2019 Fleet Excellence Award Winners Offer Fleet Ideas and Tips at I&E

NAFA announced the winners for the Association’s 2019 Fleet Excellence Awards (FLEXYs), the top honors in the fleet and mobility industry. This year's winners participated in a panel discussion during NAFA's 2019 Institute & Expo, describing their processes for achievement within their fleets.

The 2019 FLEXY winners:

Excellence in Public Fleet or Mobility Management

Mario Guzman, CAFM^®, Director of Support Services, City of West Palm Beach, Fla., won a FLEXY for his program that significantly increased employee productivity and morale within the fleet team, including “professionalizing” the fleet staff and instilling a culture of trust.

Guzman said that a component of great staff morale is maintaining a presence with your leadership and letting them know you are there to fulfill the necessary responsibilities. This can be difficult, especially when things are working well and the “squeaky wheel” does not draw attention to itself.

"We meet with the higher-ups with 'the Cliff’s Notes' version of what they need to know, and this helps bring recognition to our fleet," Guzman said. "You need to tie in your value, what you do, what you provide, and show the financial side of it."

Robert Stine, CAFM, Director-Fleet Management Department, Hillsborough County, Fla., won for an initiative that included significant acquisition cost reductions, a wide-scale replacement lifecycle program, and infrastructure improvements resulting in added capacity and efficiency.

A crucial part of these efforts, Stine said, was not making decisions in a vacuum, but instead really seeing what is necessary for his drivers. "Know what the missions of your drivers are and make sure you are providing what they need to fulfill those missions," he said.

Stine added that the buy-in of the fleet staff is equally important, and part of that requires knowing where each individual stands within the organization, and what is possible for them later on. "I always wanted (staff) to know what the chain of progression was, to give hope that they could progress (in their careers)."

Excellence in Corporate/Private Fleet or Mobility Management

Dave Dahn, CAFM, Corporate Fleet Program Manager, Erie Insurance Group, earned a FLEXY for his aggressive vehicle cycling program, redesigned fleet structure, and comprehensive risk mitigation structure.

To honestly tackle risk – and virtually every other fleet challenge – Dahn said that there had to be data coming from all stakeholders, but more importantly, that data must cohere. His goal was to make sure the information coming from all quarters was aligned to create, as he put it, "A single version of the truth."

"Make sure you have good and accurate data so that no one can dispute (your work and requirements)," Dahn added.

Jodi Weber, Americas Fleet Manager, Johnson Controls International, won for her work consolidating two large fleets following a company acquisition, resulting in cost reductions, a new corporate fleet management structure, and more than tripling her number of vehicles. She was unable to attend this year's I&E.

The FLEXYs shine a spotlight on those who have impacted fleet management in both the corporate and public fleet segments during the previous year. The awards’ nomination process was open to all fleet professionals throughout the United States and Canada, regardless of NAFA Fleet Management Association membership status.