When considering truck driver recruitment and retention, transportation company leaders are well known for focusing on the big two: Pay and home time. While those are the first considerations for a driver choosing a career home, what comes next is everything. Your company culture can make all the difference in successfully recruiting and retaining drivers.

Identify Differentiators

Look at your closest competitor and ask yourself: What does your organization offer that theirs doesn’t? Pay is probably not that different, and home time options are likely comparable. If we assume most employment offerings—such as benefits, facilities, and equipment—are similar, why should a driver choose your company over theirs?

Company culture is often the differentiator that attracts -- and keeps – truck drivers at a carrier when nothing else will. A driver who feels valued, heard and appreciated, is hard to lure away from their current company. A driver who is paid well and gets home when scheduled, but feels undervalued, underappreciated and invisible is much more prone to make the leap.

So, what is culture and how do you build one that keeps blue-chip drivers behind the wheel of your trucks? Let’s take a look.

Are they really a name and not a number?

This cliché is repeated constantly in the trucking industry – to the point that drivers mostly tune it out. That is unless it’s true. If your staff, across the board, really does make an effort to get to know drivers personally, then that is something to tout but not with a tired platitude.

• When talking with a prospective driver, tell them about HOW you connect with your truck drivers and employees.
• How often do staff members see or talk to drivers (beyond their dispatcher or manager)?
• When a driver is on site, are employees encouraged to greet them warmly?
• Do any members of leadership consistently take time to converse with and ask how they’re doing and really listen?

It seems small but personal connections are consequential to drivers.

Be Aware of the Say/Do Gap

Drivers quickly identify the difference between what recruiters describe about the culture and their own experience once they’re on board. There should not be a gap between what you sell in the recruiting process and driver experience. If such a gap exists, it’s crucial to identify it—and close it.

Consistency is Key

It takes time and effort to build and maintain a positive, strong culture that anchors employees and drivers to your company. It’s not done just in recruiting or orientation or operations – it’s done in every part of your organization, every day. Commit to it and you’ll start to see a reduction in turnover as well as a boost in referrals and recruitment success.

While pay and home time remain critical factors in truck driver recruitment and retention, company culture is the glue that keeps drivers committed for the long haul. A culture that fosters genuine connections, delivers on promises, and remains consistent across all levels of the organization can set a carrier apart in a competitive industry. Investing in a strong, authentic company culture isn’t just good for retention; it’s a powerful recruiting tool that can drive long-term success.