Parking management software : how do you choose your solution?

One hour a day. On average, that’s how long a private vehicle is used. The rest of the time, it’s stationary!

In other words, for a personal vehicle to be possible, the car park is the starting point and the climax of any journey. It is the sine qua non of this type of mobility : the creation of “areas of immobility“. However, despite the dominant image of freedom associated with movement, a car is a static and cumbersome object. Consequently, the ideal pursued by every motorist is not only to move around freely but also to park as close as possible to their destination.

Every day in the United Kingdom, more than 68% of Britons commute by car from their place of residence to their place of work in pursuit of this ideal (Transport Statistics Great Britain). However, for companies of the SME – ETI – GE type, it is clear that the parking needs of all employees – motorists – will not be met.

However, finding parking close to the workplace is a real challenge and one that can sometimes have unfortunate consequences: loss of time, late arrivals, stress, wasted fuel, as well as increased pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.

In this context, employers need to improve the management and occupancy of their company car park(s) to satisfy more employees. The solution? Parking Management software!

What is a Parking Management software?

A Parking Management software automates and optimizes parking management for companies of all sizes (VSEs, SMEs, ETIs, GEs, and multinationals).

In other words, it allows employees to reserve a parking space according to their type of vehicle (electric and rechargeable hybrid, two-wheeler, etc.). At the same time, the allocation of parking spaces is automated, incident management and access control are facilitated, and above all, car park occupancy is optimized.

At the same time, by digitizing the management of their car park(s), companies can collect, interpret, and monitor various types of data (car park occupancy statistics, employee activity history, etc), which will enable them to make the right management decisions and boost and improve the parking experience for users.

In most cases, Parking Management software can be accessed by company members via their smartphone (Android and iOS mobile application) and the Internet (web browser). They generally include a single sign-on system that allows employees to log in with just a few clicks without registering using an existing account (Microsoft, Google, Okta, OpenID, etc). Administrator and user accounts can be created and configured in just a few days.

Sharvy, for example, is one of the pioneers of this type of software. Today, the solution has more than 50,000 daily users around the world! Moreover, over 96% of requests are met by the application.

However, it’s true that there are so many types of software out there that claim to be able to transform your car park overnight… So, finding your way around Parking Management software can be a tricky exercise. That’s why we’re giving you all our advice, benefits, and prerequisites in the following paragraphs!

Why is parking management software increasingly attractive to businesses?

1.  The benefits of a Parking Management solution for employees.

• • • Reserving a designated space if declared unused on a particular day : in many companies, parking spaces are (still) allocated on a hierarchical basis, according to seniority, or on an even more restrictive “first come, first served” basis. These methods of allocation could be more efficient and satisfactory for employees. Moreover, many assigned places are unoccupied daily because of telecommuting, business travel, and days off. As other employees cannot use these named spaces, the car park is entire, even if it isn’t really. To alleviate these problems, the employer can invest in a Parking Management solution, which allows employees who have a car park to retain this privilege but to share their parking space on days when they are not going to the office and, therefore, on days when they are not going to use their parking space. Employees who do not have a parking space can make a reservation and use the company car park.

• • • Checking parking availability : in most companies, when the car park is open access and operates on a “first come, first served” basis, employees cannot find out about parking availability before they leave home. Only when they’re there do they become aware of the problem. They desperately have to make a few laps around the car park before they find a free space (if they’re lucky) because otherwise, they’ll have to resort to parking their car on the street. However, with a Parking Management solution, your employees can remotely consult available spaces in the company car park. Above all, they can plan their mobility. If the car park is complete on a particular day, they can decide to come by public transport to save time looking for a parking space.

• • • Report incidents : If one of your employees notices that another employee has taken their reserved seat, they can simply report this person to the application to inform the offender and the administrator. The application must be able to redistribute a new seat after the employee has reported the incident.

• • • Benefit from preferential access to the company car park : depending on the priority rules defined, certain employees may benefit from preferential access to the company car park. For example, employees who carpool daily, people with Reduced Mobility (PRM), and employees with no other valid alternative (distance between home and work, medical constraints, children, etc.) can benefit from a reserved parking space.

2.  The benefits of a Parking Management solution for companies.

• • • Fair sharing of parking spaces between your employees : the notion of fairness is essential within companies. It is an important lever for creating and maintaining a good working climate. It gives employees greater satisfaction and helps to improve their Quality of Life and Working Conditions (QWL). That’s why a fair and efficient allocation of parking spaces must consider this notion while considering each employee’s individual characteristics. This is what a Parking Management solution like Sharvy can do. The application manages their arrival on site, allocating spaces to them using a fair algorithm, providing access to site maps, planning access by automating number plate recognition, and so on.

• • • The development of soft mobility : as a company, you directly impact your employees’ mobility. That’s why it’s essential to rethink how your car park is used to reconcile the need to free up space with the parking requirements of users. By investing in a Parking Management solution, you can encourage car park users to rotate their use of spaces, making them less reluctant to use public transport and/or soft mobility. And all this without losing the use of the parking space, which encourages multimodality within your company. As a result, you improve your CSR policy.

• • • A solution for (quickly) creating groups of spaces : thanks to a Parking Management solution like Sharvy, you can divide up your car park according to your needs. For example, if you have several levels in your underground car park and want level -1 to be filled before level -2, you can quickly determine serving priorities. In particular, the application prioritizes spaces on level -1 over those on level -2. Similarly, suppose your company has several buildings, and you want to distribute your staff according to the building they work in. In that case, you can create different groups of spaces and assign each user to the areas closest to their building (e.g. group 1 = building A car park, group 2 = building B car park, etc). If required, overflows between car park groups can be created via Sharvy.

