LeasePlan USA announced that it has appointed a new chief commercial officer to oversee the company’s sales and client relations teams.
Chosen for the position is Ricardo Fonzaghi, who most recently served as senior vice president of LeasePlan International sales.
For 11 years, Fonzaghi was responsible for developing global fleet management programs for corporate fleets based in the Americas.
“Ricardo has delivered savings and quality improvements to clients by analyzing and understanding the financial, competitive and process sides and consolidating this into a results-focused solution,” LeasePlan USA president and chief executive officer Jeff Schlesinger said in a news release. “We look forward to continued growth and client loyalty under his leadership.”
Fonzaghi has more than 20 years of experience in the telecommunications, internet and fleet management industries.
“Talent, expertise and strategic focus are hallmarks of LeasePlan’s sales and client relations teams,” Fonzaghi said. “I am honored to join them in delivering creative solutions to our clients.”
LeasePlan is a global fleet management company that manages an estimated 1.6 million vehicles and provides services in 32 countries, according to the global group.
Fox Rent-A-Car announced on Thursday its final acquisition of JustShareIt, a cloud-based peer-to-peer car sharing platform specifically designed to allow users to rent or share cars directly from individual car owners.
Over the past 12 months, Fox said it has worked alongside JustShareIt to integrate the mobile-friendly product with its platform so that Fox members can begin to pick up and drop off cars at a variety of decentralized locations.
“Fox's new mobile experience enables customers to reserve a car, bypass the rental counter and proceed directly to the car. Customers will then choose their vehicle and drive off,” the company said in a news release.
Currently, the new service is only ready for use at Los Angeles International Airport. Within a few months, it will become available at most of the car rental brand’s corporate locations, according to Fox.
"The new integrated platform will help Fox to not only offer the customers a rental at a much faster speed, but will also create new business models that are not currently available in car rental industry,” Fox co-chief executive officer Mike Jaberi said. "The JSI platform acquisition has enabled Fox to explore new opportunities in a hybrid model of car rental and car share at a much faster pace."
Additionally, Fox also announced that it is currently in discussions with two automobile manufacturers to fit a group of its fleet with connected car technology.
Fox now offers service at 19 major corporate owned airport locations throughout the U.S., along with more than 110 affiliate sites.
In an effort to enhance the fourth Fleet Europe Remarketing Forum coming later this year, seven European wholesale market executives have been named to the Remarketing Advisory Board.
Helping to craft the agenda and more for the event that’s set for Dec. 5 in in Estoril, Portugal, will be this group that represents rental and lease companies, an automaker, an auction company and a pan-European trade organization. According to an announcement from Fleet Europe, the board includes:
—Pierre-Olivier Bard, Remarketing Director Europe for the Avis Budget Group.
—Ingo Schlosser, International Remarketing Manager at ALD Automotive.
—Ralf Kostrewa, Head of Sales International at Volkswagen Group Fleet International.
—Morten Holmsten, Global Sales Director at Autorola.
—Roland Gagel, Vice President Field Services at SGS.
—Wolfgang Reinhold, President of the European Car Remarketing Association CARA.
—David Baudeweyns, Sales & Business Development at Nexus Communication, parent company of Fleet Europe.
The announcement indicated the Remarketing Advisory Board has already had its first (virtual) meeting, defining current remarketing trends and exploring possible topics for the next Remarketing Forum in Estoril.
“This structured approach will ensure an even better fit between the content of the conference and the concerns of the industry,” officials said.
“The final agenda of the Remarketing Forum will be fine-tuned via future meetings, meanwhile allowing members of the Advisory Board to reflect and consult the wider industry,” they continued.
Contining a string of company developments that include a new president and chief executive officer as well as a new regional sales VP, LeasePlan USA now is bringing new enhancements to ePlan, the online fleet management tool that can help companies gain more control over their fleets.
