Finished Landstar Express America (LEA) orientation Thursday morning and attended Managing Your Business class offered for all Thursday afternoon.
Orientation was 3 ½ days and was quite informative I have nothing to compare it to as I didn’t attend FedEx orientation. LEA put us up in a local hotel that included breakfast and they supplied the catered lunch each day.
55% of those who begin process aren’t accepted and of those who do make it usually stay for 3 years or more.
Like all carriers they stress safety but LEA seems to add a different twist. They give each truck a set of safety mirrors. I took a set of Sure Plus model 883 Super Deluxe Front Fender Safety Mirror http://www.sureplus.com/products/safety.htm . Each truck is mandated to be inspected at certified locations every 120 days at the expense of LEA or you are taken out of service until completed.
LEA has 60+ agents you can contact those agents that offer loads in area you’re in or heading to and see if anything is available or wait to be called via cell phone. Each truck has Qualcomm so the agents can see who is in their area if it’s solo or team and what type of truck including what equipment each has on board. You able to negotiate each load and aren’t penalized if you refuse any load.
There is no mandatory in-service or load acceptance percentage. They repeatedly stated it is your business and you run it the way you chose. They offer a wide assortment of tools to assist you being a successful business. Some folks accept almost every load while others only cherry pick their loads. If a solo/team wants to take off for a few months and do whatever they are free to do so with no exclamation needed. A total change from what is required by any other carrier I've heard about.
One part of their intranet system offers O/O’s a wealth of information that can be quite helpful in selecting where one wants to go after dropping off a load. The system will allow you to search areas telling you how many loads came from a certain area as well as how many units are currently there. One can view real time weather and traffic conditions and the list goes on and on. They offer a considerable amount of tools that if used properly will greatly assist during the 90 day learning curve period and continue after that.
Manage Your Business class supplied each of us with a CD that has two programs that were developed with the assistance of O/O’s input to better assist tracking run information, expenses and revenue issues. If folks can discipline themselves to properly use these two programs results can be quite beneficial.
I’ve left out a ton of information but as they said in Godfather 1 it is enough to wet one’s beak.
Still have personal matters to complete before I’ll go into service.
I was pleased with my decision when I chose LEA and after attending orientation & Managing Your Business class that feeling hasn’t changed.
Orientation was 3 ½ days and was quite informative I have nothing to compare it to as I didn’t attend FedEx orientation. LEA put us up in a local hotel that included breakfast and they supplied the catered lunch each day.
55% of those who begin process aren’t accepted and of those who do make it usually stay for 3 years or more.
Like all carriers they stress safety but LEA seems to add a different twist. They give each truck a set of safety mirrors. I took a set of Sure Plus model 883 Super Deluxe Front Fender Safety Mirror http://www.sureplus.com/products/safety.htm . Each truck is mandated to be inspected at certified locations every 120 days at the expense of LEA or you are taken out of service until completed.
LEA has 60+ agents you can contact those agents that offer loads in area you’re in or heading to and see if anything is available or wait to be called via cell phone. Each truck has Qualcomm so the agents can see who is in their area if it’s solo or team and what type of truck including what equipment each has on board. You able to negotiate each load and aren’t penalized if you refuse any load.
There is no mandatory in-service or load acceptance percentage. They repeatedly stated it is your business and you run it the way you chose. They offer a wide assortment of tools to assist you being a successful business. Some folks accept almost every load while others only cherry pick their loads. If a solo/team wants to take off for a few months and do whatever they are free to do so with no exclamation needed. A total change from what is required by any other carrier I've heard about.
One part of their intranet system offers O/O’s a wealth of information that can be quite helpful in selecting where one wants to go after dropping off a load. The system will allow you to search areas telling you how many loads came from a certain area as well as how many units are currently there. One can view real time weather and traffic conditions and the list goes on and on. They offer a considerable amount of tools that if used properly will greatly assist during the 90 day learning curve period and continue after that.
Manage Your Business class supplied each of us with a CD that has two programs that were developed with the assistance of O/O’s input to better assist tracking run information, expenses and revenue issues. If folks can discipline themselves to properly use these two programs results can be quite beneficial.
I’ve left out a ton of information but as they said in Godfather 1 it is enough to wet one’s beak.
Still have personal matters to complete before I’ll go into service.
I was pleased with my decision when I chose LEA and after attending orientation & Managing Your Business class that feeling hasn’t changed.
