I Got A New Job!

Despite the exciting headline, I am not announcing my departure from NAFA. In fact, I’m announcing my deeper involvement in the fleet world.

You may have read the news last week that the NAFA Foundation, our “sister” not-for-profit charitable organization, recently implemented bylaws changes that created a new Board structure and stronger ties to NAFA. Those new bylaws also created a new job for me. More accurately, they created a second job for me, CEO of the NAFA Foundation, as I will hold both that position and my current position as CEO of NAFA.

Now, the authority, duties, and responsibilities given to me by the NAFA Board of Directors relative to NAFA’s operations, are the same authority, duties, and responsibilities given to me by the Foundation Board relative to the Foundation’s operations.

The connection between NAFA and the NAFA Foundation is a natural fit. And my over-arching responsibility for both organizations will help ensure the ties remain strong.

The NAFA Foundation was formed in 1976 to support the fleet industry through education, research, and providing grants. In its earliest days, the Foundation administered the first-ever fleet certification program (Certified Fleet Manager), which was developed in partnership with the Wharton School of Business. In the 1980s, the Foundation conducted the landmark study, “Lease vs. Buy vs. Reimbursement,” to clearly lay out the benefits and pitfalls of each method of putting vehicles in service. In the early ’90s, the Foundation helped OEMs and FMCs conduct customer satisfaction surveys. For the past few years, the Foundation has administered a grant program that awards funds to college students pursuing a fleet-related career at a NAFA-partner university.

The new Foundation bylaws do not affect the organization’s charitable tax status, which allows individuals, corporations, and other entities to make tax-deductible contributions to the Foundation.

The new NAFA Foundation bylaws allow for an unlimited number of seats on the Foundation Board of Directors. However, the leadership, authority, and accountability for the Foundation’s activities rest squarely on the shoulders of a new 10-person “Executive Committee.” The Foundation’s Executive Committee is comprised of five individuals selected by the Foundation’s Board of Directors, and five individuals selected by the NAFA Board of Directors.

The newly-elected members of the Foundation’s Executive Committee are:

• President – Claude Masters, CAFM (retired from Florida Power & Light)
• Vice President – Patsy Brownson, CAFM (retired from Cox Enterprises)
• Secretary – Doug Weichman, CAFM, City of Gainesville, Florida
• Treasurer – David Hayward, Teva Pharmaceuticals
• Director – Bridget Butterfield, Ford Motor Company
• Director – Pedro Conte, Instituto PARAR
• Director – Stuart Ellis Myers, I Twitch, Inc.
• Director – Jeff Jeter, Blue Bird Virginia
• Director – Tom Lubas (retired from Port Authority of N.Y. & N.J.)
• Director – Janice Sutton, Fleet Management Weekly

The Executive Committee will have its first in-person meeting in April, followed by a strategic planning session in June.

I would like to thank the individuals who served on the Foundation Board for many years. These individuals spent many hours discussing the bylaws changes and unanimously agreed the changes were good for the organization:

• Mike Antich, Automotive Fleet Magazine
• Caroline Costello, FCA
• Tom Deluise, Toyota Motor Co.
• Bryan Flansburg, CAFM, Have-A-Wish Foundation
• Sheryl Grossman, Retired
• John Helman, Nagy Fleetnet
• Steve Pederson, Retired
• Connie Scarpelli, General Motors
• Mary Sticha, CAFM, Element Corp.

As I embark on the first few days of my new job, one of my first tasks will be to raise awareness of the NAFA Foundation. Watch for news and announcements from me in the weeks and months to come. In the meantime, you can find information at www.nafafoundation.org.

Sincerely,

Phil