Leadership Spotlight: Phil Calderone
At Roadrunner Freight, we are lucky to have some of the transportation industry’s most knowledgeable and engaged leaders! Today, we’d like to spotlight one of our IT leaders who brings a unique mix of operations and IT perspective to the projects that he spearheads for the company.
Phil Calderone, our Director of Quality & Compliance has been working at Roadrunner Freight for nine years but his experience in transportation extends far beyond that. Before joining the Roadrunner Freight team, Phil worked in operations FedEx Ground for 23 years. While at FedEx he had the opportunity to help the company rollout many IT projects. His responsibilities at FedEx Ground helped him to develop the skills and tools he now uses at Roadrunner Freight.
During his time with FedEx Ground, Phil gained experience in various roles. Starting as a dock coordinator and working his way to an administrative quality manager, Phil’s breadth of knowledge and experience on the front lines have molded him into a dynamic and well-developed leader.
Phil’s Impact on Team Culture
In true servant leadership fashion, Phil leads his team through open communication and provides weekly, if not daily, opportunities for team members to get involved in company-wide initiatives. He believes that team member engagement is crucial to the success of any project and stresses the leader’s responsibility to create an environment where all team members feel welcome to speak up and be a part of the conversation.
Phil has implemented many exciting projects during his time with Roadrunner Freight, all developed from direct feedback from end-users and our customer needs. Examples of these projects range from dock automation to implementing customer tracking notifications to improve the customer experience. His most proud accomplishment yet is the success and professional growth of his team members.
“The projects are interesting, but seeing the growth in our people and in our teams is even more rewarding,” says Phil.
Advice for Aspiring Professionals
He advises those at the forefront of their careers in transportation to be patient and soak up all the information and learning opportunities given to them.
“If you’ve got the drive, ambition and dedication, you’ll eventually get to where you want to be in your career,” says Phil. “But these experiences in the very beginning of your career are what shape people into leaders, because you’ll know the operations behind the business.”
When asked about what makes Roadrunner Freight different than other employers, he noted that he admires Roadrunner Freight’s culture and dedication to excellence. Phil and his team are a strong representation of Roadrunner Freight’s SHIP IT LIKE YOU OWN IT culture and we’re thrilled to have such dedicated individuals on our team!
