I know that there is no worse feeling than having to let employees go or cut back on what you offer your employees. However, simply because times are tough, does not mean that it is okay to stick your head in the sand.
Now, I’m not saying this is a wide spread phenomenon so if this doesn’t apply to you, I apologize. However, I am noticing more and more companies that are having a tough time facing some of the issues in their organization. In my industry we see a lot of companies that simply are not in a position to talk about leasing new vehicles. Fair enough, if you don’t have drivers to fill the seats, you don’t need new vehicles, understood.
Where I am seeing the disconnect is the companies that have had to let people go. As I said before, I know there is just about nothing worse than having to let people go. I further understand that you have every intention on hiring back the employees as soon as the economy recovers. However, we are seeing a fair number of companies that have had to let employees got but they hang-on to their company vehicles.
The useful company vehicle has now become a piece of iron that is sucking your company of needed cash. Although you might not be seeing this directly, market value and depreciation are very real costs to consider in owning a vehicle. By keeping vehicles on your lot that you are not using, you are preventing your company from collecting on the capital from their sale and costing your company money in depreciation.
Instead of ignoring the vehicles that you are no longer using, it is important to ensure you right-size your fleet. This means that you remarket any vehicles that you are currently not using and then grow your fleet when the time comes. Although this may not seem like a major issue for your company, in tough times, every dollar counts.
So please, set some time aside this week to review your fleet. Is it the right size for your company? Should it be bigger or smaller? What are the cost-saving opportunities? Answering these few questions, on a regular basis, will prevent you from costing your company any unneeded money. Hopefully these smart decisions help you through these tough times.
