Telematics Leadership…Leading a Successful Program Implementation

It’s been said by many experts on the topic of leadership: “If you’re not ready to change, you’re not ready to lead”.

Leadership is not a static endeavor. In fact, many apathetic individuals in a “position” of leadership, are nothing more than “Leaders of the inevitable that are merely allowing the future to determine its self.

In today’s VUCA world, an acronym for a business world of volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity, companies today that pursue and embrace change are generally healthy, growing and dynamic organizations while companies that fear change tend to be stagnant entities on their way to a slow painful death.
While they may have been proverbial “cash cows” at one point, they have become today’s “sitting ducks” while both the competition and the economy and the rising cost of business quietly picks away at their market share and profit margins.

While I myself am involved in the world of telematics and helping fleet oriented companies recapture lost revenue by the modification of driver behaviors, I am also in the profession of leadership training and development.

I could be writing this article about many different industries and company profiles. In fact, feel free to substitute the title of “Owner”, “Fleet Manager” or “Operations Manager” with a title that is involved in or considers themselves to be in a leadership position.

So, why is the telematics industry thriving right now and growing at a record pace among fleet based organizations?

With today’s rising cost of conducting business, the need for increased productivity and an emphasis on safety in our increasingly litigious society, companies, large and small have identified the need for change.

The need for change exists in every organization. That’s not a mystery.

The most complex area surrounding change however is focusing your efforts in the right areas, for the right reasons and at the right times. The ambiguity and risk can be removed from the change agenda by simply focusing on three areas:

1) Current Customers-what needs to change to provide them with better service?

2) Potential customers-what needs to change to profitably create new customers?

3) Corporate Culture-what changes need to occur to better serve your team and improve their resources so that they can better influence the first two?
However, as a leader, you cannot effectively lead change without understanding the landscape of change! There are four typical responses to change in any organization.

1) The Victim: These are the individuals who view the change as a personal attack on their persona, their role, their job or their area of responsibility. In the world of telematics, these are the first to scream “Big Brother” and insist that “The man is out to get them”. Despite the fact that the entire company is implementing telematics, they are certain that management is looking for ways to get rid of them. They will cry about their privacy being invaded, even though they work for and drive the assets of the company and are paid for doing so. They are also the same people who think nothing of using a Kroger’s, Speedway or any one of 1000 loyalty program cards that track their monthly purchases and use that info for marketing purposes.

2) The Neutral Bystander: This is the apathetic group that is neither for nor against the change to a Telematic system. They won’t protest or champion that change. In fact they just will go with the flow and attempt to stay under the radar, comfortable that the “Victims” are drawing enough attention to their own behavior by protesting so loudly, as if they have something to hide.

3) The Critic: This individual opposes any and ALL change. They are typically a much older employee that probably would have fought the internet and email if it had caused them to have to learn something new. Keep in mind, that not all critics are overt in their resistance. Many remain in the “stealth” mode and attempt to derail change behind the scenes by using their influence on others. I can’t tell you how many times that an older “critic” fleet manager would fight against telematics and the implementation despite proving how it would recapture up to $2500 in lost revenue per vehicle annually. After all, it’s not his money!

Whether overt or covert, you must identify influential critics early in the process if you hope to succeed in your program and take steps to neutralize their influence.

4) The Advocate or the Champion: Just as important as identifying the influential critic early on, it is also necessary to identify the influential advocate to give momentum and enthusiasm to the change initiative.

Not only will the EMBRACE change…they will evangelize it!

Once you have identified these change constituencies, you must involve all of them, communicate properly to each of them and be relentless. With proper messaging and involvement, even adversaries can be converted into allies.

Managing the change associate with a successful telematics implementation requires that all key players have control over four critical elements:
1) Vision Alignment-Those that understand and agree with your vision must be elevated in the change process. Those who disagree must be converted or have their influence neutralized.

2) Responsibility-Your change agents must have a sufficient level of responsibility to achieve the necessary results.

3) Accountability-Your change agents must be accountable for reaching their objectives.

4) Authority-If the first three items are in place, yet your change agents have not been given the needed authority to get the job done, the first three items won’t mean much.

It is CRITICAL…that you set your leaders up for success and not failure by giving them the proper tools, talent, resources, responsibility and authority necessary for finishing the race.

