Field vehicle fleet management in humanitarian operations: A case-based approach

Transportation is the second largest overhead cost to humanitarian organizations after personnel. Academic knowledge about fleet management in humanitarian operations is scarce. Using a multiple case research design we study Field Vehicle Fleet Management (Field VFM) in four large International Huma...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of operations management 2011-07, Vol.29 (5), p.404-421
Main Authors: Pedraza Martinez, Alfonso J., Stapleton, Orla, Van Wassenhove, Luk N.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Automobile fleets
Case-based
Company automobiles
Crescent
Federations
Fleet management
Foods
Humanitarian
Humanitarian aid
Humanitarianism
Motor vehicle fleets
Nonprofit organizations
Organizations
Personnel
Studies
Supply chain
Transportation
Transportation problem (Operations research)
Vehicles
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Summary:Transportation is the second largest overhead cost to humanitarian organizations after personnel. Academic knowledge about fleet management in humanitarian operations is scarce. Using a multiple case research design we study Field Vehicle Fleet Management (Field VFM) in four large International Humanitarian Organizations (IHO): the International Committee of the Red Cross, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, the World Food Program and World Vision International. Our field research includes more than 40 interviews at headquarters, regional and national level in Africa, the Middle East and Europe. The paper answers three research questions: (1) How do IHO manage their field vehicle fleets? (2) What are the critical factors affecting IHO Field VFM? (3) How does Field VFM affect in-country program delivery? The contribution of this research is twofold. First, it helps to fill the existing gap in the humanitarian literature regarding Field VFM. Second, it expands the fleet management literature to a new and virtually unexplored area.
ISSN:0272-6963
1873-1317
DOI:10.1016/j.jom.2010.11.013