A company is the sum total of its components just like a watch. If any one of those components fails, the whole watch is affected in its ultimate function. All the components are important to the task; but each component is individual in its function.
Just over a hundred years ago, Hans Wilsdorf capitalized on Swiss watch movements by registering the name Rolex and using those movements to power his watches. The rest is history. The quality of the movements gave credence to the brand name on the watch.
Trucking has been trying to do the opposite for many years. They have been advertising at very high costs and seeking to hire recruiters who care only about "making the sale" in order to bring in the necessary numbers. They have established a paradigm of trying to build a quality brand while ignoring the actual quality of what they're trying to sell.
This has resulted in the chaos caused by turnover and the costly instability it creates. Maybe trucking ought to take a hint from Mr. Wilsdorf. After all, who wouldn't want to be the Rolex of trucking companies?
This is where a Retention Specialist who knows the industry from the ground up becomes very useful; but only if the company is willing to do more than pay mere lip service to recommendations made after a thorough assessment of the company's operations. Hiring a specialist just for the sake of advertising the fact that "we can appear to care" is just another way of exacerbating the problem.
The only way to repair a non-working watch is to open it up and examine its parts. An experienced watch repair person can have it ticking on time again if the owner is willing to pay the cost to have it repaired. If the owner just wants a "patch" job, it may not be long before the watch breaks again in the same place.
We need to understand that this is no longer "our grandfather's" Trucking Industry. Also, we need to realize that this is a new era altogether for all industries. If we do so, we can get ahead of the pack in securing and retaining the best talent out there in the fields our industry has. If we fail to, we will watch the Wildorfs of the Trucking Industry put their brand on movements that we could have branded as ours. Even so, this is more than just about time; it is about timing! It is about being early rather than late and emulating that proverbial bird that gets the worm. Tudaloo and Happy Trails!
Trucking
Without Trucks, America Stops
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
Social Media and Trucking
One of the attributes of a professional driver is that he or she is "seasoned". That means he or she has learned that driving for a living isn't all joy. There are negatives to contend with and contingencies that one may never see coming.
Seasoned drivers deal with these on a daily basis without blaming and "flaming" the carrier they work for unless the carrier has a tendency to expect the driver to make up for those negatives and contingencies. Theoretically, a 62mph truck should average 682 miles in an 11 hour period. And if the driver could keep the "pedal to the metal" all 11 hours without ever stopping or slowing down; that would be an accurate calculation. But given that many things can, and others must, occur in 11 hours, which will diminish that average, a true average is about 45mph on a bad day and 55mph on a good one.
There are still companies out there that expect a driver to "fudge" or "get creative" with his or her logbook to negate the effects of unexpected contingencies on runs. Those who do are hailed as "runners" and those that stick to the rules are hailed as "whiners." The punishment for "whiners" is to be relegated to a list of drivers that gets only loads with excessive time to deliver; or, short loads only. Worse than that, is having to pick up a load with good miles on it, just to turn it over to another driver who supposedly needs a load home or to a team that has complained because they are not getting enough miles. Teams are "golden children" with OTR carriers. With driver pay being based on miles driven, this can really affect one's pay negatively for that week.
When there was no recourse for these and numerous other inequities that exist is the Trucking Industry, drivers just got frustrated and moved on to another company that operated much the same regardless of the fact that all their "hype" in their advertisements in trade publications promised that they were the ones who would respect the driver in the morning.
Today, the driver that is connected to an entire virtual community is not the exception; but the norm. One of the things new entrants are asking on forums is, "What is the best technology to stay connected while on the road?" That means drivers are interacting online in real time. They are capable of posting actual events almost as they happen and can not only document them with still pictures but also with video.
Every driver can now post his or her comments to any number of social media outlets. Here is the clincher: These are drivers from distinct companies perhaps facing the same inequities. It is worse yet when too many drivers from the same company complain about the same inequities. This can either form a consensus that there is a problem in this area; or it can be ignored while retention takes a seat at the back of the bus.
