Survival skills for owner-operators

It’s the rare owner-operator who fails because he lacks passion for trucking. No, most owner-operators who have to park the truck-or turn it in-do so because they haven’t learned the skills they need to manage their business.

It happens a lot these days. An owner-operator has to be able to jack-and-chase his way into a cash flow statement as adroitly as he can an alley dock. Or, more likely, he has to recognize when he needs help with business matters and have the gumption to ask for it.

There’s no shortage of parties ready to respond. Government agencies, lenders, schools, accounting firms–many have booklets and toolkits to help small business owners get financing, attract customers, get paid, comply with tax laws, manage employees, and boost their confidence for short-term stability and long-term survival.

But few address all the nuances of trucking: negotiating freight contracts, managing compliance, and working out your true cost per mile.

One of the best and most persistent sources around is the Canadian Trucking Human Resources Council. The CTHRC, a non-profit group based in Ottawa, has launched its Owner-Operator Business Skills Course, do-it-yourself training designed to help independent truckers hone their management acumen.

The program, available online and in CD-ROM format, comes in bite-sized, “how to”-oriented modules followed by a quiz to highlight areas you should go over again. Among the topics: how to negotiate loads and contracts, keep more useful records, plan your business and personal finances, manage cash flow, negotiate equipment loans, and hire drivers.

There’s also a section on how to hire good professional help.

The program should take about 40 hours to complete, the CTHRC says. Included in the $195 package are downloadable Microsoft Excel spreadsheets you can use to manage your day-to-day business, and a bevy of useful advice, tips, and checklists supplied by owner-operators who have tried them and know what works. And since the course is administered electronically, you can go at your own pace and review the course material wherever you are, long after you’re finished. (If you’re a fleet or a training school, a supervisor’s kit is available.)

Owner-Operator Business Skills may not address every issue surrounding your specific operation, but at the very least it will help you form more educated questions to take to your own accountant, lawyer, lender, or insurance broker.

That alone is a lesson worth learning
www.cthrc.com/owner-operator