jeff jackson

As National Trucking Week (Sept. 3-9) celebrations come to a close in Canada, Penske continues celebrating our drivers – this time those based in the U.S. – with National Truck Driver Appreciation Week, Sept. 10-16.

Every day, we count on our dedicated team of drivers to deliver safety, consistency and professionalism. Trucking is essential to every aspect of the world we live in, and our team of drivers are core to Penske.

“Your unwavering commitment to safety and your professionalism behind the wheel protects your fellow citizens and allows each of us to return home to our families every day. You are the hands and the wheels that deliver life-saving medicine to hospitals, fresh food to grocery stores and countless other products to consumers,” said Jeff Jackson, Executive Vice President of DCC operations, Penske Logistics, in a video message to drivers.

Watch Jackson's full video address to our drivers below.

Watch with Spanish subtitles here.

Watch with French-Canadian subtitles here.

Last week, this week and every week, Penske thanks our top-notch team of drivers. You move us!

By Sarah Althen

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Change can be hard, especially in complex operations with multiple moving parts. In transportation and logistics, the stakes can be even higher — ensuring business continuity, maintaining legacy knowledge and business data, and retaining staff are all top priorities when a transition occurs. Penske Logistics has transitioned hundreds of companies to its dedicated contract carriage services and has developed critical best practices to minimize disruptions and maintain continuity.

“One of the most critical things we do is ensure we have a good communications plan,” said Jeff Jackson, president of Penske Logistics. “We have a dedicated project management team that runs the implementations, and we put together robust customer-specific plans that provide full visibility so they can see where we are with the launch and have full transparency.”

One of Penske’s more significant transitions involved 35 sites and 400 drivers and was done in one day. “We sent teams to 35 sites to make the announcements and train and onboard drivers. We had over a 90% stick rate, meaning we kept nine out of 10 drivers,” Jackson said.

Retaining Talent

Employees are critical to a smooth transition. “In most cases, our objective is to retain all the customer’s existing drivers, provided they meet our hiring requirements. Our driver hiring center is engaged early on and provides a white-glove treatment to new drivers. We have a centralized team that does nothing but engage with drivers, which helps with continuity concerns.”

Additionally, Penske has over 11,000 drivers on staff and offers a breadth and depth of talent for any additional needs. “We also have an elite driver program with 100 drivers in various parts of the country and dispatch them for three to four weeks at a time. We can leverage that program to bring drivers in early to fill any gaps,” Jackson said.

As a best practice, Penske errs on the side of caution and tends to over-resource initially, pulling in extra drivers and equipment from its internal resources to reduce the risk of disruptions. “We have a dedicated person with Penske Truck Leasing who works with logistics and will handle the transition. It takes a huge burden off to know we have equipment available, and we’ll have priority when the fleet utilization is high,” Jackson said.

Penske also has a full suite of training videos covering various topics, from leadership to core functionalities. “It is easy for our team to train new staff quickly, which leads to a clean transition early,” Jackson said.

Maintaining Knowledge

It is essential to maintain critical data and information, which include electronic data and employee knowledge, and successful integrations are key. “We like to connect IT to IT, and HR to HR, and have those teams work together directly. They speak the same language and can run testing before the implementation starts,” Jackson said.

Penske Logistics has made extensive investments in technology and has expertise in IT integrations to ensure nothing is lost. “We have integrated with all kinds of TMS and ERP systems,” Jackson said.

On the labor front, Penske wants to understand the current compensation and benefits packages. “We have our own, but we want to know if ours is superior or inferior. We want to keep drivers whole,” Jackson said, adding that Penske’s strategy is not to move wages backward and this makes the compensation process as easy as possible. Plus, some customers fund retention bonuses to incentivize employees to stay.

Emphasizing Communication

A large part of a project’s overall success comes down to communication, starting with the request for proposal. “When companies put an RFP out, they need to have confidence that it represents the real solution. That is a common pitfall,” Jackson said, adding that the best start-ups happen when the customer looks at their processes and data before they come in so they can communicate them clearly. “The more transparent they can be with us, the better we can be. It takes both of us to partner to get the transition done.”

External communication is also important, so the customer’s sales department must understand the reason for the change and the value it will provide. Then they can articulate it to their customers. “Sales cannot be out of the loop. Customer communication is key,” Jackson said. “You have to build trust, and you need to build it quickly.”

With a robust communications plan, access to a wide range of internal and external resources, and extensive experience transitioning companies to dedicated contract services, Penske Logistics possesses the tools and experience to ensure a smooth transition with minimal disruption.

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Transporting goods is a complex process, and the trucking industry faces a wide range of operating challenges. Shifts in capacity, fluctuating rates, rising insurance and fuel costs, and the ongoing driver shortage create uncertainty for shippers. At the same time, customer service demands and regulatory requirements continue to increase, leaving many shippers looking for a solution that will provide secure capacity, steady rates, and high levels of service, all while mitigating the risks of operating a private fleet.

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Many businesses tend to be quieter at night, and unattended deliveries in the overnight hours take advantage of the downtime to minimize delivery disruptions and ensure employees have what they need when they arrive in the morning.

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Health care facilities have unique needs, and dedicated contract carriage services can help improve service levels for hospitals, surgery centers, clinics and other providers while also driving operational efficiencies. There are several benefits associated with dedicated contract carriage (DCC), including reliable deliveries, improved efficiency and useful data analytics.

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Space is at a premium in health care settings, and reliable just-in-time (JIT) logistics are helping providers optimize care by devoting space to patients rather than inventory. What's more, utilizing lean inventories also allows health care facilities to maximize operational efficiency and improve the cost effectiveness of their services.

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Safety and quality are critical within the cold chain, and Penske Logistics relies on data, technology and rigorous processes to maintain the integrity of every shipment.

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Penske Logistics has earned Cold Carrier Certification, adding to its strategic approach to safety. The certification, which is the first of its kind, recognizes cold trucking carrier companies that comply with the Refrigerated Transportation Best Practices Guide from the Global Cold Chain Alliance, a trade association representing all major industries engaged in temperature-controlled logistics.

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Health care facilities can have unique supply chain needs, including limited storage space and rigorous quality control. When delivering supplies to health care systems, supplies often need to be delivered directly to the point of care, leaving no margin for error. As a result, a delivery model that enables just-in-time deliveries, sometimes to businesses that are not actual stores, can bring shipments straight from a supplier to the operating room.

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As is the case with any mode of transportation, demand for dedicated contract carriage (DCC) services can change with the ebbs and flows of freight markets. However, shippers often get the most out of the DCC model when they deploy it as part of a long-term logistics strategy.

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Retailers looking to improve efficiency and reduce labor costs are embracing a direct-store-delivery (DSD) model, with goods traveling directly from the supplier to the retail store. DSD models save time and minimize touchpoints for industries such as food and beverage, automotive and health care, where just-in-time deliveries can reduce inventory levels, freeing up capital and floor space.

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A company’s public image is critical, and Penske Logistics works closely with its customers to ensure its equipment and drivers reflect the company’s brand. That is especially important in direct store deliveries (DSDs), where drivers may interact with the public while providing value-added services and making in-store deliveries.

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