New Business - Macy's

 

The Central Region was recently awarded business with Macy's in North Jackson, OH!  North Jackson is located 18 miles west of Youngstown, in northeast Ohio.  The account will consist of 11 drivers, 6 local and 5 regional, running retail freight from the distribution center in North Jackson to Macy's Stores in six states.  In addition to the 11 drivers, the account will have an onsite Account Manager.  The startup is slated for early March!

Happy Anniversary - Eric Jones

Happy Anniversary to Eric Jones!  On January 11, Eric reached his one year milestone with JB Hunt.  Eric is currently an Operations Supervisor at Pet Supplies Plus in Seymour, IN.  Eric was major contributor in helping the account to win the Driver Dedicated Account of the Year for 2016.  Thank you for all your hard work!

 



New Business - Hagan and Stone

DCS Central Region was recently awarded new business with Hagan and Stone Wholesale, Inc.  H & S is located in Tompkinsville, KY and is sells construction materials, culvert, rebar, nails, roofing, fencing, soil stabilization, and building supplies.  The account will have an on-site Account Manager as well as 7 local Dedicated Drivers hauling flatbed loads.  Startup is set for the first week in March.  We look forward to servicing this new customer!

Located in South Central Kentucky, Hagan & Stone Wholesale began operation in 1946 serving the merchant trade needs of building supplies, farm supplies, and contractors in a sixty mile radius of Tompkinsville, Kentucky. The company was fortunate, and due to the diligent effort of both the Hagan and Stone families, the business prospered. The company was incorporated in 1976 with both families as equal partners. Mr. Stone passed away unexpectedly on November 11, 1983 and the Hagan family purchased the assets of all allied corporations on February 9, 1988. Today, Hagan & Stone Wholesale services a 250 mile radius of Tompkinsville with weekly, jobsite, and nextday delivery service. http://www.haganandstone.com

The MasterBrand Fleet goes International

The MasterBrand Account is proud to announce that it has successfully completed its first run into Canada. Going forward each week one to two of our drivers will be going into Montreal, Canada. We will be bringing back inbound freight for the manufacturing facilities in Southern Indiana, which has been estimated to save MasterBrand Cabinets north of $120,000 a year. This will provide one of the strongest CVD opportunities that JB Hunt has been able to provide.

In addition to being a robust CVD, it also represents a strategic & operational success.  Our direct competitor, Cardinal Logistics, is unable and unwilling to entertain these kinds of opportunities making us a stronger partner in the eyes of our customer.

Howard Wile (WILH0) above in Lancaster, ON at the local Flying J

The requirements for our professional drivers to enter into Canada are staggering. As a result, only about one third of the MasterBrand fleet is cleared to perform this move. As we look to 2018 and are pursuing additional growth it will be critical for our partnership with MasterBrand to provide these services. Cheap & efficient solutions, where many cannot compete, will be our advantage going into contract renewals. It’s drivers such as Howard Wile who truly are bringing the JB Hunt value to the table and will help establish the vision of this account.

 

 

 

Happy Anniversary Brian Tabor

Congratulations to Brian Tabor as today marks his 11th year with JB Hunt!  Brian began his career at PPG in Delaware, OH as an Operations Supervisor.  From there Brian was promoted to Account Manager at the Limited in Reynoldsburg, OH.  For the last three plus years, Brian has served as Regional Operations Manager based in Columbus, OH.  Happy Anniversary Brian!

Driver Appreciation at CHEP Indianapolis

Being Driver Dedicated is a core value at our CHEP Account in Indianapolis.  Our Account Manager Jerry White stated the following: "We appreciate the hard work and effort our drivers put forth every day to provide excellent service to our customer.  We have added a refrigerator and stocked it with water, Gatorade and soda.  Drivers are able to put some food in it and we have a microwave so they can warm up their food.  It's nice to have the drivers eat lunch in the office as we are able to talk to them."  In addition, CHEP Indy account driver Randy McIntosh stated "I appreciate that we always have water, drinks and a microwave if we need to heat our lunch up."  Randy also stated "I'm appreciative of the all the things that account management does for the drivers on a regular basis.  The management in the office make us feel like a very important part of the team." 

