Dynamics 365 Field Service — The Complete Guide to a – Field Activity Questionnaire

Build technician checklists with Inspections, trigger post-visit feedback with Customer Voice, automate follow-ups with Power Automate, and report everything in Dataverse/Power BI.

 For on-site technician questions, use Inspections attached to Work Orders or Service Tasks. For customer feedback after the visit, use Customer Voice. Automate escalations, create PDFs, and push metrics into Dataverse for analytics.

Table of Contents

  1. What is a Field Activity Questionnaire?
  2. When to use Inspections vs Customer Voice
  3. Solution Architecture (End-to-End)
  4. Prerequisites & Environment Setup
  5. Step-by-Step: Build the Questionnaire with Inspections
  6. Attach the Questionnaire to Work Orders/Tasks
  7. Technician Experience in Field Service Mobile
  8. Automation with Power Automate (Examples)
  9. Copy-Ready Questionnaire Template (Sections & Fields)
  10. Data Model & Storage (Where Answers Live)
  11. Reporting & Analytics (KPIs you’ll care about)
  12. Governance, Security, and ALM
  13. Performance, Offline, and UX Tips
  14. Optional: Customer Voice for Post-Visit Feedback
  15. FAQs & Troubleshooting
  16. Go-Live Checklist

1) What is a Field Activity Questionnaire?

A Field Activity Questionnaire is a structured set of questions that a technician completes during a site visit—safety checks, asset readings, photos, signatures, and confirmation of work performed. In Dynamics 365 Field Service, the best way to implement this is via Inspections, which are dynamic forms attached to Work Orders or Service Tasks and are optimized for the Field Service mobile app (including offline usage).

2) When to use Inspections vs Customer Voice

Use Inspections for…

  • On-site technician checklists and readings
  • Photos, barcodes/QR, signatures
  • Branching logic (show follow-ups only if something fails)
  • Compliance and technician sign-off

Use Customer Voice for…

  • Customer CSAT/NPS after the visit
  • Branded email/SMS surveys
  • Capturing qualitative feedback
  • Correlating sentiment with work orders

3) Solution Architecture (End-to-End)

Technician path: Work Order → Service Task(s) → Inspection(s) in Mobile → Responses saved in Dataverse → Automation (notifications/PDFs/next Work Order) → Reporting.

Customer path (optional): Work Order completed → Power Automate sends Customer Voice survey → Responses stored in Dataverse → Service recovery if low score.

4) Prerequisites & Environment Setup

  • Dynamics 365 Field Service installed on your environment
  • Field Service Mobile app configured and users provisioned
  • Security roles: Field Service roles for technicians; makers with customization privileges for creating Inspection templates
  • Optional: Customer Voice project for feedback surveys

5) Step-by-Step: Build the Questionnaire with Inspections

  1. Create a Template: Go to Field Service → Settings → Inspections and click New. Name it clearly (e.g., INS – Electrical – Preventive V1).
  2. Add Sections: Safety, Job Steps, Measurements, Photos, Customer Acknowledgment.
  3. Insert Controls: Choice lists, Yes/No, Numeric with validation, Barcode/QR, File/Image, Signature, Multi-line text.
  4. Validation & Required: Mark critical questions required; add min/max for numeric readings.
  5. Branching Logic: If Operational Status = Fail, show Corrective Action section.
  6. Preview & Save: Use the preview; avoid unnecessary pages to keep the mobile UX snappy.

6) Attach the Questionnaire to Work Orders/Tasks

  • Direct to Work Order: Add the Inspection at the Work Order level when needed.
  • Via Service Task Type (Recommended): Link the Inspection to a Service Task Type. Any Work Order that uses this Task Type will automatically require the inspection—perfect for standardizing preventive maintenance.

7) Technician Experience in Field Service Mobile

  • Technician opens assigned Work Order → sees Tasks → opens the Inspection link.
  • Captures readings, scans asset QR/barcode, attaches photos, obtains customer signature.
  • Works offline if needed; data syncs when connectivity returns.

Tip: Keep photo requirements minimal in low-bandwidth regions to speed up sync.

8) Automation with Power Automate (Examples)

A) Quality Gate on Failures

Trigger: “Inspection Response created/updated” or “Work Order status = Completed”.

