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84 business magazine for i n t e r n at i o n a l e n t e r p r i s e s

Allan Connolly,president of Aclara and divisional vice president of Hubbell Power Systems PAGE 31

Webhelp acquisition Runway BPO PAGE 35

Volvo’s wheel loader of the future in Lego PAGE 55 World-class software by Autodesk PAGE 39 Sustainability in forestry by Domtar PAGE 47

BUSINESSt r e n d s

E I G H T Y - F O U R T H E D I T I O N 2 0 1 8

Dear readers,

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is increasingly finding its place in the

manufacturing sector. In this issue of Business Trends you can

read an article about one of the innovators and frontrunners in

this space; the people of Autodesk explain why they expect

Virtual Reality will make a big impact on the construction

industry. They also believe machine learning will take product-

design creativity to a new level, while Sensing Robots will make

manufacturing faster and more accurate, generative design and

simulation will predict manufacturability and crowd sourced

data and generative design will create happier workplaces.

Constructors around the world leverage new technology to help

make their design ideas into reality. In this issue we highlight a

great example of this: Volvo Construction Equipment (Volvo CE)

and LEGO® Technic, two iconic Scandinavian brands, have been

working together to build a miniature concept machine that

give us a fascinating insight into the driverless construction

machines of the future. Parts of the LEGO® Technic Volvo

Concept Wheel Loader ZEUX will likely feature in future Volvo

machines says Arvid Rinaldo, Brand Communication &

Partnerships at Volvo CE. “We wanted to cooperate with a

premium toy manufacturer, just as we are a premium player in

the construction equipment sector. Volvo CE and the LEGO®

Group together create a perfect match, both culturally and in

what we try to achieve in our products – exploring together

how we can build tomorrow.”

And it’s not just the builders who use new tech to boost their

creativity, as Pernod Ricard proves. They recently launched a

connected glass for Havana Club rum that sends cocktail orders

directly to bar staff. The connected glass was developed with

technology startup BlackSheep, who aim to modernise order

taking in restaurants and bars with a web app that does not

need to be downloaded. Fabien Darrigues, who’s in charge of

external communications at Pernod Ricard, said the connected

glass is “the latest example of the group’s digital ambition” that

“goes beyond traditional communication between brands and

consumers and helps establish new interactions with them”.

We hope these stories will inspire you as you continue to grow

your own business.

Ellen GroenEditor in Chief

Business Trends is an international business magazine

Publisher: Business Trends

Kuipersdijk 20-73, 7512 CH Enschede

The Netherlands

Tel: + 31 (0)53 574 55 47

Fax: +31 (0)84 877 01 15

e-mail: ellen@business-trends.nl

internet: www.business-trends.nl

Editorial Staff: Patricia Allen, Laura van Beest,

Bette Berlau, Anne Fransz,

Karin Gourley, Ellen Groen,

Donna Lee, Clare Martin,

Monica Meijer, Christa Niemeijer,

Audrey Rhodes, Erna Welscher

Secretariat: Bette Berlau

Lay-out: Mooilucht, Hengelo, The Netherlands

www.mooilucht.nl

© Copyright 2018, all rights reserved. No part of this magazine may be reproduced

without the prior permission of the publisher. Photos accompanying the text are

published with company approval unless stated otherwise.

business 84 business magazine

for i n t e r n at i o n a l e n t e r p r i s e s

E I G H T Y - F O U R T H E D I T I O N 2 0 1 8

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business trends

The next generation of field service management

Astea International is the company behind Astea Alliance™, which is often dubbed the ERP of field service management. The field service management suite provides businesses with tools and functionalities that help them to manage their customer service delivery and interactions, from the very first point of contact to the work order, and all the way through to invoicing. The solution can either be deployed on-premise or hosted in the cloud. Emily Hackman, Astea’s Director of Global Marketing, highlights the latest generation of Alliance: Alliance™ Enterprise™ is due for release this summer, featuring an entirely new look and feel as well as innovative capabilities designed to maximize the efficiency of service operations, digitize and improve the customer experience, improve the effectiveness of field workers and help organizations compete in the face of a global talent war for skilled labour.

of worker in the most effective way, and

then monitor their performance as if they

were their own employee. Service

companies can consider the best and

most cost-effective mix of native, third

party and contingent workers when

scheduling and dispatching right within

the Alliance platform. In addition,

contingent workers stay connected to the

back office in real-time, giving service

organizations visibility into all field

workers and enabling them to schedule,

monitor performance and bill more

efficiently. “In addition to seamlessly

integrating contingent workers,

organizations are also increasingly

inviting third parties such as partners and

vendors to their online field service

platform,” Ms. Hackman points out. “This

again is what we have taken into account

in the latest version of Alliance.”

