Field force is a team connects a company and a customer. Through it, an organization can learn more about its clientele, how to approach them, and what they are looking for, whether it is a product or a service. Field force workers go directly to the customer and initiate the first conversation with them, follow up on previous interactions, or conduct research on the demand and survey potential customers on their needs, goals, and preferences.

Managing the field force team requires a lot of time, effort, and skill. A field force manager has to be ready to come up with fast solutions, know how to support their team, quickly resolve possible issues, and understand all the intricacies of working with customers. In our guide, we will delve deeper into the role of field force management and its importance, as well as the tools that can aid in managing field force teams.

What is Field Force Management?

Field force management refers to the process of managing, overseeing, and supporting a team of field force workers. While field force teams are responsible for conducting client visits, fulfilling customer requests, attending job sites, and reporting directly to their superiors, field force managers focus on tasks such as resource allocation, performance monitoring, route optimization, and strategic decision-making.

Modern team management relies on tools like CRMs, GPS tracking software, workforce automation programs, and others to achieve peak efficiency and ensure that everyone on the team is on the same page. Without proper workforce management, businesses may find it difficult to evaluate the success of their lead generation and sales efforts, and field workers might operate without clear guidance on their roles or on how to engage clients.

What Is the Role of a Field Force Manager, and Why Do They Matter Most?

A field force manager is the direct link between the company’s headquarters and its customers. This is a professional responsible for overseeing the activities of a field force team and ensuring that all tasks and responsibilities are communicated properly. The main responsibilities of a field force manager are:

• Task assignment: One of the main responsibilities of a field force manager is to ensure tasks are assigned properly and are within the capabilities of an assignee;
• Scheduling: Tracking the schedule of workers and preventing possible overlaps;
• Resource allocation: Managing the distribution of tools, equipment, and other resources;
• Training and onboarding: Supporting skill development and providing training to both experienced and new employees;
• Problem solving: Addressing issues within the team and other problems in the workplace;
• Performance monitoring: Tracking the performance of team members and suggesting ways to improve;
• Customer relationship management: Ensuring that customer needs are met quickly.

The role of a field force manager is very versatile. This is the person who can build the bridge between office and field operations, providing unique insights to both sides. Here are a few more reasons field force management is so important:

• Improved field efficiency. Proper management helps reduce downtime, eliminates conflicts, and increases task completion.
• Better customer experience. A field force manager can boost customer satisfaction and loyalty by ensuring timely service and professional interactions.
• Better visibility. A field force manager is someone the workers can report to directly and provide all the details on customer interaction and what went right or wrong.
• Easier tracking, faster implementation, and smarter assessment of field force tools. A field force manager is responsible for ensuring that field workers have access to all the necessary tools and equipment, as well as checking if all the important integrations are available.
• Reduced costs. One of the main goals of a field force manager is not only to effectively allocate resources but also to cut costs where possible. By tracking all expenses, field managers can reduce operational costs and avoid wasted efforts.

A field force manager can completely change how field force employees operate, report, and plan. Just one individual can improve the performance of the whole team, which is why it is so important to have at least one force manager on board.

Digital Solutions for Field Force Management

There is a variety of digital tools and apps available that can make field force management much more efficient and problem-free for both managers and their teams. Let’s take a look at the best digital solutions that can help boost efficiency and maximize sales force effectiveness:

Route optimization tools

Even though many business operations occur online nowadays, many field force workers still conduct client visits, resulting in frequent travel and the need to optimize routes to avoid burnout, resource waste, and overexertion. From reduced operational costs to improved resource efficiency, route optimization tools offer many benefits, but the most significant is that they provide field workers with better travel routes, saving time and boosting productivity.

Field communication platforms

Field technicians must always be prepared for any situation. They need to know what to say, how to say it, where to find the necessary materials, where to go, and who to contact. Without the support of their team members and managers, it’s impossible to keep all of this information in their heads. This is why having access to a communication platform is crucial. It allows field workers to contact the right person or receive instructions and access all the important information with just a few clicks.

Communication platforms, while sharing many functions with other tools, are essential for bringing teams together, which is a key factor in achieving maximum field force efficiency. It’s best to use platforms meant to communicate clearly with your colleagues, such as Slack or Microsoft Teams, as they offer far more features than apps like Messenger, which are designed more for casual conversations.

Training and knowledge base apps

Every day brings a new trend, whether in tech, social media, well-being, or something else. Field force teams must be prepared for awkward questions, new slang, unexpected trends, and virtually any other scenario they might encounter. This level of readiness requires significant effort and a lot of time spent on self-learning, which is why it’s so important for a field force worker to have access to an app that contains all the necessary information.

eDetailing tools

eDetailing, or electronic detailing, is the use of digital tools and platforms for delivering information to healthcare professionals. Even though eDetailing is a term commonly used to refer to communication with HCPs, many industries can learn a lot from this approach to communication with clients, especially when it comes to delivering content.

