All of us at Resco recognize and appreciate Jonathan’s outstanding contributions. And today, we’d like to introduce him and his work to you.

Jonathan, congratulations on this recognition! Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your background?

I was born and raised in up-town Toronto. My father is a Chartered Accountant and ran a succesful accounting practice.

It taught me how to service a client and I ended up graduating from Wilfrid Laurer University with a Bachelor of Business Administration and followed that up with my Chartered Accounting designation in 1988.

I worked for KPMG in the Assurance Group and started Rimrock Corporation in 1994 as a Great Plains Software VAR.

I located my office near to my mid-town house and started off with one office in a low-rise office building.

From there on it was steady growth of adding clients and staff until we had a Dynamics GP accounting practice of about 200 clients.

In 2015 we created FIELDBOSS to meet the needs of a generator service client we had who needed a solution for maintenance scheduling and billing.

The initial solution for that client did not include mobile. It was a one-off consulting engagement but the lead consultant who did the work had heard about Resco and how much more advanced it was than anything else for the Microsoft Dynamics CRM platform.

He felt by adding Resco to the solution, we had the beginnings of a Microsoft Dynamics field service product.

And that’s when you discovered Resco?

At the time, Resco was the only option for mobility on the Dynamics CRM platform.

It has some compelling features including the ability to work offline, on any device, and native integration with Dynamics CRM.

For us, this was a significant value proposition for our target industries.

In what areas do you consider yourself to be an expert?

I don’t consider myself an expert in anything. I am laser focused on convincing elevator and HVAC contractors to run their business on FIELDBOSS, and even with that, I still have a long way to go to becoming an expert.

What’s your approach when it comes to customers?

Because I am the President of my company, the dynamic I have with customers is different than say what it would be with a sales person from our organization.

People engage with me differently because I have the power to make a decision or commit the organization to a deliverable.

My approach is always to be transparent and direct. Showing a little vulnerability opens people up too.

If I am willing to talk about how difficult staff issues can be, or where we are struggling in engineering, it sends a message that it is safe for them to disclose more about what is going on with their organization and what we might be walking into.

Do you have a standout Resco project that you’ve worked on?

I was very happy with the inspections work we did at our HVAC sites.

In fact, the inspections solution was so successful that the clients have been loading so many questions and pictures that we have hit limitations that need to be addressed with the JSON and printing solution we are working on together.

I expect that the next generation solution that our respective teams come up with will be the foundation for new standout projects.

How do you balance working with Microsoft and Resco?

It is not a question of balance because the nature of the relationship is so different.

It is difficult to get close to the Microsoft resources because it is such a big company, with people moving around all the time.

With Resco we have a dedicated account manager, who acts like a concierge to a degree which saves us a lot of time.

We end up being better able to access the resources we need and we get great follow up commitments which is more difficult to get out of Microsoft.

You became a Resco MVP by being a leader inside your organization – promoting Resco solutions and working on multiple projects hands-on. What would you recommend to other Resco professionals looking to become MVPs?

You need to have hands-on experience with the software. I run Resco on my phone, and it connects to our sample data. I show it off all the time. I also talk to our technical staff to understand what goes on “under the hood”.

We regularly promote Resco via webinars so having to put on a seminar forces you to be current with your messaging.

I also make an effort to understand other companies uses or other Resco professional’s careers for additional insights about the ecosystem.

Going forward, I think I am going to spend more time getting to understand specific people’s role at Resco, specifically in the marketing, engineering and support departments.

You attended resco.NEXT in Lisbon. What were your biggest takeaways?

Resco’s explanation of their strategy to work even closer with Microsoft Dynamics 365 and Dataverse was strategic and a risk mitigator for my company and customers.

I think the Steps+ capabilities will help with the aging workforce issues in our markets.

We started conversations with the engineering team around developing a solution to centrally print inspection reports from the JSON format.

Thank you for the interview, Jonathan. Is there anything else you’d like to share with the community?

I am flattered and honored to be a Resco MVP.

I will do my best to add value to the community and would really appreciate it if people would connect with me on LinkedIn as I intend to use that platform as my vehicle to communicate with.

I also like to keep my airline status so I am hoping there are lots of mandatory in person meetings in very nice destinations.

Become the next Resco MVP

Resco MVPs are recognized as experts in the community. This helps them with career building and increases business opportunities for the organization they represent.

On top of that, Resco MVPs enjoy a range of direct benefits from Resco, such as exposure in our marketing channels, free entrance to resco.NEXT, priority access to market development funds and co-marketing possibilities, and more.

If you know someone or consider yourself a worthy candidate for the Resco MVP award, please send an email to partners@resco.net with the subject line “Resco MVP nomination.”

We are looking forward to recognizing more exceptional Resco experts and influencers!

Príspevok Meet Resco’s new MVP: Jonathan Taub from FIELDBOSS zobrazený najskôr Resco.

The Resco MVP Award is an award that recognizes individuals actively sharing their technology, business, and industry knowledge with the Resco community and leaders inside their organization.

All of us at Resco recognize and appreciate Steffen’s outstanding contributions. And today, we’d like to introduce him and his work to you.

Steffen, congratulations on this recognition! Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your background?

Thanks for the recognition of my work during the last few years. I’m the team leader of a Dynamics 365 Implementation and development team at TSO-DATA in Germany.

