Providing professional development for the fleet community is a key objective of IPWEA FLEET.

Some time ago Ross Moody decided to step back from his role as Director IPWEA Fleet and this came into effect at the end of August 2019. After an outstanding career spanning over 40 years, Ross certainly deserves a little more time to relax and pursue other interests. Happily, Ross will continue to be involved with IPWEA and the Fleet program. On behalf of the IPWEA FLEET team and the Fleet Community I thank Ross for his extraordinary contribution and on-going support. Ross shares his reflections on the industry in this issue. 

It is not only Ross’s knowledge of the industry that is noteworthy, Ross is an outstanding leader and one that provides an example of what good leadership is about; leadership as service, empowering people, listening, strategic thinking, proactive and the list goes on.

With the changing of roles, I found myself reflecting on the succession planning approach Ross undertook when he decided he wanted to take a step back. It was planned and structured to ensure business continuity. I believe this is instructive for our industry now.

The fleet industry’s demographic would indicate that many of our most experienced practitioners will retire over the next five years. But it’s not only retirement, people separate from a position for a range of reasons such as extended leave or pursuing an alternate opportunity. Whatever the reason, these movements leave gaps that need to be filled. Proactively preparing for these changes is the essence of succession planning.

A succession plan identifies who might fill a position and whether external recruitment is necessary. For internal prospects the plan is a useful tool to identify what professional development is necessary to prepare staff to fill an identified role in the future. Due to the importance of succession planning the new Plant and Vehicle Management Manual (Ed 4) provides guidance on developing a succession plan including a template.