Vincent Rush is the Vice President of Sales and Business Development for Lynx Telematics in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Through an accomplished speaking and training background along with a thorough understanding of the telematics industry, Vincent Rush has helped build Lynx Telematics into one of the better kept secrets in the emerging world of GPS Behavior Modification tools for today’s fleet managers and small business owners by focusing on service and helping companies to understand that the secret is in the proper implementation and management of a well run program.

For a free consultation on how telematics could benefit your business operations though a reduction in operational costs and increased productivity while enhancing a safer culture of drivers, contact Vince directly at (513) 965-6318 or vrush@lynxtelematics.com

The Silver Bullet of Leadership

I was studying Mike Myatt’s book “Hacking Leadership” about the same time that a group of other leaders and myself were engaged in the topic of unity and it’s importance in organizational growth.

If there is such a thing as a “Silver Bullet” for an organization, it is the spirit of unity and the element of clarity.

If strategy and the execution of that strategy is the bridge between “what is” and “what if”, then unity and clarity are what allow leaders to be able to pull the future to them, rather than always chasing and becoming leaders of the inevitable, that simply allow the future to determine its self.

Focus on tying ethics with vision, clarity and singleness of purpose in navigation of the great leadership crisis of our era. Where leadership runs amok is when hubris overshadows humility and self-serving motives take place of serving… beyond self.

The goal of today’s progressive leaders is not to clone themselves but rather to harness individual talents and strengths for the greater good of the team and organization. Leaders today who attempt to manage through control and conformity, end up losing control of the very thing they seek…profit and sustainable results.

Savvy leaders do everything possible to inspire nonconformity in approach. It’s only by stretching the boundaries of “normal” that organizations can fuel change and innovation.

Smart leaders don’t tell people how to think; they surround themselves with great thinkers and consistently seek their insights, observations and opinions. It’s the ability to evolve and to nuance thinking that leads to the change and innovation your organization needs to survive.

Show me leaders who never change their minds and I’ll show you static thinkers who have sentenced their minds…and organizations, to a prison of mediocrity and wasted potential. A leader’s ability to change their mind demonstrates humility, confidence and maturity.

Organizations with brands in decline are gifted at making change difficult to implement.

Remember this important fact; The decisions you are making today, will revisit you ten years from now, no matter if those decisions were good or bad.

The quality of your decisions will be reflected in the quality of your life and organization.

To lead a group of people effectively, they have to buy into your vision. and before they buy into your vision, they have to buy into you. For that to happen,they have to know that you are in it for them and their best interests. Do you care about them enough to get to know them and what is important to them and their lives. Building trust is the number one thing you can do today as a leader in a world that is in a great leadership crisis. Today, authenticity is paramount. It’s not a choice, it’s a mandate for successful leadership.

Always strive to make sure that your decisions and choices are aligned with your priorities and purpose.

Bottom line; when you fear BEING wrong, more than being PROVEN wrong then you have arrived as a leader.

Posted by Vincent Rush
Lynx Telematics VP of Business Development
Professional Trainer and Speaker
(513) 965-6318

Leadership and Execution Strategy

One of the things I have always believed in when it comes to building a successful business model is that; If purpose and vision is the why and the what of your company, then strategy is the how and the when.

It’s always rooted in the leaders thinking about what matters most. In other words, an effective leader must be able to distinguish between the urgent and the important so that the organization can rise above the immediate. One has to be able to step back from the minutiae and see the bigger picture or to put it another way; take the macro lens off of what is right in front of you and move up to a 35,000 foot level so that you can see the broader landscape. 

At that level you can pull forward in time to see the future and it’s opportunities rather than just focusing on the moment. 

If you move away from an archaic formulaic business strategy and zero in on the human elements such as how a leader must think and act, then the importance of cohesion and coherence, combined with communication at every level and juncture help to foster alignment. At that point one can develop a longer term view with an emphasis on an enduring strategy that has far more potential than just hitting monthly or quarterly targets. 

A good strategy transforms a compelling vision into concrete outcomes. 

It’s all about excellence in planning and execution. Vision isn’t as much about what can be imagined…it’s about what can actually be delivered. However, never underestimate the potential for uncertainty, fear, mistrust and ambiguity to derail even the best strategies. 

