David Madrigal: "AMAVe supports a competitive leasing ecosystem in Mexico"
David Madrigal is Element Fleet Management’s Executive Vice President for Mexico. He’s also the President of AMAVe, Mexico’s still fairly young leasing association. What does AMAVe do, what does it want, and where does it stand on Latin America’s rapidly evolving market? Six quick questions.
Mr Madrigal, can you tell us a bit about AMAVe?
"AMAVe stands for ‘Asociación Mexicana de Arrendaroras de Vehículos’, which translates as the Mexican Vehicle Leasing Association. It was established in December 2015 by four fleet management companies. At present, AMAVe has 12 members, providers of both long-term and short-term vehicle leasing solutions, to corporates, government agencies and private individuals.”
“The Association is focused on two strategic pillars. Firstly, the development of a competitive leasing ecosystem. For this, we communicate and collaborate with federal and local government agencies; we audit and certify programmes for maintenance suppliers; we develop statistical information by and for our members; and we work with other financing and leasing organisations, both locally and globally – as well as with the recently created Mexican Fleet Managers Association.”
“And secondly, we focus on training and education. We develop and provide training on relevant topics for different stakeholders: fleet managers, member employees, maintenance shops. And we organise an annual forum to share our knowledge and foster a fleet community with all our stakeholders.”
That’s a lot on your plate. How is AMAVe going about realising its lofty ambitions?
“We have task forces focused on each of our initiatives, and they report on a monthly basis to AMAVe’s Board of Directors. That Board is comprised of all the CEOs of its member companies. AMAVe focuses its economic resources on these initiatives.”
Do your activities also include lobbying?
“We don’t do formal lobbying; but as an organisation, we do interact with local and federal government agencies in order to promote a more competitive working environment for our members.”
AMAVe has a conference coming up. Who will attend, and what’s on the agenda?
“Our attendees include our members, of course – and some of their employees – and also our members’ customers, and a number of government officials. On the agenda: a one-day training event for fleet managers, with 80 attendees confirmed; and a one-day conference that includes three guest speakers – on political and economic perspectives and leasing trends, among other topics – and a panel discussion between a few of the CEOs that make up the AMAVe Board of Directors.”
What is AMAVe’s take on the evolution of fleet management and leasing in Latin America in general?
“We see the market maturing and getting more engaged with and influenced by global trends, such as mobility, electrification, safety, global RFPs and global management, CO2 reduction, etcetera. It’s an interesting market, and one that’s rapidly changing and evolving. As the industry is being ‘professionalised’, it will require more strategy and data analytics, and more support from suppliers.”
What’s the biggest mistake that international fleet managers make when they deal with Latin America?
“Thinking that every country is the same, and that one solution will fit all markets – for example, offering the same car, or the same leasing product. Not considering that there are local cultural differences when it comes to vehicle usage. This has consequences when it comes to whether or not including the vehicle as part of the total compensation, or offering an option to buy it, etcetera.”
To discover the fleet markets in Latin America, visit the WIKIFLEET section of this website.
