3 Steps to Success: Understand, Identify, & Address Your Fleet’s Driver Turnover

[This article is an excerpt from the?Idelic?whitepaper:?3 Steps to Success: Understand, Identify, & Address Your Fleet’s Driver Turnover]

Introduction

Fleets are?losing millions of dollars?each year in downtime costs.

The Strategy to Help Fleets Get Started

In the wake of these trends, every day fleets are trying to discover new ways to be proactive in retaining their drivers. Though that may sound easier said than done, this eBook will seek to teach readers how to:

1. Understand the Difference Between Voluntary and Involuntary Turnover
2. Identify Common Sources of Turnover
3. Proactively Intervene to Reduce Turnover

With this information, fleets can implement strategies that reduce both voluntary and involuntary turnover, all while reducing the risk of experiencing a crash.

#1: Understand the Difference Between Voluntary and Involuntary Turnover

Naturally, all forms of turnover can hamper a fleet’s operations, but it’s important fleets understand the difference between the two major types in order to truly tackle each one head-on.

Voluntary Turnover

With 70-80% of a fleet’s total turnover being voluntary, it’s important to first understand what “voluntary” turnover is.

Voluntary Turnover?is when an employee leaves a job, whether that’s because they accepted an offer elsewhere, took an internal transfer, or retired. This type of turnover is typically more expensive to businesses because it often involves the loss of a high-performing employee.

In the case of a driver, this generally entails drivers leaving for a different fleet, but can include a promotion to management that takes them off the road. Many fleets offer sign-on bonuses and it’s common for drivers to seek “greener pastures” when they are merely satisfied—rather than excited—about their current job.

Involuntary Turnover

Involuntary turnover can present a significant risk to a fleet. So what is involuntary turnover, exactly?

Involuntary Turnover?is a type of employee departure where a team member is dismissed from a position within a company. This can be the result of varying factors, including poor performance, company cutbacks, company restructuring, a violation of company policies, and more.

For drivers, involuntary turnover is often the result of a serious crash. Fortunately, as will be discussed later, the incidents that indicate crash risk can also point fleet leadership in the direction of a professional development plan to help address their behavior.

Identify Common Sources of Turnover & Strategies to Improve Retention

With the costs to replace a driver so high and the standard practices failing to reduce turnover, many fleets are implementing new processes to reduce their turnover. Now that there's an understanding of the difference between the two types of turnover, identify the sources of both and know how to address those sources by reading the full whitepaper, "3 Steps to Success: Understand, Identify, & Address Your Fleet’s Driver Turnover."