A leader has to let go of his own ego and focus on what is best for the entire team, not just himself. It is always more important to GET the answer right versus being right. A leader that doesn’t understand the industry and tries to run a business as usual model versus a modern model that disrupts mediocrity has failed to realize that, just because you were right once before, doesn’t mean you’re right about how to conduct business 20 years later in a different world altogether. Apathy is mediocrities weapon of choice. Leaders who have fallen prey to the slow seduction of the status quo have condemned their teams and organization to mediocrity. 

Leadership today exists to disrupt the status quo. 

An effective, strategy takes into account customer needs, organizational capabilities, competitive challenges and differentiation, while creating value for stakeholders. 

90% of strategy is execution 90% of organizations are very bad at it. 

One of the most important elements of executing an effective strategy is to realize that you cannot move the organization at a pace that is faster than the people can handle and the organization can absorb. The finesse of strategic leadership is actually in the pace and velocity, matched with the culture and readiness. 

You must be developing or adding the strategic competencies at both the individual and the organizational levels to realize a shared vision of success. 

Execution requires clarity about what must happen at the intersection of how and when. The thing that always hampers strategic thinking is to assume that the future will always look like the past. 

As a leader, one has to develop the ability, at the leadership level to move the lens through which we currently see the world really far up to scan the horizon on both a content level and temporal level with a forward future focus because to go somewhere new…you have to go somewhere you haven’t been before. 

In the 80’s and 90’s, when I was building my marketing and my recruiting companies and teams, I always lived by a mantra, that I was less afraid of being proven wrong…than I was of thinking I was right, when in fact I wrong. Maybe I wasn’t the Gordon Gecko type business man, but I was always more concerned that we are not skating to where the puck was going to be, rather than riding the wave of temporary success and short term monetary gains. 

As a Fleet Manager you want to avoid becoming the leader of the inevitable, who allows the future to simply determine itself. Don’t measure yourself by what you have accomplished or are currently accomplishing, but by what you could accomplish with your abilities and proper measurement and real-time management technology.

Vincent Rush, Vice President of Lynx Telematics

(513)965-6318

vrush@lynxtelematics.com

 

Fleet Management Technology and Leadership

As a Fleet Manager you want to avoid becoming the leader of the inevitable, who allows the future to simply determine itself. Don’t measure yourself by what you have accomplished or are currently accomplishing, but by what you could accomplish with your abilities and proper measurement and real-time management technology.

For a progressive leader, it’s not the score, it’s what the scores means. With meaningful data, continual improvement is possible.

Trying and failing is never a mistake, the only real mistake is not being willing to make them.

With and effective telematics program, it’s not just the “why” and “what” of your results-it’s also the “where to from here.”

Performance is not absolute: it’s always relative. Strategy is executing and adjusting continually. Use results to guide you in real-time. If you focus only on today’s goals, tomorrow will come before you’re ready for it.

When evaluating a telematics company and their support team, never confuse management with data. The facts and figures are where the process begins. The true value add is knowing what the results mean. Is your telematics company delivering value to you beyond the contract?

The results of a test pilot program alone are not enough. From answers must come action: for the leader who seeks continual improvement and for the organization that drives steadily toward success.

For more information on Lynx Telematics and how we can actually help with your goals and understanding of what makes and effective program, contact Vincent Rush at (513) 965-6318

Strategy and Execution in the Telematics World

ABC’s David Muir and Lynx Telematics Vincent Rush

It’s been a wild couple of months for us here at Lynx Telematics.

After being invited to San Bruno, California to pitch for the producers of Shark Tank and subsequently being featured on ABC World News Tonight with Diane Sawyer, our business has increased dramatically.

We are currently running safety and operational efficiency programs with several local Cincinnati companies and are producing strong ROI numbers as well as effectively reducing fleet risk liabilities.

Working with the State of North Carolina and beginning work this week with the city of Charlotte, we have been able to take our “NEXT Practices Guide” and “LynxSafe *360 Connect” approach to implementing and helping organizations fulfill their purpose behind installing a telematics system and realizing the vision of an operationally efficient fleet, from a cost perspective as well as productivity and at the same time reducing risk liability.

As a speaker and sales trainer, I have always maintained that vision is not as much about what can be imagined…as it is about what can be delivered.

There is also a distinct difference between purpose (why you installed telematics) and the vision (what you hope to accomplish with telematics) for your programs. The bridge that connects those two mountains is called strategy (the how and when).

