Since joining Resco in 2018, Tomas has been instrumental in implementing projects and helping our customers thrive within the Dynamics ecosystem. In this blog, he shares the three most interesting mobile requirements he has encountered during his time at Resco.

1. Risk Matrix component in Inspections+

The client wanted to add a Risk Matrix component to their Inspections+ questionnaire form. The problem was that this kind of question didn’t exist in the Questionnaire Designer tool.

To create a Risk Matrix question type, Tomas had to be creative and find a workaround. He decided to add several Option set questions with the pre-defined values and applied custom formatting via Styles in order to mimic the desired layout of the Risk Matrix component.

“The whole process from the requirement analysis through the implementation until the quick test took about two to three hours and demonstrated the flexibility of Resco. I was able to create the solution without any coding, using Resco’s no-code/low-code tools,” explains Tomas.

Resco’s solution not only covered the client’s need for functionality and layout but also design. The original component had several color scales ranging from green through yellow to red, each representing a different level of risk. The flexibility of the Resco Questionnaire Designer tool in terms of design allowed us to meet these demands, making the user adoption process much more accessible.

When the client saw the result, they were very pleased with it. The partner only added one minor rule to the solution to ensure that mobile users could only select one question in the matrix, and the rest were not editable. This solution demonstrated Resco’s platform’s adaptability and provided value to the client by meeting their specific requirements.

2. Complex custom mobile report

The potential client’s requirement was the ability to generate a mobile report with a custom layout upon the completion of the Questionnaire form.

Resco mobile reports are a very important and popular feature among Resco customers and partners. This feature allows users to quickly generate a PDF or Word document, or other output, which shows the results of the work orders field workers complete in the field. This output can be easily shared with clients or saved in the system for archiving.

A potential customer was interested in using Resco Inspections+ feature, but they wanted to see some output from it as well. The customer shared a scanned paper form with a complex layout they used for their work.

While the Resco Report Designer is a powerful and flexible tool that offers many configuration options, it requires some time to learn how to use its full potential and build really complex reports. Resco developers have improved the usability of the tool in recent releases, investing in making these technologies more user-friendly.

“Thanks to this, I was able to replicate the customer’s paper form using the Report Designer tool, creating a faithful copy of the form,” Tomas says.

The client was impressed with the custom mobile report during the demo and was pleasantly surprised by the capabilities of Resco technology. Such custom reports are recommended for users in highly competitive environments who need to quickly generate customized reports and send them to clients. They are also very useful for clients who need their reports to comply with strict legal requirements.

Although it can take several days to create a complex report, the effort is worth it as it can be updated very quickly once completed.

Mobile reports are the bread and butter of field data collection, but their generation isn’t solely a task for frontline workers. The ability to access and quickly create reports is important for field managers and back-office employees to review data and steer the information flow.

That’s why Inspections+ new feature, utilizing the Resco Power Automate connector, allows reports to be generated directly from Dynamics 365 and Dataverse. And makes it simple and fast.

3. Complex validation rules in Woodford

A potential client was planning to replace their current custom-built backend system and mobile app with something more standard. One of their requirements for the demo presentation was the ability to configure multiple validations in the mobile app without any programming, in a no-code/low-code way, to make the mobile app smart and foolproof.

The challenge was to ensure that the mobile application was user-friendly, with various validations and checks to prevent potential problems from the user entering incorrect data or conducting inspections for which they were not trained.

To address this challenge, Tomas used Resco’s customization tool, Woodford, and specifically its Rule Editor – a complex, flexible and no-code component for implementing custom business logic.

“I needed to create a multi-level validation that would check several actions within the application. Although the potential client wasn’t sure such validations could be created in the given timeframe, I was able to successfully demonstrate and present them, receiving positive feedback,” remarks Tomas.

The easier we can make things for users, the better the results, and the fewer errors there will be. Companies can save a lot of money by preventing repeated inspections due to technical incompetence.

The app Tomas presented demonstrated the combined power of Microsoft Dataverse and Resco. During the presentation, the client was surprised by the significant advantage of customizing Resco’s mobile application without programming.

Setting up an app without the need for custom code leads to faster development, lower costs, easier and cheaper maintenance of the system, and a better user experience. Companies often overlook costs hidden in the future maintenance of the custom code. However, these costs can be significantly reduced by applying a no-code/low-code approach where it’s suitable.

Make the most of Resco by staying in the loop

“I highly recommend attending our product webinars, where we showcase and demonstrate new functionalities. Additionally, I encourage our customers and partners to provide us with their feedback, which drives us forward, helps us better understand the real-life scenarios and keeps our focus on the features that bring a high value to our customers,” advises Tomas.

You can also follow us on social media such as YouTube and LinkedIn, where you’ll find the latest updates about our features and events. And if you’re interested in the technical aspects of our solutions, check out our technical blogs and subscribe to the Resco newsletter, where you’ll find valuable Tech tips.

By following these tips, you can ensure that you’re utilizing Resco to its full potential and staying ahead of the game in terms of mobile capabilities.

Príspevok Challenge accepted: Three unique customer demands solved with Resco zobrazený najskôr Resco.

1. Increased efficiency

Dräger, which has manufactured and serviced such equipment for over a century, understands that moments matter when it comes to protecting a person’s life.

Before starting to work with Resco technology, the company’s outdated Outlook Offline app, which Microsoft no longer supported, had long synchronization times, frustrated operations teams and field service technicians trying to view, manage and coordinate service schedules and parts requirements.

To improve efficiency and provide their customers with world-class service, Dräger wanted a faster, more reliable, and feature-rich mobile app to provide offline capabilities to their field service force. Together with their implementation partner Avanade, they chose Resco Field Service+. Today, the app is live for 1000 + users.

2. Offline capabilities

Kemp & Lauritzen is Denmark’s largest technical installation company. As their old system was outdated and no longer supported, they wanted to replace it with an up-to-date system that they can tailor to their needs.

Before utilizing the Resco app provided by Microsoft as part of Dynamics 365 Field Service, the company didn’t have a good overview of their resources. This resulted in wasted and inefficiently handled opportunities. The company has been initially using the Resco-based Microsoft Dynamics 365 Field Service app, which they chose because it can handle complex setup, and work seamlessly offline.

Kemp & Lauritzen switched to Resco’s Field Service+ to get the full Resco mobile experience without any limitations. Resco Inspections+ is now a core part of their mobile solution.

Read the case study to find out more

3. Universal user adoption

Nurse Maude Association is a major organization providing community healthcare services in New Zealand. To keep track of all their activities, Nurse Maude had invested in Microsoft Dynamics 365. Intergen, Nurse Maude’s IT implementation partner, recommended Resco’s Field Service+ as the ideal mobile solution. It connects directly with Microsoft Dynamics 365/CRM and can be customized without any limitations, even without coding.

The Nurse Maude workforce have a different range of IT skills and it was important that staff at all levels were able to use the mobile solution. With Resco, association encountered only an extremely small percentage of users that required continued support.

The mobile app enables users to provide work status updates, look up, enter, edit, or update client details and clinical notes whenever needed. Before Resco, the staff in the field were using a paper-based system to record actual visit times and details. And this is just one of the many ways digital technologies are transforming healthcare.

4. High customizability

Before Resco, Civtec didn´t use a single field service solution. When choosing a new solution, they considered several important things, such as customizability and offline features. After thorough research, Civtec chose Resco Field Service+.

One of the main benefits that convinced them that Resco is the best fit were the application´s customizability. That is why they modified the app theme to align with their corporate branding and customized menu layouts and lists to show the most relevant fields first for users to read and select buttons easily.

Read the case study to find out more

To discover all the benefits, check out the Field Service+ landing page.

Príspevok Top 4 features that Resco Field Service+ customers appreciate the most zobrazený najskôr Resco.

Mobile App Development Toolkit

Design forms with revamped editor

In the Mobile App Development Toolkit, the Form editor enables you to customize the layout, fields, rules, and actions of your mobile app according to the needs of your mobile workers. With the new UI & UX refresh of the Form editor, this process will be faster and more convenient for all administrators and form creators.

The refreshed design with various features such as drag-and-drop fields, resizing, or previews will save you time and effort when creating forms for your mobile app.
On top of that, there will be UI improvements for mobile workers too. In the mobile app, field employees will be able to take advantage of polished field design, making their work with digital tools more convenient.

Synchronization of Virtual tables, FileType and more

Advanced synchronization is critical when dealing with complex offline use cases and mobile work. In these scenarios, more control means more flexibility, efficiency, and reliability.

