What Your Fleet Management Process May Be Missing

From pick up to disposal, fleet management covers every stage of your commercial vehicles’ journey throughout your business. Beyond the vehicles themselves, fleet managers also have to focus on efficiency, customer satisfaction and operating costs.

A good manager is always striving to improve turnarounds while lowering expenses. So, where do you start optimizing your fleet management?

It all begins with a thorough assessment of your current process. Identifying your strengths and pinpointing weak points will make it much easier to choose the right solutions.

As with anything in business, there is no real one-size-fits-all solution. Principle and theories aside, the best management strategies stem from an in-depth understanding of your operations that aligns with customer expectations. In this article, we’ll explore a few things your fleet management process may be missing and how to bridge the gap.

ELDs

Electronic logging devices use GPS data from a vehicle’s engine to provide you with important, ongoing details about its performance. Automated reports and driving feedback can give you an in-depth look at what goes on when your drivers are behind the wheel.

This guide on electronic logging devices (ELDs) can help you learn more about choosing logging devices and installing them in your vehicles.

Dedicated Route Planning

You might not realize how much control you really have over the routes your drivers take. While you can’t change geography, you can use the power of GPS and technology to come up with faster, safer routes. In addition to improving delivery times, using a route planning system also helps you reduce fuel costs and extend your fleet’s lifespan.

Factors like load capacity, speed, time windows and more all influence the efficiency of your drivers. A route planning software incorporates this and other data to provide you with the most accurate picture of where any order is at a given time. This can allow you to make efficient changes to delivery assignments without drastically increasing fuel usage or losing paid time.

Driver Satisfaction Surveys

You may focus so much on the vehicles that you forget who operates them in the first place. Drivers are the heart of your fleet, so their job satisfaction is vital to the success of your business.

Routine feedback questionnaires and an open-door policy can help facilitate more positive change to your operations. Rather than feeling like their opinions are obsolete, utilize your drivers’ experience to help you improve your fleet management strategy.

Positive changes have a ripple effect. The impact personalized improvements make can be astounding, especially if you rely on drivers’ suggestions on how to make their jobs easier.

Workload Management

Just because you do not have to find the perfect office space for your team, since they work on the road, does not mean you shouldn’t prioritize finding other ways to facilitate a healthy workplace. Driver health can be negatively impacted by heavy workloads and minimal downtime.

If you schedule jobs too closely together, someone may not even have a chance to recuperate before they’re thrown back onto the road. Short time windows can result in increased risk of accidents, greater mileage, more fuel consumption and overtime costs.

Workload distribution must be adaptable to your current fleet’s capabilities. By utilizing a workload management software, you can plan your deliveries ahead of time, distribute them evenly and help your drivers achieve greater balance between their work and personal lives.