This latest version of Alliance, formally to

be called Alliance Enterprise, is described

as “the most transformative software

version release to date” for Astea’s

flagship product. This release will include

an entirely new look and feel, which

according to Ms. Hackman is more in

keeping with what people are used to

from their personal smart devices at

home. Alliance Enterprise also comes with

a range of new services: in addition to

demands for intuitive, mobile, real-time

interactions that provide transparency,

visibility and control over the relationship

with their service provider. Our customer

portal and customer self-service mobile

app have been enhanced with features

such as appointment booking, live

chat with a service agent, and Uber-like

visualizations of technicians arriving at a

customer site. These are all examples of

the kind of smart self-service interactions

customers now expect from their service

company.”

She adds that Alliance Enterprise was

“extremely well received” by visitors to

the Field Service Forums. “We participate

in these Forums to educate our market,

not just on the usability of our

technology, but also on the business case.

Our platform engages virtually all levels of

the organisation, from workers in the field

accommodating contingent workers and

third parties, it will also enable Just-in-

Time Service™ by integrating with the

most popular carriers to coordinate parts

delivery dates with technician arrival

dates. Alliance Enterprise will also deliver

greater intelligence via multiple mediums,

including embedded and external

business intelligence, reporting,

dashboards and scorecards, to any

stakeholder in an organization’s service

ecosystem. Information will be accessible

via any of the new native applications and

portal interfaces that are part of the

expanded Alliance mobility applications.

Customers, crew chiefs, partners,

executives and technicians can now each

connect to critical business applications

and emerging technologies utilizing

native applications that build upon the

award-winning Alliance Mobile Edge™

application.

To introduce Alliance Enterprise to

customers and other interested parties,

Astea organised Field Service Forums in

the US and in the Netherlands in the first

six months of the year. “The theme for

Field Service Forum 2018 was The Future

of Customer Engagement, which aligns

perfectly with the customer-centric

design tenet of the newest version of our

Alliance platform,” Ms. Hackman explains.

“Alliance Enterprise empowers service

organizations to answer customers’

Astea International

240 Gibraltar Road

Horsham, PA 19044-2306

USA

Website: www.astea.com

Founded in 1979, Astea International

today is a global leader in field service and

mobile workforce management, including

all the cornerstones of full service lifecycle

management: customer management,

service management, asset management,

forward and reverse logistics

management and mobile workforce

management and optimisation.

Over the years, Astea’s technology has

moved with the times, addressing current

issues and developments in field service

management. The Internet of Things (IoT)

is high on the agenda in this industry

right now: the evolution of sensors in

connected devices and advances in big

data analysis are combined to make

field service increasingly proactive,

highly efficient, and, in many cases,

less dependent on human intervention.

“We want to enable our customers to

make the most of these new generation

technologies,” says Ms. Hackman.

She adds that the use of contingent

workers is another major trend impacting

field service management. Contingent

workers are workers who are hired on

contract to complete projects and they

leave once the work is finished; in other

words, they are not employees of a

company. This delivers many flexibility

benefits to companies, however these

benefits can only be delivered if

contingent workers can be employed in a

cohesive, seamless manner that aligns

with the organisation’s own service

standards, and that’s exactly where

Alliance comes in, as Ms. Hackman

emphasises. The new version of Alliance

enables companies to leverage any type

to executives. For workers it’s important

that they actually like to use our

platform. For executives it’s important to

understand the return on investment on

our platform. As we increasingly integrate

new generation big data tools, our

platform delivers valuable insights to

the senior management level.”

All your stakeholders are empowered consumers of your technology solutions. They demand instantaccess to critical information. They expect the ability to engage in the service process from wherever they

are. And they need transparent, 360-degree visibility into their relationship with your organization.

Our brand new Mobile Manager Workbench empowers managers to perform critical functions and gain valuable insight into their service team’s performance right on their mobile device. They can quickly and easily assign calls to idle field techs or rearrange current workload with simple drag-and-drop. Managers can also view and approve items on-the-go including Time Sheets, Expense Reports, Purchase Requisitions and Field Quotations.

Mobility Designed for Managers the Field

Give Customers and Partners What They Want—Greater Control and Visibility

Visit www.astea.com or call 800.878.4657

Start Your Digital Transformation Today Corporate Headquarters (USA) +1.800.878.4657+1.215.682.2500

Digital transformation is no longer a buzz word. It is a reality for today’s leading service organizations. Innovate, collaborate, informand demonstrate value during every interaction. Seamlessly leverage multiple communication channels to drive differentiation. Connect technology with smart devices to create a smart workforce and focus every action on increasing profit and improving the customer experience.

Meet the Newest Version of Astea Alliance. Trusted by the world’s best service-driven companies and widely recognized as the most capable and configurable field service management platform, Astea Alliance™ Enterprise™ was designed to help you outpace the competition, win the global talent war, effortlessly leverage third party and contingent workers, and deliver actionable business intelligence to every stakeholder in your service ecosystem.

THE BROADEST AND DEEPEST FIELD SERVICE MANAGEMET AND MOBILITY

PLATFORMWith the Mobile BI reports, managers get vital

information on their service team’s performance such as SLA Hit Rates, Cost per Call, and much

more right at their ngertips.

