WIT panelists say successful recruiting and retention strategies begin with realistic expectations — and depend on what happens after a driver is hired.
DALLAS — A competitive paycheck, a reliable home-time schedule and promises of a supportive work environment might convince a truck driver to accept a job. However, some drivers don’t last past orientation, while others may stick it out for 30 to 90 days before moving on.
How can employers combat this? It’s simple: Make sure promises made during the recruiting stage hold up once the driver gets behind the wheel.
That was a central message during “Building a Recruiting and Retention Strategy That Works,” an educational session presented Oct. 26 during the Women In Trucking Association’s (WIT) 2026 Accelerate! Conference & Expo in Dallas.
Moderated by Jamie Bishop of Cottingham & Butler, the discussion brought together representatives of driver staffing, recruiting technology and workforce management companies to examine ways carriers can attract qualified drivers while building the relationships and workplace cultures that encourage them to stay.
For Justin Clarke, founder and CEO of F|Staff, the distinction between recruiting and retention comes down to actions rather than promises.
“Recruiting is about what you say. Retention is about what you do,” Clarke said.
He challenged carriers to look beyond familiar gestures such as employee appreciation barbecues and holiday cards and consider what they actually do differently to support their workforce.
Retention starts even before the first day
According to Becca Matthews of Tenstreet, a successful retention strategy begins well before a new driver arrives for orientation.
“It starts before hiring, in my mind. One hundred percent,” she said.
The process begins with a carrier’s reputation and continues through advertising, conversations with recruiters and the expectations established before a driver accepts an offer.
Matthews said some drivers leave within their first week when they don’t feel valued, adding that asking the right questions during the first 30 days can help companies identify those at risk of leaving.
Amanda McGregor, transportation product manager at Asurint, emphasized that accepting a new driving position is more than a business transaction. Behind every applicant, she said, is someone making a decision that affects personal finances, family and livelihood.
That makes accurate information essential throughout the hiring process — including the details provided by automated recruiting systems.
Once a driver is hired, responsibility for retention extends far beyond the recruiting department.
“Recruiting and retention is the job of everybody in your organization,” McGregor said.
Operations, safety, dispatch and other departments must understand and support the expectations established during recruiting, she explained. Advertised earnings should reflect what drivers can realistically expect, while the day-to-day experience should align with promises concerning schedules, routes and working conditions.
Elif Kinli, co-founder and chief technology officer of Double Nickel, agreed that consistency between recruiting messages and the actual job is essential.
“Consistency in terms of what you’re pitching versus what you’re providing right after needs to be one to one,” she said.
That includes pay, home time and routing, Kinli explained. One way carriers can avoid misunderstandings is to assign a single recruiter to guide an applicant through the hiring process whenever possible.
Having one consistent point of contact can help prevent conflicting information or promises from being lost as applicants move between different members of the recruiting team.
The first 90 days matter
All four panelists emphasized the importance of maintaining communication during the early stages of employment, particularly during the first 30, 60 and 90 days.
Matthews recommended checking with drivers during their first week to determine what they understood about the job during recruiting. Follow-up conversations at approximately 30 to 45 days should focus on whether the carrier is delivering on those expectations.
If the reality doesn’t match what was promised, early feedback gives the carrier an opportunity to address the problem before the driver leaves. That might involve working with operations personnel to adjust routes or resolve other concerns.
McGregor recommended seeking feedback immediately following orientation, including from drivers who decide not to continue. Understanding why someone leaves orientation can help identify problems before they affect additional new hires.
Just as important, she said, is making sure someone with the authority or connections to address the problem follows up. A survey or phone call accomplishes little when the company fails to act on the information it receives.
Drivers can be a carrier’s best recruiters
Employee referral programs remain an important source of potential hires, but panelists cautioned that financial incentives alone won’t persuade drivers to recommend an employer.
Before developing or expanding a referral program, McGregor said, carriers need to consider whether their drivers are comfortable putting their own reputations behind the company.
“When a driver hands out a referral, that is their credibility and their name,” she said.
Carriers struggling to generate referrals should ask drivers why they aren’t recommending the company, rather than simply increasing the financial incentive.
Matthews agreed, encouraging carriers to examine their workplace culture and the reviews drivers share about their experiences.
Addressing recurring concerns — and communicating those improvements to employees — can strengthen a carrier’s reputation with both current drivers and potential applicants.
Clarke also recommended developing peer-support or buddy programs that connect new hires with experienced drivers.
Because truck drivers often work independently, they may have fewer opportunities to develop the relationships that come naturally in a traditional workplace. An experienced driver can provide guidance, answer questions and help identify concerns that a new hire might hesitate to discuss with management.
Technology should strengthen connections
Artificial intelligence and automation were also part of the discussion, particularly their potential to streamline recruiting and improve communication. Panelists described technology that can help carriers respond more quickly to applications, screen potential hires, automate routine communications and identify emerging retention concerns.
