White Paper

5 Reasons Why
Field Service Software
Implementations Fail

Coresystems AG
www.coresystems.net
 White Paper: 5 Reasons Why Field Service Software Implementations Fail

Content
Executive Summary 3

1. Setting Objectives 4

2. Acceptance and Trust 4

3. Clouded Thinking 5

4. Project Management 5

5. Step by Step 6

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 White Paper: 5 Reasons Why Field Service Software Implementations Fail

5 Reasons Why Field Service Software Implementations Fail

For the Field Service Executives, COOs and CMOs of larger organizations providing customer field service management.

Executive Summary
Software implementations fail across various industries and markets, but mostly for human rea-
sons rather than software catastrophes. According to research firm, Gartner, 55% to 75% of all
ERP projects fail to meet objectives. Panorama Consulting worked with independent-research
company Mint Jutras, and found that more companies in 2015, 21% to be exact, are defining soft-
ware implementations as failures, up from 16% in previous years. Field service businesses bring
their own challenges in levels of complexity, remote access, and skills, but these are manageable
with the right planning and partners. The cloud brings advantages and new challenges as well,
but the overall principles of a successful implementation are exactly the same as for traditional IT
projects.
The field service business is about skilled people making customers happy. A new software auto-
mation solution is there to support them. Field service automation needs to be trusted and relied
upon throughout the whole business, from administrative staff to technicians to clients. In order
to get their support, you need to know what you’re trying to improve. Only then will it be possi-
ble to judge the degree of success or failure afterwards.
A failed implementation can have different consequences: financial losses, loss of productivity,
business disruption, dissatisfied customers, and even job losses. Even the CIO’s bonus could be at
risk. However, the benefits of a software automation solution cannot be ignored, so it’s vital to
choose the right delivery partner who understands your business and where you’re trying to go.

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 White Paper: 5 Reasons Why Field Service Software Implementations Fail

1. Setting Objectives
It’s easy to get fixated on features when choosing a new software solution. However, there’s more
to implementing a new system than that. Features and functions are obviously important, but
you should choose software and a delivery partner that understands your field service business
and what you’re trying to achieve. In the Mintra Jutras 2015 ERP report, their findings show that
companies are struggling to successfully find and implement new systems. Most implementation
failures are due to human and business factors. While choosing a software solution, think of the
end-to-end process and the people that will have to use the software to do their jobs and how in-
formation will be accessed and used throughout that process. Data entered by the admin team
needs to be in the right format and accessible to technicians remotely or customers online.
Set objectives before starting to compare systems so you know what you’re trying to achieve.
What ROI is the Finance Director looking for? How will you measure the degree of success or
failure? Think holistically about the whole field service business, including the people. Take a
baseline measurement before you start for comparison purposes, e.g. average number of site vis-
its per day, time taken per visit, call backs, technician upsells, direct online access by customers,
cost per visit.

2. Acceptance and Trust

A new software solution can succeed or fail depending on how your staff reacts to it. They after
all are the most important part of the business and the software is only there to make them more
productive, so take care of them before everything else. Identify everyone affected by the roll out:
sales, admin, technicians, accountants, line management, etc. Plan ahead and maybe even get
their input during software selection. Plan in detail how the software will accomplish the busi-
ness processes, especially the interaction between the new system and humans. Offering training
pre- and post-implementation is vital, plus having ongoing support.
Do customers need to be included in the plan if they have direct online access for sales or opera-
tions? If so, then involve marketing so the introduction looks professional and well-thought out.
If the project will change how customers perceive you, then marketing needs to understand the
impact the change will have on the brand, so different expectations can be reflected in the overall
company image, and the new changes can be professionally communicated.