I started to work at TSO 11 years ago during my business informatics study program and have never left. I work with Resco technology since 2015.

My role now is mainly about consultancy and project management tasks in Dynamics 365 projects in the DACH region.

I have a small family, like to play tennis and spend time with family and friends.

What’s your approach when it comes to customers?

I would say that I’m pretty experienced when it comes to understanding customers and transferring their requirements into business software solutions.

I try to see every customer as an individual and to match their business with past experiences and solutions in our toolbox. And Resco is an important part of our toolset.

There are several big business challenges companies are dealing with nowadays. What are the most pressing ones that you are hearing about from your customers?

Digital transformation is the basic topic behind all projects we are working on.

That means not only rebuilding the existing processes but rethinking them with a new perspective with new technologies that the Microsoft Cloud and Resco have to offer.

What trends are you seeing in enterprise mobility? Where do you see the industry being in 5 years?

I think integrating the whole supply chain into business processes is a key aspect. For example, a mobile app for vendors or end customers that communicates with the core business software components.

The major problem is that the media often breaks, and humans’ manual work becomes necessary.

That also reflects the digital transformation approach from the previous question. The usage of mobile devices is increasing.

So, we as an implementation partner need reliable technology to build these apps on.

In what areas do you consider yourself to be an expert?

When it comes to Resco solutions, I would say that I have a pretty good overview of the full solution stack.

But in particular, we have had great success implementing custom offline HTML solutions to deliver a fast user experience, especially in combination with the powerful offline capabilities.

I’m not a developer, but I have designed a few successful solutions for scenarios with no other available solution. But you are nothing without your team, so this award is also thanks to the guys in the background.

What are some of the problems that Resco solves really well?

I think Resco is pretty good when it comes to addressing the correct business needs having answers where, in our case, Microsoft still has gaps in their offerings.

I’m talking about real offline, security or solutions for all mobile operating systems.

Do you have a standout Resco project that you’ve worked on?

We finished a project at the beginning of 2022, with a scenario of Dynamics 365 Sales, Microsoft Business Central, and Resco Mobile CRM.

We used Resco Mobile CRM to implement a custom offline sales order creation solution. What sounds pretty straightforward is sometimes more complex than you would expect.

In this case, we had an average of 200 lines per order and the salespersons created a lot of them daily. So, speed and logical validations were key.

This means using the solution completely without a mouse or touch, only via keyboard, was a must.

On top of it, we created a barcode scanner to capture order lines and a Resco Mobile Report to print out barcodes for the products at the point of sale.

That was a challenging scenario, but it worked out thanks to Resco technology.

You became a Resco MVP by being a leader inside your organization – promoting Resco solutions and working on multiple projects hands-on. What would you recommend to other Resco professionals looking to become MVPs?

Always have an open mind and fill up your personal toolbox with technologies, tools, ideas, etc. One of my favorite sayings is, “if you only have a hammer, everything is a nail”. So, everything inside your toolbox will help you to find solutions for future challenges.

You’ll be attending resco.NEXT in Lisbon and will also participate in one of the expert panels. What are you looking forward to the most?

Two things. One is the Resco roadmap and the second is to getting in touch with our people again and seeing each other in person. I think we have all missed that in the last 2 years.

You can connect with Steffen on LinkedIn and learn more about TSO-DATA.

Become the next Resco MVP

Resco MVPs are recognized as experts in the community. This helps them with career building and increases business opportunities for the organization they represent.

On top of that, Resco MVPs enjoy a range of direct benefits from Resco, such as:

• exposure in our marketing channels
• free entrance to resco.NEXT
• priority access to market development funds and co-marketing possibilities

If you know someone or consider yourself a worthy candidate for the Resco MVP award, please send an email to partners@resco.net with the subject line “Resco MVP nomination.”

We are looking forward to recognizing more exceptional Resco experts and influencers!

Príspevok Meet Resco’s new MVP: Steffen Hackmann from TSO-DATA zobrazený najskôr Resco.

The Resco MVP Award is an annual award that recognizes individuals who are actively sharing their technology, business, and industry knowledge with the Resco community, and/or are leaders inside their organization.

All of us at Resco recognize and appreciate Nicole’s outstanding contributions. And today, we’d like to introduce her and her work to you as well.

Read the interview with her and learn:

• How Nicole approaches problem-solving with a process similar to ‘5 whys’
• What she recommends to ask customers requesting new features or modifications
• What she sees as the most pressing customers business challenges
• Two main problems that Resco solves the best
• Tips for professionals who would like to become Resco MVPs

Nicole, congratulations on this recognition! Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your background?

I started my career as a Mechanical Engineer working on the development of on and off-road vehicles. After many different roles, I decided to make a change and got my master’s degree in Software Engineering.

I am currently a software developer with Key2Act working on our MobileTech solution,which is a field service application built from the Resco Mobile App Development Toolkit.

Is there anything from your mechanical engineering background that you use in your current role?

Quite a lot of things, actually. It has been surprising to learn just how similar the product development cycle is to the software development cycle – with the main difference just being the output (in my experience either a vehicle or a mobile application).

My mechanical engineering background has also laid the groundwork for how I approach problem-solving.

When working on software bugs, I use processes similar to 5 Whys – to keep asking why something is happening until the main root of the issue is identified.

