There's a hole in our collective boat and we're doing little more than bailing. The trucking industry continues to fight record turnover rates, leaving companies scrambling to cover lost productivity while they recruit and re-train new drivers as fast as they leave. For larger carriers, it has become a revolving door effect.

There is no disputing the fact that the driver shortage is the most serious problem in the trucking industry. The severity is underscored by the economic impact the shortage continues to have on the nation and the owners of companies within the truckload segment of the industry. Furthermore, the industry has not defined a long-term solution or strategy to solve the problem, forcing individual companies to find their own solutions based on available resources. Those companies that find solutions will be the winners. Those that don't will fail or go out of business as the industry continues to constrict and consolidate. Many are on the road to change and will find they are doing many of the things that I will suggest in this 5-part blog series on driver retention.

Retention vs. Recruiting

Driver retention is by and large a much more serious problem than driver recruitment. Companies need to establish this as a basic fact in order to identify the issue at hand.

The industry has proven that it can recruit. Sadly, it has been recruiting and supporting a 100 percent or more annualized turnover rate for years. Clearly, the issue is keeping the drivers we recruit and not letting the good ones get away.

Retention is a multipart process. Ideally, it begins with recruitment and moves forward through qualifying, screening and orienting a new employee, followed by a transition into the job, period reviews, accountability and recognition. Some companies have recognized this and adapted and changed their process. Often, it happens by default. Companies recognize the need to change one part, it works and they change another part, allowing things to improve. These are the companies that have achieved low driver turnover by industry standards. It is not impossible to find companies with 35 to 50 percent turnover compared to industry averages of around 100 percent.

It's no secret that small companies often boast of remarkably low turnover rates because of their ability to establish personal relationships with drivers. The drivers feel like they are an important part of the team even though there is no formal retention process in place. Unfortunately, many of these same companies lose touch with their drivers as their fleets grow, which usually signals an increase in turnover. This doesn't have to happen. All companies-small, medium and large-can institute sound programs and human resource processes that can grow with the company.

The important goal is to define a reason and benefit for quality applicants to come to your company and create opportunities that will convince them to stay. High quality employees in any job environment are concerned about their future. Quality drivers are no different. Change, however, must start with the company and not the employee. Employees follow the moves or environment that exists within a company.

It is important to consider the driver position as a highly paid role that requires a high quality applicant. This may constitute a radical change in mindset with many companies. Many may make the excuse that those kinds of applicants are not available, but this is a copout. The fact is, quality people are available, but they've become conditioned to be treated the same as poor quality people who are not given a chance to demonstrate their competence and reliability.

In my next entry I'm going to discuss Why Drivers Leave and what you can do to stem the tide.