Sea Tow Enhances Operational Efficiency and Customer Satisfaction

Sea Tow, a leader in marine assistance, faced challenges in managing its extensive operations across 100 locations with over 700 captains. The reliance on paper-based processes led to inefficiencies and data inaccuracies. By implementing Field Squared’s advanced mobile workforce management platform, Sea Tow transformed its operations, enhancing data consistency, optimizing dispatch, and improving overall service transparency, ultimately boosting customer satisfaction and operational scalability.

"It could be weeks, sometimes months before we’d input information into the computer. The data was inconsistent and hard to read. Now, we have consistent data throughout all 100 franchisee locations."
- Jim Foley, CFO at Sea Tow

Challenge

As a franchisor with distributed teams operating across the United States, Caribbean, and Europe, Jim Foley, Sea Tow’s CFO, knew that communication was the beating heart of operational success. Despite having an impressive team, loyal customers, and a strong global presence, Sea Tow’s paper-based, manual processes and redundant communications were not scaling with their growing success. 

Despite a strong team and loyal customers, Sea Tow’s paper-based processes could not keep up with their growth. Data accuracy was a significant issue, as limited transparency led to a "telephone game" between franchises, dispatch centers, and captains. Inconsistent and hard-to-read handwritten information caused crucial data loss. Foley noted, "It could be weeks, sometimes months, before we’d input information into the computer. Now, we have consistent data throughout all 100 franchisee locations."

Dispatch time was another challenge. Calls often require customers to repeat information, causing frustration and inefficiency. Foley remarked, "The data is now actionable, and we can take proactive corrective action rather than wait for a member complaint."

Sea Tow also struggled with paperwork, as documents required retroactive digital entry, leading to delays in reporting, invoicing, and assessments. Customers had limited visibility into their service status, often resulting in repeated calls for updates, creating another "telephone game" for the captain's ETA.

Lastly, degraded customer information and lengthy paper-based processes hindered data utilization, impacting marketing opportunities and scalability. These issues collectively prevented Sea Tow from expanding and optimizing its operations efficiently.

Solution

Sea Tow implemented Field Squared’s mobile workforce management platform to address its operational challenges. By leveraging Field Squared’s capabilities in scheduling and dispatching, mobile smart forms, team location tracking, and integration with third-party systems, Sea Tow streamlined its processes. The platform provided real-time data capture and seamless back-office integrations, enabling Sea Tow to eliminate paperwork, improve dispatch efficiency, and enhance client transparency. This comprehensive solution allowed Sea Tow to maintain consistent data across all franchise locations, optimize dispatch times, and scale their operations efficiently without compromising service quality.

Benefits

Consistent Data Across All Franchisees: Real-time record keeping and back-office integrations nearly eliminated all information loss and data re-entry. Business data such as franchise and captain productivity, average response time, and members’ average savings allowed Sea Tow to form relationships with business insurance companies, effectively increasing their reach and customer base.

Optimized Dispatch Times: Access to real-time data allowed Sea Tow to optimize dispatch across all franchises. Data-driven scheduling and route optimization shortened dispatch times, eliminating redundancy and paving the way for efficiency across the entire operation.

Eliminated Paperwork: Automated data capture and eliminating data re-entry significantly reduced the time and effort previously spent on manual processes.

Improved Client-Facing Transparency: Real-time visibility between the dispatch center, franchise, and captain significantly improved client-facing transparency on ETA, vessel location, and job status. Future plans include real-time tracking of vessels along with SMS updates.

Enhanced Scalability: Using a single, unified mobile workforce app for all data collection positioned Sea Tow to enter into strategic partnerships and increased upsell opportunities on a national level.

“On Tuesday morning we knew how many jobs we did over the weekend. Previously this would have taken months to do. We can now capitalize on marketing and upsell opportunities.” - Jim Foley, CFO at Sea Tow

Summary

Field Squared revolutionized Sea Tow’s operations, addressing critical challenges in data accuracy, dispatch efficiency, and paperwork reduction. By implementing real-time data capture and seamless integrations, Sea Tow achieved consistent data across all franchise locations, optimized dispatch times, and improved client transparency. This transformation not only enhanced operational efficiency but also enabled Sea Tow to scale effectively, boosting customer satisfaction and service quality.

"Since we've switched to Field Squared, all of our customer responses have been very positive."
- Jim Foley, CFO at Sea Tow