Sponsored by Volvo

Location: Seascape Foyer

Sponsored by Lucid Motors

Location: Pacific Jewel Foyer

Discover the secret superpower that sets great leaders like Paul O’Neill (Alcoa) and George Washington apart — positive reinforcement. In this year’s fleet safety keynote, Bill Sims Jr., author of Green Beans & Ice Cream, shares how behavioral science can transform safety cultures, improve performance, and drive long-term employee commitment. Drawing from decades of experience with companies like DuPont, Disney, and Ford, Sims reveals why traditional safety incentives often fail and how to replace them with high-impact leadership habits. Attendees will learn how to identify the difference between compliant and truly committed employees — and how to motivate the latter. Walk away with practical tools to elevate your leadership, inspire your team, and build a culture that thrives.

Speaker:
Bill Sims Jr., The Bill Sims Company | Author of Green Beans & Ice Cream

Location: Pacific Jewel BC

Sponsored by Panasonic Connect TOUGHBOOK

Location: Pacific Jewel Foyer

Big Solutions Roundtables is a dynamic, interactive program designed to spark conversation and problem-solving around today’s most pressing fleet challenges. Attendees will join rotating small-group discussions, each led by a moderator and focused on a specific topic impacting fleet operations. Every 20 minutes, participants will move to a new table, giving them the opportunity to share insights, ask questions, and gain multiple perspectives about a variety of important topics throughout the experience.

Table 1
Navigating California’s Regulatory & Incentive Landscape with CARB
Here’s your chance to interact directly with the California Air Resources Board to get specific answers on the issues that affect your fleet, from ACF and Clean Truck Check compliance to the latest incentive and refund opportunities.
Moderator: Adil Mahmood, CARB

Table 2
Bridging the Gap in Fleet Electrification & Advanced Diagnostics
Learn how to prepare your fleet and technicians for the next wave of vehicle technology, with practical strategies for EV integration, complex diagnostics, and hands-on training that keep operations running smoothly. Mike can help you with your ICE and hybrid powertrain challenges too!
Moderator: Mike Cleary, Automotive Technical Support Services

Table 3
CAR 2026: Driving the Next Era of Fleet Remarketing
Join a collaborative discussion on the opportunities and challenges shaping the future of vehicle remarketing, as BBM’s Conference of Automotive Remarketing (CAR) prepares for its 2026 return in partnership with NAFA’s I&E in Cleveland. Discover how CAR is refocusing on its roots to bring together fleet managers, business owners, and remarketing professionals to set the industry’s priorities for the decade ahead.
Moderator: Colin Sutherland, Bobit Business Media

Table 4
Grey Fleet: Turning Personal Vehicles into Strategic Assets
Learn how grey fleets—enabling select employees to use their own vehicles for work—can complement your company car program to cut costs, boost sustainability, and create a more flexible, efficient fleet.
Moderator: Lee Adam, Cardata

Table 5
Post-Pandemic: What Did we Learn in Fleet?
The pandemic disrupted every aspect of fleet operations, from supply chains to driver management. This roundtable will reflect on the key lessons learned and how they’re forming more resilient, adaptive fleet strategies for the future.
Moderator:Carl Neuberger, Fleet360

Location: Pacific Jewel BC

Continue the Ride & Drive and Technology Experience, where attendees can experience cutting edge vehicles up close and on the road.

Be sure to participate in the Golden Coin and Passport Challenge while enjoing the Ride + Drive experience!

Sponsored by PAVE.ai

Location: Parking Lot

Complete your Ride + Drive experience, continue meeting with our FFC Exhibitors, and enjoy a final tasty lunch!

Ride + Drive Sponsored by PAVE.ai

Location: Patio, Eventide Exhibit Hall, & Parking Lot

Are you a Fleet Forward Conference sponsor, exhibitor, or Ride & Drive participant? Consider taking part in Buyer’s Guide Live! — a high-impact product showcase taking place live during exhibit hall hours.

Buyer’s Guide Live! is a filmed 2- or 7-minute pitch session in which suppliers present their product, solution, or service in front of a live fleet audience in the exhibit hall, and automakers can showcase their vehicles during the Ride and Drive.

Each presentation will be professionally recorded, edited, and linked to your Featured Product page in the 2025 Fleet Fact Book. This powerful combination of live exposure plus lasting content will extend your offering across print, digital, and social platforms.