A strategy must be closely tied to purpose in order to be meaningful and enduring.

Never confuse the simplicity of telematics with the complexity of a well planned out and implemented strategy that produces short-term desired results along with a more enduring residual long-term returns on investment for you and your organization.

The telematics landscape it littered with thousand of programs gone wrong, sold by feature and benefit pitchman that couldn’t be found with a search warrant, once the contracts were signed.

However, an effective strategy moves away from the simple formulaic business approaches of yesterday and focuses on the human elements that take into consideration, cohesion and communication at every juncture to foster alignment.

A longer-term vision and emphasis on an enduring strategy have the potential to do far more than allow an organization to hit quarterly targets. A good strategy transforms a compelling vision into concrete outcomes. It’s all about planning and execution.

The Lynx Telematics “NEXT Practices Guide to Implementation” when coupled with the “Lynx Telematics 360 Connect” program not only offers a plan that makes sense but gives a clear-cut plan for execution and management.

Never underestimate the potential for uncertainty, fear, mistrust and ambiguity to derail even the best strategies!

At Lynx Telematics, we can not only provide you with the technology, but we continue to work with you over the life of your partnership to continue to achieve and grow returns on investments into telematics.

Vincent Rush, VP of Business Development at Lynx Telematics
vrush@lynxtelematics.com
(513) 965-6318

The Intangible Value of Fleet Management

In an information-based economy, the decision to make a technology investment purchase can be complex and dictated by price. Financially, a firm would likely label the purchase as a business expense, as denoted on the income statement, rather than as an asset on the balance sheet.

Expenses are shown on the income statement for management to review the “bottom line” of the company.

The business expenses are subtracted from incoming revenues to show how much the organization earned (or lost) over the period. However, lasting benefits (such as future cost reductions) of a new technology is typically not taken into account when processing the original expense.

While the upfront costs may be accounted for, one must examine the intangible, future benefits of the technology. Utilizing fleet management solutions provides numerous paybacks to an organization. Acting as an intangible asset – one that adds value and economic benefit over time, the fleet management technology has a direct impact on the bottom line of a business.
Cost savings can be extracted from multiple areas. At Lynx Telematics, along with GeoTab technology, the savings have been identified as coming from 4 core pillars:

1. Fleet Optimization: This includes making the best use of all available assets, and optimizing driver management. In turn, cost savings can be realized from reduced fuel usage and greater MPG consumption.

2. Driver Safety Maximization: Through interactive driver training methods, drivers are constantly reminded of safe driving practices. For instance, buzzers will inform the driver to reduce their speed and/or put their seat belt on. Not only does this cut down on costs, but also it helps organizations reduce vehicle damage along with employee injury claims.

3. Enhancing Driver Productivity: Getting more done during the day leads to customer satisfaction and long-term loyalty. As such, organizations can reduce their churn rates and improve their gross profit margins.

4. Ensuring Compliance: For those organizations that operate inter-state, the value of being HOS compliant comes at no surprise as costly and damaging penalties can be avoided.

Re-Posted by Vincent Rush

Vincent Rush is VP of Business Development for Lynx Telematics, a full service telematics provider that not only supplies fleet managers with the tools and education to reduce their operating expenses by nearly $2500 per vehicle on an annual basis, but helps assist managers in increasing the overall CSA scores as well as managing their telematics projects to achieve maximum return on investment.

Vincent Rush is also a professional consultant and has run multiple businesses ventures and provided career coaching and mentoring to thousands of business professionals throughout the United States.

For more information on how Lynx Telematics can assist with operational challenges and escalating operational costs, contact Vincent Rush directly at Lynx Telematics (513) 702-0495 or vrush@lynxtelematics.com

Fleet’s Brave New World: Managing Fuel, Maintenance, and Telematics

Fuel costs, maintenance, and data management are top priorities as fleets look ahead.
June 2012, Automotive Fleet – Feature
By Chris Wolski

Today’s fleet management landscape does not provide a static, unchanging view. It is influenced by everything from the ups and downs of the economy to natural disasters such as last year’s earthquake and tsunami in Japan to changing technology. And, while some trends may simply be interesting, others give a clear indication where the industry is and where it may be going. Recently, fleet management companies (FMCs) ARI – Automotive Resources International, Donlen, and PHH Arval analyzed fleet experiences specific to the three of the biggest trends facing the industry — fuel volatility, the adoption of telematics technology, and maintenance costs.