Or when working on how to implement a new feature, I try to break things down into smaller increments, start with changes at a simple level, prove them out, and then slowly and methodically increase the complexity.

What’s your approach when it comes to customers?

When a customer has a request for a modification or feature add, typically, I like to take a step back and ask them at a high level, what they are trying to accomplish.

I’ve found that they may request a very specific code change, but after reviewing what the ultimate goal is from this modification, there may be a better way to approach the situation.

When reviewing what they are looking for overall, I’ve found it is most helpful to start by having the customer walk through how they currently use the application.

This not only helps to understand why they want the change but also provides insight as to how we can improve going forward.

What are the most pressing business challenges that you are hearing from your customers?

Probably the most common challenge I hear from customers is trying to streamline their processes.

With so many things going digital nowadays, customers want to easily enter data from a mobile device and be able to access and actually utilize that data in other applications – whether that be reporting, referencing historical data, or creating step-by-step instructions to simplify and establish procedures.

Also, I think customers want to be proactive rather than reactive, especially when it comes to items like equipment issues.

So, the focus is on anything that can be done to aid in this way, whether it is process automation, digital form integration, or smart building analytics like in Key2Act’s Building Optimization Broker (BOB).

What are some of the problems that Resco solves really well?

Two main problems that Resco solves really well are offline data capabilities and facilitating modifications.

Offline data capability is crucial for technicians out in the field who need to be able to continue their work no matter what their device connection currently is.

This is something that I have frequently heard from customers.

The flexibility and ease of modifications that Resco allows is a huge benefit.

When I get a customer modification request, more often than not I can confidently let them know we can make that modification work.

This is great not only for my company and customers, but also to get ideas going – modifications can be fairly easily implemented so what can be done to improve things in the future.

Do you have a standout Resco project that you’ve worked on?

Incorporating Resco Inspections+ with MobileTech is probably one of the biggest projects I’ve worked on, not just from a code perspective but also from a new feature add.

Frequently we heard the need from our customers to incorporate digital forms, and it was very satisfying to provide them with a solution that continues to grow and evolve.

What are some tips you would give to Resco professionals who would like to become MVPs?

My route to becoming an MVP was through being a Resco leader inside my organization.

I’m more of a behind-the-scenes kind of worker and originally didn’t even consider going for this award. But once I looked through what it takes, I realized I had already met a good majority of the criteria.

So, for those of you like me that are typically in the background or more on the technical side, I would suggest reaching out to Resco and reviewing what gaps remain and going for it!

Thank you, Nicole. One last question: will you be attending resco.NEXT in Lisbon?

Absolutely! I found the last couple resco.NEXT conferences very beneficial and I cannot wait to have the opportunity to network in person, learn how other people are utilizing the software, review the new features, and continue to gain insight and give feedback on the future road map.

You can connect with Nicole on LinkedIn and learn more about Key2Act.

Become the next Resco MVP

Resco MVPs are recognized as experts in the community. This helps them with career building and increases business opportunities for the organization they represent.

On top of that, Resco MVPs enjoy a range of direct benefits from Resco, such as exposure in our marketing channels, free entrance to resco.NEXT, priority access to market development funds and co-marketing possibilities, and more.

If you know someone or consider yourself a worthy candidate for the Resco MVP award, please send an email to partners@resco.net with the subject line “Resco MVP nomination.”

We are looking forward to recognizing more exceptional Resco experts and influencers!

Príspevok Resco MVP Nicole Zabel: When customers request a modification, try to learn what they really need first zobrazený najskôr Resco.

Our German partner TSO-DATA understands this, and that’s why in March, they organized their annual TSO-DATA Customer Day in their office in Osnabrück. And to provide the best value to everyone interested, they combined an in-person and online experience at once.

Quality agenda makes the party

Valuable content is a vital part of a successful event.

In a variety of technical and business presentations over 6+ hours, TSO-DATA experts gave the customers and guests an exciting review and outlook of the company, its solutions and projects.

Microsoft Dynamics 365 was the star of the show, with a focus on the ERP solution Business Central and CRM.

But Resco had a dedicated session as well.

TSO-DATA Consultant Steffen Hackmann presented the capabilities of Resco Inspections+.

The session was geared towards ERP and CRM decision-makers. And Steffen showcased the usage of questionnaires in a field service scenario with extended business logic and mobile offline usage.

There was also a dedicated presentation of KatarGo – TSO-DATA’s solution specialized in mail order, e-commerce and wholesale business processes.

This presentation was delivered by Christian Muris and he focused on how an on-premises installation of this solution can be easily migrated to the cloud.

Speakers in other sessions spotlighted security awareness, unified commerce, connecting ERP solutions with a Microsoft BI, and advantages of a virtual desktop environment in the form of Azure Virtual Desktop.

The event was closed off by a presentation of a reference project and a discussion round led by TSO-DATA Sales Manager Thomas Hagedorn.

Connect with clients through events

TSO-Data shows how you can provide the customers with an opportunity to discuss current topics, innovations, roadmap, and more with your experts.

And while in-person events are getting back, the virtual ones still have their advantages.

