When Praveen Boppana started as a programmer at Bennett International Group over 24 years ago, the company relied on paper-based processes for tracking driver hours. Drivers mailed in paper logs weekly, and a dedicated department audited every page by hand. Violations were only flagged after a partner sifted through stacks of documentation. "Everything was manual at that time," Boppana told FreightWaves in an interview at Motive's Vision 26 event. Today, Boppana serves as chief information officer for the Bennett Family of Companies, overseeing a fleet of approximately 4,500 pieces of equipment — about 3,600 on the trucking side alone, including its drayage division. The company has an ambitious three-year roadmap to migrate its legacy systems into an artificial intelligence-powered future.
From Paper Logs to Electronic Compliance
Bennett's transformation accelerated with the 2017 federal mandate for electronic logging devices (ELDs). The company adopted Motive as its ELD provider, making it one of the platform's early adopters. The shift was not seamless. Bennett relies heavily on owner-operators, who initially resisted devices that track both their time and loads. "When you're talking about putting ELDs in their trucks, they're not too happy about it initially," Boppana said. "There was a lot of resentment. They don't want ELDs, they don't want anything tracking their trucks."
The regulation forced adoption, but effective change management was essential. Today, Bennett operates at roughly 90 percent ELD compliance, with the remaining 10 percent on paper logs for equipment qualifying for exemptions due to age. "If you think about it, it was really a blessing for large fleets like us to go from paper-based logs to electronic logs," Boppana said. "Now we can't even think of it as automation, but at that time it was huge."
| Aspect | Before ELDs | After ELDs |
|---|---|---|
| Log submission | Mailed weekly | Electronic, real-time |
| Audit method | Hand-audited by department | Automated system |
| Compliance rate | ? | ~90% (10% paper exemptions) |
| Driver sentiment | Manual, no tracking | Resisted initially, now accepted |
Dash Cams: The Hearts-and-Minds Campaign
ELD adoption came with the force of regulation. Dash cam adoption required a different approach — more carrot than stick. Boppana called it the most challenging change-management effort of his career. Unlike ELDs, dash cams were not mandated. "It wasn't regulated — it's not a regulation," he said. "There's an option there; owner-operators can even say no to it because of the business model."
Bennett used a "hearts-and-minds, marketing-style approach." The central pitch: video evidence would enable faster exoneration for drivers not at fault in accidents. "If you have a dash cam, we have visibility of what's going on," Boppana said. "We can actually exonerate you faster. That was one of the big selling points."
The company covered all hardware and subscription costs, shared incident reports up to the CEO level, and made dash cams mandatory for newly onboarded drivers. Transitioning the existing fleet took nearly a year.
Safety Scores, Insurance and Customer Trust
Investments in safety technology deliver returns beyond regulatory compliance. Shippers and customers evaluate carriers in part on their Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) scores. "They look at our CSA scores — are we a safe carrier or not? Because that directly affects whether their commodity gets delivered safely and on time," Boppana said. "The safer we are, the fewer incidents, the better our chances of getting more business."
Bennett also leverages its safety posture to help manage insurance costs. The company provides coverage to its owner-operators. Lower claims translate to lower premiums for drivers as well. "If we're not paying as many claims, our insurance rates stay lower, which means driver premiums stay lower too," Boppana said. "It's a twofold win-win."
Modernizing the Foundation
Like many large truckload carriers, Bennett still runs older core systems — what Boppana refers to as "legacy software." The company has a three-year roadmap to migrate to an AI-powered future. While the specific timeline and technologies are not detailed in the source, the goal is clear: modernize without losing operational footing. The journey from paper logs to ELDs to dash cams shows that Bennett is willing to invest in technology when it delivers measurable business outcomes.
Sources:
