Merchants Fleet Invests in Innovation with Launch of New Innovation Department
Merchants Fleet has launched its Innovation Department and hired Lisa Bonacci as its Director of Innovation. The Innovation Department is dedicated to providing resources to further develop the skills, behaviors, and processes needed to continue to drive an innovative client experience. The new department, which Bonacci leads, is part of the company’s growing efforts to drive innovation in the fleet management space.
Prior to joining Merchants Fleet, Bonacci served as the Engagement Manager for one of the most innovative companies in the world, Southern NH University [SNHU], and their Sandbox ColLABorative, the SNHU research and development lab of strategy and innovation. She has extensive experience in facilitating innovation sessions to help companies think about the future and solve pressing problems. SNHU has repeatedly been named the Most Innovative University in the North by U.S. News & World Report, and it was named one of the World’s 50 Most Innovative Companies by Fast Company in 2012.
“Merchants Fleet recognizes that in order to stay on the leading edge in the fleet industry, we need to provide our teams with the infrastructure and resources to innovate new ideas for our clients,” said Amanda E. Rogers, VP of Marketing & Innovation at Merchants. “Lisa will be a great asset as we launch our Innovation Department and think big to deliver an even better fleet management experience for our clients.”
In her role, Bonacci will oversee and support a wide range of efforts taking place at Merchants Fleet to collect and nurture ideas, test and prototype, establish norms of collaboration, and educate on creative problem-solving. The company has been establishing dedicated spaces for innovative thinking, including its Innovation Center in Chicago and collaborative spaces in its new headquarters, which is opening in Q3 of 2019. Merchants is also developing idea bootcamps, innovation resource libraries, trainings, and workshops that employees can use to drive innovative outcomes in their day-to-day work and for clients.