The enhancements coming with the Spring Update will provide you with additional possibilities to set up synchronization between your mobile device and backends like MS Dynamics 365, Dataverse, Salesforce, and more. You will be able to:

• Synchronize Virtual tables (formerly Virtual entities): Virtual tables are a recent and increasingly popular option for how to easily integrate 3^rd party systems such as ERP with D365/Dataverse. Since the release, Virtual tables are first-class citizens in Resco Mobile apps, supporting both full and incremental sync with a customizable timestamp column
• Use the FileType field in Dynamics 365 & Dataverse: Use the file data type field, which allows you to store files as pictures, attachments, or notes. That will enable you to work with files on your mobile device more easily.
• Get more detailed sync logs: View detailed information about each sync session that will help you troubleshoot any issues and optimize your sync performance.

Inspections+

Data mapping

Data mapping is Inspections+ is officially live. This useful new feature will save you plenty of time, as it gives you an easy way to map questions in questionnaires to record fields in your database. For example, now you have the option to load the client’s details into the questionnaire, and all changes you make to them will be reflected in your CRM.

To make using this feature as easy as possible, we also improved the UX of setting up the questions mapped to fields. After selecting the desired entity, you can choose which fields you want to add through multiselect. Resco will automatically generate the questions mapped to these fields for you.

UX & UI improvements

As you know, we are continuously improving the usability of Inspections+. In the upcoming release, you can look forward to improved report previews, the ability to clone report styles, better possibilities to control picture size in reports and much more.

Steps+

All-new Statistics dashboard

Last year, we introduced a new functionality that lets you see usage statistics for your guides in Steps+. Thanks to them, you can optimize your content to perform better.

We plan to take it even further with the new Statistics dashboard in this year’s first update. There you will be able to see detailed information about your guides and technicians. You will see which guides are the most used, how many times the technicians opened them, or how much time they spend with them.

Improved issue reporting

After finishing a guide, you can leave feedback, comments and report issues you might have experienced. Thanks to our planned update, you will soon be able to do all this directly in the guide. Just use the „report issue“ button available for each step of the guide. The author of the guide will receive an email. Thanks to that, they will be able to resolve the problem quickly.

Importing and exporting multiple guides at the same time

Another improvement you’ll soon be able to benefit from is multiple guide import and export. Until now, you could only import or export one guide at a time. Now you will be able to do the same with folders containing multiple guides. Or you can choose the specific guides you want to import or export.

Resco Cloud

Set up your own Azure Cosmos database

Cosmos DB is a cloud-based service that offers fast and flexible data access and lets you take advantage of features like automatic indexing, geo-replication, and encryption.

Resco Cloud already supports Cosmos Database as part of its latest release, but now you will have another option.

When configuring the database for your Resco solutions, you will be able to choose if you want to connect your own Cosmos DB or the database set up by Resco. That means you can have even more control over your data and how it is stored and accessed.

Another option for external storage support

The Resco solution allows you to upload and download blob files from various sources to save database space and money. You can use Azure, Amazon S3, or SharePoint. And now another option comes.

With OneDrive integration support, you can easily upload and download blob files from your OneDrive account using Resco.

Experience the new features from the Spring Update early

We’re developing these and many other great upgrades for the upcoming releases – and we’d like you to see & test them first.

Join the beta-testing community so you’ll always get the first look at each new Resco capability before it’s available to the general public.

The first beta of the Spring Update will land soon. If you sign up for beta testing (or have already signed up in the past), you will receive an email notification after it becomes available.

Please note that the features and images above are development previews and can be subject to change in the final product release.

Príspevok Spring Update 2023 Preview: What improvements to expect in this year’s first release zobrazený najskôr Resco.

All of us at Resco recognize and appreciate Ope’s outstanding contributions. And today, we’d like to introduce him and his work to you.

Ope, congratulations on this recognition! Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your background?

Thank you. It is an honor to have been considered and to receive this recognition.

I am the founder of Necessidad, leading a small but highly effective team. Necessidad is a Resco & Salesforce partner. My journey into people systems (such as CRM, HR Management software, etc.) began many years ago at university, where I studied Computer Science and Business Administration and, subsequently, an MSc in Business Systems Analysis & Design.

I started my career building HR management systems in London, U.K. After seven years, I decided to switch to CRM (Salesforce). I have now been implementing Salesforce for over a decade. I came across Resco in 2019 and was pleasantly impressed with its functionalities and offline capability.

Outside of work, I play basketball, and I have a keen passion and appreciation for jazz music – I also play the tenor saxophone and a bit of piano.

In what areas do you consider yourself to be an expert? Besides basketball and music?

We (Necessidad), myself included, are experts at implementing Resco and Salesforce, particularly within the non-profit sector, although our client base consists of both non-profit and for-profit organizations.

Our approach places our customers and prospects at the center – we recognize and value their journey. We see ourselves as the collaborative guides to help usher them towards achieving their goals by understanding their needs, making them feel understood, and offering the best pragmatic Salesforce/Resco services to meet those needs.

I’d like to say that we are experts at understanding and serving our customers and their needs, as attested by the CEO of LewishamLocal. It is a non-profit organization we engaged with to rapidly deploy a Covid response hub system during the peak of the Covid pandemic, which stated in its review that: “Necessidad worked hard to understand our requirements without rushing into a solution.”

Do you have a standout Resco project that you’ve worked on?

Yes, our flagship Resco project was the School Feeding Program application we implemented for Mary’s Meals. You can see a video of the details on the Resco YouTube channel.

We worked with a fantastic team at Mary’s Meals, and we are proud to have been able to help them achieve significant strides toward their goal, with a reach of about 1.7 million children. Before our engagement, Mary’s Meals had disparate means of capturing data from spreadsheets to pen & paper.

Thanks to our help, they now have a harmonized process, significantly improved digital means of capturing data offline and syncing back to Salesforce, transparency due to the better reporting capabilities to make critical decisions, and the ability to scale effectively and efficiently to other countries.

You work mainly with Salesforce customers. How do you see Resco’s unique place in this ecosystem?

I believe Resco is in a unique space within the Salesforce ecosystem. Not many applications offer the full offline capability Resco offers Salesforce users. Resco can attain strategic advantages within the Salesforce ecosystem and become a significant partner with Salesforce, especially in the Salesforce.org space.

You became a Resco MVP by being a leader inside your organization, promoting Resco solutions and working on multiple projects hands-on, and presenting at our conference. What would you recommend to other Resco professionals looking to become MVPs?

I have been told that I can be obsessed with solving problems in general. This trait is particularly apparent when implementing Resco projects, and I believe it is a key – but not the singular – factor.

The others are my willingness to learn and be corrected, continuous improvement, diligence, perseverance, and treating others with respect.

You attended resco.NEXT in Lisbon. Necessidad Consulting was even one of the finalists in the Resco Business Impact Award. What were your biggest takeaways, and what did you like the most?

resco.NEXT in Lisbon will be one of the defining memories of 2022. The indelible impression I was left with is that there is a strong bond within the Resco family itself. I was also inspired by the network of partners and the context of each of their different implementations.

Thank you for the interview, Ope. Is there anything else you’d like to share with the community?

You are welcome. It has been a pleasure. I will be happy to connect on LinkedIn with your audience or anyone who would like to know more about myself and what we do.

Become the next Resco MVP

Resco MVPs are recognized as experts in the community. This helps them with career building and increases business opportunities for the organization they represent.

On top of that, Resco MVPs enjoy a range of direct benefits from Resco, such as exposure in our marketing channels, free entrance to resco.NEXT, priority access to market development funds and co-marketing possibilities, and more.

If you know someone or consider yourself a worthy candidate for the Resco MVP award, please send an email to partners@resco.net with the subject line “Resco MVP nomination.”

We are looking forward to recognizing more exceptional Resco experts and influencers!

Príspevok Meet Resco’s new MVP: Ope Okupe from Necessidad Consulting zobrazený najskôr Resco.

To show you how to use the timesheets functionality in the Resco Mobile App Development Toolkit, we created a video where Trevor Metcalfe, our Marketing Manager for North America, will walk you through the process of creating, managing, and editing timesheets from the perspective of both a manager and a mobile user.

The video has four parts:

1. Back-office: Managing timesheets and projects
2. Mobile app: Creating timesheet entries
3. Back-office: Approving submitted timesheets
4. Technical overview: Woodford customization highlights

1. Back-office: Managing timesheets and projects

In the first part, we will show you how to use the back-office interface as a manager. You will learn how to create and manage your worker´s timesheets in the back-office system, which is Dynamics 365, how to create multiple timesheets simultaneously, switch between different views, modify project information, and much more.

2. Mobile app: Creating timesheet entries

The second part will teach you how to use the mobile app as a user who fills out timesheets. We will show you how to create timesheet entries and fill them out correctly.

3. Back-office: Approving submitted timesheets

In the third part, we will return to the manager´s perspective. We will walk you through the process of approving timesheets and ensuring everything is filled out well and that all the information is correct.

4. Technical overview: Woodford customization highlights

The final part will teach you how to customize your timesheets in Woodford. For example, you will learn how to clone timesheet entries, color code timesheets in your calendar, or calculate the aggregate values of specific fields.

