We’ve all heard the warnings: “Don’t drive distracted.” “Keep your eyes on the road.” “Stay focused behind the wheel.”
Bill Welsh, ACE, executive vice president of operations and strategic initiatives, of Rose Pest Solutions in Michigan thought he had it under control. He wasn’t scrolling through social media or texting, just talking on the phone to a colleague. Harmless, right? Or so he thought, until one day he found himself 20 miles past his exit, completely oblivious to how far he’d gone.
The Day It Happened
It started like any other drive. Welsh thought he’d put his “windshield time” time to good use and catch up on a few calls. Both hands were on the wheel (his phone was on speaker), and eyes were technically on the road, but where was his mind? His mind was somewhere else entirely.
He dove into his conversation and before he knew it, Welsh had missed his exit – not by a mile or two, but by 20 miles. That was when Welsh had his “a ha” moment: He hadn’t been paying attention to the road ahead of him at all.
As he drove back to his intended exit, Welsh thought more about it and realized how easily things could have gone wrong.
“I’ll admit I was a skeptic when the company introduced the no cell phone policy,” said Welsh. “But after missing my exit and having no idea I did so, it became clear why we needed to do it.”
Like many pest control industry professionals, Welsh felt sales and productivity would suffer if technicians, sales reps and managers were unable to answer a call or text immediately. Reflecting after his “a ha” moment he realized that most of the calls he was taking and making were not that important.
“Nothing is that important to be on the phone while you’re navigating traffic,” said Welsh. “I can still do my job effectively pulling over or waiting until I arrive at my destination. Now, I don’t even think about using the phone when I get in the car.”
The Real Dangers of Distracted Driving
Distracted driving isn’t just about texting or looking at your GPS. It’s anything that takes your mind away from driving – conversations, eating, fiddling with the radio, or reading the notes in a service report on your next client. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), distracted driving claimed more than 3,000 lives in 2022 alone.
Missing an exit might seem harmless compared to those tragic statistics, but it’s a slippery slope. If Welsh could get so absorbed in a phone call that he lost track of 20 miles, what else could he miss? A car suddenly stopping in front of him? A car merging into his lane? A pedestrian crossing the street?
A Shift in Perspective
The experience changed Welsh’s mindset when he gets behind the wheel. Now, he thinks of driving as a task that deserves his full attention, not something that can be multitasked. Here are some changes implemented by Rose Pest Solutions, Welsh, and the entire Rose team in the operation of the company’s 370 service vehicles.
In 2024, the company ramped up its efforts to reduce distracted driving and had each employee sign a pledge to put the cell phones down. It also implemented a four-step enforcement policy. If an employee is found in violation it triggers the following:
- The first time results in a conversation between the employee and their manager.
- If a second violation occurs the employee will be written up and it will go in their personnel file.
- A third violation results in a suspension.
- A fourth violation results in termination.
There have been some tough conversations along the way, but when termination is on the table for habitual non-compliance, as it was for a leading salesperson, it gets their attention. Welsh said
“We want to get every employee home safely at the end of the day and this policy is helping us do that,” said Welsh.
On that count Rose and Welsh can speak from experience. In 2021, a Rose team member died in a vehicle crash and even though it was not as a result from distracted driving, Welsh said no one wants to go through that gut-wrenching experience again.
The policy also extends to personal vehicles. If an employee is conducting company business from their own car they must abide by the same rules. “The policy does not end at 5 p.m.,” added Welsh.
So far the results are positive, and the plan is working. Cell phone usage is down, and the dash cam video in all vehicles backs that up.
“It is now a rare instance when we have to have a conversation with someone about using their phone,” said Welsh.
The Takeaway
Driving is something most of us do daily, often without a second thought. But it’s a privilege and a responsibility. That day, Welsh driving 20 miles out of the way (40 when you count the return drive), was a minor inconvenience, but it could have been so much worse.
What advice does Welsh have for other pest control companies working through the growing pains of implementing a no cell phone policy?
“You must get it into employees heads that it is OK to not use their phones every time it rings or pings and the same for the office calling technicians or sales representatives,” said Welsh. “If they have to put it in the trunk of the car or back of the truck then so be it.”
For the policy to be effective Welsh said companies must be consistent with training and reinforcing the policy. And the consequence for non-compliance must have teeth.
“When people know their job is at stake, it gets their attention,” Welsh said. “Society and businesses thrived before cell phones, and we can do it again.”
The next time you get behind the wheel, ask yourself: Is what I’m doing worth the risk of taking my attention off the road? For Welsh and the team at Rose, the answer is always no.
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