  1. Check if any critical question = Fail.
  2. Create a Case or a follow-up Work Order.
  3. Notify supervisor with a deep link to the record.

B) PDF Delivery

  1. On inspection completion, generate a PDF (Power Automate + Word template or 3rd-party doc service).
  2. Email it to the customer and attach it to the Work Order timeline.

C) Asset Trend Updates

  1. Write numeric readings back to the Asset record.
  2. Use these readings for trend charts and proactive maintenance triggers.

9) Copy-Ready Questionnaire Template (Sections & Fields)

Use this as a blueprint while creating the Inspection template:

Section Field Type / Validation Notes / Logic
A. Safety & Site Access PPE worn? Yes/No (Required) If No, block submission or require reason.
A. Safety & Site Access Permit to work verified? Yes/No If No, show Reason (Text, Required).
A. Safety & Site Access Initial site photo Image (Required on first visit) Limit size if bandwidth is low.
B. Asset Check Scan asset Barcode/QR Link scan to actual Asset record.
B. Asset Check Operational status Choice: Pass/Fail (Required) If Fail → show Corrective Action section.
B. Asset Check Readings Numeric (min/max) Voltage, pressure, temperature; add unit labels.
C. Corrective Action Action taken Choice (Repair, Replace, Calibrate, Other) If Other → require notes.
C. Corrective Action Parts used Lookup/Multiselect Consider stock deduction integration.
C. Corrective Action Time spent (mins) Whole number Validate 0–480 (or your policy).
D. Customer Acknowledgment Customer name Text Auto-fill from contact if present.
D. Customer Acknowledgment Signature Signature control Store as file linked to Work Order.
D. Customer Acknowledgment Final site photo Image Optional unless work requires proof.

10) Data Model & Storage (Where Answers Live)

  • Inspection Templates (definition of questions/sections)
  • Inspection Responses (one per completion; linked to Work Orders/Tasks)
  • Files (photos, signature images stored as file columns/attachments)
  • Work Order & Service Task (parent context; use for reporting joins)

11) Reporting & Analytics (KPIs you’ll care about)

  • Technician compliance: % tasks with completed inspection, average completion time
  • Asset health: Failure rate by asset/site/region, trend of readings
  • Quality/first-time fix: Repeat failures within 30/60/90 days
  • Customer sentiment (if CV used): CSAT/NPS per Work Order, per technician, per region

12) Governance, Security, and ALM

  • Solutions: Store templates, flows, and columns in a managed solution for prod.
  • Versioning: Use semantic versions (V1, V1.1, V2) and keep retired templates for audit.
  • Security: Least-privilege for technicians; restrict who edits templates and flows.
  • Audit & Retention: Enable auditing on key tables; define retention for large image data.

13) Performance, Offline, and UX Tips

  • Split giant questionnaires across Service Task Types (“mini-inspections”) to reduce scrolling.
  • Keep only truly mandatory photos/signatures required.
  • Use branching to hide irrelevant sections and reduce cognitive load.
  • Field names and option labels should be short, unambiguous, and localized where needed.

14) Optional: Customer Voice for Post-Visit Feedback

  1. Create a Customer Voice project with a “Work Order Feedback” survey.
  2. Use Power Automate to send the survey when Work Order status changes to Completed/Closed.
  3. Map survey responses back to the Work Order or Account for service recovery and coaching.

15) FAQs & Troubleshooting

Q: The inspection isn’t visible on mobile.

A: Confirm it’s attached to the Work Order/Task, the mobile user has access, and a sync has completed.

Q: Branching questions don’t appear.

A: Check the condition logic and the exact option values; ensure the parent question is answered first.

Q: Too slow with photos.

A: Reduce required images or compress photos; prefer Wi-Fi sync points for large uploads.

16) Go-Live Checklist

  • Templates finalized, versioned, and moved via managed solution
  • Technician training completed (with screenshots of mobile flow)
  • Power Automate flows tested: quality gate, PDF, notifications
  • Reporting dashboards validated with sample data
  • Support SOP ready: who fixes what, and in which SLA

Pro tip: Name templates clearly (e.g., INS – HVAC – PM – V1). Small, focused inspections → faster mobile UX and better data quality.

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