Our event was received very positively. Especially the hybrid form allows us to demonstrate the news of our products and services to significantly more participants. This also means that participants could quickly join individual topics, such as Resco, which we will also feature on the agenda next year.
– Hendrik Vogelpohl, TSO-Data

We encourage all partners to organize events like the one you just read about.

It’s a great way to keep your customers informed and inspired.

And in any case, Resco can help you with preparing the content and promotion.

Reach out to your account manager or email us at partners@resco.net to start the conversation.

Príspevok Connecting with customers through in-person & hybrid events: Here is how our partner TSO-Data does it zobrazený najskôr Resco.

It is our pleasure to recognize partners that innovate work processes, deliver outstanding business results and, most importantly, transform customers’ businesses for the better.

And as the last year, we have three categories to celebrate:

• Partner of the Year
• Breakthrough Partner of the Year
• Business Impact of the Year

The first two don’t require any input from you and will be evaluated based on available partner KPIs.

But the Business Impact of the Year award holds an opportunity for every partner to tell your success story, celebrate the achievements of your employees, and show what’s possible with mobile technology.

Regardless of where you’re based, your size, or how long you’ve been working with Resco.

So read on to find out more about how to apply and the benefits & prizes.

Business Impact Award – what is it?

This award recognizes the results of a strong partnership between a partner and client they’ve helped transform the business.

We are seeking inspiring and successful stories of how partners made a real impact and delivered meaningful and sustainable changes to customers with Resco technology. Just like last year’s winner FIELDBOSS.

We are looking for stories supporting the mission of empowering organizations with innovative mobile solutions, especially their deskless workers, to achieve more.

How will be the submissions assessed?

The winner and finalists should have demonstrated creative problem-solving and leadership, so that the whole customer project is successful – not just the technical implementation.

We will assess the submissions with the following criteria:

• Measurable: e.g., time saved, increase in clients revenue, number of customers visited, presentations made, decreased sync time, etc.
• Qualitative: proven by a customer testimonial or quote, e.g., improved collaboration among teams, increased data quality, increased worker satisfaction, etc.
• Project size: number of active Resco users in the client’s organization
• Unique IP: we consider it a plus if a partner used a custom solution that they built on Resco technology

Why to apply

The awards bring greater visibility and highlight the expertise of top software integrators from the Resco partner ecosystem.

Becoming an award winner or finalist helps partners to:

• Establish their company as a leader in enterprise mobility
• Create new & stronger business opportunities
• Increase market recognition
• Generate positive press coverage

The winner and finalists will be featured in follow-up press releases, blogs and other marketing activities, and will receive a marketing kit (award logos, press template, designation badge, photos & video, etc.), so they can promote their accomplishment.

On top of that, the winner will receive two complimentary passes for the resco.NEXT 2023 conference, 4,000 EUR in market development funds, and other valuable rewards.

The winner and finalists will be publicly announced on October 6, 2022, during the Resco Partner Awards ceremony at resco.NEXT 2022 conference in Lisbon, Portugal.

We’re looking forward to receiving your entries! You can apply until September 9.

Submit your winning customer project

In case of questions, drop us an email at partners@resco.net

Príspevok Resco Partner Awards 2022 are underway: Send your winning customer project zobrazený najskôr Resco.

FIELDBOSS has come a long way working with us over the past 10 years – and this means they can share many valuable practical tips and insights with our partners that are at the beginning of their journey. That’s why we recorded this video with the company’s president, Jonathan Taub, in which he took us through the company’s journey, plans, and shared his tips on how to successfully market and sell Resco.

Watch the video to find out more about:

• Who are FIELDBOSS and what makes them successful
• How did the partnership with Resco help their business
• What led them to create a custom solution built on Resco
• How did they build their Resco practice over the last 10 years
• What are they doing currently

Join Andrew Lorraine, Resco´s CEO, and Jonathan Taub, president at FIELDBOSS and experienced Microsoft and Resco professional, to learn and get inspired.

Start your successful journey with Resco today

Become our partner

Take your partnership to the next level

Contact Resco

Príspevok Ten years of FIELDBOSS success: discover how to make the most of partnership with Resco zobrazený najskôr Resco.

All of us at Resco recognize and appreciate Matthijn’s outstanding contributions. And today, we’d like to introduce him and his work to you as well.

Matthijn, congratulations on this recognition! Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your background?

I’ve been working with CRM and ERP systems since 1996 and started focusing more on CRM in 2003 when Microsoft came with the first CRM.

I’m currently working as a consultant and a project manager at MicroPartner, where I’m also responsible for the partners we’re working with, like Resco and Microsoft.

I have an IT education which I later supplemented with a finance degree.

I’m a huge fan of all things vintage – I have a vintage boat and a vintage car. Things from the old days when quality was very much appreciated, unlike today where everything is throwaway.

What is your specialization in business?

Counseling, helping customers on their journey.

We still see many companies who’ve taken the first steps into the cloud. A lot of companies are already in the cloud and using tools such as Office 365. Also, a lot of companies are running legacy ERP or CRM systems that are locally maintained and installed, and I think it’s my specialty to help them by moving into the cloud, which will make things easier, more transparent, and integrated.

We really like working in tandem with customers, so they know why this is happening, why this is beneficial for them, and the whole sales cycle is always transparent.

If a customer comes to us and says we would like to have some help with an area in which we are not experts in, we will point them to a company that is. We don’t want to spread ourselves too thin over too big an area, we prefer to stay very focused and specialized in ERP and CRM.

