Forward-thinking mobility providers put the client at the heart of development

Subscription-based mobility is gaining traction as a growing number of companies add mobility to their list of benefits and perks aimed at attracting and retaining talented employees.
During the virtual Smart Mobility Institute session on 9 December, experts in corporate mobility from both the supply and demand side discussed how subscription-based mobility can be fit for purpose. Here are the five key takeaways according to those frontrunners in corporate mobility: The session was supported by Free Now for Business and Sixt. 

1. Conduct research into the user group

Gain a thorough understanding of the different mobility personas within your organisation. What are their mobility needs? What are their commuting and business travel patterns? In essence, what are the main distinguishing characteristics of each employee group? It is important to get input from your employees regarding the transition towards smart corporate mobility and subscription-based mobility. Actively involving them and listening to their mobility challenges and needs will be crucial to achieve successful deployment.

1. Contribute to developments in the supply side

Making subscription-based mobility work means helping suppliers to incorporate your users’ opinions, expectations and real-life experiences into their product development activities. Understanding not only the need, but also the ‘need behind the need’ is a key element for success. Therefore, forward-thinking mobility providers encourage their clients to participate in product and service development and execute an agile approach in developing a need-fulfilling service.

1. Start small and take gradual steps

A corporate mobility transition is rarely a ‘big bang’. Instead, the successful frontrunners started small and initially offered alternatives like subscription-based mobility services as an add-on to their existing mobility options for a few employee groups only and/or in markets that were ready for them.

1. Take local taxes and regulations into account

Local taxes and regulations largely drive decisions about which alternative mobility services to offer first, and where. These factors, along with the status and maturity of the local mobility ecosystem, should determine the location and the pace of your implementation approach.

1. Picture the entire picture

One of the biggest challenges when transitioning your corporate mobility programme is to convince decision-makers that this is the right thing to do for  – right here, right now, despite all the turbulence and challenges businesses currently face due to the ongoing pandemic. The only way to get approval for the change ahead is by ‘picturing the entire picture’. Corporate mobility is not only about greater commuting and travel convenience. It’s not only about the novelty of technological advancements in mobility. It’s not only about the curated experience of the user. It’s also about achieving your company’s ESG goals, about being green, sustainable and social, and about attracting and retaining the right talent for your company, to name but a few other benefits.       

Perhaps you are reconsidering your company’s employee benefits related to company cars and mobility. Perhaps you are starting to explore intelligent and flexible mobility solutions that reflect your shift to the hybrid working model. Perhaps you are keen to take a greener approach to corporate mobility. Or perhaps you just want to stay abreast of the latest trends and developments in corporate mobility.

To find out more about all aspects of corporate mobility, visit our website. We’ll be back in 2022 with a new thought-provoking and inspiring programme to continue to support you on your journey towards innovative mobility management for your organisation.