"Change"

The aim of Reyburn Transportation Consulting is to help others improve their trucking operations. This probably sounds like such a simple statement that comes loaded with questions. You may be wondering to whom we are referring when saying “others”. Who are these “others”? Are we talking about the owner? Office personnel? Professional drivers? Well, I would say all three. All three parties need to buy into the change for anything sustainable to take place. It needs to be sold to everyone who has a stake in the success of the operation. Often, ideas are floated by upper management with little input from others and orders are given; the change is enacted without properly being explained or sold to all parties involved. What has this created? A huge roadblock in the success of your organization. Many good ideas that could be instances of positive change just become roadblocks because the idea did not have the proper buy-in. It is in peoples’ nature to want to feel as if they are part of something and by bringing them into the process, as much as possible, you are allowing them to take ownership in that process. Wouldn’t you prefer for everyone involved to be a champion of that change instead of saying “well, here we go again”?

All too often I hear stories about how much of a rollercoaster this industry can be; when things are running smoothly, everyone is happy and patting themselves on the back. However, when things aren’t going so smoothly, people start to feel as though it is miserable to work there. Management gets upset when things aren’t good and the middle and lower management starts to feel the “trickle down” effect. Why do these “lows” feel like such a punch to the gut?  The major reason for this is because companies are riding the waves of the market instead of enacting stable change that will create positive results in both the good and bad freight markets. Change is not something that should be a process just for when things are bad but, and probably more importantly, when things are good.  People fear change because in many instances, change is often implemented when adversity strikes and is not necessarily seen as something needed for constant improvement in both good time and bad times. Our goal at RTC is to help our clients develop positive change throughout the business cycle. So, whether you are an owner, office personnel or a professional driver, we can offer the advice you need to drive yourself forward in the industry. Positive change leads to happier people, and in this industry, people are our greatest asset. In my experience, happy people will work much harder towards achieving goals and performing at their best when they are supported and connected to the process rather than being in a constant fear of what is next.  

There are many ways to enact change, and this will be a topic that I address regularly on this blog, but one of the best ways to do it is through selling it. Find your champions within in your organization and get their buy-in. If you don’t find buy-in, then maybe the idea needs to be re-evaluated. Good ideas will take hold and others will become passionate about that idea. Once that happens, it can be successfully implemented because multiple parties are now invested. Stagnation leads to complacency and when people are complacent, they miss opportunities to get better. That’s why, along with change, it is important to push people to get better. People who are looking to get better will organically come-up with ideas that will continue to create significant and beneficial change to those around them. Listen to these top performers because, regardless of their position, they are the “boots on the ground” and have the best interest of the organization in mind.

Change is the life blood of an organization. It leads to improvement and keeps processes and procedures fresh. If your organization is accustomed to change, it can be flexible enough to tackle anything that may come its way, good or bad.