Drive Digital Transformation Across the Enterprise with Alliance Enterprise

As third-party vendors become even more critical to your ability to compete and grow, they too require more robust tools and information to execute as better strategic partners. The Alliance Partner Portal gives them what they need, including the ability to create and modify sales orders, book appointments, and order spare parts and consumables. They even have valuable BI reports such as the new Preventative Maintenance dashboard that offers easy, graphical monitoring of SLA compliance.

Like everything in the Alliance Enterprise platform, the Alliance Partner Portal offers unmatched configurability. Use different logos and titles; edit fields, labels and columns; and create and edit new reports for each partner for a personalized experience.

Alliance Enterprise offers an easy-to-use Customer Portal and Mobile App providing clients with the self-service capabilities they crave, including the ability to book service appointments and chat in real-time with a customer service agent.

Sleek, Web-Inspired Interface Designed to Improve UsabilityAlliance Enterprise sports a brand new clean and simplistic User Interface throughout the entire suite. Highly configurable to create unique views that allow users to streamline their workflow and focus attention on only the information they need to do their job.

Powerful Integration Capabilities that MakeConnecting Critical Systems Easy

Digital transformation is not possible without seamless integration. Alliance Enterprise easily connects to your critical systems and apps to

share information and boost efficiency. Alliance Enterprise offers out-of-the box connectors to a wide range of common Financial, ERP, CRM

and Logistical applications, and even offers a standard interface for other platforms such as IoT, Augmented Reality, Knowledge Management, and

contingent worker portals. Take advantage of our easy import/export functions and our API gallery where you can search for example APIs and

even save your own. Want to make a change? Use the drag and drop functionality of the work flow editor to make the update.Alliance

Higher user satisfaction drives better adoption and engagement and ultimately a better customer experience.

Sleek, Web-Inspired Interface Designed to Improve UsabilityAlliance Enterprise sports a brand new clean and simplistic User Interface throughout the entire suite. Highly configurable to create unique views that allow users to streamline their workflow and focus attention on only the information they need to do their job.

Powerful Integration Capabilities that MakeConnecting Critical Systems Easy

Digital transformation is not possible without seamless integration. Alliance Enterprise easily connects to your critical systems and apps to

share information and boost efficiency. Alliance Enterprise offers out-of-the box connectors to a wide range of common Financial, ERP, CRM

and Logistical applications, and even offers a standard interface for other platforms such as IoT, Augmented Reality, Knowledge Management, and

contingent worker portals. Take advantage of our easy import/export functions and our API gallery where you can search for example APIs and

even save your own. Want to make a change? Use the drag and drop functionality of the work flow editor to make the update.Alliance

Higher user satisfaction drives better adoption and engagement and ultimately a better customer experience.

All your stakeholders are empowered consumers of your technology solutions. They demand instantaccess to critical information. They expect the ability to engage in the service process from wherever they

are. And they need transparent, 360-degree visibility into their relationship with your organization.

Our brand new Mobile Manager Workbench empowers managers to perform critical functions and gain valuable insight into their service team’s performance right on their mobile device. They can quickly and easily assign calls to idle field techs or rearrange current workload with simple drag-and-drop. Managers can also view and approve items on-the-go including Time Sheets, Expense Reports, Purchase Requisitions and Field Quotations.

Mobility Designed for Managers the Field

Give Customers and Partners What They Want—Greater Control and Visibility

Visit www.astea.com or call 800.878.4657

Start Your Digital Transformation Today Corporate Headquarters (USA) +1.800.878.4657+1.215.682.2500

Digital transformation is no longer a buzz word. It is a reality for today’s leading service organizations. Innovate, collaborate, informand demonstrate value during every interaction. Seamlessly leverage multiple communication channels to drive differentiation. Connect technology with smart devices to create a smart workforce and focus every action on increasing profit and improving the customer experience.

Meet the Newest Version of Astea Alliance. Trusted by the world’s best service-driven companies and widely recognized as the most capable and configurable field service management platform, Astea Alliance™ Enterprise™ was designed to help you outpace the competition, win the global talent war, effortlessly leverage third party and contingent workers, and deliver actionable business intelligence to every stakeholder in your service ecosystem.

THE BROADEST AND DEEPEST FIELD SERVICE MANAGEMET AND MOBILITY

PLATFORMWith the Mobile BI reports, managers get vital

information on their service team’s performance such as SLA Hit Rates, Cost per Call, and much

more right at their ngertips.

Drive Digital Transformation Across the Enterprise with Alliance Enterprise

As third-party vendors become even more critical to your ability to compete and grow, they too require more robust tools and information to execute as better strategic partners. The Alliance Partner Portal gives them what they need, including the ability to create and modify sales orders, book appointments, and order spare parts and consumables. They even have valuable BI reports such as the new Preventative Maintenance dashboard that offers easy, graphical monitoring of SLA compliance.

Like everything in the Alliance Enterprise platform, the Alliance Partner Portal offers unmatched configurability. Use different logos and titles; edit fields, labels and columns; and create and edit new reports for each partner for a personalized experience.

Alliance Enterprise offers an easy-to-use Customer Portal and Mobile App providing clients with the self-service capabilities they crave, including the ability to book service appointments and chat in real-time with a customer service agent.