With a streamlined new interface, featuring an easy-to-use wizard and expanded comparison parameters, LeasePlan highlighted on Wednesday that its new Life Cycle Cost Analysis (LCCA) tool can help lessees decide which vehicles to include in their fleet. The tool offers powerful decision-making information, such as market value depreciation and projected maintenance expenses, using LeasePlan’s proven proprietary models.
LeasePlan clients also can enjoy an enhanced executive summary report, which can give fleet managers a comprehensive look at their fleet’s operating costs for better budgeting.
“We are committed to delivering the most comprehensive information to our clients so they can make smart decisions and drive their business forward,” said Nancy D’Amico, chief information officer. “We encourage fleet managers to demo the new technology to see the new features,” which also include new time-saving functionality for drivers.
The company went on to mention ePlan for Drivers is enhancing safety services and streamlining registration renewal processes. Drivers can now view a more complete picture of their safety training history, better manage motor vehicle records, more easily view registration requirements and upload images to complete renewal as well.
Many of these enhancements will roll out with the next updates to MyLeasePlan, a mobile app launched in 2016 that makes it easy for drivers to manage their company vehicles while on-the-go.
“The latest innovations are just a stepping stone to the next iteration of MyLeasePlan’s mobility solutions, which we are excited to launch in April at NAFA’s Institute & Expo,” added Kristofer Bush, vice president of marketing.
Global fleet management company LeasePlan USA recently named Michelle Davis as its new regional sales vice president for the Southeast.
Davis, with more than 12 years of successful fleet experience, was most recently district sales manager at Supreme Corp. There, she helped clients find solutions to improve their driver experience.
There’s much untapped potential for fleets when it comes to saving money, said Davis, if fleet managers look at the bigger picture.
“The first step is to reduce your TCO by selecting vehicles with the highest resale value and lowest fuel and maintenance costs,” she said. “Then, you can look at other areas for possible cost-saving opportunities.”
Some target areas, said Davis, to reduce TCO include:
- Depreciation. “Evaluate your fleet to make sure you’re using the right vehicle for the specific job application and replacing vehicles at the optimal time.”
- Maintenance and repair. “Creating a preventive maintenance schedule can help avoid expensive repairs later!”
- Strategic decisions. “Leverage data to drive better fleet utilization and improve life-cycle costs.”
More of Davis’ TCO tips can be found here.
As regional sales vice president, LeasePlan indicated Davis will be based Louisiana and work with potential clients of up to 1,000 vehicles. The company insisted she will ensure her clients are using the most up-to-date strategies and present solutions to help better manage their fleets.
“Michelle brings to LeasePlan a winning combination of industry knowledge, a passion for all things fleet and an innovative, problem-solving mindset,” said Brian Barber, senior vice president of sales.
“We welcome her to the family and look forward to her continued success,” he added.
Enterprise Fleet Management announced that out of nearly 900,000 automotive technicians working in the U.S. — its management customer support supervisor Kelley Hatlee is one of only 16 individuals to earn the 2017 ASE World Class Technician Award from the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) and the Auto Care Association.
Fewer than 2,000 individuals have been honored since the award program began more than 30 years ago.
"Only a handful of technicians master the skills necessary to earn the ASE World Class Technician Award," Tom Gieseking, vice president of fleet operations for Enterprise Fleet Management said in a news release. "This rare honor speaks to the dedication and professionalism Kelley brings to Enterprise Fleet Management and to our customers on a daily basis."
Individuals must test and procure ASE certification in 22 specialty areas in order to earn recognition as a World Class Technician.
Hatlee receives the prestigious honor after earning the titles of ASE Master Automobile Technician, ASE Master Medium/Heavy Duty Truck Technician and ASE Master Collision Repair Technician, and two other advanced level diagnostic certifications for gasoline and diesel engines.
Currently, he holds a total of 32 ASE certifications.
Hatlee has more than two decades of automotive industry experience. He joined Enterprise Fleet Management 11 years ago.
