Reducing Fleet Operating Costs
Jul 25, 2022
Many fleets are operating on, or preparing for, a reduced fleet budget due to the current economic uncertainty. In this episode, we sit down with a fleet management consultant to learn more about what fleets should expect in the coming months, and steps they can take to reduce their costs of operation."
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Transcript
INTRO
Welcome to the Fleet Code, a podcast brought to you by Fleetio where we dive into the latest fleet trends, technologies, and best practices. I'm Zach Searcy, and I don't know if you've noticed, but inflation has been kinda crazy, and it's had me thinking a lot about how we in fleet can respond to the economy when it fluctuates outside of our control. Budgeting is hard to begin with, so what does it look like when you start to factor in inflation?
Here to answer that question is Tim Denny, the CEO of Onward Fleet Solutions. Tim spends a lot of time helping fleets optimize their operational processes, based on his own years of navigating budgets as a fleet manager. Let's jump into our convo and get you a few tips on how to reduce fleet operating costs in the midst of a less-than-ideal economy.
ZACH
So with the current economic uncertainty and the inflation that we're seeing around the world, we know that a lot of fleets are planning for a reduced operating budget in the coming months, or they're already dealing with tightened budgets. And that's why we reached out to you, Tim. Thanks for joining us today.
TIM
My pleasure. Glad to be here.
ZACH
Awesome. Awesome. So I'd love to just start out. I'd love to learn a little bit more about yourself and your path to Onward Fleet Solutions.
TIM
Oh wow. I'm gonna do that in, in, in less than a couple of minutes is my goal, but, um, real quick cliff notes version. Um, was born in Southern California, moved to Oklahoma when I was 13 and, um, really had aspirations to be a competitive bowler, um, which was kind of interesting. And, and then ultimately I worked for a, um, large energy company called Chesapeake energy from 1996 to 2014. I took over managing the vehicle fleet at just 300 units. Um, grew it to its peak of over 7,000 in 17 states over the next several years. And, and, and we did that and almost seemed like overnight. Um, and so I was there at Chesapeake 18 years. Again, love fleet, went to had an opportunity at, um, a large, um, automotive retail group that had 17 rooftops in the state of Oklahoma. So definitely one of the largest and had. Great, um, executive experience in automotive retail for about five years. And so in 2019, I knew automotive retail was probably not gonna be my future and, um, was, was looking for an opportunity that would, that would allow my passion, um, and experience to help add value to, um, to others. And so. The launch of onward fleet solutions in January of 2020.
ZACH
That's awesome. So, uh, I, I obviously want to ask so many more questions about your competitive bowling career. Uh, but unfortunately that's a different podcast. Um, and so that, so with that, uh, was there something that you saw that made you specifically see a need for onward fleet solutions? Was there a gap or a specific need that you observed.
TIM
Great question. So I really felt at the time, and I worked with a lot of fleet management companies. Obviously, if you are, um, the leader of over 7,000 vehicles or assets, you were getting a lot of calls from, um, a lot of FMCs in, in the space. And so I, I worked with a couple, um, had conversations with several and, and I think for me, It was more, you know, folks talk about customized solutions. It was more understanding different industries and everybody operates a little differently while the fundamentals are the same, um, across industries, there is a level of uniqueness. And so, so for us, um, you know, the goal was really to stay nimble and, and be ready to accommodate and have different playbooks for all of our clients and still be effecti. So a lot of people say that when they're launching, I'm gonna have, you know, I'm gonna scale, but yet I'm gonna continue to customize. And so for us, it was just, um, I wanted to be great in. Solution area. And I didn't want to jeopardize being average, which would then jeopardize a couple of the areas where we were great in. And I just felt the opportunity, um, that was out there. It's very complex. There's a lot to navigate, but I, I love the complexities of it. So, so that being said, I felt like there just wasn't one unique. Um, FMC out there that could accommodate and be great. And so for us, we've done that by, by launching with some great strategic partnerships and then having, um, the experience, um, internally on our staff as well to, uh, provide that extra value to our clients.
ZACH
Yeah. Yeah. So speaking of your clients, uh, which fleets benefit the most from a partnership with a fleet consulting partner, like. .
