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Wednesday, November 03, 2004

Drivers Wanted- - Road King has it right! (P.S. Dispatchers will make or break your company.)
Lisa Waddle's commentary in TA's Road King Nov-Dec 2004 issue www.roadking.com/ (p. 4) is right on the money.

Allow me a short introductory digression....One interesting aspect of the Internet Revolution is the demand that E-Commerce is placing on the transportation industry. You can now buy virtually anything and have it delivered to your doorstep. Transportation logistics will never be the same again! Hence (back to the article) the need for drivers.

In her article, Lisa states that although the trucking/transportation industry is growing, the number of drivers is not. Why?
1. The veterans are retiring (or will be forced to retire if they can't get their blood pressure lowered as a result of the new Govn't regs.)
2. The turnover rate for new drivers is extremely high due to time away from family, lifestyle, etc.
3. Dispatcher goofiness (more about that in a minute).

So...what is the transportation/trucking industry doing about this?

Recruit, recurit, recruit! Throw more bodies at the problem...er...challenge and some of those bodies will stick and last at least 1-year in the trucking industry (if I recall correctly, a company recoups its investment in a new driver after 9-12 months). I've just re-entered the trucking industry after decades away from it. The reason I left it 20-years ago was that I just got plain bored with it. I moved on to other things with good results. Yet, I've never completely gotten over my attraction with the big rigs. I still remember my brother and me playing a game on one of our annual family vacations. We each chose a trucking carrier and counted the numreber of trucks we saw during the vacation (me thinks it was Yellow Freightways and CF-Consolidated Freightways). I forget who won, but the game underscored my fascination with "18-wheelers". Heck, I even recall playing with my Howard Johnson small-scale tractor-trailer truck when I was growing up. It was made of die-cast metal and had real rubber tires that rolled! (By the way, anyone know where I can get another one?) So, when I had to re-evaluate my carreer track recently (for the upteenth time!), I decided to give the trucking industry another shot.

One thing that amazed me this time around was that in the early 80's I had to claw my way into a semi driving job (because of my youthful inexperience). This time around, recruiters came looking for me once I let it be known that I was in the market for an 18-wheeler driving job. (Hint: if you're just getting into the industry, make sure you do your homework and start with the carrier that suits you best. Otherwise, you will probably not last very long in this industry due to bait-and-switch tactics!) [As a side note, the other thing that amazed me is that tractors nowadays don't require the higher revolutions to shift gears.] But I digress....

You know what? The mid-size and large trucking carriers have figured it out--if they are going to grow or even remain the same size they are currently at, they will need new blood in the driver's department and quick! So for the past several years, recruiting has become a big-time focus for carriers who want to stay in business. In fact, if you're a mid-sized to large trucking carrier and you don't have an active recruiting program, you will not last. You'll either get bought out (eventually), go under, or simply close up shop to avoid going under. I have heard it said more than a few times that some of the nations biggest carriers aren't in the transporation business anymore, but rather, in the recuriting and training business! Although I don't think I'd go that far, I do wonder about our government giving huge training $$ subsidies as incentives for the carriers to make sure that the nation's transportation needs are met. In other words, the more people who are trained as drivers, the more money specified carriers receive from Uncle Sam. Not a bad racket! and In addition, new drivers cost less. So a carrier can save more money by having a newbie drive a route that a veteran might normally take. Even worse, veteran drivers at some point become a liability for the carrier because they simply cost more to the company's bottom line (E.G. health care, pay, etc.) Of course no carrier will admit that, but sadly, that is where we're at in the 21st century way of doing business--stay profitable at all costs even if it means somehow ignoring, sacking, sticking it to our guys and gals who helped get us here in the first place. But I digress yet again.

