In France, nearly 80% of car fleet managers use Excel to manage their fleet. How can we explain this dominance of Excel when there is market software dedicated to car fleet management?
First of all, Excel is an individual office tool, flexible and fairly easy to use. With the widespread use of the cloud, it is now easier to share than in the past and allows simultaneous collaboration on the same version.
Its other major advantage is its widespread use in businesses because it is systematically part of the Office suite.
Finally, its price makes it a natural solution because its use costs absolutely nothing whatever the number of vehicles to manage, the number of users or even the level of sophistication brought to its design.
So does Excel seem like the perfect tool for fleet management?
To tell the truth, even if it is available in the cloud on a server, Excel must be reserved for the use for which it was designed, that is to say offering the performance of office software focused on finance and accounting.
But when it comes to administering vital data for the company, shared by one or more departments, or guaranteeing the functioning of business processes, Excel is no longer suitable at all and absolutely cannot replace management software.
Also, without wanting to criticize Excel, we have identified the various difficulties which will gradually appear to any fleet manager using Excel and will make them regret not having opted from the start for a market software package. Faced with each of these points, we have highlighted the functionalities offered by a dedicated management software package like Digiparc.
- A waste of time that is damaging to the efficiency and optimization of a fleet:With Excel, we are always wondering if we are really working on the right version. Furthermore, we waste endless time constantly checking everything, looking for macros or getting lost in tabs.
The advantages of Digiparc:no more wasted time with Digiparc, because all main sections are immediately accessible, recordings are made in real time and above all the pre-existing business functions save a lot of time!
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- No separation between a repository and the data exploitation interface:In Excel, there is no real possibility of creating a business repository which would serve as a reliable basis for the daily management of the fleet.
The advantages of Digiparc:it provides a dedicated repository which will centralize all the basic data of the fleet in all areas of the eco system of an automobile fleet. This seal between the repository and operational management thus avoids generating errors and being operational more quickly.
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- Lack of global vision of data:It is also difficult on Excel to have a global vision of your fleet, to have synthetic dashboards and effective alert systems. The manager is constantly in a relative fog which does not allow him to make the right decisions at the right time.
The advantages of Digiparc:As soon as you open the software package, you have a summary table of the most important data which allows you to immediately have a global vision of the park in its different aspects. Alerts are highlighted and easy to access with the possibility of alerting the users or administrators concerned.
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- Traceability not ensured:We all know the mishaps of multi-versioning on Excel which sometimes leads to errors that are potentially very dangerous for the proper operation of a vehicle fleet: incorrect versions, integration of forgotten data, etc.
The advantages of Digiparc:the DIGIPARC event log clearly shows administrators who did what when and extremely reduces the risk of error thanks to dedicated workflows which facilitate process monitoring and permanent accessibility to Digiparc in real time...
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- Permanent risk of error:This is the most crucial problem on Excel. In the absence of a centralized system organized according to business processes, the error is potentially constantly present. And we know what exponentially an error can cause in an Excel file. So when it comes to a file handled by 5, 10 or 50 people, the system is necessarily flawed from the start and the integrity of the data cannot be guaranteed.
The advantages of Digiparc:it allows you to organize the management of your car fleets by reproducing your organization online at the geographical level but also at the hierarchical and commercial levels. Everyone has the business environment given to them by their administration rights and knows exactly the tasks they have to carry out.
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- No Excel is the same:on Excel everyone has their own macro, their own way of working. This makes it possible to have rich and personalized programs that also generate disorganization and desocialization of processes.
The advantages of Digiparc:everything is pre-organized according to business rules which are common to all fleet managers and proven by years of professional practice and field expertise. The management rules are also the same for all users and administrators and cannot be modified.
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- Limited scalability:on Excel, we tend after a few months of use to freeze the program because its complexity necessarily makes it more fragile and less and less permeable to all developments.
The advantages of Digiparc:with the announcement of its version 5.0, Digiparc once again shows its ability to evolve and offer new features to its customers. Furthermore, when you are a Digiparc customer, you automatically benefit from new releases at no extra cost.
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- No detailed management of rights:This is one of the major problems with Excel because everyone has the same rights. Therefore the confidentiality of certain information cannot be guaranteed and anyone has the right to write and modify the program.
The advantages of Digiparc:with our solution, rights are rigorously established for everyone according to their position and their level of interaction with the company fleet.
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- Limited cloud usage:even if the use tends to develop, the use of an Excel file in shared mode on a server is still not very reliable.
The advantages of Digiparc:our software package allows real-time interaction of multiple users with different administrative rights. In addition, Digiparc is hosted in highly secure international hosting centers.
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- No business function:Excel was not designed to allow the management of business functions and even less those of a car fleet.
The advantages of Digiparc:on the contrary Digiparc does just that by being totally dedicated to the professions and processes induced by the management of a car fleet. This involves expert knowledge of business needs and a constant ability to evolve.
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- No structured workflow:To gain efficiency, it is important that certain tasks are managed via workflow for greater efficiency and traceability. With Excel it is impossible to set up workflows because the software does not allow it.
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- The advantages of Digiparc:it allows you to automate and trace complex tasks such as managing and replacing spare parts or tracking repairs.
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- No concept of a centralized file for cars or drivers.Which is very damaging because it is extremely complex to output aggregated data from Excel around a vehicle or a driver for example.
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- The advantages of Digiparc:this is another strong point of our solution since it allows you to visualize a vehicle in the form of an ultra-detailed file which behaves like a complete eco system including both basic data, related information as well as all events and alerts concerning this vehicle.
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- Management of attached parts:Excel does not directly allow you to manage the attached documents and even less on the basis of an elaborate EDM.
The advantages of Digiparc:on the contrary Digiparc offers a DMS module dedicated to the car fleet management activity which allows you to centralize and digitize all the documents you need for the operation of your car fleet.
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- Very limited interface:on Excel the more information you want to record and the more columns or spreadsheets there are, which with use ends up losing readability. Excel is all the more limited because the information can only be read in the form of tables, the whole being cruelly lacking in statistics, reports or alert systems.
The advantages of Digiparc:with V5, Digiparc has further improved in ergonomics and ease of use with priority given to business intelligence information and monitoring of alerts. Which makes it one of the most pleasant software packages on the market to use on a daily basis.
If you manage your fleet using Excel and you wish to compare your solution with Digiparc, we offer to provide you with a demo version free of charge and without obligation with a sample of data from your fleet. This way, you will be able to visualize the concrete advantages that Digiparc can bring you on a daily basis.
Olivier Lombard
Business Development Manager France
