Education at NATSO Connect

NATSO's H.R. sharegroup brings together H.R. professionals throughout the truckstop and travel plaza industry to learn from their shared experiences and prepare for the future. The Sharegroup is open to any NATSO member that works on H.R. issues. Facilitated by top professionals at Ernst & Young, NATSO's H.R. Sharegroup involves both tax and H.R. policy and political updates regarding how the latest developments in Washington, D.C. will affect day-to-day business operations, as well as an opportunity to network and engage with other professionals.

Renewable Fuels Master Class
On Monday morning, the Alternative Fuels Council is offering an in-depth workshop on the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) and Renewable Identification Number (RIN) credits. The workshop will be offered by renewable fuels experts Jeff Hove and Ginger Laidlaw of NATSO’s Alternative Fuels Council.  The workshop will focus on blending and selling renewable fuels such as biodiesel and ethanol.

The master class will kick off with a RFS overview that features detailed information on the purpose of the RFS, who the players are and how renewable fuel blenders can benefit from the standard as well as RIN credits. It will also cover how RIN credits are reported, audited and traded.

In the second-half of the session, Hove and Laidlaw will get into a more advanced renewable fuels discussion, giving attendees a deep understanding of sourcing fuels, finding supply, logistics hurdles and storage needs. They will also cover fraud and non-compliance while providing specific guidance on how operators can manage RIN credits, which RINS are marketable and which ones are not marketable. Because fuel quality is paramount, the session will provide detailed guidance on how to ensure fuel quality when blending.

David Fialkov, NATSO’s vice president of government relations and legislative and regulatory counsel, will wrap up the workshop with an overview of the latest policy issues surrounding RFS.

What Are the Changing Needs of Truckstops’ Customers and Their Employees and How Can Smart Truckstops Meet Them: Opening Kickoff Keynote
What are the changing needs of customers?
What influences employee engagement and where can truckstops do to increase employee engagement?
Why is experience increasingly important during shopping trips and how can smart retailers satisfy customers’ growing desire for experiential shopping?

Michael Sansolo, research director, Coca-Cola Retailing Research Council of North America, will combine years of work with some of the world’s most innovative companies with research from the Coca-Cola Retailing Research Council of North America to explore the changing needs of truckstop customers and their employees.

Then, Sansolo, along with a panel of executives from the grocery store, c-store and travel center industry, will join NATSO’s President & CEO Lisa Mullings and NATSO’s Vice President, Membership Darren Schulte in a discussion on what the research means for the truckstop and travel plaza industry. Attendees will walk away with a better idea on how their business fits into current customer and employee trends and how to create a winning solution to satisfy the increasingly changing customer and employee.

How are Government Decisions Today Shaping Your Tomorrow?: Keynote and Breakfast on the Show Floor
On Tuesday morning operators and vendors will join together over breakfast to take part in a government affairs town hall meeting. Attendees will learn the inside-the-beltway scoop on some of the biggest government affairs issues facing NATSO members. Plan to attend and learn how operators and vendors can work together to advance our shared advocacy goals.

Trucking Execs Explore Changing Driver Needs: Keynote and Lunch on the Show Floor
Speakers: Dave Manning, TCW Inc.; Lisa Mullings, NATSO; Dan Murray, American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI)
Facilitator: Dan Ronan, Associate News Editor Print and Multimedia for Transport Topics
The state of the trucking industry has a significant effect on the nation’s truckstops and travel plazas. So staying current on trucking trends is vital for businesses that serve commercial drivers.  Successful truckstop and trav­el plaza operators know that changing market dynamics often result in new opportunities. On Tuesday afternoon, join us as American Trucking Associations’ Former Chairman and President of TCW Inc. Dave Manning joins NATSO President and CEO Lisa Mullings and American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) Vice President Dan Murray to discuss the latest trends among truck drivers in a fireside chat. Grab your s'mores stick and pull up a chair by the fire to hear their thoughts on what changing drivers needs could mean for the truckstop industry.

How to Influence Truckstop Shoppers on the Path to Purchase: Learning Lab
Consumers are shopping differently than they did just a few years ago. Truckstops need to create an incredible instore experience to remain competitive in this ever evolving retail world. Learn a wide range of techniques to influence shoppers on their path to purchase from lighting to messaging to more.

The Data and Details Truckstops Need to Get Ready for the Trucks and 4-Wheeler Customers of the Future: Keynote and Breakfast on the Show Floor
Speakers: Susan Alt, Volvo Group North America; Frank Beard, Gas Buddy
In this powerhouse closing keynote, attendees will meet the customers of the future and the technology moving them. Getting ahead of tomorrow’s disruption today will give forward-thinking truckstop and travel plaza operators the advantage in planning for the future before it is here. On the afternoon of Wednesday, Feb. 13, Volvo and GasBuddy will share how customer expectations and technology are evolving.

The session will kick off with Susan Alt, Volvo's Senior Vice President, Public Affairs, walking attendees through Volvo's plans for the trucks of tomorrow. What is coming and when? What do these changes mean for the drivers who operate these trucks? And, most importantly, what can truckstops do to prepare for their arrival? We've heard from fleets about what they've been buying in recent years and how they are adapting to technological advances, but Alt will present new and important insights from a truck maker about its future plans.

Then Frank Beard, analyst of convenience store and retail trends at Gas Buddy, will share insights into customer preferences to help boost revenue beyond fuel. Four-wheel customers only go inside when fueling up their vehicle in one out of every four visits. What makes customers come inside and what prevents them from entering your location? Using data from more than 15,000 responses, Beard will dive into the factors truckstops need to increase their inside sales. 

Get ready to enter the Twilight Zone because we’re traveling to the future.

Truckstop Live
Speakers: Michael Lawshe, Paragon Solution; Andrew Ouimet, Ouimet Consulting Group and Darren Schulte, NATSO
Ellen Degeneres and Jimmy Fallon are out and Paragon Solution’s Michael Lawshe, Ouimet Consulting Group’s Andrew Ouimet and NATSO’s Darren Schulte, are in. In this bonus workshop, you can expect intensive fundamental learning interspersed with talk show-inspired learning. You can expect games, interviews and bouts of over the top fun.