Shifting Gears: Applying ISO 9000 Quality Management Principles to Trucking [Hardcover]

James J. DePillo (Author), Robert A. Melone (Author), Ward Warkentin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 28, 2004 | ISBN-10: 1401850073 | ISBN-13: 978-1401850074 | Edition: 1

While formal quality management systems are a basic requirement for carriers doing business with the automotive industry, it is a company's understanding of key items such as leadership, continuous improvement, and customer satisfaction that is needed to survive and excel in today's market. Shifting Gears brings a unique approach to quality in the trucking industry, clearly defining the issues that challenge a carrier's very survival of business and, through the principles embodied in ISO 9000, discusses practical measures for addressing these challenges. It identifies ISO 9000 as an effective management tool, offering information on how business leaders can reduce their costs, improve their overall business efficiency, and improve their competitive advantage in the marketplace. This quality management principles book moves beyond quality management principles to include methods for use in day-to-day operations, helping carriers easily "shift gears" to make these tools a part of the company culture.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"I'd go so far as to call 'Shifting Gears' required reading for anyone involved in managing a trucking company, large or small, whether or not the reader has any intention of walking the ISO path formally. The principles of successful management are clearly laid out, in accessible language, by authors who truly understand the unique challenges that trucking presents" -- Rolf Lockwood, Editorial Director, Today's Trucking Magazine

"It's real world and very compatible with our thinking in the industry. Formalizing our quality system using these management principles definitely helped us become more profitable" -- Greg Brown, President, B.R. Williams Trucking

"Shifting Gears really opens up your eyes to the application and benefits of ISO 9000 in trucking" -- Dan Doran, President, Ace Doran Hauling & Rigging Company

"The quality management principles in this book really do work. We realized substantial gains in improving driver retention using these principles" -- Norm Sneyd, President, Highland Transport

"If a trucking company wants to improve it's operation by using best practices and principles, then this book is a must. It should be required reading for anyone who wants to operate efficiently and safely in a world class economy that requires a certain management understanding and special skills" -- Jim Runk, President & CEO, Pennsylvania Motor Truck Association

About the Author

James DePillo is currently the Director of Quality at Smith Transport and has been Management Representative for Quality for two mid-sized TL carriers. He has 18 years of experience within the transportation and logistics field and has assisted 4 organizations in developing and implementing ISO registered quality systems. James is an ASQ Certified Quality Manager, is formally trained as a QMS Lead Auditor, is a Six-Sigma Green Belt, holds a B.S. in Marketing, and a M.S. in Logistics from the Pennsylvania State University and is currently in the Ph.D. program at The Pennsylvania State University studying Work Force Education and Organization Development.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 133 pages
• Publisher: Delmar Cengage Learning; 1 edition (July 28, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1401850073
• ISBN-13: 978-1401850074
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 7.5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #577,218 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #44 in Books > Professional & Technical > Automotive > Driver's Education

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Easy to read and informative, August 19, 2004

By 

Brittain C. Ladd "Business Book Junkie" (Irving, Texas United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Shifting Gears: Applying ISO 9000 Quality Management Principles to Trucking (Hardcover)

Of all the industries in the United States and around the world, few are as challenging as the transportation industry and more specifically, the trucking industry. Comprising 5% of the GDP and with over 70% of the cities and towns around the globe solely dependent on trucks to deliver their goods, trucking is truly the backbone of the economy. However, high insurance rates and fuel prices as well as a constant shortage of drivers have made running a trucking company a very difficult endeavor.

Although in use by many different industries, ISO and other quality programs are rarely used by trucking companies. In `Shifting Gears', the authors present case studies and easy-to-follow information that carriers and shippers can use to improve the processes related to shipping and trucking. Based on the premise that quality is a framework for improvement, the authors identify eight specific ISO quality management principles within the book:

Customer Focus
Leadership
Involvement of People
Process Approach
System Approach to Management
Continual Improvement
Factual Approach to Decision Making
Mutually Beneficial Supplier Relationships

Because the book is written in non-technical terms, trucking companies of all sizes will be able to learn and apply the lessons and advice within the book. Reading `Shifting Gears' will not make companies' experts in ISO 9000 but it will clearly explain the importance of structured quality programs and get them on the right path.

As someone who has spent the last 13 years in transportation and who is a certified Six Sigma Black Belt, I can attest that the trucking industry must embrace the quality principles of ISO and Six Sigma. Issues such as backhauls, revenue generation, freight pay and audit, OS&D, pick ups and deliveries, operating ratios, maintenance, etc., can be managed better through the use of a structured quality program such as ISO 9000.