![\"How](\"https:\/\/fleetimages.bobitstudios.com\/upload\/government-fleet\/content\/article\/_migrated\/m-politics.jpg\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
How do successful government fleet managers deal with the risks stemming from politics?\u00a0Photo: Getty Images<\/em><\/p>\n Politics can affect fleet during:<\/p>\n By virtue of living in a democracy, all levels of government are subject to the impact of politics \u2014 including government fleet management. We choose and replace the government at all levels through free and fair elections. Therefore, any activity related to the governing body can be considered \u201cpolitical.\u201d Even the act of calling a meeting to discuss fleet operations can be deemed political in nature.<\/p>\n Whether managing a fleet at the city, county, state, or federal level, the fleet manager faces huge challenges day to day, many of which have their roots in politics and\/or political influence.<\/p>\n As an industry, we try to bring forward, be conscious of, and be diligent in implementing fleet management that embodies practices considered to be \u201cbest\u201d by industry peers. However, some of the factors that impact our programs and practices may be out of our control, and some factors are the direct result of our democratic culture. Fleet management may be required at times to suddenly adjust to changes mandated by a council or legislature, regardless of the fleet-\u00adspecific expertise and knowledge embodied by management. In order to survive and serve citizens efficiently, fleet management must at least attempt to mitigate the risks associated with politics.<\/p>\n Effective fleet management is challenged across customer departments, through finance and procurement, as well as the chief elected official. Being fluid with these changes can mean the difference between success and failure.<\/p>\n Examples of where risks might emerge:<\/p>\n All these situations yield risk for the fleet operation. How can these risks be mitigated?<\/p>\n The first and most important factor to recognize is that \u201ceffectively managing politics equates to effectively moving with personalities and managing expectations with clear communications,\u201d said Bob Degnan, retired commissioner, Department of Fleet Management, City of Chicago. \u201cI always had comments from customers like, \u2018I want one of those in my fleet,\u2019 or \u2018That\u2019s the way we always did it,\u2019 or \u2018They\u2019ll never let you do it that way.\u2019 The answer is simple: Make certain you have good relations with the city executive leadership as well as customer department directors; run the organization with the highest efficiency and deal in facts.\u201d<\/p>\n The City of Tulsa, Okla., fleet management also sees effective communication as the answer to political ramifications. For a number of years, the \u201cself-\u00admanaged\u201d citywide fleet management steering committee (FMSC), recommended by CST Fleet Services, established clear communication for fleet operations across the city and up through to top city \u00adexecutives. The FMSC is made up of members from each major branch of the city management (mayor\u2019s office, finance, procurement) as well as from each major user department, and meets monthly. Customer departments are aware firsthand of fleet initiatives and dynamics.<\/p>\n Mark Hogan, director, City of Tulsa Asset Management, feels that the city effectively diminishes politics through the communication within the FMSC. In Tulsa, each customer department has a say in the fleet\u2019s management. For example, the committee sets annual utilization guidelines. At the end of the year, the committee examines the under\u00adutilized equipment and the owning department of an underutilized vehicle must defend its retention. Recourses are either that the underutilized unit is remarketed or it gets reassigned to another department or to the motor pool.<\/p>\n Degnan said an FMSC with department representatives becomes a strong, solid influence at all levels of the government political framework; generally customer department representation is validated because of the department\u2019s ability to have input in the fleet planning and processes.<\/p>\n Tulsa\u2019s FMSC also discusses and collaborates on specifications for vehicle procurement and agrees to citywide standards for vehicle classes. If the group approves a new vehicle spec that\u2019s out of the norm, and new diagnostic tools are needed, the FMSC suggests that the user department requesting the vehicle help fund the tools and any special training, said Mike Wallace, maintenance manager.<\/p>\n \u201cIn this way, the customer department takes partial ownership of the change in the fleet profile,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n Craig Rice, executive fleet manager, Department of Water & Sewerage at City of Detroit, who has survived through four administrations and the city bankruptcy, said he always communicates fairly and honestly with city council.<\/p>\n \u201cOver the years I always maintained mutual high regard with council because I conveyed a situational issue with transparency. Council always knew where I stood on issues because I frankly explained the situation \u2014 good or bad,\u201d Rice said.<\/p>\n Degnan added this relationship can be a two-way street if and when fleet management may need the support of the council for an initiative.<\/p>\n \u201cI always had comments from customers like, \u2018I want one of those in my fleet,\u2019 or \u2018That\u2019s the way we always did it,\u2019 or \u2018They\u2019ll never let you do it that way.