Fleet Maintenance Director

Crawford Thomas Recruiting; Gainesville (GA); On-site; USD 150,000 - 230,000; Full time

Job summary

Crawford Thomas Recruiting is seeking an experienced Director, Fleet Maintenance to lead a growing nationwide heavy-duty fleet management operation. You will shape maintenance strategy, standards, and execution for approximately 500 heavy-duty leased and rental units across 26 states.

The role combines hands-on leadership with strategic initiatives, including PM program design, vendor management, compliance, and data-driven improvements to uptime and cost effectiveness as growth accelerates.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of progressive heavy-duty fleet maintenance or equipment service leadership.

Responsibilities

• Design, implement, and continuously improve enterprise preventative maintenance (PM) programs.
• Establish PM intervals, inspection standards, service schedules, and maintenance strategies by equipment type and utilization.
• Drive PM compliance across all markets while ensuring services are completed accurately and on schedule.
• Develop repair-versus-replace guidelines and establish equipment condition standards.
• Reduce unscheduled breakdowns by identifying recurring equipment failures and implementing corrective actions.
• Maintain complete maintenance histories, service documentation, warranties, inspections, and repair records for every fleet asset.
• Establish performance expectations for call response, dispatch, customer communication, and equipment return-to-service times.

Skills

Executive leadership

Vendor management

Data analytics

Fleet maintenance

Strategic planning

Tools

Karmak

Decisiv

Job description

Director, Fleet Maintenance

Compensation: Competitive Base Salary + Bonus + Comprehensive Benefits

Industry: Transportation | Fleet Operations | Heavy-Duty Equipment

Leadership Scope: Team of 10 (2 Direct Reports)

Fleet Responsibility: Approximately 500 Heavy-Duty Leased & Rental Units Across 26 States

Travel: Multi-State Travel as Needed

Growth Opportunity: Position Expected to Expand into a Senior Director-Level Role

About The Opportunity

Our client is seeking an experienced Director, Fleet Maintenance to lead the maintenance strategy and execution for a rapidly growing fleet of approximately 500 heavy-duty leased and rental units operating across 26 states.

This executive leadership role is responsible for the overall mechanical health, uptime, preventative maintenance strategy, regulatory compliance, vendor management, breakdown operations, and mobile technician performance across the fleet.

This is a hands-on operational leadership position requiring extensive heavy-duty fleet maintenance experience. The ideal candidate brings credibility with technicians, vendors, and customers while building scalable maintenance programs, improving operational efficiency, and supporting aggressive fleet growth.

As the fleet expands, this role is expected to grow into a Senior Director-level leadership position.

What You\'ll Do Fleet Maintenance & Preventative Maintenance

• Design, implement, and continuously improve enterprise preventative maintenance (PM) programs
• Establish PM intervals, inspection standards, service schedules, and maintenance strategies by equipment type and utilization
• Drive PM compliance across all markets while ensuring services are completed accurately and on schedule
• Develop repair-versus-replace guidelines and establish equipment condition standards
• Reduce unscheduled breakdowns by identifying recurring equipment failures and implementing corrective actions
• Maintain complete maintenance histories, service documentation, warranties, inspections, and repair records for every fleet asset

Compliance & Safety

• Ensure compliance with federal, state, environmental, emissions, and equipment regulations across multiple states
• Maintain audit-ready documentation for inspections, repairs, maintenance, and compliance activities
• Develop and enforce technician and vendor safety standards, including lockout/tagout procedures and safe mobile service practices
• Monitor compliance metrics proactively while implementing corrective action plans when needed

Vendor Management

• Build and manage a national network of third-party maintenance vendors supporting existing and future markets
• Source, evaluate, negotiate, onboard, and manage vendor relationships
• Negotiate pricing, labor rates, contracts, response times, and service-level agreements (SLAs)
• Develop vendor scorecards measuring quality, turnaround time, responsiveness, pricing, and repair accuracy
• Hold vendors accountable through performance reviews while replacing underperforming providers when necessary
• Determine the optimal balance between third-party vendors and internal technician coverage using operational and financial data

