

Rental Car IT - as bad as it gets? - bdfh42
http://memeagora.blogspot.com/2008/02/rental-car-it.html

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bdfh42
The deadliest tangles wrapped around a companies Enterprise Systems often
result from the structure of the organisation. Individual departments and
operational functions depend upon small efficiencies generated by the existing
systems. A replacement system might represent a dramatic improvement in
overall efficiency but would almost certainly disrupt the existing
organisation. Project like that can only be led from the top of an
organisation - without that level of leadership the IT function is confined to
continuing the development of those small efficiencies to the detriment of the
whole.

You see it everywhere I am afraid.

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hobbs
This sounds like a good opportunity for a startup. You wouldn't even need to
establish a counter at the airport. As a customer, you just check-in via
Blackberry, iPhone, or even text message. The shuttle bus swings by to pick
you up and you're off.

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thaumaturgy
I was thinking the same thing. What a fantastic opportunity for somebody to
build a centralized, remote system, that's easy to use and offers some really
powerful features ("Hi Mr. Jones, would you like the same kind of luxury sedan
you rented last time? A local map and directions to some common destinations
is already on the front seat for you."), and then sell it to the rental car
companies.

Somebody'd better do it, or I will. ;-)

~~~
hobbs
Heck, if you can collect the arrival times from the various airlines, you
could send a confirmation message a few minutes after the plane lands.
Checking in would be as simple as hitting reply.

~~~
thaumaturgy
That would require the traveler's flight information, which I wasn't assuming
was something the rental software would have access to. However, if the
customer wanted to offer it up ... sure!

Higher-end hotels have systems that do this kind of thing already, and there's
no reason that rental car companies couldn't also.

