Opinion: Why we're focussing on the growing profile of a fleet manager

By Paul Hollick, chair of the Association of Fleet Professionals (AFP) 

We’ve just announced details about this year’s annual conference of the Association of Fleet Professionals (AFP) and a theme that runs through the day is the growing role of the fleet manager.

Why this theme now? We believe it is a good time to recognise how our members are playing an increasingly high-profile part in some of the most important aspects of corporate life at a time of unprecedented change for vehicle operators.

Clearly, much of this relates to electrification. Our profession deserves huge kudos for the way fleets have moved from a point where electric cars were almost unknown to today’s situation of becoming arguably the default choice, something achieved in little more than one replacement cycle.

But beyond this, much more is happening. Unavoidably, in a time of rising prices, keeping fleet budgets under control is a big concern and there is across many businesses a developing sense of respect for the way in which our members are working to minimise costs at both a strategic level and on a day-to-day basis.

Risk management is another critical fleet function and one in which there is increasing interest in many organisations, we believe. Recognition that fleet managers work hard to keep employees safe on the road – often well beyond the demands of legislation – is growing and appreciated at a corporate level.

Something perhaps less acknowledged is that fleets have also been leaders in adopting relevant technology in recent years.

Alongside fleet electrification, we are living through a period of fleet digitalisation, and the use of relevant fleet data to achieve everything from cost control to improved safety has delivered a wide range of benefits. Fleet managers are often within the most IT-literate cohort in their organisations.

We’ll be covering some of these subjects and more at the conference while, in further recognition of the role of fleet managers, there’ll be an AFP Academy awards ceremony for fleet managers who have gained accreditations from our training body during the last year.

Now in its fourth year, the AFP Conference has become one of the fixed points of the fleet calendar and the speakers taking part and the agenda we have created – reflecting the factors above – are, we believe, the best yet. 

The 2025 AFP Conference is taking place on Wednesday, May 7, at The British Motor Museum, Gaydon.