ARI: Data-Driven Fleet Management

“If we weren’t a fleet management company, we’d be a technology company,” said Bill Powell, Director of Enterprise Architecture for ARI Global Fleet Management Services.

A division of Holman Automotive managing 1.4 million vehicles worldwide, ARI is a family-owned fleet management company with expertise in the truck segment and a strong data-driven culture. Powell spoke to LeBow students at the Business Analytics Speaker Series, sharing how analytics impact everything at ARI from maintenance management, security and risk to finance, supply chain and sales.

For ARI, analytics drives decision making across a multitude of functions. Using data to make split-second decisions on repairing versus replacing a vehicle. Calculating component failure rates. Providing a holistic view of assets being repaired throughout the country. Performing fuel price analysis. Using IoT to drive innovation. “As the market evolves, data volumes dramatically increase,” Powell said. “Then it’s a matter of knowing what to do with all of it.”

With a tenure at ARI spanning 25 years, Powell began his fleet management career in operations, transitioned to information technology, then information management before obtaining his current role within the architectural arm of the organization.

“In analytics, your job will be to simplify things. Asking yourself: how do I get this process to the point where people will better understand what they’re doing?” he said. “Get the data engrained into a business process. If you can do that, it’s invaluable.”