The results of their analyses not only give insight in areas the fleets are concerned about, but, in the case of fuel and maintenance, fleets need to work more efficiently to combat what will undoubtedly be a fleet expense that will do nothing but rise. As one possible aid, the use of telematics is increasingly becoming a pivotal tool in managing drivers and costs.

An ongoing trend for fleets and consumers alike is the continued volatility of fuel prices.

ARI noted in its recent Industry Forecast 2012 that the Energy Information Administration (EIA) is predicating that the national average price per gallon (PPG) for the year will hover “around” $3.40 to $3.60. Diesel will clock in at about $3.90. The question, of course, is how long will these prices (which are down from 2011) hold fast? While there is no firm number that can be gleaned from the data, one thing is certain, ARI notes that “the days of consistent fuel prices are gone (for fleets).

The future of fuel is simple — an inevitable series of spikes and falls”. Not helping matters from a fleet operational cost perspective are new regulations, such as CAFE, which will put a premium on fuel-efficient models.

What volatile and often increased fuel prices mean for fleets is a higher cost of doing business. According to Arval, an increase of just one dollar from $3.50 to $4.50 will increase the fuel expense of a fleet sedan by almost $550 per year.

For light trucks, the increase is even tougher on a fleet budget — an even $800. If fuel increases just 50 cents more to $5, it will cost over $2,700 a year to tank up a passenger sedan and $4,000 for a light truck.

For a 1,000-unit fleet (500 passenger sedans and 500 light trucks), for example, a 50-cent increase at the pump can quickly add hundreds of thousands of dollars to annual fuel spend.
While these numbers should give fleet managers pause, there are ways to overcome fuel price increases. Among them are eco-driving techniques: obeying the speed limit, keeping tires inflated, avoiding idling, maintaining the vehicle, removing excess equipment, and optimizing route planning.

Changes in Maintenance Costs

As vehicles age, they cost more to maintain. The top cost categories change throughout the life of the vehicle — for instance, tires and preventive maintenance are high-cost items for new vehicles, but by year five and beyond, the biggest category becomes engine maintenance with preventive maintenance now the lowest-spend category. While higher-cost transactions occur less frequently, they have a much higher cost per transaction.

However, some spend categories remain relatively flat after their initial increase. While brake and electrical costs are almost negligible in the first year of operation, by the third year of operation, they account for a combined 18 percent of spend per vehicle per year. This combined number stays relatively flat and even edges down slightly during the vehicle’s “middle age.”
One of the consequences of fleets retaining their vehicles longer — often beyond replacement policy guidelines — is that many repairs fall outside of warranty coverage, adding to maintenance costs.

Across vehicle classes and years in service, the top five categories of spending are tires, brakes, preventive maintenance, engine, and electrical.

The cost per transaction for the top categories has increased or remained relatively flat since 2010, with the exception of tires, which have seen a slight decrease through the first quarter of 2012.

This, as well as the number of transactions per vehicle decreasing, is a result of fleets beginning to replace older vehicles and trying to move back to policy guidelines. New vehicles mean new tires, new brakes, and less maintenance transactions during the first year. In addition, the number of preventive maintenance transactions has decreased as more fleets have adopted elongated periods between oil changes.

The good news for fleets is that the average cost per vehicle transaction has fallen in each of the top five maintenance categories. For instance, preventive maintenance is only a third of the cost per vehicle in 2012 versus 2010. Brakes remain the highest spend category, but have fallen by almost $100 per vehicle
Adoption of Telematics

Technology, in the form of telematics solutions, is the way many fleets are looking to manage their operations more efficiently. In fact, telematics/GPS is the most widely used management technology.

This is followed in descending order by other types of monitoring devices, advanced analytics, mobile device applications, and automated solutions for regulatory compliance.
While routing — with an eye to controlling fuel spend — is among the top reasons fleet managers are turning to telematics solutions, a slightly bigger priority is improving driver behavior. No matter what the particular goal for telematics adoption, the overall goal is to increase operational efficiency across the board.

