Ep. 15 - OFF THE RAILS: New Jobs, Rail Culture & Office Chaos with Jake and Joe

The Axiom crew is growing, and this week on The Switch Point, it’s time to introduce some new blood.In this Off the Rails episode, Harlee takes over the host seat alongside Axiom’s two newest team members: Jake, Inside Sales Representative, and Joe Butler, Enrollment & Outreach Coordinator. The two joined Axiom on the same day but came from completely different professional backgrounds—Jake from freight brokerage and sales, and Joe from education, museums, and public programming.They break down what brought them to Axiom, their first impressions of the team, and what it’s actually like trying to learn the railroad industry from scratch. From navigating FRA regulations and figuring out bizarre railroad terminology to discovering just how passionate lifelong railroaders are about the industry, Jake and Joe share what they’ve learned during their first few months on the job.Joe also dives into Axiom’s growing training and enrollment efforts and why introducing railroad careers—especially track inspection—to the next generation of skilled tradespeople could help build the industry's future workforce.But this is Off the Rails, so things don’t stay serious for long.In this episode, you'll hear:How Jake and Joe found their way to AxiomTheir first impressions of the Axiom office and teamWho intimidated them when they first startedThe biggest culture shocks of entering the railroad industryLearning FRA regulations and confusing railroad terminologyWhy railroaders will immediately know when you don’t know what you’re talking aboutJake’s experiences making his first sales calls in the industryJoe’s mission to introduce more people to railroad career opportunitiesThe personalities, inside jokes, and chaos of working at AxiomWho the crew thinks is funniest in the officeWhich coworkers they’d want as teammates on a game showPlenty of stories, tangents, and questionable conversations along the wayBetween railroad history, career advice, awkward sales calls, office stories, and plenty of friendly shots at their coworkers, this episode gives you a chance to meet the newest members of Axiom beyond their job titles.Because at Axiom, learning the railroad industry is one thing.Surviving the office is another.