How do you work with your customers?

We’re a little bit old-fashioned. We don’t do hit and runs, we don’t try to make a quick sale and then move on to the next project. We want to be part of the whole journey for a customer, and that’s why some of them have been with us for over 10 years, which is quite unique in this line of business. We have a saying here in Denmark: “you have to pick the feathers of the chicken without the chicken screaming,” and that’s what we try to do with our customers.

How and when did your Resco journey start?

In the mid-2000s, we were working with CRM solutions and needed a stable mobile CRM app that also works offline because many salespeople and service people needed this feature.

And because Resco offered it and had a closely and uniquely integrated solution with Microsoft CRM, it was the logical choice.

In my opinion, if a solution needs a four-day training course to learn, then it’s already disqualified. And that’s also one of the reasons we started working with Resco – the tools are easy to learn and use.

According to your experience, what are the most important attributes, features or functionalities a customer looks for when it comes to field service solutions and mobility?

Offline – when you do installations or you have maintenance work in the most distant places, like offshore, underground, you name it, you don’t want to go through a hassle. First, you have to connect to a network, then log in, etc. But sometimes, you just want to open your tablet, have the full functionality and as soon as you are ready for it, you can synchronize all your data into the server.

Seamless integration – with several people working offline on the same case who all go online simultaneously to synchronize, it’s essential to be able to configure which rule wins. Things have to work, because if they don’t, clients lose money every day; therefore, integration simply must work. I believe one of the most important things about mobility is not having to worry about integration and stability.

Data safety – and of course, security is also important: a great thing about Resco is that the data is encrypted even offline.

Very friendly user interface – technicians might be skilled professionals in electronics, high-pressure systems, hydraulics, etc., but that does not necessarily mean that they’re highly skilled in IT. So, the solution must be simple and user-friendly.

Configurability – Resco is 100% configurable, meaning we can take a complex scenario, easily build it and present it in a simple manner.

Optimized for touch screens – even though you can run Resco on a computer or laptop, it’s very smart to use it on your phone or tablet. Mobile devices have become the norm, they are now almost an extension of our hands, so we use them naturally. I once gave my six-year-old daughter access to the Resco app, and she was easily using it, but I doubt she would be able to do the same on a PC.

What is the potential you see in Business Central?

In Business Central, we have service management and manufacturing, which are two pretty nice modules because they are the foundation for the Resco field service solution. In BC, everything is centered around finance – meaning everything is either generating financial transactions or stock transactions. This service management module in BC is pretty good because you can handle everything from a quote through an order or a service item to a contract, and schedule maintenance or repairs. But the one big thing which was lacking was the planning and execution part of field service tasks, and that’s where Resco fits in perfectly.

The potential for Business Central is huge. It has a very long track record – it all started in the late ´80s. Since then, many companies (especially mid-sized) have started using it, and they have different versions of it.

Business Central is so great because it has had about 20 years to mature – just like Resco! So, both solutions have gone through some major developments throughout the years and are fully mature now.

One of the reasons you have been nominated for the Resco MVP award is a project where Resco was integrated with Business Central. What stands out about this project, and why was Resco the right choice for the customer?

First of all, I’m very honored to become a Resco MVP, but I have to say that this wouldn’t have been possible without my team.

What stands out about this project is that we started with a different field service solution, but then we became aware that Resco was working on a connector and integration between Resco and Business Central. That, of course, caught our attention. It soon turned out that the customer was using the service management in Business Central very efficiently, so there was no need to duplicate all this into another field system.

The customer was doing a pretty good job in Business Central with their contracts and service orders, and the only missing thing was a strong planning and execution part. The reason we didn’t go with Microsoft was that it was overkill for the customer, who only needed a simple functioning field server solution. Microsoft just tends to build things very big.

From my experience, implementing Resco is three times faster. In the end, Resco was the better, cheaper, faster, and more flexible solution for them.

How do you see the landscape of business apps in 2022 playing out?

Continuous growth. I believe that we will see even more companies going into the cloud.

How do you balance working with Resco and Microsoft solutions?

First of all, we always look at the customer’s needs, and we don’t listen to the propaganda of either Microsoft or Resco. We place our customers first and then we decide what’s the best solution.

Resco has some features which Microsoft doesn’t, and it’s just a more flexible solution. If a customer needs more flexibility and offline capabilities, we go with Resco.

What is your cooperation experience with Resco? Can you share some highlights?

We have built a close relationship with Resco in the last three-four years. We now have regular meetings; we are working together on sales opportunities and co-marketing activities.

And because there’s no software without issues or bugs, how openly and quickly a company gives support and helps solve problems is key. And this is something Resco has been doing since the beginning. We have an open dialogue; we don’t try to hide anything but try to work on a solution.

Anything you’d like to say to the Resco community?

I highly encourage everyone to enroll in the Resco Academy. One of our developers took the new training, and even though he has been working with Resco for many years, he learned a lot. And I went through all the business courses.

Another thing I’d like to emphasize is that if you’re a customer looking to integrate Business Central and Resco, make sure you have a partner involved who knows Business Central well, because it’s a very technical platform. So, make sure you have a capable partner or the experience and knowledge to do it yourself.

