construction fleet management

The ultimate guide to becoming a heavy equipment fleet manager

Discover everything you need to know to succeed at leading a heavy equipment fleet, from starting out to your salary range.


It’s not unusual for heavy equipment fleet managers to stumble into their roles.

Either they didn’t know these careers existed when they started out or they knew little about the path to reach a fleet management position.

“When I started here, I didn't know there was an equipment manager,” says Dan Kunce, equipment manager at Hawkins Construction Company in Omaha, Nebraska. “I didn't know that was a thing.”

It’s hard to pursue a job or develop career aspirations for a role if you aren’t even aware it’s a possibility.

Most people who are interested in heavy equipment are familiar with operators and technicians. We’ve created this guide to help shed light on how to become a heavy equipment fleet manager ... and if you already are one, how to help develop interested team members  into this role.

In this guide, you'll find everything you need to know, from how to get started in the field to which skills you’ll need to cultivate and what salary you can expect to earn.

You’ll hear from experienced fleet managers, each coming from one of the four most common pathways that lead into an equipment management career, and what they’ve learned and wished they had known much sooner.

Are you ready to learn all about becoming a heavy equipment fleet manager?

Let’s begin.

First Things First: What's Up With the Name?

Fleet manager, equipment manager, fleet director, equipment superintendent … there are many different ways to describe this role that oversees an organization’s heavy equipment. 

The Association of Equipment Management Professionals (AEMP) prefers the term “equipment manager,” because the position often is responsible for all rolling stock (both on-highway and off-highway vehicles) in addition to other assets. 

However, for the purposes of this guide, we are choosing to primarily use “heavy equipment fleet manager” to distinguish it as a search term for those trying to find information on this topic.

“Heavy equipment fleet manager” differentiates it in searches from “equipment manager,” which can also refer to an athletic equipment manager, and “fleet manager,” which can primarily refer to those who oversee on-highway or rental vehicle fleets.

That being said, we will use these terms interchangeably to reflect their synonymous nature and the fact that many organizations do as well.

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The goal of the heavy equipment fleet manager is to increase profit margins through the effective management of both the organization’s fleet and its personnel // Source: MCG Civil

What Does a Heavy Equipment Fleet Manager Do?

Over the past few decades, the profession of heavy equipment management has transformed from focusing mostly on maintenance and shop oversight to one that is increasingly involved in an organization’s contracts, safety, sustainability, vendor relationships, budgeting, and use of capital.

We can see just how much the fleet manager role encompasses by taking a look at the certified equipment manager (CEM) designation, which was created in 1996 by AEMP as a way for fleet management professionals to distinguish themselves through continuing education. 

In order to earn the certification, heavy equipment managers must demonstrate thorough knowledge of five standards and 17 core competencies and have at least five years of fleet management experience.

We’ll dig more into this certification and the benefits it offers a bit later.

What Are a Fleet Manager’s Responsibilities Within the Organization?

Though the heavy equipment fleet manager role will vary somewhat in its specific responsibilities within each organization, we’ve identified several overall themes in our review of fleet manager job descriptions.

They are responsible for:

  • Planning the operating budget for the equipment division, tracking expenses, and approving invoices
  • Acquiring equipment, parts, and fuel, and maintaining their vendor relationships
  • Overseeing equipment inspections and maintenance, which includes the preventive maintenance strategy as well as repairs
  • Monitoring equipment utilization, life-cycle costs, and rates
  • Implementing fleet management and maintenance technology 
  • Providing training and education that ensures safety standards and best practices are met
  • Managing their teams, which can include shop supervisors, service technicians, parts managers, parts runners, dispatchers, logistics coordinators, data analysts, and others

Basically, the goal of the heavy equipment fleet manager is to increase profit margins through the effective management of both the organization’s fleet and its personnel.

They work across departments with job sponsors, project managers, site supervisors, operations, purchasing, accounting/finance, IT, safety, and HR, and they travel to sites as needed.

Fleet managers typically report directly to the C-suite or may even serve on the executive team in some organizations.

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Heavy equipment fleet managers work with many other departments in the organization and travel to sites as needed. // Source: MCG Civil

What Influence Will Fleet Managers Have in the Future?

