Description

The Fleet Manager at Farmer Brothers is responsible for managing and coordinating all aspects of Farmer Brothers vehicles & material handling equipment throughout its lifecycle at the company. They will work with our Direct Store Delivery (DSD) Sales, Equipment Service (Revive), and Logistics teams to ensure compliance with Federal/State laws, proper vehicle maintenance, oversee vehicle upfitting/onboarding, and removal. The fleet manager will also work with our fleet management company (FMC) to coordinate vehicle leasing/upfitting options, oversee our fuel card plan, execution of maintenance requests, manage vehicle database, and develop key reports to monitor fleet condition. This role is central to Farmer Brothers’ success as a delivery service organization and will play a key role in collaborating with Sales, Operations, Risk Management and Safety leadership to determine the optimal types of vehicles and upfitting options to make servicing our customers safer and efficient.

Responsibilities

• Interface and manage relationships with FMC, Vehicle Suppliers, and Vehicle Upfitters to provide key support services and order / on-board / remove owned or leased vehicles 
• Work with leadership in DSD Operations, Revive, and Logistics teams to optimize vehicle types, upfitting options, and placement across network to drive efficiencies and improve customer service. 
• Evaluate vehicle condition and needs of the business to determine best vehicle replacement strategy. 
• Coordinate and communicate timeline for new vehicle arrivals or removals with respective counterparts in the company
• Analyze fleet expense, operational trends, key KPI’s and make recommendations to leadership on ways to reduce cost, improve safety, and improve customer service
• Review and approve high-cost vehicle maintenance repairs and accident claim repairs
• Prepare daily, weekly, and monthly fleet reports and distribute to management in DSD Operations, Revive, and Logistics teams.
• Assist with any government agency fleet audits (FMCSA, DOT, any state agency)
• Monitor any upcoming government legislation changes that will impact fleet operations and communicate to leadership
• Manage the Fleet budget & code invoices to correct GL accounts for vendor payment.
• Manage Fleet e-mail inbox and work with FMC to ensure prompt follow up communication occurs.
• Approve timecards, provide coaching and direction to the fleet team as needed.

Qualifications

Education & Experience

• Minimum Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management, Supply Chain Management, Logistics, or a related field, or equivalent combination of education and experience required
• Minimum of 3 years of progressive experience in fleet management/fleet operations
• Minimum of 2 years of prior people management experience
• Proven history of managing fleet vehicles and managing company transportation assets
• Experience with Fleet spend management (P&L)
• Previous vendor management and program management experience
• Ability to travel to oversee fleet vehicle management
• Ability to work with cloud database, export data, produce reports
• Working knowledge in FMCSA, DOT, BASIC, HOS, and ELD rules and regulations
• Telematics and ELD system knowledge
• Possess excellent verbal and written communication skills, teamwork and leadership for a demanding and customer focused working environment
• Proficiency with MS Office applications (Outlook, Excel & Word) and a working knowledge of business ERP systems

Personal & Professional Skillsets

• Strong leadership, planning, organization, and communication skills
• Able to effectively lead and manage direct reports
• Ability to participate as a team-member as well as leader in a fast paced, team-oriented environment
• Possess the ability to work productively, efficiently & effectively with initiative and drive under a tight timeline and pressure while maintaining attention to detail and quality.