Does social media matter? Not as much as it will in the near future! With the transparency that social media provides for all entities; all entities should be fully conscious that bad driving habits, as well as, bad company culture, will not remain hidden for very long. In that respect, social media is a double-edged sword. It sort of acts like a lock; it keeps honest people honest! I fully believe that social media will make or break drivers and trucking companies of today and tomorrow once it becomes fully recognized for its potential.
Seasoned drivers deal with these on a daily basis without blaming and "flaming" the carrier they work for unless the carrier has a tendency to expect the driver to make up for those negatives and contingencies. Theoretically, a 62mph truck should average 682 miles in an 11 hour period. And if the driver could keep the "pedal to the metal" all 11 hours without ever stopping or slowing down; that would be an accurate calculation. But given that many things can, and others must, occur in 11 hours, which will diminish that average, a true average is about 45mph on a bad day and 55mph on a good one.
There are still companies out there that expect a driver to "fudge" or "get creative" with his or her logbook to negate the effects of unexpected contingencies on runs. Those who do are hailed as "runners" and those that stick to the rules are hailed as "whiners." The punishment for "whiners" is to be relegated to a list of drivers that gets only loads with excessive time to deliver; or, short loads only. Worse than that, is having to pick up a load with good miles on it, just to turn it over to another driver who supposedly needs a load home or to a team that has complained because they are not getting enough miles. Teams are "golden children" with OTR carriers. With driver pay being based on miles driven, this can really affect one's pay negatively for that week.
When there was no recourse for these and numerous other inequities that exist is the Trucking Industry, drivers just got frustrated and moved on to another company that operated much the same regardless of the fact that all their "hype" in their advertisements in trade publications promised that they were the ones who would respect the driver in the morning.
Today, the driver that is connected to an entire virtual community is not the exception; but the norm. One of the things new entrants are asking on forums is, "What is the best technology to stay connected while on the road?" That means drivers are interacting online in real time. They are capable of posting actual events almost as they happen and can not only document them with still pictures but also with video.
Every driver can now post his or her comments to any number of social media outlets. Here is the clincher: These are drivers from distinct companies perhaps facing the same inequities. It is worse yet when too many drivers from the same company complain about the same inequities. This can either form a consensus that there is a problem in this area; or it can be ignored while retention takes a seat at the back of the bus.
Does social media matter? Not as much as it will in the near future! With the transparency that social media provides for all entities; all entities should be fully conscious that bad driving habits, as well as, bad company culture, will not remain hidden for very long. In that respect, social media is a double-edged sword. It sort of acts like a lock; it keeps honest people honest! I fully believe that social media will make or break drivers and trucking companies of today and tomorrow once it becomes fully recognized for its potential.
Thursday, June 28, 2012
Professional Driver 2.0
With the advent of better educated drivers must come the realization that those of us who have taken the time and made the effort to better educate ourselves will look at the ROI of our time on the truck. We will figure all the related costs of this occupation and calculate the overall compensation being offered. If the entity wants to govern their equipment for fuel savings, then it should be willing to take into consideration the time and inconvenience it will cost me and compensate me for it. Whether I am OTR , regional, or local, from the time I step into that truck, I am on duty and should be on company time. That is a disadvantageous situation for OTR drivers who work in a setting that keeps them out for 14-21 days at present. They are actually gambling that they will be provided with loads that will make it possible for them to defray the costs of being out there and still bring home a living wage.
The present Trucking Industry paradigm is not conducive to less turnover. If anything, it is the perfect setting for greater turnover than ever seen before if the demand for capacity increases. The better educated professional driver isn't going to settle for giving away his or her valuable time. In the end, the industry will have no choice but to change its operating model in a way that lowers its costs, ensures optimum compensation for those doing the work at the level where the rubber meets the road, and creates greater profitability by reducing the enormous cost of high turnover.
Those who do so before the peak of crisis will be the survivors that move on to the next level. The time of the dirty, foul-mouthed, ecessive speed junkie, druggie truck driver is over (thank God and all the changes being brought about by the implementation of CDL, CSA, & Drug Testing for that), but you get what you pay for; and there is no caviar on the menu at the price of a cheeseburger!
