Announcing the 2026 Samsara Connected Operations Award winners

Our customers are our greatest source of inspiration at Samsara. They push us to solve harder problems, build smarter tools, and think bigger about what connected operations can do for the people running them. The Connected Operations Awards exist to celebrate that partnership, and the extraordinary outcomes it produces. Every year, the submissions we receive remind us why this work matters: safer teams, more efficient operations, and a new standard for what digital transformation looks like when it's built alongside the people doing the work.

This year's submissions set new records, and the stories behind them were unlike anything we've seen before. Across every category, what stood out wasn't just the results (though they were remarkable), it was the depth of collaboration with our customers. They aren't just using Samsara but shaping it: co-building features, integrating it into their own systems, and finding new applications of the technology. The winners you'll meet below represent the very best of that relationship. Join us in celebrating the 2026 Samsara Connected Operations Award winners and the people behind their stories.

Safest Operator: Utility Supply & Construction Company

The Connected Operations Award for Safest Operator recognizes organizations that protect employees, safeguard communities, and prevent incidents. This year's winner is committed to prioritizing safety and understands how technology can help protect their employees and the communities where they work.

Utility Supply & Construction Company (USCCO) is the parent company of The Hydaker-Wheatlake Company, CVR Engineering, Crossroads Mobile Maintenance, Power Line Supply Company, and Hydrolake Incorporated, combining expertise across utility construction, engineering, equipment maintenance, material supply, and pole manufacturing. Their crews work in high-risk rural and metropolitan environments, operating around energized utility lines, moving heavy equipment through dense urban job sites, and mobilizing into storm-impacted regions ahead of and following major weather events, all with a predominantly unionized, project-based workforce. USCCO deployed Samsara's AI Dash Cams with a "trust first" approach, installing cameras with covers initially to calibrate accuracy and build worker confidence before going fully live, and designing a single-reviewer oversight model to ensure fairness. The approach earned praise from union leadership, and drivers now use the panic button to proactively clear themselves from false third-party claims.

As a result, USCCO achieved a 98% reduction in insurance claim costs, dropping from a historical high of $1.4M to just $22K midway through the current policy year. Claim frequency fell 74%, and average cost per claim dropped 69% year-over-year. Beyond the safety numbers, USCCO used Samsara asset tracking to develop a decoy GPS strategy that helped law enforcement bust a major equipment theft ring, recovering $350K in stolen equipment. Their "Rising Stars" recognition program, which surfaces drivers with 20,000 or more accident-free miles and top safety scores, cemented a culture where excellence is celebrated. Read the full case study →

Finalists: Silvi Group

Excellence in Systems Efficiency: Chick-fil-A Supply

The Connected Operations Award for Excellence in Systems Efficiency recognizes organizations that use technology to connect systems, streamline operations, and drive measurable performance gains. This year's winner has built a technology-first culture that redefines what efficiency looks like at scale.

Chick-fil-A Supply is an innovative distribution service provider focused on understanding and meeting the unique needs of Chick-fil-A restaurants, managing a network of 13 distribution centers that serve over 1,400 restaurants. Built from the ground up over just seven years, Chick-fil-A Supply has woven Samsara into the core of how they operate. Their team uses Weather Intelligence to reroute drivers around dangerous conditions, relies on Vehicle Gateway Hotspot pooling to keep drivers online during cellular outages, and has automated yard check-in processes that previously required hours of manual work each night. Chick-fil-A Supply has engineered efficiency into every layer of their operation.

The outcomes are extraordinary: a 50% reduction in insurance premiums by sharing Samsara data with the company’s carrier and a 95% driver retention rate built on proactive coaching and positive recognition. Chick-fil-A Supply standardized safety and HOS programs across all 13 sites using only internal staff, saving significantly on implementation costs.

Finalists: Southwest Airlines, ChampionX

Innovation in Sustainable Operations: Massey Services 

The Connected Operations Award for Innovation in Sustainable Operations recognizes organizations that demonstrate meaningful environmental progress through operational innovation. This year's winner is proof that sustainability and profitability go hand in hand.

