In celebration of our 65th Anniversary, we’ll be digging into Northwest’s values and the principles upon which we’ve built our foundation: Safety, Service Excellence and Family. To start us off, we’re looking at what family means to Northwest and what a ‘Family Business’ really looks like!
A Family Business From The Start
Northwest has always been a family business, from its foundation to its modern operating principles and core values. Northwest began in 1955 and is still run by the Blaney Family 65 years later. Bill Blaney retired in 1991 and passed the torch onto his son, Tom, who took over as President. Tom, now CEO, along with current President, Michael Perry, have continued to operate Northwest Tank Lines with the same commitment to safety, service excellence, and of course, family.
Proud Of Our People
One of the most important lessons passed onto Tom from his father was the importance of good people in the success of any organization. The people who make up the Northwest family, including every single driver and team member, are the ones that create and perpetuate the incredible culture at Northwest. As Tom puts it, “when it comes to us versus the competition, the only difference is our people.” The Northwest family are proud to come to work every day with a steadfast commitment to safety, service excellence, and each other. Tom and Michael are most proud of the people at Northwest, who live Northwest’s values every day. For the Northwest family, safety is not just a word, it is the Northwest way of doing business – safety always comes first, no matter what. Northwest believes wholeheartedly in the promise that everyone gets to go home safe at the end of the day to their families and loved ones.
Supporting Northwest Family Education
It has always been highly important to give back to our families and their communities. One of the initiatives we’re most proud of is the Northwest Education Fund. The Education Fund was created to support our team members – our family. The Education Fund is open to any family members of Northwest (drivers and team members) who are pursuing part-time or full-time post-secondary education in Canada or the United States. The Education Fund awards up to $5000 per student and has two funding rounds a year. The next application period closes August 15th, so if your family has not applied yet, we highly recommend getting in their application now! You can learn more about the fund and apply here.
Community Support
Northwest also believes in supporting our family and communities in other ways as well. We’re proud partners of Big Brothers Big Sisters, Between Friends, The Calgary Children’s Hospital, and many more. You can learn more about the Northwest Way and our partners here. We’re also proud supporters of the Canadian Cancer Society, and even have many of our tankers wrapped in pink in support of the fight against Breast Cancer. In fact, our Pink Ribbon Tankers are highly requested by our drivers! You can learn more about our partnership with the Canadian Cancer Society here.
We’re incredibly proud of our family and the communities that we belong to.
