Field Vehicle Fleet Management in Humanitarian Operations: A Case-Based Approach

Abstract

Transportation is the second largest overhead cost to humanitarian organizations after personnel. The international 4x4 Field Vehicle Fleet size is estimated between 70,000 and 80,000 units with a cost above $1 billion per year. Nevertheless, academic knowledge about fleet management in humanitarian operations is scarce. By using a multiple case research design we study field vehicle fleet management in 4 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. We aim to answer three questions: 1) How do IHO manage their field vehicle fleets? 2) What are the critical factors affecting IHO field vehicle fleet management? 3) How does field vehicle fleet management affect in-country program delivery? Finally, we suggest further research areas in transportation and fleet management in humanitarian operations.