Field Workforce Management vs Field Service Management
Two terms that often get used as if they meant the same thing. What each covers, where they overlap, and how to tell which one your business needs.
"Field service management" and "field workforce management" often get used as if they meant the same thing, and software vendors pick whichever sounds better that month. They are different, and knowing how helps you choose tools that fit the way your business works.
The short answer
Field service management (FSM) is about the work: jobs, equipment, customers, parts and service history. It suits businesses that install, repair and maintain things.
Field workforce management (FWM) is about the people doing the work: attendance, location, visits, leave, expenses and pay, whatever the work is.
Side by side
| Field service management | Field workforce management | |
|---|---|---|
| Built around | The job | The employee |
| Typical questions | Is it fixed? What was used? When is it next due? | Did they turn up? Where are they? What do we owe them? |
| Core records | Work orders, assets, parts, service history | Attendance, visits, location, leave, payroll |
| Typical users | Technicians, engineers, dispatchers | Any field staff: technicians, reps, cleaners, crews, agents |
| Measures | First-time fix, on-time, SLA compliance | Attendance, utilisation, coverage, hours |
Where they overlap
A maintenance company runs mainly on FSM, but its technicians' attendance still has to reach payroll. A sales or merchandising team runs mainly on FWM, yet its visits are structured work with evidence, much like jobs. A cleaning company needs attendance at each site (FWM) and proof that each clean was done (FSM).
Almost every field business needs some of both, so the useful question is whether one system covers both the work and the people, or whether you will be joining two systems together every month.
Which do you need?
You need mostly FSM if your revenue comes from fixing, installing or maintaining equipment and your biggest problems are first-time fix, parts and service history.
You need mostly FWM if your people's presence and movement are what you sell, as with sales reps, surveyors, security and cleaning, and your biggest problems are attendance, coverage and pay.
You need both if you employ a field team and do service work, which describes most businesses. Then the cost of two systems, and of re-typing between them, adds up quickly.
Questions to ask any vendor
- Does attendance from the field app reach payroll without anyone re-typing it?
- Can a visit be recorded with the same evidence as a job?
- Is equipment history kept for each asset, or only for each job?
- Can supervisors see their own team's work and attendance in one place?
In Movtro
Movtro covers both in one system. On the service side it has jobs, dispatch, assets, parts, recurring maintenance and a customer portal. On the workforce side it has attendance with location, visits, leave, expenses, advances and payroll. The same field app handles jobs and clock-ins.
For more on each, read what is field workforce management? and the practical guide to field service management software.