Discovery Coaching Group’s Post

42/50 - Rewarding Driver Excellence 🏅 Our drivers are the backbone of fleets. Expensive or cheap vehicles are only as good as the people piloting them. Recognising excellence and putting that on a pedastal will save the company big bucks! Why Rewarding Drivers Works - - Encourages Good Habits. - Boosts Morale. - Improves Performance. Ways to Reward Excellence.. - Small bonuses for fuel efficiency, accident-free driving, or vehicle care. - Recognition programs like “Driver of the Month.” - Gift cards, extra time off, or team shout-outs. What's your current companies view on Driver excellence?

Boost safety and morale with our Driver Scorecard and Coaching system! 🌟🚗 Not only does it monitor key driving behaviors, but it also turns good driving into great rewards. Drivers who rank safely can earn redeemable gift cards, making it a win-win for everyone. Encourage a culture of excellence and safety on the road, where responsible driving doesn’t just reduce risks—it also brings tangible rewards. Let’s motivate our drivers towards safer practices, one reward at a time! #DriveForRewards #SafetyPays #DriverIncentives #SafeDrivingCulture

Step 4: If you have six trucks in your yard and one of them is open, that's a huge amount of additional overhead for the other ve to carry. From lost utilization to recruiting and training expenses, you could be looking at $5000 every time you need to replace a driver (add another $3000 if the truck doesn’t get returned to your terminal). That’s why nurturing a positive culture, implementing a supportive onboarding program, and investing in driver retention are key. Consider fuel and safety bonuses that reward driver excellence and personal acknowledgments, like gift cards to a favorite restaurant or paid lunches—they all make an impact. At the end of the day, there are plenty of drivers who will gladly give up some income to leave “Big Brother” and work for a mom-and-pop fleet that makes them feel appreciated and supported. Stay tuned for Step 5 of Your Fast Lane to Fleet Growth, brought to you by TAFS, Inc.! Get the full guide here: https://lnkd.in/guhfaevS #2dawgs1pod #tafs

To a recruit a single driver, it can cost anywhere between $5,000 and $10,000. The higher the turnover rate, the more detrimental that cost will be to a carrier's success. It's no secret that companies with lower turnover rates are more profitable and have better safety scores. The more seasoned the driver the better your relationships will become with your shippers and receivers. I'm certain that is how you become a preferred option for all brokers who have a need for your services. However, a stellar driver can easily become a discouraged driver without a clear path to grow within your company. I continue to become more passionate about driver retention on a daily basis. Therefore, I appreciate this post by 2 Dawgs, 1 Pod! Also, all the other resources pertaining to this subject. (Freightwaves, other recruiters, driverreach, etc.) I love reading all of the available strategies out there. If I were a bazillionaire I would host a truck raffle for one of my lucky drivers. #recruiting #retention #compassion #determined #driverfirstapproach #carriersuccess #loyalty #safecarrier

There's still time to enter our giveaway! We are giving 10 truck drivers one $20 Dunkin’ Donuts gift card each to help you stay fired up and fueled on your travels! All you have to do is post a photo of you next to or in your truck on Facebook or LinkedIn and include hashtag #ShipWestgate in your post to be entered. You have up until September 21st to post. #3PL #Freight #Trucking #Transport #Logistics #TruckDrivers #SupplyChain

Reading today’s gratitude card made me think of beautiful gardens but more so of the people in our lives. Do you remember during lockdown when suddenly everyone adored their local DPD driver because they were sometimes the only point of contact with someone outside of our bubble, that we had? Lot’s of us became obsessed with supermarkets and enjoyed chatting (through our mask) to the person serving us at the checkout. Bear with me, this post is going somewhere so please do read on. Are you still as friendly with the checkout person now when you do your weekly grocery shop? Do you still have as much enthusiasm for the delivery driver now that you’re able to get out and buy your own non essential goods from the local department store? My question is, do you appreciate everyone in your life the way you used to or are you taking them for granted? If you’ve stopped being grateful for the DPD driver, have you stopped showing your appreciation to your partner when they de ice your car or make you a coffee in the morning? If you believe you may sometimes take your partner, friends etc for granted then this weekend could be a time for you to start feeling and showing more appreciation for them. I’d love to know your thoughts on this too xx #selfcare #transformation #resilience