As the importance of the heavy equipment manager continues to develop, it is increasingly touching more departments and becoming more integrated into the C-suite as an essential source for decision making. 

One particular sphere where equipment managers will see their influence grow in the coming years is with an organization’s sustainability efforts. Moving forward, fleet managers will play a pivotal role in achieving sustainability goals.

“I envision that very shortly, when we bid a job or we forecast the job, we're going to see how much equipment we need, what that's going to cost, and how much of a carbon impact it's going to have,” says Mason Ford, director of sustainability and equipment services at Skanska. 

What Education and Training Are Needed to Become a Heavy Equipment Fleet Manager?

Education and Experience

A college degree is not required across the board in order to become a fleet manager; most organizations will allow equivalent work experience in equipment maintenance, operations, engineering, construction management, or business management.

However, if pursuing higher education, many organizations say they look for candidates who have a bachelor’s degree in construction management, engineering, or business. Associate’s degrees or technical training, such as in a diesel technician program, are also acceptable.

Anywhere from two to 10 years of equipment maintenance or management is required for an individual to move into a fleet manager role.

Skills

Beyond their equipment knowledge, heavy equipment fleet managers are also expected to have skills in the following areas:

  • Construction practices
  • Business principles
  • Computer skills
  • Organizational skills
  • Team management skills
  • Decision-making capabilities
  • Communication skills
  • Ability to multitask and work under pressure
  • Time management skills
  • Negotiating skills
  • Critical thinking and problem solving skills

Professional Growth

Fleet managers can continue their professional development by joining AEMP, which was founded in 1982

AEMP is the premier association dedicated to advancing heavy equipment fleet management professionals across a wide variety of industries, including those that work in the construction, government, utilities, energy, mining, and others.

The association provides continuing education, certification, and networking benefits to its members, with a mission to build excellence in equipment management.

AEMP has about 800 equipment professionals as members, and it works in coordination with dealers, represented by the Associated Equipment Distributors, and manufacturers, represented by the Association of Equipment Manufacturers, to form the Equipment Triangle, which describes the integral relationship between the end user, distributor, and manufacturer.

Certification

As part of its member benefits, AEMP offers a certificate program (Equipment Management Specialist) and a certification (Certified Equipment Manager) for heavy equipment fleet managers.

Equipment Management Specialist (EMS)

What it is: The Equipment Management Specialist (EMS) certificate course is designed for those who are new to heavy equipment fleet management (less than five years of experience) or as the first step to get a CEM designation. It is also ideal for organizations that are looking to create an equipment manager role, covering 17 core competencies essential for asset management.

Format: Self-guided online program available through AEMP University.

Time commitment: Estimated 35-40 hours; course materials available for one year after enrollment.

Requirements: No requirements

Certified Equipment Manager (CEM)

What it is: The Certified Equipment Manager (CEM) is the industry’s premier recognition of fleet management qualifications, demonstrating a mastery of five standards and 17 core competencies.

Format: Exam offered during in-person AEMP Connect and Equipment Shift conferences or at a local certified testing center.

Time commitment: Four to five hours spent studying each chapter of the Career Equipment Fleet Manager Manual.

Requirements: Minimum five years of equipment management experience plus 25 “points” of accumulated experience and continuing education hours in order to complete the application packet for the exam.

AEMP also offers a course, called the IGNITE Learning Lab, to help individuals prepare for the CEM exam. IGNITE is offered twice a year at in-person events and twice a year online. Interested participants can learn how to register here.

It’s important to note that the CEM designation must be renewed every five years by completing 40 hours of continuing education during that time; no retesting is required.

AEMP offers about 35-40 CE hours each year that can be obtained by attending its conferences or webinars, participating on committees, and serving in volunteer roles. The association also recognizes relevant CE opportunities available from outside organizations. 

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AEMP provides heavy equipment fleet managers with continuing education, certification, and networking, with a mission to build excellence in equipment management. // Source: MCG Civil

What Are the Main Pathways into Heavy Equipment Fleet Management?

AEMP has identified four main pathways of experience that most often lead into the equipment management field.