Massey Services is one of the nation's largest privately held, family-owned pest prevention, termite protection, landscape, and irrigation services company, operating a fleet across the south central and southeastern United States. Massey is an awarded leader in sustainability for their commitment to providing innovative services with minimal impact on our environment, including recognition by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for the creation of their Pest Prevention program and their dedication to water conservation. With Samsara, the Massey team deepens that commitment by using fuel card integration and idling alerts to monitor fuel consumption. Their team developed a custom dashboard using Samsara data to track fuel trends across all service centers and generate monthly reports which are then evaluated by leadership.

As a result of Massey’s partnership with Samsara, they saved over 250,000 gallons of fuel, worth $1.3M, in 2025, while actively growing their fleet. They also reduced idling time by 400 hours year-over-year, decreasing total fuel consumption and vehicle emissions. Massey’s current fleet consists of 10% hybrid vehicles with plans to grow to 25% by year end. What sets Massey apart is what they chose to do with those savings: every dollar was reinvested to directly benefit their team members through salaries, bonuses, retirement contributions and enhanced medical insurance. Massey Services demonstrates that a commitment to sustainability is beneficial to both the company and the planet. Read the full case study →

Finalists: Tropical Shipping

Digital Transformation of the Year: Enercare 

The Connected Operations Award for Digital Transformation of the Year recognizes organizations that have achieved a meaningful shift in how they operate, moving away from legacy processes toward a data-driven approach. This year's winner successfully engaged a large workforce, building trust and reinforcing a culture of empowerment and shared accountability.

Enercare is one of Canada's largest home and commercial services companies, with a field workforce of over 1,000 technicians and drivers delivering HVAC, plumbing, and energy solutions. As the company scaled, they saw an opportunity to further strengthen visibility, consistency, and support across their field teams. When deploying more than 1,800 Samsara devices in just 180 days, Enercare recognized that success would depend not just on technology, but on prioritizing trust with drivers. In response, the team launched a “Safety Drives Us Home” campaign, positioning the technology as a tool to protect and support employees. They also became an early adopter of Samsara's Avatar AI Coach, customizing it to feature the image and voice of their own Chief Operating Officer, making every driver feel like they were receiving direct feedback from the top.

Fleet utilization data also surfaced efficiency gains. At one site, redeploying underutilized vehicles cut dormancy by 26% and reduced operating costs. Enercare's rollout went beyond performance metrics to build genuine trust with employees. When AI Dash Cam footage fully exonerated a driver in a disputed collision, it proved that the same technology improving operations was also protecting the people behind the wheel. Read the full case study →

Finalists: Sears Home Services, Heath Consultants, Bonnie Plants

Most Innovative Workforce: Tyson Foods, Inc.  

The Connected Operations Award for Most Innovative Workforce recognizes organizations that have transformed how their people work, empowering frontline employees with better tools, enabling smarter decisions, and building a safety culture that scales. This year's winner has done exactly that across one of the largest private fleets in the country.

Tyson Foods is a global food company operating one of the largest private fleets in North America, with a team managing a large number of drivers across the country. Committed to building a culture that matches their scale, Tyson Foods modernized their operations with a tiered coaching model that puts responsibility directly in drivers' hands, empowering their team to become engaged in their own performance. They also utilize the platform to improve visibility and decision-making in daily operations.

Finalists: Ferraro Foods, Ben E. Keith

Technology Leader of the Year: David Perez, First Student

The Connected Operations Award for Technology Leader of the Year recognizes an individual who has demonstrated exceptional vision, creativity, and leadership in deploying technology to transform their operations. This year's winner has done so in support of one of the most important responsibilities imaginable: transporting 4.8 million children safely to and from school every day.

