Fleet manager responsibilities are increasing, and many of today’s commercial � eet managers are no

longer tactical, day-to-day employees. Commenting on this sea change, one

� eet manager said, “the [� eet manager] job is truly being recognized as more of a strategic position, with a tremendous opportunity to impact bottom-line re-sults, as opposed to operational.”

Validating this assertion, Automo-tive Fleet’s 2008 Biennial Salary Sur-vey found 17 percent of commercial � eet managers earned more than $100,000 per year in 2008 (Chart 1).

Analyzing the higher � eet manag-er pay, one � eet manager said, “I think organizations are realizing the value of experienced � eet managers and are compensating them accordingly. Ad-ditionally, many managers have held their positions for extended periods and have had salary increases result-ing from longevity.”

Assessing from a different perspec-tive, one � eet manager noted, “With a reduction in true, full-time � eet man-agers, the � eet responsibility is being given to experienced, tenured manag-ers in other areas within the business, such as � nance, HR, etc., who may be earning more than $100,000 because of

In 2008, 17 percent of commercial � eet managers earned more than $100,000 per year, 8 percent of which earned more than $120,000. Fleet managers with MBAs

earned an annual median salary of $90,000.

OF FLEET MANAGERSPER YEAR

MANAGERSMANAGERSMANAGERSEARN MORE THAN

By Lauren Fletcher

Chart 1

Salary Breakdown for All Commercial Fleet Managers

Less than $30,000 ............... 1%$30,001-$40,000 ................. 2%$40,001-$50,000 ............... 11%$50,001-$60,000 ............... 12%$60,001-$70,000 ............... 16%$70,001-$80,000 ............... 16%$80,001-$90,000 ............... 14%$90,001-$100,000 ............. 11%$100,001-$120,000 ............. 9%More than $120,000 ............ 8%

Exclusive Industry Survey

Chart 2

Salary Change Overall

No Change ..........................13%

Increase 0-3% ....................47%

Increase 4-6% ....................29%

Increase 7% or more.......................7%

Decrease 0-3% ........................ 2%

Decrease 7% or more ............. 2%

The 2008 Automotive Fleet Biennial Salary Survey found that:

• Only 14 percent of fl eet managers were paid less than $50,000 in 2008.

• Fleet managers with some post-gradu-ate study earned the highest median salary.

• Fleet managers in the Midwest earned the highest median salary.

AT A GLANCE

their current position, not necessarily because of the � eet position.”

In 2008, only 14 percent of � eet managers were paid less than $50,000. Overall, 83 percent of � eet managers surveyed received a pay increase in 2008 (Chart 2).

Of respondents who did not receive an increase, one � eet manager com-mented her company “did not provide pay increases for the � rst time in 99 years.” Another � eet manager spoke of salary freezes in his company over the past two years.

0

5

10

15

20

25

$30,000 $40,000 $50,000 $60,000 $70,000 $80,000 $90,000 $100,000 $110,000 $120,000More

$0

$20K

$40K

$60K

$80K

$100K

$77,500

$67,500

$77,500

$72,500

$77,500

$97,500

$82,500

$90,000

$87,500

37%

15%

32%

16%

$0K

$20K

$40K

$60K

$80K

$100K

$52,500

$67,500

$47,500

$62,500

$77,500

$85,000

$0

$20K

$40K

$60K

$80K

$100K

$62,500

$67,500

$70,000

$72,500

$75,000

$85,000

$75,000

$0

$20K

$40K

$60K

$80K

$100K

$62,500

$62,500

$87,500

$87,500

Years of Experiencein Fleet – Women

Years of Experiencein Fleet – Men

13%

46%

28%

5%5%1%

15%29%

34%

17%

7%

5%

55%

16%

14%

11%

4%2%

59%22%

13%

Chart 6

Compensation Breakdown by Education

■ High School

■ Some College

■ Liberal Arts Degree

■ Business Degree

■ Technical Degree

■ Some Post-Graduate

Study

■ Post-Graduate Degree

■ MBA

■ CAFM

Chart 4

Compensation Breakdown by Number of Vehicles Managed

No. of Vehicles Median Compensation51-150 .......................... $67,500151-300 ........................ $62,500301-500 ........................ $65,000501-1,000 ..................... $67,500More than 1,000 ........... $87,500

0

5

10

15

20

25

$30,000 $40,000 $50,000 $60,000 $70,000 $80,000 $90,000 $100,000 $110,000 $120,000More

