When you’re a trucking company with a fleet of 68 trucks, even a minor glitch in the organization can cost you money (and precious time). That’s why it’s of the utmost importance to find a tool that can help you organize your workload.
This is where Plaky, our task management software, comes in, and that’s how our story about 1st Platinum Freight begins.
When it was founded by an ex-truck driver back in 2017, 1st Platinum Freight had only 2 trucks. Now, they are a medium-sized company with 68 trucks and somewhere between 70 and 80 employees.
We talked to Milos Stanic, Head of Recruiting at 1st Platinum Freight, about the importance of organizing your work and how Plaky can help with that. He shared with us how they use Plaky and just how much it eases their workload.
So, let’s hear about their experience.
How 1st Platinum Freight discovered Plaky
Currently, only Milos’s department — recruiting — uses Plaky, for various purposes.
Before Plaky, they used Google Sheets. However, Milos was on the lookout for a more suitable tool for managing their daily tasks.
“I have been looking for almost a year for a suitable platform for my department. I found some which were okay but none were exactly what I was looking for.”
Then came a serendipitous conversation with his former colleague, now working for CAKE.com — the company behind Plaky.
“We came in contact on LinkedIn. … I asked her if she could recommend a platform that could help me with organizing. She said: ‘Look no further!’ The next thing you know, she and her colleague introduced me to Plaky and showed me how it can be used in my line of business.”
After that, Milos presented Plaky to the company owners, who had only one question for him.
“They just asked me: ‘Does it help you?’ I said: ‘It solves 100% of my problems.’ So that was pretty much it.”
The main challenges 1st Platinum Freight’s recruiting department faced
Milos shared with us the 2 main challenges they faced before trying Plaky — lack of organization and complicated apps.
#1 Lack of organization
First and foremost, they didn’t have one solution for managing all their tasks, which resulted in a lack of organization. Milos elaborates on this.
“The biggest challenge was that we didn’t have software that specifically suited our needs in the recruiting department. We used different platforms for different tasks.
For instance, for background checks after the interviews with the candidates, we used tools required by American law. Then, we had other methods of keeping track of other tasks, such as making drug test appointments for our prospective drivers. It was hard to keep everything under control.”
#2 Dealing with complicated apps
The most frustrating challenge, however, was handling complicated software. This can be a real nuisance and can severely affect productivity, as Milos noticed.
“People are sick and tired of complicated applications. They want to keep things simple. This is especially true in trucking and logistics, where you have problems popping up every single minute — it's a 24/7 job. The last thing you need is software with a steep learning curve.”
Luckily, they found Plaky.
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How Plaky helps 1st Platinum Freight stay organized
The biggest hurdle 1st Platinum Freight’s recruiting department faced was the lack of a single tool that could help them do their job. Milos claims Plaky was a real lifesaver.
He explains how they keep their work in line with Plaky.
“We have a separate Plaky board where we keep the names of the drivers that currently don’t work. For instance, they cannot come today, tomorrow, day after tomorrow, but can join us in a couple of weeks. So, we use that list to keep track of the drivers we want to stay in contact with.”
Apart from that, they use Plaky for inventory management — to list all the trucks in detail for a clear overview of their fleet.
“The entire fleet is practically listed on Plaky, with every single truck having its own description and picture. We use that inventory when we need to recover a truck, for example.
Namely, if the driver is ill or has some family emergency, they cannot continue to drive. So, we just mark the number of the unit and the current location of the truck, and then we send another driver to pick that truck up.”
Plaky has also proven useful for keeping track of new employees’ onboarding and orientation.
“Plaky comes in very handy for onboarding and scheduling orientations for new drivers. We usually create a Plaky entry for them and enter the name of the driver and the number of the unit that they will take.
Then, we buy plane tickets for drivers and mark that in Plaky. We add the landing time and flight number, so we can make a little note if the plane is late, for example. So, the entire process is logged in Plaky.”
