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Jason Dornhoffer, United Private Car



United Private Car has been a long-time supporter of the administrative community. From your perspective, why is the relationship between an EA and their ground transportation provider so much more than a simple transaction?


It’s a relationship built on trust and delivering a service that ultimately results in making their job easier, plain & simple.


You manage transportation on a massive scale. What is the biggest challenge in maintaining consistent, high-touch experience for executives when they are traveling across different time zones and continents?


I would say things that are beyond our control. Weather, political strife, road closures, airline re-routing or delaying flights are just a few things that come to mind. Whitin all this we somehow still find a way to deliver a consistent service.


There are plenty of car services out there, but United Private Car is a favorite for high-level EAs. What is the one thing you do behind the scenes to ensure an executive has "zero friction" from the curb to the boardroom?


Exactly that, it’s what occurs behind the scenes. Our clients would not know but there are a team of people ensuring reservations are entered and checked for accuracy, dispatchers monitoring that chauffeurs are on point for their pickup and once the trip is complete the EA is receiving a receipt in a timely manner for reconciliation.


EAs often have to manage last-minute changes—delayed flights, shifted meetings, or sudden destination swaps. How does your team’s infrastructure allow you to pivot in real-time without the EA feeling the stress?


Our team expects these things to happen. Experience is what matters in these scenarios and our team will apply that experience to solve the EAs problems at great lengths.


You’ve been a visible part of the Elevating Administrative Professionals (EAP) community. What have you learned from listening to admins over the years that has changed the way United Private Car operates?


Quite frankly, having empathy. I have spoken to many EAs over the years about their responsibilities and what they deal with every day. We can’t control canceled flights, overbooked hotels or their executives calling them at 3:00 a.m. in the morning for whatever reason. We can however make their job easier and less stressful when it concerns ground transportation.


In today’s corporate world, safety and "Duty of Care" are top priorities for any organization. How does United Private Car approach vetting and security to give both the EA and the traveler total peace of mind?


Well, that’s exactly what the client is paying for. Knowing that we interview versus just filing out an application online, background check, drug test, train and then train continuously after they are hired. Operating a legitimate ground transportation operation comes with a lot of overhead and responsibility but it must be done the correct way otherwise we’re just impostors and there’s plenty of those out there.


We see a lot of "app-based" ride-sharing services, but they often fail in high-stakes executive environments. Where do you see the balance between technology and the essential "human element" of professional chauffeur?


Great question. I could spend this entire interview on the subject, but I will spare you! We use similar technology. However, we still have humans working here and its human interaction that gives us a competitive advantage. Some of our EAs choose to book online / app, or e-mail and some prefer to call. Some do all three just depends on how their day is going. You have choices using our service but with the apps you do not. At United Private Car we are a team, not an algorithm.


If you could give an EA one tip to make their ground travel plan 100% foolproof, what would it be?


Provide details, brevity is the seed which can grow into a service incident. What I mean by this is, don’t make assumptions when requesting a service we can read your mind! We often see requests that just need more detail so we can ensure a seamless service. You need a pickup at your executive’s home. Ok, we’ve been there 50 times but maybe he just moved, and you forgot to update his profile or inform us then the chauffeur shows up at the old address. My point is, provide us the address regardless. This is just one example of many, so the best advice is to cover your bases every single time. Keep it simple and leave nothing to chance.


As we move through 2026, are there any new features, regions, or services United Private Car is expanding into that our community should be excited about?


Well, we are upgrading our livery software this July. This may not sound exhilarating but for us it is. Our clients will experience more ease of use online and our app in addition to a lot of new features that our team will be able to take advantage of.


You’ve been in this industry for a long time. What is the most rewarding part of working specifically with the administrative community?


20 years as of January 3rd, 2026! Even after 20 years I am still humbled when an EA sends me an e-mail letting me know that we saved them or just make their job easier. Second, receiving referrals from our EAs still gives me a buzz. It tells me that our team is doing something right and we’re proud of that. At the end of the day if our EAs look good that’s all that matters.


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