It may not be a product you can hold in your hand, but lottery field services is definitely something that can be felt—and enhanced. That’s exactly what’s happening now through a major Brightstar Lottery initiative underway within the Global Supply Chain organization. The leadership team is reimagining how field services operates through 12 initiatives targeted at transforming service models, streamlining processes, and applying new technology solutions to elevate retailer support to a new level.

With nearly 1,200 members—including technicians, contact center agents, and managers—Brightstar’s field services team provides end-to-end support for lottery retailers throughout the service lifecycle, handling everything from machine installations and upgrades to preventative maintenance, training, and remote support. The team supports over 1.2 million devices in the U.S. alone, including lottery terminals, communication equipment, and vending machines. Service is available 24/7, every day of the year, backed by reliable hardware, smart peripherals, and a strong communications network.

The initiative revolutionizes how these services are performed. “We’re employing best of breed technology, AI and machine learning, and advanced analytics, together with our expertise in equipment design, manufacturing, and service delivery,” notes Brad Young, Senior Vice President, Global Supply Chain. “What creates next-level service for customers is the combination of leading technology and our experienced teams.”

At the outset, “We really took a look at how we could utilize the latest trends and technologies on behalf of our lottery customers and their retailers—with AI being a key enabler for us to deliver an even better value proposition,” explains Matt Rudden, Vice President, Lottery Field Services. The results of the initiative are now rolling out across the U.S.

A prime example, showcased at the recent NASPL conference, is Route Planning Optimization to ensure faster support to retailers. Brightstar invested in a smart scheduling and routing tool that uses advanced analytics to optimize technician routes and task-order. The system not only factors in real-world drive paths, traffic, fuel, service windows, and field rep capacity, it also integrates real-time tracking to ensure that calls are assigned to the best positioned technician. “Along with faster retailer interventions and improved service levels, the system supports sustainability goals by reducing travel distances and fuel consumption, because technicians are being routed in the most optimal way,” notes Rudden.

Other facets of the program include an upgraded Remote Solution to address retailer issues from the call center without dispatching a technician. The company has enhanced its remote resolution platform, retrained contact center agents, and invested in tools that allow teams to manage issues nationwide in a centralized manner.

Retailers will now have access to a newly developed Self-Service portal, a convenient solution for tasks such as reordering consumables or instant tickets and resolving simple device issues. A live chat function offers an alternative to calling for support, allowing retailers to choose the most efficient way to connect with customer service, improving speed and their experience.

A new, user-friendly Field Service Dashboard provides performance and data transparency to lottery personnel to monitor compliance with service-level agreements (SLAs). The system ensures transparency on key metrics and KPIs, provides valuable operational insights (for example, visibility to out-of-stock information), and is customizable to meet site-specific customer needs.

Another key area is Data-Based Predictive Maintenance, focused on transforming preventative maintenance through data and machine learning to increase reliability and minimize terminal and vending machine downtime. Brightstar’s newest products have been equipped with sensors to transmit core data to the company’s central systems. By collating and analyzing this data, the team can make intelligent, predictive suggestions to determine the best moment to intervene for maintenance, replacing time-based preventative maintenance schedules. With the completion of a successful pilot in 2025, the company is committed to delivering this complex, long-term initiative to the field.

Added Value

“Our goal is to continuously improve service and deliver added value in our long-term customer relationships,” says Rudden, reflecting on the initiatives. “We have made significant improvements by standardizing how we work—most of it behind the scenes. Customers will not see changes to their field services contracts, but they will experience better outcomes and faster, more efficient service.”

Making Their Mark on the Global Service Community: In October, Brightstar’s Matt Rudden and Samantha Campbell were among the honored recipients of the 2025 “Stand Out 50 Awards” for service professionals. The award recognizes leaders who “have gone above and beyond, driving their teams, organizations, and industries forward with visionary strategies and flawless execution.”