Spots are limited. Contact your sales representative today to secure your Buyer’s Guide Live slot!

Location: Eventide Exhibit Hall

As fleets navigate a period of unprecedented disruption, this seminar will deliver essential intelligence to help operators make informed, forward-looking decisions. With regulatory and legislative developments moving quickly at both federal and state levels, our panel will unpack the latest on tariffs, EPA tailpipe greenhouse gas standards, evolving Inflation Reduction Act tax credits, the surface transportation reauthorization bill, and emerging AI policies that could impact fleet operations. The session will also explore California’s path to new zero-emission vehicle policies, ranging from incentive programs to indirect source rules and fleet-focused feebates. Fleet professionals will leave with actionable insights to shape near- and long-term strategy in a volatile policy environment.

Moderator:
Charlie Vogelheim, Auction Academy

Panelists:
Bradley Northup, City of Carlsbad
Greg Cohen, 2349 Solutions/AALA
John Boesel, Calstart

Location: Pacific Jewel BC

Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers are rapidly expanding their reach across global markets, offering competitive technology, scalable platforms, and aggressive pricing. This includes the corporate and commercial fleet space. While their presence has grown across Europe, Latin America, and Asia, what are their prospects for the U.S.?

This session brings together two insiders with firsthand knowledge of China’s evolving fleet and mobility ecosystem.

Ryan Pritchard has logged multiple trips to China to meet with leading EV stakeholders and establish international partnerships. Joining him is Leo Cai, former CEO of eHi Car Services, one of the largest car rental and mobility providers in China.

Together, Pritchard and Cai will explore:

• What’s fueling the global rise of Chinese automakers in the fleet space

• How Chinese EV strategies differ from Western models in innovation, deployment, and customer experience

• What North American fleets should be watching for — and planning for — as Chinese OEMs begin to eye U.S. expansion

This session offers a rare perspective from two voices with deep cross-border expertise — and a look at the future that’s already taking shape abroad.

Moderator:
Charlie Vogelheim, Auction Academy

Panelists:
Dr. Leo Cai, eHi Car Services, China
Ryan Pritchard, SHAED.ai and Pritchard Companies

Location: Pacific Jewel BC

Sponsored by Panasonic Connect TOUGHBOOK

Location: Pacific Jewel Foyer

Autonomous vehicles are no longer theoretical. They’re being piloted, deployed, and scaled, from autonomous delivery vans and robotaxis to middle-mile and long-haul trucking. But what does real-world deployment actually look like, and how will fleets adapt to manage them? In this plenary session, we’ll explore where and how autonomous transportation is emerging, as well as the regulatory and infrastructure hurdles that remain. On the operational side, we’ll detail the complexities of managing AV fleets — from consolidating data sources and updating AI systems to handling procurement, servicing, cleaning, and maintenance. You’ll learn what markers of progress matter most, how pilots are being designed and scaled, and the technical and behavioral shifts needed to make autonomy viable. Join this session to separate signal from noise and prepare for the self-driving era.

Moderator:
Charlie Vogelheim, Auction Academy

Panelists:
John Niles, Global Telematics
Matt Daus, Windels Marx/IATR
Shana Patadia, Synop, Inc.

Location: Pacific Jewel BC

With infrastructure evolving, policies shifting, and technology accelerating, this closing keynote discussion will explore where power (economic, regulatory, and literal) is flowing in the fleet and mobility space. Join Automotive Fleet’s Chris Brown in a candid fireside chat with Ted Cannis, former CEO of Ford Pro, as they unpack the seismic shifts influencing the future of fleets, mobility, and the broader automotive landscape.

From his vantage point as a longtime automotive executive who has the ear of both Wall Street analysts and Silicon Valley disruptors, Cannis will offer a unique perspective on the most urgent challenges and opportunities around energy demand, regulatory and tariff disruption, autonomous technology, the rise of Chinese automakers, and who will lead — the incumbent OEMs or the emerging independents.

The session will conclude with a live Q&A, giving attendees the chance to engage directly with Cannis and join the conversation on what comes next.

Speakers:
Chris Brown, Automotive Fleet & Bobit Business Media
Ted Cannis, Former CEO, Ford Pro

Location: Pacific Jewel BC

Sponsored by Cardata

Location: Pacific Jewel Foyer