ARI's driver safety program, ARI Driver Excellence, has been recognized by IDG's CIO magazine and honored with a 2015 CIO 100 award.

The CIO 100 awards, which are now in their 28th year, recognize organizations around the globe that effectively use information technology to create business value.

ARI was recognized for the new, evolved version of its ARI Driver Excellence program, which now includes in-house development of online driver training modules and real-time data transparency of driver behavior for North American and UK fleets.

The ARI Driver Excellence program combines online tools and interactive video, vehicle telematics and other third-party data to improve employee driving techniques to reduce accident-related vehicle costs and increase driver productivity. The program includes an online driver skills assessment tool that is also integrated with state authorities and agencies to validate drivers' licenses and pull motor vehicle records.

The system automatically assigns targeted online training to drivers. It can also receive telematics data through connected vehicle technology for real-time data collection of driver behavior and in-vehicle coaching. Additional tools include driver scorecards, key performance indicators and actionable alerts.

Among the innovative elements that helped garner CIO's attention for this award was the collaboration among the company's internal departments to develop the enhanced ARI Driver Excellence product. In 2014, ARI brought together members of its information technology, business development and fleet safety services departments to collaborate on this product.

This is the second time ARI has been named to the CIO 100 Awards. In 2013, ARI was recognized for its cutting-edge enterprise telematics solution that offers fleet managers complete 360-degree visibility with regard to the three critical areas of fleet spend: the vehicle, the driver and the trip.