The present Trucking Industry paradigm is not conducive to less turnover. If anything, it is the perfect setting for greater turnover than ever seen before if the demand for capacity increases. The better educated professional driver isn't going to settle for giving away his or her valuable time. In the end, the industry will have no choice but to change its operating model in a way that lowers its costs, ensures optimum compensation for those doing the work at the level where the rubber meets the road, and creates greater profitability by reducing the enormous cost of high turnover.
Those who do so before the peak of crisis will be the survivors that move on to the next level. The time of the dirty, foul-mouthed, ecessive speed junkie, druggie truck driver is over (thank God and all the changes being brought about by the implementation of CDL, CSA, & Drug Testing for that), but you get what you pay for; and there is no caviar on the menu at the price of a cheeseburger!
Friday, February 4, 2011
The Times They Are A Changing
"We have been in it many years, what it was it's not anymore. Out of it now truck is parked but Paid for.
Trucking Sucks and I'll stand by what I always said. When the bottom fell out and all the jobs lost the white collar pencil pushers and all the blue collars out of work came to trucking and became food for the sharks feeding.(trucking companies)
It distroyed us. And I'm sure cost alot of familes, homes ect."
Those are the unedited words of a Professional Driver and Owner/Operator. They made me wonder just how many folks like her are out there. Do I believe precisely as she does? Not necessarily, but her words do have a point that I believe is valid.
As much as it pains me to do so, because I have spent a lifetime in the industry, I must agree with this statement. I watched as the pencil pushers and the bean counters became the "governing force" within trucking long before the economic bust. The part of the company that was supposed to be a support system for the drivers became the cruel taskmaster. That combined with the evolution of trucking rules and regulations in the name of safety has thrown the industry into an abyss of confusion and instability. The economic downturn that this nation is still trying to dig itself out of only served to create the "perfect storm" for trucking.
Some companies shored up their bottom line through layoffs and diverse cost-cutting measures. Other companies decided to implement those and start charging their drivers for things like, among others, "idling" and forcing them to make a decision between staying warm or cold in the winter and cool or hot in the summer. The real choice, though, was between comfortable conditions and losing part of their paycheck earned at the expense of being away from home and family. For those companies to take advantage of the fact that jobs became scarce and that drivers who cared about their families were going to do whatever it took to keep theirs is unpardonable in my opinion. I'm sure that a present and ex-driver audit of certain big companies in that regard for the past 3 years would reveal some very eye-opening facts and stories. I'm sure someone will think of doing that given the big push for increased capacity that is now forming another "perfect storm" of a different nature for trucking companies. One can only imagine the competitive edge that will result for some companies as companies are graded on documented metrics. Not all bad companies went down the drain during the recession! Some will go down as a result of their actions during it.
So yes, all things considered, "trucking is not what it was" and never will be again. Now, is that all bad? Not necessarily! Companies all over had to reduce their capacity to survive. Companies with a bad reputation had to do the same as they went practically dormant through that period of "just hanging on."
As a Safety & Compliance Manager for our company, I sat with a DOT Compliance Auditor this week and we conversed on this subject. Trucking will never be the same because new parameters have been set for the industry and compliance will affect it tremendously, not only from the company perspective any longer, but also from the individual driver perspective. What that means is that the industry will suffer losses in capacity, beyond the ones it has already suffered due to the economy, from negligent drivers who are disqualified due to their non-compliance to the new rules.
The more deficient the industry is in qualified drivers, the better its compensation must be in all aspects. Will that affect all other industries? Of course! It will affect the economy as a whole, but not just any Tom, Dick, or Harriet will be able to go to a CDL mill and get a license and a certificate that qualifies him or her to start working as a Professional Driver. Prices will of necessity rise and everyone will pay because we all depend on this industry to move America. The upside is that we won't have qualified people like Lunachic (the Professional Driver and Owner/Operator above) sitting on the sidelines in disgust at the inequities produced by an industry in turmoil.