 

Now that's what driver appreciation and being driver dedicated is all about.  Great job CHEP Indy Team!!!

It's the Little Things

Kohl's Findlay  

Many times, it's the little things that make the difference to our drivers.  Survey results show that while compensation is important, it traditionally ranks towards the bottom on what our drivers truly value in their place of employment.  In addition to making sure we have the necessities for our professional drivers, we should also look for ways to foster engagement around the work place.  One of the many ways is by offering up a hot beverage, such as coffee, tea, or hot chocolate.  With the average temperature in the Central Region hovering around 40 degrees for nearly 4 months out of the year, this is a good way to show appreciation to our drivers.  Coffee leads to conversation, this conversation leads to relationship building, which naturally leads to a more engaged and productive driver and a better overall experience for our customer!  Great work by our team at Kohl's in going the extra mile to support our road and yard drivers!

Happy Anniversary Naomi Drake

Happy Anniversary, Naomi! Jan 7th marked her 4th Anniversary with J.B. Hunt. She is currently Account Manager of the Aurora Parts account in Lebanon, IN! Thanks for all your hard work!

Happy Anniversary Dustin Hatfield

Wishing Dustin Hatfield a Happy 9th Anniversary as of Jan. 7th! Dustin is our ARM based in Dayton, OH. Thanks for all you do for the Region, Dustin!

Happy Anniversary Scott Dorsey

Happy (belated) 2nd Anniversary to Scott Dorsey! January 6th marked his 2nd year, he is Account Manager at PECO in Indianapolis, IN. Congrats, Scott!

Happy Anniversary Drew Roberts

Happy (belated) Anniversary to Drew Roberts, as January 4th marked his 1st Anniversary with J.B. Hunt. Drew is an Operations Supervisor at our Home Depot Monroe, OH Account. Thanks for all your hard work, Drew!

Happy Anniversary Adam Martindale

Happy Anniversary to Adam Martindale. Adam just finished his 2nd year with the MasterBrand account as an Operations Supervisor where he manages 15 drivers. In his tenure with JB Hunt he has helped the team with the start up in 2015, assisted our Tyson site in KY when it lost its management team, and helped the MasterBrand team win its 2nd CVD Account of the year award.

In Adam’s spare time he likes to coach his children’s sports activities, spend time with the family, and work on home remodeling projects. Thank you for your dedication and Happy Anniversary! 

2017 Central Region Kickoff Reflection - Steve Rogers

After attending the 2017 DCS Central Region Kickoff in Columbus, Ohio I feel compelled to give some feedback about the event.  As the former VP of Operations of the Central Region from 2007-2013,  I knew I was going to experience a wave of emotions.  During my time in the region I was fortunate to be involved in 7 kickoff meetings.  Each one of them was different, but it felt like we got better each year.  My farewell to the region was in Louisville, Kentucky in January of 2014.   During my speech on Friday evening  I was overcome with many emotions.  Ultimately I knew the region was going to be in great hands under the leadership of Andrew Deblock and Adam Kleeh.  My emotions were centered around the drivers and leaders that I had grown close to, as well as the clients we served. 

 

So, it was a real blessing to see the first-class production that we all witnessed this past weekend.  The teamwork that went into putting on an event of that size was obvious to anyone who watched the behind-the-scenes preparation on Thursday evening. The interaction between the 23 professional drivers and your region leaders during the Friday awards presentation was natural and heartfelt.  Each award that was shared with the drivers and managers was valued.  The pinnacle of the night was the Driver of the Year presentation.