$0

$20K

$40K

$60K

$80K

$100K

$77,50

0

$67,50

0

$77,50

0

$72,50

0

$77,50

0

$97,50

0

$82,50

0

$90,00

0

$87,50

0

37%

15%

32%

16%

$0K

$20K

$40K

$60K

$80K

$100K

$52,50

0

$67,50

0

$47,50

0

$62,50

0

$77,50

0

$85,00

0

$0

$20K

$40K

$60K

$80K

$100K

$62,50

0

$67,50

0

$70,00

0

$72,50

0

$75,00

0

$85,00

0

$75,00

0

$0

$20K

$40K

$60K

$80K

$100K

$62,50

0

$62,50

0

$87,50

0

$87,50

0

Years of Experiencein Fleet – Women

Years of Experiencein Fleet – Men

13%

46%

28%

5%5%1%

15%29%

34%

17%

7%

5%

55%

16%

14%

11%

4%2%

59%22%

13%Chart 3

Compensation Breakdown by

People Supervised

■ None ■ 1-2 ■ 3-5 ■ More than 5

ME

DIA

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NM

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NP

EN

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ION

Chart 5

Percent of Fleet Managers Who

Received a Cost-of-Living

Adjustment in 2008

40%

Four percent of survey respondents reported a decrease in pay in 2008, while 13 percent reported no change.

Numerous Factors Influence PayFleet managers who supervise two

or less staff members receive a median annual salary of $62,500 compared to $87,500 for fleet managers supervising more than three staff members.

The number of vehicles managed also in� uences � eet manager salaries (Chart 4). Fleet managers who over-saw more than 1,000 vehicles report-

ed the highest compensation, a median pay of $87,500.

Education also has an impact on a � eet manager’s salary. The highest paid � eet managers surveyed completed some post-graduate study and received a me-dian income of $97,500 (Chart 6). Fleet managers who received an MBA re-ceived the second-highest median in-come of $90,000.

Fleet managers who worked in the � eet industry for more than 20 years reported the highest median salary of $85,000 (Chart 7).

Fleet managers surveyed general-ly agreed responsibilities would in-crease in 2009 while pay would stay the same. One � eet manager comment-ed her workload would increase “due to the increased number of units to man-age, increased need for more sophis-ticated reporting to help � eld manag-ers reduce � eet costs, reductions in � eet department head counts per ve-hicle, etc.”

Another � eet manager said, “I think there is a great likelihood I will be as-suming additional duties with no addi-tional compensation. Everyone here is just thankful to have a job.”

In contrast, one � eet manager not-

Chart 8

Percent of Fleet Managers Who Receive a Company Car

with Their Position

22%0

5

10

15

20

25

$30,000 $40,000 $50,000 $60,000 $70,000 $80,000 $90,000 $100,000 $110,000 $120,000More

$0

$20K

$40K

$60K

$80K

$100K

$77,500

$67,500

$77,500

$72,500

$77,500

$97,500

$82,500

$90,000

$87,500

37%

15%

32%

16%

$0K

$20K

$40K

$60K

$80K

$100K

$52,500

$67,500

$47,500

$62,500

$77,500

$85,000

$0

$20K

$40K

$60K

$80K

$100K

$62,500

$67,500

$70,000

$72,500

$75,000

$85,000

$75,000

$0

$20K

$40K

$60K

$80K

$100K

$62,500

$62,500

$87,500

$87,500

Years of Experiencein Fleet – Women

Years of Experiencein Fleet – Men

13%

46%

28%

5%5%1%

15%29%

34%

17%

7%

5%

55%

16%

14%

11%

4%2%

59%22%

13%

Chart 9

Compensation Breakdown by Supervising Department

■ Sales ■ Finance/Treasury ■ Personnel/Human Resources

■ General Administration/Management ■ Transportation

■ Purchasing ■ Other

Reporting Department Affects Salary

As far as the department a � eet man-ager reports to, 14 percent of � eet man-agers report to the purchasing department in 2008 and received the highest medi-an salary of $85,000 (Charts 9 and 10), followed by the transportation depart-ment at $75,000 per year, representing 10 percent of surveyed � eet managers. Fleet managers who reported to the sales department reported the lowest median

salary in 2008 at $62,500 (2 percent of � eet managers surveyed).

The study also revealed 22 percent of surveyed � eet managers receive a com-pany car with their position.

A slim majority of � eet managers (55 percent) reported � eet was their only re-sponsibility in 2008 (Chart 12). Typical ad-ditional responsibilities include planning and managing meetings (16 percent), per-sonnel relocation (6 percent), and travel services management (3 percent).