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 White Paper: 5 Reasons Why Field Service Software Implementations Fail

3. Clouded Thinking
Just because a new software system is based in the cloud, that doesn’t make it immune to prob-
lems. The implementation should be treated the same way as it would be for a traditional IT sys-
tem. It’s very important to be just as rigorous with project management, objectives, data migra-
tion, phased rollout, testing, etc. A cloud implementation will bring many benefits and cost
savings, but it also has its own challenges around access, compliance, and security.
The main servers and networking infrastructure will be looked after in a secure data center, but
technicians need remote access off-site. Their tools, such as mobile devices, should be tested and
given as many means of data connectivity as possible at fast speeds with significant amounts of
storage for downloading manuals, catalogs, video, etc. The new system shouldn’t bypass your
company’s compliance rules, or the industry rules in regulated regimes such as some utilities.
When it comes to security, it is still your responsibility to ensure personal and confidential data is
kept secure so be responsible when specifying requirements for data connectivity, VPN tunnel-
ing, encryption (including on mobile devices), firewalls, etc.

4. Project Management
Strong project management skills are vital during this phase, which will mean choosing a supplier
and delivery partner that understands your business. Plan out the whole end-to-end field service
deployment with them and keep staff and customers in the loop. Still, you should stay flexible
enough to take on unexpected changes without risking derailing the whole project. Don’t expect
staff to be able to do their day jobs and run the implementation, too. You’ll need to assign dedi-
cated people to set up the product information, customer site details, report structures, etc.
These people may come from the delivery partner, but you’ll still need to assign time for internal
experts to pass on information and perform testing.
Don’t be afraid to make carefully considered changes to the plan. For instance, if a big new cus-
tomer comes on board half way through with new service requirements, decide whether to delay
working with the customer or delay the whole project. Either decision can be right, but you
should have a process ready to help you make the decision, understand the consequences, and
communicate your decision.
Getting the features right is one thing, but installing the new system will take time, and it will
probably be disruptive to ongoing operations and cause anxiety among affected staff. All of these
disruptions have to be planned for and managed properly so they don’t spin out of control and
take the project down. It’s no use to have the back-office admin team entering site visit details
into the new system if technicians aren’t able to access the system yet. Technicians on site won’t
tolerate having to log onto multiple systems for long, and if the new software is seen as lengthen-
ing site visits during the initial phases, it could give the software a bad reputation.

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 White Paper: 5 Reasons Why Field Service Software Implementations Fail

5. Step by Step
It’s usually much better to adopt a phased approach to implementing a new software system rath-
er than expecting to do it all in one big bang. Keep the phases manageable by dividing the roll-out
into controllable chunks. These chunks could be based on regional teams, functional steps, the
business model, or all of the above. A good way to start might be to choose a team that performs
well and is fairly close to HQ. Spend time getting them up and running smoothly, iron out any
wrinkles, and be sure to understand their worries and objections because you’ll see those worries
again at every other site.
Don’t expect to roll out every feature of the new software immediately. Before you introduce new
major processes, realize that it will take time for everyone to get used to doing their existing job
in a new way. That doesn’t mean you won’t get efficiencies straight away (such as reduced time on
site), but it might pay to delay rolling out new, more advanced features until people are used to
the new environment.
Some larger changes will come as you mature as a profitable field service business. As you start to
introduce new services such as catalogs, preventative maintenance contracts, or customized ser-
vices, field service software automation will support the team. However, only make these ad-
vanced features visible when they are needed.

About Coresystems
Coresystems is a leading provider of mobile and cloud-based field service and
workforce management software for mid-sized and large enterprises’ field service
organizations. Since Coresystems’ founding in 2006, more than 190,000 users
across the world have utilized Coresystems’ innovative, real-time field service
management software to improve their business and field service processes. Core-
Coresystems systems has also pioneered “crowd service” – which allows customers to leverage
CH: +41 56 500 22 44 an Uber-like platform to find available field service technicians in real-time. Core-
DE: +49 761 887 95 777 systems is headquartered in Switzerland with international offices in San Francis-
USA: +1 (415) 887-1944 co, Miami, Berlin, Freiburg, Shanghai, São Paulo and London.
www.coresystems.net

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