With Jim Ward stepping down as president of the Truckload Carriers Association (TCA), the organization is making it transparent what it wants in a successor.
TCA on Friday announced Ward’s retirement, which the organization said would take place “in the coming months.” No firm date was disclosed.
Ward had an unusual entry into the job of TCA President in 2022. He was chairman of TCA when his predecessor John Lyboldt announced his plans to retire on April 1 of that year. A trade association chairman or chairwoman generally comes out of the industry the group serves, and remains in their day job while taking on the tasks of chair. The current TCA chair is Karen Smerchek, who is also the president of Wisconsin’s Veriha Trucking.
Ward was no different; while TCA chair, he was president and CEO of D.M. Bowman of Williamsport, Maryland, where had worked for 23 years.
Jumping from a private company to association head
But association presidents, who run the group on a day-to-day basis, tend to have done that job or something similar at other associations, or come out of the ranks of other employees at the trade group seeking to fill the top role. But instead, Ward retired from D.M. Bowman and took the job as the chief executive at TCA.
In a prepared statement, Ward said the decision to step down “has been in the works for some time, and I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve accomplished together. TCA is strong, its future is bright, and I look forward to watching the Association continue to grow and flourish in the years ahead.”
The TCA statement said the organization would start a search for a successor. But it also published a link in the announcement of Ward’s departure to a lengthy list of qualifications and capabilities it wants in the next TCA president.
The summary of the job says the TCA president “serves as the chief executive officer of the organization, responsible for providing visionary leadership, advancing TCA’s mission, and ensuring long-term growth and sustainability.” It described the next president as needing to be a “strategic leader with deep knowledge of the trucking industry, proven association management experience, strong advocacy skills, and the ability to engage members and stakeholders at all levels.”
The requirements include two key qualifications: “proven executive leadership” in a trade association, nonprofit or corporate “environment,” and “deep understanding of the trucking and transportation industry.”
But given that the TCA is based across the river from Washington in northern Virginia, the job requirement also says the successful candidate must have “demonstrated success in advocacy and government relations.”
Applications are required to be submitted by November 1.
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