I don’t know about you, but I am always looking at ways to make what I do on a daily basis easier. We only get twenty-four hours in a day and if your driven to succeed or work with someone who is, you want to use your time wisely. This often turns us to technology, it saves us time, money and makes us better but there is so much of it and so many players in the technology space.
One of the players Is ISB/MEE. Have you ever driven down the 401 West and looked over to the right just by the highway 25 exit and see a big beautiful building with the pond out front and wonder what they do and who they are? The company ISB/MEE is one of the largest suppliers of document sourcing organizations in the world. You name it they can probably get it for you. For our industry that means things like driver abstracts, criminal record searches and driver history. The big deal is they do it at lightening speed which is important when your trying to get drivers insured and on the road. They are experts and very good at what they do. They are the chosen service provider of many brand name transportation companies. Fast, affordable, accurate, this is the best way to describe ISB/MEE.
Michael Thompson
This month, in a couple of weeks at the TTSAO Conference, Micheal Thompson, CEO of RSB Global Services (ISB/MEE) is the keynote speaker at the conference where he will talk about technology in our industry. He has broken his presentation into three groups;
Top Tech Products; to help your business, things like facial recognition, 3D Printing and assessments.
Technology Disrupters; things that could disrupt the industry like E- Commerce, Drones and Uber for trucking.
What Does the Future of Trucking Look Like; in reference to social media, the cloud, artificial intelligence, virtual reality and quantum computing.
This excites me and it’s not because I’m a technology geek, it excites me from the recruitment and retention end of our business. In order to hire the right people we must use the right tools to gather correct information in order to insure the driver. This technology is not only important to the companies its important to the person on the other side of the desk, the people your hiring. They want to see our industry using technology and they want to work for companies who are using it. Understanding what is out there to potentially disrupt our industry is important so we can be prepared to challenge and defend the disrupters.
With the TTSAO Conference on February 27th and 28th you need to get registered, there is limited space left. The TTSAO Conference is billed as highly educational, very affordable and is attended by all industry sectors; schools, insurance, carriers, government, and suppliers. Day one will feature meetings led by both the TTSAO Insurance Group and the TTSAO Carrier Group. Both groups will talk about important issues they are working on collectively with the industry and government. The annual general meeting is on Day 1, followed by a networking cocktail party that gives you a chance to mix and mingle with other industry people. At the cocktail party there will be a conversation between Dave MacDonald, President of Revolution Staffing and Glenn Caldwell, Vice President, Corporate Development of NAL Insurance on the Power of Networking. Other agenda items on Day 2 include; Social Media for Business Strategy led By Kimberly Biback of Sharp Transportation, Best Practices For Training featuring leaders from Bison Transportation, Quail Transport, KRTS and CHET moderated by Geoff Topping of Challenger Motor Freight, Kelly Henderson of the THRSC will moderate a panel of industry association leaders from the PMTC, OTA and the Fleet Safety Council to discuss the value of industry associations and how you can benefit from them. This year’s conference will also feature the presentation of the first TTSAO/ PayBright Instructor of the Year.
As President of the TTSAO I know I speak on behalf of the entire board of Directors that we are proud that the TTSAO is the only association in the Province of Ontario which number one objective is representing the best interest of our full member truck training facilities. The TTSAO includes strong representation of insurance, for hire and private trucking companies, industry associations and suppliers. The companies who are members of the TTSAO represent tens of thousands of people who are employees in the transportation industry across Canada.
I want to thank the entire TTSAO Board of Directors who have been actively involved in the success of the association over the past two years. Your commitment of time, knowledge and expertise has made our association better and our industry stronger. Never under estimate the power of the donation of your time.
