Background – Legacy Service Challenges at Xerox
Xerox has a long history of innovation in printing and service solutions. With a broad global service footprint and thousands of field technicians, the company faced two major structural issues:
- Two parallel field support workforces (one for small & mid-market customers, one for enterprise accounts) using different tools and workflows.
- Many highly experienced technicians are nearing retirement, creating an urgent need to transfer knowledge and expedite the productivity of newer staff.
To remain competitive, increase uptime for customers’ equipment, reduce costs and environmental impact (fewer truck rolls), Xerox needed to unify its field operations and adopt advanced technologies like augmented reality (AR) and artificial intelligence (AI).
The Challenge – Why Traditional Field Service Was No Longer Enough
Key pain-points that Xerox identified:
- Fragmented systems meant technicians from different teams sometimes serviced the same location without visibility of each other.
- Technicians arriving on-site lacked complete service history and context, leading to inefficient visits, repeat calls, and extended resolution times.
- The absence of unified data led to limited insight into key metrics such as first-time fix rate, travel time, and technician utilisation.
- The need to train less-experienced technicians fast, while capturing the tacit knowledge of veterans.
- Environmental pressure: truck rolls (technician dispatches) generated travel time, CO₂ emissions, and cost, Xerox sought to reduce that.
The Vision – One Unified Platform, Smarter Service Delivery
Xerox defined a clear vision: create a unified service operations platform that integrates customer service, field service, remote diagnostics and AI/AR capabilities. The goal was to:
- Enable technicians to access the complete case/work-order history in one place, before arriving on-site.
- Improve knowledge transfer and empower technicians with immersive tools, shared visual context, and real-time data before they arrive on-site.
- Leverage AR (via CareAR) and AI to diagnose and resolve issues remotely wherever possible.
- Shift as many issues as possible to “first touchpoint fixes”, reducing the need for physical dispatch.
- Lower carbon emissions and the cost associated with travel and downtime.
- Combine all service teams and workflows on one digital platform.
- Empower technicians with real-time data before arriving on-site.
- Reduce travel time and minimize truck rolls for sustainability.
Solution Overview – How ServiceNow Powered the Transformation
To achieve the vision, Xerox selected ServiceNow Field Service Management (FSM) + Customer Service Management (CSM) as the backbone, with integration of CareAR for AR-enabled remote support. Key elements:
- Unified case/work-order management: All field service, dispatch, technician schedules, and history kept in the ServiceNow platform.
- Remote visual support: Technicians or remote experts see exactly what the on-site field tech or customer sees, and provide guided resolution.
- AI-driven insights from millions of deployed devices: Data from around 3 million devices fed into FSM to trigger proactive actions.
- One technician interface: With full context and AR support, technicians spend more time with customers and less time in transit or looking up history.
- Knowledge capture and transfer: Newer field staff get rapid skill‐up via AR and remote guidance from experienced peers.
Key Capabilities – What Changed in Practice
| Capability | Description | Benefit |
| Unified Field Workflow | Single tool for dispatch, work orders, and technician history | Reduces duplicated effort, improves technician productivity |
| Remote Visual Expert Support | CareAR + ServiceNow lets technicians get live visual guidance | Enables resolution without physical dispatch, faster diagnosis |
| Proactive AI Insights | Data from millions of devices triggers maintenance or alerts | Fewer surprises, more uptime |
| First-Touch Resolution Focus | Greater share of issues resolved at first contact | Better customer experience, lower cost |
| Knowledge Transfer & Technician On-boarding | AR tools help less-experienced techs deliver veteran performance | Shorter ramp-up time, less skill shortage risk |
| Sustainability & Travel Reduction | Fewer truck rolls, lower travel mileage & emissions | Cost savings + environmental impact |
Implementation Approach – How Xerox Rolled Out the Change
Implementation followed a practical, phased approach:
(a) Assessment & alignment
Xerox reviewed its field service operations, legacy systems, duplicate workforces and defined goals around unification and efficiency.
(b) Platform selection
The decision to leverage ServiceNow FSM/CSM came after evaluating options and seeking a cloud platform that could span both customer service and field service.
(c) Pilot high-impact use cases
Early rollouts focused on remote visual support and dispatch optimisation to deliver quick wins.