TIM
Wow. Yeah. So I would say, you know, when we go out and talk with folks, it's from a handful of vehicles. So I like to say 10 or more, um, up to several thousand, um, obviously. Um, there's a niche out there for under a hundred assets where folks, and, and I kind of made a career out of this, right? Like, oh, wow. Maybe Tim has some bandwidth and he can absorb this and then he can absorb this. And next thing you know, I blink and 10 years go by and, and I've got experience managing, um, you know, several areas. And so for us, Um, there is a great niche on under, uh, um, a hundred units. Usually folks don't have dedicated expertise on staff for that as they're growing. Usually it's an office manager that may handle some of the responsibility. Sometimes it's the executive who is technical and, and loves fleet and wants to manage it. But at the end of the day, for us, it's taking that burden off, being an extension of, uh, of the C. And letting us be the expertise and it allows us to scale up and scale down as needed. But yeah, so hopefully that,
ZACH
Yeah, no, that makes a lot of sense to me. We, I mean, obviously have talked to a lot of fleets who are, uh, the person was put into a fleet management position, just kind of by proxy. Like it was not what they were pursuing, it just happened. Um, and so it makes sense that in that situation you'd benefit from a partner who has that direct fleet experience that they could, uh, leverage and help guide you. So as I said today, we're really wanting to be talking about, um, specifically the current economic circumstances. And, uh, with that in mind, many fleets are probably trying to think of ways that they can reduce their operating costs or tighten up their budgets or maybe reallocate some of their budget. If a fleet comes to you, looking for ways to reduce their operating costs, what are some of the first places that you look, um, really understanding if the company even knows what they're spending on vehicle?
TIM
Right. Typically when we go to onboard a client, we have an onboarding checklist where we're requesting some information, but we know a lot of times, the reason they're engaging us is because they don't have all of this information in, in one spot. Um, and so, so for us, it's really a combination of grabbing the information that they may have and how they're tracking and, and understanding their fleet operat. And then really grabbing all the data that, that most people don't think about. Most people just focus on maintenance and purchasing costs and fuel cost, but there's a lot more to it. And so really, um, we are a data driven data recommended organization. We let the clients bring as much emotion into that final purchasing equation, um, as they want to. But for us, it's it's data driven. Um, and so really again, going through that comprehensive onboarding process, understanding what they are really spending and, and then having a tool to allow that visibility a one stop shop is super important, so people can make quick informed decisions without having to open up. You know, seven or eight different spreadsheets or their own, their own asset management system. And so again, for us, it's just visibility into all of those.
ZACH
Yeah. So you mentioned, I mean, of course they're the main data points that everybody's pulling in. Uh, so you've got maintenance and fuel and things like that. What are some other, other points that you're looking into?
TIM
Yeah. So I would think, you know, really it goes from, we talked about fuel and maintenance. Those are the two most common, most people, but there's insurance costs, which are obviously on the rise. There's tolls, there's GPS, telematics, um, there's accidents. Um, there's licensing registration renewals. There's certifications. And so really all of those. So we, we tend to make a great living, focusing on the pennies, cuz the pennies add up to dollars and the dollars add up to tens and hundreds and then thousands of dollars. And so, so for us, it's just making sure that there's some awareness for each of our clients in each of these little areas and we should not lose sight of, of the smaller areas. Um, but again, that's what we do. Um, that's our core competency. Most of our clients, it's not their core competency. If you're a construction company. Or you're an office equipment solution provider focuses in fleet management. And so there's a lot of relatability, I think with our backgrounds and diverse experience, we can go into a client and we can relate to construction management. We can relate to office equipment and office solutions. And so I, I think again, that's another key differentiator for. Is is really that relatability as we sit down top with each. Yeah.
ZACH
So, uh, I mean, of course being a fleet management software, uh, fleet, we, we love anybody. Who's data driven. We love focusing on the metrics because we do know that that's where you get insights into the visibility. Like you get insights into what your fleet is doing at a deeper level than just being able to walk out into the shop and see everything. Um, and so, yeah, it's, I mean, it sounds like what you're saying is just the most important thing is getting visibility into. Metrics and internet data AB
TIM
Absolutely. Speed of transaction is also super important. Um, going back to, you know, one of the challenges you talked about and, and why onward is I used to, I mean, imagine the, the folks out in the field are the revenue generators and the guys at the corporate office and gals at the corporate office do not wanna slow down and have someone waiting, you know, uh, a lengthy amount of time could be as much of a couple hours for someone to, you know, approve a maintenance request.
And so it's, it's really great. Your, your solution is, is fantastic. And. That couldn't appreciate.
ZACH
I, um, I promise I was not fishing for compliments there, but, but we'll, we'll take them it's
TIM
Okay, good. I don't give them out freely, Zach.
