As the world looks forward to 2021, there are several reasons that we are excited about what’s to come.
We are always looking to grow, innovate and evolve our business to better serve our guests and team members. It has been an incredible journey over the past 62 years since Mr. Jim Haslam founded Pilot in 1958 with a single gas station in Gate City, Virginia and his son, CEO Jimmy Haslam, expanded our footprint to become the largest network of travel centers in North America. With a deep commitment to our core values and family-like atmosphere instilled by the Haslams, we are taking another step forward with Shameek Konar becoming CEO in January 2021.
FreightWaves caught up with Shameek to learn more about him and his vision for Pilot Company. Click here to give it a listen!
Here are five interesting things to know from the interview:
1. All Around the World and Back to Tennessee:
Shameek has visited all seven continents and has worked in six of them. Originally from India, he first came to Tennessee when he moved to the United States to attend Vanderbilt University in Nashville. Experiencing so many cultures and working with people from all different backgrounds has taught Shameek to find commonality and recognize the unique values people have to offer.
2. Energy Innovator:
With more than 20 years of experience in the energy sector, Shameek has spent his first three years at Pilot building up our energy business and team. He is always asking himself and our leadership team “How do we become more efficient and effective for our customers? How can we get better?” Leading with this entrepreneurial mindset, Shameek is committed to meeting the needs of our guests and customers. “Whatever is the fuel of the future, we will adapt to provide that.”
3. All About People:
Culture is part of what attracted Shameek to Pilot and remains an integral focus as he becomes CEO. Some leadership advice that he shares during the interview is to always treat people right, have empathy and to work as a team.
“Pilot is one of the coolest experiences for me as a company to work for. It’s a people company with over 28,000 team members all over the country that you get to interact and work with, coach and learn from,” said Shameek.
4. Taking Care of Our Guests:
Building on our strong people-first culture, Shameek is also dedicated to taking care of our guests, especially professional drivers. He emphasizes that “our goal is to do the best job we can to serve the professional driver. We are key to helping professional drivers stay healthy, fed, fueled and rested. It’s our job to help the country get to recovery and help the professional driver do their job.”
5. Embracing Change:
Something positive to come from 2020 and the COVID-19 pandemic: it has certainly shown us how resilient and adaptive we are. COVID has certainly changed the way people do things and how they get things. We have to evolve to meet these changing needs while ensuring that we are providing a consistent, safe, clean and friendly experience.
As the year comes to a close, Shameek plans to end the year strong by focusing on team member and guest safety, providing essential services to our guests and to setting up the company for continued growth in 2021 and beyond.
To learn more about our history, culture and employment opportunities, click here.