They are:

  • Maintenance
  • Operations
  • Equipment/Industry Technology
  • Business Management

Heavy equipment fleet managers found that gaining experience in one or more of these areas was helpful in obtaining their current roles. We spoke with one fleet manager from each path to get their insights on how their experiences shaped them.

Here are their stories:

Maintenance Path: Chris Caldwell, CEM, Branch Civil

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Chris Caldwell is the equipment superintendent at Branch Civil in Roanoke, Virginia. // Source: Chris Caldwell

Though most kids don’t want to admit it, listening to your parents usually does pay off. For Chris Caldwell, his trajectory into fleet management shows that in the end, his father did indeed know best.

From the beginning of his life, Caldwell grew up in a world immersed in all things construction.

His dad worked at both Cat and then Carter Machinery, one of Cat’s dealers in Virginia, before he eventually became a superintendent at Branch Civil, a site development contractor based in Roanoke, Virginia.

“I've been around equipment since I was born pretty much,” Caldwell says.

But it was the automotive industry that first attracted his interests. In high school, Caldwell bought a Volkswagen and joined a car club, and he could always be found tinkering under the hood.

He started an after-school job working as a technician at the local Jiffy Lube, doing oil changes and other undercarriage work. It was then that his dad tipped him off to a mechanic’s helper opening at Branch Civil. 

The downside: The entry-level job came with a pay cut.

On the other hand, his dad said, the position was loaded with potential.

“He said it's probably a really good opportunity with room for advancement later on,” Caldwell says.

Caldwell took the job, and in the years since, has learned his dad was right. 

His origins in fleet maintenance set him off on a path that led to his current role as equipment superintendent, in charge of all day-to-day operations, including fueling and repairs, among many other responsibilities for the 2,700 assets in the heavy civil contractor’s fleet. Branch Civil serves Virginia, West Virginia, and the Carolinas, with shops in both Roanoke and Virginia Beach.

“I kind of have my hand on all of the aspects of it,” he says.

He also helps oversee what Branch Civil calls its Situational Awareness Room, or SAR, which is essentially the contractor’s command center that centralizes all fleet decisions.

“I'm kind of the quarterback for that,” Caldwell says. “So all recall requests that come into that, as far as equipment that needs repairs or anything like that, I make sure that they get the right piece of equipment at the right time for the best value.”

Finding the Role Models

Deciding to get his foot in the door at Branch Civil — part of the Branch Group, an ENR Top 400 contractor — is not the only lesson Caldwell learned from his father.

His dad had earned his CEM designation, providing Caldwell some insights into the opportunities of equipment management, as he progressed from mechanic’s helper to fleet repairs to logistics and eventually, shop foreman.

In addition to the precedent set by his dad, Caldwell credits his shift from fleet maintenance to fleet management to the leadership at Branch Civil as well. Branch’s equipment operations manager, Tim Morgan, developed a training program that built on John Deere’s online courses for certified technicians. It exposed Caldwell to the broader experiences in the equipment management field, and also to Morgan, who is now his supervisor.

“[Tim] has made sure that he's put me in situations where I'm able to succeed, and he knows the things that I'm best at,” Caldwell says. “He's been instrumental in making sure that I have the support with that.”

With his dad’s example and Morgan’s guidance, Caldwell got involved with AEMP. That led to him earning his EMS — a requirement for all foremen at Branch Civil — and then his CEM the following year in 2017.

Building on Experience

Coupled with the management support and training he received, Caldwell says it’s his background in maintenance that gave him a personal advantage in his move to equipment management.

“Coming from the shop, you have a better understanding of timelines for repairs,” he says. “I think people that manage equipment that have never turned a wrench before, it's a little bit different — not knowing the process of tearing something down, inspecting it, and troubleshooting it, and then making sure you've got the right parts and specs and tolerances and everything.”

That foundation of mechanical knowledge served as a springboard for Caldwell to dive into the various facets of heavy equipment management.

“What I didn't know, I started asking questions, and I was eager to learn,” Caldwell says. “I think that the main thing for people is to always try to further yourself — read up on things that are most beneficial to you.”

