As a leader, prioritize producing results by ensuring you have the right people on your team, fostering a supportive culture, and providing the necessary motivation for them to succeed.
As a leader, consistently choose to do what is right, even when it is uncomfortable, as this defines true leadership and leads to success.
Effective leaders must create a clear vision, articulate what is important and why, hold people accountable, and consistently motivate their team to achieve shared goals.
Implement Precision Scheduled Railroading (PSR) by defining a clear process for every step of your operation, then apply the right people and measures to consistently deliver the service your customers desire.
Adopt lean manufacturing principles by clearly defining each process, establishing what ‘good’ looks like for that process, and then actively managing towards that desired outcome.
Before pivoting to aggressive growth, prioritize ‘fixing the engine’ by implementing core operational models like PSR, fine-tuning assets, establishing the right culture, and optimizing all internal processes to ensure a strong foundation.
Avoid oversubscribing your network or capacity, as exceeding your ability to produce a product destroys customer trust and can lead to the collapse of your entire business model.
Consistently measure what matters to understand performance against desired outcomes, then continuously tweak and refine processes and people to improve the product or service.
In a publicly traded company, balance the need to show short-term momentum with long-term sustainability, but never compromise safety and operational integrity for short-term gains.
Adopt a long-term perspective on business success, prioritizing sustainability and enduring profitability over short-term gains.
As a leader, set the bar exceptionally high to encourage people to stretch and achieve significantly more, even if they don’t reach the absolute peak of the goal.
Develop a profound understanding of every detail of your business, drilling down to the root cause of issues and defining what ‘good’ looks like, even for things you initially believe are impossible.
When making decisions or assessing issues, look beyond the immediate problem to consider all potential unintended consequences that could arise later in the process.
To effectively manage and optimize processes, cultivate a deep, detailed understanding of all operational aspects, similar to an expert who knows every ’nut and bolt’.
Recognize that perfection is unattainable and people naturally cycle out; therefore, continuously retrain and develop your team to sustain success and ensure processes are executed effectively.
Prioritize reliability by consistently doing what you say you will do, as this builds trust and defines true service for your customers.
Aim to provide a premium, reliable service that customers are willing to pay more for, similar to UPS, rather than a basic, less dependable option.
Do not apologize for prioritizing safety; enforce all rules consistently without picking and choosing, as every rule contributes to a safe operating environment.
Understand that every single rule is important for safety, as failing to follow even one could lead to severe harm or loss of life.
As a leader, always lead by example and never ask your team members to do anything that you are not willing to do yourself.
When you observe unsafe or rule-breaking behavior, immediately stop and address it directly with the individual to correct the behavior and reinforce expectations for the future.
As a senior officer, if you observe a rule violation, you must address it; failing to do so validates bad behavior for the employee and sets a negative precedent for other officers.
Be willing to admit when you are wrong and commit the necessary time and effort to go back and directly address issues that need correction, even if it’s uncomfortable.
In high-consequence environments, avoid permissive management where individuals create their own work practices, as this leaves little room for error and can lead to severe consequences.
As a leader, avoid ’looking the other way’ when rules are violated or conflict arises; instead, step into uncomfortable discussions to address issues fairly and impartially.
Prioritize and commit to investing whatever is necessary in infrastructure to ensure operations are both safe and efficient, even if it means unplanned capital expenditure.
When planning capacity, ensure that investments in the core of your operation are matched by corresponding capacity at the ‘bookends’ (e.g., ports, loading facilities) to avoid bottlenecks.
Actively seek partnerships between government, customers, and industry peers to coordinate investment and develop best practices, especially when addressing complex supply chain challenges.
For large-scale projects or national infrastructure, ensure close coordination and combination of efforts between all relevant parties, including industry, customers, and government, to achieve success.
Establish a dedicated team or individual to methodically match all forms of capacity (track, yard, people, locomotives, cars) with marketing opportunities before selling a product, preventing overcommitment.
