With a nationwide shortage of truck drivers, it’s both challenging and critical to find quality employees. Implementing and evaluating recruitment practices, as well as retention strategies, is essential to the success of your trucking business.
Learn how to evaluate hiring processes and retention levels by following these tips.
Hire Quality Drivers
- Referrals are the number one source for quality hires. Ask your current employees to talk to friends about job opportunities and consider a referral program or you can use to incentivize.
- Have a strong online presence. Reach a larger audience through web and social media channels to create a successful media campaign.
- Create mobile friendly applications. Make sure your application process is accessible on a mobile device to avoid losing a large pool of applicants searching on their phones.
- Improve your vetting process. Review your typical interview questions and consider training managers to ask behavioral questions to better know how an applicant will perform. Pinpoint skills and traits needed in a new hire.
- Establish a competitive advantage. Attract top candidates with competitive pay, benefits, training, or yearly bonuses.
Find a way to set your company apart from others by offering benefits of value to a truck driver and advertise those benefits on a wide platform. More importantly, follow through on claims and promises. Consider your current employees and ask for referrals.
How to Retain Quality Drivers
- Upgrade outdated equipment to increase truck drivers’ comfort with improved ergonomics and equipment reliability.
- Invest in electronic systems to eliminate manual log books and trip records.
- Stay aware of your drivers’ on-road time. Many drivers complain about excessive work loads each day. Managing schedules can help prevent burn out.
- Incorporate technology to boost employee productivity. Many new drivers are under the age of 35 and expect to incorporate technology into their work.
- Follow through with claims made during the recruitment process. Your employees will feel valued when you make good on promises and remain less likely to look for greener pastures.
Following these tips will help revamp your hiring process and improve employee retention. If you are unsure where to start, an employee suggestion box or survey will help reveal the satisfaction rate of current employees. Small efforts to show your employees that they’re valued will have a big return to your bottom line. In an industry with high demand and limited applicants, your bottom line depends on finding quality drivers and keeping them.
Contact Corporate Billing today for more expert tips on recruiting and retaining quality truck drivers.