Dirk Draayer is a Principal and Founder at Code Red Logistics LLC. He possess expertise in customer service, strategic planning, event planning, emergency lodging management, workforce lodging management and 18 more skills. Colleagues describe him as "I had the pleasure of working with Dirk Draayer on a number of projects and always appreciated his skill, knowledge, perseverance and attitude. Dirk is a true professional that knows how to deliver results and I look forward to future opportunities to partner with Dirk.
While with Amtrak, I was tasked with changing vendors for our crew lodging services. The previous vendor was a company that Amtrak had a relationship with for approximately 20 years. After completing a brief procurement process, we selected the company that included Dirk Draayer as President. Dirk brought to us an expert team that he led through a seamless transition. This was not an easy transition as our long time vendor did not easily cooperate. However, he understood, the challenges we faced and helped to develop solutions that were successfully implemented and done so with no interruption to service or inconvenience to our crews.
In working with Dirk Draayer it became evident that he knows the business. Dirk assisted other railroads with their unique lodging and transportation arrangements. In doing so, Dirk brought not just an understanding of the hotel business, but an appreciation for our challenges as a railroad. In addition, through his knowledge and experience he successfully predicted issues we would face. More importantly he did not just bring problems but solutions that worked. As a result, Amtrak benefited from his contacts and experience in both fields.
Dirk’s solution oriented mindset was greatly appreciated. Dirk is continually thinking creatively or pragmatically to address issues. His perseverance to find a solution until a viable and successful solution is obtained is likely key to much of his success. This was evident when we implemented an alternative approach to our lodging needs in Chicago. There were many issues and only halfhearted commitment to the proposal. However, Dirk kept providing options and solutions until local management could see how the plan would succeed. This process was well over a year of conversations, planning and reengaging personnel. The plan was finally executed and remains one of the biggest success to date.
The personal quality of Dirk I appreciated the most was his empathy for our needs and positive attitude in approaching our challenges. Frequently contractors will jump to wrong conclusions and develop only partial solutions to our problems because they never truly learned our concerns. However, Dirk first tried to understand and view the problem from our perspective before developing options to address the problems. This helped people develop a camaraderie amongst the participants to not just find, but implement successful solutions. This approached was key to convincing us that the transition was possible.
I highly recommend partnering with Dirk Draayer and do look forward to future opportunities to work together again.
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Listed skills include Customer Service, Strategic Planning, Event Planning, Emergency Lodging Management, and 19 others.