You can connect with Matthijn on LinkedIn and learn more about MicroPartner here.

Become the next Resco MVP

If you know someone or consider yourself a worthy candidate for the Resco MVP award, please send an email to partners@resco.net with the subject line “Resco MVP nomination.” Or you can reach out to me on LinkedIn if you have any questions.

We are looking forward to recognizing more exceptional Resco experts and influencers!

Príspevok Meet Resco’s new MVP: Matthijn Hoogenboom from MicroPartner zobrazený najskôr Resco.

Hitachi Solutions doesn’t need any special introduction. The business application consulting firm is a leader in delivering proven business and IT strategies and solutions to companies across countless industries. Their expertise is backed up by dozens of industry awards, including being named Microsoft Partner of the Year a whopping 47 times! Wonder where they keep all those trophies.

Tokyo Electron

Since 2016, Hitachi Solutions has been expanding and improving on a customer project that deserves your attention. The customer is Tokyo Electron (TEL) – a leading manufacturer of semiconductor and flat panel display (FPD) production equipment, which now uses Resco as part of its technology toolkit. A longstanding issue in the company’s Field Solutions Business Division has been that each product and region had its own maintenance support system and operation method, and they were not unified.

Emi Yamamoto from TEL gave an example. “The format of work reports created when maintenance work was completed differed depending on the product and region. And the granularity of the information included was not standardized. Also, different systems were used in different regions of the world to compile and manage work reports, making it difficult to share knowledge globally or to apply the knowledge gained from one maintenance work to the next maintenance project.”

The company realized that they needed a single management system that would allow field engineers around the world to register work reports, and quickly retrieve knowledge when needed. With such a system, the company could enhance the responsiveness of their field engineers. By shortening the time required for equipment maintenance, they could also increase the satisfaction level of their customers.

Selection and implementation of solutions

TEL’s CRM of choice was Microsoft Dynamics 365, and the only thing left was to choose a capable software implementation partner to work with. The partner had to meet three key requirements:

• Global work capability for all processes including design, implementation, and maintenance
• The influence and ability to negotiate with Microsoft
• Extensive experience in building CRM systems for the manufacturing industry

Hitachi Solutions checked all of the boxes.

As Emi Yamamoto from TEL says: “There were three candidates, but Hitachi Solutions was the one that we felt had the most global work capabilities. In order to build a global maintenance support system, we needed to listen to the opinions of our subsidiaries in the U.S., Europe, and Asia.

We chose Hitachi Solutions not only because of their English communication skills but also because they have a subsidiary in the U.S. and understand the local maintenance support business. We also took into account the fact that Hitachi Solutions has strong connections with Microsoft’s U.S. headquarters and decided on Hitachi Solutions as our software implementation partner.“

Initial work started in July 2016, and some functionalities were released two months later in September 2016. The core work order capability went live in the U.S. in February 2019, after a series of modifications and enhancements, and has since become available in Japan, China, Europe, Korea, and Singapore.

For the new maintenance work management system, TEL chose to run Dynamics 365 only in Microsoft’s Japan region in order to thoroughly centralize the system and operations. About 4,000 TEL field engineers engaged in maintenance and support work around the world use this system via the network.

There were also difficulties unique to a cloud system. One of the advantages of cloud computing is that it allows the user to benefit from future product enhancements, but in order to take advantage of this, the user needs to do as little customization as possible.

On the other hand, it is also important to improve the usability of the system for field engineers in order for them to become more familiar with the system and enter useful data. Therefore, TEL carefully solved each problem one at a time while maintaining a balance between the two aspects.

Project results so far

In order to utilize the knowledge left in the old system that was used in each country and region, Hitachi Solutions developed a unique tool that integrates the data in the existing systems with the data in Dynamics 365 and allows users to search all data. This allowed to reference knowledge across the board without migrating data to the new maintenance work management system.

And to make the life of TEL’s 4,000+ field engineers easier, and their work more productive, Hitachi Solutions used the Mobile App Development Toolkit to develop and distribute a dedicated Resco app so that they can use the work order capability even when offline. They can now enter reports into their mobile devices in the customer’s cleanroom between tasks or immediately after work is completed and receive the customer’s approval signature on the spot.

The offline capability of the Resco Field Service mobile solution is a powerful tool for high-tech companies that need to work in cleanrooms where strong radio waves must not be emitted, or for manufacturing companies that handle hazardous materials that could explode from radio sparks.

Our customers have selected and implemented Resco because of its excellent offline functionality. Furthermore, customers who have used Resco have given high marks to the application’s responsiveness and stability.

Hitachi Solutions will continue to work in partnership with Resco to expand Resco solutions in Japan and Asia.

– Nobuo Hamaoka, Department Manager, Department 3 Global Division, Industrial Innovation Business Division, Hitachi Solutions, Ltd.

Evolution of the project

The Dynamics 365-based work order functionality was also launched in Taiwan in April 2021. This marked the end of its global deployment. The work order, which allows users to obtain various management data, is highly valued within the company. Supervisors and other managers welcome the fact that they can now visualize the progress of each maintenance project.

For the deployment in each country and region, TEL selected core members to support end users at each site and took care of the field engineers so that they can use Dynamics 365 smoothly in their daily maintenance work.

