TRANSPORT AND FLEET
Outsourcing – what’s the problem?
Alphabet’s head of public sector, Clive Buhagiar, comments on the growing
trend towards outsourcing in the public sector.
W
hile outsourcing was often seen as a dirty word pre-recession, in times of austerity
the public sector has revisited the concept and found that in many cases outsourcing non- critical administration or service delivery can save both time and money, while not affecting the frontline experience received by NHS patients or local authority residents.
Indeed, there are a number of strong arguments in favour of outsourcing, especially when it comes to fl eet management.
The majority of public sector bodies run a mixed fl eet of cars, vans and plant, encompassing company car drivers and the grey fl eet. The administration involved in maintaining licence checks, mileage allowances and insurance agreements, in addition to sourcing and disposing of vehicles, can be incredibly complex.
There are also legal and tax implications that make outsourcing to a specialist attractive. Corporate manslaughter legislation places the onus for employee safety fi rmly in the hands of the employer, while the ever-changing tax regime penalises high-emission and ineffi cient vehicles.
Likewise, with the growing number of model variants and the increasing use of both OEM and retro-fi tted technologies, it is easy to see how the complex art of model specifi cation, maintenance and disposal is no longer a pastime for the faint-hearted.
Add to this the need for the public sector to show it has curbed unnecessary spending and improved its balance sheet by releasing cash fl ow and switching to a leased rather than purchased fl eet, and it is clear that outsourcing the complete fl eet management process can deliver tangible benefi ts.
Like it or not, public sector organisations, both 66 | public sector executive Sep/Oct 13
large and small, are faced with a myriad of fl eet management issues which are no longer inconsequential enough to sweep under the carpet. As such, it makes sense to bring on board a dedicated leasing specialist, with experience in the public sector.
Alphabet has now been working in the public sector for more than 20 years. As well as managing relationships directly with local and central government and other publicly funded organisations, Alphabet has been part of the GPS Framework, the Central Buying Consortium and other consortia since their inception in the 1990s. More recently, Alphabet was appointed to the Ambulance Vehicle Supply Framework.
This experience of managing a public sector fl eet which currently numbers more than 20,000 vehicles means we are well-placed to deliver the core fl eet management support while also investing in product and service innovations to help the public sector manage the mobility challenges of the future.
The award-winning AlphaCity scheme is one such example of innovation.
A fresh alternative to traditional pool cars, AlphaCity offers on-demand,
technology-
driven business mobility, fully managed by Alphabet. It reduces the need for hire cars, taxis and private vehicles.
The AlphaCity scheme uses dedicated leased cars,
which employees can book online, unlock by holding their membership card up to a reader on the windscreen and drive away
during the time they have booked out the car.
While AlphaCity is not a solution for every organisation, it can signifi cantly reduce transport costs and increase employee satisfaction levels for those fi tting the right profi le. Indeed, the Alphabet team undertakes careful analysis of the existing corporate mobility mix to provide a real picture of vehicle use so that tangible recommendations can be made on how best to manage business travel.
Ultimately, the biggest issues currently facing the public sector are risk – both fi nancial and the safety of its people – and cash management. The answer, quite simply, is outsourcing business mobility to the experts, leaving the public sector to get on with delivering high quality, front line services to its end users.
Alphabet is a provider of business mobility and part of the BMW Group. Operating in 19 countries, the company manages a fl eet of over 120,000 vehicles in the UK and more than 500,000 vehicles worldwide.
Clive Buhagiar
FOR MORE INFORMATION
www.alphabet.co.uk
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