So, we can sit and brood about the way things used to be; or we can realize what a tremendous opportunity this is to set our own terms as drivers and owner/operators. Think about it! If you have a clear safety and performance record, you are of immense worth to the industry. I don't know of any company using self-driven trucks yet, so I project that drivers will be a very valuable commodity until those are practical for use. For incoming drivers, you have the opportunity to help use the changes for the benefit of those who actually do the work of hauling the freight; you.
I tend to view things from the perspective of Robert Kennedy who said, "Some see things as they are and ask 'Why?' I see things as they could be and ask, 'Why not?' I don't believe in fables like, "you can't get two drivers to agree on anything" because I think real drivers are people who value common sense. It is one indispensable thing in this industry. Can being a new driver be as bad as all that? Yes, but only if you are not sure that this is what you want to do. If you have decided that trucking is your industry, then set your sights high, let nothing deter you from achieving the status of Professional Driver, and use the knowledge gained and record achieved to set yourself up for exposure through those to a satisfying career in trucking. Remember, you can always change trainers, trucks, and even companies in a time when everyone and their uncle is desperately searching for drivers. Don't let whims become your reasons for doing so and you'll get through the rough times and move on to the good. That is the definition of a "seasoned driver" He or she knows how to deal with both good and bad. Now, as I'm beginning to feel as though I've over-extended my opportunity to speak from experience, I bid you all Tudaloo and Happy Trails!
Trucking Sucks and I'll stand by what I always said. When the bottom fell out and all the jobs lost the white collar pencil pushers and all the blue collars out of work came to trucking and became food for the sharks feeding.(trucking companies)
It distroyed us. And I'm sure cost alot of familes, homes ect."
Those are the unedited words of a Professional Driver and Owner/Operator. They made me wonder just how many folks like her are out there. Do I believe precisely as she does? Not necessarily, but her words do have a point that I believe is valid.
As much as it pains me to do so, because I have spent a lifetime in the industry, I must agree with this statement. I watched as the pencil pushers and the bean counters became the "governing force" within trucking long before the economic bust. The part of the company that was supposed to be a support system for the drivers became the cruel taskmaster. That combined with the evolution of trucking rules and regulations in the name of safety has thrown the industry into an abyss of confusion and instability. The economic downturn that this nation is still trying to dig itself out of only served to create the "perfect storm" for trucking.
Some companies shored up their bottom line through layoffs and diverse cost-cutting measures. Other companies decided to implement those and start charging their drivers for things like, among others, "idling" and forcing them to make a decision between staying warm or cold in the winter and cool or hot in the summer. The real choice, though, was between comfortable conditions and losing part of their paycheck earned at the expense of being away from home and family. For those companies to take advantage of the fact that jobs became scarce and that drivers who cared about their families were going to do whatever it took to keep theirs is unpardonable in my opinion. I'm sure that a present and ex-driver audit of certain big companies in that regard for the past 3 years would reveal some very eye-opening facts and stories. I'm sure someone will think of doing that given the big push for increased capacity that is now forming another "perfect storm" of a different nature for trucking companies. One can only imagine the competitive edge that will result for some companies as companies are graded on documented metrics. Not all bad companies went down the drain during the recession! Some will go down as a result of their actions during it.
So yes, all things considered, "trucking is not what it was" and never will be again. Now, is that all bad? Not necessarily! Companies all over had to reduce their capacity to survive. Companies with a bad reputation had to do the same as they went practically dormant through that period of "just hanging on."
As a Safety & Compliance Manager for our company, I sat with a DOT Compliance Auditor this week and we conversed on this subject. Trucking will never be the same because new parameters have been set for the industry and compliance will affect it tremendously, not only from the company perspective any longer, but also from the individual driver perspective. What that means is that the industry will suffer losses in capacity, beyond the ones it has already suffered due to the economy, from negligent drivers who are disqualified due to their non-compliance to the new rules.
