What's new

XPO | XPO names CIO Harik to run LTL business

ScotchNeat said:
Here is what I've been told is the company's thinking on this matter. They want drivers training new hires and running schools. They want drivers coaching other drivers. Why? Because they believe a driver or driving trainee will have more respect for the instructor than they would an FOS. They toyed with the idea of changing the driving instructor position to a salaried position, but realized they would be unable to get any experienced drivers to do the job for entry level FOS wages. I report directly to my SCM and he decides my schedule and to what degree my FOS's are charged with helping me with my training needs. But there is also the underlying needs of the service center and when those needs require me to hit the street, then I have to, regardless of anything else I have going on at the time. I'm not given the power of the LOI pen, but I can refer DSR's and DW's to mngt for discipline and most of the time, mngt listens, but it's still not my call. Every service center operates differently and every trainer's duties are based around the needs of the service center.
Click to expand...

I can say that my experienace at the location where I worked was not the same.
 
ScotchNeat said:
To the extent that training is required, new driver hire experience doesn't much matter. They still need to go through the basic Dock Certification Curriculum and the Driver Specific Curriculum. There are things unique to our operation that still need to be taught and our HAZMAT course is second to none and every new hire, DW or DSR needs to have the training.
Click to expand...

Couldn't tell from the line of empties still placarded. Or from how many times I had to placard my own trailer before leaving.
 
ScotchNeat said:
Why should they attempt to teach an FOS what's required to train drivers? If they were to find such a person, that person would most likely be an experienced driver and in this job market, the company will not find experienced drivers to work as trainers for FOS wages.
Click to expand...
Not sure why you feel they would be tied to FOS wages.
 
ScotchNeat said:
Maybe in your world I should be on the street, but that's simply not the way it works and I'm not simply a babysitter watching over new hires watching training videos. The Conway days of watching a stack of DVD's are long gone. The curriculums today consist of guided Powerpoint presentations, hands-on using the hear-see-do-teach method, short, 3-4 minute videos to aid in the training. Honestly, most of the videos suck, being produced in house. They are supposed to give the trainee a high level understanding but end up presenting too much information at a pace where it cannot be properly absorbed. What makes the overall training experience good for new hires is that in the hands of skilled instructor the Powerpoints become engaging and bring the trainee into the process so that they come away able to pass the tests that follow on the first attempt, even the HAZMAT presentation, although lengthy and full of facts, is understandable in the hands of a skilled trainer. It's taken me months to craft my presentations in a way that make them entertaining and understandable and I pride myself on that. It's too bad you'll never have a chance to be in my training room and experience what I'm capable of because I'm godamned good at it and you would walk away smarter than when you came in.
Click to expand...

Nothing wrong with feeling like you have done well. Or that you care enough to want to do well. And you are seriously fortunate not to have staffing issues at your location. What you descibe is surreal to me. And nothing like anything I ever saw working at XPO.
 
highspeeds said:
Where I work now, that is exactly what happened. Experienced drivers that didn't want to continue the long hours and crazy schedule of being a truck driver took severe pay cuts to be driver trainers. Both these guys have worked the dock. And they still sometimes pick up a run on the weekends for extra money. They are qualified to train anyone at any level of the operation. And do just that.
Click to expand...
Well, maybe at some point in my career, I'll want to do that if the company and I can come to an agreement. But for now, if the company wants to pay me drivers wages for FOS work, who am I to say differently?
 
ScotchNeat said:
Well, maybe at some point in my career, I'll want to do that if the company and I can come to an agreement. But for now, if the company wants to pay me drivers wages for FOS work, who am I to say differently?
Click to expand...

I agree with you there. If they are going to pay someone to do it. And you put your hand up. Take the money.

There are a lot of guys out there that are taking advantage. And are lazy. More concerned with what they are getting away with than they are worried about doing well or having graduates that do well.
 
highspeeds said:
Nothing wrong with feeling like you have done well. Or that you care enough to want to do well. And you are seriously fortunate not to have staffing issues at your location. What you descibe is surreal to me. And nothing like anything I ever saw working at XPO.
Click to expand...
You're right. And my experience has told me that when it comes to staffing, you need an SCM that is solid and who is who is unafraid to ask upper management for DSR's and DW's. I'm fortunate to have an SCM like that. I also understand that company perspective is local and that there are some SCM's that suck.
 
highspeeds said:
I agree with you there. If they are going to pay someone to do it. And you put your hand up. Take the money.