ZACH
So once a fleet's identified some of their places that they might be overspending, are there steps that they can take to start reducing those expenses? What does that next step look like?
TIM
Yeah. So for us, you know, a lot of clients may not have any benchmarking data, so we have to use some industry specific information. And so we've seen it where, you know, we've onboarded the a hundred unit client, and they've got a spreadsheet with vans and that's about it. You know, what is your, what is your cost per mile? Um, and then they, you kinda get the deer in the headlight look. And so some clients said, Hey, it's gonna take us a while, um, to have some data in the system and, and what. Dashboard looks like today will look completely different there. And, and ultimately, as we're going through that onboarding process, we're communicating, we're asking questions. So we try to really understand the culture, the operations, um, the, uh, needs of each of our clients. And then we slowly but surely bring in some recommendations and, and, you know, once you start having data, there's always some low hanging. Are we gonna go grab that? Um, initially. You know, if a company's using, uh, a purchasing card and they have a significant fuel span and we're able to, you know, put them on a program to help them lower those expenses, um, overnight then yeah, we're gonna do that, but we're, we're gonna make recommendation. We, we tend to go with the little softer approach, but, but really it's understanding that data making recommendations. You know, even getting this granular, we do, we are really rigid when it comes to quarterly business reviews. Um, if we feel like there's an opportunity for clients to, um, make some changes quicker, then we'll do monthly initially. We take a very proactive approach, um, on a daily, weekly, monthly basis with looking at the data. Um, there's just, there's a lot of data and fleet management and we love it. I mean, we have some great data analysts on our team that help filter that.
ZACH
Yeah. So I like, I like the core of what you're saying there, which is essentially that. So you gather this data, you might find a couple of things that you can do in the short term to start making a change, but you should also be realistic in how long it's gonna take you to really start finding opportunities to cut costs. But then also for those cost cutting measures to start, uh, taking effect.
TIM
Sure. No, that's, that's a great point. Really, I, it sound like a broken record, but it, it just all comes down to the data. Yeah. And what you're doing that data.
ZACH
Yeah. Same honestly. Well, it's been about a decade since fleets have really faced the effects of inflation, at least to this degree. So for anybody who wasn't in the industry, or is new to a decision making position right now, what are some impacts that they should expect to their fleet operations? Uh,
TIM
So I, you know, there's, there's a lot of beliefs, um, out there, but we believe that there's still gonna be some continued turbulence. Over the next 12 to 18 months. And you will have some leveling with supply and demand, which obviously is not only. A contributor to some of the new vehicle delays, but obviously labor shortages and parts delays. So, so we're asking our clients to keep their vehicles a little longer. Um, so extend their life cycle a little bit, but at the same time, um, you know, VE, uh, fleets have not prepared to have a, a large percentage of spare vehicles. I think that percentage is increasing a little bit. Um, but, but ultimately it goes back to understanding what the key requirements are. Understanding what the, um, what, what the budgets and forecasts are of a company, and then coming up with a unique, customized solution. And that could be a combination of both. It could be switching and being open minded to different OEM brands, right? Based on production schedules, pricing availability, it could be extending life cycles. It could be a combination of both. And so we, we also used the word hybrid. We, we realized that, um, every situation's a bit unique. And we try to really stay ahead of production windows and making sure when the OEM production ordering windows open, you know, we're the first in line with our hands up and, and we're ready to go with purchase orders and whatever else is required these days, because what used to take us a few minutes to go find a vehicle is not that easy anymore. Taking a passive approach in this environment will get you running. I mean, supply chain and labor shortages. Those are obviously things that, uh, it's kind of a unique hurdle to have in addition to, uh, economic instability.
ZACH
Um, and with that, some people are having to deal with things that they haven't dealt with, uh, historically even, uh, how, what are some specific things that you're seeing fleets do from a budgeting perspective? Uh, are they shifting some of their purchasing dollars over to maintenance or what are you seeing from that side?
TIM
I think folks are still trying to purchase as many units as they possibly need. Um, you know, when, when, when we're communicating with our clients and, and this is about us, but I think it gives 'em good perspective. We're we're able to. Do some great mileage projections based on average miles driven per day. And, and we're advising lean, um, a little longer term. So don't just focus on what units need to be replaced in the next six months. Focus on what units need to be, be replaced in the next 12 months. Um, really try to get ahead of that. Um, and then ultimately finding that balance and those, those budgets that could then. Um, be allocated toward the maintenance because we all know as vehicles, um, start aging, um, larger expenses start the surface, you're not gonna sit most people aren't, um, you know, I'm not gonna go to the doctor for five or six years. They're gonna wanna be proactive, taking care of their health and, and we think the same thing for, for vehicles.
