Defining Accountability in Fleet Operations
Jonathan Stotts
Senior PR & Communications Manager
We recently sat down and had a conversation with Erin Gilchrist, the host of Straight Talk on Fleet, to discuss a topic that is important to everyone in the fleet industry: defining accountability.
When we talk about general safety, there is no more important word than “accountability.” That includes roadway safety, and it is hard to underestimate the importance of this. There are many steps that fleet operators must focus on and processes to follow to keep their vehicles in great condition but also their drivers safe.
How Important Is Accountability Really?
According to Erin, it’s critical. She says, “It feels like a bad word in the sense that it sounds punitive, but actually, we’re all accountable for so many things in our lives. And I think that we’re accountable for each other. And when you think about it that way, sort of, we’re all in this together. And some of those cliches that seem like cliches, but they’re really, really not.”
She continues, “When I think about organizations working together who have fleets and doing everything that they can to make sure that their vehicles and drivers are fit every day for the road. If everybody was in that camp, just imagine vehicles leaving their depots and homes every day fit for the road. And imagine the accident reduction statistics we can measure if we just all thought that way.”
While this applies to fleets, she believes it also applies to life as a whole. What about in fleets? Erin states, “So accountability is everyone’s job, but certainly organizations with fleets have a much, much greater accountability for safety for everyone on the roadways because of the number of miles they drive and the number of vehicles they put out. They’re doing services every day.”
How Do You Change Attitudes Around Accountability?
With the establishment of standards and regulatory requirements, it becomes easier for organizations to draw a line in the sand, creating a very clear way forward. Erin believes that everyone should be doing the right thing and holding themselves to the highest standards as organizations with fleets. It’s not about doing the bare minimum, but rather meeting and exceeding the requirements.
She states, “Organizations thinking that way are not blowing tires out on the road. They are not having unplanned breakdowns; they are running on time. That’s just exceptional because they get it. So, that mindset is critical to the productivity and success of your organization.”
She continues, “There are states that don’t have laws around vehicle inspections when they renew their registration. It’s unbelievable and, to me, irresponsible because unsafe vehicles out on the roadways just mean more accidents – more debris, more accidents, and unsafe road conditions.” If you cannot rely on the state, then to create a standard bottom level that is high enough to keep accountability effective, the solution is to look inward. Erin continues, “I think that organizations with fleets have to say, okay, we’re not going to ignore the laws, we’re going to uphold them, but then we’re going to exceed them for these reasons, and whether their motivation is profitability, I don’t care.”
It all comes down to the motivations of the companies and the type of organization it is. As she notes, meeting the baseline is never desirable. It just means you are average and at the bottom level of what is required. “That’s not winning. That’s not succeeding,” Erin states. Instead, she believes that the right mindset is one that puts “the highest standard for every vehicle, every single day” in place.
It can be hard to convince organizations of this, but it comes down to the following, according to Erin, “It’s about letting your drivers and your operators and your managers out there know what’s in it for them and how important it is to the organization and to them for their bonus, for their profitability, not only because you want them to get to and from work safely every single day, which is obviously the most important thing.”
Accountability is not a secondary “nice” achievement but a commitment all organizations should have.
