A better way to manage inventory and other important data
Vivint Field Service Application
My Contribution
Product design, User research, Release strategy
The Team
1 Product Manager, Sr. Product Designer (me), 2 Developers
Background
Vivint helps families live intelligently in safer, smarter homes. A safer home starts with smarter security. Vivint is constantly innovating on their products and processes to provide peace of mind for every homeowner and to meet the needs of every unique home.
Research
To truly understand the challenges everyone was facing, we needed to conduct ride-alongs with our Field Service Professionals and observe the support staff at our corporate offices.
What we observed during ride-alongs:
Field Service Professionals were frequently on phone calls, trying to resolve customer account issues and determine the specific hardware required for each home.
The extensive logistical details to address at each location often meant spending over two hours at a customer’s residence. This lengthy process appeared to inconvenience many customers, as they typically had other obligations and limited time to spare.
What we observed and learned while watching the staff that supported the field service group:
Excel spreadsheets were used to track upsell records and manage truck inventory for the Field Service Professionals.
The reliance on Excel made the Field Service team uneasy, as they were aware of the potential for errors and data inconsistencies.
Inventory shortages were common, requiring Field Service Professionals to call in and coordinate hardware swaps with nearby colleagues, often causing delays.
Field Service Professionals frequently complained about inaccuracies in upsell data, which led to incorrect bonus payouts and frustration among the team.
Goals
Based on our research, we identified key goals and metrics to accomplish in the first iteration of the application:
Streamline inventory management: As the company scaled, Excel was no longer a viable solution for managing inventory. We aimed to eliminate manual processes and let an automated inventory management system handle the complexities, reducing logistical headaches.
Build confidence in data for Field Service Professionals: By leveraging APIs and integrating with Salesforce, we could track changes from the original purchase order to identify upsells. This approach would ensure accurate data and provide the transparency Field Service Professionals needed.
Minimize unnecessary human interaction with intelligent automation: Utilizing modern scheduling software, we aimed to provide Field Service Professionals with a dynamic, real-time schedule. This would eliminate the need for phone calls to confirm their next task. The system would automatically adjust schedules to account for cancellations or changes, optimizing routes by assigning the next nearest appointment.
What We Learned
Consolidating everything into a single application to manage inventory, upsells, and appointments proved to be the right solution for addressing the pain points of the Field Service team.
In remote customer locations, the application occasionally failed due to mobile network issues. This highlighted the need for an iteration that could cache inputted data locally until the device regained network connectivity.
With the application in place, Field Service Professionals were able to work more efficiently, spending less time in customers' homes. This improvement led to an increase in the number of systems installed and repaired each day.
Final Thoughts
Developing this application was a game changer for this part of the Vivint organization. Empowering Field Service Professionals to input their own data gave them greater confidence in the accuracy of the information they relied on. They could more effectively track their truck inventory, and the system automatically replenished stock when levels fell below a set threshold, ensuring they always had the necessary supplies on hand.