Since 2008, the Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) and CarriersEdge have sought to identify and recognize the top tier carriers and exactly what makes them so successful, and are now proud to open the 2019 Best Fleets to Drive For® contest and survey for nominations. For a company to be eligible for the contest, a professional truck driver must nominate a for-hire fleet with 10 or more trucks operating in the U.S. or Canada at BestFleetsToDriveFor.com. TCA membership is not required. The nomination period is open between September 4 and October 31, 2018.
“Our industry is rapidly embracing innovative technologies and best practices that are making fleets safer and making life easier for our professional truck drivers,” said TCA President John Lyboldt. “This contest showcases the most forward-thinking companies and steps they are taking to retain their skilled workforces.”
Once a company accepts their driver’s nomination, CarriersEdge will contact them and have them complete an electronic questionnaire detailing aspects of the company’s workplace environment such as compensation, safety practices, benefits, equipment, and training. The questionnaire is supplemented by a telephone interview with senior management and a survey of a random sampling of the company’s drivers and owner-operators. The information gathered through this process reveals the key innovations that help to attract and retain skilled personnel in the trucking industry.
Part of what has propelled Best Fleets to Drive For® to grow and thrive is that each year’s findings provide new information and best practices that can be explored in the following year’s program.
“Last year, we highlighted some new questions about how companies make drivers feel like equal partners in the business, and some maintenance and equipment questions,” said CarriersEdge’s Chief Executive Officer, Jane Jazrawy. “This year, we’ll be expanding on the ‘driver as valued partner’ subject, digging further into how companies communicate on a day-to-day basis, and processes for addressing driver questions and resolving problems.”
CarriersEdge and TCA will also continue exploring how fleets build an inclusive culture by looking at how diversity is represented in the management team, committees, and other public parts of the business.
“On the ever-important subject of compensation,” added Jazrawy, “we’ve been exploring guaranteed pay programs over the past few years, but a new compensation tool has popped up as well – stock options.” She shared that as more fleets have gone public recently, more of them are offering stock options to their drivers as a result. CarriersEdge and TCA will be digging into the issue further to see who’s doing what.
The top 20 finalists will be identified as Best Fleets to Drive For® and will be announced at the end of January. From this pool, companies will then be divided into both “small” and “large” categories, and two overall winners will be recognized March 10-12, 2019, at the TCA Annual Convention in Las Vegas, Nevada.
In late-October, companies that have been nominated (or believe they will be nominated) and are considering participating are invited to learn more about the survey requirements through a free webinar outlining the questions that surveyors will ask, data requirements, and methods for collecting better information.
To view best practices from last year’s survey and profiles of the overall winners, visit BestFleetsToDriveFor.com. To view the program’s Facebook page, visit www.facebook.com/BestFleetsToDriveFor. Use the hashtag #BestFleets19 to join the conversation.
