USA Truck Inc. announced that James D. Reed, currently the company’s chief financial officer, has been named president and chief executive officer of USA Truck, effective immediately.
According to the company, Reed brings more than 20 years of experience in trucking, operations and corporate finance to the position. He succeeds Randy Rogers, who is leaving to pursue other opportunities. Reed will also assume Rogers’ position on the USA Truck Board of Directors.
Also effective immediately, James (Jim) A. Craig has been appointed to the newly created position of executive vice president and chief commercial officer. In his new role, Craig will focus on driving the company’s topline revenue through increased coordination of USA Truck’s internal operations, as well as improving the overall customer service experience. Craig is currently the president of the company’s USAT Logistics business and will continue to oversee the logistics business in addition to his new responsibilities.
“Last year was a tough year for our industry in general, and specifically for USA Truck. With the need for a different approach to the Company’s strategy to improve its operations, we are extremely pleased to have executives of James’ and Jim’s caliber assume leadership of the company,” said Robert Peiser, chairman of the company’s board of directors. “In his brief tenure at USA Truck, James already has demonstrated his ability to drive operational excellence across the organization, drawing upon his more than two decades of experience in trucking, logistics, finance, and business development. He is an action-oriented executive with a strong attention to detail, and has already implemented procedures to improve operational performance.
Reed commented, “I am honored by the board’s decision to appoint me as CEO of USA Truck, and eager to build upon the efforts underway to position the company for success in 2017 and beyond. I believe that accelerated execution of USA Truck’s emerging profit improvement initiatives and a strong focus on capitalizing on growth opportunities will drive greater value for our shareholders, allow us to better serve our customers and benefit all our employees.
“All of us understand that we must execute and deliver improved results quickly. Thus, a key focus of our management team under my leadership will be accelerating the pace of change at USA Truck, including expanding USAT Logistics, improving service levels in our truckload business and reducing operating costs to enhance and strengthen our financial performance. I look forward to the exciting task and challenge of leading the company into the future.”
Craig said, “I am excited to work with James to meet the challenges of my expanded role, and am confident that his impact at the Company will be immediately recognized. A key focus of mine, in addition to my USAT Logistics responsibilities, will be to drive revenue growth across both of our businesses by ensuring our pricing, sales, capacity, network planning and customer needs all complement one another and respond directly to current market conditions.”
Peiser commented, “We are grateful to Randy for his contributions to USA Truck over the last year. He has been instrumental in leading the Company through this transitional period. We wish him the best in his future endeavors.”
The board of directors will immediately commence a search process for the successor to Reed as chief financial officer.