Kim Richardson has been in the Transportation Industry for 34 years. Currently he is the President of Kim Richardson Transportation Specialists Inc. a family owned and operated business which has won multiple awards. Under the KRTS group of businesses is Transrep Inc. and The Rear View Mirror. Kim is currently on the board of directors for the Professional Truck Driver Institute (PTDI), on the board of directors with Private Motor Truck Council of Canada (PMTC), on the membership committee of the Truckload Carriers Association (TCA), on the advisory board of the Women’s Trucking federation of Canada (WTFC), and in the past, Chairman of the Board for the Truck Training Association of Ontario (TTSAO) and Chairman of the Board for the Allied Trade Division of the Ontario Trucking Association (OTA). Kim is a proud Husband, Dad, Grandpa and loves his community of Caledonia. He can be reached at krichardson@krway.com or phone 1-800-771-8171 ext. 201.
So I’m running Fort Nelson BC to Whitehorse Yukon, hauling groceries every day. I see some very beautiful scenery, climbing Steamboat, driving through Muncho Lake, etc. Gorgeous even on the worst days.
This is hard to see, but down in the shade is a grader cleaning the edges on Summit. There are usually sheep on this cliff, and it’s a stiff sharp hill, with a guardrail that has saved trucks from sliding off.
This post is for the hard working folk who take care of the roads so I can get you your food. I can’t do my job if you aren’t out there. You can’t eat if I don’t get out there. We work together to create a safe country where everyone has food, shelter, an education, meaningful employment and a worthy lifestyle. Thanks to the the guys who care enough to actually show up and do their job. It’s easy to do on a beautiful day like this. Not so easy when the road has 12″ of snow, and tractors are running off the road by the handful.
Our job is a whole lot easier when you four wheelers slow down, move over and let us pass in a SAFE PLACE. Please look ahead, and think is this a place I would just love to run off the road? If it’s not, then please maintain speed, do NOT STOP or pull over in a corner or on a hillside. If a truck is lining up to pass, they will be the judge of when it’s safe. Let them make that decision.
This moment (see picture) was a time for me to stop, as the road was blocked by someone doing their job.
I didn’t mind the wait. Please don’t criticize these hardworking drivers, they are making it safer for you.
After 10 years in the commercial livestock industry 6 months ago I decided I was done. Done with the late nights, snow storms I had to power through, last minute dispatch, missing holidays and bailing last minute on plans. I wanted a life. With my management experience finding a new career shouldn’t be that hard, right?
You’re just a truck driver…
I started to hear this a lot, I started to really believe it. A dispatch job came up with an established but rapidly growing company. They just werent ready for me yet. Wait til the new year. I wasn’t shy about my intentions and my coworkers knew it had nothing to do with the company or the industry, I was just tired. I was at the apex of my career. My company had spent 4 years building me a near show quality kenworth that always turned heads and it was no secret how much I loved that truck. I’m sure “Kenny” was the envy of many and I smiled every Monday when I pulled the shop door open. Hell I even talked to him like he was listening! I carried on doing my job like always and waited for the new year.
And then December 17, 2018 happened and it all changed. can’t even say the date without tearing up.
You’re just a truck driver…
December 17,2018 at 10:55 am a 78 year old woman failed to look and pulled out 300’ in front of my loaded cattle liner on a 100km/h stretch of busy highway. As I dove into the oncoming lane, full on the brakes, she noticed me and dove into the oncoming lane with me. I tagged her, caught the snow in the ditch, started down a 12’ embankment hitting a major cross road hydro pole just behind my head. The pole ripped the bunk of my truck in 1/2 and stopped me almost instantly and the truck laid over. I grabbed my dog, who was amazingly unharmed, and climbed out the roof of my truck and walked sockfeet in the snow to the front of my truck. Is she ok?? She was walking down the road in a daze. Ok whew!!
4 of my coworkers that I had been running with were minutes behind me and raced to help me. Big hugs all around, “here take my jacket” and “let me get you a cup of coffee!” It’s all gonna be ok. I was never so sure that I belonged.
Maybe I’m not just a truck driver? Maybe I’m family.
My small company (about 30 trucks, only 6 company trucks) commended me the next day!