Having been in the long haul transportation industry as a solo-driver for 2-months, there are 2 things that irritate me. The first issue is time away from my family. This goes without saying. Sometimes I get tears in my eyes as I think that my kids (ages 7 & 6) and I are not connecting enough. We're both missing out on the things that really matter when it comes to family, raising kids, and of course marriage (it's hard for my wife as well--she's become a single parent in addition to running her own business). The trucking industry is discovering that the new breed/batch of drivers want more home time. Hmmm...perhaps it's because when these drivers were growing up, their fathers were home not often enough due to their sales job, driving job, etc.  These drivers do not want their kids to experience the same thing as they experienced--namely, daddy not being home enough.  At any rate, I chose to be in this great and worthy profession--one that requires extensive time away from home--I knew that when I signed on the dotted line. Still...maybe there's a better way. It may very well be that the days of the long-haul dispatch is numbered. Everything will become regional, relayed or both. Who knows, the long-haul trucker may in the process of going the way of the dinasaur.

The second issue mentioned above is dispatcher goofiness. Mark my words: a company's growth and reputation will be directly tied to how well their dispatchers treat their drivers. Why is that so important? Let's answer that by looking at who a company's customers are. You have two basic types of customers--the external customers (those who buy the product/good/service) and the internal customers (those within the company who provide the product/good/service). Who's more important? On the surface we tend to say something like "Well duh--the external customers--they buy our stuff." However, when you think about this for a while, both the external and internal customer is crucial to the success of the business.  Yes, a company needs customers who buy stuff to survive but they also need good employees who can actually deliver on what the buyer of the product/good/service wants. We've all heard the saying "The customer is King/Queen...always!) So who's the most important internal customer? Those on the front lines. In other words, those who have a direct impact on the customer's perceptions on the company. In the transportation industry, below is a way that describes this. (IMPORTANT: Please keep in mind that everyone within a company is very, very important to the success of the company. Everyone has a role to play. Although everyone's role is crucial for the company to "score" and win, those individuals who deal directly with customers on the "front lines" are key to the ongoing success of the organizaiton.)

1. Front Line players
    - Sales (Gets contracts with external customers)
    - Drivers (Delivers the goods to/from the external customers)
2. Secondary Line players
     - Mechanics (Makes sure the equipment is ready to roll so that the external customer's expectations are met)
3. Tertiary Line players
     - Dispatchers (Assigns drivers to loads)
     - Customer Service (goodwill ambassadors and medics who patch things when things go wrong)
     - HR (payroll and benefits!)
     - Everyone else (and you ARE important!)
4. Corporate players
    - Corporate players are in a different league of their own. They make the really tough decisions on every aspect of the company (including doing some of the selling to the company's biggest clients). Their decisions impact both the external and internal customer relationships and processes. So although they are listed last here, they really are separate from the previous lists of players. Note: "Separate" does not mean aloof!   It means they are team players with a special and keen sense of their responsibilities and decision making abilities on behalf of everyone in the company as well as the direction the company is heading.

Granted, some will disagree with me. However, here's the challenge facing companies today: if drivers and fleet managers don't get along (not so much due to personality aspects, but rather to company processes with respect to how drivers are treated in the field), drivers will either switch to another carrier (more bucks; same headaches) or drop out of the transportation industry for good. Of course, either option won't benefit anyone with any good. So what do I mean about "dispatcher goofiness." Well...if you're a driver you know what I mean. If you're a dispatcher, you know what I mean. If you're a corporate decision-maker or board member, I hope you know what I mean because if you don't, you better get a clue! I'll leave it that (for now) and sit back and watch the "opinions" come pouring in. (Please keep your comments clean, concise, and try not to exaggerate too much!)

Lisa backs me up on this (or I back her up) in her column when she says:
"But attracking and keeping drivers is about more than pay. A recent survey by the online driver recuritmenht site www.truckdriver.com found that dispatch was the department with the most direct impact on driver turnover. That means how dispatch treats--or mistreats--drivers goes a long way towards their decision on whether to stay or leave a company."

