The current field inventory management system
One way to increase tech intensity at VanArsdel Heating and Air Conditioning is to enable cross-department collaboration in building software solutions. These apps are created by business professionals—also known as Citizen Developers—tailored to their specific needs and supported by data and functionality provided by Professional Developers. Together, Citizen Developers and Professional Developers form a Fusion Development Team.
The VanArsdel Fusion Development Team is focused on solving a business challenge they call the “Field Inventory Management System.”
As the newest employee at VanArsdel, you're assigned to take notes while Caleb, the lead field technician, describes an inefficient workflow that costs him and his team many hours each day.
The field inventory management system
A flowchart of the current inventory management workflow shows the multiple steps and roles involved:
- While performing a repair in the field, Caleb may discover he needs a part that isn’t on his truck.
- He might call a nearby technician to see if they have the part available.
- If not, he travels back to the central warehouse to pick it up, completing a paper form to log the inventory removal.
- If the part is not in stock, he fills out a different form to request the part be ordered.
- Caleb notes that if they didn’t spend time retrieving parts, the team could serve more customers each day.
Malik, the office manager, adds that field technicians often call him to check inventory availability, which interrupts his own work and responsibilities.
Maria, who leads supply chain management, shares how this manual process affects her team:
- Technicians sometimes forget to record when they remove parts, leading to inaccurate inventory counts.
- Her team must frequently conduct manual inventory audits to maintain accuracy.
- She reviews paper part request forms multiple times a day to ensure inventory is restocked as needed.
- Maria uses a legacy web application, built by Kiana, to track inventory and order parts from vendors.
Kiana notes that IT has prioritized other initiatives, which has delayed modernization of the inventory application.
The team agrees that the Field Inventory Management System should be the first challenge they address.
As you finish your notes, you begin to wonder: with team members from different departments and distinct working styles, how will they come together to solve this problem? To increase tech intensity, the technology must be intuitive for each team’s unique workflows—and it must be trusted company-wide. The business depends on it.