04/22/2022 by Christine Morris
The Newest Trinity Team Members of Scottsdale, Arizona
It wasn’t that long ago that Trinity acquired Scottsdale, Arizona-based Team Eagle Logistics as our newest and only West Coast office. While we’re excited to now have an office in Arizona, we’re most excited about introducing you to some of our new Team Members! I had the greatest pleasure in meeting and interviewing these folks and I can tell you that they fit right into our Trinity culture. So, let’s dive right into introducing some of our newest Trinity Logistics experts.
“I’m Tom Szoko and I’m a Business Development Representative. I work to find new customers, bring in new business, and work with our existing customers from Team Eagle to keep that relationship going for mutual benefits.”
“I’m Sylvia Kirchner and I’m a Logistics Assistant. I work in tandem with our lead sales representative and I book freight, or more specifically, schedule the appointments.”
“I’m Eugene Jackson and I’m a Logistics Specialist. I bring options and help move freight, by having a truck ready when a customer needs it for the right price.”
“I’m Dax Hunter and I’m now a Logistics Specialist at Trinity.”
“I’m John Meyer and I’m a Logistics Specialist.”
HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN WORKING IN LOGISTICS? HOW DID YOU GET STARTED IN YOUR CAREER?
Tom: “I started as a truck driver with United Van Lines. My dad and brother drove, so I kind of fell into it. I drove over the road for close to 20 years. I was then able to get a position at Atlas Moving Company and worked my way up to Director of Operations over there, but I eventually wanted something different. Team Eagle came up, and it was a good transition to this side of logistics.”
Sylvia: “Almost two years. I started as a social media coordinator for a tire company. And then the pandemic happened, and I decided to quit my job. I then had the opportunity to interview at Team Eagle. Meeting the team, I instantly knew it was going to be a good fit personality and environment-wise. It’s been really cool to see how much we’ve been able to accomplish as an office in the two years since I started working here.”
Eugene: “A little over a year as I started in February 2021. Funny story about how I got into it. Michael Gentile (owner of Team Eagle) and I both go to the same barber. I graduated college, and I let Michael know I needed help finding a job. I went to school for business law, and I’ve always had an interest in logistics but by the time I figured that out it was too late to change my degree. But I still found my way here!”
Dax: “Eight years now. I had a family member that was in logistics and when I graduated high school, she got me an interview. I failed my first interview but then got called back a month later and got my first job at Global Tranz. I was there for almost five years, then at Team Eagle for three years before becoming part of Trinity.”
John: “Since May 2021. I graduated from Iowa State University, and I wanted to move somewhere warmer. I started in customer service, working at places like Target, serving drinks somewhere else, but I wanted to find something in sales, particularly in Arizona. In May, I went through a recruiting process, and then Michael offered the job to me.”
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PART ABOUT THE JOB?
Tom: “Honestly, the relationships I build with customers, along with loving what I do; helping people. It’s what keeps me driving and going every day.”
Sylvia: “My coworkers. It’s lame how much I love these guys; they are like brothers to me. We all get along and it’s a great team environment. It’s nice to have that relationship because then we have a good flow when we work together.”
Eugene: “I love all the people I work with, both in the office and over the phone.”
Dax: “I love talking to people every day. I’m very shy in person but on the phone, it’s different. I’ve been a big gamer my entire life, so I guess the online stuff is easy to me, I like talking to people online, it’s fun.”
John: “My favorite part is conversing with people and the back and forth, like between the carriers, negotiating rates. The push and pull is a fun aspect for me.”
IF YOU DIDN’T WORK IN LOGISTICS, WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU WOULD BE DOING?
Tom: “Life outside of logistics? That’s a great question because I don’t know. My entire career has been in logistics in some nature, it’s what I love, it’s what I do. It’s a good career, and I couldn’t see myself anywhere else.”
Sylvia: “I would probably be working in social media and hating my life. Social media was a 24/7 job, and I was getting burnt out.”
Eugene: “Maybe a mortgage loan officer because those guys can make some money! But I can’t see myself anywhere else.”
Dax: “I’d be living in Austin, gaming. I always wanted to be a streamer, online gamer, so that’s what I’d probably be attempting to do.”
John: “It would probably be anything in sales or commission-based. A big motivation for me is an incentive. I’m also big in investing so maybe I’d invest in more stocks, start a small firm, something like that.”
WHAT WAS THE MOST CHALLENGING THING YOU’VE FACED WHILE WORKING IN LOGISTICS?
Sylvia: “It’s unpredictability. There are a lot of things that can happen, so learning to be proactive. It’s taught me to lean into critical thinking and find out different ways to solve things, and it’s taught me how to be patient too. Logistics is like a bunch of puzzles and well, I like to solve them.”
Eugene: “One time there was this receiver who had a pipe burst in their ceiling and they couldn’t receive for two days. This was an unexpected situation and there was no other facility to load at. In the end, that’s freight sometimes. Sometimes it’s nobody’s fault and there’s always a level of liability and risk with moving freight.”
Dax: “When I was newer, I had a truck break down and there was a learning curve on how to handle a situation like that and make sure everyone is happy and compensated fairly.”