In conclusion, let's hope that wise decisions are even now being implemented across the boardrooms in truckingdom land so that the driver dilemma becomes a non-issue -- fast. Decisions that embrace both the newbie driver as well as the veteran driver. Decisions that will address the driver-dispatch relationship for the good of everyone in this great industry.

12:01:45 AM       comment []    back to top

TruckStop.net Wi-Fi - Not impressed.
If you want to get jacked into the Internet wirelessly, there are really only 3 options at the present time for truckers (well maybe there's a couple of more, but these are the only two options that make sense for my situation). The Flying J and Travel Centers of America truck stop chains have plans that are only good when you're in one of their truck stops. Hmmm, can you say monopoly? TruckStop.net has a better way. They inked contracts with a number of well known truck stops. Purchase their high speed wireless plan and you have more options across more truck stops in North America. However, I was not impressed with the service I received when I attempted to sign up with TruckStop.net.

I decided to take advantage of their plan where you buy a minimum of a 3 month service plan (auto-renewing or non-auto-renewing) and receive a free network card for your laptop. By the way, I found out the hard way that the built-in attennae on my laptop screen is not strong enough to access the wireless network at the truck stops (Funny, it works fine in coffeeshops and airports. Note to Truck Stop Wireless Providers: Boost your broadcast power!). So I needed to buy a wireless access card so that I could access TruckStop.net's plan (Hey us truckers have tons of money to spend don't we?!) After ordering everything online (E-commerce rocks!), I left the house for my 9-14-day trip. When I returned, no wireless card had arrived in the mail. A message was saying to call TruckStop.net. I called the number and talked to Ms. T. She said that their online banking system went down and were unable to process the order. Interestingly enough, they had all my credit card information on file, but they didn't know which option plan I had chosen. (Note to TruckStop.net: Usually it works the other way around if the banking part of the transaction fails). After informing her of my chosen plan, she then apologized and said that the free network card was only available if I chose the auto-renewing option for the 3-month plan (Note to TruckStop.net: please make sure that your employees know exactly what kind of options you are offering on your Website. Truckers can actually read what we're signing up for on the Web). She said she would double-check with the proper corporate executive and get back with me before the promotion would be expiring in a matter of days. I left my cell phone number and told her to call me on that as I was leaving on another 9-14 day trip. Well she called...my home number...and left a message. Talk about exceeding customer's expectations - NOT! By the time I got around to calling her, I received her voice mail and left a message. By this time I was home from my second trip. I then called their general customer service number (800-854-8732) and talked to a good customer service rep (sorry dude, I forget your name). He said that only Ms. T could help me out on my problem. I asked him to please have her give a call by the end-of-the-next business day on my CELL PHONE or I would forget about signing up with TruckStop.net. He said he would definitely do that and encouraged me to call him back if I experienced further problems (sorry dude, if Ms. T ain't calling me back, I ain't calling anyone from TruckStop.net back). And off I went on another trip. Sure enough, Ms. T left a message on my HOME PHONE (she a is predictable ditz, I'll give her that) to say that I should call her. Yeah--in her dreams! So what did I learn from all of this?

Here's a thought: TruckStop.net may be in financial trouble. Why else would they not honor my request the first time around? It sounds like the game "Stall the customer so that he gets irritated and buys what we want him to buy." Or perhaps, TruckStop.net is an incredible inept organization. Or all the above.

I recently read a glowing article in the Ontario Trucking (OTN) October, 2004 (Vol. 2) issue on TruckStop.net. This was after I attempted to sign-up for service with TruckStop.net. Here's some interesting tidbits with my opinions thrown in:

"There are more than 550 locations in North America...with 20 of these...'hot spots'...in Canada" using a 802.11g network in most of these places. Bravo! I commend Scott Moscrip (President & CEO) and Allan Meiusi (Vice President and COO) of doing a great job in rolling out a well-thought out network.

