[:en]Summary: Customer-driven outlook

The survey indicates that organizations see mobile device and IoT technologies as a way to strengthen the customer experience. Meeting customer requirements is seen as the top challenge for field workforces, while “maintaining customer trust” is the leading quality desired from field workforces. And when it comes to the IoT, while only 17% have implemented projects or have deployments in the works, respondents rank “improving customer experience” a very close second to productivity improvements as IoT objectives.

The use of bar coding in logistics, delivery services and field services operations is well established. Accuracy, ruggedness and device security are essential characteristics sought from devices. The survey, however, also revealed interest in driving new revenue opportunities, and giving workers the ability to quickly react to customer demands, both of which are enabled by mobile devices that make it easy for users to access management applications and real-time order fulfillment information. It’s also possible that respondents’ growing interest in technologies such as RFID and mobile printers is related to meeting customer requirements in areas such as traceability or returns processing.

In this connected age, it seems most leading technology choices tie back to improving the customer experience. That’s a change from the past when technology choices for data collection were often centered on process efficiencies.

Excelling at customer service in the connected world is about bridging physical processes such as field service and delivery with systems for order fulfillment, sales and order promising, and workforce management. With the right devices and mobile data capture technologies in the hands of service, delivery, and field sales workforces, companies can better blend the challenges of the physical world with digital systems so that commitments are met, added products and services can be sold, and installed products will perform optimally for customers throughout their entire life-cycles.

Methodology

This research was conducted by Peerless Research Group on behalf of Logistics Management magazine for Honeywell International Inc. This study was executed in January of 2016, and was administered over the Internet among subscribers to Logistics Management. Respondents were qualified for being employed at a company having field service or sales workers. In total, 324 professionals who are decision-makers for their company’s logistics operations participated in the study.

Respondents are predominantly top corporate executives, directors of supply chain operations, managers of logistics, and other operational directors. Four out of 10 reported that they work at a warehouse or DC, while about one out three are located at a manufacturing facility or at their corporate headquarters. A breadth of industries are covered in the study and include manufacturers of industrial machinery, food and beverage, chemicals and pharmaceuticals, computers and electronics, automotives and parts, and energy and gas. Wholesalers, retailers and transportation and trucking services are also included in the study.

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