In 1983, Amanda Schuier sat on her grandfather’s lap atop a Mack Truck, one of the many at her grandfather’s Mack dealership, not knowing that years later, she’d find herself working in the same industry.
“I went to college, double majored in journalism and Spanish, and was living in downtown Kansas City,” she said. “After I was laid off from a meeting and event planning agency in 2006, I saw a marketing job at a truck dealership. At first, I didn’t connect the dots that my grandfather had a really successful career in transportation.”
Today, Schuier has picked up where her grandfather left off. For her, the trucking industry was love at first sight.
“Everything about it – the people felt like the kind of people that I wanted to be with, and I was excited about what I was doing on a daily basis,” Schuier said.
Despite the trucking gene skipping a generation – Schuier’s father is a dentist – her grandfather got to see her start in the industry before he passed away in 2007. “He knew I was working with trucks, and he just thought it was the coolest thing ever because he was kind of an older conservative guy, so even though his son didn’t go into transportation, his granddaughter did.”
Since 2006, Schuier has learned that it takes certain character traits – like a strong-willed attitude and perseverance – to succeed in this industry.
“I’m an upfront kind of person,” Schuier said. “I think one of the reasons that I’ve succeeded is because I’ve proven my credibility. In order to do that, I’ve had to educate myself even more, and make sure I’m aware of what’s going on in the industry, so that the answers that I give are not dishonest. If I don't know the answer, it’s more important to just say ‘I don't know the answer’ than to make something up.”
As an active member of the American Trucking Associations’ Technology & Maintenance Council (TMC), Schuier has continued on another legacy as the fourth female to be a study group chairwoman since 1939, currently holding the position as the chairwoman of the TMC Connect S.5 Fleet Maintenance Management Study Group.
In addition to her time spent working with other members of the trucking industry, Schuier enjoys spending time going to career fairs at elementary, middle and high schools and talking about jobs in transportation.
“I think one of the things that I can say to all those kids is that I've had an amazing career in transportation, an industry that is often overlooked,” she explained.
Speaking to children of those ages encourages them to be open to all of the opportunities the world has to offer. For the trucking industry, Schuier’s biggest piece of advice is “be a sponge” and “learn everything you can about the industry.”
“Find mentors who will help you,” Schuier emphasized. “Have people in your life who you can ask questions, even if you feel those questions are totally ridiculous.
“Build a network and attend industry events,” she continued. “Sign up for webinars, and just learn as much as you can. I can't tell you how many people have helped guide me in my career who I can be completely brutal and honest about what I'm going through in my job and ask them for tips and pointers. I've had several mentors who have really helped me push myself to be better, in terms of taking on new roles or taking on new responsibility. They’ve served as my coaches to help push me when I wasn't sure that I could take on more or be pushed.”
