So you’ve already made up your mind? You’ve decided to start using maintenance management software to run your field service company, and that’s great. It’s the right path to take your field service business to the next level. Field service management software helps you be more efficient and more productive. But let’s be honest, it may take a while to get used to it!
In this article we’ll give you a few tips to be ready for such an important change in your company. The advice here will show you how to successfully adapt to your new maintenance management software before, during and after its deployment. In this way, the obstacles and issues usually derived from such an important change will be minimal.
Training sessions
After installing a new maintenance management software in your field service business, most software companies will provide you and your team with some kind of training sessions. They can be given in person, or provided as online lessons or even pre-recorded videos. In the case of Synchroteam, for instance, we include a free training program to get all your technicians up to speed in no time. Plus, you have access to a comprehensive Help Center on our website, to solve any question quickly and easily.
These training sessions represent the first step in adopting your new maintenance management software. This means they’re really important: the base over which the whole transition will take place. So make sure all the people who are going to use the software attend them! Block off enough time for them and rearrange scheduled jobs as necessary. Otherwise, the adoption of this new system may take longer than expected and increase the risk of possible issues down the road.
Be ready for lots of questions
Once you start the training program for the maintenance management software of your choice (or even after finishing it), the key advice here is: don’t be afraid to ask! Ask anything you’re not sure about regarding the software. Also, encourage your team to do the same. After all, this is the application you’re going to use to manage your field service business, and you need to feel totally confident about it.
You can ask those questions during a training session, or simply write them down while you’re trying out the software on your own. Then, don’t hesitate to send all your questions to the provider of your maintenance management software. Don’t be afraid to be a pain for them. It’s their job to provide you with customer support! At Synchroteam, you can contact us via this web form or phone, and also send us a support request right from our website.
Get to know your new business partner
Is the training already finished? Have you had all your questions answered? Then it’s time to start playing around with your newly adopted maintenance management software by yourself! The more you fiddle with it and explore all of its functions, the faster you’ll learn how to use it. It’s just a question of muscle memory. You can only learn so much from a lecture, but it’s the actual, physical experience with the product what allows you to master it.
So after the training is over, don’t be afraid to start testing your software and getting familiar with it. Make sure your technicians also have this experience with the application. And if any new questions arise, feel free to contact the Customer Support center again.
Take baby steps
OK, so you’ve completed all the training sessions, asked all the questions you had and also played a bit with your new maintenance management software. What’s the next step? Is it time to take the plunge and start using it right away?
You can take a double approach here. If you think your team is ready, and you feel confident enough, then go ahead and take the leap! There’s no better moment to start a change that will improve your business.
That said, if you still feel unsure about the deployment of the new software, there’s nothing wrong with it! You can then opt for a soft open, which allows you to keep your old methods still in place. In this way, technicians can switch back to the tools they already know whenever needed, while still getting used to the new maintenance management software.
Ready to go to the next step with your field service business? Give Synchroteam a try with our free demo!
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