Now, TEL plans to systemize the management of start-up operations (installation and adjustment of equipment at the customer site) using Dynamics 365. In May 2021, the system was linked to the SAP-based company-wide ERP system, enabling automatic generation of work orders based on customer orders and automatic linkage of work costs.

What will the future bring?

The project to unify operations and management on a global scale was an exciting challenge for Hitachi Solutions, which will continue to support TEL as it continues to grow globally. To make that support successful and effective, their consultants are continuing to increase their Resco skills by getting certified at Resco Academy and attending Resco Next.

That’s why we are excited about our continued work with Hitachi Solutions – a Resco partner which you’ll surely be hearing more about in the months and years to come.

By the way, if you’re a systems integrator and are not currently in our partner program, consider joining, so that you can work on similar remarkable projects such as TEL.

And if you’d like to learn more about Hitachi Solutions, please visit their website.

Príspevok Hitachi Solutions Japan: the importance of Resco’s offline for TEL’s 4,000+ field engineers zobrazený najskôr Resco.

All of us at Resco recognize and appreciate Stefan’s outstanding contributions. And today, we’d like to introduce him and his work to you as well.

Stefan, congratulations on this wonderful recognition! Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your background?

Thank you very much. It’s a real honor to receive this award. I was pleasantly surprised.

I’m a techie, and I love to work with the latest technologies. In 1999, I started my career at an IT company setting up PC hardware and software. I soon realized that programming is also something I enjoy. Luckily, I had the possibility to learn developing as part of my job. In 2002, my employer started selling CRM software from the UK, and I was asked to help. Since then, I work with CRM software as a developer.

Fast forward to 2007, I started working with Microsoft Dynamics CRM (now known as Microsoft Dynamics 365 Customer Engagement). Besides the implementation of the software, I focused on consulting and integration to third party systems.

After many years of consulting, project management, and leading a D365 team, I currently work at Ambit Schweiz AG, specializing in Customer Success Management. I leverage my experiences related to existing system implementations to help users and their companies succeed.

What is your specialization in the business?

I see myself as a translator between the business requirements from various departments and the stakeholders regarding the technical solution, which involves in-depth discussions with the developers. Misunderstandings are common between these groups. Stakeholders often have limited ideas about a solution and its capabilities.

I also consult companies on implementing new technologies or new functions to optimize their processes supported by a system.

How and when did your Resco journey start?

It all started in 2012 when our customer bought 40 iPads for their salespeople and wanted to implement Dynamics CRM. However, that version of Dynamics CRM 2011 did not work properly on touch devices, and it lacked the offline capability. We started looking for a solution that can keep Dynamics CRM data even on touch devices and is equipped with offline capability. We chose Resco Mobile because of the connection to Dynamics CRM, the offline mode, and the additional offline SDK to develop functionality.

Out of all the mobility projects you worked on, which ones stand out the most?

One of them is a project from 2014-15, where we were challenged to add a mobile sales solution with a route planner to the Dynamics CRM 2011 system of approximately 400 salespersons. At this time, Resco added route planning and optimization within the client. We started a three-day workshop with the business stakeholders. After those three days, we had a more than 80% working solution. The implementation resulted in overtime reduction and the satisfaction of the salespeople.

Another highlight was the integration of Resco Inspections to a Dynamics 365 Field Service project with 1800 users. We combined the Dynamics Field Service processes with the new Resco Inspections functionality in 2019. With that combination, we used a standardized and configurable questionnaire within the field service client. The customer had lots of different questionnaires with different field types (checkboxes, numbers, drop-down lists), but also repeatable lists for checking many of the same devices during one site visit. Combined with the dynamic integration of the work orders and related customer assets’ data, the development time was reduced immensely.

Digital signature in offline mode is a hot topic right now. In 2019, my team implemented a Dynamics 365 sales system as part of a project. The salespeople needed to add offline signatures to a contract in a way that fits the European law. Thanks to Resco’s support and a new functionality, the DocuSign integration, we were able to provide the customers with this possibility.

What are some of the first things that come to mind when you hear the word Resco?

Offline, whiskey, support, and new functionalities. 🙂

Offline: When a user is at a place with no or low internet access, reliable offline functionality is a must, and Resco delivers that.

Whiskey: Resco’s customizing tool is named after the famous Woodford whiskey. During the last two years, me and my son tasted and compared many whiskeys, but the Woodford Double Oak is still one of our favorites. Alongside with some Scotch, of course. 🙂

Support: Resco’s customer support is always very responsive. It’s the most helpful support I’ve ever experienced.

New functionalities: Resco always brings additional functionalities that we can leverage in our projects. I prefer a tested solution over developing something new, which is often more expensive in the end.

What are some of the best things companies can do to stay successful and competitive in 2021?

Listening to their employees. They are the most valuable members of a company. Especially in this strange time of home offices, split teams, and the immense speed of technological advancements, digital transformation is key.

Easy access to a company’s data to follow its processes is necessary. Providing employees with the right tools that support them every time and everywhere will play a key role in staying successful and competitive in 2021.

What does innovation mean to you?

For me, innovation means that if I see something that can be done in a better way, I start doing it.

I’m working with Microsoft Dynamics CRM/365CE since 2007. When we look at the Dynamics system and Resco Mobile, we can see many changes, improvements, and extensions over the years. I’m often surprised by the new releases. Deprecating some functions or integrations we used many years ago and replacing them with new, better ones is also an essential part of innovation.

