our strategy a little bit this year,” explains Yarnold when I comment on the growth of the event. “Instead of having a major event in San Francisco and two minor events in Europe and APAC, we’ve acknowledged all three regions are important to our business so rather than force our European or Japanese customers to fly to San Francisco we decided to make a concerted effort to do a great event in all three places.”

“I think what’s important when you're trying to grab the hearts and the minds of a group is you have to create an environment for the tribe to get together so they can share experiences and learn from one another,” Yarnold continues.

“Even at lunch I was introducing companies who were saying ‘oh you're a ServiceMax user that’s great, we use your parts in our products so let's talk’ and that really helps. It helps them with their business and clearly it helps us because they’re bonding around the experience that they’ve had with us.”

There was one slide in particular that really caught my eye in the morning’s opening sessions and that was the sheer number of partners within the ServiceMax ecosystem, the market place for which was only launched just over a year ago. I was keen to understand just how important that partnership ecosystem was in the continuing success and vision of ServiceMax and what role it would play in the future of the company.

“Several years ago we came to a couple of realisations,” opens Yarnold when I discuss this with him.

“One was that at the time, we were doing all of our implementations because customer satisfaction was so important to us - we wanted to make sure that every single customer was thrilled with us. However, we reached a point where continuing to do that would mean it would be really hard to scale the company. Also we were broadening our geographic presence and we needed to have partners that operated locally, using the local language.”

 

“The other thing that we were seeing, especially as we got into larger situations, was there were areas of functionality that it just didn’t make sense for us to build when some of our partners had that functionality.”

“Still we were surprised how fired up those partners were to engage with us and the last time I checked about half of our customers have actually used one of our partner’s products in conjunction with ServiceMax. It’s been really great to see that since we set up that partner market place . We can’t do it all so we’ve been thrilled with the support we’ve got from the partner community.”

In terms of the technology itself there was one definite show-stealer Field Service Connect, ServiceMax’s IoT solution, which was showcased with a number of successful case studies. Given the relative infancy of the product which launched just over a year ago, were the team at ServiceMax surprised how quickly these customers were able to show real value in using the tool?

“I was not surprised by it all,” replies Rick Gustafson, CFO, ServiceMax. “We’ve brought to market a nice bite-sized way to go about this that can deliver real business value. We’ve had the early adopter program which we’ve run half a dozen customers through it and now we have a couple of customers that are going to expand it broaden it out across the business.”

“I think the key to this is we boil it [IoT] down to a very simple value proposition and we talk about it as a way of getting started with IoT. We make it very understandable, very pragmatic, with well-defined outcomes and when we sit down with the customers we intentionally say let's focus on two or three use cases lets not try to boil the ocean,” Yarnold adds.

“The key to these hype areas is you’ve got to get some value for your early customers otherwise everybody says it was just over-hyped and it dies. Here there is real business value,” he concludes.

It would seem that both an army of satisfied customers and now Gartner themselves would agree with him too.

 

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In his role co-ordinating Field Service Conferences on both sides of the Atlantic Jonathan Massoud , Divisional Director , WBR is quite uniquely placed to see the differences between how things are done differently on both sides of the pond. Here he gives us his view on why things , fundamentally aren’t actually too different at all....

 

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FIELD SERVICE NEWS READERS EXCLUSIVE OFFER!

Join Jonathan Massoud at Field Service Europe - Field Service News Subscribers receive 25% discount with the code ‘FSE16FSN’ register @ fs-ne.ws/a6VG304PWQl

 

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2016 has proven to be a groundbreaking year for Field Service.

Manufacturers have continued to implement features from industry 4.0 on their business activities as services like cloud computing, and the internet of things (IoT) have revolutionized how companies manage their workforce in the field. In making certain service processes easier, like troubleshooting or diagnosing a repair – service teams have gotten closer to the customer than ever before.

The success of these programs also play a huge part in managing customer satisfaction and retention which are key revenue drivers for many companies. Especially since customers often choose a product based on the level of service they receive instead of less distinguishable aspects of the products themselves.

