David Summitt, president and owner of Summitt Trucking LLC based in Clarksville IN, makes no bones about it: The drivers drive the company. His appreciation was evident at the recent Summitt annual meeting, when driver Bob Barrom's name was randomly drawn to win $15,000.
In an employee promotion that began in summer 2006, each driver automatically received one chance in the drawing. By practicing good driver standards through safety and dependability a driver earned additional chances. The promotion began as a Harley-Davidson motorcycle giveaway. Summitt soon learned that many expressed the desire for cash. Summitt then switched gears to a cash option for the winner.
David Summitt hopes other companies will get creative in rewarding their employees for dedication and excellence. He recently bought the Nintendo Wii game system. He asked his Marketing Director to “come up with something fun for the office staff, to have a chance to win it.” Employees are encouraged to develop teamwork-related slogans using the word “Wii” in place of “we.” Each day, slogans are shared with the staff, and then a winner will be randomly drawn.