You can connect with Stefan on LinkedIn and learn more about Ambit Group here.

Become the next Resco MVP

If you know someone or consider yourself a worthy candidate for the Resco MVP award, please send an email to partners@resco.net with the subject line “Resco MVP nomination.”

We are looking forward to recognizing more exceptional Resco professionals.

Príspevok An interview with Stefan Scheer, Resco’s new MVP zobrazený najskôr Resco.

All of us at Resco recognize and appreciate Jens’ extraordinary contributions and want to take this opportunity to share our appreciation with him.

Jens, congratulation to your great achievement! Briefly give the audience some background info about yourself. 

Thank you very much! It truly is an honor to get this recognition from Resco.

I have been working for Avanade since 2015. As a senior consultant in digital sales and service, I am responsible for technical and professional consulting. I am specialized in the development of mobile applications, as well as in the expansion and strategic design of Dynamics 365 in the field service and the overall service area. In cooperation with the delivery teams, I develop digital strategies and take care of customer implementations. The focus is on process standardization and highly specialized software applications. As a specialist and having a big passion for IT, I am also enthusiastic about mixed reality, mobile platforms, predictive maintenance, and social media.

How and when did your Resco journey start?

My journey with Resco started in 2016. At first, we had a project where we did a technical assessment of different mobile platform solution providers. That was the time I got to know Resco.

Which Resco product do you feel the most connected to and why?

For me, that’s Resco for Dynamics 365 and the standard Resco Mobile CRM. Why? I like the great possibilities you have to configure the app while using entities and fields from Dynamics. Extend the single Forms and Lists with commands and rules and also influence the UI/UX. The variety of the out of the box features delivered by the platform is incredible.

What industries have you worked in so far?

I worked mainly in the manufacturing area but also have experience in the pharmaceutical and medical technology area.

What are the common pain points your customers are facing, and how does Resco solve them?

Most of the time, customers request a stable and reliable mobile application which they can use everywhere, at any time, on different devices, with the specific data and processes they need. And Resco gives the opportunity to build those mobile applications. When I think of the spectrum of features, it’s just genius. There are several out-of-the-box functionalities like full offline capability, fully customizable solution either using a no-code/low-code approach or a fully customized development one, customizable UI, branding opportunities, and feature-rich mobile reports… all of this significantly increases the benefits of the application. 

What is also worth mentioning and what customers always like a lot is the very high agility you have while using Woodford to customize and deploy changes within minutes. The reaction time on necessary changes or even the necessity to create quick PoCs or MVPs is given.

What technologies and solutions are you currently working with?

Right now, I work with the latest technologies in the mixed reality area, as well as the newest Dynamics 365 technology. This combination, together with the latest Resco technologies as the mobile platform, gives me big opportunities to try and learn new things, to break out of the common barriers, and think disruptively. This leads to new solutions that help customers to strengthen and optimize their processes and businesses.

Do you have any experience with wearables, mixed reality headsets, voice control, or other smart devices in the field service industry? 

Yes, especially now that the topic around remote support for field service has increased heavily over the last few months. My experience is supporting technicians using a HoloLens in combination with a mobile device to support their day-to-day job. The goal was to strengthen and secure their service job execution when more and more restrictions have been set due to COVID-19, but business processes needed to continue.

What are your thoughts about the new global partnership between Resco and Avanade? What are your expectations from it?

This is an excellent opportunity for us as Avanade and you, Resco, as an ISV to strengthen our position in the market for mobile applications. Furthermore, we have new ways to work together closer and faster than ever before. With new ways, I mean to have a more common strategy to approach different technology topics, create new assets and features, and of course, make great success stories for our clients. 

My expectations from the global partnership are that we can develop new concepts and features, like extended report creation or integration of third-party apps, for customers worldwide, strengthen the position of the Resco platform and maybe organize some events together.

What do you think about Resco’s Field Service+?

When Resco Field Service+ comes into my mind, I see a fully-fledged solution ready to go to help field service employees do their daily business in a modern mobile way. Furthermore, the integration of all Resco solutions like the Inspections+ is a great benefit. Even when I “look” into the future, all the devices like Smartwatches, smart glasses, and so on will change the work processes in a positive way as we do not need to carry heavy laptops and other bigger devices; we can just use what we have at the wrist, in the pocket or on our heads.

And any thoughts on Resco’s Inspections+?

Resco Inspections+ is a great featured solution to digitize several processes that have been paper-based before. The great intuitive configuration tool has a lot of possibilities to create reports and questionnaires. The mobile workforce can benefit a lot from this tool as per design questions can be created in that way that they guide the user as good as possible and increase at the same time the accuracy of the gathered data and the satisfaction of the use of the application. 

If there is a fast ramp-up needed for a digitalization project in this inspection area Resco Inspections+ is definitely a solution to choose as it is fast setup, the templates can be created in an easy way and furthermore, ready to be integrated in Dynamics 365.

Learn more about Avanade and its partnership with Resco:

• Resco and Avanade announce global partnership
• Avanade’s UX centred design approach with Resco

Príspevok A talk with Resco’s new MVP – Avanade’s Jens Grambau zobrazený najskôr Resco.