The 2016 Automotive Fleet & Leasing Association (AFLA) annual conference, which will be held Sept. 18-21, 2016, in San Diego, got off to a strong start with a series of opening day presentations.

The conference attracted more than 500 fleet managers and industry professionals. The theme for the 2016 conference is “Mission Possible: Identify, Engage, Execute.”

The opening day keynote speaker was David Rutherford, a former Navy Seal, who provided insight into living a team-oriented lifestyle necessary to achieve elite levels of success.

Another opening day speaker was Ken Kies, managing director of the Federal Policy Group, who examined the current political environment in U.S. and how the upcoming elections will affect the industry in the future.

This presentation was followed by a panel discussion entitled, "5 Trends of the Fleet Industry" featured five presenters:

• CAFE Regulations – Bo Saulsbury of Oak Ridge National Lab

• Fleet Safety – Chris Stites of SambaSafety

• Global Fleet – Michael Bieger of ADP

• Outsourcing – Mark Smith of Element Fleet Management

• Technology as a Change Agent – Mike Antich of Automotive Fleet

Attendees were entertained Monday evening on a dinner cruise of San Diego harbor.