We can all use a little help reaching our health and fitness goals. Whether it's a gym membership, exercise videos, a weight loss program or a little help from your smartphone, there's something for everyone. Consider these handy, effective and FREE fitness apps. 

On December 4, 2015 President Obama signed into law the latest highway bill, Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act, or FAST Act. Later that same day, the U.S. Department of Transportation's FMCSA released the following statement:

"As of December 4, 2015, pursuant to the FAST Act of 2015, much of the information previously available on the FMCSA website related to property carriers' compliance and safety performance will no longer be displayed publicly."

On November 30, 2015 the FMCSA published a new rule, Prohibiting Coercion of Commercial Motor Vehicle Drivers, or the driver coercion rule. The rule gives commercial truck and bus drivers additional protection from being coerced into violating federal motor carrier safety regulations (FMCSRs) and will go into effect on January 29, 2016.

Almost without exception, I've heard from contractors that 2015 has been a good year, and that 2016 looks promising. In a recent seminar, Ken Simonson, Chief Economist for Associated General Contractors (AGC) of America, echoed these sentiments—but with some caution. 

2015 was a solid year for most truckers, yet it was anything but easy.  Looking forward to 2016, uncertainty looms large when it comes to the future of our industry. As risk advisors, we look at 3 types of risk when assessing what's likely to happen in 2016.  

Hazard Risk: insurance-related perils that could result in a loss today

Business Risk: non-insurance risk that could affect your business today

Strategic Risk: long-term risk factors 

With these 3 types of risk in mind, here are 5 predictions for trucking risk in 2016.

More and more, brick and mortar stores are taking a backseat to their online counterparts.  And all of that online shopping represents a whole lot of opportunity for identity theft and other types of cyber crime.

And if the 5th largest retailer in the world can be hacked (remember Target's breach from 2013?), how vulnerable am I when I shop using my home computer? 

Before you fire up the laptop for that last-minute shopping, be sure to remember these simple tips for keeping your data—and your wallet—secure. 

Attracting and retaining top talent is more difficult than ever before. Low unemployment and the growing number of Millennials in the workforce is changing the game for many employers. Companies that don't understand and address the new normal will lose the war for talent, hands down. 

Employees today operate more like free agents who can hold out for the highest bidder—and the best offer might be about more than just compensation. And while prospective employees seem to have a plethora of options, your path to replacing an employee who quits or is fired is getting a lot more difficult. 

So how can you get the best talent to join (and stay at) your organization? 

Meet Jeff Swan: Transportation Compliance Specialist, Former State Patrol Officer 

If 34 years with the Wisconsin State Patrol was an education, 3 months with HNI has been a revelation for Jeff Swan.  

Jeff, HNI's newest gamechanger, retired from the Wisconsin State Patrol in 2014. His extensive DOT experience has taught him an important lesson: drivers often don’t realize the impact that their behavior has on the company they work for.  Bridging the gap between the driver and the trucking company is Jeff’s favorite Wicked Problem to solve. 

The FMCSA has released its final rule mandating the use of ELDs by interstate drivers of commercial motor vehicles who currently use a driver's record of duty status (driver's log) to record their hours of service. 

The rule requires carriers to install FMCSA-registered and certified ELDs on their commercial motor vehicles within two years of the publication of the final rule. Publication is expected as soon as next week. Carriers who currently use automatic on-board recording devices (AOBRDs) will have four years to move to the ELDs. 

As business leaders, we are always looking for ways to relate events in our everyday lives to our business strategy.  We search for insights in the seemingly insignificant changes that happen in the world around us.  And every once in a while, something that most people ignore turns out to be a revelation that we simply cannot look away from. 

We just had one of those revelations at HNI.