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Hot Trends In Trucking In 2019
After shaking off the fog and confetti of the holidays, it’s time to get back down to business. We’ve reflected back on 2018 and have identified several big trends that we think are likely to impact how our industry operates, prepares, and plans the years ahead.
Driver Shortage
We understand this isn’t going away anytime soon. In fact, some fleets are starting to become more creative in the kind of incentives they have in place to attract great drivers. Instead of the traditional signing bonus which, in truth, has shown to be only mildly successful, we’re seeing more things like mileage bonuses, longevity bonuses, safety bonuses as well as other performance-based incentives designed to reward driver’s for all aspects of their work with a fleet. The great thing about these types of bonuses is that they boost driver pay while simultaneously rewarding drivers for their ongoing efforts in meeting personal goals within the organization as well as company-wide goals.
Recruitment And Retention
The sometimes overwhelming challenge of finding and, more importantly, keeping great drivers, will remain top of mind as we move into 2019. We predict there will be a greater investment of time, money, and energy into HR efforts surrounding driver recruitment, employee communication, employee on-boarding, and ongoing training. The main theme here: Figuring out how to ensure drivers want to remain with an organization for the long haul once they’ve been hired.
Ongoing employee engagement efforts will take on a more important role as younger employees expect to be communicated with frequently and demand transparency in the workplace. Further understanding the inner workings of Millennials and Generation Z as well as effectively managing multigenerational workforces will be another hot topic this year.
Electric Trucks
The lure of not having to pay for diesel fuel or deal with the rising cost of combustion engine maintenance are all attractive to both drivers and fleet owners. Having said that, the cap in how far electric trucks can go before requiring a charge as well as the lack of charging stations across the nation mean it will be some time before we see more electric trucks rolling. Additionally, most fleets turn their assets over on a 3-5 year replacement cycle, which means that any type of conversion to electric vehicles is still years into the future.
What do you think are other hot topics and issues we should be looking out for in 2019?