Fleets of 300 or more surveyed outnumber smaller fleets in the adoption of telematics solutions. In its survey of telematics use, Donlen found that, for those not using telematics, no business need was listed by the majority of the respondents. However, cost was not a factor for only 17 percent of the respondents. According to Donlen’s summary of its findings, the most frequent “other” response was that telematics was not being discussed in the given organization as a possible operational management solution. This coincides with a telling finding that of fleets of less than 100 vehicles, an overwhelming 80 percent are not considering telematics and only 15.7 percent who aren’t current users are considering telematics.

However, for fleets of 300 vehicles or more, telematics are being used by nearly one-third of the fleets surveyed with only 20 percent not considering using them. While fuel savings was ranked as the No. 2 reason for fleets considering telematics, those who had implemented a telematics solution listed fuel savings as the third most important reason for using telematics. In both the “using” and the “considering” categories, monitoring driver behavior was the No. 1 reason to use telematics.

Likewise, ARI’s recent telematics survey found that improving fleet efficiency, not cost savings, was the overwhelming reason to implement a telematics solution.

Of course, in today’s budget-conscious environment, it is difficult to ignore the bottom line for very long. While the stated motivation to implement a telematics solution may not be wholly to save money, those that do see a better return on investment (ROI) today than just four years ago.

According to an Arval study on the increasing ROI of telematics solutions; hardware costs were between $250 and $300 less in 2011 than they were in 2008. At the same time, the telematics quality has steadily increased — rated at just five on a 1-10 scale (with 10 being best) in 2008 to nine in 2011. While the cost of telematics have decreased over the last four years, the return on investment has increased from $80-$150 per month per unit in 2008 to $185-$255 per month per unit in 2011.

In the Donlen survey, ROI was an important consideration in deciding whether to use a telematics solution. However, 46 percent of its survey group considering telematics reported they couldn’t calculate the ROI. Likewise, of those who had adopted a telematics solution, 40 percent didn’t know their ROI.

ROI is important for today’s fleet manager, but having an effective fleet that helps to fulfill the company mission and serve its customers may be of even greater importance.
On this count, telematics are playing a key role in improving fleet processes. According to the ARI telematics survey, the overwhelming majority of fleet managers (59 percent) said that telematics would make “most” of their fleets’ processes more efficient; with a little less than one-third said that telematics would improve about “half” of the fleet processes. Surprisingly, 2 percent of fleet managers believe that telematics would be of no benefit to their fleet.

The Bottom Line

The bottom line is the bottom line. While there are expenses that are out of the hands of fleet managers, as the statistics show, there are always ways to combat rising costs, either through driver behavior, e.g., eco-driving, or through technological innovations, e.g., telematics.

If there is one trend that continues to carry through the fleet industry, it is the willingness to adapt to an ever-changing world.

Re-Posted by Vincent Rush

Vincent Rush is VP of Business Development for Lynx Telematics, a full service telematics provider that not only supplies fleet managers with the tools and education to reduce their operating expenses by nearly $2500 per vehicle on an annual basis, but helps assist managers in increasing the overall CSA scores as well as managing their telematics projects to achieve maximum return on investment.

Vincent Rush is also a professional consultant and has run multiple businesses ventures and provided career coaching and mentoring to thousands of business professionals throughout the United States.

For more information on how Lynx Telematics can assist with operational challenges and escalating operational costs, contact Vincent Rush directly at Lynx Telematics (513) 702-0495 or vrush@lynxtelematics.com

The REAL Secret to Developing Proper and Profitable Relationships

An article by Vincent Rush

Every salesperson I speak with today talks about relationships and what a good one they have with their customers.

Granted, since the beginning of time, relationships have been the backbone of any great sales professional.

But a lot of younger sales people in today’s climate have a misconception of what a proper client relationship consists of. Ask most struggling Account Executives what they think relationships consist of and you’ll likely get answers that speak of buying lunch, delivering doughnuts or a round of golf.

The fact is, that if you want to build a PROPER and PROFITABLE client relationship, you must first understand this…your clients do not want friends…they want RESULTS!

1) You must minimize their risk! Lets face it, clients have been burned too many times by sales people who are long on promises and short on delivery. In today’s economic climate, everyone is very “Risk Adverse” when it comes to making decisions.

