Field service management (FSM) refers to the management of a company's resources employed at or en route to the property of clients, rather than on company property. Examples include locating vehicles, managing worker activity, scheduling and dispatching work, ensuring driver safety, and integrating the management of such activities with inventory, billing, accounting and other back-office systems. FSM most commonly refers to companies who need to manage installation, service, or repairs of systems or equipment. It can also refer to software and cloud-based platforms that aid in field service management. Industry examples Field service management is used to manage resources in several industries. In telecommunications and cable industry, technicians who install cable or run phone lines into residences or business establishments. In healthcare, mobile nurses who provide in-home care for elderly or disabled. In gas utilities, engineers are dispatched to investigate and repair suspected leaks. In heavy engineering, mining, industrial and manufacturing, technicians dispatched for preventative maintenance and repair. In property maintenance, including landscaping, irrigation, and home and office cleaning. In HVAC industry, technicians have the expertise and equipment to investigate units in residential, commercial, and industrial environments. In the Postal and Packaging industry, technicians find out the exact locations of the customers and deliver/receive the packages. Requirements Field service management must meet certain requirements: Customer expectations: Customers expect that their service should not be disrupted, and should be immediately restored Underutilized equipment: Expensive industrial equipment in mining or oil and gas can cost millions when sitting idle Low employee productivity: Managers are unable to monitor field employees, which may reduce productivity Safety: Safety of drivers and vehicles on the road and while on the job site is a concern both for individuals and their employers Cost: Rising cost of fuel, vehicle maintenance, and parts inventory Service to sales: Increasingly, companies expect their services department to generate revenues. Dynamic environment: Continuously balancing between critical tickets, irate customers, productive employees, and optimized routes make scheduling, routing, and dispatching very challenging Data and technology: Many times, the data for analytics is missing, stale, or inaccurate. Software FSM software has significantly evolved in the past 10 years, however, the market for FSM software remains fragmented. The software can be deployed both on-premises or as a hosted or cloud-based system. Typically, FSM software is integrated with backend systems such as service management, billing, accounting, parts inventory, and other HR systems. The large majority of FSM