Breakdown Operations & Call Center Leadership

• Oversee the Breakdown / Call Center operation through the Manager of Breakdown Operations
• Establish performance expectations for call response, dispatch, customer communication, and equipment return-to-service times
• Ensure every breakdown is documented, investigated, and resolved appropriately
• Develop scalable after-hours support and escalation procedures supporting nationwide operations

Mobile Technician Operations

• Lead the mobile technician organization through the Manager of Mobile Technicians
• Develop territory assignments, technician coverage models, scheduling, truck stocking, tooling standards, and service readiness
• Monitor technician productivity, first-time fix rates, and utilization metrics
• Recruit, onboard, train, and develop mobile technicians as the fleet continues to grow
• Evaluate expansion opportunities for additional in-house technician coverage based on cost, response time, and fleet demand

Data Analytics & Operational Excellence

• Develop and monitor maintenance KPIs including:
• Preventative Maintenance Compliance
• Breakdown Frequency
• Mean Time to Repair (MTTR)
• First-Time Fix Rate
• Repeat Repairs
• Warranty Recovery
• Technician Productivity
• Vendor Performance
• Build dashboards and executive reporting to provide visibility into maintenance performance
• Analyze equipment, component, and technician data to improve maintenance strategy and operational efficiency
• Standardize maintenance workflows, documentation, and SOPs that support rapid organizational growth
• Partner with Fleet Operations to monitor maintenance costs, billback opportunities, fleet lifecycle decisions, and overall equipment performance

Team Leadership

• Lead a maintenance organization of 10 employees through two direct-report managers:
• Manager, Breakdown / Call Center (5 Team Members)
• Manager, Mobile Technicians (3 Technicians)
• Establish clear goals, accountability, and performance expectations
• Conduct coaching, mentoring, performance reviews, and succession planning
• Scale organizational structure, staffing, and leadership as fleet operations expand
• Foster a culture centered around safety, accountability, communication, operational excellence, and continuous improvement

What You\'ll Bring

• 8+ years of progressive heavy-duty fleet maintenance or equipment service leadership experience (required)
• 3+ years leading maintenance organizations through supervisors or managers
• Demonstrated ownership of preventative maintenance programs supporting distributed fleets
• Experience negotiating and managing third-party maintenance vendors and service agreements
• Strong understanding of fleet compliance, inspections, regulatory requirements, emissions standards, and safety programs
• Experience building maintenance KPIs, dashboards, reporting, and cost analyses
• Strong analytical skills using fleet management systems and Excel/Business Intelligence tools
• Proven process improvement and operational excellence experience supporting organizational growth
• Executive-level communication skills with experience partnering across Operations, Sales, Customer Operations, and Executive Leadership
• Ability to travel throughout a multi-state fleet operation

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience supporting terminal tractors, yard equipment, or heavy commercial vehicles
• Experience managing breakdown dispatch or fleet call center operations
• Experience building or expanding mobile technician programs
• Experience with Karmak, Decisiv, or similar fleet maintenance platforms
• ASE certifications, diesel training, heavy equipment certifications, or hands-on technician background

What Success Looks Like

• Preventative maintenance compliance consistently meeting or exceeding targets
• Reduced equipment downtime and fewer unscheduled breakdowns
• Faster equipment return-to-service and improved first-time fix rates
• High-performing vendor network with measurable accountability and consistent service quality
• Efficient, trusted Breakdown / Call Center operations supporting customers across multiple states
• Productive and scalable mobile technician organization supporting continued fleet expansion
• Audit-ready compliance and documentation across all maintenance operations
• Reliable executive reporting and actionable maintenance analytics supporting strategic decision-making
• Standardized maintenance processes capable of supporting a fleet two to three times its current size

Why Join?

• Enterprise Leadership: Lead maintenance operations for a rapidly growing nationwide heavy-duty fleet
• High Visibility: Partner directly with executive leadership and Fleet Operations to shape maintenance strategy and long-term growth
• Growth Opportunity: Position designed to expand into a Senior Director-level leadership role as the fleet scales beyond 500 units
• Operational Impact: Own preventative maintenance, vendor strategy, compliance, technician operations, and maintenance performance across 26 states
• Data-Driven Environment: Influence organizational decisions through analytics, KPIs, operational excellence, and continuous process improvement
• Build for the Future: Develop scalable maintenance systems, vendor networks, and operational processes supporting aggressive national expansion