 

The entire weekend was time well spent.  I am so fortunate to have been able to come back in my current sales role and see how people have grown and matured in their professional lives.  As we continue to grow in Dedicated Contract Services we will need great people.  That is the key differentiator that sets  us apart from the competition.  Thanks for allowing me to share our sales goals with your people.  We have already seen leads being shared with our new business development executives.  Leads, references and retention of current accounts are all keys to us exceeding our growth goals.  With partners like the Central Region operations team, I know we are in good hands for the future.       

 -Steve

Steve Rogers
DCS VP of Sales - Central Region

Fuel Cost on the Rise

Over the last 30 days, the US has seen diesel prices rise 6.5% from $2.42/gallon to $2.586/gallon this past week.  As a region, DCS Central spends over $25 MM annually on fuel.  It is critical that all of our accounts have a process to monitor fuel expense.  In addition to making sure we are steering our drivers towards their assigned fuel sites, make sure we are monitoring fuel performance on a regular basis.  Our drivers are professionals and enjoy seeing how they stack up versus other drivers on the fleet.  Posting results can lead to friendly competition within the account and driver overall improvement on the account.  We have a group at our corporate office, led by Jerrod Mounce who can assist with fuel related issues.  Please seek them out if there is anything additional you need.

 

http://www.eia.gov/petroleum/gasdiesel/

http://experience.blog.jbhunt.com/2016/12/22/fuels-beautiful-world/

Central Region Kickoff 2017

Thank you to all who attended this years Annual Kickoff Meeting in Columbus, OH!  On Friday we held the awards ceremony recognizing some of our top performers in 2016.  Congratulations to John Simmons, from the Armour Eckrich Account in Indianapolis, for taking home the 2016 Central Region Driver of the Year Award!  On Saturday, we held a general session with six presentations, covering not only DCS operations but also the other three divisions.  The afternoon session was highlighted by the Trusted Leader training.  Congratulations to Team Warchol for winning the Central Region Cup!  Looking forward to another great year in 2017!!

Kickoff Award Winners

• Corporate Support Person of the Year: Aaron Waterman
• Region Support Person of the Year: Jeff Holle
• Elevation Award : Joe Nagle - AM HD Van Buren
• CVD Account of the Year: MasterBrand Cabinets
• Driver Dedicated Account of the Year: Pet Supplies Plus
• Risk Management Account of the Year: SS Louisville - Sherry Sapp and Richard Biven
• The Sparty Award - Greatest Comeback: SS Vinton - Schuylar Mcguffey
• Rookie of the Year: Michael Maier - AM Jamestown Container
• OS or LC of the Year: Keith Taylor - OS HD Monroe
• AM or TGM of the Year: Kyle George - AM Family Dollar Ashley
• Small Account of the Year: Armour Eckrich
• Medium Account of the Year: Soft-Lite Windows
• Large Account of the Year: HD Monroe
• Driver of the Year: John Simmons - Armour Eckrich

Central Region Promotion Announcement - Jacqueline Buckles

Please join me in congratulating Jacqueline Buckles on her promotion to Human Resource Client Manager for the Central Region!

Jacqueline is a proud graduate of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville where she majored in Communication Studies.  Jacqueline started her career with JB Hunt as a Dedicated Manager in Training in January 2014 based out of the Southeast Region.  Soon after that, Jacqueline was promoted into an Operations Supervisor role supporting 4 different accounts in the Southeast.  From there, she was promoted to Account Manager for the Chep Account in Elloree, SC.  In addition to her role in operations, Jacqueline took on additional functions in supporting the region.  This included assisting in college recruiting and leading up the social media efforts for the Southeast.  Her hard work and drive has positioned her well for the next step in her career. 

In her new role, Jacqueline will assume the position vacated by the promotion of Megan Perez, supporting Dedicated, Final Mile, as well as Intermodal.  Jacqueline will report up through Director of Human Resources Eric Airola and be based out of Columbus, OH. 

Congratulations Jacqueline and welcome to the Central Region!