The Fleet Gala, hosted by the Spanish Association of Fleet and Mobility Managers (AEGFA), is one of the fleet sector’s biggest nights of the year in Spain, recognising excellence in the industry.
Towards the end of 2023, Brightmile’s client HEINEKEN Spain earned the prestigious Award for Innovation in Training and Road Safety, showcasing the transformative impact of its partnership with Brightmile.
Five remarkable outcomes
In the spirit of Brightmile's mission to enhance business driving safety, HEINEKEN Spain experienced remarkable outcomes post-Brightmile implementation:
-
Reduced mobile phone usage: A commendable decrease in physical mobile phone usage while driving for the last four months.
-
Key performance indicator improvements: An impressive reduction in speeding incidents over the last four months.
-
Holistic improvement: Beyond quantitative metrics, HEINEKEN Spain observed a tangible drop in accidents leading to sick leave, underlining the holistic impact on employee well-being.
-
Improved buy-in: Employees have bought into the Brightmile approach in a way that its predecessor couldn’t come close to matching. The number of users is growing steadily month by month.
-
Collisions decreased: The Heineken global team reported that collisions decreased by 77% post-Brightmile implementation.
Implementation strategies
HEINEKEN Spain rolled out the Brightmile app in January 2022 at the conclusion of an unsuccessful period with conventional telematics.
It has been broadly acknowledged that Brightmile’s hardware telematics predecessor was not a good fit for several reasons. It had proved complicated to navigate and expensive to implement. It had been unable to gain acceptance with drivers, so had very low levels of utilisation, engagement and, consequently, poor results. Consequently, one key driver of Brightmile’s success is the prioritisation of positive reinforcement, engagement and rewards to improve driver behaviour – the “carrot” over the “stick”.
Currently, more than 60% of HEINEKEN Spain employees (around 600 drivers who use a vehicle for commercial purposes) use the Brightmile app regularly – a figure that is growing on a monthly basis, boosted by ongoing internal communication.
As part of the implementation strategy, HEINEKEN Spain, working closely with the Brightmile team, divided its fleet into groups. This enabled the client to organise competitions, fostering healthy rivalry and driving collective improvement across different segments.
Creating a conversation
HEINEKEN Spain Safety Manager Eva Pascual says: “The implementation of the app has gone hand-in-hand with constant internal communication, with the goal of not only encouraging the use of Brightmile but, more importantly, creating a conversation that transcends just the driving statistics.”
Eva says: “The importance of creating awareness was paramount when we presented the new initiative to the different groups. We have also been presenting the progress observed across the different metrics and comparing them between the different subgroups of drivers.
“The objective is not only to measure the scores and know that we have a specific percentage of speed or fatigue but also to delve into the issue of why a group regresses into being a poor performer and the reasons that may lead them to do so.”
Raising awareness
The company strategically employed hashtags such as #safetyfirst and #thisishowwelookaftereachother, reinforcing a collective commitment to road safety.
An example of HEINEKEN Spain’s communication is:
“Bring Brightmile along as a passenger: Brightmile is an app that helps us be more responsible and conscious of our driving behaviour. In just 16 months, we’ve seen some really good results, but also other areas we need to improve on.”
Next steps: introducing BrightCoach
HEINEKEN Spain is now looking to the future with the introduction of BrightCoach, an advanced e-learning tool within the app. Featuring 15-minute training modules and targeted 'micromodules,' BrightCoach aims to tailor interventions, focusing on specific user weaknesses. These are automatically assigned and related to behaviours that need attention.
Eva Pascual says: “BrightCoach will reinforce driver behaviour through training, making it much easier to directly address the specific areas that need focus.”
A flexible, collaborative approach
A key element of the Brightmile solution is the proactive and hands-on program run by Brightmile’s Customer Success team. Working in over 100 countries, Brightmile must customise its solution to local cultures and best practices.
In the words of Eva Pascual, “The AEGFA Award recognises the efforts made at HEINEKEN Spain to continue developing the culture of road safety. The information provided by Brightmile is clear and allows us to create a communication strategy around the most relevant safety concepts. Brightmile has demonstrated flexibility and resources to adapt to the needs of HEINEKEN Spain.”
Andy Gardner, Brightmile’s Head of Customer Success and Programmes, added: “The Heineken Spain team embedded Brightmile with a strong emphasis on privacy, earning the support of drivers. Thanks to their dedication, significant strides were made in improving driver behaviour, addressing risky activities such as smartphone distraction and speeding. The Heineken global team reported that collisions decreased by 77% post-Brightmile implementation.
We extend our congratulations to Heineken Spain for securing their Award for Innovation in Training and Road Safety. We eagerly anticipate our continued collaboration to enhance the safety of drivers, creating an engaging and rewarding experience for all involved.”
Conclusion
HEINEKEN Spain's success story exemplifies the major impact of the Brightmile app in fostering safer driving practices, creating a culture of awareness and, ultimately, prioritising the wellbeing of its workforce.
The strategic alignment between HEINEKEN Spain and Brightmile serves as an inspiring model for the industry, reinforcing the shared mission to make business driving safer, greener and more cost-effective.