The more deficient the industry is in qualified drivers, the better its compensation must be in all aspects. Will that affect all other industries? Of course! It will affect the economy as a whole, but not just any Tom, Dick, or Harriet will be able to go to a CDL mill and get a license and a certificate that qualifies him or her to start working as a Professional Driver. Prices will of necessity rise and everyone will pay because we all depend on this industry to move America. The upside is that we won't have qualified people like Lunachic (the Professional Driver and Owner/Operator above) sitting on the sidelines in disgust at the inequities produced by an industry in turmoil.
So, we can sit and brood about the way things used to be; or we can realize what a tremendous opportunity this is to set our own terms as drivers and owner/operators. Think about it! If you have a clear safety and performance record, you are of immense worth to the industry. I don't know of any company using self-driven trucks yet, so I project that drivers will be a very valuable commodity until those are practical for use. For incoming drivers, you have the opportunity to help use the changes for the benefit of those who actually do the work of hauling the freight; you.
I tend to view things from the perspective of Robert Kennedy who said, "Some see things as they are and ask 'Why?' I see things as they could be and ask, 'Why not?' I don't believe in fables like, "you can't get two drivers to agree on anything" because I think real drivers are people who value common sense. It is one indispensable thing in this industry. Can being a new driver be as bad as all that? Yes, but only if you are not sure that this is what you want to do. If you have decided that trucking is your industry, then set your sights high, let nothing deter you from achieving the status of Professional Driver, and use the knowledge gained and record achieved to set yourself up for exposure through those to a satisfying career in trucking. Remember, you can always change trainers, trucks, and even companies in a time when everyone and their uncle is desperately searching for drivers. Don't let whims become your reasons for doing so and you'll get through the rough times and move on to the good. That is the definition of a "seasoned driver" He or she knows how to deal with both good and bad. Now, as I'm beginning to feel as though I've over-extended my opportunity to speak from experience, I bid you all Tudaloo and Happy Trails!
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Now Comes the Squeeze
Over two years ago, when the floundering economy forced the company I was employed by to reduce its workforce, I commented to others who were affected by the downturn that unless this was the end of the world, the economy would have to resume its upward movement sometime in the future; even if at a snail's pace.
Having seen more than one of these recessions, albeit all of lesser impact, the rebound in the economy has always made the period between the start and end of a recession seem like a pause that tends to disavow the concerns that were important before the recession began. Let's face it; who cares about recruiting quotas when there isn't enough freight to go around for the drivers still employed by the company? Who cares about becoming the employer of choice when faced with the fact that the very survival of said company is at stake?
In fact, at least one trucking company that went out of business during the recession did not care enough to warn its drivers that it was on the brink of total collapse. They only found out after it had bottomed out and they had no fuel or way to get home. The resulting chaos left drivers stranded throughout the country during the Christmas holiday season.
My question is: Was this callous and treacherous act isolated and completely alien to its normal attitude towards its drivers?
My answer: Not just no, but NO!
Just as Rome was not built in a day, the success or failure and the culture of a company is not determined by one isolated incident. It is a series of choices and decisions that paves the way to either of the two. This graphic example of indifference to just treatment of human resources was perpetrated upon truck drivers, but it also affected those employees who worked inside and knew nothing until it happened. It took the adverse effects of a recession to bring the company's culture to the surface and into full view of all the world.
And that is the point I would like to stress today. Although the recession may seem to have paused everything to the point of making all the concerns that were important before the recession disappear, I beg to differ.
Most, if not all, companies had to reduce their capacity to haul freight in order to survive what was clearly the closest thing this country has seen to a full-blown depression since the Great Depression. As the economy gathers steam once again, capacity becomes extremely important to all who would remain competitive. After all, success is measured by growth in any industry.
This means that the push for trucks and drivers must resume and resume quickly. Don't believe me? Check the job boards using the keywords, Driver Recruiter. Add to this the push by diverse entities to make the rules for drivers more stringent, the training more in-depth and effective, and the sanctions for infraction more severe; and you have part of the ingredients needed for a driver shortage. Add to the mix the reduced pool of eligible candidates and those who have no desire to adjust to the lifestyle of an over-the-road driver, and it isn't hard to see the writing on the wall. Competition is going to be hot and heavy!
