Ashley Batten has served as general manager for Batten Trailer Leasing for two years, but she’s been associated with the business nearly a lifetime, learning from the inside about the many facets of the company her father, Blaine, founded in the mid-1980s.

“This year I’ve really worked on modernizing our fleet and updating. The industry is becoming more and more regulated,” Batten says.

Batten trailers have carried elephants bound for Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and wall pieces for pools used during the Olympic Swimming Trials. They have also hauled supplies to hurricane victims and materials to Habitat for Humanity, an organization the company is proud to support. Flexible rental terms, dependable service, and a willingness to work with both large and small enterprises generate steady referrals and year-after-year repeat business, Batten says.

“We have a wide base of customers in a lot of different industries, and much of what we do is seasonal,” she says. “I really enjoy working with a variety of customers.”

Trucking is still an overwhelmingly male industry, but Batten says she’s seen more women enter the field—not so much as drivers but in essential support positions that keep things running smoothly. The work can be demanding.

“This is not a ‘9 to 5,’ it’s a ‘24/7.’ You can’t just clock out when a load has to get there,” she says. “The work/life balance can be challenging.”

But Batten enjoys a challenge.

“We are a small company,” she says. “And there are not a lot of people in this area that do what we do.”

4511 S. 67th Street Omaha, NE 68117 402.339.1429 battentrailerleasing.com

This sponsored content appeared in the Winter 2018 issue of B2B.