Carvana and Motive are in the problem-solving business, and both do it well.
If you aren’t already familiar with Carvana, their business simplifies the car-buying process, that frankly, no one really enjoys. By bringing the shopping experience online, removing the salesmen and reducing the paperwork, Carvana is truly changing the way car shopping is done.
Both Carvana and Motive recognize that an on-demand world requires modern, simple technologies and clean integrations that benefit the business and the end-user.
Carvana’s unique fleet challenges
So why does a company like Carvana need a robust and agile fleet management software like Motive? Vehicles that are sold by Carvana are transported not only to the hubs and Carvana “vending machines” but direct to a buyer’s home.
These trucks and the operations behind them are crucial to Carvana’s customer experience. Their fleet of 500+ vehicles consists of full auto transport haulers and flatbed trucks that work as final mile delivery vehicles.
Why Carvana chose Motive
Transportation professionals like Carvana’s drivers and fleet managers are federally mandated to track everything from fuel to hours of service. In the past, all of this time-consuming tracking would provide little, if any return for companies or carriers. Motive has built its business for companies like Carvana to not only handle these tasks more efficiently but to also use the data and insights gathered to make better business decisions.
As the manager of these operations, Jonathon McCutcheon researched and analyzed 40 providers before selecting Motive. Ultimately, Motive was able to provide the baseline ELD (electronic logging device) and HoS (hours of service) expertise but also offered video monitoring, tracking tools, and the data insights needed to build a truly modern fleet operation.
“The dashboard shows events (like hard braking, hard cornering, and hard acceleration) and identifies them by driver,” explained McCutcheon. “It’s very easy to take a snapshot of an event and drill down to what you want to know. Other brands didn’t present this data as clearly.”
Carvana is already seeing progress as they use the Motive platform to build a culture of safety. They can see a future where Motive’s technology will help them track preferred lanes, monitor driver video, and automate processes through machine learning. Carvana trusts Motive to keep up with their needs as they continue to evolve in their efforts to revolutionize car buying.
“Our business is hard to keep up with,” says McCutcheon. “We had to ask Motive to make changes because of our rapid growth. But they flowed right along with it, especially during our peak season. Once the road gets bumpy, businesses show their true colors.”
Jonathan is also excited about Motive’s adaptability and the fact that we actively listen to feedback.
He says, “I think that one of the things I like about Motive is that they listen to drivers as well as logistics planner feedback. We’ve had a couple of things that we said could be really cool and [Motive] has taken it in and put in on roadmaps. So you know it’s about adaptability.”
Motive has kept up and led Carvana in building a truly modern fleet.
Achieving higher accuracy and efficiency with automated IFTA fuel tax reporting
To McCutcheon and Carvana, the Motive automated IFTA fuel tax reporting feature is extremely crucial.
“IFTA now has become a staple. I wouldn’t even consider software that did not provide automated IFTA. It’s obviously a crucial portion of the business. I mean you cannot pay your taxes.”
Jon added that the Motive automated IFTA reporting feature “is as easy as it comes.”
“There’s absolutely no work. It does all the work. We validate the results — and it’s accurate — so we print out the report every month and hand it over to the tax guy and let them roll.”
Change is good
“The Motive staff was the most well-informed about the applications of the [HoS] rules and what had to change for us,” McCutcheon said.
When it came time to implement the Motive devices and dashboards, the Motive staff was in lockstep with Carvana. Motive also stepped up when Carvana was experiencing issues with their transportation management platform.
The user-friendly interface and simple design made the ramp up easy, but ultimately, Motive’s platform helped solve larger, company-wide problems, including driver retention.
“The implementation of Motive ELDs has also kept our driver turnover far lower than the norm. Carvana drivers like to be compliant; it keeps their jobs cleaner and easier. They can focus on driving instead of paperwork, which makes them happier.” McCutcheon says.
Motive’s customer success team, their ease of Integration and the leading technology sold Carvana on Motive, but it’s the data and visibility into that data that has allowed Carvana to make more informed decisions.
“Motive’s technology allows us to see everything,” says McCutcheon. “We are running a tighter ship due to having this information. We see better, manage better, and perform better. Having Motive and being able to see the data very, very quickly and very accurately is just an absolute part.”
“If you want a company in lockstep with you, turn to Motive,” says McCutcheon. “I recommend them no matter how odd or diverse your business is. They’ll walk beside you.”
Next stop: the Motive Smart Dashcam
Of the Motive tools that Carvana has employed, the Smart Dashcams are next on their roadmap.
“We want [drivers] to feel safe and part of the camera (the dash cam) we’re choosing this because it’s forward facing and not a rear [driver facing],” says Jon.
“I know that a lot of people think about their drivers as intellectual capital, but these guys make a lot of decisions on the fly to try and make sure that they do things in a very safe manner and as well as continue to move our product to our customers. It [the Motive Smart Dashcam] doesn’t feel invasive to them, but it does protect them from accidents.”
Modernize your fleet today
Carvana is a fast-growing company that can’t afford to make mistakes.
“The growth is just unbelievable, and everything is going really well with this company. It’s just hard to keep up with that kind of sustained growth which is a great problem to have,” says Jon.
To sustain that growth, businesses need the right companies to partner with. As Jon put it into words, “when you are dealing with triple-digit growth year over year consistently now for the 6th year, you really have to be careful with who you partner with, because you don’t have time to make a big mistake and start over.”
The transportation industry grows more dependent on technology every day. If you’re considering new tools and want a partner as you build your modern fleet management program, consider Motive.
We’re a leading fleet management platform that is powering thousands of fleets and helping them run more efficiently, competitively, intelligently, and profitably.
