From the Field: How One Operations Manager Is Navigating Towing’s Hiring Challenges

In the 2025 State of Towing Annual Report, Matt Oliver, Operations Manager at Mission Wrecker Service, S.A. Inc. was asked:  In terms of hiring, what have you done to both bring in and retain great talent? 

Building a Foundation: Why Consistency Matters Most

The main thing for us is consistency. With that I mean, set schedules and assigned trucks. When you think of towing, the first things that come to mind are: on call 24/7, no set schedule, slip seating trucks, and never knowing when your next day off will be. We take that stigma and reformed it to the best of our current abilities and tweak it as needed. We value our employees’ time off. We try to not call our operators out, but we all know, in this business, we have to from time to time. When that time comes, we pay out bonuses on top of their normal pay. It’s a small thank you for helping. The appreciation goes a long way. We ask in advance for volunteers when we see a shortfall in the schedule or sever weather in the forecast, to help reduce and minimize the anxiety and tension during the already busy times.

Your Best Recruiters Are Already on Payroll

Our best recruiting tool in my opinion is word of mouth from our current operators. They are out on the streets every day interacting one on one with customers and other tow truck operators. They are our rolling billboards. A happy employee in a clean uniform with a clean and well-maintained newer model truck speaks volumes.

Invest in People, Not Just Equipment

We try to be as hospitable, patient, and as understanding as possible, while still taking care of business and getting the job done. We offer paid time off and vacation time that is earned and accrued through tenure. Understanding, along with patience, helps us take a struggling operator and find their weaknesses. We want to learn from that and then train, re-train, and council the operator if they are receptive and willing. We want to bring them to our standards. Pouring into them individually instead of giving up on the right candidate will help you retain that employee.

Creating a Self-Sustaining Hiring Engine

My main focus on finding the right employee boils down to you, the employer. Being and showing consistency, offering benefits, newer properly maintained equipment, multi-levels of management available 24/7, and taking the time to council, train, and even re-train. When you have those systems in place, your employees do the recruiting for you without them even knowing they are doing it.

The impact this has had on my business is substantial; I do not spend as much time searching for employees. In most cases, they come searching for me. Our turnover rate seems to steadily decrease, and the amount of money spent on trainees goes down as we fine tune these processes. It is always a work in progress and will always be fluid to adjust with the times.