Reports: The final piece of the outsourcing equation
One key to effective outsourcing isn't the technician -- it's the data. Photo: PacLease
">One key to effective outsourcing isn't the technician -- it's the data. Photo: PacLease
">One concern fleets have when considering outsourcing their maintenance and repair is that they will lose control over that portion of their operation. One way to ensure that does not happen is to set guidelines with the outsourced service provider covering the type of reports you receive during and following all outsourced service events.
Each fleet will have its own idea of the reports it wants. Michael Riemer, vice president product and channel marketing at Decisiv Inc., a service relationship management solutions provider, suggest that “metrics for success around service provider performance should be defined up front and [service providers] should commit to delivering reports on a defined basis (daily, weekly, monthly, on-demand, etc.)
Depending on how the fleet measures success, Riemer says reports might include:
Downtime — This can be based on the reason for the repair, complaint, make, model, year, etc. “Defining downtime as part of the upfront process [between the fleet and the service provider] is critical,” he says.
Estimated time of repair vs. actual time of repair
Approved estimate vs. invoice variances — If a standard process of estimate approval is followed, this number should be close to zero dollars.
Total costs and frequency of repair — This is based on reason for repair, complaint, make, model, year, engine, etc.
Comebacks — how frequently after a repair is there a similar issue?
Breakdowns between PMs — If a fleet is outsourcing all repairs, this is a good measure of the health of the maintenance and repair process.
Process compliance — Is the service provider sharing the data elements the fleet has asked for and providing the communications and follow-ups as prescribed?
Shane Gilliam, vice president of sales at Noregon, manufacturer of commercial vehicle diagnostic, repair, and data analytic solutions, says, “Service providers should ...Read the rest of this story
