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The best route drivers have a set of characteristics that make them ideally suited for the job. When you find someone with the right personality, interests and mental capabilities as well as the right attitudes toward honesty, ethics, reliability and substance abuse, you can be confident you are hiring someone who will succeed as a route driver; it’s that simple. Measuring these characteristics before you hire leads to a greater likelihood of success. Let’s look at the three characteristics found in most good route drivers.

1. They must have the right personality. These characteristics determine how well a person is suited for a job, leading to increased productivity and decreased turnover.

Successful route drivers:

• Are not very sociable. They prefer to work independently. They are most effective when they are not required to present their ideas or opinions to others.
  As one operator said: “We hired a new route driver who was a very personable guy. We thought he would make a good impression when visiting our accounts. But we found that he was talking to and joking with people most of the day and really didn’t focus on filling the machines.”
  
• Have a high energy level and like to work at a brisk pace. They enjoy the repetition of filling the machines quickly and moving on to the next account. They feel good at the end of the day when they filled machines accurately and efficiently.
  
• Take direction well and can work without constant supervision. They are willing to take direction from others and follow other people’s lead. They respond well to motivation from management without really expressing a particularly positive attitude. This is not someone you need to watch over all the time. The best route drivers are independent and enjoy getting the job done.