Benefits Of Microsoft Dynamics 365 Field Service Software

Cybit’s Microsoft expert, Paul Rutter, explains the 5 major ways Microsoft Dynamics 365 Field Service can help companies to reduce costs.

Top Benefits of Microsoft Dynamics 365 Field Service

Leading companies use first-rate Field Service Management Software – that’s why they are the best. They understand that saving time is saving money. Using a legacy or paper-based system isn’t enough in today’s competitive field service industry. Innovative companies need to look for better ways of improving processes to reduce costs and save money while also increasing productivity and customer satisfaction at the same time.

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Field Service is a revolutionary product that is going to raise expectations of the accessibility and efficiency of software, and massively reduce the standard costs of running a field service organisation. In my experience it can fit, or be adapted to fit, the needs of a lot of businesses from small to enterprise, and offer a valuable ROI.

Here are my five top ways of reducing costs by implementing a flexible, constructive field service management software – Microsoft Dynamics 365 Field Service:

1. Improved First Time Fix Rates

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Field Service allows mobile workers to find out in advance of arriving at a job what tools and skills are required, how expensive parts will be, time to completion, and also a full view of the customer and a standardised process to follow of how to complete the fix. This all feeds into the ability to improve rates of first call resolution (FCR).

If work can be completed in one fix, the mobile worker has time to visit more customers. This prevents an avoidable waste of time and resources. Research has shown that 69% of people consider a quick resolution of their problem the reason they had experienced good customer service. Evidently optimised scheduling and smart resource utilisation is something no company can do without.

2. Knowledgeable Dispatchers

If a dispatcher knows exactly who is available and whether they are appropriately stocked for a job, they can make informed decisions when scheduling. Dispatchers can then spend less time calling around for updates and more time communicating with customers and completing value-add work. With Dynamics for Field Service, there is no longer any reason field engineers should turn up to a job unprepared or without the right inventory.

Microsoft Dynamics 365 for Field Service can improve operational efficiency and provide companies with the ability to create and achieve informed SLA and KPI targets and service performance metrics. A recent survey found that 42% of field service organisations were going to prioritise workforce management over the next year. The primary reasons cited were to increase service revenue and customer satisfaction, and reduce service costs.

3. Easy integration and Customisation

With a system such as Microsoft Dynamics 365 for Field Service, a major benefit is to be able to easily customise the platform to adapt to business changes. This can be done remotely and deployed to all mobile platforms which saves a lot of time for employees. Dynamics 365 for Field Service is easily and natively integrated as an app with other existing Microsoft Office 365 licences for a rich and unified solution.

There is also the option for full integration with Finance or Enterprise Resource Planning software (ERP) for a full exchange of information between the systems to drive efficiency. This integration of data across the organisation can improve budget management with data-driven decisions that show where money is currently being spent, and where it should be focused.

4. Service Contract/Warranty Management

With thorough contract and warranty management comes more opportunities for up-selling and cross-selling services, upgrades and assets. This can be done based on information gathered from the Dynamics system, for example to see which customers call most regularly, or to suggest an upgrade for a piece of equipment that regularly breaks. These trends can be easily found with Microsoft Power BI (which is also natively integrated with other Microsoft licences to get a full view of data from many different sources) and can be utilised to support employees with the insight to know optimally what to sell and when to sell it. There is also the benefit of understanding what each customer’s service contract entitles them to or what should be an additional paid service, and being aware of when warranties expire so you aren’t needlessly giving away free services.

5. Job Optimisation

Empowering employees with full visibility of the customer and outstanding jobs results in an increase of the productivity and value of each mobility worker. When they are scheduled in for a job, Dynamics 365 for Field Service has the ability to generate optimised resource schedules that greatly reduce travelling time and costs, whilst ensuring jobs are addressed in order of priority. This system can also be integrated with ERP to handle payments, and it can generate predetermined costs and the actual working time that jobs will require, so that each employee makes the most of their time. Online customer feedback surveys can also be sent following the completion of a job with the details recorded directly into Dynamics for review.

This vital information being readily available on the shared system avoids problems with the customer as research recently revealed that 72% of customers believe that explaining their problem to multiple people was the reason to blame for bad customer service. If you can optimise every system, every process and every employee to minimise any wastage as much as possible, then you can begin to feel the benefits of time and cost savings throughout your whole business. Time is money and when businesses can find a way of saving time, they can save money.

How Can We Help You?

With a Field Service solution from Cybit, you get a bespoke solution tailored to meet your exact business requirements. Because no two businesses are the same, neither are our solutions. We are an end-to-end IT service provider that can integrate your new system with existing ones, or branch out your solution to other areas if required. Because we have a depth and breadth of knowledge we can assist anywhere within the business that there are issues – from your infrastructure, to your Office 365 licences, to your Business Intelligence, to your telephone system.