The owner shook my hand, offered me his play toy – a jacked up little flat top Pete that rarely leaves the barn. Our shop manager sat down with me. “If you’re going to stick around, I need your wish list for your next truck” Wow…. I was on the spot. Stay or go, now was the time. All I could say was…. “there will be very be another Kenny, id like a Peterbilt”
So here I am, 6 weeks later. The flood of texts and phone calls, the hugs and handshakes from customers. Guys that genuinely cared. All my plans changed in a second and I cried every day for 3 weeks. I realized I’m not just a truck driver. I’m a valued member of an amazing team of drivers with a company that’s got my back!
Don’t be just a truck driver. Be a lady, be a gentleman. Be a teammate. Let people know that they matter because it means so much. This story isn’t about me, it’s about the people around me that help
Make my job amazing.
Ps the dispatch job came up and I politely declined. My Peterbilt has been bought and is currently being customized to my specifications. It’s amazing how things change in a second.
Hi my name is Jess Dutchak and I’m a woman in the transportation industry. When people see me in a truck the first question they ask me is “What made you want to get into driving trucks and equipment?”
And I hate that question because it’s sometimes hard to respond to, telling a stranger that my Dad passed away and I knew if I didn’t get behind the wheel myself I wouldn’t be in a truck ever again. The thought of that didn’t sit so well with me because I grew up going on trips across Canada with my Dad who drove long haul.
So that’s my reason for getting into it, but my reason for STAYING in the construction/transportation industry is a lot happier! Ever since I started working construction it’s changed my life completely! I started off majoring in auto tech in high school which is where my journey really started because it was the only class I ever actually liked we had a blast working on vehicles and my teacher was and still is the best you could ask for. A few years later I started in construction as a flag-person just to get my foot in the door and ever since doing that I’ve gotten my Class 3 license with air brakes, I’ve operated rock trucks, skid steers, loaders, plow trucks, I’ve hauled heavy equipment, backed up trailers, fixed potholes, paved roads, raked asphalt, greased drive shafts, cleaned shops times a million, and my favorite part of all keeping the roads safe! Every opportunity that came my way to jump into a new machine I gladly took it. I was nervous for every single one but once you try it and get used to it. It just came naturally. It wasn’t always easy, it took awhile to get jobs without experience it took everything I had to prove myself in a male dominated industry. The proving never stops, you have to be a real tough cookie sometimes! Through the breakdowns, the maintenance, operating, trying to never screw up and break things and doing everything in my power to NOT have to ask any of the guys for help! (Nothing against the boys!) I just prefer to do things myself so nobody can tell me I couldn’t do something. It took a lot of determination and dedication and a lot of frustration to get into this industry but it’s been so rewarding for me.
As a women in this industry I try to encourage people as much as I can, a lot of women and MEN have asked for advice since I’ve gotten into trucks and equipment and I just have so much good to say about it I can’t say enough to people when I start talking about my job and the experiences . And I tell everyone that asks me, you already have the tiny spark in you just by asking me these questions, that spark is gonna turn into a fire once you get into trucks or equipment. It’s a passion! It’s an adrenaline rush! The people are amazing, even though construction workers get labelled rugged/rough/dirty and cartoons and TV shows show us as all as cat calling pigs and red necks. It’s quite the total opposite, you’ll never find more caring people than the ones in trades/construction! I’ve worked with the most amazing kind hearted people, these people become a second family because in reality we spend more time with our crews/coworkers and our equipment then we spend with our own family! I’ve laughed enough for a lifetime in the 5 short years I’ve been in construction. Ive learned so much and I continue learning everyday the challenges have always been rewarding and I’ll gladly spend the rest of my life in this industry!
I’ve also gotten into the safety aspect of things since starting as a maintenance worker, I became a safety rep at my yard and then a regional safety rep for my region which has me now working towards an NCSO (National construction safety officer) certification. But I know if I become a safety officer I’m going to have to convince the construction company that I work for to let me play in the trucks and equipment once in awhile just to get my fix.
The opportunity’s are there, you just have to take that first step! Reach out, there is so many people willing to give advice and help someone who is ready to start in this industry. And don’t give up because it’s never going to be easy! Your gonna cry, swear, yell, laugh, smile, and be forever tired and everything else in between but it’s all worth it.
