What Is a Fleet Manager? (Roles, Skills and Qualifications)

Updated 22 August 2022

Fleet managers are logistics specialists who optimise transportation operations. It is a fulfilling and rewarding career for those who are good at problem-solving and can handle complex logistics systems. If you want to become a fleet manager, you may benefit from learning what this career path entails. In this article, we answer 'What is a fleet manager?', what they do, how to become one, what skills they need to excel in their profession and what salary they earn.

What Is Fleet Management?

Fleet management is a process of managing all information about their company's work-related vehicles and other assets, from purchase through disposal. The process aims to control the entire lifecycle of commercial vehicles owned by a company. Fleet management helps reduce associated risk, increase productivity, improve efficiency, ensure driver's safety and ensure compliance with transportation laws. Having a grasp of the process required to manage a fleet can help a company remain competitive, control overhead costs and meet customers' expectations.

What Is A Fleet Manager?

Fleet managers are professionals responsible for the safe and efficient transport of logistics. They lead a team of drivers and may work for different employers, including corporations, government agencies, manufacturers, wholesalers, freight companies and warehouses. A fleet manager purchases and maintains a vehicle for deliveries and ensures proper registration and licencing of vehicles. A good fleet manager keeps the fleet of a company running at maximum capacity and ensures profitability.

What Does A Fleet Manager Do?

A fleet manager's duties vary depending on their place of employment and their specific industry. Some typical duties of these managers are:

Oversee routine maintenance of vehicles and implement preventive maintenance strategies
Decide whether to lease or purchase vehicles for a company
Assist in the recruitment of quality drivers to the fleet
Register and licence all vehicles and drivers under their management
Analyse driver performance and utilisation of vehicle
Comply with the Indian transportation law and ensure drivers adhere to the driving laws
Ensure timely maintenance of vehicles to reduce vehicle downtime
Monitor driver's behaviour and ensure customer satisfaction
Use the global positioning system or GPS to track and monitor drivers and vehicles
Review paperwork for each load run and submit documentation to concerned authorities

What Is The Role Of A Fleet Manager?

The role of a fleet manager in any industry is:

Deciding on the purchase of vehicles
Selling off and disposing of old and non-functional vehicles
Analysing fleet expense and driver's performance report
Ensuring the safety of drivers
Overseeing preventive maintenance of vehicles
Supervising the company's fleet of vehicles

Average Salary Of A Fleet Manager

The average salary of a fleet manager is ₹19,963 per month. The exact salary may depend on many factors. Often, some cities pay a higher salary to fleet managers than others. For instance, the averages salary in Bengaluru is ₹42,149 per month, whereas the average salary in Thane is ₹20,951 per month.

Skills Of A Fleet Manager

Here are a few skills to master for a rewarding and fulfilling career:

Problem-solving

In case of unexpected vehicle breakdown, fleet managers use their problem-solving skills to think about alternative ways to solve the issue. This skill set helps them solve issues when a driver indulges in malpractices or refuses to follow the transportation policies. Even if their current fleet management system fails, they find temporary solutions to avoid delivery delays.

Adaptability

The fleet management technology and government regulations related to vehicles are susceptible to frequent changes. So employers prefer fleet managers who can adopt flexible working methodologies and change their fleet management practices according to the prevailing situation. The ability to understand the changes and deal with them is desirable for this job.

Communication

Fleet managers often communicate with business partners to inform them about when they can expect their shipment. This requires excellent communication skills. Also, they communicate vital information to drivers and follow up with them regularly to ensure timely delivery. The ability to draft transportation plans and schedules in emails and in-person conversation requires strong verbal and written communication skills.

Leadership

Usually, a fleet manager leads a team of drivers responsible for transporting goods from one place to another. These managers require excellent leadership skills to provide guidance and mentorship to a team of drivers, fleet mechanics and associates. Using this skill set, fleet managers motivate their team members to achieve their goals and work collectively as a team.

Planning

Coordinating fleet logistics and purchasing new vehicles requires planning based on the company's requirements. Fleet managers use their planning skills to assess patterns in fleet schedules, predict delivery delays and prepare a budgetary requirement.

Technical skills

Fleet managers use various computer programs to track and maintain fleet and driver activities. Often, companies use different software like fleet management software to keep track of their transportation-related schedules. This requires excellent technical skills along with computer skills.

Multi-tasking

Multi-tasking is the ability to manage more than one responsibility at once by focusing on one task while keeping track of others. From managing driver's availability to managing fleet with fluctuating budgets, fleet manager day-to-day activities involve dealing with multiple tasks. This requires excellent multi-tasking abilities.

How To Become A Fleet Manager

Follow these steps to become a fleet manager:

1. Complete your education

While the qualification requirement of every company varies from each other, many companies prefer candidates with a bachelor's degree. Some companies may hire a candidate who recently passed 10+2. So, before pursuing a career, review the educational requirement in your area. A bachelor's degree in management or fleet management can help you learn the business and logistics skills required to excel in this career. When pursuing a bachelor's degree, try to study transportation logistics and fleet operation.

2. Find an internship

After completing your bachelor's degree, look for internship opportunities that involve fleet operations, transportation and logistics. Learning how a company manages their fleet can help you gain practical experience of your degree. You can even ask a fleet manager to shadow them throughout their day so that you can learn about their job duties.

3. Practice using a fleet management software

Often, companies expect a fleet manager to have hands-on experience with some leading fleet management software. So, spend some time learning these tools. It can decrease the learning time during the job and mentioning this during an interview can make you a suitable candidate.

4. Decide on industry to pursue

From government agencies to manufacturers, many companies hire fleet managers. So, take time to think about which industry you want to join. The fleet management system may vary from company to company; once you choose, spend some time learning about the specific industry.

5. Create your CV

Create a CV enlisting your educational qualification, experience and skills. Mention any certifications that you have. Also, to increase your chances of getting shortlisted for the job interview, use keywords from the job description. This makes your CV applicant tracking system (ATS) compliant and gives you an advantage when companies use an ATS to filter potential candidates. When your CV aligns with the expectation of the job description, it increases your chances of getting hired for the desired profile.

6. Prepare for your interview

When preparing for an interview for a fleet manager's job, consider practising answers to commonly asked questions in this job role. Also, while answering during an interview, highlight your communication and leadership skills. It is good to practise questions about preventive maintenance of vehicles, scheduling and any driver-related challenges you faced in previous roles. To make a positive impression, try to answer interview questions using the STAR method in which you first describe the situation, the task you did, what action you took to achieve that task and what was the result.

Work Environment Of A Fleet Manager

A fleet manager usually spends a significant part of their workday in an office setting performing one of these duties:

Creating schedules using a fleet management software
Attending meetings
Overseeing maintenance work in mechanical shops
Checking vehicles to ensure the safety of drivers

This job rarely requires travel and is ideal for someone who prefers a desk job. Based on the industry, you may work in different shifts. Also, this job may require occasional overtime and working over weekends if there is an important delivery.

Salary figures reflect data listed on Indeed Salaries at time of writing. Salaries may vary depending on the hiring organisation and a candidate's experience, academic background and location.