Gene Scoggins, president of NationaLease, is retiring after a 37-year career in transportation.

Scoggins began his career after serving in the military in the Vietnam War. Upon returning home, he entered college to become a school teacher. As a part-time job during college, he took a job washing and fueling trucks at Interstate NationaLease in Albany, Ga.

By the time Scoggins left Interstate NationaLease, he was vice president of sales.

"From there, I went to work in St. Louis with Gelco Leasing, where I got great experience in their national accounts program," he says. He later spent 10 years with PacLease before finally landing at NationaLease. Over the years, he held positions that included rental manager, account manager, district manager, national account executive, vice president, and eventually president of NationaLease.

Since beginning his career, he's seen dramatic changes in the trucking industry. "The changes in technology have been amazing," Scroggins says. "I've seen it not only in the way we manufacture and maintain trucks but from the data we're able to gather electronically. We know more about a truck in five minutes now than we would have known in five years just 25 years ago."

Although Scoggins is a longtime veteran of the transportation industry, he's been quick to adopt the newest technology that's come along. "Most of these changes have made our trucks better, our service better, and really, made our profits better," he says. "And frankly, I've embraced the new technology because those in the trucking industry who have not wouldn't last very long."

Scroggins, a resident of Tifton, Ga., isn't worried about being bored as he enters retirement. "I name the next part of my life The Great Adventure," he says. "We'll just have to see where that Great Adventure leads me."