Industry Panel at TCA Truckload: Surviving and Thriving as a Carrier

Summary: Commercial trucking experts recommended several best practices to help fleets succeed and thrive, including focusing on consistent financial tracking, transparent communication across the fleet, and a more proactive approach to weathering a challenging economic climate.

The topics for the panel focused on:

• Establishing an effective financial reporting cadence to improve data visibility and support genuine strategic growth.
• Transforming raw financials into actionable insights that inform decision-making.
• Understanding the importance of creating a concrete strategic business plan, rather than operating with reactive decisions.

During the discussion, additional points were covered by panelists and audience members, which we’ve compiled into a list of top takeaways from the panel below.

1. A Consistent Financial Cadence is Key

To make smart, accurate business forecasts and decisions, consistent, transparent financial tracking and reporting are critical. Every person at the company should have a financial measure they are striving for, based on their role.

For example, operations teams should be meeting weekly to track financial performance, focusing on driver profit and loss (P&L), reviewing current revenue from loads minus expenses (fuel, maintenance, driver pay, etc.) over a set period. Cash flow metrics are especially important to watch for a healthy operation.

2. Build Team Ownership Across the Company

Not only is consistent reporting critical, but the way in which it is communicated is key. Experts recommend a quarterly, all-employee “stand-up” meeting to transparently share the company’s financial situation, realign as needed, or set new goals. Every employee at the fleet should feel a personal ownership of the financial results. Sharing the operational plan and communicating it clearly builds trust and shared ownership through every role.

3. Move from Reactive to Proactive

Reacting consistently to economic stressors builds a fleet constantly in survival mode. By creating a proactive plan based on your fleet’s real-world data, you establish a foundation to grow and weather market volatility. Keeping a close and consistent eye on your key metrics allows you to tweak your plan and make adjustments as needed, while your regular communications with employees ensure all are informed and on board with the plan of action.

Related reading: Turning Fleet Data into Actionable Insights (9 Examples)

4. Grow the Right Way in Tough Times

In the current economic climate, most fleets are not focusing on increasing their truck count. Instead, this is a perfect time to focus on other forms of growth, such as strengthening relationships with customers and vendors or improving internal processes. Growth should focus on operating a smarter business, being selective about lanes, and identifying the most profitable areas to operate. A diverse customer base is key to surviving economic turmoil, and putting the work in now helps future-proof your fleet’s health for the long run.

5. Consistently Track the Important Metrics

The panelists emphasized setting key benchmarks and tracking them consistently over time. It’s important to hold these metrics consistently and revisit them regularly so that you can make adjustments and address small issues before they become big ones. These suggested metrics include:

• Miles loaded %
• Network density and performance indicators 
• Driver P&L (Comparing drivers and addressing weaknesses)
• Miles driven per day by driver
• Percent of seated trucks

Implementing these tips and best practices into regular fleet operations can improve stability and confidence in your company, helping you weather economic volatility with a plan of action and the ability to adjust when needed. Increasing insight into your own real-world data helps you make smarter decisions and communicate them more clearly with your team. 

The panelists for this TCA session were:

• Chris Hummer, President, Don Hummer Trucking
• Mark Walker, CEO, Transland
• Ty Walker, Director of Finance, Stokes Trucking, LLC
• Moderator: Graig Morin, President, Brown Dog Carriers

Related Reading: At Truckload Carriers Association’s (TCA) recent Truckload 2026 in Orlando, Florida, an expert panel titled “Surviving & Thriving as a Carrier” covered best practices for using real-world fleet data to improve financial operations, make better-informed decisions, and increase transparency.

‍Interested in automating your fleet’s data collection and processing? Learn more about how Platform Science can help you go from data to decision faster by requesting a demo.