Research has shown one in three fleet managers work 14 hours a week more than they are paid for, a quarter feel exploited and more than half feel overloaded with work.
Tom Madden, chairman of the Institute of Car Fleet Management training body, believes training could ease the burden on fleet managers. He said: ‘Training makes people work smarter and harder. Experience matters but training enables managers to understand the requirements of the job.
‘It is not just managing transport as fleet managers deal with other areas which effectively means they are travel managers. Training shows how to manage their time and how to complete and execute tasks in a quick and effective manner.’
The findings, which polled more than 1,500 transport managers, found that most would be prepared to work long hours if they felt a ‘sense of achievement’.
Mary Chapman, chief executive of the Chartered Management Institute, which completed the Business Energy Survey, highlighted other problem areas.
She said: ‘Part of the problem lies with senior management believing one thing about morale, when those closer to the coal-face have vastly different experiences. Businesses need to spend more time talking with their managers and listening to their concerns and ideas.’
The survey also showed that 56% of respondents missed family commitments because of work pressure and 32% believed their company responded to change in a haphazard way.
Richard Macmillan, managing director of the survey sponsor, Adecco UK and Ireland, said: ‘This research highlights that energy levels among managers in the transport sector are dangerously low.
‘However, employees are not afraid to work at this level providing their ideas are heard and they can be made to feel valued, empowered and are allowed to work more flexibly.’
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