Page 27 - ATR 5 2014 web

Family Rules with

the McConnells

Third-generation company is close-knit
among owners and drivers.

by Jim harris

Contributing Writer

Family-owned and operated is a label applied to many a trucking company,
but it doesn’t begin to reach the full extent in describing McConnell & Son Inc. in
North Little Rock. From humble beginnings of patriarch H.E. McConnell hauling
Pennsylvania coal in a horse-drawn wagon to his son, Ed McConnell, leading the
company in Arkansas from the 1970s to the turn of the century, and now with
Hugh Edward McConnell III in charge of what has become a dry-bulk hauler, no
decision is made without the family considered — not only the McConnells’ brood,
but also their roster of drivers.
“We have been so blessed,” Hugh McConnell III’s wife, Erin, says of the firm’s
strong retention of drivers over many years, “We have a really good group of guys.
They have families, they are like our family. And we feel responsible to them. If we
make a decision it’s not just based on if we’re going to make it. It effects everyone.”
Ray Cole, who has driven for the McConnells for about 37 years and has
known every McConnell who ran the company, said, “They are just great, wonder-
ful people, caring people. They will do anything in the world for you. They built
me up so many times when my truck went down. They care about you, and I care
about them.”
It’s an operation where, for the past two generations, the wives have been as
important in company operations as their husbands. Ed’s wife, Susie worked in the
office for 30 years. Their son, Hugh III, knew from the start that he’d join the busi-
ness, and even a minimum-wage salary for several years didn’t chase him away.
Then Hugh met Erin, who had a banking and administrative background, and they
married in 1994. She started early on with payroll duties, then went to work full-
time in 2005.
Hugh and Erin talk about the company at the dinner table with their three
young sons — Hugh Edward IV, or Mac, who is 12; Timothy, 9; and Gus, 7 — and
they imagine one day handing over the company to one or more of them.
“There is a place for everyone,” Erin said.

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aRkansas tRuCking RepoRt | issue 5 2014 27