Improve your Resco skills

At our Wiki, you’ll find not only a deep dive into timesheets, but many other guides and tutorials for various Resco products. And if you want to further educate yourself, Resco Academy has a lot of valuable and interesting courses for you to improve your skills. As a base for creating timesheets, we recommend you check out our Resco Academy Course on User Interface.

Príspevok How to use Resco and Microsoft Dynamics 365 to configure timesheets for mobile workers zobrazený najskôr Resco.

1. Our data synchronization takes a lot of time. Is there a way to speed it up?

If you are experiencing issues with synchronization, Resco has many guides you can follow to set up sync.

You can start with our Wiki, where you’ll learn the basics of synchronization, and continue to the Resco Academy course dedicated to sync. The course will take you through synchronization in Resco, sync configuration in Woodford, the different types of sync, and much more.

You can also expand you knowledge by joining our three-part online training which will teach you how to master synchronization. It will last from November 29 to December 1 and you can register here.

If your synchronization issues persist, you can always get in touch with our support, who will help you set up your project in the best possible way.

2. Is there an option to generate Mobile Reports on Dynamics from the browser (back-office)?

The short answer is no. The long answer is that although you can only use 3rd party solutions currently, this highly requested feature will definitely be part of one of our next releases.

3. Do you plan to improve Report Designer so it’s easier to work with?

Yes. We are continually collecting user feedback for the Report Designer, and as the next step in improving this tool’s usability, we will be redesigning the Grid editor in Q4.

4. What are the plans for the mobile app user interface update?

Yes. From the UI/UX priorities point of view, improving the UI/UX of the mobile app, especially the login and main menu, is a number one priority, which is why we have also dedicated a workshop on resco.NEXT to UI/UX.

The following year, we will deliver continuous improvements, starting with more style templates and later introducing structural UI/UX changes.

5. Will you be developing more functionalities for the Resco Cloud standalone solutions?

Last year, we focused mainly on the back-end functionality of the Resco Cloud field service product. Resco Cloud, as a standalone CRM, is still an option for simple scenarios.

However, we plan not to dedicate as many resources to it as we did in the past in terms of adding more back-office role functionalities. There is continuous development based on the business opportunity when it comes to authentication options, supporting more integrations with other services, fine-tuning performance, and supporting more 3rd party services.

Any further questions?

If you have any additional questions about Resco features, check out the Resco Wiki or feel free to get in touch with us through our support portal.

Príspevok Top 5 questions about Resco features from resco.NEXT 2022 zobrazený najskôr Resco.

1. Valuing meaningful human connections

We all know that technology helps us solve many challenges, but we must not forget about human connections. It is very tempting to get swept up by the rising tide of technology and look to AI, robots, metaverse, and other new tech to solve humanity’s biggest problems, but we must be careful. Although they offer tremendous promise and value for the business, they can also isolate us and deemphasize the role of human connections.

Resco’s human-centered approach is prominent in how we conduct business and communicate with our clients and partners and in how we choose to work with technology. We are aware of the role we play.

Our purpose isn’t to replace workers with automation – instead, we aim to serve as the bridge between Big Tech and the technicians, salespeople, and field staff. That is why we use technology in a way that benefits all the parties.

2. Listening to our customers & partners

Customer and partner requests have always been at the forefront for us at Resco. We respond to their needs and market expectations that call for more advanced mobility focused no-code/low-code platform tools and pre-built and quick-to-deploy accelerators and modules.

In addition to that, you can expect us to:

• Meet you more in person
• Significantly increase resources for existing Resco projects
• Extend the key account management coverage

We do all that to improve what we do best: solutions to build the best enterprise mobile apps.

3. Enhancing our platform focus

We are consolidating our standalone apps into our platform and switching to a modular approach to solutions that better fit our core focus on mobile workers. That means we’ll be able to put more resources into ensuring our current projects are successful while expanding the toolkit for partners.

With this in mind, we’ve provided you with:

• Improved UI and UX of mobile apps and designer tools
• Modularized and enterprise-ready platform components like Inspections+ and Steps+
• Field Service+ mobile project
• Improved sync and major CRM integrations, and new integrations

By improving these “building blocks” of our platform, we aim for our partners to efficiently build more solutions for their workers. Simultaneously, it opens up more opportunities targeted towards business and back office users, with solutions that are quick to deploy, proven to generate ROI, and address today’s problems of mobile workers.

4. Understanding mobile workers and the challenges they face

Mobile workers don’t work in the office, so their needs sometimes tend to be forgotten. This is unacceptable, as these workers are crucial for every company’s functioning. They shape the brand and contribute to the company’s success.

It is essential to communicate with these workers and know their needs and the challenges they are facing.

Despite the pandemic, their jobs haven’t changed all that much – they spend much of their time in the field, where they use mobile devices with complicated apps. According to a PwC survey from 2020, a whopping 80 % of HR and IT leaders struggle with worker adoption of new tech.

At Resco, we call the concept of addressing these problems and focusing on the mobile worker’s experience Smart digital worker. Simply put, you have to speak the frontline worker‘s language to be able to create solutions for them.

5. Engaging frontline workers

Currently, deskless workers are the biggest workforce – globally, there are 2.7 B deskless workers, many of whom are worried about automation and digital transformation negatively impacting their jobs. According to the Microsoft Work Trend Index from 2022, 46 % fear losing their jobs if they don’t adapt to new tech.

To empower frontline workers, we must continuously support them and help them engage throughout the technology adoption lifecycle. You can make this adoption happen by following these five steps:

1. Build organizational empathy for frontline workers
2. Get out into the field
3. Meet frontline workers where they are
4. Communicate early and often
5. Take a lifecycle approach to learning & support

Stay tuned for more insights

We’re glad to have shared the key messages from the Resco leadership with you. Stay tuned for more quality content from the conference by following us on LinkedIn and subscribing to the Resco newsletter!

Príspevok New approach to solutions and focus on frontline workers: 5 takeaways from resco.NEXT 2022 Keynote zobrazený najskôr Resco.

• A presentation full of valuable insights into the challenges of digital transformation for frontline workers by Justin Lake, the co-host of the podcast Frontline Innovators
• The local company Noesis Portugal sharing their takeaways from implementing Resco in the renewable energy industry
• A session by Scale Aquaculture and their partner DXC Technology about a unique use of Resco in the aquaculture industry
• Expert panel about Resco’s Mobile CRM where you can connect with specialists from companies such as ORBIS, TSO-DATA and Aha Apps
• And much more

Read on to discover the rest!

Justin is the CEO and Co-founder of Skyllful. He focuses on empowering frontline workers with mobile technologies. Working with his own ideas and leveraging his network of industry professionals, Justin and his team help companies get the most from their digital technology investments. He also co-hosts the podcast “Frontline Innovators,” which discusses how companies can address the hurdles of technology adoption by frontline workers.

As part of the Keynote, Justin’s presentation will focus on digital transformation for frontline and deskless workers, its challenges, and how to optimize change management.

Danny is a CRM evangelist who has worked in interfacing positions between IT and business for several companies. There, he saw CRM systems from the operations, development, user, and project side. He is now the head of a CRM IT team of developers and consultants.

Danny will talk about how Resco Field Service+ solved Eppendorf’s pain points and how they benefited from the cooperation with their implementation partner gorelate.

Abel started his career in 2003 as a developer of business solutions. Since 2016, he has been part of Noesis Portugal. As a Senior Manager, he has focused on customer service, sales, and field service for several market sectors for the last three years.

In his session, Abel will talk about how they implemented Resco Field Service 2.0 for their client EDP – EDPR, a global leader in the renewable energy industry.

Christian has worked at Scale Aquaculture for almost 10 years. Before assuming his current position, he worked as a Project Manager, Service Manager, and Claim Manager. For the last year and a half, he has been working with service technicians using Resco in combination with other systems.

Dag-André started his work career in the security industry in 2002 and moved over to IT in 2010. He has over 12 years of experience in various Field Service and CRM solutions. For the last 3 years, he has been Head of D365CE & power Platform in Norway.

Rune is a senior D365 Customer Engagement & Power Platform consultant with more than ten years of experience in the construction industry. Before crossing over to the consulting side of the business, he was a control engineer at Infratek AS and has a broad background in various management and engineering positions in Oslo.

Dag-André, Christian and Rune will introduce you to their unique use case in the aquaculture industry, and talk about how using Resco, specifically our Inspections+, helped solve their problems.

Kai Pautsch had his first encounter with the Resco Mobile App in 2012. Since 2017, he has worked as a consultant at ORBIS, where he implemented many projects using Resco technology. After a few years, he switched to Presales Consultant, specializing in Customer Service and Field Service.

Satish Reddy is the founder and CEO of Aha Apps, a company specializing in Field Service automation. Having built several mobile apps and software systems, he brings a wealth of knowledge to the table, helping clients solve problems creatively.

