Fleet management made easy.
Our group can do a lot more than just make cars! Many people now know this. But what else do we actually do? An interesting field of business is that of infrastructure and vehicle-related systems. These include connectivity services, and that's where we come in. In 2016, we, Mercedes-Benz Connectivity Services GmbH, were founded as a subsidiary of Daimler Mobility to enable us to offer just such services.
What is connectivity?
Gernot Peters works as a project leader and he’s an expert in this field. He tells us what connectivity is: “In general, connectivity describes the possibilities of networking various systems in order to collect new information and offer innovative features and services.” With regard to automobiles, this means that today innovative technology and the mobile Internet enable us to communicate with vehicles irrespective of the time and place. “Because the vehicle can transmit data externally, we can monitor its condition in real time. Examples of this include the tire pressure and the kilometer reading. Conversely, information can also be sent to the vehicle. This is relevant for carsharing, for example,” adds Gernot.
Such functions and services are especially interesting for commercial and fleet customers. We have a few of them in the group and we don’t just want to provide them with vehicles, but also with the appropriate infrastructure. Everything from a single source.
Who needs our connectivity services?
Our customers generally have one thing in common: They have to coordinate and manage numerous vehicles. Imagine you were responsible for 50 vehicles —being used by members of a company’s field staff, for example. You have to know when a vehicle is due for a service, what it’s current kilometer reading is, and where it is at any particular time. Our connect business services help you know all of that. “Using an online portal, the fleet manager can look at the latest vehicle data at any time, maintain a digital vehicle log, and locate a vehicle in the event that it’s stolen,” says Gernot. What’s special about this product is that we offer it for all brands, because few fleets consist only of vehicles from Mercedes, no matter how nice that would be for us. Although the communication module is preinstalled into Mercedes vehicles, we also offer retrofitting solutions for other brands. This ensures that fleet managers can always monitor all of their vehicles.
Data protection as highest priority.
One issue is especially important to our customers: data protection. Although they want vehicle data to be accessible, it shouldn’t be so at all times and real-time data shouldn’t fall into the wrong hands, of course. Tabea Grössel is an expert for data protection, as she is responsible for Legal, Compliance, and Data Protection at the company. “We don’t process any data without our customers’ and their drivers’ consent. Customers are always in complete control of their data — that’s very important to us,” she says. Tabea explains how this is done: “Many drivers use the cars for both business and private purposes. When they drive in private, they naturally don’t want to let the fleet manager see their location and the vehicle data. In such situations, the drivers can switch on the Privacy Mode in the connect business app.”
In addition to data processing, data security plays a key role for customers. We also sets top standards in this respect. “We have a big team of system architects and software developers who make sure that our systems are protected as well as they can be and that third-party access is not possible,” says Tabea. Moreover, the products are extensively tested by a variety of organizations. For example, our latest retrofitting solution for non-Mercedes brands, connect business GENIUS, has also been tested by TÜV.
Autonomous fleets need connectivity.
Today, fleet customers already account for more than half of Mercedes-Benz’ sales. This means that the fleet market is bigger than the market for private customers. “We expect this share to rise even further because carsharing and alternative mobility solutions are becoming increasingly interesting for more and more fleet customers, and fewer people need to have their own car,” predicts Christoph Ludewig, CEO of Mercedes-Benz Connectivity Services GmbH. The needs of fleet customers are also changing because they are increasingly outsourcing their business operations to fleet service providers. These developments are steadily increasing the importance of data-based fleet management and connectivity services. “Data and connectivity form the basis for new mobility services and efficient fleet management,” says Ludewig. “Imagine taking it a step further: Autonomous fleets will further strengthen this trend because they cannot be operated without connectivity.” This shows that we are operating in a real future-oriented growth market. Moreover, we have a competitive edge because almost no other OEMs offer connectivity solutions specifically for fleet customers.
No matter what the future holds in store, we will take on the challenges. How we are positioned as an organization also helps: flat hierarchies, lean processes, and short decision-making paths. Only about 40 employees handle the entire business chain, from product management and development to sales, customer care, and invoicing. Us colleagues combine the fast and agile work methods of a startup with the power and capabilities of a large company. As a result, we are ideally equipped for further growth.