• • • A positive parking experience for your visitors : welcoming visitors well is a factor that is sometimes overlooked when it comes to a company’s image. Investing in a Parking Management solution allows you to reserve parking spaces for your visitors when they come to your site. With Sharvy, your visitors receive an email with their booking details (date, address, host details, and allocated parking space) before they come. An interactive map (Google Maps) and a map of the car park are also included in the email so that visitors can easily find their way around an unfamiliar location. Finally, a button to open the car park barrier is only activated on the day of the visitor’s reservation, so they won’t need to ask a third party to open the barrier on their visit.

• • • Easier unified management of multi-site car parks : employees regularly rotate from one site to another in many companies. As a result, it can be difficult for security managers or reception staff to keep track of everyone coming and going. Thanks to a dedicated Parking Management solution, the management of multi-site car parks is improved and unified, not least because these solutions are generally compatible with a wide range of access control systems (RFID badges & cards, IoT modules, cameras, etc.).

• • • Improve the occupancy rate of your company car park : Today, few companies have actual, objective data on the use of their car park. This lack of statistics, combined with unsuccessful car park management, partly explains car park saturation or under-utilization. To improve management, it is essential to analyze specific usage data. By digitizing the management of your car park, you can collect, interpret, and monitor data (car park occupancy statistics, activity history) that will enable you to make the right management decisions and boost and improve the parking experience for users while optimizing your car park’s occupancy rate.

How do you choose your Parking Management software?

1. The essential features to improve your car park management.

Just as your company is unique, so are the needs of your employees. That’s why you need to start by clearly identifying the issues for which you want to use a Parking Management solution.

• • • A company relocation planned soon?
    • Is the construction of a new building and associated car park underway?
    • Do you have many leaseholders who use their parking spaces sparingly?
    • Do you have an “Excel” car park management tool that is becoming too cumbersome?

If you are in one of these situations, you should consider optimizing your company car park. Suppose you know its added value and the financial windfall beneath your feet. In that case, you won’t be able to resist taking proactive measures to optimize your company car park and generate immediate savings (up to 25% every year)!

However, to achieve this, make sure that your Parking Management software has (at least) the following ten functions :

• • • Management of spaces, their typology, areas & visitor parking.
    • Holders can release slots on days when they are not using them.
    • Reservation requests can be made via the web or mobile application.
    • Definition of priority rules and specific management features.
    • Manage car park access control (cameras, RFID readers & badges via the application).
    • Dynamic car park map & real-time view of availability by type of space.
    • Create groups of spaces based on the number of buildings in your company.
    • Quick incident management.
    • Automatic reservation reminders.
    • Dashboards on car park occupancy.

Then take the time to ask for a demonstration of the solutions you have in mind. If you prefer, ask to test the application free of charge, as we do at Sharvy, to get a more hands-on experience.

2. Parking Management software : criteria for choosing your solution.

Clearly, there is a plethora of parking management software available today. So choosing the right solution is no easy task! So, in addition to functionality and cost, there are a few essential criteria you need to take into account when choosing from the wide range of solutions on offer.

For example, make sure that your provider offers a range of additional services :

• • • Access to an online FAQ.
    • Training for administrators and a user guide.
    • A knowledge base to answer any questions you may have.
    • A dedicated account manager and support are available by chat and telephone.

At the same time, think about your employees’ equipment (computers, tablets, smartphones, etc). Make sure that the solution you are considering is available on all devices and, of course, that it offers an good user experience.

Similarly, make sure that the solution you are considering offers a Single Sign On (SSO) connection. So that your employees never again hear the phrase : “Yet another piece of software and a new password to remember…“.

You should also make sure that it is intuitive and quick to learn. Finally, check that the solution you are considering can be easily integrated with your existing ecosystem. In particular, with your HRIS software (Lucca, Kelio, SAP, Cegedim, etc) and other in-house professional tools (RFID readers & badges, for example).

Parking Management software : Sharvy, the solution that relieves your staff and optimizes the management of your company car park!

While many company parking management tools offer effective sharing of parking spaces, the Sharvy application stands out thanks to its fair algorithm.

Within a company, most employees compare themselves. It’s a normal process of human cognition. This phenomenon, intrinsic to organizations, encourages employees to evaluate their working conditions and determine whether or not they are fair about the overall context of the company.

This search for “justice” and fairness can lead to some situations : conflict, frustration, dissatisfaction, demotivation…

Today, thanks to our experience and our support for our customers, we have identified that the lack of fairness within a company’s car park can be the source of internal conflict and frustration.

The uncertainty of obtaining a parking space, coupled with the time it takes to find a space and the daily stress this generates, takes its toll on the morale of your employees. What’s more, it could be a better start to the day.

That’s why the Sharvy application aims to reverse the trend in a society based on individualism by restoring fairness, sharing, and solidarity within companies. It ends traditional allocation criteria based on seniority and/or hierarchy.

Thanks to Sharvy, you can take proactive measures tailored to your company! You resolve recurring complaints about its management and offer your employees a positive parking experience. Finally, you will project an image of a company that cares about the well-being of its employees.

In conclusion

In the past, companies didn’t have to worry about managing their company car park(s) precisely because ‘parking’ was an abundant and inexpensive resource, but this is no longer the case!

Today, the costs that can arise from poor management and fallow car parks are substantial for companies, and they have no choice but to optimize them to excel and make savings. That’s why adopting and selecting a Parking Management solution is so important in so many ways.

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