For those new to fleet management, the role can often require a change of mindset from being reactive to proactive, both when managing people and assets. Employees may not always grasp the complexities behind management decisions, leading to communication breakdowns or frustrations during periods of change. On top of that, fleet managers have the tough task of tackling asset management, which requires a good deal of fleet data to ensure things like maintenance compliance, asset safety, and uptime. Luckily, managers can drive both operational efficiency and employee satisfaction by balancing asset management expertise with thoughtful leadership practices.
A CHANGE OF MINDSET
A major concern in fleet over the past couple of years has been labor. Between labor shortages and budget tightening, retaining top talent — and attracting new talent — can be difficult, but worth the effort. Keeping employees engaged and satisfied with the job can be a challenge, especially at first, but it can also make life easier in the long run as your team becomes an experienced, well-oiled machine.
When stepping into a leadership role, fleet managers should consider prioritizing empathy and seeking feedback to actively address employee concerns. This shows that you’re invested in the team, and allows you to understand where points of frustration are, the source of them, and how they’re affecting performance and productivity. It can also help highlight process and workflow inefficiencies. If your drivers are saying they’re being held up because their vehicle is in the shop, and your technicians are telling you their workload is over capacity, it may be time to add another tech. Also, if your techs aren’t getting assets back on the road in a timely manner but the workload is reasonable, you may have a parts inventory issue that needs to be addressed.
COMMUNICATION BARRIERS
Open and easy communication with your team allows you to be more proactive in addressing issues as they arise, rather than letting a problem build until people get so frustrated or disengaged that they quit. Unfortunately, due to the mobile nature of fleet, it can be difficult to have open and easy communication. Conveying to your team that they can come to you with feedback is only one part of the equation; there need to be methods of communication in place — especially for drivers or operators at a jobsite.
When we talk about communication here, it’s not just about employee feedback; it includes enabling your team to report things like asset issues and shop delays in real time so you can prioritize and address issues quickly. This is not just important in keeping your team happy, it’s also important in keeping the fleet productive and profitable.
Many fleets are already using some type of fleet technology — telematics, fleet management software, fleet optimization platform — that can assist in easing communication woes. They include:
Digital inspections: Digital pre-trip inspections allow drivers to communicate asset issues before they even hit the road. Failed inspection items automatically alert you in real time so you can assess the severity of the failed item and determine if the asset needs to go to the shop or if it’s safe to schedule service for a later, more convenient time.
In-app comments: Your team can use a fleet solution’s native mobile app to comment on inspections, asset issues, and work orders, so everyone who needs to be in the loop stays in the loop. They can tag you in the comment to ensure you get notified and vice-versa. Having these communications in one place and associated with specific tasks make them easier to keep track of, so you can act quickly.
Being able to quickly act on issues improves assets uptime while reducing employee frustrations around communication bottlenecks, making for a more productive operation.
DATA-DRIVEN ASSET MANAGEMENT
Asset management can be just as tricky as team management, but at least your team can talk to you. When it comes to your assets, data is the universal language. Data can relay a wealth of valuable information, including:
- Asset location;
- Asset status;
- Downtime rate;
- Inspection compliance rate;
- Maintenance compliance rate;
- Fuel economy trends;
- Total cost of ownership (TCO) per asset; and,
- Asset cost per mile.
TCO is the metric that reflects an asset’s value versus operating cost. It encompasses every cost from purchase to retirement, including capital, insurance, registration, tolls, service costs, fuel costs, and depreciation. It’s also the metric that lets you know when it’s time to retire an asset. TCO can fluctuate drastically depending on what’s going on with the asset, especially where maintenance, repairs, and fuel costs are concerned.
While fleet solutions can automatically calculate your assets’ TCO for you, it’s up to you to determine — based on the data — what might be driving TCO up for a certain asset or assets, and what steps you can take to tamp down those costs. This could consist of adjusting preventive maintenance schedules, using higher-quality or more durable replacement parts, assessing fuel consumption rates, and even looking at driver behavior.
Those new to fleet management, or those thrust into the role unexpectedly, may feel overwhelmed or underprepared, but focusing on the basics of asset and team management is a solid foundation for growing in leadership.
As with any new role, there’s going to be an element of trial and error before you settle into a groove that works for you and your team, but as long as you go in with a proactive mindset, are welcoming of and open to feedback, and are willing to dive into the fleet data available to you, you’re already on the right track.
about the author
Rachael Plant is a senior content marketing specialist for Fleetio, a fleet optimization platform that helps organizations run, repair, and optimize their fleet operations.
