Averitt Corporate Office Tour Video
At Averitt, we wish every customer and potential customer could visit our Corporate Office to learn more about what drives our associates to partner with you to help you succeed. But, we realize that not every shipper can visit our offices in Cookeville, TN. That's why we put together this video to help you understand what The Power of One can do for your business.
And, if you're ever in Cookeville, TN, stop by and we will show you around!
Transcription Of The Video
Narrator: Welcome to the Averitt Express headquarters in beautiful Cookeville, TN.
When we say Our Driving Force Is People…We mean that.
Our company has tens of thousands of moments of truth every day all across the country when our drivers and associates interact with our customers. The reason we’re still here and still growing after all these years is our mission to keep our people happy, safe and well trained so they can take excellent care of the customers we serve.
It’s what we call The Power of One…Everyone working together with a common vision toward a common goal.
Brad Brown (Marketing and Communications Manager): We get to do a lot of customer tours, and typically customers are surprised by several things.
Alice Crabtree (Marketing and Communications Leader): I think what customers is the most surprised by – when they come to a corporate tour here in Cookeville – is the feeling that they get. When they come to a corporate tour here at Averitt they’re going to feel welcomed. They’re going to feel understood and they’re going to feel like their business matters to us.
Brown: Averitt’s history dates back to the late 1950s when a man named Thurman Averitt started a small trucking company. In 1971, our current owner purchased that company from Mr. Averitt. And at the time, it had two associates and three trucks and five trailers.
Our roots are very humble, and we’ve been very fortunate through the years because of customers and their faith in us to be able to grow. And today, we’re proud to be a larger organization to meet our customers’ needs around the globe. But we still have that small company, humble, hungry attitude that we had in the early days.
We have customers tell us all the time that Averitt will do things that nobody else will do. “You guys are very flexible.” And I think that flexibility comes back to the mindset that says we’re going to earn the customer’s business. We’re going to do whatever it takes to provide them with the service and the information and the value that they require.
The Winners’ Circle is a really important part of our company history and our culture. It has three elements: our customers, our associates, and our future. And every decision we make, we make through the lens of the Winners’ Circle. Is this decision good for our customers? Is it good for our associates? Is it good for our future?
Crabtree: One of the displays here at corporate that I’m so excited to share with you is our Over 20 Team. This board displays the associates who have been here for 20 plus years. We take great pride in that. That board tells you there are associates who have found something special in this company.
Brown: taking care of our people is a big part of our culture, and one of the ways we do that is through investments in health and wellness. And one of those investments is the fitness center that we have here at the corporate office. And one of the benefits of the fitness center is simply reducing our healthcare costs both for our associates and the company. And any time we can reduce our costs and operate more efficiently, that’s going to translate down to the customer level.
Crabtree: We’re also really excited to share with you that we’ve got centralized teams here for all of your needs. We’ve got over fifteen different teams in this building. This building is our operations center and our national call center.
Brown: The technology and processes that we use for customer service are all designed to give the customer accurate information in a timely manner.
One of the things that we do with our technology is what’s called geographic routing. And that means if you call in from a certain location, instead of being routed to one of one hundred different people, you’re going to be redirected to one of maybe five or six people. And routing customers that way allows them to speak with people that are going to be more familiar with their business. They’re going to know their market. They’re going to know their needs. And it allows them to provide more custom-tailored service to that customer.
Crabtree: Another way to benefit our customers is that we provide with 24/7/365 customer service.
Brown: One of the most memorable parts of the customer tour experience is what we call our Averitt Cares for Kids wall. Averitt Cares for Kids is funded completely by associate contributions that our teammates make voluntarily from their weekly paychecks.
Crabtree: They give a dollar a week for something that is greater than our selves. You know you may ask, “How can a dollar a week change anything?” When we all come together with the Power of One, one dollar goes a long way.
Brown: We make a lot of investments in our facilities, our equipment, and our uniform program for our people. But what we’re most proud of is the quality and consistency of our people: their caring nature, their humble attitude, their desire to serve, and their generosity. That’s the kind of people that Averitt is committed to hiring. That’s the kind of people we want to provide service to our customers.
Crabtree: One of the most important things that I want people to feel when they leave a corporate tour at Averitt is that I want them to know they matter. I want them to know that their business matters to us; but not just their business, but them as a person. We want to meet their needs. We want to lock arms with them. Become partners with them. Grow business. Make memories.
Phil Pierce (Averitt Ambassador): I wish every customer that we have, potentially and existing, could always come to our corporate office. There’s just something that people get when they get here. It’s just the feeling that we’re sincere…that we’re here for you. I think that’s the first thing they see. They’re amazed that we do all these services. But when they leave, I think they think back and say, “This is why they do it.” And that’s the difference.
Narrator: And that’s what makes us more than a trucking company…To our associates, our communities, and our customers. The Power of One. Let us show you how The Power of One can change your business for the better. Visit Averitt.com, or keep up with us on social media. And if you’re ever in Cookeville, TN…We’d be honored to show you around.