“Good captains in fierce storms are made” is one of the first sayings I remember learning as a child and it has stuck with me these past four decades. The ability to handle adversity is the true test of a professional or a business enterprise and what separates the winners from the pretenders and wannabes.

If we buy into the belief that ultimately a trucking company is only as good as its people, and its driver force in particular, then the economic uncertainty and tumultuousness of the last couple of years have proved to be the perfect storm in which to test our mettle.

How have our driver relations fared in the maelstrom of cutbacks, wage freezes and layoffs? Are our drivers still feeling engaged, enthused and motivated to help us tackle the challenges and seize the opportunities to come when the economy improves? If not, do we know how to get them back on our bandwagon? These are some of the most critical questions a fleet owner or manager has to answer in the months ahead.

And we want to play an important role in helping you find answers to those questions.

For the fourth straight year our research division, Transportation Media Research, has spent several months surveying company drivers and owner/operators across the country -through e-mail and at industry shows. We wanted to know how satisfied they are in their jobs, which parts of their job provide them with the most satisfaction and which the least? We wanted to get to the heart of critical questions such as which parts of their job drivers most strongly feel should be recognized and rewarded; which areas they want to receive more training; and the relative importance they attach to having a say in a range of management decisions. Our research also looked at how often drivers changed jobs and, when doing so, what would make them choose one company over another.

Research of this scope and breadth is a considerable annual undertaking and would not have been possible without the help and support of our founding sponsor, Michelin North America (Canada) Inc. and our supporting partner, the Canadian Trucking Human Resources Council (CTHRC). It speaks to their commitment to this industry that they have chosen to support such research year after year.

Our greatest thanks goes out to the company drivers and owner/operators across the country who took time out of their very busy schedules to respond to our questionnaire. Thank you for making our research project a success once again.

We hope the results of our survey are considered by both fleet managers and the drivers they employ in the spirit in which our research was intended and conducted: as a good starting point towards better understanding the driver-fleet manager relationship and what is required to make it most effective. We also believe that good research is meant to evolve over time and so we ask for your feedback on our effort and any changes or additions you would like to see made in future years.

Lou Smyrlis Editorial Director