Saturday, January 14, 2012

R.I.P. Don Schneider


You probably never heard of Don Schneider, but unless you live in a cave or are a shut in, you have seen his product or you have bought a product in which Schneider's company had something to do with.
Schneider was the former CEO of Schneider National, which was founded by his father, and is a huge trucking firm. His trucks are the big orange trucks you see criss crossing the United States and the headquarters are in Green Bay, WI.
From the jsonline: Don Schneider ran a multibillion-dollar company, but that didn't mean he had to wear a suit.
His business was trucking - Schneider National Inc. - based in Green Bay. Schneider transformed the family business, best known for those big orange trucks. Along the way, he helped transform the trucking industry throughout the United States.
Donald J. Schneider died Friday, after Alzheimer's disease in recent years. He was 76.
Both Don Schneider and the family business were born in the same year. His father, A.J. "Al" Schneider, started the company in 1935 after selling the family car to buy a truck.
By 1971, the younger Schneider was heading the company. Mostly on his watch, company revenues increased from less than $100 million to $3.4 billion.
He served as president and chief executive officer until 2002, and as board chairman until 2007.
Schneider National now has 11,600 drivers and 1,900 independent drivers, and tens of thousands of trucks and trailers.
"If you put our trucks and trailers and containers end-to-end, there'd be an orange wall from Green Bay to Columbus, Ohio," said Chris Lofgren, who succeeded Schneider as president and CEO.
"In terms of truckload transport, I would say there hasn't been anybody who has been as influential a leader in the industry as Don," Lofgren said. "It would be hard to overestimate his role."
Others agreed.
"Don Schneider was a visionary, bringing business acumen and technology to blaze a trail and set the standard in the modern day development of our industry," said Bill Graves, president and CEO of the American Trucking Associations, in a Schneider company statement.
"He was one of the really key leaders and took the industry in a new direction," Richard D. Armstrong, chairman of Armstrong & Associates, a transport logistics and consulting firm in Stoughton, said earlier. "He grew the company dramatically and changed the industry in a lot of good and positive ways."
http://www.jsonline.com/news/obituaries/don-schneider-built-green-bay-trucking-company-into-industry-leader-00pok2-137337323.html
I remember reading articles about Schneider and the guy rarely, if ever, wore a suit and tie to work. And he was one of the guys- he always said his job was not more important than the truck driver or anybody else who worked for Schneider.
What a shame that Alzheimer's claimed such a smart man's intelligence. It is such a cruel disease.

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