Meet Kelly Anderson

Coast Guard Veteran, Licensed CDL Holder, Entrepreneur, Transportation Professional (Court Certified Expert Witness), Instrument Rated Pilot, Licensed Scuba Diver, Licensed Coast Guard Captain, Motorcycle Rider, Off-Road Enthusiast, Extreme Ranch Horseman, and Ordained Minister.

Kelly has worked in the transportation industry for over 30 years. The positions he has held include US Coast Guard – Federal Law Enforcement Officer, Professional Driver, Driver Trainer, Driver Recruiter, Safety Supervisor, and Safety Manager over a Recruiting Department for a 1720 truck fleet. These experiences led to the founding of Kelly Anderson Group, Inc. in January 1998. Kelly Anderson Group provides Seminars, e-Learning, Driver Engagement Surveys, and Recruitment Services to help fleets Find, Recruit, Retain, and Train Drivers.

Through his real-world, solution-based consulting and presentations Kelly has become one of the transportation industry’s most requested speakers.

Kelly serves on numerous industry Boards of Directors and has chaired several national committees. 

THE REST OF THE STORY

Kelly was raised in an Air Force family with two older and one younger sister. His dad was a linguist in the Security Service and worked in National Security for over 35 years. Kelly is very proud to have been born in San Antonio, TX. He’s fond of saying “His dad told him not to ask someone where they are from, if they are from Texas they will tell you – if they are not, there’s no reason to embarrass them.” Although their family got transferred around the country and world a lot they spent 10 of his dad’s 20 years in the Air Force in San Angelo, TX – just not all at one time.

Kelly attended High School in Tacoma, WA, and, due to his interest in Law Enforcement, became a Pierce County Deputy Sheriffs Cadet. He also studied Vocational Marine Mechanics. Since he was too young to be a deputy and to increase his knowledge in Law Enforcement and mechanics he joined the U.S. Coast Guard and served for four and a half years as an Engineer, Motor Life Boat Crewman and Rescue Swimmer, Oil Spill Investigator, and Federal Law Enforcement Officer. While in the Coast Guard, Kelly got NAUI Open Water One Scuba Diver Certified.

Kelly didn’t want to be 65 years old and wondering – “What if I drove a truck?” Then CFI mistakenly placed an advertisement in the Portland Oregonian newspaper and the rest is history. He attended Crowder College and started working for CFI as a student driver. He eventually became an over-the-road driver finisher. Then he was asked if he’d like to work in the office and he took a job as a driver recruiter. A friend started loaning him tapes on self-improvement, goal setting, management, and leadership, and through the implementation of the disciplines and techniques that he learned in those courses, his career took off. He was promoted to Safety Supervisor where he was the Safety Department of CFI on the weekends and worked in Accident and Cargo Claims during the weekdays. He was then promoted to Safety Manager over Recruiting. Kelly’s goal was to become the president of CFI and he worked every day to be one day closer to that dream. However, one day Kelly realized the next president of CFI was too young and by the time he was through being president, Kelly would have lost a lot of revenue-generating years. So in August 1994, Kelly set a goal to start his own consulting company.

To realize this dream, Kelly needed to work on knowledge and financial independence. So he continued his habit of spending at least 30 minutes per day studying in his field and set specific financial goals that would come to fruition in September 1997. So he planned to start the Kelly Anderson Group on January 1, 1998, and he did.

The first division Kelly started was “Seminars,” which was related to Driver Recruiting, Retention, Customer Service, and Management/Leadership. Then he started Driver Engagement Services, the International Society of Recruiting and Retention Professionals, e-Learning, and Recruiting Services. Today the Kelly Anderson Group employs around 70 people and provides services to companies throughout the United States and Canada.

NOW THE FUN STUFF...

Planes, Boats, & Trucks

Kelly researched the amount of lost productivity he had by utilizing commercial air travel.  Ultimately he bought a Piper Saratoga, got his pilot license with instrument rating, and took 50 days off his travel schedule per year. Kelly lives on Table Rock Lake in Southwest Missouri and loves the water.  He obtained his Captain’s License and operates one of the rescue boats on many weekends in the summer. Kelly still maintains his CDL with all the endorsements. 

Horses & Off-Road Enthusiast

Kelly destination rides horses, motorcycles, and Polaris RZRs. He loves to go places most people can’t or won’t and see this beautiful country.  Kelly enjoys helping his rancher friend in Wyoming round up and work his cows. These are 10 – 12 hour days riding in extreme terrain, separating momma cow from calves, vaccinating, branding, and castrating the herd.  Some people have called him crazy for taking time off to work so hard. He just loves it.

Speaker, Facilitator, Consultant & Ordained Minister

Kelly is truly an industry expert with a wide range of knowledge. Moreover, he is able to effectively convey that knowledge to others. As a Keynote Speaker, he is often rated the best speaker of the conference. When people ask him where he learned his presentation skills he always replies – the third row of Bowie Street Baptist Church in San Angelo, TX. Being recognized by the body of the church for ordination was a true honor. Being an Ordained Elder in the Southern Baptist Church is more about being a servant than a position. Kelly truly loves serving the body of Christ and helping people.

Family Man

Kelly and Carmen were married in December of 2000. They had both been praying that God would bring into their life the person he had been raising since birth to be their spouse. They met and were married 21 weeks later. They have two children: Carly and Kellen. Kelly and Carmen decided early in their relationship what type of marriage they wanted and they purposefully conduct themselves, communicate with each other, and love each other in a manner that supports reaching that goal. As a result, Kelly says this has been the most peaceful, and wonderful years of his life.

Planes, Boats, & Trucks

Kelly researched the amount of lost productivity he had by utilizing commercial air travel.  Ultimately he bought a Piper Saratoga, got his pilot license with instrument rating, and took 50 days off his travel schedule per year. Kelly lives on Table Rock Lake in Southwest Missouri and loves the water.  He obtained his Captain’s License and operates one of the rescue boats on many weekends in the summer. Kelly still maintains his CDL with all the endorsements. 

Horses & Off-Road Enthusiast

Kelly destination rides horses, motorcycles, and Polaris RZRs. He loves to go places most people can’t or won’t and see this beautiful country.  Kelly enjoys helping his rancher friend in Wyoming round up and work his cows. These are 10 – 12 hour days riding in extreme terrain, separating momma cow from calves, vaccinating, branding, and castrating the herd.  Some people have called him crazy for taking time off to work so hard. He just loves it.

Speaker, Facilitator, Consultant, & Ordained Minister

Kelly is truly an industry expert with a wide range of knowledge. Moreover, he is able to effectively convey that knowledge to others. As a Keynote Speaker, he is often rated the best speaker of the conference. When people ask him where he learned his presentation skills he always replies – the third row of Bowie Street Baptist Church in San Angelo, TX. Being recognized by the body of the church for ordination was a true honor. Being an Ordained Elder in the Southern Baptist Church is more about being a servant than a position. Kelly truly loves serving the body of Christ and helping people.

Family Man

Kelly and Carmen were married in the December of 2000. They had both been praying that God would bring into their life the person he had been raising since birth to be their spouse. They met and were married 21 weeks later. They have two children: Carly and Kellen. Kelly and Carmen decided early in their relationship what type of marriage they wanted and they purposefully conduct themselves, communicate with each other, and love each other in a manner that supports reaching that goal. As a result, Kelly says this has been the most peaceful, and wonderful years of his life.

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