Atlas Amplifier PDF - Atlas Van Lines

Cover Story – The Forum Turns 40Light the Candles!The Atlas Forum on Moving is 40 Years YoungYou say it’syour birthdayIt’s my birthdaytoo, yeahThey say it’syour birthdayWe’re gonna havea good timeI’m glad it’syour birthdayHappy birthdayto you.– Lennon /McCartney,“Birthday,” 1968FOR PHOTOS, VIDEO ANDHIGHLIGHTS OF THE 40THFORUM VISIT THE FORUMREPORT ONLINE AT:www.atlasworldgroup.com/forumIf your memory stretches back40 years, you may recall thatmid-twentieth century U.S.society inhabited a turbulent world.A confounding cold war preoccupiedthe national consciousness. A blossomingcivil rights movementrightfully challenged the status quo.And a countercultural revolutionsang promises of peace and loveas it chipped away at taboos of sexand drugs.It was also a time when the movingindustry and its members were oftenopenly criticized–sometimes fairly,sometimes not. A tide of consumeradvocacy was welling up aroundgrass-roots activists such as the youngand brash Ralph Nader. A growingconcern for consumer rights gavebirth to The Consumer Federation ofAmerica in 1967, in Washington, D.C.and, in 1973, the Consumer ProductSafety Commission.In retrospect, it was a perfect timefor a forward-thinking companyto experiment with a new way offinding common ground among itscustomers and the public. Somemight say, half-jokingly, that the Ageof Aquarius ushered an alignmentof planetary and social forces thatrevealed the need for a totally differentchannel of communication. Whateverwas at work, this was a moment ripefor a bold idea. It would take shape asan open exchange among people ofcommon purpose who held widelydivergent views.During the 1960s, most of thecorporate sales volume at Atlas VanLines came through relationshipswith traffic managers. These werethe corporate customers, almostexclusively men, responsible forselecting and working with van linesfor moving their associates’ householdgoods. The word “relocation” wasyet to come into vogue. The industryviewed itself in terms such as “traffic,”“moving,” and “shipping.”Two decades is an importantmilestone for any company. In 1967,as Atlas Van Lines approached itstwentieth year in business, VicePresident of Marketing Jack Thorneand Public Relations Consultant FredSeidner cooked up an idea for aspecial commemorative event thefollowing year. It would be unlikeanything the industry had seen. It wasso radical, in fact, there was a goodchance it could fail. Atlas PresidentO. H. Frisbie even bet Thorne $25 thatfewer than 25 guests would show.Billed as the first “Traffic Managers’Forum on Moving,” the event followeda simple premise. Atlas wouldbring together the professionals whoshared a responsibility for householdgoods moving. They would have thefreedom to speak openly, candidly,critically about the things thatconcerned them. It was risky. Theindustry was far from perfect accordon issues of policy, claims, andstandards for service delivery.That first gathering took place ina new theater on the University ofEvansville campus. It was, essentially,a 2-1/2 hour panel discussion–and awidely acknowledged success. Thereason it succeeded was precisely thereason some thought it might fail.Those in attendance realized theywere free to speak their minds.Disagreement became instructiveand, handled professionally, quiteconstructive. The Forum was, itturned out, an idea whose time hadcome. Its axiomatic underpinnings–freedom of speech and thoughtfulThe first “TrafficManagers Forumon Moving” (200attendees inEvansville, 1968)followed a simplepremise: participantswould have thefreedom to speakopenly, candidlyand critically aboutindustry issues.2Atlas Amplifier • Summer 2007Atlas Amplifier • Summer 2007 3