Changing market needs and growing industry demand are forcing FXG, and you, to change the way you operate.
It should now be clear to you that things like; 6-day & 7-day operations, two wave dispatches, 2-man delivery teams (for IC’s & bulk), and other new & different service
offerings are going to become standard operating procedure.
These operational changes might seem like great ideas to meet the evolving market demand, but after you think about them a little, you’ll notice that in order to make them work, YOU are going to have to provide more of something that most CSP's struggle to manage.
Yes, in order for you to provide what FXG wants, you are going to need more people.
And, not just a few.
Let’s say you dispatch 20 units (people) per day, and experience a 35% yearly turnover rate (average for most CSP’s), so you’ll have the “normal” yearly need to replace at least 7 people. Assume now that your new need rises to utilizing 35 people due to hours of service rules, scheduling for 6 and 7 days, and many other
needs to perform the new services. Now, you’re going to need 15 extra people for scheduling needs, plus factoring turnover in, another 12 folks just to replace the turnover.
That’s 29 new people!!!
If you already struggle to keep up with recruiting, qualifying, training & turnover, what do you think is about to happen when you have to add many more people?
Most CSP's have been able to get by without much attention to recruiting and driver qualification processes in the past. Not paying attention to recruiting costs you way more than you could see on the surface. If all you did was pay attention to it when you had to, then you got by. Or, you did what everyone always does, which is hire the first or second person that can fog a mirror when the need arises (someone quits).
These old practices are going to have to change, sooner rather than later.
Editor’s Note: Yes, this should be a negotiation point and legitimate reason to ask for more compensation at negotiation time. Additional staffing needs are not built into the current settlement model. We are factoring it in our updated ISP negotiation consulting model.
Setting up a REAL driver recruiting and qualification (First Advantage) process takes time and money.
We understand that these things are in short supply.
But fortunately, there is a ton of good news!
We’ve recently re-designed the eTruckBiz Driver Recruiting and Qualification Administration process to make all this easy & affordable for you. In addition to new processes which include First Advantage administrative handling, we’ve beefed up our recruiting staff while we've grown exponentially over the last few weeks.
We know that driver recruiting and qualification is not something that most of you like to do. In fact, that's why it gets little attention, until some sort of crisis emerges.
However, putting a continuous process in place has it’s advantages. The benefits to a consistent, continuous recruiting and qualification process far outweigh the costs.
By putting a real system in place, you can:
1) Get Control Of Who Runs Your Show - Change your mindset from “I can’t replace
that person”, to: “I can, and will, do whatever I have to do, in order to do the right thing for my business”. Always know that you have a “Bull-Pen” to go to when the need arises. The worst thing you can do is to be afraid to make necessary changes to your business because you don't have people replacement options. Return control of your business to you vs. driver control. A good, consistent driver recruiting system and qualification process does exactly that.
2) Reduces Your Stress - Face it, what’s one of your worst fears? It’s that of losing a
good (or any) driver unexpectedly. It’s the stress of not knowing where the next driver will come from. A consistent Driver Recruitment and Qualification Process eliminates this problem by identifying and always having ready the “next man or woman up”.
3) Handle Peak & Other Seasonal Demands - It’s one thing to address regular turnover, but gearing up for peak and other high volume times is extra tough. A continuous process allows you to stockpile good candidates at all times and then go to them as needs arise. It takes the uncertainty out of your peak planning knowing that you’ll easily be able to staff your anticipated needs.
4) Find People With Availability That Matches Your Needs - Now that 6 and 7 day
operations are in view, along with a possible 2 wave dispatch, driver scheduling and alternative shift scheduling will be needed. You’re going to have your trucks running more hours per week than you do currently. Based on the hours of service rules, and the fact that most people are not going to want to work an extra day (or two) a week, you’ll need more people, with varying windows of availability. Continuously recruiting is the only way to come across enough people with the availability that will match what your new scheduling needs are.
5) Free Up Your Time - You’re already very busy. Where are you going to find the
time to do more of the tedious job of driver recruiting, screening and qualification? Your operational windows are being expanded, which means more things like maintenance, planning, and trouble-shooting, just to name a few, are going to be needed as you operate over more days and time. It just makes sense that you now need a separate process (hint: eTruckBiz) for continuous driver recruiting and qualification. We find that many people pay for ads, and then don’t work them, because they don't have the time. Let us work them so you don’t waste your money or time.
6) Develop A Higher Quality Staff - As you quit getting forced into choosing sub-par
driver candidates, from a "whoever is available" pool of candidates, to fill an urgent need, means over time, you will build a staff of All Stars! You will make better hiring decisions when you make them from a larger pool of thoroughly screened candidates. Better quality drivers makes your life much simpler, your operation run smoother, and, oh yeah, your operation more profitably.
7) Realize greater profitability - Did we mention a stable workforce makes you more profitable?
A really smart guy once said that he could trace just about every problem in your operation back to your lack of a consistent recruiting process. (Those of you who have been to our seminars and training will know who this is ;). An unstable, poorly screened, inexperienced workforce makes
many mistakes. Mistakes cost money. Lots of it. Poor training and lack of experience also results in poor productivity and inefficient operations that...cost money. An unstable workforce which experiences high turnover is the most expensive operating expense you can have. It will cost you money you can obviously see, and a whole lot you can’t see. Show me an operation with high turnover and poor recruiting practices, and I'll show you an unprofitable operation. Get your head out of the sand and understand that a lack of a recruiting process costs you more than paying to have one!!!
BONUS: Use Ours, Which Is Cheaper Than Creating Your Own - Using A Service like the eTruckBiz Driver Recruiting And Qualification System is a lot cheaper and much more effective than hiring your own administrative person. We can take advantage of economies of scale which provide a higher quality service, at a lower cost. We can then pass the savings along to you.
By they way, have you ever spent money on an ad, only to not do anything with the leads you get? Factor that into your buying decision. Is that a smart way to spend money?
Look at the the successful companies and owners around you. What makes them that way? >>> They don’t turn over drivers, and if they do, they are always ready with a backup.
We have a little saying here at eTruckBiz world HQ: ABC! (Always be cruitin’).
Let us do it for you!