As customer support supervisor for Enterprise Fleet Management's National Service Department, Hatlee leads a team of subject matter experts who are responsible for technical assistance, recall management, vendor relations, fleet support, vehicle maintenance and training.
The National Service Department employs more than 100 ASE-certified service technicians.
“Enterprise was the first fleet management company to win the ASE 'Blue Seal of Excellence' award and has won for 20 consecutive years, an industry record,” Enterprise Fleet Management added.
The International Automotive Remarketers Alliance announced on Tuesday it has updated its new website by integrating association management software designed to improve online membership management.
The software was created to manage alliance membership, improve communication within the organization, streamline online education and enhance other website functionalities, according to the alliance.
“The IARA board commissioned IARA executive director Tony Long and members of the alliance’s Technology Committee to seek an AMS solution, which it found in MemberLeap, a product by Vieth Consulting,” the IARA said in a press release.
The software now helps streamline the processes for IARA’s CAR Certification program, a remarketing certification program. Things like student enrollment, course delivery, automated deadline reminders, and proctored online testing are delivered through MemberLeap. It can also be used to monitor course progress and to print certificates and maintain records.
IARA announced it had launched its new website, IARA.biz, earlier this month.
One significant change IARA made with the website is that it now allows members to access all sections of the site with one sign-in password.
Software review company Capterra ranked MemberLeap as the No. 1 top mid-range association management software, according to the IARA.
On IARA's new website, there is also now a registration link for IARA-Northwood University's remarketing course.
LeasePlan USA announced a new president and chief executive office on Monday, appointing former GE Fleet Services executive Jeffrey Schlesinger to the position.
Schlesinger has 30 years of experience in the financial services sector, including the past eight in fleet leadership.
His most recent post was senior vice president and managing director of GE Fleet Services.
Former LeasePlan CEO Mike Pitcher retired at the end of 2016.
“It’s a new day at LeasePlan USA, and I’m so excited to be a part of this family and lead this transformation,” Schlesinger said in a news release.
The International Automotive Remarketers Alliance has launched a new website and opened up its membership renewal and member enrollment period for North America, the organization said in a news release.
Starting today, current IARA members or those interested in becoming members can go to www.iara.biz to renew or apply, respectively.
IARA said in the release that there has been “continued growth” in both its membership and in the summer roundtable conference in the last three years.
“The alliance, which is referred to as ‘The Voice of the Consignor,’ has attracted auctions, service providers and all facets of the automotive remarketing industry to comprise the majority of its membership,” IARA said.
All memberships should be applied for online and are done on a single-company basis. However, parties can purchase additional memberships to identify specific division brands or locations.
IARA utilized a product called MemberLeap — which puts education, membership management and events under the same URL — to do a complete software upgrade, which included the new website.
Donlen announced Tuesday that its next generation Vehicle Optimization Model (VOM), delivers enhanced functionality and features an upgraded user interface that makes analyzing and presenting results of fleet vehicle comparisons easier.
“Donlen’s new and improved Vehicle Optimization Model provides our customers with the ability to change a variety of input parameters to enable powerful “what-if” scenario analysis comparing the total cost of ownership of a wide variety of vehicle selection options,” said Donlen vice president of consulting, analytics, and sustainability, Amy Blaine.
The fleet management services provider said the updates aim to help clients make choices that minimize total cost of fleet ownership.
New functionality gives fleet professionals the ability to both customize financial parameters and yield full reports when using the VOM to select vehicles for their fleet.
“The precise analysis available through the VOM makes the vehicle selection process faster and provides the full picture of the cost of a vehicle, empowering users of the tool to make more cost-effective decisions," said Blaine. "With the VOM, fleet professionals can select vehicles with the best TCO, as well as discover the appropriate time to cycle vehicles to reduce their costs.”
![KelleyHatlee[1]](https://www.autoremarketing.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/KelleyHatlee1.jpg)