ZACH
For sure, so if fleets are managing their maintenance in house, or if, for any fleets that have to procure more than just assets, is there a way that they can avoid avoid some of the inflated material costs that are coming due to like surge pricing or are there steps that they can take to stay ahead of the curb when it comes to, uh, asset and material avail availability?
TIM
Sure. And again, I think it, I think that the one thing of that I can communicate and hopefully resonates with a lot of folks is, um, be open minded, think outside the box, right? We're all accustomed. We've ordered the, these specific parts from a certain supplier for the last 20 years. And, and, and ironically, we have a few clients where we have some really good wholesale relationships, um, that allow, um, a still providing a quality product for some cost savings discounts, and even, even companies that haven't typically wanted to do. Some of the smaller things internally are now more open minded. In order to have some cost savings. And so, but we do run across those, um, larger operations, especially ones who are managing more medium duty, heavy duty, we have are pretty heavy on their own internal operations. And again, just like us, we're advising our clients to be open minded, to different OEMs, different brands, um, different models do the same thing, you know, and I'm, I'm a believer inspect what you expect. Don't be afraid to try something new. And take a look at it. Um, get feedback from, you know, your drivers. Again, just be open minded, don't be afraid to try something new. And a lot of times we all try something new. It may not have the impact we hope, but then we move on to something different.
ZACH
Yeah. Yeah. I like, I like that you brought up the drivers because I do think that that's an element of making fleet decisions. That's not incorporated often enough and we're really at a time, as you mentioned, there's labor shortages. So you, you can't afford to step on toes in places like that because filling that position is harder than it's ever been before. Um, and so. Could you talk through some of the like, so if somebody's trying to find ways to reduce their fleet costs or their cutting budget expenses, um, there's a, there's a, a possibility that they cut something that drivers find valuable. Um, and so trying to figure out like the, the perceived value versus the actual value of, of certain things and making sure that you weigh that.
TIM
Yeah, so I think, um, we've also depending on the size of lead and, and the environment of the client that as we become more and more familiar with them, and even if it doesn't have happen early on, we can, you know, bring a small group together of key stakeholders. Um, cause cuz what happens, right? We make a change. We think it's gonna have this impact. But then driver a gets a little frustrated because it's slowed down him. And now, now he's out in the field longer and he's not able to provide the service that everyone expects. And then now maybe he, or she's a little vocal to their peer, which then kind of cascades. And so now you have. Not the most positive, uh, perceptions because they're hearing it, um, real time through someone who's potentially been negatively impacted. It goes back to that proactive communication, making sure that whatever plan we put in place day one is a plan that's, that's evolving. Um, you know, we're not looking for a three year strategic plan. We're looking for short, medium term plan. And, and again, just having the ability to measure the data points, to support those predefined objectives, goals that are established by the client and or with the help of, of us depending, um, on, on what the particular need is. But I, again, it just goes back to transparency and communication, even if it's not communicating the results that we hope. But I just think once you identify, just to kind of recap, once you identify those goals and objectives, making sure you got a pathway to report on those or even solicit feedback. Through that. And just that we're making, I think what you said at the start where you said, okay, so when you're going in and creating a new budget or adjusting a budget significantly, create a group of key stakeholders and. Typically, I think, uh, when it comes to budgeting, you view that as you've got the CFO and you've got people who are in financial based decisions, and then you've also got your accounting team, uh, which is probably the same thing. Uh, and then you've got the people who are in a fleet management decision or position, but being able to bring in people who are on the ground level, actually using the stuff and who are gonna be affected the most, having that as a source of input, you might not always give them what they're looking for, but. Having that as a source of endpoint or input is valuable, and that gives you an opportunity to, to surface things that you wouldn't otherwise see.
ZACH
Sure.
TIM
And I think, you know, just one more additional thought, you know, we go through these quarterly business reviews and. And the fleet managers out there hearing the day to day communication from the drivers, just trying to keep everybody on the road, keep vehicles on the road, keep prepared cost to a minimum. Um, and then ultimately you have the CFO, right? The CFO is gonna have a little different perspective. They're not involved than the day to day operations, but yet they're seeing their fuel cost, you know, with a significant, um, trajectory going in the wrong direction. They're seeing operating cost increase. Vehicles are on the road longer. But, but I think for us, and again with, um, fleet management partners, they know the market, right. They know what labor rates should be. They know what parts pricing should be. They know not to jeopardize, um, any key service intervals, um, because you don't want to jeopardize warranties and things and you wanna make sure your vehicle is safe and can operate efficiently. And so there's. There's there's a lot of variables and, and ultimately we just try to make it very simple to understand.
