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Driver Interviews Made Simple

by Randall C. Resch AT Operations Editor

Hiring the right drivers for your company can be a daunting process. Interviewing is a process that owners and managers should perfect in order to reap the benefits of finding the right applicant, develop a sense of interpersonal relations and make the most of time required to conduct interviews. Some bosses are really good at interviews, but others shoot from the hip and could do better.

Some tow bosses boast that they could train a circus monkey to be a tow operator. Wrong! Hiring the right driver is a managerial task that is not to be taken lightly. Your company ’s drivers are the backbone of your business. Since you can’t take every call yourself, you have to hire the right drivers to represent your business and get the job done right.

Getting the job done right means you can’t just fill an empty seat with anyone; hiring smart is your responsibility to hire a competent and skilled professional.After all, your company ’s reputation and liabilities are at stake.

Where today ’s economy has displaced many from America’s workforce, it’s to a company ’s advantage to get the right applicant. Regardless of towing and recovery experience, I’m a firm believer that those considered should have: •Minimal sense of street smarts. •Situational awareness. •Aptitude for workplace safety. •Above-average mechanical aptitude. •Commercial vehicle skills. •Interpersonal relationship skills. •Play well with others.

These categories are “must haves” that no applicant should be without. (Your average circus monkey won’t make the cut in my organization.)

A first consideration in hiring smart is to search for the right applicant for the driver’s job. Be wary of tow truck drivers who come to your facility wearing another company ’s uniform and/or driving another company ’s truck to see if you’re hiring. That driver’s obviously discontent with their current situation and certainly would do the same to you.

Personally, I believe that bosses who practice good business ethics won’t consider hiring another company ’s driver away while they ’re actively employed. Chasing another company ’s drivers is definitely a way to earn a scoundrel’s reputation and create ill will.

Some people do better with their applications than others, but this isn 't a clear-cut indicator on how they 'll be on a recovery.

It’s your desire to

hire qualified

drivers for your

company, but one

applicant doesn’t

always stand out.

Experience

Choosing the right applicant oftentimes is a matter of individual prefer-