The Power of Effective Leadership: Insights from Travis Ahern of Double Diamond Transport

In this week’s episode of The FreightCaviar Podcast, we sit down with Travis Ahern, Co-Founder & COO at Double Diamond Transport, Inc., a logistics company. He shares the best advice he’s received on running a business, and talks about the importance of a collective vision, accountability, and how thoughts shape the way we perceive others.

The Power of Effective Leadership

When Travis opened Double Diamond Transport almost a decade ago, he had a clear vision of the company he was eager to build with his Co-Founder, Adam Blanchard. The goal was to open a reliable, safe, and efficient brokerage– but most of all, to be the reason why people still have faith in businesses. Today, he’s accomplished what he set out to do, thanks to their hard work, strict hiring policy, and high-quality service.

Hiring For Excellence

“We don’t typically hire people straight out of college, or people that don’t have a pretty decent book of business, we go after the best. We do expect more from our brokers. That's why our service is good, because we make sure everything is taken care of from start to finish.”

The Importance of a Shared Vision

Travis also stressed about the importance of having a company made up of like-minded individuals that have a shared vision for the future. 

“That’s where the magic happens. One person is powerful but it’s not the same when you have a group of individuals that want to work together to achieve something.”

Motivating Teams Individually

As a business owner, you need to recognize that not all people are the same. Travis compared employees to football players–  each requires personalized motivation to succeed.

The Power of Perception on Leadership

"There are some players that need their face mask grabbed and be yelled at. Other players need a pat on the back, and you need to figure out which one’s which.”

Travis also shared insights on how our thoughts shape the way we perceive others. The way employers treat their employees directly influences their behavior, performance, and self-perception. 

“When you treat your employees like they’re stupid then they do stupid things. When you treat them like they’re smart, they do smart things. When you treat them like they’re good, amazing and capable human beings then that’s what they become.”

Maintaining a Culture of Accountability

That said, Travis notes that in extreme cases changes are necessary to maintain a culture of accountability in a company.

“When everybody is working as hard as they possibly can to get the best results, then everybody’s happy. And when you get one person that’s showing up late and not doing what they need to do, then that person needs to go.”

Travis is a perfect example of a leader who not only cares deeply about the business he built from the ground up, and people but also has a clear understanding of what it takes, to make it successful.

Listen to the entire interview on Apple Podcasts, or Spotify, or watch it on our  YouTube Channel.