After a career spanning nearly four decades, Gary Van Orden is retiring from the commercial fleet industry.

Van Orden's career began at Ford Motor Company, where he answered calls from vehicle owners before steadily advancing through a series of leadership positions.

During his nearly 20 years with Ford, he worked across customer service, parts and service operations, commercial fleet sales, and Six Sigma process improvement, developing expertise that would become the foundation for a career in fleet management and business development.

He later joined Nissan North America, where he held several leadership positions supporting commercial vehicle operations and national fleet sales initiatives before moving to Chrysler Group/FCA. There, Van Orden led commercial fleet efforts across the western United States, helping grow OEM relationships and supporting fleet customers throughout the region.

In 2018, he joined Mike Albert Fleet Solutions as Regional Vice President of Fleet Sales for the West Region. Leveraging decades of fleet experience and an extensive industry network, he helped expand the company's business development efforts in one of the nation's most competitive fleet markets while continuing to build long-term relationships with corporate and commercial fleet customers.

While his resume includes leadership roles across several of the industry's largest organizations, colleagues say his greatest impact came through the people he mentored.

"Personally, working for Gary has been career-changing," said Sheldon Haynie, business development manager at Mike Albert. "His vision and mentorship are something that has made me a better fleet professional to our clients and a better man in life. He leads with passion and integrity and is always ready to serve our clients. His leadership will be missed here at Mike Albert, but I congratulate him on a well-deserved retirement."

Throughout his career, Van Orden helped navigate some of the fleet industry's most significant changes, from evolving OEM fleet programs and commercial vehicle strategies to the increasing role of technology, connectivity, and data in fleet operations. Regardless of the organization or role, colleagues say his leadership style remained consistent, customer-focused, and relationship-driven.

As he retires, Van Orden leaves behind a career defined not only by business growth but also by the lasting professional relationships he built throughout the fleet community. His influence will continue through the colleagues, customers, and industry professionals he mentored over nearly 40 years.

“To a true industry visionary, thank you for your years of partnership and leadership," said Lan Trinh, national sales manager of Fleetail Nissan Group of the Americas. "While you will be greatly missed, we wish you continued success and all the best in this exciting new chapter."