Let us talk about freight broker/agents and carrier and owner operator (ops) relationships. Why do SOME freight brokers/agents treat some carriers and owner operators in such a bad manner? We need to understand that they are just as important as our shippers are, if not more important. Some may agree and some may disagree. The reason I say they are just as important is because when you get a load or two from the shipper, who is going to move it for you? Are you going to move it yourself? No, we have to now communicate and set rates with the carriers and owner ops. Just as it is important to develop a relationship with the shipper, it is important to develop a relationship with the carriers and owner ops as well. This is something that I hope we can change. This is not a good narrative to have in the industry. An owner op or a carrier company can easily, and I mean EASILY go directly to shippers and contract loads for themselves. We CANNOT move loads for ourselves as freight brokers/agents. That's something we have to keep in mind. So please, acknowledge the carriers and owner ops. Send some lunch their way. A gift card. A Christmas card. A thank you card. If a driver is delivering close to you, stop by and say "hey, thank you for making it on time". If they are on their 34, take them to dinner or breakfast if you can, whichever is more convenient for them. You are not bribing them. You are just exercising appreciation and gratitude towards them for their dedication in getting YOUR customer's load delivered. Most times, it's not even about the rates, it's about the relationships that we as freight brokers build with carriers and owner ops. So next time a driver has your load, call to say thank you, not just a check call. Call to see how he is doing, not just if your load is secure. Call to see how their family is doing, not just when are they available to take your load.

🚨UPS IS BRINGING BACK GUARANTEED SERVICE REFUNDS!!! 🚨 Will they really? Many of us thought (or still think) it was gone for good. As you all know, “Guaranteed Service Refunds” (GSRs) or “Money Back Guarantee” (MBG) was available on all Ground and Express Services with FedEx and UPS pre-COVID. Late package credits were entirely suspended for a time, then brought back for a limited number of priority services. The market became accustomed to this new practice and most experts would agree that Ground service credits are gone for good. But… UPS service is back to pre-Covid levels while FedEx on time service continues to struggle to reach 98% OT consistently. UPS has an an opportunity in this competitive market to differentiate. Will they bet on themselves or maintain status quo? If I were a gambling man… which I may be… I’d put my money on an announcement 📣 within the next 6 months. Tell me why I’m wrong…

FedEx lost me this holiday season. We ordered a gas-powered mini dirt bike for Christmas (boy mom life). It was supposed to arrive the Wednesday before the holiday. By Friday, no bike. Monday came, but still no bike. I asked if I could pick it up. “We’ll call you back if you can come get it,” they said. No call. Christmas passed, and no bike. We traveled to Boston, figuring it would show up during our travels. Instead, we got an update: “Delivery exception, item damaged during shipment.” FedEx said they were returning it to the shipper. We contacted the shipper, and they promised a refund once it got back to them. Up to this point, I was understanding. It's the holiday season, and accidents happen, but everyone seems to be making it right. But a week later? The bike was still sitting at the FedEx location. After several calls and hours on the phone, FedEx made me jump through hoops, saying I needed to contact the shipper, because "the shipper needs to contact us to get it shipped back to them.” Finally, I received a refund for the damaged bike. Guess what happened the very next day? FedEx showed up at my door with a massive box. The massive box looked perfect on the outside. We realized FedEx reboxed and inside the original box was ripped in half. We opened it, and shockingly, the bike was in perfect condition. The only thing damaged was the box. Was this a massive cost for FedEx to cover the "damage" they had done? No, but here’s the point: no one took ownership, and the customer had to jump through hoops to rectify the situation. Every FedEx rep stuck to their script. No one stopped to think, what’s the right thing to do here? Processes are important, but they can’t replace humanity. Sometimes, we need to pause, put down the script, and think like a person. Because at the end of the day, it’s not JUST about the deliverables. It’s about how you make people feel in the process. That’s what makes or breaks trust. Now who wants to teach this boy-mom how to ride a mini-dirt bike?

Are You Building on Your Driver Appreciation Week? Last week was Driver Appreciation Week. Commercial drivers enjoyed free food, gifts, bonuses, discounts, handshakes, hugs, slaps on their backs, and words of gratitude. Great! Now, what are you going to do this week? Are you going to build on the good will from last week to improve your relationship with your drivers? Or are you just going to pack up your banners, grills, crock pots, and gift cards until next year? Most good companies desire to have the best relationship possible with their drivers. Your drivers are the face of your company to your customers and to the general public. Invested drivers are safe drivers. Invested drivers are a powerful extension of your sales force. Invested drivers maximize revenue and profit margin.  If you ask your best drivers what they want, they’ll respond with answers such as: better compensation, a higher level of respect, job stability, and more reliable home time. All of these answers point to the same root desire; to be treated like a partner in the business. So what’s your plan to strengthen your relationship with your drivers? Do you have one? Does your organization have a formalized, comprehensive plan to achieve this? Do you have metrics that you track to make sure you are on target? Do you have a specific person in your organization who is accountable for this? Remember that “you are not managing what you are not measuring”. If you want to build on the progress you have made during Driver Appreciation Week and want a program to strengthen your relationships with your drivers, contact me at dctconsultation@gmail.com