Fleet Budget Proposal Deck

What is a fleet budget proposal deck?

The budget file holds the numbers, but finance decides in a meeting. In that meeting you are asked three questions: why did you overspend on this item? why is the request higher this year? and what if the fuel price rises? This deck lines up the answers before they are asked.

The deck complements the Fleet Annual Budget Template: you calculate in the Excel file, then carry the figures to the deck. It contains no ready-made savings or inflation rates. Chart data are example figures, and every assumption is a field where you name its source.

Fleet budget presentation slides in order

1. Fleet budget proposal for [year]: company name, number of vehicles, annual kilometers and presenter.
2. The budget we ask you to approve: the request and 3 numbers. Fill it in last.
3. Budget vs actual last year: a bar chart of seven items, and the three largest variances.
4. Where we spent more or less than planned: variance per item and its reason.
5. How the fleet cost was split: a doughnut chart of actual cost, and what the split tells you.
6. Cost per km by vehicle group: a two-year chart, the formula and next year's target.
7. Assumptions: vehicles, kilometers, fuel price, consumption, wages, insurance and prices, each with its source.
8. Vehicle replacement plan: age, odometer, cost per km, reason, option and cost.
9. Savings initiatives: six initiatives, each with a measure, annual impact, owner and start date.
10. From last year's actual to the proposed budget: a bridge chart showing volume, prices, replacement and savings.
11. Risks and budget sensitivity: five risks, the formula for each impact, and what you do.
12. We ask today for: the operating budget, replacement, savings initiatives and a quarterly review.
13. How to fill in this deck: guidance for you to delete before presenting.

How to fill in the fleet budget deck step by step

1. Enter last year's budget and actual in the fleet budget template, and carry its Variance sheet to slides 3, 4 and 5.
2. Work out cost per km for each group from cost and kilometers, and update the chart on slide 6.
3. Write the assumptions and their sources on slide 7: the fuel price from the current official price, insurance from the renewal quote.
4. Pick the vehicles to replace with the Fleet Vehicle Replacement Calculator, compare both options in the Vehicle Lease vs Buy Calculator, and carry the result to slide 8.
5. Fill in the savings initiatives with an impact and owner each, then update the bridge chart on slide 10 and work out the risk impacts on slide 11.
6. Fill slide 2 last, replace every text in brackets, and delete slide 13.

To update any chart: right-click it, then "Edit Data". The bridge chart has a hidden series called base, the floor of each column, explained in the slide notes.

How the figures in the budget deck are calculated

These are the formulas the deck uses. All inputs come from your accounts or from the assumptions on slide 7.

The improvement rate in the last formula is your own assumption. Show it as it is, and agree with finance to measure it every quarter.

Worked example: a budget of 2,030 thousand

The example figures used in the deck's charts, which you replace with your own:

• Last year's budget was $1,756 thousand and actual $1,815 thousand. Variance = 1,815 − 1,756 = $59 thousand, or 59 ÷ 1,756 = 3.4%.
• The truck group cost $520,000 and drove 200,000 km. Cost per km = 520,000 ÷ 200,000 = $2.60 per km.
• Proposed budget = 1,815 + 90 + 60 + 150 − 85 = $2,030 thousand, an increase of 215 thousand, or 11.8% over last year's actual.
• If the fleet uses 160,000 litres a year, every $0.10 rise in the price per litre adds 160,000 × 0.10 = $16,000.

In the example, replacement explains most of the increase ($150 thousand). Slide 10 must say so clearly, so the whole increase does not look like rising operating cost.

Common mistakes in a fleet budget presentation

• One percentage added to every item. 10% on everything does not convince finance. Build each item on its own assumption.
• A variance with no reason. Every large variance last year will be questioned. Write its reason before the meeting.
• Mixing replacement with operations. Show the cost of new vehicles separately, so each is decided on its own.
• Savings without an owner. An initiative nobody owns will not happen, and it will show up as next year's variance.
• Ignoring sensitivity. Finance will ask what happens if the fuel price changes. Work out the impact in advance with the formula on slide 11.

What the deck does not cover

The deck is a template for presenting and discussing, not an accounting system, and the figures are only as good as the accounts you take them from. It sets no fuel price, government fee or inflation rate. Take official prices from their source with a clear date, and check your authority's current requirements before adding their cost.