Following our deep dive into Lime charging, we’re now turning our attention to another major player in the scooter industry with our Guide to Being a Bird Charger.The gig economy is ripe with opportunities for those willing to hustle, and becoming a Bird Fleet Manager is one that stands out. This role, which involves charging and maintaining Bird scooters, can be particularly rewarding for savvy individuals.Despite recent changes at Bird, the potential for fleet managers remains promising. Let’s unpack this opportunity and explore strategies to maximize your earnings in this dynamic role.
Here's what we cover:
What is Bird, and what’s been going on with the company?
Bird was founded in Santa Monica, California, in 2017, as a micromobility company specializing in last-mile transportation. They started with ten e-scooters. Within a year the company raised $300 million in funding and was valued at $2 billion. Bird was flying high.
In the last few years, Bird has undergone many changes, including eliminating most of its fleet of gig workers who served as Bird chargers and recreating the position of Bird fleet manager. There was also a bankruptcy, but Bird emerged earlier this year with a renewed focus and a streamlined business model.
A new business model
Bird’s bankruptcy was spurred by the pandemic. Sales plummeted 50% in 2020, as they did for many gig workers and companies in the community mobility sector (while food and grocery delivery cleaned up). Bird declared bankruptcy in 2022, acquired Spin (another e-scooter company) somewhere along the way, and went through a corporate realignment. They re-emerged from bankruptcy earlier this year as Third Lane Mobility, the largest micromobility company in North America, of which both Bird and Spin are subsidiaries.
Bird and Spin remain a force, though, according to a recent Third Lane Mobility release. In 2023,
- Bird and Spin riders traveled over 51 million miles globally, which equates to circling the earth more than 2,050 times.
- Bird and Spin users were responsible for millions of motor vehicle trips that were not taken.
- Bird and Spin users also prevented 10,191 metric tons of C02 emissions from entering the atmosphere.
Bird fleet managers appear
During the pandemic, one significant problem was the collapse of the Bird scooter charger network. This network consisted of gig workers who collected as many Bird scooters as they could each night, charged them overnight at home, and redistributed them to specified locations (called nests) for customer use. With fewer Bird chargers available, the e-scooters couldn’t be charged, leading to a decline in ridership.
Bird’s response to the charger problem was to eliminate the Bird charger position, which put their remaining fleet out of work. They recreated the charger position as a Bird fleet manager, rehiring some former chargers for these new roles.
What is a Bird fleet manager? Fleet managers are assigned a fleet of Bird e-scooters (anywhere from 50 to 100), which remained owned by Bird. Every night, the managers use an app to locate the e-scooters, collect them, and take them to a central location for charging. Each morning, the fleet managers redistribute the scooters to predetermined locations.
Bird fleet managers are also responsible for repairing and maintaining the e-scooters. Sometimes, this is at Bird’s expense, and other times, the managers absorb the cost. Missing, stolen, and vandalized scooters are also a problem. Fleet managers are often financially responsible for these losses.
There is also a report card
Fleet managers start out making about 40% to 45% of the revenue generated by each scooter assigned to them. Successful managers follow the performance of each scooter using Bird’s app-based fleet management software. A fleet manager can acquire additional scooters if they excel at the job. Some have fleets of several hundred. High performance often means a higher percentage of earnings, too.
According to a 2023 article in Wired, the Bird fleet manager’s app highlights underperforming scooters. You risk losing the fleet if that number exceeds 10% of your e-scooters.
How can you become a Bird fleet manager?
Like most gig positions, the Bird application process is online. You start by filling in your name and some personal information on the Bird website; then wait for a phone call. Depending on where you live, that phone call may take a while.
One of the characteristics of the e-scooter and micromobility business is that it does well in good weather. This is great if you’re in the southwestern US or the sunbelt states, where the sun shines most days and the roads don’t get covered with ice. Business is more seasonal in areas with harsher winters. If you’re in a good market, there is likely a waiting list to be a Bird fleet manager. If you live where there is snow, your winter may involve some side hustles to make ends meet.
Scooters and micromobility are more prevalent in urban settings and less common in the suburbs. Some cities have also legislated against e-scooters or limited their hours of operation.
Things and skills you’ll need to be a Bird fleet manager
Being a Bird fleet manager takes a commitment. Here are some things you’ll need that will be considered when you interview for the position.
Business experience. Most Bird fleet managers are business people who understand business decisions, possessing management and organizational skills. Some fleet managers even have full-time employees.
Large van or truck. When you go out at night to collect your fleet, you’ll need a good-sized vehicle to transport them. A load of 50 to 100 scooters, averaging 40 pounds each, won’t fit in the back of the family SUV. Bird doesn’t have vehicle requirements, but you’ll need a suitable vehicle for the business.
Mechanical abilities. Fleet managers are responsible for maintaining the scooters. According to the Wired story, the company changed the brake mechanism on one model of Bird scooter, and the changeover fell to fleet managers.
Warehouse space. You’ll need space for your Bird scooter maintenance operations, and the space required to store them while they charge. This will likely exceed the capacity of most garages.
Familiarity with analytics. Successful fleet managers understand data analysis. They have access to app-based tools, fleet management software, and analytics that help monitor the performance of individual e-scooters, identify opportunities for increased usage, and locate e-scooters for retrieval.
Knowledge of the community mobility market. The gig mobility market is little more than a decade old, and in that time, it has undergone waves of change. Successful gig drivers and e-scooter chargers will tell you that understanding the market is vital.
You will need to consider these things if being a Bird fleet manager appeals to you.
How much is the Bird fleet manager salary?
According to multiple sources, Bird fleet managers earn a minimum of $1,500 a week, although that is not guaranteed. If you do a good job and grow your fleet, you can acquire more scooters, which increases your income. Of course, with a larger fleet comes the need for more space and more time to maintain the scooters.
Anecdotally, some Bird fleet managers talk about making more than $100,000 a year, but those are often fleet managers with employees.
Bird fleet managers are contract employees, so they are responsible for taxes. As contract employees, there is no vacation or sick time from Bird, so someone will have to ensure that things get done 365 days a year.
For every successful Bird fleet manager, there are those who aren’t. Profitable Bird fleet managers admit that it comes down to good location, business savvy, and hard work.
A final word about managing Bird scooters
Any student of micromobility and last-mile transportation will tell you that the market is constantly changing. Bird is a good example. Like most companies in the shared mobility market, they faced challenges during the pandemic.In some phases, bird charger jobs were eliminated or redefined. When Bird scooter charger jobs disappeared, many gig workers had to find a different side hustle or identify other gig economy opportunities.
Now Bird has successfully re-emerged into the market, and they have created new opportunities for those experienced in community mobility.
In some areas, Bird has contracts with cities to provide e-scooters. Cities regularly evaluate the contracts, and sometimes they change or drop them to go with another e-scooter provider. Bird fleet managers can lose part or all of their business overnight.
Gridwise can help
The Gridwise app is an invaluable tool for the gig industry. The Gridwise mileage tracker helps Bird fleet managers track business miles; the same is true for the Gridwise expense tracker. These features make tax time a breeze. There are also other benefits and even discounts on gasoline.
Ready to take your gig work to the next level?
Download Gridwise, the app that helps you track your expenses and maximize your earnings
Check out these Gridwise articles to learn more about being a Bird fleet manager and other opportunities in the gig industry:
