Unfortunately what started as a great tragedy ended as a great tragedy – the final tragedy impacting hundreds if not thousands of people. Although the appointment of Doug Pielsticker, as the company’s replacement CEO, was not done without a great deal of trepidation, it was done in innocence and hope. The underlying problem was that Doug’s ever-present greed and other such character “flaws” – so visible to nearly everyone around him – were invisible to his mother. Being the “apple of his mother’s eye” automatically made any and all of his otherwise immediately apparent flaws wholly imperceptible … so much so that Carol chose to disbelieve even the warnings of her daughter, Melissa, thereby creating further family estrangement.
Even as so many of the telling and contributing events unfolded, Doug’s mother so badly wanted to believe him that she continued to do so – along with his smooth-talking “partner-in- crime,” Joe Mowry. At what point this mother’s faith in her son finally ceased, only she knows. Apparently she kept her faith until the far-overdue day that she was forced to fire Doug.
Perhaps the greatest problem with Carol’s “keeping the faith” for the duration was the devastation it wreaked on all of the Arrow employees. Her “keeping her head in the sand” led to the daily continuance of the company’s destruction. As a result, the company’s closure with what was apparently little advance warning appeared to come as a total shock -- and it has since proved to be a long-lasting shock.
It was not just the drivers that were left stranded. The yard and office employees were told at the same time as the drivers to gather their belongings and go home. The major difference was that the drivers had further to go and were left with no transportation with which to “go.” Aside from this difference all were left under the same circumstances. They left knowing they no longer had jobs and either knowing or not yet knowing: their payroll checks had bounced; whether or not they had benefits, and for how long; the status of their retirement plans, and if and when they would be able to access them; and how they would handle the forthcoming Christmas, with no money for the purchase of their planned gift purchases. This assumed that all were able to reach their homes in time for the holidays.
The initial appointment of Doug to the position of CEO created an overwhelming amount of speculation as to what was to come. It was a time that the expectations were for the worst. But thereafter, it is doubtful there were very many early warning signs relative to the company’s true financial condition. Perhaps the transfer of parts within the maintenance yard was among the earliest and should have been the most visible. Rumors have a way of taking wings, and the inability to purchase parts certainly should have been a subject of concern, as well as the frequency of there being insufficient funds to pay the vendors – and the accompanying scrambling to make payroll. Apparently the increasing difficulties being experienced within the varying departments stayed within these same departments. This is evidenced by the majority of the company’s employees choosing to remain with the company – as opposed to heading for the exits – perhaps while desperately clinging to hope for recovery.
The frequency of Doug’s closed-door meetings with his fellow “executives” was said to occur with such regularity that this would not have caused anyone concern. Whether they were watching porn or plotting survival strategies, Doug’s door was almost always closed, and it was viewed as being business as usual. Today, knowing the “end of the story,” it may have been just such meetings that led to the calamity, but that remains to be speculative. It may be that the insider truth will never all come out.
Joe’s death will undoubtedly keep everyone from ever knowing the entire story.
Hood is a veteran of more than forty years in the advertising, marketing and public relations businesses. From 1969 until 1990, Hood served as chairman of Hood, Hope and Associates and Ackerman, Hood and McQueen. At the time of his retirement from the advertising agency business, the ad agency was ranked as the 108th largest in the world, having offices in six cities, more than 200 employees, and billings in excess of $80 million annually.
Following his retirement from the advertising agency business, Hood founded the ADDvantage Media Group, Inc., an in-store advertising network comprised of major grocery chains and mass merchants – including Wal-Mart and K-Mart. He later took the company public and served as its president and CEO for nine years.
Hood is a past member of the “Advertising Age” Editorial Review Board, the board of the American Association of Advertising Agencies (AAAA), and the board of the Point of Purchase Advertising Institute (POPAI). He has also held numerous regional and national positions within each. Hood is a past recipient of the Tulsa Advertising Federation’s Silver Addy Award recognizing him as the “Ad Man of the Year.”
His creative writing skills have garnered him a national ADDY and first place awards from the International, New York and Chicago Film Festivals. He is also the recipient of many other local, regional and national awards. Hood is a member of the Advisory Board of the University of Tulsa, School of Journalism. He is a graduate of the University of Missouri’s School of Journalism, where he received a degree in advertising.
