Dealing with change can be difficult in any type or size of Fleet business. In fact, with rapid evolving technology and drastic shifts in company cultures, “change management” is even popping up as a focus in business management degrees. If you are hesitant to roll out Telematics technology to your company, don’t be. The process doesn’t have to be difficult.

In this article, we review three common roll out challenges and provide tips on how to deal with them.

Challenge #1: Insufficient Project Management

There are several steps that should be taken into consideration when planning a telematics project, whether the project is large or small. In some cases, the project management component is overlooked and can have a negative impact on the outcome, or on your overall experience as a first-time telematics adopter.

Communication is key, so it’s crucial to have regular meetings with the stakeholders like executives and fleet managers during the project and a few weeks after implementation.

Challenge #2: Information Overload

Sometimes too much information has more of a negative impact than sharing just the pertinent details. Having access to all the data is great, but not knowing what to do with that data makes for an unsuccessful venture. This goes for everyone involved in the telematics project — from the level of an executive, manager, or even a driver.

Solution: Don’t Be Afraid to Ask Questions

If you or your team are at any point overwhelmed with information you’re receiving from your telematics partner, speak up. You’re more likely to forget or quickly lose interest because it sounds more complicated than it really is. Resellers and providers should be conscious of sharing their knowledge to help fleets achieve their goals.

Challenge #3: Setting Focused, Achievable Goals

Many customers want to see immediate improvement in cost savings once the telematics project starts. However, having broad goals makes it difficult to determine what the actual focus should be on. For example, a company says they want to improve driver safety. But how exactly will this happen? What steps need to be taken to improve in this area and show a return on investment?

Solution: Define Your Metrics and Check Progress Often

Here are a few steps to take to ensure your goals are measurable so you can make incremental changes. Start by breaking down the goal:

• Define your goal. For example, a good specific goal would be to reduce the number of fleet collisions annually by 40%.
• Decide on metrics and how the goal will be measured using telematics data. In the example above, you would likely want to focus on driving behavior metrics and how you’re going to improve them. For example, this could be done through a safe driver recognition and rewards program.
• Set a timeframe for goal completion. Consider what the intermediate goals would be based on the overall timeline (e.g. where should the numbers be at in three months, six months and so on).

Solution: Stay Positive and Be Transparent

Change isn’t easy for many, so it’s important to be prepared for employee pushback. Here are some tips when it comes to implementing telematics with your employees:

• The project needs to be adopted by leadership from the top down. Everyone should speak positively of the venture.
• Set expectations from the onset with upper management.
• Explain the reason for the telematics program to all employees. Be transparent in what you’re trying to improve.
• Try to create incentives or have individual/team competitions for the managers and drivers to keep the moral positive.

Your company may face other challenges, internal or external, but these tips can help you overcome a few common challenges for a successful fleet rollout.

Learn more about USA Fleet Solutions Fleet Telematics for small to large sized fleets, just call (855) 477-4771 for more information or Contact Us now.