Caldwell advises those interested in fleet management to see what training is offered by your vendors, such as your dealers, or to make the case with your supervisors about the value proposition from attending conferences, such as those put on by AEMP. For example, Caldwell took an HR course at a local community college to help develop his team management skills.

“Look for those things and present them and give them a return on their investment on how it can be beneficial,” he says. “It’s beneficial for you as a technician wanting to be an equipment manager and for the company, because they're gaining someone with more knowledge who will better manage their equipment internally.”

Operations Path: Dan Kunce, Hawkins Construction

Dan Kunce

Dan Kunce, pictured with his family, is the equipment manager at Hawkins Construction Company in Omaha, Nebraska. // Source: Dan Kunce

As referenced in this guide’s introduction, when Dan Kunce first started in construction operations almost 15 years ago, he didn’t know that a heavy equipment fleet manager was even a thing.

“I knew a superintendent, and I knew a job sponsor — those were things, because you see those guys all the time, right?” he says. “You never saw any equipment managers. So I had assumed that my path was to just run work and run jobs.”

Truth be told, Kunce had never planned on going into construction in the first place. 

He had joined the Marine Corps straight out of high school, and while there, he gained experience operating heavy equipment as a combat engineer. When he left the military and started looking for work, construction seemed like a natural fit. 

He began as a laborer before moving to operations, setting his sights on a goal of becoming a superintendent or perhaps a job sponsor. So he decided to pursue a degree in construction management.

But after working under an equipment manager as a certified crane operator, a different path emerged.

“That equipment manager at the time really wanted me to be a part of his equipment fleet,” Kunce says. “He yanked me away from the jobs and put me under his wing.”

As he learned from him, his hunger for the role grew, and he saw that fleet management was an area where he could make an impact.

“I started to take on more and just kept raising my hands to do more things,” he says.

Now, Kunce is the equipment manager at Hawkins Construction Company, a heavy civil contractor in Omaha, Nebraska. He is responsible for overseeing the 25-person team in charge of about 500 fleet assets. 

Though his road to equipment management had twists and turns, Kunce sees experience in operations as an essential component to the role he fills today.

He thinks more operators should consider progressing into heavy equipment fleet management, and more contractors should foster growth and development of their crews in this way.

Laying the Foundation

Kunce’s perspective has admittedly evolved from the untraditional way that Hawkins functions. Everything there starts with time spent in the field.

“Even those kids who were getting out of college that really want to come into the office and just be a job sponsor — you're not going to do that at Hawkins,” Kunce says. “You're going to run a shovel for awhile. Everybody goes into the field at some point in their career, and it's usually right at the beginning.”

This serves as an invaluable step into fleet management in particular, he says.

“I don’t see how anyone could come into this field without knowing equipment,” he says.

“Knowing what's going on in the field is crucial to the operation of how we schedule.”

For example, when he worked in dispatching during one of his first forays on the fleet team, Kunce says he would often tap into that experience.

“When superintendents would call me and ask for an excavator to lay 18-in. pipe 4 ft. in the ground, they'd ask for the biggest possible excavator they could get it,” he says. “I'd be like, ‘Well, no, let's think about this a little bit differently.’”

With his operations insights, he could walk them through understanding the costs of running larger equipment for that application and offer better-suited alternatives, which would still get the job done just as quickly.

And as today’s construction equipment becomes more robust with technology, he says that without operational experience, it can make it quite challenging to navigate fleet decisions.

“With the younger-generation superintendents coming up, a lot of them come straight from college, and they might not have operated equipment,” Kunce says. “They don't know there's qualifying questions to ask to understand if the equipment's the right fit for the job.”

Kunce says even the service technicians can benefit from learning how to operate equipment, which is something else that Hawkins does.

“We make sure our mechanics have the basic fundamentals of operating a piece of equipment,” he says. “I don't need them to be in a production situation, where they have to make costs. But they’ve got to know what that thing does, how it moves, and how it operates — aside from just replacing the belt or cleaning out the radiator.” 

Thirsting for More

When coming from the operations side of the business into fleet management, Kunce there are some specific skills that may need to be strengthened. One of those is finances.

