Is your organisation investigating ways to eliminate collecting data on paper for your mobile workforce?
This week we are exploring the top 10 important questions you should ask vendors you are evaluating before you make this decision.
5 More things to think about....
6. Can my customers have automatic reports emailed to them when the mobile worker completes the job at the customer location? Can the management team also receive automatic email reports so they can manage the activity in the field?
Data collected in the field can be automatically embedded in a PDF report, attached to an email and sent immediately, all with no intervention from the Administrator. The PDF can embed signatures, photos or sketches that were collected in the application as well. The business rules can be configured so that the report is automatically emailed out to customers, division managers or anyone who needs to review the data. This feature means that your customers could have an email in their inbox before the mobile worker leaves the site.
7. Do I have the option to lock down the device so my mobile workers can’t inadvertently download viruses, games, etc?
Administrators can completely customize what features the users have access to on their devices. For example, devices can be locked down in Kiosk Mode to prevent users from installing games or applications that IT would then be forced to support. Administrators can also control the menu access, thereby giving access to only those menu items they deem appropriate. Because the platform is integrated with LDAP and Active Directory, these options can be set individually, for groups or for all mobile workers globally.
8. What features are built into the solution for me to remotely manage my mobile workforce?
The Desktop allows Administrators to send alerts and messages to mobile workers in the field. When the mobile worker reads the message an acknowledgement is immediately sent to the Administrator for tracking purposes. Administrators can also monitor the device battery life, memory, device ID and version of software deployed. Built in Google Map tracking also allows managers to report activity monitor and coach users.
9. Do I have to manually upgrade each device if the vendor issues a new release of their software or can this be managed remotely?
The platform has built in remote software updates, which means that customers do not have to purchase a 3rd party application to manage software releases. The platform allows remote software updating for not only our own applications, but any third party applications. Instead of calling the devices in from the field to manually upgrade them, Administrators simply import the new release files into the Desktop. During the next synchronization the updates will be sent to the device, activated, and applied. This means your IT department is free from the countless hours of labor typically required to keep your devices on the latest version of software. And, your mobile workforce avoids downtime while waiting for the updates to be applied. This feature eliminates the administrative costs typically required in a mobile project.
10. What happens if I start synching data and my connection gets dropped? Is there any synchronization management built into the solution?
If the mobile worker’s connectivity is lost in the middle of synchronizing data, the system tracks where it left off and will begin syncing again from the exact same place when connectivity becomes available again. This feature greatly minimizes transmission costs and optimizes user productivity.
Customers can prioritize their sync networks as well as set their sync preferences so the system will begin synching at their preferred times or based on an event within the data collection process. If no network is available at the defined times, the system will keep trying to sync until successful. This process is autonomous with the mobile worker taking no action. And, if the mobile worker is in the middle of collecting data at the time of the scheduled sync, the sync engine runs in the background and does not take over the screen or slow performance.
Contact us about MobileWorxs Enterprise Mobility sales@mobileworxs.com
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