Editor’s Note: Today’s cartoon is part of our “Comic Brake” series. Field service management is serious business, but everybody deserves a good laugh after a long week in the field. Check back for cartoonist Terry LaBan’s next installment on FSD.

Comic Brake: People Skills

As part of our Women in Field Service series, we’ve interviewed a number of our female customers to find out what it’s like to work in field service and what their advice is for women looking to succeed and for companies looking to hire more women.

Ashely Lawrence, the Director of Business Analysis at Quench, had some great advice for attracting more women that ties into this comic quite nicely. Here’s what she had to say: 

“The way in which you market and put your job descriptions out there is very important. A lot of times when you look at technician descriptions, they are very heavy on knowing how to tinker rather being the face of the company to the customer, being a good communicator, and being empathetic when working with the customer. You don’t see that in job descriptions that are out there. You very much see someone who can fix this, someone who has this skill set, knows plumbing, etc, rather than a focus on being a good communicator and a rock for the customer to be comfortable with.”

 

ABOUT Terry LaBan

Avatar photoTerry LaBan's cartoons and illustrations have appeared in publications like Mad Magazine, Nickelodeon Magazine and Details. His comic book series have been published by Fantagraphics books and Dark Horse Comics and he wrote a lot of stuff for DC. From 2001 to 2015, he created a daily comic strip called “Edge City,” which was syndicated by King Features Syndicate. He's tough, seasoned and he's not afraid to get his hands inky. If you need cartoons — and who doesn't? — he's definitely your guy. See more at his website, www.cartoonimpact.com.

ABOUT Kristen Wells

Kristen is the senior manager of corporate communications at PTC and editor of Field Service Digital. She is passionate about elevating the stories of women in field service and improving communication between the field and the office. Prior to ServiceMax, Kristen held content marketing roles at startups such as Zinc and cielo24. Kristen holds a B.A. in Communication with an emphasis on Professional Writing from the University of California, Santa Barbara.