Fleet technology has moved well beyond basic GPS tracking. Today, it plays a direct role in fleet safety, efficiency, cost control — and even compliance.
But many CFOs and CEOs aren’t yet asking their fleet teams the right questions about this technology.
Australian company Directed Technologies, which works with leading heavy vehicle OEMs globally, sees this gap all the time.
“Fleets used to get a great 20 per cent gain when they first adopted telematics,” says Brent Stafford, Executive Director at Directed Technologies. “But today the easy gains are gone. Sophisticated fleets are chasing the one, two and three percenters — and to do that, they need rich, validated vehicle data.”
For CFOs and CEOs — who are ultimately accountable for risk, cost and performance — this raises some important questions they should be asking their fleet managers.
Where is our fleet data coming from — and can we trust it?
Not all telematics data is equal. Many aftermarket systems provide basic three-wire installs or plug-in dongles that lack depth or validation.
That’s a problem when your business is making decisions — or proving compliance — based on that data.
“Good luck trying to do anything predictive or intelligent if your data is shallow or inaccurate,” says Mark Whitmore, Senior Vice President Global Sales at Directed Technologies. “You need to be working with validated vehicle data, ideally from deep OEM integrations.”
CFOs and CEOs should ask:
- Are we using validated vehicle data?
- Does our data feed directly from the OEM platform where possible?
- Is our data consistent and trusted across the business?
Are we using data to make the fleet safer — not just more efficient?
The safety potential of modern fleet data is enormous — but often underused.
Brent highlights that today’s vehicles come equipped with advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) — lane departure, AEB, fatigue detection — which generate rich data.
“If we harness that OEM data and combine it with video and driver monitoring, we can give fleet managers and business leaders a much deeper understanding of risk,” Brent says.
But that requires a well-planned data strategy — not just bolt-on systems added later.
CFOs and CEOs should ask:
- Are we leveraging advanced safety data from our vehicles?
- Are we using video and ADAS data to improve driver behaviour and reduce risk?
- How is our fleet technology helping us manage legal exposure around duty of care?
Is our technology integrated into the business — or siloed?
“Fleets today don’t want a monolithic, all-encompassing fleet management platform,” says Mark. “They want rich vehicle and driver data that integrates with their other business systems — ERP, CRM, maintenance planning, finance and more.”
The value of fleet data increases dramatically when it’s shared across the business.
But many fleets are still running siloed telematics platforms that require manual data extraction — increasing cost, time and risk.
CFOs and CEOs should ask:
- Can our fleet data be integrated with our core business systems?
- Are we eliminating manual processes by automating fleet data flows?
- Are our finance, HR, compliance and operations teams able to access fleet data where needed?
Are we designing our fleet’s digital layer — or bolting it on later?
One of the most insightful ideas from the Directed Technologies team is that Fleet Managers should think about their digital body in the same way they think about the physical body of the truck.
“Fleet Managers have always specified the right body for the job,” Brent says. “Now they also need to design the digital layer — the data flows, the safety systems, the integrations — as part of the initial vehicle design.”
That means involving the CFO and CEO in procurement decisions about what data will be captured, how it will be used, and where the risks lie.
CFOs and CEOs should ask:
- Are we treating the digital layer of our fleet as a core design element?
- Are we specifying technology at the point of procurement, not post-delivery?
- Are we engaging with OEMs and technology partners to ensure seamless integration?
Is our data secure — and are we managing governance properly?
Finally, data governance is becoming a board-level issue — and fleet data is no exception.
“We’re seeing growing awareness around where data goes, whether it’s mined, whether it’s resold,” Brent says. “Fleet Managers, CTOs, CFOs — they all want to know: is our data secure? Who has access to it? Where is it stored?”
Directed Technologies is seeing an increase in RFPs that now include strict requirements for data residency, privacy and security.
CFOs and CEOs should ask:
- Where is our fleet data stored?
- Who has access to it — internally and externally?
- Are we confident in the data governance practices of our technology providers?
Don’t Leave Fleet Data Decisions To The Fleet Manager Alone
As Brent points out, modern fleet data impacts:
- The P&L
- The balance sheet
- The organisation’s risk profile
- The company’s brand and duty of care obligations
“These are business-level decisions,” he says. “The days when telematics was an isolated project run by the Fleet Manager are gone. CFOs, CEOs, CTOs all need to be in the conversation.”
Fleet Managers will always be the operational experts — but business leaders must now ask the right questions to ensure the technology layer of the fleet is fit for purpose, future-proof, and aligned to the company’s strategic goals.
Because in 2025 and beyond, a well-designed digital body will be just as important as a well-designed truck body.