Steffen is the leader of the Dynamics 365 implementation and development team at TSO-DATA in Germany. He has been working with Resco technology since 2015. He oversees consultancy and project management tasks in Dynamics 365 projects in the DACH region.

In the expert panel about Mobile CRM, you will have a chance to connect with Kai, Satish, and Steffen, who will tell you more about what their companies achieved thanks to Resco.

Ope Okupe has been delivering CRM technologies for 10 years. He is the founder and principal consultant at Necessidad, an exclusive Resco Partner. Necessidad serves mainly SMB and Non-Profit organizations, delivering Resco for Salesforce to their customers.

As the Programme Logistics Lead at Mary’s Meals, Neil is currently responsible for ensuring the smooth delivery of the organization’s logistics function. In his former role as the Programme Delivery Lead, he worked closely with Necessidad Consulting to develop the organization’s Resco application.

In his tech deep dive, Ope will talk about how Necessidad Consulting LTD implemented Resco on a Salesforce backend for Mary’s Meals, what technological challenges they had to tackle and how the resulting solution works in the field.

Chris Bishop is a self-taught developer. He is currently an IT Systems Architect at Kee Safety, where he works with various systems. He also works with great tools such as Resco Mobile App Development Toolkit to help keep employees and customers safer when working at height.

Torsten focuses on the digitalization of business processes for sales representatives in pharmaceutical companies. He has used Resco technology for over seven years as a platform for mobile offline capabilities.

Chris and Torsten will share their success stories about how Resco solutions helped them take their business to the next level.

Jeremy Higgins is the CEO and founder of the management and software consulting company Higgins One. He has led multiple successful Enterprise System projects in various industries. Jeremy’s work experience includes leading teams in the development of complex system solutions based on Resco.

Tom started working with Resco products back in 2014. He currently works as the Head of IT at the Made for Movement Group. He specializes on Resco Field Sales+, Resco Inspections+, Microsoft Office 365 portfolio, Dynamics NAV(BC), and Dynamics 365 Sales.

In Jeremy and Tom’s session focused on Resco Inspections, you can expect tips & tricks and lessons learned on Inspections+ performance fine-tuning.

David is a qualified Management Accountant. His expertise in finance and business processes combines this with many years of technical experience. He works as Business Development Director at HG Technology, a consultancy service organization providing advisory services to mid-size businesses.

Millie Beere oversees all Resco-related projects at HG Technology. As the first point of contact for Bredon Hope’s success story, she ensured the successful implementation of Resco Inspections+ and continues to be there for support services.

In their session, Millie and David will share how they successfully implemented Resco Inspections and enhanced the operations of one of their most important customers in the construction aggregate industry.

Dale is a co-founder of NIVY Watch, who has spent the last four years exploring and researching IoT solutions for both home and business. He believes every warehouse, shop, and home will become completely connected, improving efficiencies in businesses, energy usage & customer service.

In his session, Dale will share the developments within NIVY Watch, their vision for the future and how they plan on influencing the path of IoT in the developing world of connected business.

You can see that this year’s agenda is full of exciting sessions with great added value that you surely don’t want to miss. Registration for this year’s resco.NEXT in Lisbon closes on 26^th September, so hurry up!

Príspevok Meet the speakers: Don’t miss these inspiring sessions at resco.NEXT 2022 zobrazený najskôr Resco.

Drivers of digitalization

Transitioning to more sustainable energy solutions is much easier when your business is already digitalized. Thanks to digitalization, companies can do things that weren´t even possible in the past.

Several things drive the digital transformation in the energy sector, but the most important ones are:

Big data

Nowadays, we are seeing an explosion of data. In 2018, the IDC reported that there is 33 Zettabytes in the world, and they expected it to grow to 175 ZB by 2025. Thanks to these large data volumes, access to information is easier, and algorithms are getting smarter. All of this is transforming the way the energy industry functions. Physical assets used in the energy sector, such as wind turbines or refineries, each generate thousands of measurements per minute. That is a lot of data!

Internet of things

Optimization of energy consumption is one of the key enablers of the transition to using sustainable energy. Thanks to digitalization, many organizations use modern technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT) to optimize energy use, and reduce their carbon footprint.

Artificial intelligence (AI)

Companies often use AI together with IoT to track their energy consumption and collect, monitor, and analyze data about their consumption and emissions. AI then uses the collected data to adjust their energy efficiency, achieve greater sustainability and in turn, reduce their carbon footprint.

What are the challenges?

Although all of the things we mentioned earlier help us to move forward, we shouldn´t forget about the numerous challenges digitalization brings.

Safety

Catastrophic events such as nuclear power plant accidents or natural disasters can cripple entire segments of the power transmission network. That has far-reaching effects on the environment and our whole society.

Thanks to digitalization, nowadays, we can prevent many catastrophes across the entire power grid. Technologies help us harvest and analyze data and predict risks early. However, to function properly, systems used in the energy sector must be regularly upgraded and known vulnerabilities within them eliminated. Ensuring the systems are compatible with the newest technologies is the key to keeping them safe.

Suitable infrastructure

In many countries, the aging power grid presents a challenge in itself. Materials used when building it are becoming obsolete. They need frequent maintenance and upgrades to keep up with the newest standards and be able to face severe weather conditions. Similarly, old internet cables cannot secure the same speed as current optic cables, and fast internet is a necessity when processing large data volumes.

Even the smallest infrastructure failure can cause the whole system to crash and lead to massive blackouts. That is why regular maintenance, including preventive maintenance is absolutely crucial.

Cyber security

The energy industry has become crucial for our functioning as a society – it powers cities, transport, factories, hospitals, etc. When the power grid was built, cyberattacks didn´t exist, and that´s why it can be vulnerable to these attacks. It needs to be protected against them. Cyber attacks are also becoming increasingly complex. When aimed at the energy sector, they can be highly damaging as they can trigger blackouts with very severe consequences for the economy.

Again, the best way to fight this is to keep the systems up to date so that they adhere to the current security standards.

Sustainability

The aim of the digital transition is to be able to use sustainable energy sources. However, the digitalization itself should also be sustainable. The rise of electric cars, non-utility solar energy, or innovations in battery storage are all things that contribute to the emergence of a new digital marketplace. Technologies such as the cloud or AI help reduce the overall environmental footprint by reducing paper use and optimizing energy use.

However, we must not forget that digitalization also has its footprint. Computers, servers and other electronic devices need a lot of natural resources to function. They are also becoming obsolete quickly and generating e-waste due to their low recycling percentage. That is something the energy industry will have to take into account when digitalizing its processes.

Tackle the challenges with Resco Field Service 2.0 for Dynamics 365

As you can see, the key to tackling the challenges we mentioned is keeping the technology up to date and not forgetting about maintenance.

Mobile solutions such as Resco Field Service 2.0 will allow you to see real-time data and evaluate it. You can also create digital checklists and reports that you can use in the field and fill out when completing an inspection or plan work orders for your technicians.

Discover all the benefits the solution offers and book a free demo today!

Príspevok Energy Sector Digitalization zobrazený najskôr Resco.

We’ve all heard of corporate drones, but few people thought we’d see real drones entering the workplace. But here we are – the future is now. Or is it? In this article, we’ll discuss the reality of using drones in various industries and how they can help you take your business to the next level.

What is a Drone?

First, however, we should discuss what a drone is. Drones, also known as Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), are essentially remote or software-controlled flying robots. Specific features tend to vary, but all drones share several aspects, including a light frame to increase maneuverability, propellers to enable flight, and sensors like cameras and GPS for navigation.

How are Drones Used?

Historically, drones got their start in the military, where they were used from anti-aircraft practice, through surveillance to warfare. However, as prices lowered and availability grew, drones became widely used in many civilian industries as well. This includes videography and photography, search and rescue, traffic monitoring, firefighting, and so on.

But that’s not what we’re looking at today. In this article, we seek to shed some light on the industries where you probably wouldn’t expect drones — namely, construction, real estate, and maintenance.

The Unlikely Uses of Drones in Commercial Industries

As mentioned above, drones can help improve your business in the most unlikely ways. In this section, you’ll find several cases for inspiration to kick-start your business’ transition into a new age.

Construction:

In an industry that already deals with a wide variety of heavy machinery, why not offset your ratio by incorporating some light equipment into your arsenal? Construction has had the highest growth in drone use among all commercial industries – 239%, to be exact.

Drones have helped revolutionize the entire construction project life cycle from beginning to end. This is primarily thanks to the technology’s unique real-time data recording feature and aerial advantage.  They help improve efficiency, cut costs, and streamline workflows.

