Michael Mills, Fleet Manager at Essential Energy, has been awarded the prestigious 2025 Fleet Manager of the Year Award at the Australasian Fleet Management Association (AfMA) Conference in Sydney. His leadership, strategic vision, and tireless commitment to safety, innovation, and sustainability were on full display in a heartfelt acceptance speech that highlighted both technical achievements and the strength of his team.
“Winning Fleet Manager of the Year is certainly a humbling experience,” Mills said. “It pays tribute to all the sleepless nights, the nights away from home, the many, many questions that you get wrong. But the benefit is having a great team and seeing the influence across not only our organisation, but also our communities that we serve every day.”
Essential Energy manages a vast network that serves more than 900,000 customers across rural and remote communities in eastern NSW and southern Queensland. When Mills joined the business, he quickly recognised the need to improve how the fleet was managed, particularly when it came to defect identification, maintenance and safety.
“Some of the critical challenges we faced when I first arrived was the way we managed defects… the way we identify the defect, the way we improve the defect, and then also captured information from that so we can analyse if there was a big risk to business on a particular asset class.”
Under his leadership, the company developed a “fleet improve program” and made the decision to internalise fleet management operations. This involved deploying digital pre-operational checklists, a maintenance management system, and individual monitoring tools to create real-time visibility across the fleet.
“It was about providing crystal clear clarity for the rest of the team to understand why we were doing it,” Mills explained. “And obviously give the team the space to develop the how we’re going to do it.”
One of the standout features of Mills’ approach has been its people-first philosophy. “From an organisational perspective, it was really important that we engage our stakeholders, and I’m grateful to work at a great organisation that supported the change right through—from acquisition to disposal and how we manage our fleet internally.”
His program has also had a strong focus on improving driver safety and sustainability. “By implementing vehicles that use less fuel, we’re able to maintain those assets in a different way, to reduce that carbon from all other assets across the footprint.”
He reflected deeply on what it means to be recognised in front of an industry audience. “A few years ago, I spent some time with Kurt Fearnley, and one thing he said really stuck with me… when confronted with adversity, challenge, uncertainty—this rapid rate of change we see from technology and innovation—one thing that people need is to feel valued. And certainly, by being here tonight, in front of 900 of my peers, receiving this award certainly makes me feel very valued.”
Despite the individual honour, Mills was quick to deflect credit to his team. “To be brutally honest, this award isn’t about me. This award represents the effort of a team and an organisation—some are in the room tonight—who are passionate, skilled and dedicated to doing things better every day.”
He acknowledged the collaborative environment fostered at Essential Energy, one where continuous improvement and care for each other are paramount. “What we can measure is, are we better than yesterday? And this organisation we’re part of challenges us as humans to be better. Better at every facet of our lives.”
Mills also thanked vendors and industry partners who support the business. “There may be some late night Friday phone calls. There may be some weekend mad moments, and again, the team has responded. I get to do the fun stuff, the team in the background are the people that really make this award the recognition that they all deserve.”
He concluded with a message of gratitude and openness. “To all those out there who aspire to be in this position, hopefully we’ve done the same—set that bar very, very high for this industry. And I want to say thank you to everyone who’s here tonight. You’ve all played a part.”
Essential Energy’s transformation under Mills is a strong example of leadership driving results in safety, efficiency, and sustainability—key pillars of fleet management in 2025.
