The fleet community will once again descend on Silicon Valley Nov. 9-11 for the 2022 Fleet Forward Conference. What does the future hold for fleets? Check out the full agenda, seminars, and speakers on the website.  

Brought to you by the publishers of Automotive Fleet, Government Fleet, Heavy Duty Trucking, and Work Truck, Fleet Forward Conference (FFC) is designed to provide fleets a path forward on electrification, connected vehicles, autonomous technology, last-mile and shared mobility, next-generation telematics, and more.  

FFC will not only deliver the big-picture strategies and market insights that are shaping the future of fleet, the conference will also provide cutting-edge tools and systems that fleet operators can implement tomorrow to make their fleets more efficient. 

And after a two-year hiatus, Fleet Safety Conference (FSC) returns to an in-person format in combination with FFC.  

Now in its 11th year, FSC is designed specifically for fleet, risk, and safety professionals with the goal to reduce driver distraction, limit fleet liability, and enhance safety culture overall. Attendees will pay one registration fee to access both events. 

Big Picture Keynotes 

As part of a combined agenda, FFC and FSC will each convene an opening keynote on Wednesday, Nov. 9.  

Ed Peper, U.S. vice president of General Motors Fleet, will deliver the FFC keynote address and will be joined onstage by Michelle Calloway, director of OnStar Business Solutions, and Steve Hornyak, chief revenue officer for BrightDrop. The trio will discuss the evolving model for fleet electrification. 

Bruce Landsberg, vice chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), will deliver the FSC opening keynote. 

In “NTSB Analysis: Crash Causes, Solutions, and the Future,” Landsberg will draw on NTSB’s investigations of crashes and the board’s transportation safety research to explore the hot-button issues in roadway safety today.  

In the Thursday morning plenary session, Bill Cawein, global technology & integration manager for FedEx Express, will sit down with conference chair Chris Brown to discuss FedEx’s efforts to electrify its fleet at scale, including deploying the first 150 all-electric delivery vehicles from BrightDrop across Southern California. 

Closing the conference on Friday morning are three separate “TEK Talk” keynotes to be delivered by OnStar’s Michelle Calloway, Geotab’s vice president of data & analytics Mike Branch, and Dakota Semler, cofounder and CEO of electric truck maker Xos.  

FFC Seminar Highlights 

FFC seminars will emphasize electrification and infrastructure, though connected vehicles, carbon reduction strategies, ESG, and autonomous vehicle safety, and other topics will also come into focus.  

• Fleet managers from Genentech and GSK will explore lessons learned on building out charging infrastructure, in-fleeting new EV models, and educating drivers in “Large-Scale Fleet Electrification: Trailblazers’ Forum.” 

• In ‘Calculating TCO for EV Fleets,” speakers from Black Book and Electrification Coalition will present data and analysis on EV wholesale values, covering trends in remarketing, volume, lease penetration, and regional considerations.  

• In “Fleets & ESG: More than Electrification,” speakers from Wheels Donlen, Utilimarc, and Booster will discuss fleets’ roles in the greater corporate mandate of social responsibility and integrity.  

• Speakers from Navistar, Volta Trucks, EAVX, Work Truck Solutions, and Together for Safer Roads will dive into how aerodynamics, ergonomics, safety, cab vision, and technology applications will integrate into “The Truck of the Future.”  

• In “Is Autonomy Truly Safe? How Will We Know?” speakers from Plus, Kodiak AI, Udelv, and Nuro will discuss the regulatory and policy landscape in the U.S. for the safe deployment of automated commercial vehicles. 

FSC Seminar Highlights 

FSC seminars will offer expert insights from leaders in fleet safety who will share cutting-edge education to create safer fleets. 

• In “How NYC Leverages Data for a Safer Fleet,” speakers from New York City’s municipal fleet — the largest in the U.S. — and Geotab will produced measurable safety gains by harvesting and interpreting collision and other telematics data.   

• In “Is Your Safety Policy Modernized?” a fleet manager from Roche will join a representative from RTA to discuss new issues affecting your fleet safety policy and ways that mitigate liability and keep your drivers as safe as possible. 

• “Driving in a World of Distractions, Impairment, and Rage” will gather speakers from Roche, Driving Dynamics, and Wheels Donlen to analyze the drastic rise in collisions and fatalities and then introduce cutting-edge methods around driver engagement and behavioral improvement. 

• “Driver Distraction: What Does the Data Say?” will dig into a study by Virginia Tech’s Transportation Institute to uncover distracted driving incidences by type, time, and frequency of behaviors before these dangerous events, including cell phone use, drowsiness, other in-cab distractions, and external events.  

Expo & Vehicle Interaction 

The 2022 FSC and FFC agenda also includes an expanded opportunities for attendees to drive and experience new vehicles, mingle with product experts, and understand safety technologies behind the wheel in a large, interactive outdoor space. 

On Wednesday afternoon, attendees can interact with passenger cars, trucks, and vans and experts from those automakers. On Thursday afternoon, attendees will be able to drive and ride along in many of those vehicles.  

In addition, join us two lunches, two breakfasts, and multiple networking breaks in which attendees can interact with vendor representatives at tabletop displays.  

A tailgating party will convene on Thursday afternoon, in which attendees are encouraged to wear their favorite sports apparel.  

Safety Awards Return 

FSC also brings back two awards presentations to in-person formats. 

In conjunction with Automotive Fleet, the American Automotive Leasing Association (AALA) will present the Fleet Safety Award to a fleet or risk manager whose leadership and innovation have enhanced the safety of fleet drivers and the general public.  

As well, Heavy Duty Trucking will also bestow its Safety & Compliance award, which recognizes trucking executives who have demonstrated excellence in fleet safety. Both awards will be presented on Friday morning before the closing keynotes. 

Conference Registration Open 

Registration for the combined Fleet Forward and Fleet Safety Conferences, taking place at the Santa Clara Marriott Nov. 9-11, is open now. 

“Spanning three days and 30 educational seminars as well as numerous networking opportunities to interact with cutting-edge leaders in fleet, this year’s combined Fleet Forward and Fleet Safety Conferences will deliver to attendees the most value yet,” said Chris Brown, conference chair. “Join us in November and register today.”