Here are just a few use cases worth considering:

• Topographic Mapping & Land Surveys
  Topographic maps are necessary for any large-scale project, as they help reveal tough terrain ahead of time and let you plan accordingly. However, they are incredibly complex, which makes creating a topographic map both time-consuming and expensive.Drones can cover vast plots of land in 15-30 minutes, capturing relevant information via their cameras, which can be transformed into realistic 3D models. This solution can be 20x cheaper than traditional topographic maps, saving you time and money in the long run.
• Equipment Tracking
  Keeping track of all the equipment on your site can quickly become a statistical nightmare, especially when you factor in potential malfunctions. However, by using a drone, you can get an idea of your equipment’s state and location in mere moments. From there, it’s just a question of assigning tasks and deploying your technicians efficiently to get everything you need to where you need it. That can be a difficult task in and of itself, so you might want to consider using an equipment maintenance checklist to keep track of it all.
• Remote Monitoring & Progress Reports
  Working in construction, for better or worse, you have to answer to a lot of people, be they, managers or investors. Luckily, drones can help satiate your progress-hungry superiors with unprecedented photographic and videographic documentation of the construction site’s progress.
• Security Surveillance
  Anyone who has worked construction knows that having your equipment disappear in the dead of night can seriously dampen progress. According to the National Equipment Registry, over $300 million worth of equipment is stolen each year in the US alone, with only 25% ever being found.Drones streamline and simplify security surveillance, as an operator can simply fly over the construction site and use its camera to identify any unauthorized individuals or attempts at theft.
• Personnel Safety
  Construction sites are one of the most dangerous places a person can work at. Unsteady platforms and hazardous environment contributes to many tragic fatalities each year.

However, this can be prevented to a certain degree by using drones instead of personnel for gathering measurements. Furthermore, drones can assess the safety situation of a site on any day before workers even set foot there.

Drones paired with inspections software, such as Resco Inspections+, can significantly boost your productivity in the construction industry. 

Real Estate:

An age-old adage says seeing once is worth hearing a thousand times. And there are few places where this applies better than in the real estate business. Most realtors rely on a combination of photographs and text descriptions to convey just how great the property they’re trying to sell is. But there’s only so much you can do with a phone or camera from your (literally) grounded perspective.

Drones can be your eye in the sky and help you capture the unique aspects of your property. Let’s look at just a few examples:

• Location
  Is your asset located in tranquil nature or just a step away from the city’s center? Show potential buyer’s the reality with a quick fly-over video.
• Accuracy
  As we’ve already mentioned, pictures from your point of view can be really limiting. But an aerial shot of a house or plot of land can help you accurately depict the size and relation of the asset to everything around it.
• Storytelling
  Facts, no matter how informative, tend to be dry and boring. Hence realtors tend to sell stories rather than just property. And there are few better ways to convey an ideal future than with drone video.

Data and videos gathered by a drone can work wonders for your business. Solutions such as Resco Inspections+ Property can help you put them to good use.

Maintenance:

Maintenance is one of the most important aspects of running any commercial business. Equipment breakdowns and facility failures can cause many problems, including delays, loss of revenue, employee injuries, etc. Luckily, drones can help here too.

• Reduce Inspection Time & Cost
  Drones are beneficial in inspecting hard-to-reach places. Furthermore, thanks to technological progress, they can also be equipped with various sensors, making the process even easier.Companies no longer have to spend a fortune on accommodations, insurance, and specialized vehicles or equipment to get their employees where they need to go. A drone and a remote controller are all you need to reduce your work order time and costs significantly.
• Improves Safety & Minimizes Accidents
  On top of the cost savings mentioned above, drones also help reduce the risk of employee injury. Particularly when it comes to equipment located in hazardous places like oil rigs or destructive inspections in the oil and gas industry.
• Improves Facility Reliability
  Similarly, drones can prolong a facility’s lifetime. Invasive inspections can often compromise structural integrity. However, a quick drone sweep can help establish an asset’s state without destructive operations, revealing potential hazards and allowing for preventive maintenance rather than reactive.

As you’ve seen, drones can do a lot for your commercial business. Unfortunately, they can’t do everything, especially when it comes to actually maintaining structures and assets. But that’s where another piece of technology can come in handy.

Inspections+ allows you to build a mobile app for collecting data and streamlining workflows. Instead of struggling with an endless pile of paper, you can schedule, assign, and track your inspections and maintenance work orders directly from the comfort of your phone or PC.

So what are you waiting for? Revolutionize your business with the best modern solutions and watch your efficiency, safety, and ROI grow before your eyes!

Príspevok The Value of Using Drones in Business zobrazený najskôr Resco.

Luckily, taking steps toward improving working conditions can largely prevent all of this.

What is workplace health and safety in construction?

Workplace health and safety (WHS) is a set of principles and practices that show us how to manage the health and safety risks that workers, customers, and the public (visitors, suppliers, etc.) might face in the workplace. In the construction sector, these practices aim to eliminate risks on construction sites such as:

• Fire and explosions
• Skin hazards
• Handling heavy objects
• Handling chemical substances
• Defective equipment
• Electric shock
• Fall from heights
• Dust inhalation
• Faulty equipment
• Elevated noise levels
• and many others

In the high-risk environment of the construction industry, it is essential to create a strong health and safety culture that will ensure safe working conditions for everyone involved.

Who is responsible for it?

While authorities are responsible for monitoring construction sites, the sites as workplaces have various participants. All of them are responsible for safety but in different ways.
Company owners are responsible for their employees’ WHS and compliance with health and safety laws and policies. Different laws apply in different parts of the world. Still, employers everywhere must put safety practices in place to provide a safe work environment and information and training needed to keep the workers safe.

Workers have to follow laws and the workplace’s health safety procedures but also act responsibly and not do anything that might endanger them or other people in the workplace.

Kelly Roofing uses a digital solution to enhance security management on working sites. The company provides roof repairs and replacement services all over Florida. In addition to the intsallers, there is always a crew that manages the whole process at a designated roofing repair location.

The crew consists of a supervisor, who requires information about the crew’s whereabouts and agenda, an administrator, and a dispatcher who is in charge of scheduling.

To deliver professional service and at the same time create a safe work environment, the crew uses a mobile app built with Resco Field Service+.

Manage workplace health and safety

1. Risk assessment and planning

The first step in managing WHS is risk assessment. Identify and analyze the hazards in your workplace – their likelihood, how severe they are, and what their impact will be. Don’t forget to include your workers in the process.

2. Control and prevention

Take measures to eliminate the risks of accidents in the workplace. Use personal protective equipment (PPE) such as hardhats, safety eyewear, ear protection, safety shoes, reflective clothing, etc., to help reduce the risk of common accidents such as falls, electric shock, or being struck by objects.

Train your employees regularly so that they are able to adhere to safety practices and protect themselves. And last but not least, ensure your employees get regular breaks, so they are well-rested and able to focus on their tasks fully.

3. Health and safety management

Even though workers know how to behave safely and prevent accidents and injury, supervision is still useful, especially with new hires. Thanks to it, you can detect dangerous situations or unsafe practices early.

Not even trained workers can prevent incidents when they work with faulty or unsafe equipment. Take proper care of your equipment to remove hazards – in addition to necessary repairs, don’t forget preventive maintenance. Put measures in place for workers to report damaged equipment and train the maintenance personnel.

Don’t stop paying attention when things work smoothly – monitor the measures you put in place. That will help you identify how well you eliminated the risks, see your strengths and weaknesses, and help you see new hazards early. Mobile field service solutions can help monitor your measures and give your workers access to information they need to stay safe.

Another thing that can help you keep everything in check is a checklist. Our construction site safety checklist is a free tool that you can easily make your own. Customize it based on your industry and company standards – add photos and videos, keep track of your PPE, or report on work hazards.

Current trends

Safety is of the utmost importance when managing a construction site, as most accidents in this field are caused by bad or neglected safety practices. So, what are the current trends for managing health and safety on construction sites?

Remote work

The pandemic brought a sudden wave of remote work. This trend also affected the construction industry, and it is now clear that it isn’t going anywhere.

Most construction workers had no experience with remote work before the pandemic, but digital technologies helped organizations catch up. Digital replicas of construction projects, so-called digital twins, help on-site workers collaborate with remote colleagues. Remote assistance tools and calls allow technicians to follow step-by-step guides and user manuals or remotely collaborate with more experts in the office. That can help companies reduce errors and improve first-time fix rates.

Remote work, however, comes with its own set of risks like using mobile devices and equipment such as computers safely, blurred lines between private and work life, and additional stress and psychological pressure. That brings us to our next trend.

Focus on work-life balance

Employee stress and lack of work-life balance have been issues for quite a while. However, the pandemic further highlighted it. The lack of social interactions and blurred lines between home and work caused many people to experience anxiety, stress, or even depression.

Well-rested workers make fewer mistakes and are more focused. That is why employers are prioritizing their worker’s well-being and mental health. Companies are implementing stress management programs, trying out 4-day work weeks, or providing on-site therapists for their employees. Many employers also promote sports and fitness activities and financially support employees who represent the company in competitive sports events. Quite motivating, don’t you think?