David Perez is the Vice President of Safety at First Student, the largest student transportation provider in North America, and he describes his role with a simple frame: a moral obligation to ensure that employees, passengers, and the public are never put at risk. Delivering on that obligation at a company operating nearly 49,000 vehicles requires technology that works at scale. First Student embedded Samsara video, telematics, and diagnostic capabilities directly into HALO™, their proprietary AI technology platform, creating a safer, smarter student transportation ecosystem that connects drivers, dispatch, maintenance, schools, students, and families. Through the First View® app integration, over 295,000 families receive real-time school bus or vehicle location and ETAs for their children's rides. First Student’s maintenance team uses Samsara's remote diagnostics to proactively catch electrical faults before they escalate, protecting assets worth up to $400K each.

The results from First Student's pilot program show reductions in mobile phone use (-62%), inattentive driving (-81%), forward collision warnings (-63%), and rolling stops (-54%), plus a 30% improvement in seatbelt compliance. In one instance, a dispatcher caught a seatbelt alert and made a fleet-wide announcement, leading one driver to buckle up. Hours later, that bus was struck by a car, but the seatbelt kept the driver in place and safe on the road. That is zero harm in practice, and it reflects First Student and David’s commitment to delivering unmatched care and the safest ride to school. Currently, David and First Student are co-developing an AI-powered unattended child detection feature with Samsara, pushing toward an industry standard of no children ever left behind.

Finalists: Service Minds

Driver of the Year (United States): Darrin J. Lonsdale, Action Resources

The Connected Operations Award for Driver of the Year recognizes an individual commercial driver who exemplifies safety, professionalism, and the value of consistent coaching. This year's US winner doesn't just drive safely, he makes every driver around him better.

Darrin J. Lonsdale is a commercial driver for Action Resources, a hazardous materials and chemical transportation company. In a high-stakes industry where cargo risks and road hazards are ever-present, Darrin has driven nearly 764,000 accident-free miles and maintained a clean inspection record with zero violations since 2023. With 25 years of commercial driving experience, he has become far more than a driver. He personally mentors up to 40 regional drivers on equipment operation, regulatory procedures, and safety technology. He frequently steps in to support terminal operations and has worked directly with refinery customers to redesign loading setups that reduce the risk of hazardous spills.

Darrin embodies what it means to be a professional. He is also part of a broader safety evolution at Action Resources: through coaching and technology adoption initiatives, coachable events dropped across the fleet. Darrin’s story is what modern commercial driving looks like: disciplined, data-informed, and committed to raising the standard for everyone around him. Read the full case study →

Driver of the Year (Canada): Jessie-Lee Beaudoin, Whitewater Management LP

The Connected Operations Award for Driver of the Year recognizes an individual commercial driver who exemplifies safety, professionalism, and the value of consistent coaching. This year's Canadian winner's story is one of the most compelling individual turnarounds in the program's history.

Jessie-Lee Beaudoin is a driver for Whitewater Management LP, a western Canadian industrial water and fluid management company serving the oil and gas, mining, and construction sectors. Operating heavy vehicles across remote terrain in Alberta and British Columbia, where conditions are unpredictable and the margin for error is thin, Jessie-Lee came onto Samsara's radar in 2024 with a safety score of 11 out of 100. She had accumulated 24 distracted driving events, primarily from mobile phone use, and logged over 33 hours of speeding. Rather than respond with punishment, Whitewater Management LP used Samsara's event data and video to hold direct, fact-based coaching conversations. Jessie-Lee responded, switching to hands-free communication and adopting cruise control as consistent habits.

In 2025, while tripling her annual mileage, Jessie-Lee raised her safety score from 11 to 98, an 87-point improvement, and reduced distracted driving events by 92% and speeding by 91%. She was recognized as a Top Driver in four separate months during the year. What makes her story exceptional is what she took home with her: Jessie-Lee now applies the same no-phone standard to her personal vehicle, making safety not a job requirement but a personal value. Her transformation sits inside a broader company story. Whitewater Management LP reduced crashes 73% across the fleet, cut seatbelt violations 85%, and grew the number of drivers scoring 95 or above by 164% in a single year. Read the full case study →

Congratulations to our 2026 Connected Operations Award winners

The innovation happening across Samsara's customer base goes well beyond this list. Read the stories from this year's winners in the U.S. Public Sector, Europe, and Mexico, and see how organizations across every sector and region are raising the bar for what connected operations can achieve.