There are a lot of guys out there that are taking advantage. And are lazy. More concerned with what they are getting away with than they are worried about doing well or having graduates that do well.
Click to expand...
So true, and again, it goes back to locality. If a guy wants to be a trainer because he gets an early start time or other selfish reason, he's not the right guy for the job.
 
ScotchNeat said:
So true, and again, it goes back to locality. If a guy wants to be a trainer because he gets an early start time or other selfish reason, he's not the right guy for the job.
Click to expand...

From what I have seen, those are the only guys that take those jobs. The driver that just wants to be a driver hasn't the patience for that sort of thing.
 
highspeeds said:
Couldn't tell from the line of empties still placarded. Or from how many times I had to placard my own trailer before leaving.
Click to expand...
That comes down to good or bad management. When you have a situation where and FOS is afraid to hurt someone's feelings over fear of them quitting you're going to have problems like that. It happens when I work too and when in the past when I approach the guilty FOS about it, all I get is excuses. I can only do so much and I promise you when my trainees hit the dock, they are aware of their responsibilities when it comes to placards.
 
ScotchNeat said:
You're right. And my experience has told me that when it comes to staffing, you need an SCM that is solid and who is who is unafraid to ask upper management for DSR's and DW's. I'm fortunate to have an SCM like that. I also understand that company perspective is local and that there are some SCM's that suck.
Click to expand...

SCMs here have been hiring anyone and everyone since 2010. Can't get enough people. Ever. There was always a hiring limit. But the staffing levels were never reached to be concerned with it.
 
ScotchNeat said:
That comes down to good or bad management. When you have a situation where and FOS is afraid to hurt someone's feelings over fear of them quitting you're going to have problems like that. It happens when I work too and when in the past when I approach the guilty FOS about it, all I get is excuses. I can only do so much and I promise you when my trainees hit the dock, they are aware of their responsibilities when it comes to placards.
Click to expand...

That's a good point. It's not just the SCM. It's the whole management team. XCO can't keep management either. The tunover there is just as high as everything else.
 
highspeeds said:
From what I have seen, those are the only guys that take those jobs. The driver that just wants to be a driver hasn't the patience for that sort of thing.
Click to expand...
Yes, the job does require patience and being able to meet trainees where they are. Most drivers are not trainers. For me, it comes naturally and I'm fortunate and I don't take that quality for granted. I'm constantly seeking to learn from my students to improve the courses for future students.
 
highspeeds said:
SCMs here have been hiring anyone and everyone since 2010. Can't get enough people. Ever. There was always a hiring limit. But the staffing levels were never reached to be concerned with it.
Click to expand...
And then there is always the revolving door. Sometimes people leave faster than new ones can be brought in. Our hiring process is cumbersome and inefficient, but that's an Ann Arbor problem, above my realm of control.
 
highspeeds said:
Becaue trainers should be management. And that is what an FOS is. The bottom rung of management.
Click to expand...
I actually agree with that. The problem is you're not going to get a DSR/instructor to take a pay cut to do it. Also if I was offered what I earn in a year(85k)to take my position to the FOS level, it would cause anger and dissention within the FOS ranks. Beside that, as an hourly employee, I'm mostly shielded from all the upper level corporate BS that managers have to put up with.
 
ScotchNeat said:
I actually agree with that. The problem is you're not going to get a DSR/instructor to take a pay cut to do it. Also if I was offered what I earn in a year(85k)to take my position to the FOS level, it would cause anger and dissention within the FOS ranks. Beside that, as an hourly employee, I'm mostly shielded from all the upper level corporate BS that managers have to put up with.
Click to expand...

I have had several members of management be angry at me that we make so much as drivers. I would always tell them to give me a pay cut and let me go home.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top