Field service operations usually don't respond to conventional productivity-improvement programs, because managers have difficulty coordinating the work of employees they can't see on the job.
A new approach relies on real-time data from the field to inform a dynamic dispatch center that helps managers raise utilization rates by identifying capacity in the workforce and reassigning field technicians.
A flexible approach to scheduling work and an ambitious and realistic plan for booking it help to fill in available capacity. Combined with a sophisticated approach to forecasting demand, these changes can dramatically improve productivity by raising the number of assignments that field technicians can undertake in a typical day, reducing wait times, and improving customer service.
Source: McKinsey Quarterly, http://www.mckinseyquarterly.com