"We think 24-28% of drivers have laptops and will make use of this type of Wi-Fi service. That percentage might be even higher when it comes to owner/operators." Really? 1-in-4 truckers carry a laptop with them in the truck? I'd put that figure closer to 1-in-10. Granted, I agree that owner/operators will have a higher percentage of laptops in their trucks. Still, 1-in-4??

"We are just under the 10,000 client mark." Interesting. Are these individuals who signed up for the 3-year auto renewing plan or higher? Or are these one-time only users? On the one hand, I bet your long-term subscription rates would increase dramatically if you lowered your short-term rates further. (Hint: many truckers do not have deep pockets. Can you picture this scenario with your average Joe Trucker in mind? "I'm bushed--it's been a long day. Hmmm...should I get a nice meal and relax or grab a snack and spend some bucks on the Internet tonight? I really can't do both because my wife would absolutely kill me for going over my over-the-road budget! Sure wish TruckStop.net would lower their hourly prices.") On the other hand, TruckStop.net is one of the pioneers in providing wireless accessibility in truck stops and most likely doesn't have the cash available to lower the prices dramatically in order to attract customers (ala Amazon.com getting into the DVD rental business to complete with NetFlix.com). Thinking of getting any rich partners to help you out in the cash department? I know a few people in high places who might be interested....

"We've got about 40 people working in our Toronto office." Guys, if you're based in San Antonio, TX and you're main market is the United States (approx. 510 hot spots), why do you have 40 people based in Toronto, Canada (only 10 hot spots)? Cheaper labor? If so, then you've probably got a skeleton staff in Texas with the bulk of the staff in Toronto. I guess that makes sense in today's outsourcing economy.

Allen, you were quoted as saying "For us it is about the service to the trucker and making sure we are doing a good job. We take the bad comments with the good comments. We don't shy away from the bad times. If we have a customer who has had a bad experience we talk to them and straighten it out because we want to totally responsive (sic) to what the experience has been out there." Allen, all good and fine. But what about the potential customers?  You know--the customers with credit card-in-hand who land in corporate beauracracy policy snafu land and never even get the chance to try out your service?

Is a proud member of the professional trucking community, I'd sure appreciate a response from either Allen or Scott on why I had such a rotten month-long ordeal with TruckStop.net with nothing to show for it.

What has your experience been with the wireless access on the road with TruckStop.net or with any of the wireless carriers? (Please keep it clean, concise, and try not to exaggerate too much!)

Check back here from time-to-time to see if either Allen or Scott has gotten back to me on my wireless-less-wired fiasco. And no, to date, I have yet to use TruckStop.net's wireless services.

12:01:37 AM       comment []    back to top

Retread Tires - Retreads will save you 30% a year on your tire expenses
TRIB (Tire Retread information Bureau) has lots of good information on tire retreading like:
- Add a retread process to your tire program and save 30% (!) a year on tire costs.
- Proper inflation of tires prevents premature tire wear and tear. (E.G. Running a tire at 10% under suggested manufacture tire pressure can lead to a loss of 16% of the lifespan of a tire) As we all know, underinflation of tires contributes big-time to tire failure, blowouts, and tread separation. But hey, it only takes 20 minutes to gauge all the tires on an 18-wheeler and thus prevent the curse of the UTS (Underinflated Tire Syndrome)!
- Don't wait to retread a tire when there is less than 4/32's showing. In fact, retread a tire before the wear bars begin showing up. This helps for the new tread to adhere securely to the existing rubber base. If the overall casing is still good, you could get another 100,000 miles by retreading the same tire another 2 or even 3 times!
- A new tire contains approximately 22 gallons of petroleum-based (oil) products. Most of that is in the tire casing. It only takes 7 gallons of oil to retread a tire. Consequently, 15 gallons of oil is preserved. According to industry experts, more than 400 million gallons of oil are saved every year in North America as a result of retreading.

Check out more information at www.retread.org

12:01:09 AM       comment []    back to top