(d) Scale across the workforce
Once initial successes proved value, the platform was extended across the U.S. field workforce (and then globally).
(e) Embed analytics and continuous improvement
KPI tracking (first-time fix rate, travel time, technician utilisation) was built into dashboards to drive ongoing gains.
Key Technologies and Platforms Used
| Technology / Platform | Purpose | Benefit |
| ServiceNow FSM & ServiceNow CSM | Core workflow automation, dispatching, and customer case management | Unified operations and visibility |
| CareAR (AR & AI Platform) | Visual remote assistance and guided troubleshooting | Reduced travel, faster problem resolution |
| AI Data Analytics Engine | Predictive maintenance using device telemetry | Anticipates failures before downtime |
| Mobile Technician App (ServiceNow) | Access to service history, parts, and instructions on the go | Empowers technicians in the field |
| IoT-Connected Device Network | Real-time monitoring of 3M+ Xerox devices globally | Enables proactive service alerts |
Results & Impact – What Xerox Achieved
- With ServiceNow FSM, technicians gained an average of 53 additional minutes per day to spend directly with customers.
- More than 50% of customers now resolve their problem at the first touchpoint with Xerox service.
- Reduction in truck rolls led to carbon emissions savings of over 1,227 metric tons in a 24-month span.
- Additional reporting: Remote support via AR and AI cut many unnecessary dispatches, captured in more than 21,000 avoided technician dispatches and 269,000 kg of greenhouse gas saved.
- Improved consistency across field service workforce, better knowledge transfer, and higher first-time fix rates.
| Area | Previous State | After ServiceNow Transformation | Quantified Impact |
| Technician Efficiency | Disconnected tools and data silos reduced productivity | Unified dashboards and mobile access improved daily efficiency | +53 minutes gained per technician per day |
| First-Time Fix Rate | Multiple visits required for the same issue | Full visibility and remote guidance improved resolution speed | 50%+ of issues resolved at first touchpoint |
| Travel & Carbon Footprint | High number of truck rolls per week | Remote diagnostics and AR assistance minimized site visits | 1,227 metric tons CO₂ saved (in 24 months) |
| Avoided Dispatches | Frequent unnecessary trips to customer sites | Remote resolution using CareAR visual support | 21,000+ truck rolls avoided |
| Customer Experience | Repeated issues and long downtime | Proactive, fast, first-contact resolution | Higher CSAT and reduced downtime |
| Knowledge Transfer | Veteran knowledge not easily shared | AR and AI tools capture and transfer expertise | Faster onboarding and reduced skill gaps |
Why It Matters – Linking Technology to Business & Customer Value
For a global service company like Xerox, delivering excellent customer experience, reducing cost and lowering environmental footprint are all critical. The transformation:
- Elevated customer experience by letting customers interact with a single knowledgeable technician rather than dealing with patchwork teams.
- Reduced operational cost and travel-related inefficiencies by enabling remote resolutions and data-driven dispatch decisions.
- Enhanced technician productivity, reducing idle or preparation time and increasing “time with customer,” which often correlates with higher satisfaction and revenue.
- Supported sustainability goals by cutting travel emissions and truck rolls, which are important in a service-intensive business model.
- Provided a scalable platform (ServiceNow + CareAR) to support future expansion and innovation in service delivery.
Lessons for Other Organizations
- Unify disparate field service teams and systems to eliminate duplication and inefficiency.
- Use technology like AR and AI not just for novelty, but to solve core problems like knowledge gaps and dispatch costs.
- Focus on metrics: travel time, first-time fix rate, and technician utilisation matter. Tools like ServiceNow make them visible.
- Start with high-impact, high-volume workflows to build momentum and scale from there.
- Sustainability gains often follow operational efficiency; less travel equals lower emissions and cost.
Conclusion – Digital Field Service Redefined with ServiceNow
Xerox’s journey shows how service companies can move from reactive visits and fragmented workflows to smart, proactive, unified field service delivery. By implementing the ServiceNow platform alongside augmented reality and AI tools, Xerox has improved technician productivity, boosted first-time fix rates, cut travel and emissions, and delivered a better experience for customers and field staff alike.
