Interviewee: Neil Broad
Role: General Manager, One Toyota Fleet Services

Q: Can you describe your role, experience, and what a typical day looks like?
A: I lead One Toyota Fleet Services, which brings together Toyota GB, Toyota Insurance Services, Toyota Financial Services, KINTO UK, and where possible, our UK manufacturing plant. My role is to create space for the team to succeed by aligning people, objectives, and operations across our fleet ecosystem. Over the past 18 months, we’ve restructured more than 40 roles to unify functions like direct invoicing, dealer allocation, fleet operations, and marketing under a single umbrella.

We’ve also established a new Marketing Hub to give customers more human and tailored support, rather than relying solely on digital forms or FAQs. And we’re investing in our dealer network through a dedicated dealer transformation team. It’s a wide-reaching role that balances daily delivery with long-term transformation.

Q: How does bringing together Toyota, Lexus, and KINTO under One Toyota benefit fleets?
A: It allows us to act as a one-stop shop. Our team can talk vehicles, finance, leasing, insurance and aftersales with confidence. For an SME with no dedicated fleet manager, we can effectively play that role by supporting acquisition, disposal, and in-life vehicle management. It’s consultative and flexible, whether they need one vehicle or hundreds.

Q: How does your work directly benefit fleet customers?
A: By listening first and shaping solutions based on real needs, not assumptions. Fleet is too complex for one-size-fits-all. Whether it’s a single van or a national fleet, we tailor our response. We’ve also made internal changes like direct invoicing and improved localisation to simplify customer journeys and reduce admin. That means one set of paperwork, one point of contact, and consistent national pricing.

Q: Are there common challenges you hear from customers?
A: Electrification is the big one. Most customers understand the need to decarbonise, but the how is often unclear. It’s about building the right pathway, whether that’s a switch to hybrids, plug-ins, or battery electric vehicles. A business might transition from 100 diesels to a mix of 90 hybrids and 10 EVs, which is still major progress. We support them with tools, advice and real-world examples that fit their operation.

Q: Toyota is known for reliability. How does that translate into real-world value?
A: Reliability means uptime, and in fleet, uptime is money. For commercial users, every hour off the road is lost revenue. Our focus on quality, durability, and reliability gives fleets confidence their vehicles will perform over time, which also supports stronger residual values and a lower total cost of ownership.

Q: How do you help customers choose the right vehicles and powertrains?
A: We use experience and data. Our team is starting to deploy telematics and drive data analysis to right-size vehicles and recommend appropriate powertrains. That means understanding driving patterns, load needs, charging infrastructure and real-world costs, then recommending petrol, hybrid, plug-in, electric or hydrogen accordingly.

Q: How is data being used to support better decisions?

A: We’re evolving our approach. We’re investing more in understanding customer behaviour, segmentation and specific fleet needs — not just at an account level, but across sectors and use cases. It’s about building a clearer picture of what different types of businesses value, so we can tailor conversations. It’s about having meaningful, insight-led conversations that help customers make better, more confident decisions.

Q: How does your team support transformation across the wider business?
A: Transformation isn’t a side project. It’s a core part of the job. We’ve brought in a dedicated transformation lead to coordinate long-term change across departments and One Toyota companies. That includes dealer capability, systems, logistics, and services like extended servicing hours or vehicle conversions, all aligned to customer needs.

Q: What qualities do you look for in your team?

A: Mindset matters more than technical skills. You can teach someone a system, but not how to care. We empower people to do the right thing, whether that’s stepping up to resolve a customer issue when it really matters or suggesting a better way of working. If our people care, everything else follows.

Q: What support do customers value most?
A: People, first and foremost. Customers value someone who will listen, challenge, and provide useful advice. From there, tools that help unpack total cost of ownership, finance options, taxation, and operational impact are vital. But it all starts with having a trusted person on the other end of the phone.

Q: How do finance solutions support better decisions?
A: Choice is key. Whether it’s contract hire, finance lease, hire purchase, or salary sacrifice, we tailor the solution to the vehicle’s use case. A van with a hard life may suit ownership and a longer lifecycle, while a company car might be best leased via KINTO. Our team helps businesses make that call.

Q: Can you share a recent customer success story?
A: We recently delivered 1,300 vans to a large telecommunications company, working across two dealer groups and converters. That required coordination across the One Toyota family, plus logistics and aftersales planning. It’s a great example of how we handle complexity behind the scenes, so the customer experiences a seamless journey.

Q: What shifts in fleet demand have stood out over the past 12 to 18 months?
A: The only consistent theme has been change. COVID disrupted supply chains, hybrid working changed how fleets are used, and electrification continues to reshape the market. Demand patterns, powertrain mix and customer expectations are all evolving. That makes it harder to plan but more important than ever to be adaptable.

Q: What does Better Business mean to you?
A: Better Business starts with better people. It’s about being flexible, listening to customer needs, and responding with the right product or service. Sometimes that’s a gold-standard package. Other times, it’s a leaner offer that still gets the job done. The key is understanding what’s valuable to that customer and delivering it well.

Q: What is your favourite vehicle?

A: The Lexus RZ is definitely a favourite. It responds instantly when you press the accelerator, which makes it a really enjoyable drive.