2) Enhance their competitive standing, both as a company and against their colleagues. Make them a hero in the eyes of their boss and you’ve done more for them that 1000 lunches and dozens of Krispy Kreme doughnuts could ever do. (OK, that last part may be a stretch)

3) Help them achieve their goals. Lets face it, all companies have the same foundational goals at heart; Increasing Profit and decreasing costs…But what about the individual goal of partnering with your client to help take his company to the next level?

Most sales people never ask the client to VIVIDLY describe the problems that they are facing and even fewer ask the client, how they themselves are affected by those very problems.

Any salesperson can gather facts and pitch feature/benefit selling, but the GREAT sales people ignite the emotions of the client and uncover what motivates them to act.

Even those sales people I meet, that are very good at uncovering the pain in a situation, use that as a trigger to launch into FAB selling.

When is the last time you heard a professional problem solver ask you, as a client;

“If you and I could find a solution to this problem, what effect do you think that would have on your company, over the next five years?” or “What would it mean to you to be able to solve this problem, once and for all?”

Even more importantly;

“If you came to your boss, with a solution that could save the company $$$$$$ a year, what would that do for your personally?

Once you help your customer accomplish these goals, you are no longer a salesperson but rather a trusted and valued PARTNER.

Vincent Rush is VP of Business Development for Lynx Telematics, a full service telematics provider that not only supplies fleet managers with the tools and education to reduce their operating expenses by nearly $2500 per vehicle on an annual basis, but helps assist managers in increasing the overall CSA scores as well as managing their telematics projects to achieve maximum return on investment.

Vincent Rush is also a professional consultant and has run multiple businesses ventures and provided career coaching and mentoring to thousands of business professionals throughout the United States.

For more information on how Lynx Telematics can assist with operational challenges and escalating operational costs, contact Vincent Rush directly at Lynx Telematics (513) 702-0495 or vrush@lynxtelematics.com

Preventing Avoidable Accidents with Reverse Detection Telematics Functionality

Fleet operators understand it is important to ensure driver safety, which also includes taking into account the surrounding external environment. To help mitigate vehicle damage through unexpected accidents, one must not overlook driving in reverse events. Backing out of a parking spot, especially when in a hurry, can be a dangerous activity since other vehicles and pedestrians tend to be nearby and in motion. Surprisingly, it has been estimated that approximately 30 percent of all accidents occur when vehicles are moving in reverse.

Based on the high frequency and likelihood of these collisions, many vehicle manufacturers have added in vehicle in reverse beeping as an extra safety measure. The new Toyota Pruis, for instance, offers this audible functionality, which helps keeps the drivers alert, and consequently reduces insurance property damage claims.

It is recommended that drivers do not back up unless it is absolutely necessary. There are a many hazards to consider when reversing out of a parking spot, including the clearance space surrounding the vehicle, moving objects, and blind spots.

With telematics technology, employers can:

Set the GPS tracking device to beep whenever the driver is backing up.

Set notification rules in the software in order to be informed of these events:

Text message alerts
Emailed alerts
Screen pop-up alerts

Look at historic data to see whenever and wherever drivers went in reverse.

Built-in fleet management technology detects reversing of a vehicle regardless of diagnostic computer data. This is done with the use of the accelerometer and algorithms to detect what direction the vehicle is going in.

For more information or to discuss how telematics can benefit your companies fleet and increase safety compliance, contact Vincent Rush of Lynx Telematics in Cincinnati, Ohio (513) 965-6318

Is Telematics the new Credit Score for the Motor Insurance Industry?

For many years, telematics was the preserve of Formula One and other top flight racing teams. In recent years the technology has become more accessible and is now starting to appear in fleets of commercial vehicles. In the US and UK it has hit the headlines as insurance companies are starting to offer drivers cheaper insurance if they agree to have a ‘black box’ fitted that tracks the vehicle and reports back to the insurance company on miles driven etc.

In both cases the ‘black box’ has been viewed with suspicion by many drivers as ‘big brother’ and ‘spying’.

However, as Vincent Rush of Cincinnati, Ohio based Lynx Telematics pointed out at a recent national symposium on telematics in the insurance industry, “We do not face a privacy issue but rather a privacy perception. The same individuals that may express concern over a “big brother” or “black box” technology, are generally the same individuals that think nothing of participating in customer loyalty programs or posting their every move and location on Facebook.”

On the other hand, telematics does hold the key to several different issues facing the motor insurance industry at the moment.

