Everyone in this industry has their own trucking origin story. For some, it was as simple as answering a job advertisement. For others, it was following a passion for driving or learning how engines work. Some were fascinated by the emerging technologies that help move goods more efficiently.
The nine women featured this week on FleetOwner.com began their trucking careers in a male-dominated industry, which is growing more diverse thanks to their successes.
In our annual FleetOwner Women in Transportation feature, we spoke with nine women in various segments of this vast industry that drives the nation forward.
In the following stories, you’ll find profiles of women who have flourished in the trucking and transportation worlds to garner the respect of business leaders across North America. Many started as the only woman in a room full of decision-makers and now are leading the trucking industry into the future.
Along with driving success in the industry and for their organizations, the 2023 FleetOwner Women in Transportation are helping bring in the next generation of female leaders.
Among those featured are a major fleet recruiter focused on finding and retaining successful drivers and another woman who started as an intern at one of the largest for-hire fleets in the U.S. and is now a VP of operations, overseeing hundreds of drivers and managers. We also feature two women who discovered their passions by working with their fathers as children.
Other women in transportation found their way into this industry because they wanted to solve problems, such as improving efficiency or improving the path for women to find careers in the trucking industry.
All nine of these women took different paths in trucking, many of them when women “were a novelty,” as longtime driver Evelyn Vincenzo told FleetOwner. However, their various paths have led to organizational successes that are helping others realize the trucking industry is a place where hard work pays off for individuals, companies, and the country as a whole.
We begin the online version of the 2023 FleetOwner Women in Transporation with a fleet recruiting manager and then we'll run two profiles on other women each day throughout the week.
We will highlight profiles over the course of the week in alphabetical order (and add links to the profiles here):
Laura Duryea, manager of recruiting and retention at Boyle Transportation: “I want to create a place for people to not only feel proud about what they are delivering and what they are doing, but also to build an environment where it’s a community."
Lara Gardner, VP of intermodal operations at J.B. Hunt: "Don’t wait for perfection to take on new tasks. Don’t shy away from difficult situations or challenges. And embrace change because the industry is always going to be changing.”
Selda Gunsel, president of Shell Global: “I have devoted most of my career to technology innovation, and I am really passionate about how science and technology change the world and improve quality of life."
Jennifer Hedrick, president and CEO of the Women in Trucking Association: “Trucking is a terrific profession, no matter what that skill set you have looks like. There are opportunities for women across this entire industry, and that makes it exciting to me.”
Ann Rundle, VP of electrification and autonomy at Act Research: “You get trained as an engineer, it sticks with you. It sticks with you from a problem-solving and an analytical perspective.”
Bonnie Greenwood, FedEx Freight technician: “The right phrase might be that I feel an obligation to try to be a role model now that I've been given this platform.”
Tina Hubbard, CEO of HDA Truck Pride: "Be you. Do what you want to do, and find your people that will help you. Then be confident and learn.”
Melanie Simard, director of compliance, client service, and technical support at Isaac Instruments: “Age or gender doesn’t matter. Step out of your comfort zone. This is how you can grow and reach goals that you never thought would be achievable.”
Evelyn Vincenzo, driver for A. Duie Pyle: “It's always a wonderful feeling when someone looks at the woman you are and says, ‘Hey are you driving that big truck?’ It is with a big smile that I respond with a hefty, pride-filled ....’Yes,’"
