General Motors' Vice Chairman To Deliver Keynote Address at NAFA's 2010 I&E

    PRINCETON, NJ, January 30, 2010 /24-7PressRelease/ -- NAFA Fleet Management Association is proud to announce that Robert A. Lutz, Vice Chairman of General Motors, will deliver a keynote address at the Association's 2010 Institute & Expo in Detroit, Michigan. The I&E, which takes place April 24-27, is NAFA's annual meeting, bringing together more than 2,000 fleet industry professionals for four days of education, trade show experience, and networking. Lutz joins Mark Fields, Executive Vice President, Ford Motor Company as keynote speakers.

"Bob is an auto industry icon," said NAFA's Executive Director, Phillip E. Russo, CAE. "He brings a wealth of knowledge, history, and creativity and is a fantastic storyteller and communicator as well. NAFA is very privileged to have a private audience of sorts with Bob."

A former jet-attack aviator in the United States Marine Corps from 1954 to 1965, Lutz began his automotive career in September 1963 at General Motors and went on to serve executive positions at BMW, Ford Motor Company, Chrysler, and Exide Technologies before returning to GM in 2001. In the years since his return, he has served as Vice Chairman of Product Development, Chairman of GM North America, Interim President of GM Europe, and Vice Chairman and Senior Advisor providing strategic input into GM's global design and key product initiatives - a position he was to hold until retirement at the end of 2009. He agreed to join the new GM as Vice Chairman on December 4, 2009, specially assigned to advise on design and global product development thereby, "unretiring."

Lutz received his bachelor's degree in production management from the University of California-Berkeley in 1961, where he earned distinction as a Phi Beta Kappa. He received a master's degree in marketing, with highest honors, from the University of California-Berkeley in 1962. He received an honorary degree of doctor of management from Kettering University on June 21, 2003, and an honorary doctorate of law from Boston University in 1985.

He spent 12 highly successful years with Chrysler, chronicled in his 1998 book, Guts: The Seven Laws of Business That Made Chrysler the World's Hottest Car Company. Guts was revised and updated in 2003 and retitled, Guts: 8 Laws of Business from One of the Most Innovative Business Leaders of Our Time. In 2006, the SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) Foundation named him the recipient of its Manufacturing Leadership Award, which recognizes individuals who have made meaningful contributions to the development of the automotive industry.

The 2010 Institute & Expo coincides with the rebirth of the American car industry and marks the first time in more than 20 years that NAFA has held its annual conference in Detroit. Since many within NAFA's membership source the majority of their vehicles from the Detroit Three (GM, Chrysler, and Ford), the Association is very excited to have such a legendary figure in the industry as Lutz speak at the I&E.

About NAFA's Institute & Expo
The 2010 I&E includes several enhancements designed to guarantee that the conference remains the industry's leading event of the year. Over 60 hours of fleet training, education, and workshops will take advantage of revised scheduling to offer attendees a better use of their time; popular events such as the Public Safety Roadeo, Ride-and-Drive, and Green Zone will return along with a new and improved Expo Floor featuring more than 200 companies showcasing their products and services; and top fleet industry awards by NAFA, Automotive Fleet, Business Fleet, and Fleet Financials will be presented during the conference as well. Future I&E locations include Charlotte (2011), St. Louis (2012), and Atlantic City (2013). For more information, visit http://www.nafaIandE.org

About NAFA
NAFA is the world's premier non-profit association for professionals who manage fleets of sedans, public safety vehicles, trucks, and buses of all types and sizes, and a wide range of military and off-road equipment for organizations across the globe. NAFA is the association for the diverse vehicle fleet management profession regardless of organizational type, geographic location or fleet composition. NAFA's Full and Associate Members are responsible for the specification, acquisition, maintenance and repair, fueling, risk management, and remarketing of more than 3.5 million vehicles including in excess of 1.1 million trucks of which 350 thousand are medium- and heavy-duty trucks. For more information visit http://www.nafa.org

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