I had the immense pleasure earlier this month — on Mother’s Day, to be precise — of delivering the keynote address to kick off this year’s National Private Truck Council’s Annual Conference & Exhibition in Orlando, Florida. That’s the big annual gathering of NPTC’s member companies and allies, who meet each year in May to celebrate and highlight the achievements of their people and their fleets, welcome the graduates of their Certified Trucking Professional program, hand out a bevy of well-earned awards (including lifetime achievement awards to some of the most deserving drivers in the industry), and, chiefly, spend three days learning and growing as professionals, colleagues, and fleet managers.
I’m hard pressed to remember a trade show or conference where the commitment to ongoing learning, training, and leadership development, and the excitement surrounding those, were as spirited and earnest as what I saw at NPTC this month. Not only by the conference organizers and presenters like myself, but fervently among the attendees. The commitment to learning coursed through the conference, and it was an inspiring and special environment to be part of.
For NTI’s part, we showed up to contribute to that spirit of learning by talking about what all fleets, including and especially private fleets, face from a workforce and wages perspective.
In my keynote, titled Trucking’s Talent Tug of War, and in a separate breakout session, I drilled into topics that I discuss with many of you on a weekly basis:
How do macro trends in the labor market, with the freight market, and with driver supply and demand impact our industry’s ability and your individual company’s ability to hire and retain the drivers you need to meet, let alone exceed your goals? How does job type and hiring location impact driver availability and driver pay? How can your company stand out, market your jobs effectively, and tie your drivers to your fleet with a recruit-to-retain mindset? What are the key pay trends to consider and how does NTI see pay moving in the months and years ahead?
And throughout the show, I had the awesome opportunity to sit down and engage with YOU — those on the frontlines of developing the driver candidate pool and hiring at their respective fleets, as well as leaders in operations, sales, and safety to talk about those topics and so much more.
Here are three takeaways from the event that have stuck with me and that I wanted to share, as I feel there are lessons we can all learn, whether we operate a private or for-hire fleet:
➡️ My favorite part of the entire conference was listening to NPTC’s Executive Vice President, Tom Moore, dive into the stories of four professional drivers at NPTC member fleets and award them with Lifetime Achievement Awards. Their stories, and Tom’s delivery of those stories, were deeply touching tributes to four amazing men and drivers. Each had multiple millions of safe miles in their careers, and they also have amazing personal stories that spoke to their depth of character and their dedication and devotion to their families, their communities, their professions, and their companies.
Each of them spoke to that aspect of the job, too: That they were ambassadors of the logo on their hats, their shirts, and on the side of their trucks and trailers. They represent their companies with immense pride, and it was a testament to the types of connections their fleets build with the drivers — and set an example of how every fleet can work to connect drivers not just to the driving job, but to the company and the brand itself.
Seeing those four drivers on stage, proudly recognized alongside their families and support systems, was a humbling reminder of the types of jobs and careers trucking creates, and the work we can all pour into creating the environment where people like those four drivers can thrive.
➡️ The peer-to-peer, community-focused approach to continued learning and education showcased the tight-knit community NPTC has cultivated over the years. As an example: Decades of graduates from their Certified Trucking Professional program return each year to teach and welcome the new graduates from the program. Beyond those types of education- and certification-specific programs, everyone at the show seemingly showed up in Orlando intending to learn from one another and share with one another, and that type of camaraderie helps propel today’s leaders and those of tomorrow, and it’s such a fantastic example for all of us in the industry.
➡️ Speaking of the next generation in our industry, while many for-hire fleets have pulled back from growth and focusing on how to attract new entrants into the industry, private fleets have been honing in on it. They have in many ways picked up the mantle. Much like our data at NTI reflects, private fleets aspire to deliver a career that drivers want and need. They aspire to get them home with regularity, to provide pay and scheduling transparency, to create jobs where drivers grow, learn new skills, have a career path, and where they can retire from.
I had many conversations with recruiting and operations leaders who were proud to actively talk about what makes their driving jobs great and how their company stands out. They weren’t talking points — they were truly passionate about their companies and the jobs they hire for. And guess what? Their passion pours into their fleets, their drivers, their recruiting messaging, and their retention programs, and it creates an environment where their drivers feel the same zeal for the company and their jobs, too.
Ultimately, that encapsulates what the conference was about: The fleets represented at the conference by their attendees have a collective commitment to excellence, yet they’re still seeking to get better. Their pay is among the best in the industry, but they’re working to push it even higher. Their job promise is strong, but they’re working to make it stronger. Their turnover is among the best in the industry, and they’re still working to improve their retention. Their drivers’ schedules promote balance, but they’re still working to do even better by their people.
No matter what their metrics reflect in terms of accomplishments and status in the industry, they’re humbly and meaningfully having active conversations internally and externally to grow and learn as individuals and professionals, to improve their drivers’ experience, to operate the safest fleet, to extend opportunities to new people, and to show up with passion for what they do every single day.
It was a reminder of why I love this industry so much and steps we can all take to make sure everyone who works with us does too.
Until next time, stay safe and well!