“I never really had much business,” he says. “Although it is super easy here, because Hawkins pays cash for everything. We have no debt, we don't finance anything, and there are no leases. So that makes my job really easy.”

Another area that may need further development is team management.

“I come from the school of hard knocks,” Kunce says. “Talking with people and really training people and getting them to understand what we're trying to do is maybe not on my strong side. So I've had to seek help in that and get help from people within the company — our owners and other top leaders in our company — to really learn how to deal with people better and treating them right.”

Preparing for the CEM exam and getting involved in AEMP can help with these skills, if you’re thirsty to learn, Kunce says. In return, you’ll develop a network of peers that can help further not only your own growth, but also that of your organization. 

His biggest advice? Contractors should look for crew members that show an insatiable appetite for the jobs they do and the equipment they run — and then point them in the direction of fleet management.

“I've taken a young kid in his 20s who started out on the building side,” Kunce says. “His path was never to be an equipment person. Well, now, he doesn't want to go back.”

Technology Path: Mark Hall, EquipmentShare 

Mark Hall

Mark Hall, pictured while at his role at Kiewit, is now a rental coordinator at EquipmentShare. // Source: Mark Hall

Mark Hall is passionate about equipment, not just because of how it performs, but because of how it can speak to us.

Hall spent about 30 years in equipment sales and service before getting into fleet management, and during that time, he’s seen the technology in equipment evolve tremendously, in ways that add value beyond its mere function. 

He’s grown to be completely captivated by the stories that equipment can tell.

“What piques my interest the most is the amount of information you can gather out of a piece of equipment today,” Hall says.

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You just need to listen closely and pay attention to what it’s saying.

“What is it telling us about the problems that we can address prior to failure, so that we can drive this organization away from being reactive?” Hall says. “Because when a piece is down, it becomes an enormous cost burden. And if you can avoid that, then you're much further ahead in the game.”

So after three decades on the distributor side, Hall’s career had a plot twist. 

His interest in both equipment and technology led him to shift gears and become more involved in keeping fleets up and running, first with a role at Cianbro, a construction firm based in Maine, then as a regional equipment manager for Kiewit, and now at EquipmentShare.

Digging Into Technology

Hall developed his enthusiasm for equipment technology during his time selling and servicing welders, which he did for 20 years. 

“That's where my passion for technology came from, because they were implementing all these technology changes through the ’90s and into the 2000s,” he says. “I found that to be very interesting.”

After a decade of selling lifting equipment, Hall took a job as the maintenance supervisor at Cianbro, where he played a pivotal role in implementing telematics and diagnostic software throughout the fleet. Though the company is in the early days of the technological transformation of their fleet, which consists of about 1,500 assets, Hall says they’ve already seen productivity improvements.

“It's getting the information into the proper hands as quickly as possible,” Hall says. “If a defect is noted on a piece of equipment, rather than go through the paper trail, it'll automatically come to the maintenance group, where we can make a decision on its severity and how quickly to dispatch somebody to address it.”

Hall says he didn’t need to get a degree or take a course before realizing that heading in this direction was the right choice. His curiosity drove him to find out more about how technology could impact fleet operations.

“I began researching it on my own,” he says. “I knew the basic information you needed to have, and then it was just learning on my own to find out what we need and how do we begin to integrate that into our software systems and our day-to-day business — and how we manage it.”

For those that have an interest in equipment and technology, Hall says fleet management today blends the best of both worlds. With new developments constantly on the horizon, such as autonomous equipment and wearables, technology is changing the way fleet managers need to look at their work.

“When you really stop and look at it, the visibility you have remotely into what's going on at the job is incredible,” Hall says. “Because not only can you see your equipment and manage your equipment, but you're also seeing the people as well.”

Preparing for Change

Hall wants to take what he has learned on his journey from equipment sales and service to help expose those in maintenance or other fields to the opportunities of fleet management, particularly if they are attracted by the innovations of technology. 

He thinks more organizations need to develop training programs that move technicians along this pipeline.

