Mycompanyfleet sees no advantage in retaining legacy systems

Mycompanyfleet, the fleet software arm of HR solutions provider NorthgateArinso, believes that there is no real advantage in trying to make outmoded and outdated legacy systems do a job they are inherently incapable of.

Mycompanyfleet, the fleet software arm of HR solutions provider NorthgateArinso, believes that there is no real advantage in trying to make outmoded and outdated legacy systems do a job they are inherently incapable of.

Many companies find that they inherit systems for a variety of corporate functions including fleet management through acquisition or merger and that they are often inflexible and incapable of communicating with each other.

Trying to build and develop these legacy systems to improve their functionality and bring the services they provide up to date is then a frustrating and often fruitless exercise.

“It’s like trying to fit a square peg in a round hole. You can keep bashing it until it fits, but you would be far better starting off with a round peg which is custom-made for the job in question,”  says Mycompanyfleet business executive, Luke Hicks. 

“We typically find that older fleet management systems are written in outdated and unsustainable technologies, often bordering on the obsolete, which are of no use to the fleet manager going forward, and which in reality should be completely replaced.

“However, in making the transition from an existing to a new system, there should be no loss of historic data or reporting functionality and it should be relatively straightforward to transfer across all the relevant information that you need.

“All good fleet software suppliers, ourselves included, should be able to simply transfer all the historic data into the new system and replicate any reports you need. However, the functionality of the latest systems, like our own FleetHR, will ensure that you also benefit from new features such as system dashboards, better integration and web deployment,” he said.

Mycompanyfleet’s view is that all modern systems should be web delivered for increased functionality and most will be delivered via what is commonly known as cloud computing, where applications are delivered over the internet.

Much of the functionality can be provided as software-as-a service where the client data is hosted on remote servers and can be accessed by users through a web browser. One advantage of this approach is that it requires little or no internal IT investment.

“Fleet operators should look for a supplier who has a proven track record in providing integrated web based systems. At Mycompanyfleet, we provide a variety of fleet customers with systems that integrate with a myriad of other key business systems, including accounts, expenses, HR and payroll, “said Luke Hicks.

“Integration is key for any software project, especially fleet, as the system itself should be the central hub for all fleet data.   Many suppliers fall down over the transfer of data between systems, simply because they don’t map out the process correctly at the first stage.

“At Mycompanyfleet, we pay particular attention to understanding the customer’s processes at the pre-sale stage and try to fully capture the crossover of information between departments so, at the implementation stage, the data interface is clear,” he said.

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