Chris Essig Named Employee-Owner of the Quarter (Q2 2023)

on Tuesday, July 25, 2023 in Company News

Should you walk through the Excess office in Des Moines, IA on any given day, you will hear Chris Essig talking about TMC’s Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP). Chris has strong beliefs when it comes to ESOP, and he shows it through his daily actions. Chris exemplifies patience, sticking it out, and looking at the big picture for TMC, which are fundamental properties of Harrold Annett’s vision of ESOP. Chris said, “If you take care of TMC, TMC takes care of you.” Chris takes care of TMC by taking pride in all he does and striving daily to achieve Destination: Excellence. 

Chris started with TMC in August 2015 as a Logistics Sales Representative (LSR) and transitioned into the Carrier Sales Specialist (CSS) role eight months later. Since his first day in the CSS role, Chris has worked in the Chicago, Saint Louis, and Michigan regions, which are notoriously tough areas. As Chris grew in the CSS role, he adapted to add value and to meet the needs of the carriers in his regions. Chris said, “This region is one of the busiest in the country. It’s also one of the most competitive and tough regions. I needed to find a way to set myself apart from my competition” and that is exactly what Chris did. He said the carriers in his region wanted “someone who was open, honest, to the point, and would give them the ‘straight talk’.” He consistently grows his carrier base, and the carriers Chris works with. Because of the relationship Chris has built, they now know what loads TMC has and how Chris will take care of them throughout the lifecycle of those loads. 

Chris’ philosophy is, “if something works, keep using it, but if something does not work, make changes until you find something that does work.” Chris is confident the carriers he uses come back to TMC because of, not only TMC’s reputation, but also his reputation and the relationships he has built with the carriers. Chris’ carriers receive the level of service they expect from TMC and Chris. As Chris serves his carriers by providing the level of Quality, Integrity, and Continuous Improvement expected from TMC, the carriers return to Chris, and move repeat loads for TMC time and time again. This type of relationship Chris has with his carriers takes time and persistence to develop, and pride to maintain TMC’s reputation as a Premier Transportation Provider. When asked what advice he would give to folks new in the role, Chris said, “Find the tools that work for you. You have lots of tools available to perform your job. Realize if something doesn’t work, find what does. Don’t forget the people around you because they are a huge resource, and they want you to succeed just as much as you want to succeed. Every small success you have is seen in the increase of our ESOP. If you work hard, the answer you’re looking for will come easy.” 

Chris said that TMC provides him a lot of what he wants and needs to grow both professionally and personally. Chris said, “Here at TMC, you’re not just a number, you are part of a family.” Chris approaches each day with the same conviction to embody TMC’s Core Values of Quality, Integrity, and Continuous Improvement in all he does, and to answer the question, “What’s in it for TMC?” Chris’ personification of TMC’s ESOP principles and leading by example are just a few reasons why Chris Essig was named TMC’s Employee Owner of the Second Quarter of 2023 (EOQ2 2023). 

“Chris came to the Excess team via the LSR side of the house where he started in the Chicago/Saint Louis markets. He has since grown the region to be one of the most consistent and profitable areas that the Excess team has today. That process has not been easy at all, and up until roughly a year and a half ago, Chris had to scratch and claw for every dollar out of those extremely competitive markets. Chris has grown a ton these past seven years and if there is ever a person that exemplifies patience, determination, and looking at the overall big picture (ESOP), it’s Chris.” 

Andrew Fischer, Logistics General Manager 

Des Moines, IA