The second day of NAFA I&E 2019 was host to more educational sessions that appealed to a broad variety of topics pertinent to fleet management, including how autonomous vehicles may impact the fleet industry, procurement's relationship with fleet, and reducing fleets exposure to fraud.
The session "The Road to Full Autonomy: Not When, But How?" detailed the concerns and excitement involving the development and implementation of autonomous vehicle technology. Jennifer Haroon, COO of Nauto, spoke during the presentation and broke down the main factors to consider regarding autonomous vehicles in fleet in four ways: the technology itself; government policies; concerns regarding insurance; and user acceptance. She also detailed existing vehicle technologies available that are able to help keep fleets safe.
Another session titled "Reducing Risk in Fleet Procurement" detailed the challenges that have come from fleet professionals learning how to address issues with procurement. This panel covered the view of procurement when compared to operations; the risk of misalignment as it relates to lifecycle costs; and also offered real-world examples of how fleets showed value to procurement and operations.
Speakers at this session included Barbara Banas, senior director of procurement, Wheels, Inc.; Kimberly Fisher, CAFS, global manager, fleet & travel, National Oilwell Varco; Alex May, senior manager, fleet, Rollins; and Keri Moran, category manager of mobile equipment, J.R. Simplot Company. The panel was moderated by Jack Leffler, assistant VP of client relations, Wheels, Inc.
Other sessions covered included best practices, professional development, and a focus on suppliers.
