How Inontime is Proving That Great Operations Start With Great People

Strong carrier operations don't happen by accident.

They're built through consistent communication, long-term relationships, and a willingness to invest in people before problems arise. The companies that continue succeeding through changing markets aren't simply moving more freight. They're building systems that make customers, drivers, and employees want to stay.

That's exactly what Inontime has spent more than 25 years doing.

Founded in 1998, the Grand Rapids, Michigan-based carrier has grown from a single local customer into a diversified operation serving customers across multiple industries. Rather than pursuing growth for growth's sake, the company has focused on earning trust one relationship at a time - a philosophy that continues to shape every part of its business.

For Director of Operations Ben Schwartz, that success starts with one simple idea.

Treat people the way you'd want to be treated.

Building A Business Around Relationships

Growth has never been Inontime’s primary goal.

Solving customers' problems has always come first.

After navigating the 2008 recession, the company intentionally diversified beyond its automotive roots, expanding into food service and a wide range of other commodities. That approach wasn't about chasing new business. It was about becoming the kind of carrier customers could rely on regardless of market conditions.

That same philosophy extends inside the company.

Drivers have direct access to dispatch and operations. Ben jokes that "the day we put a sliding glass window in is the day I quit," because creating barriers between people is in direct opposition to how the company operates. 

Whether it's customers, drivers, dispatchers, or sales, Inontime believes the best results come when everyone works toward solving the same problem together.

Investing In Drivers Pays Off

Driver retention continues to challenge much of the trucking industry.

Ben’s team at Inontime has taken a different approach.

The company gets drivers home every night through a relay-style operating model, pays salaries plus overtime instead of by the mile, and offers benefits that aren't always common in trucking, including paid holidays and employee ownership opportunities. Rather than placing pressure on drivers to maximize miles, the company puts that responsibility on its operations team to keep freight moving efficiently.

The result speaks for itself.

Driver turnover hovers around 10% — a figure Ben attributes to investing in people instead of constantly replacing them. New drivers are even asked what kind of work they want to do before they're assigned a route, allowing the company to place employees where they're most likely to succeed.

Trust Creates Better Freight Opportunities

Inontime was an early supporter of Highway.

They believed carriers who invest in safety, compliance, and doing things the right way should have a way to stand apart.

"We've always been kind of an early adopter," Ben explained. "Our wish for a long time was that everybody played by the same rules."

Today, the Trusted Freight Exchange (TFX) has become the first place the team looks for available freight.

"We like to go to this platform first just because we know who's there. There's a connection there," Ben said.

The company still uses other platforms, but TFX allows dispatchers to focus first on brokers they already know and trust rather than sorting through every opportunity on the market. That confidence helps the team spend less time verifying brokers and more time finding freight that fits its operation.

Building the Future Together

Ben sees technology as an opportunity to make good carriers even better.

Whether it's API integrations, smarter capacity matching, or giving carriers easier ways to share available trucks, his focus remains the same: eliminate unnecessary work so people can spend more time serving customers. Throughout the conversation, he repeatedly emphasized the importance of giving carriers tools that fit naturally into the way they already operate.

When asked what he would tell another carrier about Highway, his answer was immediate.

"Yes, 100%."

Success Is Built One Relationship At A Time

After more than 25 years in business, Inontime has learned that the industry's biggest changes don't replace its fundamentals. Customers still value communication. Drivers still want to work for companies that respect them. Long-term relationships still outperform short-term transactions. By staying committed to those principles, the company has built an operation designed to last.