Leadership Views: Phillip Yeager, The Hub Group
Name: Phillip Yeager
Position: President and Chief Operating Officer, The Hub Group
Years with the board: 3 years personally, 25 years for the Yeager family
Number of students sponsored: 14
Phillip Yeager is the third generation of the Yeager family to represent Hub Group on the board of directors. This is unique among Institute board members. His father worked with Institute Founder Gil Carmichael to create what was then known as the Intermodal Transportation Institute.
You have served on the board of directors since 2019; Hub Group has had a relationship with the Institute since its inception and has sent 14 students through the executive master’s program. That is a long and impressive relationship. Tell us about this relationship and why it has been important to Hub Group to stay involved.
My Grandfather, who was the founder of Hub Group, was a massive industry advocate and was a part of the creation of the Institute and the executive master's program. He also received an honorary Doctorate from the University in 2006 for his service to the school and industry. So needless to say, at Hub Group we have a great passion for TSCI, and have been so proud to be able to help support its growth and development into the leading supply chain institution. The team members that we send to the Institute are our best and brightest and they ascend quickly into leadership roles at the company. We have seen our students grow in their leadership, critical thinking, financial and supply chain knowledge while gaining lifelong connections. TSCI is and will continue to be foundational to our leadership development initiatives due to the phenomenal success we have had over the years with the program.
What are the leadership qualities you value? What skills do you look for in employees and new hires as you think about the long term needs of your company?
Our core values are service, innovation and integrity, and we focus on those characteristics in our hiring and promotion process. We typically find service through a strong team orientation and a relentless focus on being the best provider for our clients, as well as a passion for giving back to the community. We see innovation manifest itself when our team is solving unique problems through creative solutions, and genuinely enjoying that part of our job, which for some can be very challenging. Lastly and most important at Hub Group is integrity and our commitment to honesty, transparency and delivering on our commitments to all of our stakeholders. These have all been engrained in our company since day one, in 1971, and will be the values that help us continue to grow for the future.
Hub Group was recently honored for its sustainability efforts in operations. Tell us about the initiatives you are driving to increase sustainability and how they relate to larger efforts to manage climate change?
Sustainability is a key focus area for all companies today and fortunately it has been at Hub Group for many years. Not only is intermodal a far more efficient mode of transportation than truckload, allowing our customers as they convert freight to intermodal to be a contributor to sustainability goals of their companies, but we have also seen a great receptivity to our investments in electric trucks and infrastructure, the renewal of our 4K tractor fleet to more fuel efficient models, as well as our new LEED Gold certified building and usage of CO2 emission scorecards with our clients. All of these efforts allow Hub Group to help support our communities and customers, and we are proud of the investments and progress we have made. We cannot be complacent, and you will see us continue to invest in and drive sustainability efforts.
More than 40 industry leaders serve on the TSC Institute's Board. Following on our successful Transportation Talks webinar series, we feature brief thoughts from a member each month.