Swift Training

If you need to mentor to make enough money to make your truck payments and whatever else, you aren't running your business right to begin with. To make enough money is NOT a reason to mentor.

The only reason to mentor is a desire to impart the knowledge that you have to a new driver so that said new driver will be better able to make it on their own.

And it is indeed a rare individual that after only 6 months as a driver himself, can effectively teach what is needed to be a safe and prosperous driver.

The "bad" mentors need to beware, Swift is now using a secret shopper type of approach to evaluate some of their mentors. They have experienced drivers posing as trainees and going out with mentors. I know of three that are no longer mentors, one of those is no longer with Swift because of his actions.

 

^^^ THAT is progress. They would be better served if they did role playing and other techniques when training their mentors in teaching strategies. It seems that problem mentors are attempting to train by intimidation, not to mention that some of them are blatantly milking the mentor program for the money instead of actively seeking to train their students.

Perhaps changing the compensation structure of mentors would be a solution to consider. For example, if instead of simply paying them all the miles the student drives (which motivates them to hustle a student to team driving status) they should place more compensation in bonuses for student performance. I know they are given a small bonus when a student graduates to solo driving and a few cents per mile for the miles a graduated student does for a period of time, perhaps those bonuses and successful drive miles for their graduates should be greater and the miles driven while they are a student should be smaller. This would motivate a mentor to train their students well so the students would be motivated for longevity with the company.

wolfinc and dollar: my first experience behind the wheel of a truck was right after I got my permit the first time in '77. Hopped on the truck with my O/O brother, we picked up a load and started heading out, I'm in the passenger seat. After a few hours he pulls over and says, "You got it." Huh? The palm of my right hand was swollen and black and blue from trying to jam it in gear after that session... which is a good thing because for days after that I had to be real ginger about pushing it into gear. I'm SURE there were metal shavings in that gear box after I got through with it.

 

I have had 2 mentors, one for less than a day due to some paperwork issues.
When I first met my first mentor his first thing was to hand me a tire thumper and told me to check the tires - there were two low on air, he told me.
I found three that were low, simply by listening to the sound and feeling the rebound. He was surprised that I identified a third tire, as he had not. It was only around 10 pounds low.

My second mentor was new at the mentor game. I was his second, or third student.
But he was good.
He taught me mapping skills, how to observe what is around me at all times, how to back more effectively, how to plan trips and much more.
We did have our problems, from time to time. We had several arguments.
But, we also tried to get along with each other. Neither of us was too proud so as to take a stand when the other turned out to be right.
I even spent some home time with him and his family, which was really nice.

So not all mentors are bad, or are out for only the money at the expense of the trainee.
Some of them really try to be a good teacher.

 

yeah my mentor was great and we still talk and are friends to this day. He has been with Swift for about 8 years now being his 2nd company and I believe 6 of it being a mentor and he goes back and forth only training a few a year. Before that he was a diesel mechanic so he had a lot of knowledge he tried sharing with me about a lot of things and when I had a question he didnt know an answer for he would find it for me but for the most part he was on top of his game and could answer anything. He thinks I could make a good mentor too but thats not going to happen....

I do like they are cracking down on the bad ones

 

I just went through West Michigan CDL and we did NOT have to parallel park as part of the state test. Just an FYI. Im glad we didnt lol.

 

On the other hand, be sure you are comfortable parallel parking by the time you get through training and are solo in your own truck. The first time you pull off into a rest area that only has parallel parking you'll be glad you have that skill, especially if there is only one parking spot left. If you are almost out of hours of service you will have no choice.

 

Yea good point. Never thought of it that way. Thanks.

 

yep good point

i have only paralleled 2 times, with a trailer anyway and both times was just because I wanted the spot but I still had time I could of went somewhere else.

I have also paralleled a few times but just bobtailed and its nice when there are no spots late at night but you can just parallel right between a couple trucks who spreaded out just enough, had to do that 3 nights ago at a rest area off the 5, had 12 minutes left on my clock.

I almost paralleled last night when dropping a trailer at a lot im taking trailers to since I was running out of places to stick a trailer but then saw a spot another driver passed up since it was at a crap angle so i went and took it, took me a few minutes but I got that sucker backed in.