How to close the skills gap in customer service

If you work in industrial technology, you might have noticed that skilled professionals are becoming harder to find. That’s because we’re in the middle of a global tech skills shortage.

As a result, teams across various industries are struggling to keep up with their workloads. And customer-facing teams, such as after-sales service, are finding it difficult to meet stakeholder expectations.

Thankfully, digital technologies like remote access and augmented reality (AR) enable service teams to do more with less. This article explores how you can use them to boost productivity, improve training, and create a better workplace for your team.

In this article:

• What brought on the tech skills gap
• What the skills gap means for after-sales service
• Three strategies to close the skills gap in after-sales service
• Summary: Time to embrace technology and support customers remotely

What brought on the tech skills gap

Many businesses currently struggling to find skilled talent. There are several reasons for this. But a central factor is that constant technological advancements lead to a rapidly changing demand for skills. In fact, the average half life of technology-related skills today is less than five years. Meaning that half of what employees know now will be obsolete by 2030.

At the same time, we’re confronted with an aging workforce. As today’s employees retire, fewer people are entering the workforce due to a global decline in birth rates.

Another issue is that certain groups of skilled workers are excluded from the labor market. For instance, a lack of childcare often prevents parents—who may have the needed skill sets—from working full-time.

In addition, women, black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) communities, and people with disabilities are systematically underrepresented in technological fields. This means that companies are missing out on a sizeable pool of untapped talent.

Read more: The IT skills gap, explained

What the skills gap means for after-sales service

Providing reliable after-sales service is crucial for the success of many companies. Especially those in technological fields like original equipment manufacturing (OEM). No less than 85% of B2B customers say the buyer experience is as important as the product or service itself. And poor customer service costs U.S. businesses more than USD 62 billion per year.

However, meeting customer demands can be difficult during a skills shortage. For instance, 83% of customers expect an immediate response when contacting your company. But responding to an incoming service request may take longer if your customer service team is understaffed.

Your team members might even experience burnout from being overworked. This can lead them to leave their jobs, which exacerbates the problem, creating a vicious cycle.

Plus, with technology constantly evolving, you need to ensure your team isn’t left behind. But employee training takes time and can be expensive, so this can become an additional challenge.

Three strategies to close the skills gap in after-sales service

1. Create a workplace that attracts top talent

An engaging workplace is the key to attracting new talents and retaining existing employees. Here’s how you can establish one.

Work with the latest technology

Tech professionals across all generations, from Boomers to Gen Z, love using new technology. They get excited about the latest gadgets, both at home and at work. In turn, having to deal with outdated tech at work can lower their morale. Especially if they’re already used to working with more advanced tools.

By investing in the latest troubleshooting technology, such as augmented and mixed reality, you keep your facilities up to date. At the same time, you create an attractive workplace that engages your current employees and draws in new talent.

Plus, you can use technology to streamline your team’s day-to-day work. For instance, using automation technology and AI for repetitive, tedious tasks frees up your employees for more critical, value-added activities. This helps avoid boredom and fatigue in the workplace.

Enable remote work

Remote work is another key lever to creating an attractive workplace. In fact, a staggering 98% of employees want to work remotely at least some of the time.

Previously, after-sales service was associated with manual on-site troubleshooting. There was no way for service technicians to work from home. But things have changed. With remote troubleshooting tools, experts can connect to customers’ machines and solve issues without needing to be on site.

Solutions like TeamViewer Smart Service also provide AR assistance which helps to guide customers through complex troubleshooting steps remotely. Smart Service even offers real-time captions and translation, eliminating language barriers. This makes it easy for your service staff to communicate with customers worldwide.

By enabling remote work, you gain access to a much larger pool of technical service experts. The increased flexibility attracts employees who need to balance work and family responsibilities. And by making it possible to work from anywhere, in any language, you can recruit talent on a global scale.

Read more: Remote and hybrid work: Good for your employees, the environment, and your business

2. Maximize your team’s productivity

Since new skilled employees are hard to find, it’s important to focus on those already in your workforce. Below are some tips for realizing their full potential.

Save time by reducing travel

Traditionally, service technicians spend a lot of their time on the road. They might travel hundreds of miles to troubleshoot a customer’s machine. And if the machine requires a spare part or additional expertise, they’ll need to make the same trip again.

With remote technology, technicians can solve problems without needing to travel. For instance, they can remotely access a faulty machine and identify the issue.

Some problems can be solved directly using remote access. Others require physical intervention. In this case, technicians can guide on-site workers through the troubleshooting process remotely via AR-enhanced video calls.

The reduced need for travel means that they can respond to customers faster and handle more service cases, ultimately delivering a better customer experience.

Read more: Cut travel and costs with remote connectivity

Reduce stress and burnout

According to the American Psychological Association, workers who regularly interact with customers are at a high risk of fatigue, cognitive weariness, and emotional exhaustion. These are typical symptoms of burnout, a leading cause of employee turnover.

With remote technology for after-sales service, you can create a work environment that reduces the risk of burnout.

By reducing travel, you give your technicians more time to work productively. If they can get more done during business hours, they’re less likely to stay late or work on their days off. Both of which are common causes of workplace stress.

Flexible hours and remote work also make it easier for employees to balance work with parenting or other caregiving responsibilities. Exhaustion and burnout are common among parents, so it’s important to give them the flexibility they need.

Streamline customer interactions

Finally, make sure to simplify your technicians’ work processes to help them use their time productively. Customer interactions are a great place to start.

Look for a troubleshooting solution that extends across all customer touchpoints and ensures a consistent customer service experience.

For instance, this solution should allow customers to easily create a ticket, e.g., by scanning a QR code. Ideally, this ticket contains all the technical details your team needs. Some solutions, like TeamViewer Smart Service, even let you connect with the customer directly through the ticket to provide technical support immediately.

This helps your team work more efficiently, shortening wait times and reducing frustration. Plus, you avoid the constant back-and-forth of calls and emails, which frees up your technicians’ time for more critical tasks.

Read more: Solve technical issues from anywhere: Introducing TeamViewer Smart Service

3. Train your team for success

Providing continuous training not only helps you fill skills gaps in your company but also boosts employee retention. Here are a few things to consider.

Provide better training

According to McKinsey, tech companies that invest a lot in learning and development retain more employees than those that don’t. Plus, on-the-job training creates new opportunities for people without a traditional academic background. This gives you access to more brainpower and helps you build a more diverse workforce.

But it’s not just about offering training—how you deliver it matters, as well.

Your service experts need to fully understand the machinery they support. That means their training materials need to be up to date, accessible, and easy to understand. Printed manuals and classroom sessions don’t always meet these requirements.

That’s why organizations are adopting immersive AR technology for employee training. Examples include 3D visualization, interactive instructions, and immediate feedback. These tools can help you create an easy-to-follow training experience.

Encourage learning and knowledge sharing

Immersive AR guidance creates an environment that caters to different employees’ learning needs.

Interactive instructions on mobile devices or smart glasses allow your service staff to complete training at their own pace. They can also connect with experts anywhere in the world and receive real-time guidance using AR remote assistance.

Plus, remote technology can help to facilitate knowledge sharing within the team.

Take a new employee who needs help fixing a customer’s machine, for example. Using AR technology, they can connect with an experienced colleague and share their view of the machine. This makes it easy for the colleague to see what’s going on and provide the help they need.