As a business owner it's more than likely that you are busy growing your business. After all, that’s the best use of your time. So when it comes to managing your fleet, how can you ensure that the correct decisions are being made to best fulfill your business needs?

It is unlikely that either you or folks on your team have:

• the requisite knowledge and/or
• the tools to manage the cost of your fleet, to benchmark it against your peers, or to make data-driven decisions to guide how fleet dollars are best invested.

That is where we at Alliance Leasing come in.

As a fleet manager, we are different than a mechanic or a trusted repair shop because we are invested in more than just the technical aspects.

It goes without saying that keeping drivers safe is key to bringing value as a fleet manager.  

Here are some activities that you’re probably NOT doing regularly regarding fleet management: 

• Practicing a proactive fleet management style vs reactive: This means anticipating problems before they happen and taking steps to prevent them. For example, you could use data to predict when a vehicle is likely to break down and schedule maintenance accordingly.
• Specifying clear long-term objectives: These objectives should be SMART: specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound. For example, you could set a goal of reducing fuel consumption by 10% in the next year.
• Using metrics to benchmark progress: These metrics will help you track your progress and see how you are doing against your objectives. For example, you could track fuel consumption, maintenance costs, and vehicle utilization.
• Tracking and demonstrating improvements: It is important to track your progress and be able to demonstrate the improvements you have made to your fleet. This will help you justify your decisions to stakeholders and secure funding for future projects.
• Being goal-oriented in all aspects of fleet management: This means being intentional about your goals and making sure that they are aligned with the overall goals of your business. For example, if your business is focused on reducing costs, your fleet management goals should be aligned with this goal.
• Selecting goals wisely: It is important to select goals that are achievable and that will have a positive impact on your fleet. For example, setting a goal of reducing fuel consumption by 50% in a year may not be realistic, but setting a goal of reducing fuel consumption by 10% in a year is more likely to be achievable.
• Focusing on the internal customer: This means understanding the needs of the people who use your fleet and making sure that you are meeting those needs. For example, if your users need vehicles that are reliable and fuel-efficient, you need to make sure that you are providing them with those vehicles.
• Measuring customer satisfaction: This can be done by tracking metrics such as downtime, fuel consumption, and maintenance costs. These metrics can help you identify areas where you can improve your fleet operations and provide better service to your customers.
• Educating others about the value of fleet operations: This includes management and user groups. They need to understand the impact that your fleet has on the overall business. For example, if your fleet is well-maintained, it can help to reduce downtime and increase productivity.
• Increasing fleet operation accountability and performance: This can help to identify and address any issues that are affecting fleet performance. 
  

  Proactive fleet managers can save substantial dollars by implementing effective fleet policies, fleet preservation strategies, corporate sustainability goals, and optimizing user productivity.

• They can implement a fleet policy that requires vehicles to be properly maintained and that drivers follow safe driving practices.
• They can implement fleet preservation strategies, such as fuel-efficient driving programs and preventive maintenance schedules.
• They can work with other departments in the organization to develop corporate sustainability goals, such as reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

  By taking these steps, proactive fleet managers can save their organizations money and help to protect the environment.

Tips for being Proactive vs. Reactive

• Anticipate problems before they happen and take steps to prevent them.  For example, if you know that a particular type of vehicle is prone to breakdowns, you can schedule preventive maintenance more frequently for those vehicles.
• Communicate with their stakeholders and keeping them informed of their progress. This includes communicating with management, drivers, and other departments in the organization. By keeping everyone informed, you can build trust and support for your fleet management initiatives.
• Build relationships with other departments in the organization and get their buy-in for fleet management initiatives. This is important because it allows you to get the resources you need to implement your fleet management strategies. By building relationships with other departments, you can also get their input and feedback, which can help you to improve your fleet management program.