During the pandemic, detailing software has proven to be a lifesaver in online communication, especially in the healthcare and pharma industries. Companies whose processes were hindered by COVID-19 had to juggle building new workflows from the ground up while still trying to connect with healthcare professionals, who had to put even more effort into helping their patients and ensuring that everyone gets enough attention. eDetailing was the solution that helped companies save time and made it easier for healthcare professionals to understand the products and services offered. The global market for tablet-based e-detailing was valued at USD 42.64 billion in 2022 and is projected to grow to approximately USD 59.80 billion by 2032. And this is just tablets we’re talking about — imagine the volume of demand for e-detailing on other platforms as well.

Currently, eDetailing remains one of the most important tools for field personnel, even if they continue to travel outside of the company’s office instead of meeting with the clients online. You and your team can use eDetailing platforms to create personalized customer journeys, filled with engaging content and unique insights, which are guaranteed to draw more people to your brand.

Field Force Management Systems to Enhance Performance

Now that we have discussed the best solutions for field force teams, it’s time to move on to field force management systems that help improve field force effectiveness and streamline operations.

Customer relationship management systems

CRMs offer many benefits, but one stands out in the context of field force management: providing a single, unified view of the customer. A CRM system equips field force workers with everything they need to be more productive, decisive, and confident. As your team gathers insights about customer behavior and preferences, all that data can be stored in a clear, organized format in a CRM system. This centralized view allows your team to easily access details about each customer’s purchases, preferences, past interactions, and more.

Moreover, CRMs make it easier to collaborate within the team, exchange insights, and contribute to market research, which leads to both customer satisfaction and more efficient operations. In today’s fast-paced world, it’s almost impossible to keep track of everything your team might do, along with the data received about clients, which is why implementing a CRM is the first step toward effective field force management. Big companies like Danone, Amazon, IBM, and many others are already using customer relationship management systems, proving daily that achieving customer satisfaction can be easy with the right tools.

Here are some of the features to pay attention to if you would like to improve the efficiency of your field service operations:

• Centralized customer database;
• Mobile access to customer data;
• Customer interaction history;
• Lead and opportunity management;
• Integrations with other systems;
• Task and follow-up management;
• Analytics and reporting;
• Customer segmentation and tagging.

Automated reporting systems

A lack of reporting tools can create a significant gap between when insights are generated, when they’re received, and when they’re actually delivered to the team or manager. Real-time visibility, provided by automated reporting systems, gives teams quick access to client insights, making it much easier to prepare for visits and build stronger customer connections. Manual reporting is error-prone and often requires a lot of time.

Moreover, this process often demands time that field workers don’t have between meetings, visits, and other activities. As a result, reporting becomes even more difficult, with a greater delay between customer interactions and when reports are actually created. Automated reporting systems help streamline operations for both managers and field teams, enabling real-time tracking, faster reporting, and quicker data collection. Instead of writing comprehensive reports all by hand, field workers can save time by using the field force automation software that makes the delivery of any report instantaneous.

Here are some features to look for if you are ready to implement an automated reporting system:

• Task assignment and reassignment;
• Real-time updates;
• Leave management;
• Resource management;
• Conflict detection;
• Calendar and timeline views;
• Automated reporting.

Scheduling and dispatching systems

With field force scheduling software, workers always know what they are supposed to do next, while managers have a clear view of all current tasks, projects, and travel plans. However, the benefits of these systems go far beyond productive planning — they can significantly improve performance and field force management by offering a complete, real-time overview of operations. This helps minimize manual errors such as overlaps, overtime, or incorrect task assignments.

Many scheduling and dispatching systems extend beyond basic planning. Intelligent scheduling, often powered by AI, enables both workers and managers to detect scheduling conflicts, automatically assign tasks and clients, control task priorities, schedule meetings, and optimize resource utilization. With these systems, employees no longer need to manage their schedules manually, and managers no longer have to spend hours figuring out who should handle which task.

If you would like to implement this type of field force software, these are the features that will make it the best choice:

• Quick scheduling;
• Real-time dispatching;
• Conflict and overlap detection;
• Performance tracking;
• Mobile access;
• Route optimization;
• Automated task assignment;
• Calendar and timeline views;
• Shift and availability management.

Performance tracking and analytics systems

Performance tracking systems play a major role in achieving maximum efficiency and productivity. With these systems, managers can monitor key metrics and manage tasks, while field employees can keep track of their actions, projects, and achievements. Advanced tracking and analytics solutions also provide real-time insights into field activities and, when powered by artificial intelligence, can deliver a comprehensive analysis of field team performance and recommendations for improvement.

If you would like to monitor the performance of your team and track tasks more effectively, look for these features in your performance tracking and analytics system:

• Real-time data tracking;
• Customizable dashboards;
• KPI monitoring;
• Automated reporting;
• Predictive analytics;
• Mobile notifications;
• Activity logs.

Conclusion

Managing a field force team is far from being an easy task. Modern-day field force management demands a lot of knowledge about how to assemble a productive team, find an approach to each worker, understand your clients, and find just the right thing for them quickly. The demand for quick solutions is growing, and managers grapple with increasing pressure to digitize field operations, coordinate teams in real-time, and meet rising customer expectations.

If you are looking for a system to effectively manage your team and bridge the gap between a client and company, Platforce will help you gain complete control over your sales cycle management. Leave a request for a demo right now, and our team will contact you to provide a free Platforce trial.