How technology is changing the face of fleet
Just over 10 years ago the first smart phone was launched.
Back then no-one could have imagined that today’s drivers of cars and light commercial vehicles would be reporting mileage updates, booking services and notifying breakdowns simply by touching their mobile phone screen.
Yet here we are in 2019, and not only has Grosvenor been awarded best fleet management system in the 2018 BusinessCar techie awards, the company’s software and I.T
team is now an integral part of its overall proposition.
All drivers of vehicles leased and managed by Grosvenor Leasing and Interactive Fleet Management have access to a free App, and according to Geoff Hall, Grosvenor’s senior software developer, the team is ready to take on the biggest challenge of all.
The millennials!
“By 2025, millennials will make up 75% of the workforce,” said Geoff. “This is the generation that has grown up with the Internet, mobile phones and cable TV, and have never known a life without instant technology.
“This is a generation that finds email quite old fashioned, expecting instant messaging instead. They also expect technology to do far more for them and are intolerant when it doesn’t.
“As developers, we must cater for their needs – and this relates to millennials who are managing fleets, and those that are driving the cars and vans we lease and manage.
“For a start, they are tech-dependent. For them, technology is
an integrated part of their everyday life. It means they no longer ask for sufficient technology to do their job - they expect it.
“When the older generation within the UK workforce grew up, there was a sense of wonder with technology. In other words, ‘wow – can the system actually do that for me with regards to my vehicle fleet’. Now, its more a case of, ‘that’s fine, but why can’t it do this – because that’s what I need it to do.’
“Some of the older generation are looking down at the millennials, classing this level of expectancy negatively, as if
it’s entitlement, having been spoilt by gadgetry in their youth.
“But what millennial workers really want are the tools they
need to do their job efficiently.”
By employing its own team of software and App developers, The Grosvenor Group can control the technology to suit the contract hire and fleet management services it provides, and also be more adaptable by not relying on third party systems that are inflexible and costly to tailor.
“The tech-dependent generation will soon represent more than half of the global workforce,” said Geoff. “This is why companies are seeking ever more cutting edge tools to help them manage their fleets and we aim to be at the forefront of that technological breakthrough.