Serco consolidates fleet management

Serco Group has introduced a new internet-based fleet management system to improve the management of 10,000 drivers, as well as vehicles.

The Hampshire-headquartered company operates out of hundreds of UK locations, in addition to a fleet department based in Redcar. It also has more than 10,000 registered drivers and runs a fleet numbering 2,700 company cars and light commercial vehicles and 400 HGVs.

The facilities and service management provider is using a new web system to replace a range of ad-hoc, siloed computer systems managing different aspects of the company's fleet and spreadsheet-based reports.

Sue Blair, Serco Group fleet manager, said the firm has gradually consolidated management of its fleet into a centralised fleet department.

"However, to make that truly effective we needed to have a professional fleet management system all data needed to be fully centralised and access to that information needed to be across a number of departments. We also wanted a system that our customers could access and track vehicle-related data," she said.

The introduction of Key2 Vehicle Management software from specialist, certified Microsoft development partner, Jaama has provided centralised control, flexibility and cross-departmental access to data on everything from insurance, taxation and payroll to fuel cards and fleet repairs.

The software implementation began 18 months ago, with Serco phasing in the introduction of the range of Key2 Vehicle Management modules that also include O' licence management, workshop and parts management and driver licence checking.

The roll out also integrated Serco's previous specially written fuel management system within the new system.

Blair added: "Jaama's system was very flexible and we could personalise aspects of it in tandem with their software developers to meet our own requirements, for example in relation to our established fuel management processes, which see staff reimburse the company at cost price for business-funded fuel used privately.

"The benefit of the system is that we now have all management data in one place and the Key2 Vehicle Management system is easy to administer for our insurance department and payroll clerks who are not fleet professionals," she added.

Miya Knights

A 25-year veteran enterprise technology expert, Miya Knights applies her deep understanding of technology gained through her journalism career to both her role as a consultant and as director at Retail Technology Magazine, which she helped shape over the past 17 years. Miya was educated at Oxford University, earning a master’s degree in English.

Her role as a journalist has seen her write for many of the leading technology publishers in the UK such as ITPro, TechWeekEurope, CIO UK, Computer Weekly, and also a number of national newspapers including The Times, Independent, and Financial Times.