\u2019 The answer is simple: Make certain you have good relations with the city executive leadership as well as customer department directors.\u201d The impact of politics upon the government sector is always cyclical. Each term of election, positions of responsibility are subject to change; from department directors to the highest governing positions, personnel changes are a fact that the fleet manager must handle. Even his or her appointed position may be subject to termination, and survivability may be a direct result of responding to the political movements from term to term.<\/p>\n Many fleet initiatives do not happen overnight. Many programs, such as a fleet right-sizing program or the implementation of an innovative vehicle capital planning program, can take several years and cross multiple administrations. In these cases, how can sustainability be achieved?<\/p>\n \u201cIn a situation like this, it is good to \u2018load\u2019 and design a long-term program with short-term successes and wins, which provide tangible benefits so that as new leadership emerges, benefits of the program can be easily seen and shown,\u201d Degnan said. \u201cThe program can sustain itself on its own merit with, hopefully, minimal political disturbance.\u201d<\/p>\n The City of Tulsa fleet insulates itself through its FMSC. \u201cOur FMSC helps to protect the longevity of our long-term capital planning,\u201d Hogan said.<\/p>\n What about severe weather, such as a snowstorm or a hurricane? This can have a huge impact on the fleet, and sometimes the backlash is felt by political fallout.<\/p>\n Robert Martinez, deputy commissioner, New York Police Department, dealt with politics in New York City during Hurricane Sandy in 2012. \u201cI lost more vehicles from Sandy than I did from 9\/11,\u201d Martinez said. During the hurricane, the NYPD fleet learned that \u201cfuel can become more valuable than gold; people will steal it, hurt people for it, transport it unsafely, etc. Politicians will give it and take it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Other lessons the NYPD fleet learned include: making sure to provide emergency electric power and lighting, parking vehicles and equipment on high ground, and ensuring there is more than one fuel source for emergency generators.<\/p>\n \u201cRehearsing these events via a table-top exercise goes a long way in preparing,\u201d Martinez said. And adequate fleet preparation for natural disasters can help prevent a political backlash.<\/p>\n \u201cSnowstorms in Chicago have had devastating political effects,\u201d Degnan said. \u201cElections at various levels have been won or lost as a result of poor performance with snow.\u201d Services such as refuse collection, street cleaning, and snow programs have a major impact on voters. Snow programs and snow removal also have an additional impact on the local economy, affecting merchants, \u00adfactories, and other business providers. Thus the situation can become very political, very quickly.<\/p>\n Snow spreading and plowing are accomplished by a variety of assets provided and supported by the fleet operation. Their application is usually determined by a set structure of protocols agreed to by the various user departments. Table-top meetings and exercises, as previously referenced, are necessary to ensure success if and when you have to pull the trigger on any program.<\/p>\n If a snow removal effort begins to appear overwhelmed due to the storm, every level of political entity will try to make their own adjustments to the fleet snow program by maneuvering equipment in their own direction to satisfy their constituent base. If this occurs, equipment will be improperly deployed, the program will not perform as designed, taxpayers will be upset, and the fleet manager may not survive the residual controversy.<\/p>\n Rice recalls a very difficult situation related to snow in Detroit: \u201cWe had a crisis with a shortage of salt trucks during the early 2000s when the industry standard transmission changed, and it took a couple of years before supply could catch up with demand. This affected many municipal fleets and when the snowstorms came during this time frame, it became a political hot potato. As Degnan stated, our snow program salt trucks, or lack thereof, affected public safety, commerce, EMS, trash collection, etc.\u201d<\/p>\n It is under these circumstances that a strong fleet manager with a solid relationship with the upper administration is necessary. Public fleet management is political, and that is the nature of the work. Keeping and managing all fleet operational plans effectively is essential to the success of fleet management \u2014 as well as its government body.<\/p>\n Jon White is an independent fleet consultant. He can be reached at jwhite@jonwhiteinc.com.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n by Jon White<\/p>\nSurviving Politics in Public Fleet<\/h3>\n
At a glance<\/h4>\n
\n
\n\n\n
Ensure Clear Communication<\/h4>\n
\n
\n\u2014 Bob Degnan, retired commissioner, Department of Fleet Management, City of Chicago<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\nProtect Long-Term Initiatives<\/h4>\n
How Weather Affects Politics & Fleet<\/h4>\n
Hurricanes<\/h4>\n
Snowstorms<\/h4>\n
![\"JMF\"](\"http:\/\/en.advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/JMF-150x150.jpg\")
I\u00b4m\u00a0a Fleet Management expert, and the manager of\u00a0![\"\"](\"http:\/\/en.advancedfleetmanagementconsulting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Cartel-Valencia-2019-1.jpg\")
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"