Wearables

Just a few years ago, we viewed smartwatches as simple activity monitors and smart glasses reminded us of the unsuccessful Google glass project. Since then, wearables have evolved into sought-after devices that are almost able to replace smartphones thanks to their various useful features.

With the help of wearables and the right mobile solution, construction workers can access a vast knowledge base with all the information they need, be it instruction manuals or information about their clients. They can also use their wearable devices to communicate in real-time while keeping their hands free.

Companies can also use wearables to monitor their worker’s health, capturing information such as temperature, fatigue levels, etc. Analyzing this data can help them prevent health issues and create a safe work environment.

Make your construction site a safer place with Resco Field Service+

Mobile solutions such as Resco Field Service+ can help significantly minimize construction site health and safety risks. As information is centralized in the cloud, it can be shared with all the users that need access.

Thanks to mobile reports, workers don’t need to use paper documents. They can fill out reports on their mobile devices and even attach pictures to them.

To discover the benefits of our solution, you can read about how it helped the safety technology manufacturer Dräger service their life-saving equipment. Or book a customized demo to find out more!

Príspevok Health & Safety Management in Construction zobrazený najskôr Resco.

Ever heard any of these?
Here are some of the most-used myths you might come across when talking about location tracking software. Let’s now take a closer look and clear the air once and for all:

Myth 1: We don’t need to track our employees, we trust them

You trust your staff and hire only the best. So why should you monitor their whereabouts or activities? That’s a common argument coming up across many companies when words like “tracking” or “auditing” come up.

It’s important to explain that location and activity tracking is not about lack of trust. Instead, it enables to spot issues by collecting relevant data. These then drive improvements to company operations. And that should not only boost overall productivity and results, but ultimately make the employees’ jobs easier.

Myth 2: They will feel controlled

Rules at work exist to both protect workers by creating a safe environment and help workers be more efficient. The same goes for location tracking – just look at it as one of the business processes that improve the workers´ lives and help make their jobs easier.

Myth 3: It’s just dots on a map

Tracking solutions can do a lot more than just display the current position of the field staff.

It can also provide a clear-cut overview of how much time people spend on different tasks. And you can also schedule appointments, create route plans, or update vital job requirements and immediately push it to the staff on the go. With the right solution you can not only track their progress, but make sure they have all the tools and information to succeed.

Myth 4: With the extra functionality it’s going to be way too expensive

Not really, as most providers today offer a volume-based subscription packages. You don’t need to cover high flat rates, instead you simply pay for the number of users working with the solution.

Also consider that license fees often differ based on which part of the solution the user needs. For example, the price of a mobile license for field workers who use only the mobile part of the solution is significantly lower, than the price of a back-office license for managers who also need the monitoring and scheduling capabilities.

Myth 5: But it is still complicated to implement and use

To have a reliable GPS tracking system in place, you don’t need additional hardware or extensive software to effectively monitor the progress of your mobile workforce in the field.

Today, your field team can simply download an app to their phone or tablet. The app will utilize the device’s GPS module to share real-time location data with the back office – and that’s just the start. It can be used to navigate route plans and track the time users have spent on different activities. Or even to access other job-related information.

Additionally, the tools for supervisors and managers typically come as cloud-based web applications that can be even integrated with various enterprise systems, such as Microsoft Dynamics 365, Salesforce, and many others – something they most likely already know and use.

Myth 6: Location tracking is worthwhile only for big companies

There’s a frequent misconception that location tracking is only beneficial for large corporations with thousands of employees. However, it helps to increase productivity, reduce expenses and improve your services – which is worthwhile for any company with workforce in the field, regardless its size.

Myth 7: Tracked workers feel additional stress

On the contrary, location tracking simplifies work and reduces the stress that field workers feel. This is because they don´t have to worry about things such as filling out timesheets, recording which customer they visited and when, or reporting where they are going. Supervisors can see their route plans, schedules, and current location, so there is no need to additionally ask the workers about this.

Myth 8: Tracking demotivates employees

As we mentioned earlier, tracking improves productivity and effectiveness and helps streamline company operations. Thanks to this, your mobile workforce can see how much they have improved. Immediately seeing the results of their work doesn´t demotivate workers, on the contrary – it helps them feel more motivated.

Myth 9: Location tracking needs Wi-Fi or mobile internet to work

When you are connected to the internet, your phone uses it to stream maps to your device and access information such as live traffic updates or road blockages. It also uses the location of nearby cell phone towers and other Wi-Fi networks to determine your exact location. However, the GPS feature still works without the internet, as the satellites that it connects to are always functioning. Even if you are in an area with no service or Wi-Fi and you cannot send any data, the GPS will connect to satellites and your location will be traceable.

Myth 10: It will track employees when they´re off the clock

There are location tracking solutions used for criminal surveillance that have their own set of laws and can track people 24/7. However, location tracking solutions suitable for employee tracking can be turned off once workers are off the clock. They won´t track their location unless it is necessary.

Myth 11: It isn´t reliable enough

GPS satellites don´t go down. Even if something like that ever happened, there are spare satellites in orbit that will cover for them. You might experience small interruptions in areas where there are too many obstructions, but this is exactly why maps are continuously updated to add new location. This ensures accuracy and reliability, as routes don´t change very often, and there is no need for live updates.

Myth 12: GPS tracking is illegal

It is legal for employers to track their employee´s location in most states. What is, however, illegal is violating the worker´s privacy. As long as you are not violating your workers´ privacy and using company-owned devices, you can track their location.

Myth 13: Location tracking solutions access my worker´s personal information

Location tracking apps on mobile phones access only the location of the phone owner or information they explicitly allowed them to access. In fact, Google, or apps such as Facebook, Instagram and various social networks have access to much more personal information than any location tracking solution.

Myth 14: The government can track my worker´s movements

This is a fairly common misconception about location tracking. The GPS system isn´t designed to transmit signals, only to receive them. This means that the employee´s location cannot be shared with a third party. Simply put, external sources cannot track location tracking systems they don´t have access to.

Myth 15: They eat up all the data and battery

Just like every other app, location tracking apps will use some of your data and battery. But GPS runs in the background and its data and battery usage is very small compared to widely used messaging or social media apps that have numerous features running in the background.

Discover location tracking with Resco

One of the useful features of Resco´s all-in-one solution Field Service+ is location tracking with Resco Routes. This feature enables you to:

• track real-time location of your field staff,
• schedule appointments and create optimized route plans,
• use a pre-configured app for field staff, including time sheet management.

Príspevok 15 common myths about location tracking zobrazený najskôr Resco.

Everyone can minimize the damage

Carbon footprint is the total amount of greenhouse gasses generated by a person, organization, or nation. It’s measured in tons of CO2 emissions. 71 % of global greenhouse gas emissions are generated by 100 companies that mostly operate in the energy sector. The majority of greenhouse gases are created by burning fossil fuels, agriculture, forestry, industrial processes, and waste. However, this doesn´t mean that individuals and companies don´t also have a carbon footprint.

Each one of us can contribute to minimizing the damage by reducing this footprint. This applies to companies, too. Climate change has a massive impact on business. That is why companies are moving towards sustainability.

Many big names such as Siemens, Google, McDonald´s or BMW are taking action to protect the planet and reduce emissions. Consumer behavior is starting to change too. People who care about environmental issues are seeking brands that share their values.

Field service providers are also starting to make sustainability one of their priorities. That means better resource allocation, as well as following regulations limiting carbon emissions. So, what steps can the field service industry take to reduce its carbon footprint?

Make digitalization a driver of sustainability

Integrating digital technology into company processes is an essential step towards reducing your carbon footprint and becoming more sustainable. Digital technologies also have the potential to optimize energy consumption.

Many industries still use paper for completing tasks that can be done digitally, and field service is no exception. During an average order, a field service technician needs to fill out several sheets of paper. If they have four or five work orders a day, this can climb up to a 2-digit number. That´s a lot of wasted paper!

Another big issue is carbon emissions. It might seem like a small thing, but the truth is that transportation causes more than 20 % of carbon emissions worldwide. But what digital technologies can they use to cope with all of this?

1. CRM & field service management apps

A simple mobile app might be all it takes. Instead of carrying around documents with information about customers, field workers can access them on their mobile devices. The same goes for writing reports – you can just fill them out digitally and sign them with a legally binding e-signature.

Good field service apps should also have route planning features. Better route planning for fieldworkers can significantly reduce road traffic. With the help of a good route planning tool, you can optimize your employees´ routes with regard to traffic and their schedules. This way, they will spend less fuel, but also time on the road.

Field service software can also indicate when equipment needs maintenance. It extends the life span of equipment, lowers operating costs, and saves material. That, in turn, lowers the company´s harmful impact on nature.

2. Artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things

Some organizations

use the combination of artificial intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT) to help them reduce their carbon footprint. They collect, monitor, and analyze data about their energy consumption and emissions. AI then uses the data to make adjustments towards more sustainable use of energy.