If a company is going to survive during the upswing, it will have to strive to build a company culture that does more than pay lip service to employee appreciation at all levels; but particularly at the driver level. Let's face it, what is the whole purpose of a trucking company if not to move freight from point A to point B? Until trucks become self-driven, drivers are the life blood of any and all trucking companies.
Just as surely as the recession brought to light the diseased company culture of several companies that ultimately failed because they did not think it important enough to respect the principles of retention, the time of prosperity that is just beginning will become for some companies a death toll because they will not be able to compete due to baggage they accumulated before the recession.
A bad reputation is one huge piece of baggage. If a company has a standing reputation for ineptness, unfairness, and indifference, it can kiss the bulk of experienced drivers goodbye; and the majority of new entrants into the industry are social media savvy and scouring the Internet for any and all negative reports on companies before they graduate from driving school. It is no longer business as usual. Things are changing rapidly and those who plan to remain in business must adapt quickly to the changing environment. Either that, or die the slow and painful death of a dinosaur. Happy Trails!
Having seen more than one of these recessions, albeit all of lesser impact, the rebound in the economy has always made the period between the start and end of a recession seem like a pause that tends to disavow the concerns that were important before the recession began. Let's face it; who cares about recruiting quotas when there isn't enough freight to go around for the drivers still employed by the company? Who cares about becoming the employer of choice when faced with the fact that the very survival of said company is at stake?
In fact, at least one trucking company that went out of business during the recession did not care enough to warn its drivers that it was on the brink of total collapse. They only found out after it had bottomed out and they had no fuel or way to get home. The resulting chaos left drivers stranded throughout the country during the Christmas holiday season.
My question is: Was this callous and treacherous act isolated and completely alien to its normal attitude towards its drivers?
My answer: Not just no, but NO!
Just as Rome was not built in a day, the success or failure and the culture of a company is not determined by one isolated incident. It is a series of choices and decisions that paves the way to either of the two. This graphic example of indifference to just treatment of human resources was perpetrated upon truck drivers, but it also affected those employees who worked inside and knew nothing until it happened. It took the adverse effects of a recession to bring the company's culture to the surface and into full view of all the world.
And that is the point I would like to stress today. Although the recession may seem to have paused everything to the point of making all the concerns that were important before the recession disappear, I beg to differ.
Most, if not all, companies had to reduce their capacity to haul freight in order to survive what was clearly the closest thing this country has seen to a full-blown depression since the Great Depression. As the economy gathers steam once again, capacity becomes extremely important to all who would remain competitive. After all, success is measured by growth in any industry.
This means that the push for trucks and drivers must resume and resume quickly. Don't believe me? Check the job boards using the keywords, Driver Recruiter. Add to this the push by diverse entities to make the rules for drivers more stringent, the training more in-depth and effective, and the sanctions for infraction more severe; and you have part of the ingredients needed for a driver shortage. Add to the mix the reduced pool of eligible candidates and those who have no desire to adjust to the lifestyle of an over-the-road driver, and it isn't hard to see the writing on the wall. Competition is going to be hot and heavy!
If a company is going to survive during the upswing, it will have to strive to build a company culture that does more than pay lip service to employee appreciation at all levels; but particularly at the driver level. Let's face it, what is the whole purpose of a trucking company if not to move freight from point A to point B? Until trucks become self-driven, drivers are the life blood of any and all trucking companies.
Just as surely as the recession brought to light the diseased company culture of several companies that ultimately failed because they did not think it important enough to respect the principles of retention, the time of prosperity that is just beginning will become for some companies a death toll because they will not be able to compete due to baggage they accumulated before the recession.
A bad reputation is one huge piece of baggage. If a company has a standing reputation for ineptness, unfairness, and indifference, it can kiss the bulk of experienced drivers goodbye; and the majority of new entrants into the industry are social media savvy and scouring the Internet for any and all negative reports on companies before they graduate from driving school. It is no longer business as usual. Things are changing rapidly and those who plan to remain in business must adapt quickly to the changing environment. Either that, or die the slow and painful death of a dinosaur. Happy Trails!
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