Currently he is a marketing and public relations consultant to several public and privately held companies. Hood and his wife have four children and seven grandchildren and reside in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Jim Pielsticker was always a very bright and likable guy. These attributes, in combination with an abundance of charisma and energy, made him the natural leader he always was. Jim and Carol McLemore were each raised in upper-middle-class families, Jim in Tulsa, Oklahoma and Carol in Shreveport, Louisiana. Following their respective graduations from high school both went away to college, this being the University of Oklahoma, reportedly where they first met. Following graduation Jim continued his education, going on to Notre Dame where he received his law degree.
Immediately after graduation, Jim entered the army as a first lieutenant. He was then sent to Germany where he was stationed throughout his tour of duty. During this time, he and Carol successfully maintained their long-distance relationship, and shortly after his discharge the two were married.
Then and now, Carol is described as being “very classy, but also very down-to-earth.” Those who knew Carol could not have been more complimentary, relating descriptions of her as an attractive, kind, caring and very likable lady. Both she and Jim enjoyed the atypical elements necessary, but seldom found in a marital relationship. It was always reflected in their mutual actions as they enjoyed the “good life” as a couple.
They had one daughter and one son. The daughter, Melissa, was known by very few of the Arrow employees. Most only knew of her. She was married and lived in Houston, and sightings of her had been quite rare. But, those with any knowledge of Melissa knew her to be a very intelligent, likable and attractive woman. After graduating from Baylor University with a degree in accounting, she passed her test to become a CPA and joined Arthur Anderson, a major public accounting firm.
Then there was their son Doug. He was described as being a very handsome young man, having blonde hair and blue eyes. He was a “model” type. At least that appeared to be what he believed. But, Doug was also an enigma, and had long-since proven himself to be the “black sheep” of the family.
How could an apple fall so far from the family tree? Everyone else in the family was known for their positive attributes -- engaging characteristics they exhibited on a daily basis. Yet, if anything, Doug was a polar opposite. Beyond maintaining his very fashionable appearance and having a good time, he did not appear to be that driven – in any positive direction.
Though very few of the Arrow employees knew him, they all knew about him. Few had truly interacted with him, but they all had strong feelings, as indicated by their descriptions of him. “Egotistical” and “very conceited” were words used most frequently to describe their feelings and observations. “Smug” and “arrogant” were two of the other recurring adjectives. The bottom line was an overriding “hatred” for the man. Those who felt they truly knew him described him as “a first-class, arrogant jerk.” He was further described as being the “dim” bulb in a family of very bright people.
This mirror didn’t reflect a perfect family. It may have been the lack of lighting.
Being frustrated by what he considered the sedate, uneventful life of a corporate attorney, in 1965 Jim Pielsticker made the decision to change professions. He and his friend, Hap Solliday, discovered an opportunity to become involved in the trucking industry. It required no coaxing, and with the purchase of six used single-axle trucks, they launched the Arrow Trucking Company. For six years this was the extent of their fleet, and by choice, Jim managed the company and was supported by Solliday’s sales efforts.
Then in ’71, Tom Word III joined Jim. Tom bought out Solliday’s interest and brought with him the thirteen transport trucks he had previously leased to Tulsa’s Squaw Trucking. This addition to the company’s fleet created an immediate opportunity for real growth. The fleet’s size had more than tripled overnight. Tom assumed Solliday’s sales responsibilities and did so successfully until ’81. At that time, the oil industry suffered a significant downturn, as did the company. They struggled for the next three years when Jim purchased Tom’s interest, leaving Jim as the company’s sole owner.
From that point forward Jim began to “live at the office.” Sole owner meant sole manager, and it required his full time and more. It also meant being absent from his growing family.
Therefore, following Word’s departure, it wasn’t long before Jim decided to elevate Gary Jones, his good friend and a valued and trusted employee of more than ten years. Gary was promoted to vice president of operations and later to executive vice president of operations, where he remained until taking early retirement in October 2002.
Throughout the later eighties and early nineties, the company enjoyed exponential growth, and it was not long before Arrow Trucking Company became a recognized leader in the flatbed trucking industry. It was known as one of the most reliable, financially sound trucking companies on the roads of America, Canada and Mexico.
You could say the name of his trucking company also served to guide Jim’s trucking operations – “straight as an arrow” and “always on target.” According to his employees, whether they worked in the yard, the office or behind the wheel, these descriptions applied to Jim and Gary as well. Both were reported to be hard-working men, each having the further necessary ingredients of honesty and integrity. This overlay of attributes contributed to them working much as if they were partners.
Jim was truly a hands-on leader. He possessed an incredible work ethic. He always arrived at his office by 6 a.m. and seldom left before 6 p.m. – sometimes six days a week. Reportedly Gary was right behind him.