The same approach can be used to reduce not only energy consumption but make consumption more transparent in general. AI can be used to optimize the use of building materials, track user assets and minimize supply chain issues or streamline logistical processes and much more. Keeping track of what assets and materials were used helps match consumptions to the demand and, in turn, reduce the carbon footprint.

3. Cloud-based collaboration tools

The cloud and collaboration tools can also be a great help. Remote collaboration can reduce both road traffic and paper waste. Virtual meetings, video conferences and cloud collaboration tools such as Slack, Microsoft 365, Asana, Google Workspace, Zoom, Click Up, RingCentral Webinar, and others all help reduce carbon emissions as people don´t have to travel to meet up.

As for field service, experts can collaborate with field technicians directly through their mobile or wearable devices thanks to remote assistance tools. The fieldworker also has access to user manuals and all the materials he needs on his device. There is no need for the expert to meet the technician in person or for the technician to travel back to the office for the manuals.

Enjoy the benefits of Resco Field Service+

Resco Field Service+ is an innovative mobile solution that allows companies to eliminate paperwork and make fieldwork more efficient. But this isn´t the only solution from Resco that is environment-friendly. Our Resco Inspections+ inspection software also helps digitalize workflows and lower emissions.

Digital documents and mobile forms help save costs and reduce your company´s carbon footprint. Scheduling and route planning features allow you to track your technicians in real-time and optimize their routes based on the traffic situation and their work orders.

Find out more about Resco Field Service+ on the official product page and discover its features or book a demo today.  

Príspevok Digitalization as a way to sustainability zobrazený najskôr Resco.

Nowadays, the need for paper is becoming increasingly rare, yet a lot of companies still rely on it. But paper documents can be unsafe for reasons you might not even realize. So, what are the biggest advantages of digital processes when compared to paper-based ones?

Access only for the authorized

Although digital data breaches can be just as bad as physical ones, we are better protected against them. Digital data is subject to regulations and data protection laws, but only a few organizations have measures in place against physical breaches other than locking documents away.

Paper records are very easily compromised. People can easily gain access to documents when they are left on tables, counters, filing cabinets, or unlocked storage areas. Issues can also arise during printing.  When printing documents on a work printer, they are left in the paper tray for several minutes while you collect them. In this short time, anyone can take a look at these documents. Or even worse, other employees who are also printing can snatch them up along with their own documents. Paper documents are also easily misplaced, can be misfiled, often there is no backup and to replicate them can be problematic.

Harder to tamper with

Anyone with access can remove pages or add entries. With paper it is almost impossible to find out when was the last time someone accessed or modified a document. Electronic documents, on the other hand, have a time stamp and changes are very easy to track. You can check the document´s history and see if anyone made unauthorized changes. And what´s better – digital documents can be protected by passwords, and you can set up rights for each user. Anyone without a password or access will be unable to open it, and only those with rights will be able to edit them. This way you can make sure sensitive information won´t end up in wrong hands.

Standardized processes

With paper documents, it can be hard to keep track of progress across complex tasks. Papers can go missing, workers can forget to fill out reports, misfile, or improperly label documents. They can also easily end up in the wrong hands. Digital processes are easily standardized – you can set up each step right at the beginning and avoid errors. Thanks to this, you can make sure everyone gets the right information in the right time and no unauthorized people have access.

Seamless collaboration

With paper-based processes, collaboration can sometimes involve more parties than just those actually involved. Very often there is a third party that handles and has access to the paper documents used.

With collaboration and troubleshooting through digital tools, you don´t need to worry about that. Cloud-based solutions allow workers to collaborate seamlessly, all they need is their desktop or mobile device. Technicians can collaborate with experts that can guide them through their tasks directly on their mobile or wearable device, thanks to remote assistance tools.

Security isn´t the only benefit of going digital

Paper-based processes are expensive. First of all, there is the cost of paper (not to mention that it hurts the environment). Then printers, ink, stationery, filing systems, storage space and the costs connected to archiving… Simply put, managing paper documents is unnecessarily expensive compared to using a digital cloud-based system.

Also, by using digital cloud-based solutions, you will get access to real time data. You can access the data repeatedly and change it if needed and also see the edits other people made. There‘s no need wait for a  large amount of data to be delivered so that you can analyze them and draw conclusions.

Ready to go paperless? Resco Field Service+ is the way to go!

Resco Field Service+ is a mobile solution that allows companies to eliminate paperwork and deal with the most complex field service scenarios. And its digital documents and processes will help you cut costs and keep your data safe.

Find out more about Resco Field Service+ and discover its features or book a demo today.  

Príspevok Why digital processes are safer than paper-based? zobrazený najskôr Resco.

What makes mobile apps a challenge for techs?

Although mobile devices penetrated the field service industry a while ago, some technicians still struggle with using them at work. Technicians often cannot operate a mobile device efficiently. They can also have trouble finding what they need in an app, or pressing the right buttons to start and stop appointments or manage inventory.

There are many things that can make mobile apps hard to use. The user interface (UI) can be inconvenient if it´s not clear and intuitive enough – for example, the layout is cluttered, or the navigation isn´t clear. The app needs to be fast, responsive, and able to work offline.

True mobility isn´t only about using mobile devices

A good mobile app shouldn´t just be a limited version of a desktop app. It should take advantage of the unique features mobile devices offer. But mobility isn´t only about phones. It´s also tablets and wearables such as smartwatches or extended reality wearable devices. At Resco, we focus on native mobility. All our solutions are easy to use and able to work entirely offline. They are not just versions of desktop apps with limited functions but full-fledged solutions that enable users to complete the task at hand with ease. So how are we making the mobile experience better than desktop?

1. Making use of everything mobile offers

One of the most important benefits of mobile devices is the actual features you can add when creating your mobile app. Cameras, voice control, location tracking, code scanning, gestures, gyro sensors – you can incorporate all these features into your app. These are all things that desktops are unable to do (or at least not so conveniently).

For example, if a technician wanted to take and upload a picture or measure and record the outside temperature when using a desktop, he would need multiple devices. With a good mobile app, he´ll only need one. Mobile field service solutions such as Resco Field Service+ allow technicians to plan their routes, take pictures, digitally fill out and sign reports, use AR for remote assistance and collaboration with colleagues, and much more.

2. Designing a dedicated UI

To make mobile apps as easy to use as possible, it is essential to have a UI dedicated specifically to the mobile device you´re using it on. We´re sure you know how frustrating it can be when you open a website on your phone, and the design isn´t responsive or when you open an app on your tablet that was originally made for phones.

It is crucial to consider the size of the screen and make sure the layout is not cluttered. While desktop apps use multiple columns, which allows for the use of sidebars, widgets, and navigation menus, phones and wearables can usually only fit a single column. Also, clickable elements should be big enough for users to complete their desired actions. Another important thing is the contrast between the elements, as low contrast lowers usability.

At Resco, we had to deal with this when designing the interface of our app for RealWear assisted reality devices. As these are voice-operated devices, users must be able to read everything on screen to control it with voice commands without any problems.

3. Easy to use hands-free

Using hands to control a phone or tablet can be an issue at some jobs. Therefore it´s a huge advantage if the mobile device is voice-operated. This applies especially to wearables, such as assisted reality devices and smartwatches. Voice control features can make the technician´s jobs significantly more manageable and more comfortable, as they don´t have to push any buttons to complete actions. For example, when entering data, they don´t have to type. They can just dictate the text. Technicians can also work more efficiently as they can do other tasks with their hands while talking.

4. Creating and using knowledge libraries

The technicians can´t easily use their laptops or paper folders to find notes and details about their clients and orders. They need to be able to access information fast and straight away.

Knowledge management applications such as Steps+ allow technicians to find guides, instructions, and walkthroughs. Users can also connect with experts that can guide them through their tasks in real-time, while on the job.

Technicians can also document each step of a task and create instructions and guides for their co-workers or new team members.

They can do all of this on a mobile device without using a computer.

Benefit from mobility with Resco Field Service+

Make the most of mobility in field service operations with Resco Field Service+, the innovative all-in-one solution. Whether you´re using smartphones, tablets, or wearables, your technicians will only need a single device to complete their tasks thanks to features such as voice control, location tracking, and remote assistance. To find out more, discover Field Service+ or book a free demo.

Príspevok How we´re making mobile field service experience better than desktop zobrazený najskôr Resco.

Over the past few years, they have evolved into sought-after devices with tons of valuable features that are almost able to replace smartphones.

And smartwatches, along with other wearables, have the potential to transform the field service industry as we know it. Not only can they increase productivity, but they are also able to reduce errors.

These are just some of the reasons why wearables should be part of every field technician´s attire.

Better access to information

With the help of smartwatches or AR glasses, field service technicians have access to a vast knowledge base. There is no need to bring papers to work.

