Instructional Technologies Inc. is sad to let the industry know of the death of Laura McMillan, vice president of training development.
"McMillan played a huge part in the growth and success of ITI over the years," stated ITI. "She was an amazingly talented and wonderful person, and she was always ready to take on any new projects and develop new programs for the company."
McMillan was the consummate professional. She had bachelor's degree in business management, and a master's degree in Instructional System Design and Adult Learning. She also had an active CDL and over 20 years’ experience in the transportation industry and earned her Certified Transportation Professional (CTP) accreditation from the National Private Truck Council. Her many speaking engagements at industry conferences, published articles, and ability to solve client problems made her one of the most recognized training people in our industry. She was profiled by FleetOwner as one of nine Women in Trucking who’ve made an impact on the industry.
“In many ways Laura had been responsible for the success of ITI in our early years,” said Jim Voorhees, CEO of ITI. “In 2005, Laura came to Vancouver to see what this little company — there were only six of us then — had been developing in the realm of training. At the time she was working at Schneider National Trucking. I remember she asked us if we thought we could handle the workload of supplying training to a company as big as Schneider. We promised we would build the best training she had ever seen. She put her faith in us, and it was a huge step forward.”
“To say we will miss her is a huge understatement,” Voorhees said. “We grieve along with her family, who have lost a wonderful sister and aunt. She leaves a hole in our hearts we can never fill.”
"I had the privilege to work with Laura for many years. In short, she was brilliant,” said Don Osterberg, ITI strategic advisor and former senior vice president at Schneider National. “Recruiting her into the transportation industry serves as one of my proudest accomplishments. I know without reservation that her efforts served to enlighten leaders in ways that ultimately served to save lives. Laura was soft spoken, pragmatic, selfless, and fiercely dedicated to improving the trucking industry. She flattered me recently by referring to me as her mentor, but truth be known, I learned far more from Laura than she ever learned from me. She was my hero. Her wisdom will live on in all who had the honor of knowing her."
“I have worked with Laura on many different projects with three different companies over the past 17 years,” said Roy Broomfield, training director at ITI. “Laura had a passion for training and teaching, especially in the transportation industry. Laura had the ability to connect with people and understand where they needed help. She was then able to recommend training and coaching solutions that made an immediate impact and results. Laura will be sadly missed by her ITI family, but none more than me. She has been a wonderful source of inspiration, information, and knowledge for me and was always available to help and support me.”
McMillan served on numerous committees and boards, striving to improve training and safety in the trucking industry, including:
- American Trucking Associations
- National Private Truck Council
- Truckload Carriers Association
- Professional Truck Driver Institute
- FMCSA’s ELDT curriculum sub-committee
- American Society of Training and Development
- Women in Trucking
- Commercial Vehicle Training Association
To share a memory of McMillan, ITI has set up a memorial web page at https://www.instructiontech.net/laura.
