On Monday morning, Victoria brought the idea to a meeting that was supposed to last twenty minutes. Caine Mobility's new agreement required the company to support a growing network of commercial vehicles, beginning with a regional pool of six hundred and forty service vans, inspection cars, and light trucks. The proposed maintenance plan relied heavily on a national provider called MetroTorque Service Group. Its price schedule was attractive, its coverage map impressive, and its draft contract required invoices to be paid on a cycle that could stretch to ninety days.
Naomi Brooks, the director of fleet operations, had helped build the proposal. She was forty-two, a practical manager who knew the difference between a vehicle that looked repaired on a spreadsheet and one that was actually ready for work. When Victoria asked whether local independent shops had been evaluated, Naomi opened the report and looked for a section that did not exist. "We focused on network capacity and standardized reporting," she said. "The chain had both."
"What about repair quality?" Victoria asked. "We reviewed their warranties and service metrics." "And actual quality at the local bay level?"
Naomi hesitated. "We haven't audited individual branches. The contract would make the provider responsible for meeting our standards."
Across the table, Peter Ashby, the chief financial officer, looked up from his laptop. "I hope we're not rethinking a negotiated maintenance arrangement the morning after we signed the expansion deal," he said. "We need predictable costs." Victoria agreed that predictability mattered. Then she asked what happened when a low bid came from a service provider that couldn't identify a recurring mechanical problem until a fleet had already lost days on the road.
Peter frowned. "That's a vendor management issue." "Exactly," Victoria said. "I want us to manage vendors, not merely choose the largest one." She described an independent shop she had visited, taking care not to use Ethan's name yet. She explained that the owner had old equipment but organized records, no glossy marketing, and a refusal to promise capacity he did not have.
"That is an anecdote," Peter said. "It's not a sourcing strategy." "Then build a sourcing strategy that can test it," Victoria replied. She looked at Naomi. "Could we divide the metropolitan area into service zones and invite qualified independents to bid for a limited pilot?"
Naomi thought for a moment. "Possibly. We'd have to define inspection standards, data reporting, emergency response, commercial insurance, and parts traceability. A small shop might do better work but still fail our volume requirements."
"Then capacity is part of the score," Victoria said. "I don't want to pretend size doesn't matter. I want to know whether we've mistaken size for competence."
The discussion expanded into a full hour. Peter argued that onboarding several smaller vendors would increase administrative work, and Daniela Ruiz from supplier relations warned that inconsistent invoices could overwhelm the new fleet system. Olivia Park from compliance said none of that was impossible if the audit process was defined before invitations went out. Naomi, increasingly interested despite her initial reservations, suggested a ninety-day pilot using limited numbers of vehicles and measured turnaround times rather than sales promises.