Ability is the art of getting credit for all the home runs somebody else hits.-Casey Stengel

My green thumb came only as a result of the mistakes I made while learning to see things from the plant's point of view.-H Fred Ale

People are always ready to admit a man's ability after he gets there.-Bob Edwards

Many of us have the innate ability to get swept up in the excitement of a situation where we have a strong interest, or find a sell-serving arena with developments in our favor. Some have the zeal of their conviction so solidly implanted that anger can easily be generated if and when, those convictions are threatened.

And there are a handful of people who have the ability to absorb new influences and put them into propel perspective.

It's no secret that most full-time fleet managers perceive all leasing companies as a threat to whatever fiefdom the individual fleet manager has created. The all-too-natural instinct is to protect one's status and position since every family heavily depends on the breadwinner; and no one can find fault with that attitude. Yet, over the past 30 years, I have observed a growing hostile attitude toward lessors and this syndrome deserves a study since the fleet manager, the lessor, and the corporate account are all integral players in the spectrum of vehicle management.

Any reader knows that this column has defended and supported the emergence of the professionalism of those qualified fleet managers and this analysis is not meant to be a defense of the leasing companies. It does .seem to me that lessors, as other major suppliers, provide many necessary services for the corporate account that can utilize those services. Certainly those lessor services are competitive or they would not enjoy the success that is currently prevalent. It is true that the major lessors have attracted many of the best minds in the vehicle management business; their expense and maintenance programs are as sophisticated as their selection recommendations. Sheer competition has enlightened fleet managers as to each lessor profit centers so no specific service profit is hidden in terms of the cost to an account (if the fleet manager is alert to run cost-efficiency reviews in each area of service).

Our survey of the Top 200 commercial fleets may indicate that only about half are leased today but the heavy percentage of those not "leased" are involved in a lessor "management" program, normally "purchase and disposal" (P&D). This leaves many of those fleet managers with a still vital function, but far less than "total fleet management."

Now a couple of the major lessors are selling the concept of letting the lessor handle "total fleet management" and the evidence so far documents that at least a dozen top fleet managers are now doing something else; and the subliminal hostility between fleet manager and lessor intensifies. Understandable.

The National Association of Fleet Administrators is leading an over-due program to alert executive management to the intrinsic value of a qualified fleet manager; why the function deserves responsibility and recognition. NAFA cannot be expected to do it all. Each fleet manager also must substantiate his or her position with senior management if they feel justification is necessary. It shouldn't be that difficult. Simply look at the numbers and the dollar implications of decisions regarding the vehicle fleet. Even with the responsible lessor's services, someone qualified has to continually audit that lessor and it surely cannot be the corporate chairman, the general sales manager, or the CFO who don't know a hub cap from a bumper tag; and it cannot be an $18,000-per-year clerk. Fleet managers are as necessary as the vehicles themselves in the larger fleets so let's not forget to "watch the watchman."