Fleet management software in the press
Fleet World - August 2007
Life in the fast lane
Life in the fast lane
LESS THAN A DECADE AGO fleet managers sat in typical isolation in their offices, invariably in front of an off-the-shelf computer system busily inputting as much data as possible to give them an overall view of their vehicle operation. Today, in the age of the Internet, the face of fleet management has undergone a wholesale revolution, kick-started by the ever-growing trend by companies to outsource non-core functions.
With fleet managers seeing their role change from managing vehicles on a day-to-day basis to a strategic function and the involvement in vehicle operations of other corporate departments - HR, finance and procurement particularly - there was an immediate need for sophisticated hi-tech vehicle management systems.
Fuelled by the increasing use by businesses of third-party providers for an ever-widening range of fleet-related services and the rise in popularity of a plethora of cash-for-car schemes, it is now essential that today's cutting-edge, web-based fleet management software systems seamlessly interact with other internal and external software. And demand for across-department accessibility to vehicle-related data - applicable to company-provided vehicles as well as employee-owned vehicles driven on business - is rising as more companies switch their attention to corporate social responsibility.
Initially, the focus was on managing occupational road risk, but increasingly the desire of businesses to reduce their carbon footprint is resulting in demand for a rapidly broadening range of data. Information on individual drivers - invariably initially input by the HR department - and their vehicles (fleet department provided) is now married up with the flood of data from service suppliers such as leasing and rental companies, fuel card companies, dealers and fast-fit providers to enable the most detailed ever picture to emerge of a fleet operation.
No longer is there the need for fleet department staff to manually input every item of information from a driver's name to a model's number plate and from a fuel purchase to a vehicle service. This was not only time consuming and administratively cumbersome, but could be prone to mistakes. Additionally, the way data was stored meant it was difficult to monitor, measure and compare and contrast the performance of individual drivers and vehicles effectively Instead, computers using a common language, for example .NET and XML, to seamlessly populate systems in real-time ensure up-to-the-minute accurate management information.
It is virtually impossible to find a fleet that does not outsource at least one aspect of its operation and it is clear from the discussions we have that fleet decision makers are becoming increasingly software savvy. They understand the importance of choosing bespoke technology that can fully integrate with systems operated by external suppliers and other company departments, such as HR, payroll and finance, and can also be accessed by drivers.
Technology that "talks" to other software both inside and outside the old fleet department is essential if forward-thinking businesses - many of which no longer have a full-time fleet manager - are to utilise it to their advantage to maximize fleet effectiveness.
Automation and integration significantly reduce operating costs through having less manual intervention driven processes. The resulting productivity increase triggers valuable time-savings. Additionally, the technology gives increased control and monitoring of all vehicle and driver areas with automated tolerance checks and notifications being carried out by the system. In turn, the management information available to company bosses on every facet of fleet functionality has never been more detailed or more accurate.
A few years ago, fleet managers may have believed that the advance of technology would leave them without a job. This is far from the truth as the technology revolution enables fleet decision-makers to be far more strategic in their job and less process-driven. However, some businesses have yet to make full use of the increase in electronic communication links.
Direct access to information will continue to increase with the growing use of web-based systems enabling drivers and their line managers to access and change information. The surge in electronic communication will continue also, with SMS and email notifications automatically sent to drivers/line managers with duty of care reminders or updates on information such as fleet handbook acceptance sign-off, requests for mileage returns and prompts that a vehicle service is due.
Just as in others facets of business life the trend for more electronic communication and greater access to information is now rapidly embracing the fleet industry. With the rise in telematics, more local authorities promising congestion charging and just-in-time deliveries requiring detailed journey planning, the use of online technology in vehicle operations may only be at the tip of the proverbial iceberg.
Technology companies have rapidly revolutionised the fleet industry; developing the necessary tools to bring together and electronically link the disparate areas of the vehicle, suppliers, customers and drivers.
Those advances have been huge but the journey is far from complete. With businesses now embracing fleet technology instead of fighting against it as a form of job protection, the developments we are going to see over the next decade are going to further change our industry beyond recognition.
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