On the consumer side, with EU legislation banning premiums based on gender, and moves underway to change the way that young and learner drivers become qualified – for instance a ban on fast-track courses, and the requirement for learner drivers to be under training for at least a year – the insurers need to find new ways to calculate premiums.

By encouraging customers to install telematics systems, not only can the insurer charge on a pay-as-you-drive basis, they can also score drivers on how safely they drive. Telematics systems can report on much more than simply tracking where and when the vehicle is driven. They can, for example, log when the driver speeds, detect harsh braking and fast cornering, whether a seat belt is worn, and generally identify aggressive driving style. This type of reporting could help insurers to introduce more cost-effective policies for young or less experienced drivers.

According to Rush, “As the CEO of a billion dollar insurance company remarked to me, “Telematics is becoming to the insurance industry, what credit score was five years ago.”

On the commercial side, as organizations have increased duty of care for employees and several test cases for corporate manslaughter have been won, so telematics again could help.

Driving is one of the most high risk activities for employees, and in any organization that has vehicles within its business, whether they are delivery trucks or staff cars, insurance claims, compensation claims and maintenance are a significant cost. Simply by installing a telematics solution, the company can start to analyze when and where its vehicles are used, and how they are driven. This in itself will encourage employees to ensure that they adhere to company policy when using company vehicles. The organization can start to look at ways to improve asset utilization, fuel consumption, delivery schedules with the aim of providing better customer service, and tackle environment issues. All these activities have been well proven to help organizations save costs and improve efficient operations.

On top of all these benefits, insurance premiums could also be reduced. In the US the commercial insurance model is perhaps more developed than in the UK, in that they focus more on how a vehicle is driven, as well as by mileage. Indeed, insurers like Liberty Mutual are offering a 15% reduction on premiums for fleets where a telematics solution is installed, because they are seen as a better risk. Furthermore, they estimate that organizations can expect to save up to 40% on reduced claims and better maintenance of the fleet, due to the telematics solution.

The potential benefits of fleet telematics have been fairly well documented. Where organizations can really make substantial gains with telematics is by ensuring that the solution is fully integrated and sits on a platform that has the power to analyze vast amounts of location intelligence data to provide operational meaning. Such a platform would be hardware agnostic, meaning it could take data from any type of device installed in a vehicle. Hosted in the cloud on a Software-as-a-Service basis, the individual organization does not need to find the computing power in-house with all the associated overheads and can also access industry-wide data enabling them to compare their own performance with the industry benchmarks.

Most devices are currently installed after market, but looking forward, devices will be installed during manufacture on an OEM basis, and then there is the trend to Bring Your Own Device that also must be addressed. By taking the location intelligence platform approach organizations are able to squeeze every last drop of usable information from their telematics solutions and apply it to making the business more efficient, and investment in hardware is protected.

“We offer companies a complete plug and play solution that snaps into the fleet vehicle OBD 2 port in about 3 seconds” said Rush of Lynx Telematics. Within a few minutes or a couple of hours, depending on the size of a fleet, we equip the entire organization with a full-scale and functioning telematic solution. The next thing we do is to help the company implement policies and guidelines that focus on safety and operational efficiency and then begin watching and reporting our findings to the responsible parties within the organization.” Rush concluded by saying, “We, without exception have immediately changed the culture, for the positive, within every company we work with, from 12 units to 1500.”

For the insurance industry the case is also compelling. As well as being able to handle data from any telematics device that customers may wish to use, such a platform approach enables insurers to provide different schemes targeted at different market segments. For example, a young drivers’ scheme would measure different criteria to an older persons’ scheme, and it would have a different user interface, but the underlying mechanism for administering the scheme would be the same. This would give Insurers the ability to provide many different policies to meet different customer requirements.

As with any enterprise system, connecting different silos of information is the key to getting a birds-eye view of the organization on which to base strategic and operational decisions. By combining telematics and vehicle insurance, using a location intelligence platform to bring together all the various data points, and analyzing the resulting information, both the end-user/customer and the insurance industry can benefit from huge cost savings and a better product that more closely meets customers’ needs.

For more information or an analysis on how Lynx Telematics can help your company fleet reduce operating expenses, improve safety compliance and productivity while reducing risk liability, contact Vincent Rush at (513) 965-6318 or vrush@lynxtelematics.com