Opinion: The Job of Last Resort

Manager of Health, Safety, Environment and Department of Transportation Compliance

Wyoming Casing Service

This Opinion piece appears in the May 28 print edition of Transport Topics. Click here to subscribe today.

I have always identified culture as the point where the rubber of core philosophy meets the road of reality. An oversimplification, I know, but I do believe it is an accurate statement.

I mention this because in my travels I see trucks and trailers decorated with slogans that try passing themselves off as statements of culture: “Our most important asset,” trumpets one, with an arrow pointing to the cab. Another says, “Family Oriented.”

But an honest conversation with the drivers reveals that no matter how noble or well-intentioned the sentiments, they are essentially empty.

That is a failure of culture — or perhaps even its absence.

If a corporation’s core philosophy fails to percolate through to the supervisors charged with seeing to the well-being of your employees and the efficient, seamless movement of the freight that is this nation’s lifeblood, the program is a failure.

If profit becomes more important than the manner in which it is earned, then any statement about core values becomes moot. Worse, it is perceived by those for whom it is intended as a lie.

Even in tough economic times, the competition for “our most valuable asset” is fierce. Truck drivers are probably the most mobile workforce in the country, and there are no real impediments to their moving from one empty slogan to the next.

In the past several months, I have taken a number of long road trips on business and spent considerable time talking to your drivers. The feeling of frustration and marginalization is palpable. These are people who may smile in the terminal, may be unfailingly polite to their dispatchers and seethe with unhappiness.

The personalities differ, the dreams and aspirations differ, but there is an overwhelming constant: the desire for simple human dignity and respect; the belief that their supervisor is being an honest broker; and the feeling that they actually matter.

We all know the punch line to the old joke, “How do you know when a dispatcher is lying?” All of us who spent time in the trenches have our personal horror stories of those who made that punch line — “If his lips are moving” — a bitter reality. And yet, so many years later, nothing has changed. The “us versus them” mentality that pervaded our highways in my time has worsened to a point near breakdown.

While it takes a unique personality type to make a successful driver, the ability to withstand long hours in difficult conditions should not be confused with stoicism where their employer is concerned. The bitterness over uncompensated labor, the rising prices of everything without a corresponding raise in the mileage rates being paid, the enforcement efforts at all levels further frustrating the ability for anyone in trucking to make a decent living, are all driving what once was an attractive career to a job of last resort.

This is hardly anything new. In 2000, I told those at an industry meeting that with the minimum age of 21, and many insurance companies increasing that age, by the time we attract the new truck driver to the industry, they have generally already been on one unsuccessful career path. We cannot be the out-of-high-school career destination of choice. There is no direct entry available, and to the best of my knowledge, none being discussed.

So, given that additional challenge, is it any wonder we have been in a driver crisis for the better part of three decades?

What, then, is the answer? If I had a one-size-fits-all solution, I wouldn’t be writing about it here. I would rather be selling my services as a consultant and retiring fat and happy to some sunny place surrounded by golf courses.

I can offer this challenge, though: Look at the statement of core values for your organization and undertake an honest audit. Ask yourself if those core values are truly represented at each tier of your company? Then, either modify your statement of values or the manner in which they are represented until you have consistency from the top down. And make that audit a regular part of your management process. Policy implementation and interpretation drift is a normal state of affairs. Constant steering adjustments are required to stay between the lines on the highway; management is no different.

Next, take the time to ask your front-line employees, “What do you want? Where do we fall short? What do you feel we should do about it?” The answers may surprise you.

Culture is a top-down force. Success starts and ends with the front line. The most important members of your sales team are the drivers who represent the everyday face of your company. What image are they portraying? What attitude do they bring to the shipping window?

The best thing we can do for the health of our organizations is to foster a culture of openness, honesty and integrity. Communicate clearly the principles that drive our businesses and invite honest feedback from those who live in the end result of that culture, remembering that an open-door policy is successful only if the mind in that office is as open as their door.

Wyoming Casing Service, New Albany, Pa., installs oil and gas well casings — the alternating layers of steel and cement that line and reinforce drill holes.