2022 Accelerate Conference | Take the “Hire” Road: Optimize Your Driver Recruiting Results (Panel Discussion)

By 2024, due to loyalists who are Boomers or Gen X retiring, the driver shortage in the trucking industry is estimated to reach 175,000. Companies with for-hire or private fleets will be in serious peril unless they refine their driver recruiting strategies that work in a highly competitive environment. That’s why it’s important to put a personal touch on recruiting into what has become a more impersonal process.

In addition, amid the driver shortage the industry has turned to recruiting women, young candidates, and alternative pools of talent – and they’re making significant progress in these areas. Attend this panel discussion featuring subject matter experts on how to effectively attract and recruit professional drivers:

Learn more about strategies and best practices on where to find truck drivers – and how to convince them that your company is their “employer of choice”
How to gain the attention of quality driver prospects through diverse employee networks, employee and associate referrals, ambassador programs, social engagement, and other modern engagement strategies
Practical ideas on how to leverage your diversity and inclusion initiatives and reputation to attract more driver candidates from alternative pools of talent

MEET THE SPEAKERS

Charlie Saffro (Facilitator)

Founder & Owner
CS Recruiting

Charlie Saffro (Facilitator)

Founder & Owner
CS Recruiting

Charlie has 16+ years of direct recruiting experience within the logistics, transportation and supply chain space and started CS Recruiting from the ground up more than a decade ago. Today, she leads a team of 40 and manages a multi-million dollar organization. As the President and Founder of CS Recruiting, she focuses on making meaningful connections to empower others to discover their full potential. Charlie has worked with businesses of all sizes to help them identify the right talent for their organizational needs. Clients have included third party logistics providers, asset based providers, shippers (manufacturers and distributors) and vendors to the industry (transportation technology/fleet solutions). CS Recruiting’s goal is to partner with clients and candidates to develop long-lasting relationships and make appropriate and time sensitive career matches. CS Recruiting fills positions of all levels; including executive positions, management roles and independent contributor seats.

Charlie is a dedicated yogi and encourages her clients and team to practice mindfulness in the workplace and beyond. She is also the mother of three boys and active in her community, volunteering with organizations to help women in the workforce.

Heather Jewell

Director of Marketing Strategy
Fusion Now

Heather Jewell

Director of Marketing Strategy
Fusion Now

Heather is the Manager of Marketing Strategy at Fusion Now, a startup that is focused on helping companies through reality-based marketing and recruiting. Her role at Fusion Now has put her at the forefront of developing solutions for the ever-changing driver recruiting and retention challenges that the industry faces.

Before her role as a problem solver and innovator (dubbed Fusioneers) at Fusion Now, Heather served as a recruiter and marketing professional across numerous different industries. Her passion for marketing began when she developed a brand for a remote roadhouse in Alaska. Heather found her transportation home when she began recruiting for a top 100 trucking company, quickly becoming a top performer. A lifelong pioneer, she explored alternative avenues of lead generation, forming connections with drivers, and optimizing the drivers' experience from lead to hire during her time as a recruiter.

Today, her passion for marketing and recruiting has led to measurable growth in the carriers she manages. Her career is now highlighted by successfully leading a team of marketers, crafting marketing strategies, turnover reduction tactics, process optimizations, and recruiting strategies for the clients of Fusion Now.

While recruiting and marketing in transportation are ever-changing, Heather is now recognized by her clients as the “go-to gal” when it comes to decreasing their cost per hire, no-show rate, processing time, and turnover rates. She believes that tracking data, analyzing it, and promptly acting upon it through the power of NOW can improve every facet of the driver hiring process.

Shane Keller

Managing Director of Recruiting
Centerline Drivers

Shane Keller

Managing Director of Recruiting
Centerline Drivers

Shane Keller is Managing Director of Recruiting for Centerline Drivers, the nation’s most experienced, reliable, and respected partner in the transportation business.

A 17-year veteran of the human resources industry, Keller is extremely passionate about connecting people and work. He has extensive experience in recruiting, retention, employee relations, compensation, policy creation, program integration, training, and customer service, having served at all levels of HR. He joined Centerline Drivers in 2021 after seven years as manager of driving programs at Penske Logistics. He also held roles in HR for Berks County, Pa., and Susquehanna Bancshares.

Keller is dedicated to public service and held a number of leadership roles for his local chapter of the Society for Human Resources Management (SHMR), including president. He also served as mayor of West Reading, Pa., from 2006-2014 and simultaneously served as president of the West Reading Community Revitalization Foundation and chair of the West Reading Main Street Authority. Keller also served as vice-chair of the West Side Emergency Management Agency and the Health Alliance Board of Directors through CCAP.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration and management from Alvernia University. Keller lives in Leesport, Pa., with his wife and one dog and enjoys spending time with his daughter and two stepsons.

Sadie Church

Director of Recruiting and Marketing
Artur Express

Sadie Church

Director of Recruiting and Marketing
Artur Express

Sadie Church is the Director of Recruiting and Marketing for Artur Express and assisted in the establishment and growth of the CDLLife community. After helping to launch CDLLife, Sadie went on to build the Retention and Marketing Departments at Riverside Transport and eventually became the Director of Recruiting. Sadie launched the company's brand ambassador program to attract more female drivers; the same program the company is leveraging today to attract more drivers.

James Robinson

CEO and Founder
RocketCDL

James Robinson

CEO and Founder
RocketCDL

James Robinson, CEO and Founder of RocketCDL, has spent his entire career at the intersection of technology and trucking. With his passion for pushing the envelope with technology and driver engagement, James has helped some of the biggest fleets in their industry optimize their referral and incentives programs.