Kinli pointed to automated messaging campaigns as one way carriers can maintain contact with applicants and newly hired drivers throughout the recruiting and onboarding process.
Those communications can be scheduled at milestones such as 30, 60 and 90 days, helping ensure that follow-up doesn’t depend entirely on whether a recruiter has time available.
However, she cautioned that automation alone won’t make those efforts successful. The messages must reflect the company’s actual culture, working conditions and employee experience, rather than simply providing another way to distribute generic recruiting material.
McGregor also cautioned that saving time through automation provides little benefit unless companies use that time to develop stronger relationships with applicants and employees.
“If you’re not using that to make more meaningful connections with your applicants and your drivers, then all of your time saved is wasted,” she said.
Technology can identify patterns in employee feedback and alert management to potential problems, she explained, but people must still be willing to address those concerns.
Drivers want answers, too
The importance of honest communication became especially apparent during audience questions, when a female driver challenged carriers to provide prospective employees with better opportunities to evaluate the companies recruiting them.
She suggested connecting applicants with current drivers who could answer candid questions about compensation, home time, benefits, safety, equipment and working conditions.
The discussion also touched on concerns specific to women entering the profession, including properly fitting personal protective equipment, safe facilities and training arrangements.
Without accurate information, the driver pointed out, applicants may accept positions that turn out to be a poor fit — ultimately contributing to turnover.
McGregor acknowledged the importance of those conversations while noting that arranging one-on-one discussions between prospective employees and working drivers can be challenging, particularly when those drivers must give up time normally spent earning a living.
She encouraged carriers to make sure their recruiting personnel understand the realities of the jobs they’re promoting, citing her own experience with employee ride-alongs and direct conversations with drivers.
Later in the discussion, Clarke suggested another approach: Let current employees share their experiences in their own words.
He pointed to the firsthand stories of women drivers featured in WIT’s exhibit trailer and suggested carriers create similar interviews highlighting women already working for their organizations.
The interviews don’t necessarily require professional production, he noted. Even a simple video recorded on a phone can give prospective employees a more personal look at the people behind a company’s recruiting message.
Safety promises require follow-through
Another audience question focused on how carriers can demonstrate their commitment to protecting female drivers in a predominantly male industry.
McGregor encouraged carriers to ask drivers directly what makes them feel safe — and what doesn’t — rather than assuming company policies adequately address their concerns.
Drawing on her experience with motor carriers, she described situations in which driver feedback prompted changes to lodging arrangements and other practices intended to improve safety.
She also emphasized the importance of safe training arrangements and having a clear process for reporting problems, including access to someone who can respond when concerns arise on the road.
Clarke said company executives should take an active role in addressing employee safety concerns.
As a CEO, he said, he would want to be personally involved when the safety of his employees was at stake, particularly when resolving a problem requires difficult management decisions.
The discussion reinforced a broader point: Promoting a safe and supportive work environment may help attract drivers, but maintaining that environment requires management involvement and a willingness to respond when problems are reported.
Listening must lead to action
Another audience member challenged the effectiveness of driver advocacy programs when the employees responsible for gathering feedback lack the authority or leadership support required to address recurring problems.
The audience member said that during his career with carriers ranging from small fleets to operations with thousands of trucks, he’d encountered driver advocacy positions that appeared to offer employees a voice but failed to bring about meaningful change.
McGregor responded that driver advocates must be able to document concerns, identify recurring problems and demonstrate the potential return on investment associated with resolving them. That includes helping company leaders understand the cost of recruiting replacement drivers compared with retaining those already employed and trained.
She also stressed that the effectiveness of a driver advocacy program depends on the people responsible for carrying it out.
“But you can’t teach somebody to care,” McGregor said.
Driver advocates, she explained, need to understand that behind every data point and every response is a person whose livelihood may be affected.
Matthews also recommended identifying recurring patterns in driver complaints and using driver advocacy boards to bring those issues to management’s attention.
Ultimately, the panel’s recommendations pointed to the same conclusion: Recruiting and retention cannot operate as separate functions with separate promises.
A driver may be attracted by the opportunities described in a recruiting advertisement, but long-term loyalty depends on whether the company delivers those opportunities — and how it responds when something goes wrong.
For carriers seeking to build a more stable workforce, the work doesn’t end when a driver accepts an offer. In many ways, that’s when the most important work begins.
Linda Garner-Bunch has been with The Trucker since 2020, picking up the reins as managing editor in 2022. Linda has nearly 40 years of experience in the publishing industry, covering topics from the trucking and automotive industry to employment, real estate, home decor, crafts, cooking, weddings, high school sports — you name it, she’s written about it. She is also an experienced photographer, designer and copy editor who has a heartfelt love for the trucking industry, from the driver’s seat to the C-suite.
