Market Knowledge: The Keystone of Solution Provider Selection in Field Service Management
As we’ve explored across this paper the selection of a solution provider is pivotal to future success, and multiple factors alongside the technology should be taken into account. Today’s field service organisations require more than just software; they need a genuine partner well-versed in the intricacies of both the processes of operations of the field service sector…
If you missed any of the articles in the series so far you can find the first article in this series where we put forward the idea that we should assess technology partners on more than just the technology itself here, the second article where we explored the table stake technologies we should expect as a minimum here , the third article where we discussed the importance of a partner who can help with implementation and integration here, and the fourth article, where we discussed the importance of partners who share your vision here.
It is a simple statement of fact that a solution provider with deep market knowledge of the sector they serve, will bring with them a much more sophisticated understanding of the industry’s current landscape and can work along you to predict the seismic shifts that may affect service delivery.
Cultivating a Partnership Beyond the Product
When seeking solution providers who can become truly effective partners, market knowledge represents a comprehensive awareness of the industry’s fluctuations, customer needs, technological trends, and the competitive landscape. This knowledge can and should encompass an understanding of regulatory changes, market conditions, and the innovation trajectories of both service strategies and the technologies required to make them effective.
It is this multi-faceted understanding that enables solution providers to craft systems that can pre-empt future challenges and meeting them with ready solutions.
Indeed, top-tier solution providers engage in an array of methods to cultivate and refine their market knowledge. From leveraging advanced data analytics to monitor market trends and extract actionable insights industry data, to engaging with the industry through partners such as Field Service News, who not only have a heavy and well-respected research arm, but whose senior leadership engage with senior representatives on a day in day out basis.
Indeed, it is through discussion, what we refer to as talking with the market rather than at the market, that solution providers can stay ahead of the future trends and attendance to industry discussions such as those hosted by Copperberg or the Field Service News Think Tank sessions play a vital part in keeping that knowledge current and establishing a real understanding of the pain points companies the market they serve face both today and tomorrow.
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