Break down silos by creating a triangular decision-making structure where marketing, capacity/asset utilization, and operations collectively make decisions to ensure alignment and prevent over-commitment.
Instead of trying to do everything, identify your core strengths and focus on excelling at those few things, becoming exceptionally good at them.
Empower people by allowing them to contribute to something larger than themselves, fostering a sense of accomplishment, pride, and satisfaction that naturally breeds further success.
Continuously plan for future expansion opportunities by maintaining financial stability, ensuring that when the right moment arises, you have the resources to invest and capitalize on it.
Understand and actively seek opportunities to expand your reach, as it can unlock significant new customer solutions and market opportunities.
When expanding into new markets or selling new products, ensure that sales efforts are immediately matched with necessary infrastructure investment to guarantee safe and efficient delivery.
When evaluating business deals, especially large acquisitions, prioritize certainty and value as the two fundamental criteria for decision-making.
In competitive battles where you lack superior financial power, focus your strategy on leveraging facts and demonstrating superior regulatory feasibility to win.
When facing a competitive challenge, adopt a strategy of fighting with the truth, presenting undeniable facts and realities.
When presenting your case, clearly articulate the ’truths’ that highlight the strengths of your position and the weaknesses or risks of alternatives.
Understand your financial and strategic limits in a bidding war; know when to draw a line in the sand and refuse to overpay, even if it means not winning the bid, to avoid destroying the company.
In a competitive acquisition, if you cannot win on price, focus your strategy on challenging your competitor’s ability to secure regulatory approval.
Deeply understand the regulator’s definition of ‘public interest’ (e.g., creating more competition) and align your strategy accordingly, recognizing that deals not serving this interest are unlikely to be approved.
In critical situations, personally engage with a significant portion of key stakeholders (e.g., shareholders) through direct, one-on-one meetings to advocate for your position.
When persuading stakeholders, emphasize your unique, irreplaceable value proposition and highlight how your approach reduces uncertainty, encouraging them to wait for a clearer outcome.
When facing a premature decision, advise stakeholders to wait for critical information or regulatory rulings, assuring them that the alternative option will still be available if your prediction is incorrect.
In major transactions, aim to create significant, long-term value for all stakeholders—employees, shareholders, communities, and even nations—ensuring it’s a necessary combination for broader good.
Find motivation and drive by serving a cause greater than yourself, as this commitment can sustain efforts and exceed purely financial benefits over the long term.
Actively seek to master the proven insights and wisdom of others and then apply these learnings directly to your own life to improve outcomes.
When implementing change, clearly articulate both the ‘why’ and ‘how’ of the change, and then commit to sticking with it, even when it feels uncomfortable, to achieve greatness.
Continuously seek ways to innovate and become more efficient in your industry, always ensuring that safety remains the top priority in all advancements.
Do not over-engineer or over-invest in capacity solely for peak demand, as this can create unsustainable costs and lead to business failure during normal operating periods.
While pursuing efficiency, ensure you maintain ‘guardrails’ and constructive tension, avoiding cuts that go ’to the bone’ and damage your ability to produce the product.
Instead of taking all business, meticulously analyze specific needs (e.g., origin-destination pairs) and selectively customize solutions with customers to ensure you can meet commitments and build long-term trust.
Establish strong trust with customers, then leverage that trust to negotiate mutual commitments for asset investment, allowing you to uniquely grow your network and services in partnership.
Encourage customers to provide the most accurate forecasting possible, as more information enables better planning and optimization of your operational models.
Gain a significant advantage by adopting a longer timeline for success, especially in environments focused on short-term quarterly or weekly results.
Maintain a foundational belief in treating all individuals with respect in your interactions and leadership.
Hold individuals accountable for their job performance, understanding that if they do not fulfill their responsibilities, someone else will need to step in.
Adopt the habit of diligently following every step of a checklist, like a pilot, to ensure safety and successful outcomes, especially in critical operations.
In competitive situations, clearly define your financial and strategic limits, and simultaneously develop a precise plan for how you would counter a competitor’s move.
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