Forty-eight percent of fleet owners and buyers surveyed by Software Advice in 2013 stated a
desire to purchase a fleet management system to improve efficiency or become more organized. At the time of the survey, more than half of those participants (sixty percent) were still relying on cumbersome manual methods like paper and pen to manage their fleet.
When the benefits of new technology are clear, why are many companies slow to adopt?
One possible challenge is in getting every employee on board. From the less-tech-savvy to the creatures of habit, some people foresee technology changing the way they do their job. And they don’t like it.
But hey, you know fleet tracking technology is absolutely a win for your organization, from boosting productivity to improving customer service, reducing your bottom line and maintaining a strongly staffed fleet. You’re up for the challenge. You’re ready to win.
We’ve talked about getting upper management buy-in for GPS tracking technology, and introducing drivers to your new tracking solution; now it’s time to address your dispatchers.
Dispatchers are integral to a fleet organization’s success, and so before purchasing a fleet tracking solution, consider the following tips for rapid and profitable dispatcher adoption:
Choose A User-Friendly Solution
The easier your fleet tracking solution is to use, the more quickly your team will adopt it. There’s something very satisfying about mastering a new technology; a user friendly solution encourages confidence and success.
The amount of training a solution requires is typically a tell-tale sign of its level of user- friendliness. For instance, the GPS Commander Web Portal includes a live, web-based training session and a comprehensive user manual for reference; no expensive, multi-day training necessary.
Dispatchers should be able to customize their tracking portal to suit their personal mapping preferences, and do so with ease. Tools for exporting reports, naming landmarks, tracking historically and in real-time and creating mapping boundaries should be intuitive, not clunky.
Seek Out Early Adopters
Introduce the solution to those members of your dispatch team who are naturally enthusiastic about technology.
They’re the ones on their smartphones during their break, posting pictures to Instagram. They’re the ones who jump up to help when the Internet goes down for no good reason, or the printer gets disconnected from the office PC. They’re the ones who can test drive your fleet tracking solution and act as references and internal case studies when you introduce it to the whole department.
Define And Share Your Goals
It sounds cheesy, but without a strong vision of what fleet tracking technology will accomplish, your people won’t be compelled to adopt quickly.
“Help employees understand what’s in it for them,” says Harvard Business Review contributor Rebecca Knight. Describe what the new technology stands to improve both for the individual and the organization. Get your team excited about minimizing stress and paperwork, improving customer satisfaction, and reducing the company’s bottom line, which in turn, creates opportunities for promotions and other incentives.
Use Metrics To Measure Successes
Within weeks of rolling out a new fleet tracking solution, take advantage of its reporting features to promote early successes. With the GPS Commander’s full suite of reports, you can measure reductions in overtime costs, trip efficiency, and fuel expenditures . All GPS Commander reports are easy to share online or printed as PDF, Word or Excel files, so you can spread the news to your team quickly.
As Knight references in her article, publicizing wins helps build a case for change, and encourages further adoption. When you’re managing an organization with a tracking solution that gives your team ample tools to improve their work processes, you’re ahead within weeks. How’s that for an early win?
GPS Commander fleet tracking solutions make it easy to get everyone on board, fast. Get an instant quote on the solution that’s right for your organization’s needs today!
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