In 2017, when Justin Ryan participated in the Freight Academy, he considered it the “Top Gun” of professional development opportunities. At the time, he was the Freight and Seaport Programs Manager for District 2 in the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT). It’s the reason he wanted to go so much; he’d heard that the Freight Academy trained the “who’s who” in freight and modal planning in the country, and he wanted to be counted among them.
After three years with FDOT, Justin was looking to expand his network and collaborate with others working on challenges similar to his, including truck parking, which was then at the top of his list of problems to tackle. He found others in the same space and created opportunities to partner with other freight professionals with whom he shared interstates.
He considered it an opportunity to level up. During the capstone project, he polished his executive skills by completing a resiliency challenge, in which he and his group had to handle an ice storm that took an interstate out of service. They had to figure out how to approach that problem from an operational, engineering, industry outreach, and communication standpoint. The capstone project, along with sessions that featured many speakers from the private sector, changed his perspective. Having spent his whole career in government, he’d gotten into a certain mindset, but his time in the Freight Academy gave him several “ah-ha” moments that helped him enhance his customer engagement, his business development, and learned to empathize with his stakeholders. That enabled him to find more ways to communicate more effectively with them about their needs, create the infrastructure they needed based on those needs, and continue pursuing and meeting their needs at a higher level.
“I also learned a lot about the technical side of the industry, and the value of using different data sources,” he said. “That helped me to go from reacting to anecdotal challenges to using scientific data to solve problems. Now I can react when I’ve had all the data to inform a good solution. I learned to pause and analyze, instead of getting caught up in what others are saying.”
Since attending the Freight Academy, Justin was elevated to Manager of U.S. Foreign Trade Zone 64 and Grant Administration. He believes his time in the Freight Academy was a factor in helping him to level up.
“I learned to speak the language of freight at the Freight Academy, and it elevated and expanded my background to prepare me to go into the port world, where we deal with all modes and industries, and we all have to work together,” he said. “This experience enhanced my ability to be a well-rounded professional, with the ability to speak to all customers at the ports and understand their needs and challenges.”
With new insights into the way other modes of transportation operated, including the railroads and trucking companies, Justin felt the Freight Academy elevated and equipped him to be better at his job and acquired a wide, engaged network of people in the industry at his fingertips, ready to offer guidance and support along the way.
“It was hard, but it was very worthwhile,” he said. “You’re stretched professionally and stretched educationally to expand your thinking. It was challenging, but very rewarding, and I know I’m better at my job as a result.”
