I dont care if its there as long as its not the only tool used.Your brain Example this tech has 64 qt of oil billed on his truck.30 is in parts bin waiting for him to pick it up 45 billed on work orders 15 left on his van.Now 26 qt of oil appeared out of nowhere that has 5 matching filters that we have just been blessed with cause he sold the 5 he had and we just so happen to have found 5.Now he also has 2 hoses that have been put on on this bill signed and turned in with matching hoses in his van floor.This tech takes 3 hrs to put on a hose when most tecks take 1.5.
Gps could be a good tool.Or it could be the 30 amp fuse in the 5 amp socket. Its all how it is used.

I vote GPS =yes
micromanage techs by non-techs NO

Lets put it to a vote.

GPS ~ Yes
GPS ~ No

I vote GPS ~ No

No way will gps go on sales or managers trucks here they are above the law and allowed to do.Need to go to the dentist sure you have earned it.Go to store sure nobody will care your in the office now rules have changed.Road techs are still the major sorce of income for most dealerships they are the ones that cost the most when they are doing other than their job.

Hi all
In australia the forklift company have start too install G.P.S..
There reasoning is to help manage the service fleet and rejuice
paperwork, great if you trust them....?????????
As we have found out so far G.P.S has been used as a displenery tool.
The paperwork side well in Australia you have 30 day at end of month to pay. So it really mean less staff in office..
Here is a question to ask the companys will they install G.P.S.
in all company vechicals eg. sales team??
Answer if they ask why.Just say if customer want a sales person to straight away you could check G.P.S where they are...........

You would have to monitor everyone and look at the patterns of each Tech, watch for consistantcies and inconsistantcies. After a period of time, you will notice who is doing it right and who is not.
It would take time to establish a baseline of time it takes for PM's and repairs, if you run one product line this would make it easy, factoring in the customers location, the kind of people your are dealing with, do they drag their feet and make you wait to get at there equipment, does it take an hour to find someone to sign your paper work.
A good dispatcher(s) will be the key here, he should know where customers are at and how long it takes to get from place to place.

Well said indeed roadrat. Jimd sounds like he is using GPS the way it should be used. Don't try to micromanage techs on the road. Don't worry what your techs are doing unless red flags pop up: 85 MPH, bill rental 6 hours to change a hose, charge 3 hours for a standard PM. These are red flags and need to be addressed, otherwise, let your techs do their job, taking care of the customers.

As far as all the talk about bad managers, my take on that scenario is this: A bad manager is like a bad tech, someone hired to fill a position. You will always have bad techs because there are not enough good techs to fill all the positions as there are not enough good managers to fill management positions. Also, the bean counters may not want to pay the price for a good manager so they settle for the lesser of the two, sort of like going to Walmart and buying a $5 toaster. It will fill the void. Sometimes the toast is burnt or not done but it's good enough for now until you can afford something better.

I think it all comes back to the fact that GPS can be a wonderful tool if used correctly. The $2 question is "What is the definition of using GPS correctly?"

I'd like to hear from people on exactly what "correctly" is? Monitor some techs? Monitor only bad techs? Who is a bad tech? Give time in the street for speeding? Don't check anything between 7AM to 4PM? Techs, put yourself in that management position and managers put yourself in the tech's position and think about what "correct" really means?

I used it for a rant on less than perfect service techs.I really get tired of going on service call to other than my own customers to be there for 2 to 3 days fixing stuff that regular tech just dont want to.What happened to customer relations then?Now this is not from a tech that is swamped it from the guy that has nothing to do every day an hour before quiting time.

Well said roadrat!

I agree jim it will work "if' management uses it as a tool for the example you gave concerning "Dispatching", (60 people and 3 dispatchers, you guys are busy!) and coordinating service people so as to take care of your customers, and if you have a "Problem Child" who does'nt know how to read a speedlimit sign or what the "working hours" of the business are, then it can be used to "AID" in the correction of these problems But where most of us have a problem is, using it as tool to Micromanage their employees.

I would like to see some real management for a change, you know like hiring competent techs, how do you do that? you make your dealership desirable to the best available in your area. "Theres a lack and need for tech's" so hire boidys to fill service trucks, I've heard it before, it dosen't fly with me. If your dealership has to result to GPS to check on there techs when they have that "gut feel" it's a shame. After 35 years in a service truck believe me I'm tired of dealing with incompetance at every level including service and general managers. For some of you supervisors, and managers please involve yourselfs, get out from behind that desk, even if you have been a tech in the past, the world is changing fast, you still need to experiance that part of it from time to time. It's easy to forget why we all have a job, THE CUSTOMER, please remember.

GPS, Tracking, etc - call it what you want but the simple fact is that they work for a multitude of reasons and offer many benefits. I had installed on about 60 field service vehicles in 2003. The immediate benefit was a reduction in overtime. The equipment paid for itself in less than a year. The goal was to offer better insight for the three dispatchers and to keep the field techs from crossing paths. The OT issue was a gift. I've been in all aspects of the service end of the business. I can't say with certainty that I would have welcomed GPS but I can tell you that I had many occaisions where I was sent on a call late in the day only to find another tech a block away and heading home. Doesn't make a lot of sense, does it? As a GM, I nor my service manager had the time to compare time cards to the GPS. Sometimes you get a "gut feel" about a tech stroking the company (and the customers) and this is a tool to quantify that feeling. Someone already said it - the guys that complain about it are the ones that are worried about getting caught doing something they shouldn't.

I suggest to all who have responded to this post to "GOOGLE"
the term "MICROMANAGEMENT" and look at the "Wikipedia" definition.

Serval service managers were techs here.Couple parts men were techs,As far as I know none of the salesmen were.Last 2 branch managers were.They like promoting from within it kind of gives some a hope of steping up.Why in the world would you want to is beyond me.I was a line lead in a factory for 5 years and would sooner ask do you want fries with that as to go back.Life is good on the road you treat customers right they are good to you.Sometimes you get a bad one but the good outweigh them.Most probles I have is people who dont want to do better or the look what I did type.Do your job and be proud in it and you will be a happy man.

Proshadetree, are you sure they were techs?
Where are those service managers, most I have worked for were not ever techs of any sort...
in the last 30 years I have worked for one service manager, who only lasted about 1 year as service manager, who had ever been a forklift service tech. I have also been a service manager, but felt that the biggest problem I had then was I did not have -me- working FOR me.
Batman, it has been my experience that most dealer principals don't want a road tech as service manager, since they are likely to 'see the world' as the road tech does, and less as the dealer principal does. in fact, most Dealer principals I have dealt with say there is a bunch of real problems trying to change someone that has been on the road, into an office person, no matter the position in the office.
As the price for GPS tracking goes down, I expect there to be less resentment. I think techs have difficulty with the idea of spending the money their sweat earned on a tool to bug them into more billing, were as, a tool that they can really (and clearly) see a return on investment they have no problem with investing in. if it costs a grand per truck and 50 dollars a month per truck, that doesn't sit well, but if it cost only the phone you already have and 10 dollars a month, there could be considerable more reason for it, that would be understandable by the techs (whose sweat it is bringing in that money, and who hope to share in the profits).