Greetings;
“Hello hello
I don't know why you say goodbye, I say hello
Hello hello
I don't know why you say goodbye, I say hello”
RailTrends 2022 is around the corner (November 15-16 NYC www.railtrends.com ) and, although we feared matching the excitement of last year and the return from hibernation we somehow managed to pull off what we think will be the best yet, a combination of excitement, hard critical thinking, and the bitter/sweetness of saying hello and goodbye, as the Beatles sang….
After the most five years of modern rail history, following the steady upward trendline I called the “railroad renaissance” – to catalog: trade wars, PSR implementation, labor shortages/negotiations, service improvements then crises, M&A and activists, extreme weather and ESG opportunities, existential tech challenges (and opportunities) – one has to wonder – will the rails ever reach their potential? We will try to address this with a schedule that includes a multitude of CEOs, other change agents, tech players, best-in-class consultants (OW), entrepreneurial visionaries such as our Innovator of the Year winner Rick Webb of Watco – and we proudly note the best attendee list in the industry (note – those coming to “just” to listen but not speak – except at the cocktail party – include on major SL CEO, several STB Commissioners, the top marketing folks at the largest rail supplier, many top Class One strategists, etc).
We say hello! At RT22 we say hello to:
- Canadian National CEO Tracy Robinson, no longer quite a newcomer but this will be her first visit to RT after Hurricane Sandy washed her out of the agenda (as a CP exec!) way back in 2012
- CPKC CEO Keith Creel – OK, this is a reach – not only has KC been a regular, he has been an IOY winner but coming about three months before expected (guaranteed) STB approval, I can almost say it’s hello to the newco CEO
- Aurizon – the largest railway Down Under – CEO Andrew Harding!
- Rail Association heads – OK, that’s the oldest RT feature, but we have a new format – a fireside chat with the AAR’s Jefferies and the ASLRRA’s Chuck Baker
- Two from the critical emerging tech front:
- Union Pacific’s CIO Rahul Jalali
- From RailPulse, no stranger to RT, we’ll hear not just from old friend Mike McClellan but also RP partners Eric Monger of KBX (don’t miss), Josh Perkes of the new C1 partner UP/Loup, and RP’s new GM, David Shannon. Note – along with UP NS will also “double-dip as we’ll hear from CMO Ed Elkins too!)
We will say goodbye to my two oldest friends in the business:
- Ex-CNW and CNI Investor Relations head who made good, Jim Foote of CSX, giving what I might be so presumptuous to call his valedictory address (and with multiple STB commissioners in the audience and a long happy retirement in front of him….)
- Given what I expect is going to be a sharp recovery at CSX, Jim is leaving a year before I anticipated him getting some Rt hardware….
- We do look forward to saying hello soon to Joe Hinrichs….
- Ex-ATSF Treasurer who made good, KCS’ Pat Ottensmeyer….
Maybe not as dramatic as Hello or Goodbye – maybe just a regular check-in, or a “What’s Up?”
- Analysts (Gross and Patterson and….me); rail cars (Kloster), DC Supplier panels (REMSA, NRC and saying hello to new RSI CEO Patty Long), the RAC (Brazeau)
- The entrepreneurialism of the short lines will once again feature in an unmissable panel (Watco, Anacostia, RJ Corman, RDC, and GWR)
- And what annually is the most-talked-about presentation, the thought-provoking Oliver Wyman talk by Adriene Bailey in the role created by Dr. Doom himself, Rod Case!
So, come say hello!
Anthony B. Hatch
abh consulting
http://www.abhatchconsulting.com
anthonybhatch@gmail.com
Twitter @ABHatch18