What makes Plaky the perfect tool for 1st Platinum Freight?
Milos shared with us why Plaky meets (and exceeds) all their needs in the recruiting department.
#1 Plaky is user-friendly
One of the biggest advantages of Plaky, according to Milos, is its simplicity and user-friendliness.
“Even our company owner jumps in from time to time to see what's going on in Plaky. He also said this is a very good app. It can be used by anyone — you don't have to be a rocket scientist to use Plaky. So, the big plus is the simplicity.”
#2 Plaky is highly customizable
As someone who’s always looking for ways to improve his workflow, Milos has tested other apps, specifically created for recruiting departments. However, they all lacked something.
“[These apps] were practically limited by default. What all of them lacked was customizability. Every company has its own way of doing business, so we need to adjust the tools we use to our specific needs.”
It was a different story with Plaky because the app is flexible enough to accommodate various types of workflows and “shape it to fit your needs”, as Milos highlights.
Want a customizable workspace? Try Plaky#3 Plaky facilitates collaboration
Plaky lets you organize your business in the most efficient manner, facilitating collaboration. Milos explained to us how this looks in practice.
“I created an inventory of trucks in Plaky. Before that, there was a list, but it was not regularly updated. Now, as we’ve expanded and new people have come to the company, I'm glad we have that inventory for easier organization.
Thanks to Plaky, at this very moment, a dispatcher knows that, if we get 2 more trucks, they will be immediately put in the inventory. They don't have to look around — everything is in one place.”
Excessive communication is also no longer an issue. Milos and his teammates don’t need to waste any time going back and forth, looking for information — everything is shared with the others, whether in the comments section or through files.
“There’s no need to ask redundant questions when you have the answer right in front of you in Plaky. Everything is transparent.
For example, when we hire a new employee, it’s enough that we enter their personal information and let the other teams know that. The accountant immediately logs in the price of the truck, makes the contract, sends it to the driver, and so on.”
#4 Plaky’s price is reasonable
You have to admit — when choosing an app for your company, its price usually plays a significant role. Plaky’s price is modest, and Milos underscores this factor.
“Plaky’s price is very good. I know platforms that cost much more — from $11 to $15. However, with Plaky, you get great quality for a reasonable price. At the end of the day, the decision always boils down to the product itself, not the price. If it solves your problems, you won't have a problem paying.”
Who would 1st Platinum Freight recommend Plaky to and why?
When asked about who he would recommend Plaky to, Milos’s first response was — to everyone.
Then, he was a bit more specific — to begin with, he would recommend it to other departments in his company, starting with dispatchers.
“I already spoke to my colleague, a dispatch manager. In the upcoming months, he will implement Plaky in the dispatch department 100%. He just needs to learn how it works on a daily basis. Plaky would be the best solution for them, as it would help them get organized.”
In a way, the other departments in his company are already using Plaky, as Milos informed us.
“The dispatch department, accounting, and safety department are also logged into Plaky via their own accounts. We have a separate board for each of these departments.”
Plaky helps 1st Platinum Freight achieve their goals
Whatever the future holds for 1st Platinum Freight, one thing is certain — Plaky is there to stay, as Milos told us. He has big plans for other departments as well, at least when Plaky is concerned.
“I have no intention of excluding Plaky from the system. Even after we started using it, I explored a couple of more options just to be sure that it suits us best.
In my humble opinion, there is no better application for us. As I already mentioned, the dispatch department will also start using this app. I plan on speaking with the head of safety as well to have them transfer to Plaky.”
Milos also mentioned that they plan on improving their internal communication by introducing another CAKE.com product — the business messaging app Pumble.
“In the first week of next year (2025), we will start using Pumble for business communication in our company. Currently, we are using another — not so good, might I add — app. As I understand, Pumble enables us to adjust permissions so that only certain people can post in a channel, which will really come in handy.”
We’re happy to be a part of 1st Platinum Freight’s success story and hope to grow even more together!
Get started with Plaky