Getting to know Abby and Hillary

It’s Women’s History Month, and what better time to get to know Abby Kuhlig and Hillary Steber a little better. Hillary has been part of the AMT team since 2015. When she started here, she was a logistics support coordinator and trained on the customer, carrier, and billing side before moving into the accounting department where she is now.

Abby started in the fall of 2016, and began her tenure on the carrier side. After learning that role, she moved to the customer side, and in June 2018, she started in billing where she is now. “I’ve always thought knowing as much as you can about all the positions in a company is beneficial, and I think having prior experience on the carrier and customer sides helped me in billing,” she said.

I sent them a list of questions, and their answers are both thoughtful and interesting. So here we go!

 

How has your job changed and evolved over the years?

 

Abby:  In the billing department, we have seen quite a few changes in technology. We’ve started using Hubtran and TriumphPay; both are huge time savers and help eliminate human error. Hubtran allows us to process more invoices in a shorter amount of time while TriumphPay allows us to offer many benefits to our carriers.

Hillary: My job has changed for the better over the last 5 years. We have implemented some really cool technology. We’ve been able to go more digital. Back when I first started, we printed off EVERYTHING. Even if something was emailed, we printed it off and scanned it back into our system. Then we had to store all of those documents for years and years. 

Finally, we were able to set up our system so we could just take the digital version and get it into the system. Then over the past 3 years, we implemented HubTran and TriumphPay. HubTran uses AI to read carrier documents and pull information from them. It matches the information back to our system and then we are just verifying everything and approving. It is such a time saver!

TriumphPay is what we use to pay all of our carrier payables. It is a great benefit for carriers. They get access to a portal in which they can see all of their invoices. The carrier can also choose how they want to be paid (Check, ACH, etc.) and when they want to be paid (Quick Pay, Standard Pay).

 

Do you have a favorite funny story/memory/incident that occurred at work?

 

Abby:  I left for lunch one day, and I thought I sent a text message to my husband, but I accidentally sent it in a group message that was for one of our carriers. So the carrier received the message meant for my husband. Thankfully, a coworker told me what I had done, so I could quickly apologize for telling him that I loved him.

Hillary:  There was this lady who always called the bill of lading a “bill of ladle.” I would die laughing every time she said it. I really think she thought that’s what it was called. I never corrected her, mostly because I thoroughly enjoyed hearing her say it. 🙂

 

Tell us a little bit about your family.

 

Abby:  I have a huge family. I am the second oldest of five children, and there are 15 years between the oldest and the youngest. It was definitely fun and interesting growing up with so many siblings.

Hillary:  I love my family. We are pretty close, which I have found over the years, is pretty uncommon now. I am grateful to have a close knit family. My dad’s side of the family goes on vacation together each summer. My grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins; the whole gang goes to northern Minnesota for a couple of weeks. We stay at a resort on a lake, and we all bring our boats and fish pretty much every day. We hang out in the afternoons just enjoying the beautiful outdoors by the beach. We all stay in multiple cabins. The kicker is, there is no running water in the cabins, no wifi, no TV. It’s pretty basic. There is also no cell phone service. I have come to love this aspect. It’s nice to disconnect from the world for a while. It’s a family tradition, and I hope it gets to continue for many more years.

 

Morning person? Evening Person?

 

Abby:  I’m a morning person. I am usually up by 4:00 AM and can talk your leg off. However, I have come to realize that my early morning chipperness should not be shared with Hillary until at least 9:00 AM.

Hillary:  Definitely not a morning person. I do not enjoy waking up early. Mid to late morning–late afternoon is my prime time.

 

Favorites

 

Favorite AMT extracurricular activity?

Abby:  The Christmas party. It’s a fun time, and everyone just lets loose.

Hillary:  I always enjoy the Bike to Work Day. It’s a quick little ride that several employees typically participate in. It’s normally in May, and it’s pretty nice out in the morning before 7AM. It’s fun to do with everyone else.

 

Food

Abby:  Pizza. . . I could eat it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner and not think twice about it.

Hillary:  Probably steak. I don’t have it very often, but I love a good steak.

 

Season

Abby:  FALL–I love everything about it.

Hillary:  I guess I would have to pick summer. I love being able to be outside all the time and be on the lake. I love soaking up the sun.

 

Tea or Coffee

Abby:  Both. I love my coffee black, and I have to have 2 to 3 cups each morning. And iced tea is a household staple for us.

Hillary:  I like both. I like to have some form of caffeine in the morning. Most of the time it is coffee, but maybe once a week, I do hot tea. I also like iced tea. Half cut (half sweet/half unsweet) is probably my favorite.

 

Childhood Memory

Abby:  There are so many good memories, but one particular vacation sticks out the most. It was seriously just like a National Lampoon’s Vacation. We were all so upset at the time, but it has become one of our fondest memories. We get a lot of laughs out of it now.

Hillary:  Probably getting to play with my cousins on vacation up in Minnesota. We would swim and play on the beach. All of us would bring our bikes and ride around camp pretending we were motorcycles. We also put on “concerts” for the whole family. We made tickets for everyone and even had refreshments. It was the best! I miss being a kid.

 

Dish to take to a potluck.

Abby:  I take my husband’s grandma’s cheeseball. It was something she always made that everyone in the family looked forward to each time we got together. It’s a tradition that we wanted to carry on for our family.

Hillary:  I love snacky foods that I can munch on before the actual meal. I bring a dip of some sort most of the time. One of my favorites that’s been a big hit with my family is spinach dip. It’s really not a secret recipe. It’s on the back of the Knorr Vegetable Mix Packet.  You can find it here.

 

Dogs or Cats

Abby:  I like both, just would rather not have them in my house. We currently have two cats, and they are threatened on the daily to be exiled to the barn.

Hillary:  Dogs over cats. I do not currently have any pets.

 

What’s the best book you’ve read in the past 12 months?

 

Abby:  The Secret by Rhonda Byrne. I have actually read it a couple of times before, and I just started reading it again. It is about positive thinking and making positive changes in your life. I like to read it every so often just to keep myself in check.

Hillary:  Calm the F*ck Down by Sarah Knight. I am not a reader; however, I have been forcing myself to read more. I ordered this book and I finished it in a couple of weeks. This is record timing for me. I was really proud of myself for finishing a book so quickly. It helps you put things into perspective. Makes you really think about the likelihood of things happening. Helps you focus on the things you can control and to accept the things you can’t control.

 

Summer’s on the horizon. What’s your favorite summer activity?

 

Abby:  Swimming is definitely my family’s favorite thing about summer. We are also so excited when our favorite ice cream shop opens up. We hit it up every Sunday evening.

Hillary:  Hmmmmm. I love summer. Hard to pick a favorite thing. I love to go boating out on the lake. And I always look forward to going to Minnesota every summer.

 

The pandemic has really slowed things down and isolated people. What’s something you’re really looking forward to as people get vaccinated and things open up?

 

Abby:  I’m definitely looking forward to the county fair and the fall festivals around our area.

Hillary:  Things getting back to “normal.” I can’t wait to gather in large groups and go to things like concerts.

 

If you could give your 12-year-old self some advice, what would you say?

 

Abby:  Don’t be afraid to be yourself.

Hillary:  I would have been in 6th and 7th grade at the time. I would probably say, “Stop straightening your hair and embrace your wavy/curly natural hair. Be yourself. Don’t compare yourself to others. You are fiercely and wonderfully made.”