There is no question that the field service management industry today will look very different tomorrow and beyond. Baby Boomers make up 20 percent of the American public and on any given day, 10,000 baby boomers are retiring, according to Forbes. What may be more alarming is that the Millennial now outnumbers Baby Boomers in 2019. According to Pew Research Center, in 2019, Millennials are expected to overtake Baby Boomers in population.
Ask yourself – is your workforce the same?
Is the Millennial ready to surpass the soon-to-be retiring Baby Boomers and ready to take their place in the field? It’s a question many in the field service industry are asking themselves as they watch their workforce shrink. Sure, some are just turning to subcontractors to fulfill the demands they have for service work. But some don’t have that same luxury and need full-time, ready and able hands to service customers.
Without a doubt, Millennials are the field service technicians of today and of the future. There is an opportunity to get in on the ground floor of the Millennial boom today and have an employee for decades. If they love their work, are challenged enough, and have the right technology, Millennials can be a long-term solution in the field service industry.
Technology is their Life
As the field service industry explodes with modern advances in field service management software, Millennials are already using those aspects in their daily life. Mobile field service apps, Virtual Reality, cloud-based applications? That’s just a typical day in the life for a Millennial, whose strength will come from the variety of technology they use. Don’t be surprised if field service management software changes based on Millennials entering the field. Since they are already heavily invested in technology, the future of any advances in field service business software will come through them.
The best part is, with technology being a large part of their life, training will take less time and they are more likely to embrace it. A common problem in the field service management business is Baby Boomers don’t want technological change. They like things the way they have done them for years. Resisting change so late in their career is normal, while Millennials will just expect modern technology when doing their job. Arming your Millennial workforce with field service mobile apps is just another normal day for them. There is no adapt period when it comes to Millennials, as they will just embrace what a mobile field service software is.
Embrace Flexibility with Mobile Field Service Software
The days of the nine-to-five job are disappearing. So, too, are the days where field technicians have to check in at the head office every day, or after every call. It’s a mobile world, communication options have expanded, and flexibility is something Millennials crave in their work-life. With field service management software, flexibility is built into the service industry. Millennials can see their entire day’s schedule from their phone, check in and out of jobs, track time, request parts, provide quotes and complete work orders, all from their phone. They don’t need to make trips back to the office and can start their day from home, or work hours that are better suited for them.
It’s not a one-size-fits-all industry anymore, and with field service mobile apps offering flexibility, it’s a great way to attract new Millennial talent to your workforce. It also has plenty of business advantages that make it appealing to managers to move forward with a field service software.
Mobile apps allow technicians to find service history, have access to manuals and how-to guides and read notes on repairs from their smart device. That improves first-time fix rates, which keeps customers satisfied. It also means they are spending less time traveling back to the office to pick up and drop off work orders. Those extra minutes can add up to new service calls added to their schedule. That’s more revenue for your business.
Push the Advancement of Technology
Technology is going to play a large part of the future of field service. There is no question that advancements are still being made in helping to automate and make field service more efficient. Millennials are going to play a major role in that, as they will be the ones that embrace the advancement and encourage more technology to be used in the field. They will be the ones pushing for:
- Internet of Things (IoT)
- Augmented Reality (AR)
- Virtual Reality (VR)
- Wearable mobile devices
IoT is another form of flexibility, as the sensors will monitor equipment and turn field service into a predictive industry, rather than preventable. AR and VR tools are still new to the field service industry, but by the time Millennials take over, they should be common. AR can aid these Millennial technicians in the field, walking them through repairs. VR, meanwhile, can train the next wave of technicians, so hiring habits can turn to focus on skills such as customer service and sales skills, rather than wrench skills.
Millennials are already using wearable technology, from smart glasses to watches in their daily lives. Adding them to field service work is on the way and will require little training for Millennials to take advantage of them. It’s the perfect time for managers to invest in field service management software to improve their business performance. Especially with these advancements on the horizon of field service, Millennials will be the drivers of them moving forward.
Field Service Software is Made for the Millennial
Field service is turning into a big technology game and Millennials are the perfect players. They are already well adapted to technology and will embrace it from the beginning. Manual processes don’t exist in Millennial life, as it’s all on screens, with tap capabilities, mobile apps and cloud-based services. If you’re worried about what the future will look like in field service when you are ready to purchase a field service management software, remember that the people who will use it, are already using similar technology today. Your investment in your service delivery today is an investment in your workforce of tomorrow.