“Why wouldn't I take some of my seasoned guys that know the mechanics of equipment and start sending them in towards the management part of it,” he says. “Even if they don't end up in a role where they have to have that knowledge, it helps them understand the whole picture.” 

Business Management Path: Adam Williams, MCG Civil

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Adam Williams is the the executive vice president of asset management & information and technology at MCG Civil near Denver, Colorado. // Source: Adam Williams

Adam Williams is the kind of guy who doesn’t back down from a challenge.

In fact, if he’s told no, that usually just makes him more determined to find a way forward. He has an ability to visualize a goal and not much is going to get in his way of reaching it.

Case in point, he married his high school sweetheart a few days before their graduation.

“Someone said we couldn't, so then it was like, well, I’ll show you,” Williams says.

So he and his wife had their wedding on Saturday and walked in their commencement ceremony the following Wednesday. About 25 years and two daughters later, they are still together.

Williams has framed his career in similar fashion: Once the destination is clear, he sets out to achieve it.

That’s not to say his road to fleet management hasn’t had its obstacles. In reality, it’s had more than most, taking him out of the heavy equipment field for awhile. But he’s always found a way around whatever was blocking him.

Though his entry into the heavy equipment world was through maintenance, it quickly became clear that he possesses the skills required for management. By 24, he was put in a leadership role at Coburn Equipment, a heavy equipment rental company in Southern California.

On the one hand, he says he felt unprepared to supervise technicians who he respected immensely, with decades more experience than himself. Then he realized you don’t necessarily need to know everything in order to manage a team — or a fleet — well.

“My job is to make people play nice together and help them understand what's important to fix and when,” Williams says. “I don't need to be the expert on how to fix every single technical piece.”

He recognized that what he was truly passionate about was leading people and processes.

“That's what I love — I love fixing the system and making the system work,” he says.

That ambition eventually led him to his current position on the executive team at MCG Civil, a Denver-area construction firm that manages heavy civil and general contracting companies.

Forming a Plan

Williams’ innate ability to triage a situation was what pushed him into management in the first place.

While at Coburn, he says he was growing increasingly frustrated by late nights spent on never-ending repairs, without any real organization in place to promote equipment uptime. One day, after a coworker voiced that he was about to fix a nonessential component, Williams had had enough.

“I'm like, that's not going to help that machine run tomorrow — you need to prioritize this,” he says.

So Williams grabbed a nearby piece of welder’s soapstone, took a piece of steel from the back of the work truck, and proceeded to sketch out a plan.

“I told him that when you finish that, come back and talk to me, and that you're not allowed to make decisions about what you're going to fix anymore,” he says.

What Williams didn’t know was that his boss, owner Ray Coburn, was watching. The following week, he was promoted to operations manager.

Though he still had much to learn, Williams says he benefited from the owner always having his back and trusting him with the decisions he made. 

Making a Change

In 2009, Williams and his family moved to Colorado. He had already surpassed the number of hours required by his union in California for full retirement benefits, so he thought maybe it was time for a change.

He decided to go back to school to get a doctor of physical therapy degree, but discovered that calculus-based physics classes weren’t for him. So he did a complete pivot and earned an associate’s degree in fine art photography. However, as he started his photography career, he felt restless, with an urge to return to the heavy equipment industry.

One day in 2015 while at a photography appointment, he noticed a shop for HEI Civil, a heavy civil contractor, across the road.

“It was like divine intervention,” Williams says.

He took a job with the contractor, and within a year, one of the founders retired, leaving Williams to basically take over his position in charge of all the equipment.

Not long after, Williams had yet another rather serendipitous moment. He was heading out of Las Vegas after the ConExpo-Con/Agg trade show, and he found a flyer at the airport about AEMP.

That introduction to the association eventually led Williams to obtain his CEM. Now, he oversees an annual fleet budget of about $70 million, as the executive vice president of asset management & information and technology at MCG Civil, the management company that oversees HEI Civil, Peabody General Contractors, and Horsepower Site Services.

Though he admits he had a bit of a nontraditional route to his current role, Williams says he thinks fleet managers as a whole could profit from acquiring more business management skills.

“You're running a business within a business,” he says. “You just need to be good at business and learn what are the strategies and practices that help you be a better individual to operate your business.”

