Instead of finding a new job after leaving her last employer, Carole Borden decided to become her own boss and form a business in a decision she described as “sink or swim.”
In 2006, she founded CB Transportation, managing the transportation of trucks and trains across North America. Inspired by both her family and her team, she has worked hard to build a growing company that commands respect.
“People respect how we manage their business,” Borden said. “They respect when you bring intelligence and issues to the table.”
Smart Business spoke with Borden to learn more.
What were some of the challenges from 2006 to now that you’ve faced and how you’ve overcome them?
The growth has been incredible and the customer support has been terrific. … The challenge has been with the infrastructure and putting the right people in the right place. It’s knowing that “You’re incredible and I adore you, you’re loyal and everything else, but should you be managing an account? Should you be dealing with supporting IT? Should you be more in an HR role?” It’s finding those loyal people who want to be with you as part of the company and getting them where they need to be to be most effective. That has to be most rewarding for them, as well.
How do you balance being busy working in the business with needing to be spending more time working on the business?
I made a hire in the last six to eight months realizing I needed somebody who could align and focus my team so that I could continue to have the vision and drive the company. I couldn’t be so hands-on; you can’t do that and still grow.
As you look forward to the future for your next phase of growth, were do you see the opportunities?
(I see opportunities in) integrating the company. We are looking at a co-packing and warehousing opportunity that will help CB Transportation provide more services to our Fortune 500 companies, and that will give us the base of assets that a lot of them are looking for.
One of the first questions I always get is, “Do you own your trucks?” The fact of the matter is no, we don’t own our trucks, which is a challenge to overcome. The fact that we don’t own and represent one carrier means that we have the resources of many carriers, from small to large, which if fabulous and keeps us flexible and nimble in the marketplace. But still, what I think we need is something that is more concrete.
How do you utilize data, your database, and match customer’s needs with a carrier?
We remote into our desktops, we can be anywhere in the world and see what we’re looking at. We have the ability to keep ourselves linked together as a team because the company is run virtually. My staff, from Boston to Seattle, is linked together continuously.
My clients do a lot of electronic data interchange with us and my carriers feed information to us electronically. We can spin this information and spit it back to everyone that needs to see it. I think that has been one of the things that set us apart in the marketplace, because we can give anybody what they need.
What keeps you up at night?
In business, what keeps me up at night is knowing that we have to be innovative. We have to be on the cutting edge, be better than everybody else. We have to come through with those intelligent solutions and then offer something different in the marketplace. We have to set ourselves apart, be better, be more passionate, and provide that unexpected service.
