The firm’s secret to meeting rapidly growing demand? Ditching an out-of-date service management system that relied on faxes for modern, cloud-based solutions.
When Victoria Butt, who leads Chair-A-Medics’ technology operation, joined the team in 2014, it became clear to her that the company was at a pivotal point. Business was growing, but the company—the nation’s largest provider of recliner maintenance—was stuck using 20th-century tools like faxes and clipboards.
The challenge: Modernize the firm’s technology—and quickly.
The steady growth into new facilities and states across the country was a welcome challenge for the North Carolina-based business. And as the IT team lead, Ms. Butt was eager to update the company’s technology to help the company meet its expansion goals.
Today, Chair-A-Medics serves about 900 customers in multiple locations nationwide. The rapid growth in dialysis centers is driving more business to Chair-A-Medics, and the company needs to respond quickly to maintenance requests to ensure chairs are available when patients need them.
When Faxes Fall Short
From Ms. Butt’s perspective, Chair-A-Medics had a solid client base and experienced, knowledgeable technicians — but the company’s systems couldn’t accommodate the company’s ambitious growth plan.
“The age of old technology, like faxes, to manage appointments was over,” she says. The lack of a connected and comprehensive system to process service requests inhibited technicians’ workflows.
Chair-A-Medics’ calendar program and accounting software amassed silos of information, which created unnecessary delays, she says. It was a wake-up call.
Clarity in the Cloud
The company needed to adopt new software, but Ms. Butt didn’t want to tack on yet another product to Chair-A-Medics’ systems.
The age of old technology, like faxes, to manage appointments was over. — Victoria Butt, IT manager, Chair-A-Medics
After vetting many field service management products, Chair-A-Medics chose ServiceMax. Cloud software, accessible to technicians and service managers via their mobile devices, replaced faxes and clipboards.
“Everyone in the company uses it all day, and we’re implementing more functions and solutions as the business grows,” Ms. Butt says. “With information available at their fingertips, our technicians are able to keep customers informed and log their work instantly.”
Small Changes, Big Improvements
The continuing updates that ServiceMax software provides, even some of the seemingly minor ones, have had major impacts on customer service.
Technicians can email clients directly from the ServiceMax app to let them know what time they’ll arrive on site, or alert them if they’re running late. The software can even track each chair individually, including serial numbers and parts orders.
These improvements have driven Chair-A-Medics technicians’ productivity up by about 30 percent — and growth is no longer limited by inefficient processes.
“We haven’t just moved one step forward, we’ve moved ten steps,” Ms. Butt says. “Before, our ability to move into new markets, even when customers asked us to, was delayed. Now we quickly meet our customers needs and market to potential customers in more regions.”
The improved customer service also reflects well on the company’s technicians, she says.
“They were already great at their jobs—now they’re equipped to do their jobs even better.”
Images via Chair-A-Medics
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