ZACH
Right? I like the link that, I mean, again, I just prove the value of having that data and having, having stuff that shows. So if your operating expenses go up, you can directly tie it into this, this and this. And it's like, well, these are inevitable. Cost of fuel went up. So that's why this went up. But maybe this is an opportunity for us to, to cut costs. And optimizing then to your point that you made earlier having that 6, 12, 18 36 month plan allows you to, to start working towards a standardized thing. So it's like, okay, well, if our fleet, if we just need a bunch of pickup trucks, then we start purchasing or procuring the same type. And so that then all of our, like that standardization trickles down into everything that you're procuring. And I guess it becomes a little bit easier to, to cut some costs in that too.right.
TIM
Right. And you know, the, the smaller fleets they're focused on what the purchasing cost is, right. They're not, you know, they're not looking at the, the ways that you are kind of left behind with all the other operating costs that we have mentioned earlier. And so bringing all that together, and then, you know, we kind of believe in the total cost of ownership and we know there's a lot of discussion around TCO. really what that means, but it's optimizing each of those areas. Spend to get that optimal cost per mile. Cause that is the data point that will always catch up to you. You can now run it long term, right? I mean, all the data's gonna come back and give you that data point.
ZACH
Yeah, absolutely. And so, um, well, so now, now I want talk about, um, the future of the fleet industry, because I do think that despite where the, the economy seems right now, there are some really exciting things happening in this industry from technological advances to automation, to artificial intelligence, what's something that gets you excited about the future of fleet.
TIM
Yeah, so a couple things, um, one, the fleet industries continue is gonna continue to grow. Right? There's a, you know, when, when we started onward, we did a lot of research and we wanted to be. You know, we wanted to be part of an, uh, an industry that had some great growth opportunity that wow, this matured so many levels, but it's changing so rapidly. And we were in a position to help change rapidly, um, as well. And so, so what excites me, um, going forward, obviously there's a lot of discussion, um, of the importance of technology and having all of it integrated the OEMs have technology, the GPS telematic solutions have. Technology, um, asset management companies have technology to bring all the, the data together. And I think having the ability to have that easy integration with all the data points, um, is going to be more and more critical with each day that passes. Is for fleet management. And, and I remember when, you know, I started getting into fleet management years and years ago. There wasn't much of that, right. It was a lot of spreadsheets, a lot of manual tracking. What do I do with it? And, and now just with the embedded OEM technology and the GPS technology and the asset management technology, there's, I'm super excited about the. Evolution of the technology in fleet management. Um, super excited about the, um, sustainability programs that are out there that, that we get to hear from a client that has 10 units to a client that you know, is, is, has, is, is a public company that has some, some really strategic emission goals over the long term and in helping provide.
customized solutions for that. And, and I think another differentiator for us is we've got experience in the alternative fuel space. Um, you know, we were one of the early movers, um, in. You know, with C and G and, and we were very involved. I mean, we looked at the time in 2008, maybe it was 2009 gas prices were kind of where they're at now and natural gas and CMG prices were here. And, and people always ask me back then. Well, we tried this in the nineties, right. And that doesn't ever set too well with me. We try a lot of things. I tried a lot of things 10 years ago that I'm much better at. Right. And so I don't let, I don't let that resistance. I'm like, okay. I understand. But things are a little different, the nineties, it wasn't about economics at the time. It was really how do we lower our carbon footprint and how do we start doing the right thing? Um, you know, just from an overall climate standpoint and, and didn't gain the momentum from, you know, really the, the local state and national. Um, subsidies that was needed at the time, it just wasn't cost cost effective. How do you get things cost effective at scale? And I will tell you, the economics are favorable. And the, um, you know, the results of lowering your carbon footprint, um, are super important and they're there today as well.
ZACH
Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. So you talk specifically about where technology is going and how you have, we've been developing all these different data points. Uh, and the, the future of that is that all of those start working together and talking together, um, We're in an industry who is a little technology averse at times. Like there are people who, uh, they've, they've done things away for so long and that way they felt has worked. But, um, what are some steps that fleets can start doing right now to, to start benefiting from all of these data points and to start getting them to work together?
