The field competing for the 2014 Professional Fleet Manager of the Year has been narrowed down to three finalists, with the winner being announced at the 2014 Automotive Fleet and Leasing (AFLA) Conference Sept. 7-10 in Las Vegas.

Eighteen nominees, who collectively manage more than 72,760 vehicles, were announced in June.

The award's judging panel consisted of 37 professionals representing past winners, dealers, auctions, manufacturers, fleet management companies, and media.

The Professional Fleet Manager of the Year award is sponsored by Wheels, Inc. and the Automotive Fleet & Leasing Association (AFLA). 

This year's finalists are: 

Brenda Davis


Fleet Commodity Manager, Baker Hughes, Inc.

• Total vehicles: 18,000

• Staff supervised: 3

• Years with current fleet: 17

• Years in industry: 25

• Replacement policy: 5 years/125,000 miles gasoline; 5 years/200,000 miles diesel

Primary responsibilities: Supplier sourcing and negotiations, RFI and RFP development, contract development and program implementation, cost impact analysis, as well as measuring, monitoring, and reporting supplier performance. Responsible for a center of expertise that supports all aspects of vehicle management from acquisition to disposal with a staff of three fleet professionals.

Notable achievements: In 2013-2014, Davis achieved reductions in excess of $12 million by the continual review of TCO, contracts, best practices, and program enhancements. Strategic resale planning and performance have effectively resulted in lowered operating expenses on average of 3 cpm.

A 2014 rightsizing project is underway, resulting in $2 million in savings to date. Due to an acquisition, the fleet size doubled and included heavy equipment, adding complex management requirements; however, using technology and innovation, fleet absorbed the workload without adding head count, which was previously supported by four individuals.
Customized technology enhancements allowed fleet to streamline the ordering process, thereby eliminating all paper processing, filing, and any manual intervention while ensuring a consistent audit trail and increasing productivity by 30 percent and improving fleet’s end-user experience.

Kim Jamme

Manager, Fleet Operations, Teva Pharmaceuticals

• Total vehicles: 1,600

• Staff supervised: 1

• Years with current fleet: 2

• Years in industry: 18

• Replacement policy: 3 years/70,000 miles

Primary responsibilities: The oversight and management of the Teva U.S. fleet program. Since moving to Teva in early 2012, Jamme has been instrumental in delivering operational improvements by identifying, proposing, and implementing strategic initiatives for the fleet.

Notable achievements: Jamme saved Teva $8.2 million in just one year through various methods including taking advantage of a positive used-vehicle market to turn over 80 percent of the fleet and introducing new vehicle choices on the selectors.

Additionally, she surveyed drivers to further the reach in obtaining critical feedback of the fleet program. Responses from the survey were heard and changes were made. She has achieved operational excellence by redefining the purpose and mission of the Teva fleet, combining contrasting fleet operations for Teva’s legacy companies to come under one umbrella of streamlined fleet management activities.

Jamme used her leadership skills to develop a scorecard approach for sales operations and other Teva business units, leveraging the use of strategic imperatives, goals, objectives, and accomplishments to raise relevant performance indicators for advancing Teva’s interests.

Gage Wagoner

Senior Manager, NA Fleet Administration, Philips Electronics North America

• Total vehicles: 4,800

• Staff supervised: 2

• Years with current fleet: 13

• Years in industry: 23

• Replacement policy: Closed-end 13 months, open-end TCO/market driven

Primary responsibilities: Management of Philips Electronics’ fleet in North America and is a member of the Philips Global Fleet Competency Team that is charged with overseeing global fleet management and fleet purchasing. In this role, he is responsible for the strategic administration of the U.S. and Canada as well as having a growing role with Philips’ Latin America.

Notable achievements: In 2014, Wagoner reduced lease cost AOP in CY-2014 by approximately $2.5 million through the aggressive shortcycling of 1,200-plus vehicles. He also drafted and championed the company’s Global Fleet Policy, including the addition of global driver safety standards.
Additionally, Wagoner centralized the Philips U.S. fleet management and invoice payment (formerly decentralized to 20-plus operational units).