Sponsored by PurCo Fleet Services

ICRS Chairman Martin Romjue starts off Day 2 of the event.

In today’s rapidly changing world shaped by domestic pressures and global events leaders in every industry are navigating unprecedented uncertainty. Commander Kirk Lippold, USN (Ret.), former commanding officer of the USS Cole, shares powerful lessons on leading teams and making critical decisions when the stakes are high and the path forward is unclear. A compelling storyteller with real-world experience in crisis leadership, Commander Lippold draws on his “Pillars of Leadership” to deliver practical strategies for building trust, strengthening accountability, and responding effectively to challenges. Attendees will gain actionable insights they can apply within their own organizations, helping car rental leaders identify strengths, address gaps, and prepare their teams to succeed, no matter what the future brings.

Speaker:
Commander Kirk Lippold, U.S.S. Cole

Sponsored by Copart

Sponsored by Economy Rent a Car

ACRA has moved on many fronts during the past year on major issues affecting the car rental industry. In this annual session, hear from industry leaders about how ACRA is engaging more directly with policymakers, regulators, and federal agencies, ensuring that the voices of rental car operators, large and small, are heard at the highest levels of government. While ACRA’s policy engagement has reached new heights, the organization has also worked internally to enhance value for its members.

Speakers:
Sharky Laguana, ACRA Chairman
Don Lefeve, ACRA President and CEO

ICRS brings you the annual economic, market, and industry outlook for car rental industry, with stats and insights to factor into your daily business and operational decisions. This live, info-packed presentation anchors the conference agenda with its deep insights into trends affecting all areas of rental fleet operations.

Moderator:
Martin Romjue, ARN/ICRS

Speaker:
John Healy, Northcoast Research

Sponsored by Routes Car Rental

Zero Friction: Rethinking Car Rental For The No-Wait Generation

AI is gradually transforming the back end of rental car operations, as customers increasingly expect service at the speed of technology. In this session, a developer of an AI-center rental car company outlines the concepts, processes, and innovations that lead to a faster, more efficient operation. You’ll learn about the expectations and demands of the younger digital native generations now exploring the world and putting a premium on easy travel.

Presenter:
Jade Kang, Orcar

Future Car Renters: AI Creating New Experiences

How will AI affect the customer-facing sides of rental operations and rental cars? This session will connect the technology with the expectations of car renters. The all-encompassing concept of mobility will redefine the end-user experience for renting one car and/or using related ground transportation options.

Presenter:
Philipp Gauss, Bosch

Meet Jul-IA: The Agentic Tech Angel Who Does It All

How can rental car operations benefit from a multilingual AI agent who not only talks to customers, but works inside the rental business taking real responsibilities across sales, finance, and operations, all with a friendly, human-like language? Jul-IA also never complains, gets sick, or goes on vacation. As tech advances and customer mobility expectations grow to a 24/7 standards, you will learn how agentic AI has evolved to redefine rental fleet operations.

Presenter:
Julian Gritsch, JGCorp

Moderator:
Martin Romjue, ARN/ICRS

As international car rental franchises grow worldwide and cross-national boundaries, the many travel and car rental markets become closer-knit through technology. Real-time pricing, revenue management, and reservation flexibility will increasingly spur competition and opportunity for car rental operators and car renters alike. This session will look at the latest operational rental fleet trends as well as growth opportunities for a global approach.

Presenter:
Executive from RateGain / Rev AI

The two leading Brazilian and South American car rental professional groups announced a merger in late 2025 that brings new potential and opportunities to car rental operators. This panel will look at new breakthroughs and plans in the areas of employee development and training, rental company ownership and management, and technological advances. The united groups will integrate with associations or unions from other countries to share knowledge and market practices and work toward building a more extensive and integrated professional network.

Moderator:
Paulo Miguel Jr, ABLA

Panelists:
TBD

International Track Sponsored by
Green Motion & U-Save

Sponsored by Economy Rent a Car

Class actions and consumer claims challenging operational procedures and decisions create risk for both large and small operators.  The claims target a wide variety of practices, including sale of damage waivers and other optional products, damage recovery charges, “junk fees,” telematics, data privacy and security, Americans with Disabilities Act, and toll programs. This session will focus on what you can do to help prevent trouble before it shows up in the form of a lawsuit or consumer demand.

We will review examples of lawsuits regarding many aspects of rental operations.  Most importantly we will offer lessons learned from those proceedings.

Presenters:
Wesly Hurst, Posinelli
Leslie Pujo, Plave Koch

International Track Sponsored by
Green Motion & U-Save

Enjoy a drink and light bites, mingle with the movers and shakers in car rental. The opening Evening Reception give ICRS attendees a deep dive into the latest in car rental services and technologies.

Reception Sponsored by HQ Rental Software