TIM
I think, I think folks get caught up on the overwhelmingness of how do I get there? How do I. Um, flip desk switch, and, and again, you can't get there overnight. And so, you know, come up with a multi face strategic plan that fits your environment.
And then just building that multi-faced approach and bringing in the right stakeholders and celebrating those accomplishments along the way. It's something we try to do as an organization as well, but I go back is you have a two or three year goal that you want to get to, but celebrate the little things.
ZACH
I might have, uh, our producer of this podcast, cut that answer and just like plug that into every single thing, because I think that's so important just across the board is that if you only focus on where you are and where you want to be, that can feel so daunting. But if you break it up into little things, then, uh, then you know, You can see the progress, you can measure that progress. And it also just makes it feel so much more approachable and so much more actual, like something that you can attain.
TIM
Sure. And this is coming from one of the most impatient people you'll ever meet. Right. I, I, I, I say you can't flip the light switch, but I am telling you, Zach, I'd love to try to flip the light switch. And, and I just say, it's gonna take six months to flip that light switch, but yeah. And so, but, but it, it is a proven method. It works. And so it's a, it's just a great opportunity and a great way to think about things. So it's not so overwhelming.
And I think if, if I can add one other thing, you know, there's just a lot of opportunities to start working through some of that, even if it's not buying new vehicles. Right. I, I don't did not wanna lose sight of that because there's ways to measure that technology from excessive vital time to driving behavior, which leads into driver safety. Um, again, there's, there's just a lot of opportunities you can do, um, managing with data today, um, just in overall, um, behavior changes, but reporting on that, and again, uh, we've got some real life experience where we've seen some great data supporting. Um, you know, to achieve those goals, but you know, you don't see these large energy companies allowing, uh, or, or communicating. I want to be zero by, you know, 20, 24. They're like, I wanna be zero net emissions by 2040. Okay. And so now they get the back into their plan. Do they want to meet and exceed that? Yes. Do they want to manage expectations at the same time? Yes. Um, you know, the federal, government's gonna have some, some regulations and some mandates. I mean, we obviously know all vehicles are so much more fuel efficient than they were 10 years ago. And that trend will continue to get better as technology continues to advance. And so, so now there, there's just so much opportunity out there to not only better and, and help position yourself for some of those sustainability goals by, by what you are doing today. and then position yourself even further to make more progress when you're allowed to, uh, a wise man once told me, uh, within the last 10 minutes, it's not a light switch. It's something that, that you've gotta, you've gotta put the plan in place and start executing strategically over the course of the, the next few years.
ZACH
So I appreciate that.
You were the wise man, uh, in, in that situation.
TIM
Yeah. Yeah, absolutely. Okay. Okay, cool.
ZACH
I do have one last question before we tie up this conversation and, uh, I just think that it'd be especially beneficial to anybody who's listening, but do you have any words of encouragement or advice that you're offering to fleet managers that you're working with today?
TIM
Yeah, just don't, don't be afraid to ask questions, be vulnerable, reach out to your peers, join organizations that allow you expertise. There's, there's a lot of information at your fingertips. We all know that, but there's a lot of expertise around you.
ZACH
Awesome. Well, again, thanks for joining us today, Tim. It was great to have you opportunity and, uh, really appreciate just all the, all the words of encouragement and advice and action that you've given us.
TIM
My pleasure. You too.
ZACH
And that's the Fleet Code y'all. Big shoutout to Tim for sharing his expertise on operational costs. Here's a few takeaways you can take back to your fleet:
- Always let data guide your decision making.
- Stay communicative and transparent to keep everyone on the same page.
- Don't be afraid to make a change from your norms to really see a difference in your bottom line.
- Set clear goals that you can measure to really gauge your success.
I'll include a few additional helpful resources in the podcast description so you can take your learning even further. And if you're looking for a good way to start tracking all of your operating expenses, I'd be remiss if I didn't take a moment to plug Fleetio's all-in-one fleet management software, where you can get a real-time view into all the costs that make up a fleet - including maintenance, fuel, inventory and more. For more details or to kick the tires with a free trial, go to fleetio.com.
We'll be back next month with another episode full of tips and tricks from other fleet vets. In the meantime, check out the rest of season 2 if you haven't already, and be sure to subscribe on your podcast service of choice so you don't miss any Fleet Code goodness. Be sure to join our newsletter and follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook to stay up to date on all things Fleetio and get access to all kinds of free tools and resources.
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