All the information the technician needs is directly accessible on their wearable device. Whether we are talking about instruction manuals, client information, or remote collaboration, wearables such as smart glasses can provide your workers with all of this.

Increased safety

Features such as voice control on wearables increase safety by allowing staff to focus on their tasks. Thanks to these features, technicians can do their job more efficiently as they won´t waste time trying to figure out how to handle everything at once. After all, we only have two hands.

This is where wearables such as RealWear come in. The RealWear assisted reality devices are equipped with a high-definition camera for making visual documentation and a powerful mic that allows workers to use it in noisy environments. This way, workers can complete all their tasks while keeping their hands free. RealWear enables technicians to follow guides, complete inspections or make calls in hazardous environments. The device is dust-resistant and fall-proof.  And the best part? Resco has an app for RealWear already available for customers and partners. The app can be adapted to fit the client´s needs. It is offline enabled and can be directly integrated with Microsoft Dynamics 365 and Resco Cloud.

Error reduction

With access to information the technicians can open a user manual or a step-by-step guide that will guide them through the task at hand. These standardized instructions help keep workers on track and improve diagnostics. All this information is stored in the cloud so it can be safely shared with everyone who needs access.

Naturally, this helps companies achieve better first-time fix rates and reduce errors that occur when workers try to figure out how to complete tasks they don´t have enough experience with on their own.

Improved worker health

Wearables can monitor technicians’ health, capturing their heart rate, temperature, fatigue levels, and other metrics. Collecting and analyzing this data can help the employers predict health issues and create a safer work environment.

For example, Smart Cap is a device used by miners and long-distance drivers. It monitors fatigue levels and alerts them when they are about to experience a micro-sleep event. This way, it helps them prevent accidents and stay safe.

Enhanced productivity

Last but not least, wearables help boost efficiency and productivity across field service companies. All the benefits we mentioned earlier help workers manage their time better. This saves organizations both time and money, allowing them to complete their tasks efficiently. Analyzing the data collected from wearables will help you improve internal processes and eliminate errors that affect efficiency.

What´s next? Smart uniforms

As wearables are becoming more and more commonplace in the field service industry, some companies are starting to look even further. They are testing clothes such as caps with fatigue level monitoring, jackets with built-in LED lights, or t-shirts with solar batteries that can charge your smartphone, camera, and other devices. However, there is a long way to go until smart clothing becomes mainstream, so it´s safe to say we can focus on wearable devices for now.

Make the most of your wearables with Resco Field Service 2.0

Resco Field Service 2.0 is an all-in-one solution that helps you make the most of your wearables. With useful features location tracking, route planning, inspection forms and many others, Resco Field Service 2.0 can help you save time and money and enhance your workers´ productivity. Book a free demo today!

Príspevok Why wearables should be part of every technician’s attire zobrazený najskôr Resco.

1. Advancements in technology

Technological advancements are affecting the way people work in both positive and negative ways. Digitalization, AI, AR, nanotechnology, and robotics are transforming our workplaces in positive ways. Robots can take over dangerous jobs that are currently done by workers. Remote collaboration helps cut commuting time and related risks.

However, these advancements come with their own sets of challenges, such as concerns about being replaced at work, or the collection of personal information.

2. Access to information

Manual data entry can be very inefficient, not to mention that it causes errors and misinformation. It is hard for technicians to stay in touch with their home base, if it restricts access to information. Technicians that still use pen and paper instead of mobile solutions might arrive at their job without the information they need to complete their work order.

Free H&S checklist

Use our free Health & Safety template to digitize your inspections without hassle

I want the H&S checklist template

3. Scheduling & prioritization

Even within a single company, work orders can be very diverse, and it is important to choose the right person for each job. If the wrong worker is chosen, it can result in a second visit and an unnecessary waste of time and money. Orders and service calls also have various urgency levels, which is why prioritization is essential. While working on routine repair or maintenance calls, your technicians also need to respond to emergency calls. Which might cause technician double bookings.

4. Keeping track of the team

To ensure the safety of workers, companies need to be able to keep track of them. That might be challenging in remote locations with limited internet access. However, proper reporting and communication with supervisors is crucial. This is where wearable devices come in, as they allow supervisors to monitor worker behavior, safety, and health in real-time. Being able to track employee location, monitor their safety, and share data can improve first-time fix rates and increase the safety of workers.

5. Changes in work organization

The pandemic, along with the demands of an increasingly globalized world, has led to many changes in work organization. A growing number of employees work at non-standard working hours and places using various forms of employment.

And while remote work doesn´t endanger workers the same way as working in hazardous environments, it comes with its own set of challenges. While working from home saves people time related to commuting, it can also blur the lines between private and work life, creating additional psychological pressure.

How to deal with these challenges?

If workers don´t perform and document their jobs properly, or comply with the health & safety regulations, they might risk serious injuries. A mobile field service solution such as Resco Field Service+ for Microsoft Dynamics 365 Field Service can help minimize these risks.

Information is centralized in the cloud, which means that it can be safely shared with all the users who need access. Technicians who require certain information to safely complete their work orders can get hold of them anywhere.

Technicians can use their mobile devices or wearables to run these solutions. Wearable devices can also act as cameras, scanners or measuring devices. Instead of manually typing the information, technicians can scan the barcode on the device they are inspecting and all the information in the questionnaire will be automatically filled out.

Automated work scheduling helps resolve conflicts, avoid double booking, and plan routes and resources more efficiently. And thanks to mobile reports, technicians don´t need to carry paper documents with them. They can fill out the report on their mobile device, attach pictures and even sign them electronically.

Remote collaboration is another great capability that can help you avoid unnecessarily endangering workers. Instead of visiting locations that might be unsafe, they can collaborate with colleagues who are already on site through  mobile and wearable devices using remote assistance tools.

If you want to improve safety on your construction sites, check out our blog on improving the work environment on construction sites, where you will find even more useful tips.

Tackle the challenges with Resco Field Service+

Resco offers the tools that will help you improve your staff’s safety with Resco Field Service+. To find out more, take a look at the official product page or book a customized demo.

Start free trial of Field Service+

Príspevok Top 5 challenges in health & safety protection and how to deal with them zobrazený najskôr Resco.

Hospitality

It may surprise you, but field service solutions can also find use in the hospitality and facility management industry. Although work doesn´t take place on the go but in a building, there are many areas where field service software can help.

You still need to manage the schedules of various employee groups (such as maids, repairmen, etc.) and keep track of their tasks. Inventory and assets need to be tracked, equipment maintenance and upkeep are needed. Emergencies and accidents happen. A field service solution will help you make sure you have all the necessary parts to repair equipment, assign the right task to the right people, automate work orders, and keep track of what your employees are working on.

Healthcare

Employing digital technologies makes healthcare more accessible to patients than ever. Thanks to client portals, telemedicine, and AI, patients whose conditions aren´t severe don´t need to waste their time in waiting rooms.

As for mobile field service solutions, those are helping healthcare providers, such as community healthcare organizations or medical device manufacturers, work more efficiently. They allow them to switch from analog to digital and get rid of paper-based systems. A proper field service solution can help manage caregiver schedules flexibly, plan their routes, fill out patient forms directly from mobile devices and sign them with an e-signature.

You can read more about this use case in our case study. There you will find out how our solution helped the community healthcare organization Nurse Maude become more efficient.

Social services

Just like healthcare organizations, social service providers can also make use of field service software. The pandemic, along with the social distancing measures, showed us the need for digitalizing social services.

Instead of face-to-face visits, social workers had to switch to video calls with their clients and complete reports digitally. As the situation improved, workers can again visit the clients who prefer personal contact to video calls. But they still need to fill out reports, flexibly react to schedule changes, and access client information. And what better way is there to do this than by incorporating a mobile solution into their processes?

NGOs

Last but not least, NGOs can also benefit from field service solutions. These organizations often work with older devices in remote areas with limited or no internet connection, such as developing countries or conflict zones. But even they need to keep track of their staff, assign tasks and cases, and collect data.

The Ugandan organization Love in Action provides support, care, and education for local families and orphans in need. The organization uses the Resco mobile app paired with Salesforce. When visiting children and families, the social workers record the details of their visits on tablets, which they synchronize at the end of day. As Resco runs smoothly on all platforms and devices, it doesn´t have any issues with their iPad 2s.

The Resco app can be customized to serve not only as a field service solution but also for other purposes. For example, the UN Refugee Agency used it to build its Rapid Application (RApp). The app handles refugee data collection and management. It is deployed across 41 countries and works perfectly offline.

How can Resco Field Service+ help you?

As you can see, even if you don´t run a typical field service scenario, your company can still benefit from an all-in-one mobile solution that will help you deal with complex processes.

To find out how we can help you, discover Resco Field Service+ or book a free demo today.

Príspevok 3 + 1 industries that you wouldn´t expect to use field service solutions zobrazený najskôr Resco.