Have you ever had a conversation with a coworker, driver, or vendor, and replied to an inquiry with “Well, it doesn’t apply to me,” and left the conversation at that? Do you have help at fleet handling specific parts of your operation, such as fuel, compliance, or leasing?

As a journalist, one of the scariest assignments is something that I know nothing about, yet one of the best senses of accomplishment comes with learning about a subject and understanding it well enough to share the information with WT readers.

Perhaps you have a regulatory compliance manager, so as far as you believe, regulatory compliance issues “don’t apply to me.” But, can you imagine how much more you could help your operations with a basic understanding of regulations that apply to your fleet?  With regulations changing constantly and slowly moving down the pipeline to cover lower GVWR vehicles, understanding regulatory compliance can help you with vehicle purchasing and fleet management.

Do you utilize a fuel vendor or fuel card provider that you depend on for information about fuel costs and use? The more you know about a topic, the better educated you are on all aspects of fleet management, whether it “applies to you” or not. Be fuel expert and study trends, know what’s happening overseas, and understand some of the intricacies that impact prices. You’ll be better prepared for increases when they happen.

Do you know the differences between a terminal rate adjustment clause (TRAC) lease and a full-service lease? While fleet management companies and lessors are there to help you determine the best option for your operation, having the basics down will help you make better decisions when presented with possible options.

Instead of saying, “It doesn’t apply to me,” take advantage of the abundant learning opportunities from webcasts to conference sessions to WT articles to learn as much as possible about every aspect of fleet. While subject-matter experts are indispensable, become a subject-matter expert in your own right. Be the fleet manager who is the constant student of fleet.

What do you do to continue your fleet education? Do you find yourself saying “it doesn’t apply to me”?

E-mail me, let’s chat!

Lauren Fletcher
Executive Editor, Work Truck magazine
Lauren.Fletcher@bobit.com