0

5

10

15

20

25

$30,000 $40,000 $50,000 $60,000 $70,000 $80,000 $90,000 $100,000 $110,000 $120,000More

$0

$20K

$40K

$60K

$80K

$100K

$77,500

$67,500

$77,500

$72,500

$77,500

$97,500

$82,500

$90,000

$87,500

37%

15%

32%

16%

$0K

$20K

$40K

$60K

$80K

$100K

$52,50

0

$67,50

0

$47,50

0

$62,50

0

$77,50

0

$85,00

0

$0

$20K

$40K

$60K

$80K

$100K

$62,500

$67,500

$70,000

$72,500

$75,000

$85,000

$75,000

$0

$20K

$40K

$60K

$80K

$100K$62,500

$62,500

$87,500

$87,500

Years of Experiencein Fleet – Women

Years of Experiencein Fleet – Men

13%

46%

28%

5%5%1%

15%29%

34%

17%

7%

5%

55%

16%

14%

11%

4%2%

59%22%

13%

Chart 7

Compensation Breakdown by Years of Experience in Fleet

■ Less than 1 Year ■ 1-3 Years ■ 4-5 Years ■ 6-10 Years

■ 11-20 Years ■ More than 20 Years

ME

DIA

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ON

PE

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NM

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NP

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SAT

ION

Chart 10

To Whom Do Fleet Managers

Report?

General Administration/Management ...................... 29%Finance/Treasury ............... 22%Purchasing ......................... 14%Transportation .................... 10%Sales .................................... 2%Personnel/HumanResources ............................ 1%Other .................................. 22%

ed she “did not envision increased re-sponsibilities as our company has been aggressively outsourcing positions and responsibilities.”

Fifty-nine percent of � eet managers surveyed in 2008 reported they spent 76-100 percent of their time on � eet (Chart 13), followed by 22 percent of � eet man-agers reporting only being able to spend 51-75 percent of their time on � eet man-agement. Nineteen percent of � eet man-agers say they spent less than half their day on � eet management.

Fleet managers in the Midwest re-ported the highest median salary at $77,500 (Chart 15), while � eet man-agers in the East South Central region

reported the lowest median salary at $60,000, followed by the Mountain re-gion at $67,500.

To Find Out MoreAdditional charts and data are

available with the online version of this article at www.automotive-� eet.com/magazine. See the May/June 2009 is-sue of Government Fleet magazine for a breakdown of public sector � eet man-ager salaries. AF

0

5

10

15

20

25

$30,000 $40,000 $50,000 $60,000 $70,000 $80,000 $90,000 $100,000 $110,000 $120,000More

$0

$20K

$40K

$60K

$80K

$100K

$77,50

0

$67,50

0

$77,50

0

$72,50

0

$77,50

0

$97,50

0

$82,50

0

$90,00

0

$87,50

0

37%

15%

32%

16%

$0K

$20K

$40K

$60K

$80K

$100K

$52,50

0

$67,50

0

$47,50

0

$62,50

0

$77,50

0

$85,00

0

$0

$20K

$40K

$60K

$80K

$100K

$62,50

0

$67,50

0

$70,00

0

$72,50

0

$75,00

0

$85,00

0

$75,00

0

$0

$20K

$40K

$60K

$80K

$100K

$62,50

0

$62,50

0

$87,50

0

$87,50

0

Years of Experiencein Fleet – Women

Years of Experiencein Fleet – Men

13%

46%

28%

5%5%1%

15%29%

34%

17%

7%

5%

55%

16%

14%

11%

4%2%

59%22%

13%

Chart 13

Breakdown by Percentage

of Time Spent on Fleet

Management■ Less than 10% ■ 10-25%

■ 26-50% ■ 51-75% ■ 76-100%

WestCentralMidwestNortheastSoutheast

1 2

3

4

5

67

8

9Chart 15

Median Compensation Breakdown by Geographic

Division

1 Pacifi c ........................................$75,0002 Mountain ...................................$67,500 3 West North Central ....................$77,500 4 West South Central ....................$77,5005 East North Central ......................$82,5006 East South Central .....................$60,0007 South Atlantic .............................$70,0008 Middle Atlantic. ..........................$70,0009 New England ..............................$72,500

* Regions based on U.S. Census Regions and Divisions

Chart 12

Breakdown of Responsibilities Other than Fleet Management

* Percentages exceed 100% due to multiple responses.

Only Fleet ...............................55%

Travel Services ........................3%

Planning/Managing Meetings ....16%

Personnel Relocation ...............6%

Other ......................................31%

Chart 14

Breakdown of Main Fleet

Responsibilities

• Develop Fleet Policies and Procedures ............................93%• Develop a Fleet Selector ........72%• Negotiate Pricing with New-Vehicle Manufacturers ..67%• Manage Remarketing of Used-Vehicles........................67%• Develop Annual Budget .........59%• Authorize Preventive Maintenance..........................72%• Negotiate with Fleet Suppliers ...............................70%• Manage Car Rental Program .................................22%• Manage Fleet Management Company ...............................58%• Manage Executive Vehicle Program ....................27%

Chart 11

Percent of Fleet Managers Receiving Performance-Based Compensation Incentives

48%