In response to a vocal, growing consumer base, manufacturers have started to design innovative product and service solutions that address customer needs. With that said, it’s hard to address specific customer concerns as the level and degree of service has to be of a high, consistent quality across the board. European executives are focusing on many of the same initiatives as their North American counterparts – starting the create service oriented, customer facing products and services that augment revenue.

However, their challenges can be a bit different as they work with logistical and cultural issues.

In Europe, it’s already difficult to move parts, people and services across countries quickly and efficiently, it’s even harder to do so while understanding nuanced cultural differences. Even so, there is tremendous opportunity for revenue growth within companies that take the time to prioritise service.

Over the past several years, we’ve actually seen success with the positive relationship between customer satisfaction profitability. The more your customers enjoy and trust the service your provide – the more willing they are to continually buy your products in the future (and also share their positive experience with their peers).

Can smarter service drive revenue and customer satisfaction?

Going beyond 2016, proactive and predictive service will have a large impact on increasing customer satisfaction.

With benefits like an increased first time fix rate, fewer technician visits & truck rolls customers will have higher satisfaction (which results in lower general operating costs for the manufacturer). These will ultimately come to head with the introduction of an enhanced remote monitoring platform.

However, larger challenges like customer push-back and huge start-up costs serve as a red flag for manufacturers. With the general adaptation of industry 4.0 and the IoT – European government will use their high tech strategies to incentivise innovation to create smarter services, smarter factories and smarter products which lead to happier customers.

How do you monitor quality control across European boarders? To ensure a consistent level of service in Europe, many companies have started to provide tiered levels of service based on the specific needs and expectation of their customers. This gives manufacturers the ability to have flexible service on an as needed basis.

However, this presents an interesting problem for European companies as customer expectations drastically differ from country to country.

An Italian customer might be willing to wait five days for a part, while a Finnish customer would be ready to fill out a complaint form after five hours.

Ensuring that service remains consistently great in each country is an important focus point for service executives.

Who is the technician of the future?

Technicians are the public face of your brand, the person who has the most face time with customers and therefore the biggest opportunity to make a difference. A common term used for field technicians is “trusted advisor” and because of this status, they’re often a big driver in customer satisfaction.

So how can service companies make their technicians more effective? What does the ideal technician of the future look like?

Tomorrow’s technician needs to be customer-ready.

Often-times, the technical skills that make someone a superior engineer don’t necessarily go hand-in-hand with customer-facing soft skills (handling a distraught customer for example).

Lastly, tomorrow’s technician needs to be ready for next generation technology. They must be armed with tools containing the latest communication-ready advanced diagnostic capabilities, open to the idea of wearables and augmented reality, and ready to work on machines equipped with IoT technology.

What are the services that customers really value?

Managing the shift to on-demand service solutions Significant changes in customer behaviour have affected the makeup of the service industry over the past few years.

Rather than buying a particular product or piece of equipment, customers are looking for business outcomes and solutions. There’s been a significant shift towards value proposition in service: how do you create value from the things you’ve done in the past?

What do customers truly value and are they willing to pay for it? With the increased usage of on-demand solutions – customer expectations have grown to a new level.

However, for those pro-active companies that are actively seeking to meet these demands by embracing not only the latest technology to help drive their service efficiency and customer engagement levels, but are also embracing the notion of service as a fundamental business driver, there is a wealth of profitable and loyal business to be won out there in this new enterprise landscape of the early twenty first century.

The big question is are you as an organisation ready to take such a service oriented approach.

Having been part of our field service conferences both in the US and in Europe I’ve spoken with a lot of service directors from both sides of the fence - those who are running at full steam towards a more advanced services model and those who are perhaps lingering towards the back a bit more waiting to see how things pan out for those early adopters.

Whilst there is no shame in a cautious approach it is also important not to be the last company to adapt in your sector - no matter how large you are as you might find yourself facing your very own ‘Kodak moment’.

Getting ideas and insight from your peers is a great way of benchmarking what is actually happening in the industry compared to the hyperbole that can surround any given technology or business trend and I guess it’s that one on one peer interaction, that sense of community that has been a fundamental part of why our conferences continue to grow on both sides of  the Atlantic.

 

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