Partner Article

How to Manage Your Vehicle Fleet Growth

For many in an organisation, growth is a major boost, a shot in the arm after months and perhaps years of hard work. While for many it’s seen as a major plus it can, for some, it can be a real administrative headache. For the fleet manager, organisational and fleet growth is both a challenge and an opportunity. Getting the right new mix can be very difficult, however the availability of new resources can be a massive help especially when you have planned for the growth phase.

Getting ready for more drivers and vehicles

For the fleet management department or the fleet manager this can be the most hazardous. Recruiting new drivers and buying new vehicles represents 2 of the biggest financial risks anyone in fleet management can take. Like with any instance of recruitment or purchasing it always helps to take your time, consult widely and ensure that your decisions fit into a wider plan. For both areas you will need to base decisions on costs, skills and specifications on the existing fleet, the existing drivers as well as your budget and your wider plans and goals.

How to manage the admin side

While not as risky in terms of cost managing the administrative side can be just as emotionally draining. Managing call out timetables, driver logs, maintenance schedules and the 100 other administrative jobs can be hard job at the best of times so adding 20%, 50% or even over 100% is understandably nerve racking. Having a real idea of how and when to scale these up is essential. It could also help to plan for this even before the word “growth” is even mentioned.

Questions to ask yourself

How much growth is to be expected – this is majorly important as this will likely have a direct relationship with the number of new drivers and vehicles needed. The rate of growth is also important as you will need this for planning future budgets.

Do you know all your options – have you considered outsourcing some of the administrative or fleet management tasks? This can be a major help especially if you are not in a position to employ new administrative staff.

Do you know your budget – While this all depends on the rate of growth, it is important to get involved in budgeting as early as possible.

In business, times of great stress can also be times of great opportunity, never is this more true than when you find yourself in a growth spurt. From a career point of view managing a growth spell without any serious fallout can be a major chance for you to show what you’re capable of. It’s also worth noting that in a standard working career the incidence of major growth is relatively rare so it is important to make the most of the opportunity. With all this in mind the best advice is to have at least some plans of what to do if a growth phase comes along. With plans in your arsenal you can ask the right questions from the outset. As with most business processes these questions, and their answers can set the tone for everything to come.

This article was written by the team at Fleetcare, Australia’s largest independent fleet management and novated lease company.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Fleetcare .