Issue 1, 2018

Mike remembers, “I wanted nothing to do with trucking for a long time, and wanted to be as far away from it as possible!” Mike graduated with degrees in Economics and Business Administration (Finance) from the University of Oregon. After college, he moved to Los Angeles to work in banking. “As time went on, I got to the point where I felt no real opportunity for growth there.” After working on the Alaskan pipeline, Mike’s father became an owner operator. He created a unique method of shipping flat glass with his own racking system and became successful in the highly specialized market. When Richard called Mike to help with the business, Mike was reluctant at first. Before computers, doing business in different locations required having an operating branch there. His father was eager to open a branch in Dallas, TX and offered him an attractive salary. Mike seized the opportunity to open the branch, and then opened locations in Arizona and South Carolina. All three eventually consolidated to Oregon. Because of Mike’s financial/accounting background and meticulous mentality, he quickly learned the ropes. He worked closely with the CPAs and attorneys in the office. When Richard retired and the company needed a new president, it was natural for Mike to take over. Combined Transport strives to be honest, ethical, and frugal. “I urge everyone who plans to operate a business to have some form of training in accounting, whether it’s taking some classes or getting a degree in finance.” He said it helps people understand where money is being spent and make better business decisions. The truck yard/shop has a truck wash on- site, just one of the strategies to help reduce costs. He laughs as he shares (to the penny) how much it costs to drive through his washing station versus an off-site truck wash. “It made financial sense for us to have one in-house, so we built one.” He pauses as he stares out into the concrete platform outside the washing station. “You know, I think we need to extend this platform out a bit. We recycle all the water from the truck wash, and we’re losing some of it.” Always one step ahead. The headquarters is set up to have sections for each division of the company—glass, heavy haul (such as wind energy equipment), refrigerated, and specialty equipment, plus a team for permits and accounting. Everyone can see each other, including the team running the switchboard in the center. “I visited another trucking facility and really liked the layout. It allows for open communication and a friendlier atmosphere, so I wanted to incorporate it in our office.” He showed us his on-site fitness center, complete with a racquetball court—one of the many employee benefits. “We used to offer a gym membership, but not many employees used it. So, we built one here with a separate entry so people can have 24-hour access. That way, you can walk across the office, play a game of racquetball for 45 minutes, shower, and be back at your desk in an hour… and people do.” On one wall, you’ll see a large painted metal truck sculpture created by an Oregon artist using recycled truck materials. On another wall, you’ll see a video screen that displays the company’s key performance indicators (KPI’s). “Here we can quickly see how we’re excelling and what areas we need to work on. It helps us stay on target.” The company is not as traditional as it was back in the earlier days (especially with rules on tattoos and piercings), but he’s improved the level of professionalism. Richard Card believed in getting involved in business associations. The company has worked with American Trucking Associations (ATA) for so long in fact, that ATA is in their system as vendor #3! Mike started attending ATA’s annual meetings with his dad in the 80’s, but became officially involved when he overheard a few ATA board members discussing a possible long-distance call affinity program to the association. Coincidentally, Mike had just renegotiated long-distance rates for his own company and knew quite a bit about the topic, so he was asked to sit on ATA’s WREN Committee. He’s also sat on the Highway Policy Committee, Insurance Task Force, and was even Chairman of ATA’s Board of Directors. Because OTA was against deregulation at first, it took a few years for Combined Transport to get involved at the state level. When they did finally join OTA in 1991, Mike was involved in a few different ways. He sat on OTA’s 2000 Committee that was designed to reorganize the association, assess rules, etc., and was the Chairman from 1999–2001. Last year he helped launch OTA’s Image Committee initiatives to promote the trucking industry in Oregon. 19 www.ortrucking.org Issue 1 | 2018

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