What’s next for Williams? He’s getting his executive MBA, which he thinks will serve him well in the boardroom working with the C-suite. Regardless, he wants to keep learning and growing, and he doesn’t think that’s a desire that will ever go away — nor should it, for those in fleet management.

“I perform better when I am working on me,” he says. “And I’m always passionate about my guys elevating their own careers.”

Benefits of Becoming a Fleet Manager

How much do heavy equipment fleet managers earn? 

It’s the elephant in the room: What kind of earnings can you expect if you choose fleet management as a career?

We analyzed salary data anonymously submitted in December 2021 from about 70 AEMP members who hold fleet management positions, from equipment/fleet managers to corporate equipment directors. Across all those that participated, the median annual salary is $125,000.

Let’s compare that to the salaries of service technicians and construction equipment operators, which are two of the main pathways into heavy equipment fleet management.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the 2023 median annual salary was $58,970 for diesel service technicians and mechanics and $61,000 for heavy vehicle and mobile equipment service technicians.

For construction equipment operators, it was $55,270. 

That means if you hold one of these roles and decide to pursue a career in fleet management, it could result in a significant bump in pay, with the median salary of fleet managers about 2.5x more.

The actual spread for fleet management salaries is quite broad, ranging from about $75,000 on the low end to $250,000 on the upper end. To see how fleet management salaries vary depending on an organization’s size, we broke down the data further by a company’s estimated annual revenue.

Here’s the average salary for those with equipment or fleet manager titles at companies with:

  • <$10 million in annual revenue: $91,500
  • $10-49 million in annual revenue: $111,000
  • >$50 million in annual revenue: $126,000

According to survey respondents, those with corporate, director, or vice president of equipment management titles are likely to be paid more. Here’s the average salary for those titles at companies with:

  • <$100 million: $150,000
  • $100-499 million in annual revenue: $167,000
  • >$500 million in annual revenue: $187,500

Several respondents also reported opportunities to earn bonuses on top of their annual salaries, as well as allowances or stipends that contribute to their income.

What is the demand for heavy equipment fleet managers?

While it's challenging to find data specific to heavy equipment fleet managers, Zippia estimates there were more than 5,000 fleet managers employed in the U.S. in July 2024.

As we’ve previously highlighted, a role in fleet management is a great way to advance the careers of equipment operators and service technicians, which combine to make up about 950,000 jobs in 2020 in the U.S., according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. 

Fleet managers work closely with upper-level management and are instrumental in shaping an organization’s budgeting, forecasting, and profitability.

With asset management and maintenance technologies continually evolving, expect to see fleet managers increasingly play critical roles in the success of their organizations.

Why choose heavy equipment fleet management?

If you’re someone who has an interest in heavy equipment and also likes to be constantly learning, digging into the details, establishing processes, and stepping up as a leader, fleet management may be a rewarding career choice for you.

“You need to be curious and flexible,” says Branch Civil’s Caldwell. “Ask questions and be eager to learn. A lot of times, it’s just listening to what people are saying and what's going on — and finding solutions on a day-to-day basis.”

It’s definitely not a boring role, says Kunce of Hawkins Construction. 

“I can wear about 10 different hats a day,” he says. “Sometimes I wear one hat for a day, and sometimes I wear all 10 of those hats for a day.”

For those that thrive off high energy, fleet management is a good fit.

As a self-described adrenaline junkie, Kunce rises before dawn to coach CrossFit at 4 a.m. and fills his free time with jiu jitsu and sports with his kids. He can’t stand to sit still, which he says is common among the culture at Hawkins.

“The entire company is essentially the same way,” he says.

And if there’s a moral that can be drawn from the story of Kiewit’s Hall, it’s pursue what interests you. You’re never too far into your career to head down a different path.

“It is funny, because I'm not a young man,” he says. “I embrace the technology. I do not run from it. Not everyone is like that.”

If you’re looking to become a fleet manager in today’s world, Hall says you have to be comfortable with the uncomfortable and prepare for an adventure.

“The only thing I can say is embrace what's coming at you,” he says.

“Embrace the change.”

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