Companies are facing adversity and unfortunately, it may seem like you have little control over challenges thrown your way when dealing with COVID-19

By Art Liggio, CEO and president of Driving Dynamics

There is no way around it, the coronavirus pandemic has completely altered the way fleet-based organizations operate. For some, work has halted, and others are challenged to keep up with new demand. The uncertainty has left companies scrambling to reduce health exposure, keep employees safe and working, and business viable.

While the many hardships faced cannot be dismissed, there is light at the end of this tunnel and perhaps even opportunity. Together, let’s explore four ways you can encourage positivity and foster productivity to support drivers and the success of the business during these tough times.

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Or you can craft fleet cost reduction opportunities right from your vehicle life cycle

ARI

Call it what you may – sleight of hand, wizardry, magic… With the challenges and concerns your fleet is facing today as a result of the pandemic, you may feel like you’re going to need some impressive tricks to rebound.

Don’t worry, no illusions required. Just some solid, short-term strategic maneuvers to reduce your operating costs.

You can easily use the vehicle life cycle as a guide to organize your strategy. Think in terms of buying the vehicle, driving the vehicle, servicing the vehicle, and finally selling the vehicle at the end of its useful life. If you create a goal to materialize two or more opportunities in each phase, you’ll end up with more than a half-dozen new strategies – without any hocus pocus.
Here are some idea starters:

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By Mark Boada, Executive Editor

Most fleets are unaware that they might be defenseless against a cyber-attack that could disable all of their vehicles, according to a long-time veteran of the cybersecurity industry.

In an extensive interview with Fleet Management Weekly, Dan Sahar, vice president of product at Upstream Security, a cloud-based automotive cybersecurity company, said that the adoption of telematics and the proliferation of other digital connections has created a growing number of “connected” vehicles that are vulnerable to long- and short-range hacks from criminals that could disable every vehicle they operate.

“Fifteen years ago, vehicles weren’t connected, and maybe the worst case was somebody left the car unlocked and it was stolen,” he said. “Today, vehicles are connected, which helps to manage fleets more efficiently, but it comes at a price. The second you introduce that technology, you unknowingly create the ability for hackers to disrupt your fleet if they choose to do so. Nobody knows whether they’ll choose to do so, but they might.”

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CleanTechnica

London has been actively pursuing strategies to reduce congestion and air pollution for nearly two decades by imposing fees – called a congestion charge – on vehicles coming into the downtown area and establishing ultra low emissions zones.

Some of the zone restrictions had been relaxed due to the Coronavirus but will be reinstated and expanded to allow Londoners more ways to get around the city on foot or by bicycle while observing social distancing requirements and avoiding the use of The Tube.

London Mayor Sadiq Kahn said “We will need many more Londoners to walk and cycle to make this work. That’s why these plans will transform parts of central London to create one of the largest car-free areas in any capital city in the world.”

Read the article at CleanTechnica.

Car and Driver

In order to make sure drivers are taking precautions and ensuring their cars are clean, Uber is spending $50 million to procure masks, hand sanitizer, disinfectant sprays, gloves, among other things, to send to their drivers.

Beginning next Monday, May 18, both riders and drivers will have to wear masks or face coverings for the duration of Uber trips.

Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said in a blog post that an online checklist will ask whether drivers and riders have taken certain safety measures before using the service. A selfie taken by the driver and then processed by a new technology will verify that a driver is wearing a face mask; a driver not wearing a mask won’t be able to get online. Riders will have to sit in the back seat and agree to windows being open for increased ventilation.

Read the article at Car and Driver.

Electrek

Volvo CEO Håkan Samuelsson said that the coronavirus will accelerate the pace of change in the auto industry. He said the shift to EVs will be among the major changes that occur due to the pandemic.

He believes that any government efforts to subsidize the auto industry’s recovery should be based on supporting EVs and other new technology.

Volvo plans to launch an all-electric car every year for the next five years. By 2025, Volvo wants all-electric vehicles to represent 50% of its global sales. Online sales with remote delivery and service would replace traditional auto dealership showrooms.

Read the article at Electrek.

The Detroit News

With the global pandemic bringing the automotive industry to its knees, Volkswagen AG and Ford Motor Co. are keener than ever to move beyond an initial agreement to join forces and are pushing ahead with plans to team up on electric and self-driving vehicles.

Both sides recognize a need to share the large investments needed to develop battery-powered and autonomous cars. The industry is going to be forced to consolidate the number of powertrain types they choose to develop going forward.

Ford intends to produce at least one mass-market car in Europe based on VW’s main electric-vehicle underpinnings, dubbed MEB, with more than 600,000 targeted deliveries over six years. VW’s first car based on the new technology, the ID.3 hatchback, will be rolled out this summer. The SUV sibling called ID.4 is set to follow later this year.

Read the article at The Detroit News.

movmi.net

By Augustin Friedel, Volkswagen Intermodeal Strategy and Sandra Phillips, Founder and CEO, movmi

“It’s not about what it is, it’s about what it can become” Dr. Seuss

During the past couple of months, people were encouraged or forced to shelter at home and other lockdown restrictions were put in place. This resulted in a steep decline in demand for all available mobility and transportation options across the globe. The total vehicle miles traveled for business or private reasons with personal cars, public transit or shared mobility plunged.

Stakeholders of the mobility ecosystem are facing a situation never experienced before: According to data published by Apple or Transit, public transit has seen the biggest drop, with ridership declines between 70% to 90% in many markets across the globe. Micro mobility services suspended operations, e.g. players like Lime paused the service in up to 90% of all markets.The demand for carsharing, ride hailing and pooling also plunged, pooling was suspended on many platforms. On the bright side, there was a steep uptake on active mobility like walking and biking.

Read the article at movmi.net

Culture develops and grows within walls, but strong cultures live with or without walls

By Laura Jozwiak, Senior Vice President of Sales & Client Relations, Wheels, Inc.

Have you heard the pot roast recipe fable? The story goes something like this:

A young boy and his mom decide to make their family’s pot roast, using a recipe that has been in the family for years. They start by cutting off the ends of the pot roast, and the boy asks his mom: “Why do you have to cut the ends off the meat?” She said, “I don’t know, it’s what the recipe says to do.”

They decide to call her mom to find out why you have to cut the ends off the piece of meat. Grandma also says that she didn’t know why, but that it’s part of the recipe. This family was fortunate enough to have her mother still alive, so they called great-grandma to ask why. And she told them, she cut the ends off the pot roast because she had a small roasting pan at the time—and it didn’t fit.

This is a story of culture. During these remote work times, you can see how critical a strong culture really is!

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strategy+business

By recognizing the challenges confronting the world, internalizing the lessons of the pandemic, and deploying the tools and technologies at hand, we can chart a new, more adaptive course.

Both governments and businesses need to review how they responded to the pandemic, understand best practices, and prepare for the next inevitable crisis. It will be impossible for our systems to cope with the next challenge if they remain in the same fragile state in which they entered this one.

Although personal situations vary greatly, almost everyone can relate to the concerns of a rapidly developing problem. If this shared experience can engender greater solidarity and a sense of purpose, the prospect of adapting to a new world and thriving in it becomes more promising. Hope is not a strategy. But strategy can provide hope.

Read the article at strategy+business.