John: “Learning to be more assertive sometimes. When I was newer, I was more passive and would say “okay” in most situations without a second thought. For example, if the customer requests you must be on time for delivery and the carrier says they broke down and can’t be there until 2 pm the next day, I know to ask for proof for the customer to show that the carrier is abiding by their agreement for their delivery time and something unlucky happened.”
DO YOU HAVE AN INDUSTRY THAT YOU LIKE TO WORK WITH MOST?
Sylvia: “Most of my clients are in the beverage industry and it’s great when they come out with new flavors. It’s cool to see when they’re on shelves here and I can see my friends drinking them and know I was a part of that. The other cool thing about working with liquids is during natural disasters. A lot of companies will help ship water with FEMA, so that’s another enjoyment to know I’ve helped that.”
Eugene: “I enjoy flatbed freight. I’ve met a lot of flatbed carriers that I enjoy working with and the actual freight that gets loaded is interesting to me as well. Just random stuff you’re putting on a flatbed, like giant metal cogs, like, what kind of machine does that go to?! They’re huge and weigh 12,000 pounds. I love seeing pictures of the different kinds of flatbed freight loaded.
Dax: “I like to arrange shipments of everything. What’s most interesting is I don’t know what I’m going to arrange every day. I’ve even helped arrange a shipment of dinosaur bones in the past. Everything is interesting!”
John: “I kind of prefer flatbed shipments a bit because the pick-up and drop-off times are easier to coordinate. I do also want to learn more about hazmat or intermodal, all these other ways to transfer freight.”
WHAT’S A FUN FACT ABOUT YOU OR AN INTERESTING HOBBY YOU HAVE?
Tom: “I ride a motorcycle, own a Harley. I get out and ride that whenever I can. It’s a good stress reliever.”
Sylvia: “For about seven years I worked for a top photography studio in Arizona and helped photograph more than 1,000 women. I believe that style of photography was one of the best expressions of self-love and throughout that journey, it was awesome getting to see how many different women were moved by it.”
Eugene: “I like to sail boats. Not like the big boats, but beach catamarans. It’s fun and I even tried to qualify for the Olympics back in 2016, but I didn’t make it. But I could have been an Olympian!”
Dax: “I’ve never seen snow. Born and raised in Arizona. The town I grew up in never got any and I’ve never gone to play in it. I’ve seen it fall but never enough to stick or anything.”
John: “I’m obsessed with sports and sports betting. I’m a big Minnesota Vikings fan and Iowa State fan. One year when I was 14, I impressed the VP of Smithfield with my knowledge of the Minnesota Vikings that he flew me out to suite tickets in Washington DC. I got to sit with Brett Favre’s family and meet them. It was crazy.”
WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE PART OF NOW BEING A PART OF TEAM TRINITY?
Tom: “I love that the core values of Trinity are almost the same as what we had a Team Eagle; very family-oriented, very customer-oriented, and driven. It’s also great because we’ve spoken with some Trinity Team Members and it’s great to hear people with tenure at Trinity still loving their job. You can tell it’s heartfelt and true.”
Sylvia: “The culture seems so awesome. I love seeing all the different things that Trinity offers, like the team-building events, the office get-togethers, and even the food. It’s amazing when I see all the anniversary emails that people have been here for 25 years. That’s mind-blowing to me. I would love to have that kind of tenure at an office. I also appreciate that there are a lot of opportunities for growth at Trinity and you don’t have to feel like you’re stuck in one position.”
Eugene: “I like how much opportunity there is at Trinity. It’s a much larger company and a lot more networking is available. I’ve had carriers reach out to loads that I never would have had available before. It’s nice being able to have that kind of capacity and career growth. “
Dax: “Having a bunch more friends and being able to expand my horizons. There is so much that Trinity does that we didn’t do before so it’s cool being able to learn and do more.”
John: “One of my favorite parts is how people-centric they are. I saw some of the recent interns were doing videoconferencing with the CEO. That’s so significant that some interns are interacting so personally with the leadership of the company. It’s cool that people higher up in the company will take the time to meet regular Team Members or newer ones starting out. That’s not something you see every day.”
DO YOU HAVE ANY ADVICE TO OFFER THOSE CONSIDERING LOGISTICS AS A CAREER?
Tom: “Be flexible and patient. There are a lot of moving parts that come with logistics. Especially on our side of things. Don’t be afraid to ask tons of questions.”
Sylvia: “If a person is considering a career in logistics, 100 percent do it. It’s a great industry with tons of growth, the people are great, and find the right company. I’m pretty sure why a lot of people look to logistics is because of dependability. It’s not going anywhere. People need to move freight, we need to get goods and services to people, that’s never going to change.”
Eugene: “It can be a lot of work at times so be ready to work. But the rewards to work ratio is great. You get what you put in and it’s a great job to have”
Dax: “Don’t give up on what you want if it’s in logistics. Keep pushing. I kept trying and finally got the job. I love it now. I love logistics, it’s a fun career to get into.”
John: “You’ll learn something new every single day. You learn about people, navigation, and critical thinking. It makes you a better communicator too. Also, remember what people say to you in the industry because remembering those things will help build strong relationships.”
INTERESTED IN JOINING OUR NEWEST MEMBERS AS PART OF TEAM TRINITY?
Scottsdale, Arizona is just one of our seven office locations! If a career in logistics and the Trinity culture seems like the right fit for you, take a look at our current openings.
See what positions we have available for you
