I’m honored to have the opportunity to be Schneider’s new recruiter for diesel technicians. Hopefully my story will be an inspiration for you if you’re looking into diesel technician jobs, and I’m happy to answer any questions you may have.
I was born and raised in West Lafayette, Ind. I grew up in the middle of Purdue University. Our family had a home located on University Street that was built in the early 1900s. Our family owned 360 acres of farm land out in Boswell Ind., and 20 acres just outside of West Lafayette, which we spent many weekends working and farming. I have spent many summers vacationing in Bear Lake, Mich. Some of the best memories I have are swimming in Lake Michigan and surrounding areas with friends and family.
I moved to Indianapolis in July 2006. Looking in the job market I decided to go to school to become a diesel technician. It was a field that I was familiar with since I grew up working on tractors and farm equipment. After doing research I found that it was a field that had job security and was in need. I found a Lincoln Technical College campus and enrolled.
About half-way through school I was given the opportunity to interview with Schneider and was offered the job. In June 2008, I joined Schneider. Deciding to work full-time in the evenings and going to school full time during the day was tough. I completed my schooling with a 3.8 GPA and missed perfect attendance by three hours.
After completing school, I was moved into the shop with other diesel service technicians and mechanics. Although overwhelming, I was surrounded by a team that believed in me and my future. I was mentored by Steve Chrinko and many others. I was moved to night shift after completing my training. I stayed on this shift for about seven years. Since then I have covered many different diesel technician jobs: mobile communications platform champion, senior technician, senior lead technician, lead tire specialist. While working nights and day shifts, I also helped mentor many different new associates.
I was given the opportunity to travel to career fairs on a couple different occasions with previous diesel technician recruiter Jeremy Gannon, who is moving into a shop floor leader position. While doing so I found that I liked talking to the different students in different areas. I enjoyed finding out who they are and what they are looking for in a company. I liked it so much that I decided that would be my next step in my career with Schneider. Now given the opportunity, I am able to talk to the younger students that are in school. I am able to answer questions that might help them decide on a lifelong diesel technician career at Schneider.
