Carrier Profiles

A New Look at Panther II

Someone once said, ‘Change is the only constant in life,’ and that’s certainly true in the expedited logistics world.  Panther II Transportation is embracing that change by intensifying its focus on the success of its owner-operators and drivers, says the company's new Director of Corporate Support, Jeff St. Pierre.

St. Pierre came to the Seville, Ohio-based Panther II in early November 2005, taking charge of their Recruiting, Retention, Contractor Relations, Training, Safety, Risk Management, and Compliance teams.

He says of his background, "I grew up on a farm and my entire family is in the business of either farming or transportation.  I enjoy working with the folks in those industries, and I believe my background makes me a strong drivers' advocate and an astute problem solver."

Following 9 years in the US Air Force, and after obtaining his Master's degree in Environmental Health and Safety Management, St. Pierre worked for seven years in various safety positions with tank truck companies, most recently as Vice President of Safety for Quality Distribution of Tampa, FL.

St. Pierre says Panther II is excited about the year ahead. “We expect 2006 to be a year of fantastic growth, and we've launched a pack of initiatives to help us help our operators become more successful.”

Renewing Its Focus on Its Drivers

According to St. Pierre, their most important initiative is “Panther II's intensified focus on our drivers.  We've revamped our orientation program, customizing classes for operators of both regulated and unregulated vehicles, and improving our ability to focus on the unique needs and concerns of each.  We're also addressing the business aspects of being an expediting owner-operator by outlining successful strategies that are proven effective."

He continues, “We've reworked some pieces of the organization to better serve our customers and our drivers.  We've combined recruiting, driver relations, and training into one group to support our drivers better beginning with the hiring process, though their first load with us, and all the way to retirement.”

“We're working closely with our dispatchers to ensure that they understand and appreciate what a driver goes through on a daily basis.”

St. Pierre says that Panther II is taking a proactive approach to listening to its drivers and owner operators.  Instead of waiting for drivers to call with problems or issues, Panther II is constantly adding tools and resources to reach out to them.

Communication is Key

 "We have a survey coming out the latter part of March or early April,” says St. Pierre, “in which we ask the drivers, ‘what are we doing well, what do we need to improve, and what do we need to do to improve it?’  We want their feedback and we want them to be more involved in the management of our business."

St. Pierre says that the company is involved in rigorous self-examination to pinpoint areas of concern. 

Using Technology to Improve Communication

 Panther II has invested heavily in cutting edge technology throughout its operation, and the contractor support area is no exception. 

“Our upgraded, state-of-the-art phone systems will allow us to track call volumes to ensure that when a driver calls they will actually reach a live person most of the time instead of having to leave a voicemail.  The automated system will enable drivers to query the Panther database for information that was previously unavailable to them.”

"We've got a great web site that provides tools to help owner-operators manage their trucks, to help them track what they're doing or what they're not doing, and to provide ideas for enhancing their revenue,” says St. Pierre.

“We offer a wide range of tools to help our owner-operators.  We want every contractor in our fleet to make full use of these tools and to suggest new ones they think would be valuable.”

Partners in Success

 "Panther II is in a major growth phase.  We're probably one of the few expediting companies enjoying this kind of growth right now, and we need as many partners as possible.  We’re putting out the call to every expediting driver out there – whether you’re in a cargo van, a straight truck, or a tractor – to come on board right now.  We’re confident that once you do, you’ll see that Panther II’s model beats anything else out there."

He adds, “Panther II is growing its Sales staff to keep increasing revenue for all of us, and we’re adding to the fleet in the flatbed and temperature-control businesses.  We're also going to be expanding our primary service area to provide more value to our operators by increasing their earnings with more miles, and to allow us to service the fastest growing areas of the country.”

St. Pierre says that Panther II's rapid growth hasn’t lessened its commitment to remaining a driver-focused organization.  “Drivers often believe that the larger companies think of them as nothing more than a number attached to a piece of equipment. At Panther II, we are constantly working to squelch that myth.  We consider our drivers and owner operators to be every bit as important as our customers, and we want to be a resource for them.  We know that we won’t succeed if our owner operators aren’t full partners in that success.”

 â€œA primary focus for Panther II is to grow our fleet by helping our current owners grow their businesses.  In other words, in addition to recruiting and bringing in new contractors, we want to grow from within our fleet by enabling our smaller fleet owners to become larger, more successful fleet owners.”

“To that end, we are planning to invite our contractors who own one or more trucks to Seville for a workshop and take them through the business of being a fleet owner.  We will help them understand and analyze the economics of expansion, share some of our Panther Partner success stories, and provide terrific options for securing their next truck by working with our equipment vendor partners.”

St. Pierre notes that this new program will build on something Panther II already does successfully with its larger fleet owners.  “We bring all of our '3-truck plus' fleet owners to Seville twice a year for dinner and a meeting.  We discuss new initiatives and ask them to take us through some of the issues that they're seeing.  We provide updates on issues that were discussed at the last meeting and what we've done to address them.”

“There are many successful Panther II fleet owners who started with one truck and grew their fleet to five or more.  As a matter of fact, three of our full-time recruiters are dedicated solely to filling our fleet owners' trucks with drivers.  Unlike our competition, we don't charge anything for this because we know it’s a win-win situation for both Panther II and our fleet owners.”

“And I don't want to forget our upcoming Banquet for drivers who have been with Panther II for four years or more.  It's all part of our continuing commitment to recognizing the people who have made Panther II so successful.”

He adds, “All of our independent contractors should know that Panther II will always regard them as partners in our business.  They will never be just a truck number to us.”

Learn about Panther II Transportation

Apply Online Panther II Transportation