Photo: Andrew Johnson, founder and Director of Simplytrak; Source: Courtesy Photo

Many companies rely on company cars or a fleet of vehicles to conduct business operations. The costs involved with having vehicles on the road is often a large expense. For startups and small businesses, the costs associated with company vehicles can be crushing.

Fortunately, global positioning system (GPS) tracking technology enables small businesses and startups to maximize savings, through a number of ways.

Learning Curves

Regardless of industry or experience, every new business is on a learning curve. As you navigate inevitable learning curves having systems and controls in place, such as GPS tracking devices, can help minimize waste.

From making route planning more effective to providing instant “always on” access to a driver’s location, remote tracking devices can help you conduct efficient business operations.

Nurture Success

Corporate responsibility, a form of corporate self-regulation integrated into your business model, is a key phrase in contemporary business terminology.

As Georg Kell, executive director of the UN Global Compact wrote in The Guardian:

“Common understanding is emerging around the world: a company’s long-term financial success goes hand in hand with its record on social responsibility, environmental stewardship and corporate ethics.”

GPS tracking technology helps companies achieve these essential corporate responsibility goals, ultimately helping startups and small businesses nurture success.

On the Road Accountability

One of the most obvious ways GPS tracking helps small businesses achieve corporate responsibility is by quickly identifying anyone that is not driving safely.

By monitoring driving behavior, your businesses can save money through improved fuel consumption, as well as reducing legal liability of an employee driving irresponsibility and potentially causing an accident.

Employees in the field and company drivers can implement safer driving habits through GPS tracking. This can be a vital stepping stone to ensuring your business is perceived in a responsible light.

Sustainable Business

Another crucial element of corporate responsibility is sustainability. Modern businesses of all shapes, sizes and niches are under increasing pressure to adopt green management practices.

Small businesses and startups may feel adopting green practices is too much to tackle and is not worth the effort.

The good news is that with GPS remote tracking, even smaller companies can put green practices into place and ultimately improve their bottom line.

This is achieved by the fact that GPS helps lower a company’s carbon footprint. This is achieved through optimizing routing for more efficient fuel consumption, ensuring vehicles are running efficiently though fleet maintenance reports and alerts, curbing speeding and other fuel-wasting driving, and by ensuring company mileage is reduced by efficient job dispatching and sending the closest drivers to jobs in queue.

Faced with the burden of a challenging economy, it is increasingly important to do everything you can to boost cost savings by creating a more efficient workforce. With its multitude of benefits, GPS tracking is a vital asset in helping small and new businesses that rely on vehicles remain competitive and expand by reducing their overall transportation costs and by being seen as a firm dedicated to practicing corporate responsibility.

This article has been edited and condensed.

Andrew Johnson is the founder and Director of Simplytrak, a long-established remote tracking and monitoring systems company, and Forward And Thinking. Previously a ski, snowboard and paragliding instructor and professional chef, he has also opened and ran a bistro in Washington State and a removals company in Nevada. Andrew is now a husband, father and runs a property portfolio in the UK. Connect with @simplytrak on Twitter.