The Art and Science of Managing a Fleet
Fleet management may be a lot more science and lot less art than it was in the 20th century, but there are still a lot of decisions to make.
Sherb Brown, former vice president and group publisher for BBM's AutoGroup, provides a seasoned perspective on the fleet industry. Sherb is involved in several auto industry associations.
Fleet management may be a lot more science and lot less art than it was in the 20th century, but there are still a lot of decisions to make.
There is just no better opportunity to network, to learn, and to mingle with the best and the brightest than an in-person fleet event.
Fleets are often the beta testers of the vehicle market. That shift away from compact sedans we saw in the fleet market a few years ago is playing out in real time in the retail market right now.
If you don’t stay on top of the latest developments in mobility, battery technology, autonomous vehicles, and telematics, you are subjecting yourself to the whims of senior management who may be making decisions based on the latest trendy news.
Data is driving fleet decisions more than ever. Whether it’s big data or small data, fleet management is becoming less of an art every day and more of a science.
We’re not where we need to be with battery technology and the whole herd seems to be betting that a magical new solution will appear in time to save us all. I sure hope they are right.
The mainstream media may have sold out lock stock and barrel to the fringe elements but as a fleet decision maker you still have some tremendous resources that you can rely on.
The fleet management companies, the telematics providers, the upfitters, and the general service providers in our market can offer you some wonderful advice, but the only person who can really tie it all together is a fleet manager.
There is little doubt that the folks out there with 5,000-10,000 vehicles have a good handle on how much they should be paying; for everything from bucket trucks to sedan floor mats. But some of our recent survey data shows that vast hordes of the fleet market are paying close to retail rates for a lot of products and services.
Three years have gone by since our founder Ed Bobit passed away. In many ways it feels like an eternity but in other ways it feels like he was just here yesterday. He was a larger-than-life force and left quite an impact on me, and on the fleet industry.
Are you taking the time to keep an eye out for the person who is going to fill your chair when you decide to move on?
Fleet managers should stay current with new developments in the auto industry but stay grounded in reality to keep their fleets efficient and prepared for the future.
Depreciation is a necessary evil in our industry. Knowing your risks and knowing your OEM partners won’t make depreciation go away but it can make it more manageable.
Every fleet is different. Most of the service providers in our market realize this and do their best to tailor their solutions to meet the needs of today’s fleet and purchasing managers. But no one can really understand your organization’s goals better than you.
We may not be able to predict the future here at Automotive Fleet, but we can confidently predict that 2017 will be very interesting.
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