The Women In Trucking Association (WIT) announces that Cindy Reaves is its April Member of the Month. Reaves is the vice president of Gulf Coast sales and marketing for Linden Bulk Transportation LLC (Linden), a subsidiary of Odyssey Logistics & Technology, in Montgomery, Texas. After an impressive 40-year career in the trucking industry, she is retiring in April 2020. Through the past four decades, Reaves rose through the ranks at several trucking companies, excelling in communication, negotiation and relationship building with many high-profile Fortune 50 companies. Along the way, she developed meaningful customer relationships by taking care of their freight with the utmost attention to quality and handling deliveries the way her customers would if they did it themselves. Today, Reaves manages more than 50 of the most prominent supply chain brands in the southwest. Throughout her career in trucking, Reaves has been devoted to providing outstanding customer service and went above and beyond to make sure her customers knew their business was valued. “It never mattered what time of day or what day of the week, Cindy was always available for our customers to solve a problem, find an emergency truck or just answer some questions,” said Michael Salz, president Linden. As she prepares to leave the trucking industry, Reaves has one hope for its future – to see more women in transportation and logistics. She’s been a mentor to many women, an advocate for more diversity in leadership roles and has educated college women on career opportunities beyond driving a truck. Reaves believes there are several keys to attracting more women to the trucking industry, including upper management buying into women being in leadership roles, current women in trucking actively recruiting other women, and more representation on high school and college campuses to expose young women to the industry. Lastly, the industry needs to communicate the wide variety of jobs that can be obtained at a transportation and logistics company – IT, sales, marketing, accounting, human resources, operations and more. “It’s going to be hard to leave Linden, but I’m looking forward to not checking emails so frequently and spending more time with family. On her way out, Reaves has the following advice for women seeking employment in the logistics industry. “Make sure it’s what you want to do, be sincere and honest, and always do the right thing to help the customer.” Established in 2007, the Women In Trucking Association strives to encourage the employment of women, promote their accomplishments, and minimize the obstacles they face working in the trucking industry. Whether you’re a professional driver, in mid-management or a corporate executive with a shipping company, motor carrier, 3PL or driving school, you’ll find value in joining the ranks of WIT’s diverse membership of over 5,300 women and men. If you would like to become a member, visit www.womenintrucking.org today to learn more.
