Field Service Is Not Hard (Really!)

There are lots of business problems that are hard. Multinational tax minimization and terabyte-scale database management are hard. Field service is not one of these. Field service is not hard.

What is field service? For the purposes of this discussion, I'll take a fairly broad position: Field service is delivery, followed by execution. It's that damned easy.

OK, maybe not quite that easy. Since I don't have any business textbooks handy (and I can supply my own buzzwords without them), I'll invent my own definition of field service: any business segment that requires the business to send employees to the customer location, rather than bringing the customer in to a retail location. For simplicity, and to reference my core area of experience, think "Cable Guy". Not that terrible Jim Carrey movie; I mean your run-of-the-mill overworked and undertrained coax jockey.

We're not just limited to the cable guy. Plumbers and electricians do field service. Pizza Hut, Ray's Florist, and Walgreens all do delivery as a major segment of their operating models, so they are all familiar with the challenges and opportunities of field service. HP, Dell, and other server manufacturers operate field service departments with occasionally ridiculous response time SLAs. (This is not usually the type of field service I'll be talking about.)

So, I've defined it. But just how do I get off declaring that it isn't hard? Trust me, you already know it is difficult, because more likely that not you have already been shafted by poorly executed field service. Ever sat at home for ten hours waiting on your Dish installer? Pizza in 28 minutes or it's free? Still waiting for that contractor to show up to finish the tile on your bathroom remodel? Being consistently late on customer commitments is not only a sign you're struggling with your field service objectives, it's also a great way to piss off customers.

At a high level, field service consists of six relatively simple steps, some of which offer options. I'll cover these more in-depth in future posts:

• Make a sale, not a promise
• Schedule an appointment
• Roll a truck (or don't)
• Be on time (or close enough)
• Do it right (or get out)
• Make the customer "happy enough" (or find yourself doing it again until they are) 

That's it. Go.