Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/671350
NEWS & NOTES 8 // OWNER OPERATOR // MAY 2016 embedded in their hardware or via operator smartphones or other devices, will present new tools to a population that has not had much opportunity to use them. Comfort with information sharing will grow, says Jay Thompson of Transporta- tion Business Associates. "You'll be able to do a better job of personal time-plan- ning, managing your log time. Information sharing [with shippers and receivers] will make the flow of freight in and out better." Traditionally, owner-operators "never are 100 percent safe" when times get tough, particularly in an exclusive lease to a carrier with a large number of company drivers and owned assets to protect, says Gary Carlisle. No longer driving, he owns a truck and manages the small private fleet of oil and gas services company Agri-Em- presa in Midland, Texas. However, if Brannon and others are cor- rect, tomorrow's owner-operators may be more willing to assume such risk. What's more, continued diversification of business partners for the most independent of truck operators holds potential to reduce the risk. "There's an increasing kind of osmosis between the big guys and the small guys" in accounting, vehicle and driver monitor- ing, and other areas, Thompson says. One example is Trucker Path's routing and load-matching application, which in- tegrates transportation management soft- ware, says Charles Myers, vice president of strategy. Integrated TMS tools help manage func- tions such as load negotiation, invoice col- lection, tax accounting and profit analysis. Integrated TMS tools for small fleets al- ready are available from companies such as DAT and Truckstop.com, and they will be a growing boon to owner-operators, he says. "If the guy can fill out his cost matrix in the back end of the [software] – fuel, insur- ance, tires – this software will quickly spit out what his profit is and how he's doing with his loads," Myers says. "Managing all of the costs and trying to figure out where's the sweet spot on their rate per mile" could become much easier. Amen says such widely available and af- fordable tools will increasingly "free up the driver to not be tied exclusively to mas- sive systems and massive companies." A multiplicity of business partners, even for those operating without authority, could evolve into the norm. Given increas- ing connection between the truck cab and the back office, the threat to today's exclu- sive-lease model is real. "There's plenty of smart owner-operators who will adapt to changes. There's always going to be those really entrepreneurial op- erators who will end up leveraging all kinds of stuff." — Jay Thompson of Transportation Business Associates