4 Technology Upgrades Every Business Fleet Should Have

Modern business fleet management is so much more than taking calls and sitting in an office with a giant map of the city. What was once a dispatch job dispensing intermittent instructions to drivers all over the city is now a highly streamlined technical experience involving adaptive scheduling, navigation, communication, and even vehicle controls. Or, at least, it should be.

The surprising thing is that even with technology for fleet management and service improvement having come leaps and bounds, many business fleets are still mostly just drivers, cars, and the occasional cellphone call back to HQ. However, if your fleet is ready to step into the digital, mobile era of seamless cloud-based management on every possible level, you can. All it takes is putting together your new vehicle tech stack and adapting your workflow to the newly unveiled fleet management possibilities.

Today, we’re starting with the basics before leading you through a thought-leadership journey into the future of cutting-edge fleet management. For this article, we’re going to focus only on four technology upgrades that every business fleet can and should have:

 

GPS Tracking and Geofencing

GPS has been a fleet management option since the 90s and has only been getting more accurate and accessible since that time. It is entirely possible not just for your drivers to navigate with on-point GPS, but for fleet managers to be able to track the exact location of every single vehicle in their fleet. Of course, you want to know where your company vehicles are, and for more than just basic oversight and security reasons.

Being able to track the locations, routes, movements, and even average speed of your drivers can open up your process to streamlining through data-driven insights.

 

Geofencing

Geofencing is a technology that stacks onto GPS tracking, as it defines the areas where your GPS-marked vehicles should and should not go. Not only can you track how efficiently your drivers are handling their routes, but you will also be immediately alerted if a company vehicle strays too far from it’s approved service zone in the event of a stolen vehicle, a rogue driver, or traffic so bad it’s time to start calling clients.

 

Remote-Controlled Vehicle Security

OnStar pioneered the idea of providing vehicle security remotely from a distant call center when a vehicle’s alarm goes off, or the driver requests help. But with modern vehicle technology, it is becoming possible to skip the commercial-grade services to handle your remote-controlled security features. Whether you need to help a driver find where they parked or slow down a vehicle that has been stolen for a high-speed police chase, of course, you want this power over your vehicles.

It is now possible to not only provide traditional security features, but to take more sophisticated control like kicking on the AC to keep internal equipment alive when the temperature rises too high, take control of the radio to send messages to an unresponsive driver, or even look through the vehicle’s installed dash and rear cameras to provide nearly on-site assistance.

 

Interactive Mapping and Routing Software

No doubt, your vehicles already have a built-in navigation screen or a mounting point for mobile navigation devices. But navigation software for business fleets is so much more innovative than simple Google Maps for consumers. Don’t get us wrong; Google Maps is terrific, and software powered by their traffic-aware API is even better.

What your fleet needs is not just the fastest route, but the smartest route. Which sometimes means taking over human control and loading a new route in for your teams manually from headquarters. Interactive mapping and routing software communicating through the cloud can make it possible to help your team navigate bad traffic, re-strategize a multi-client service route, or adjust to an updated driving schedule instantly without the passenger having to fumble with the pin-points and route settings.

Is your fleet as upgraded and innovatively managed as it can be with the technology available to your business today? If you’re ready to take the next step toward truly cutting-edge business fleet technology, contact us today!