We are joined this week by Kendra Tucker, CEO of Truckstop. Our conversation starts with Kendra's pre-freight career, where she earned an International Studies degree at University of Chicago before spending the bulk of her professional time helping build CEB into an organic $500 million organization. She began in the Product org but found an adeptness at working with and understanding the needs of CEB's customers, which eventually led her to the Sales org.  She rose the ranks over her twelve years with CEB and learned invaluable lessons that she still applies today at Truckstop.

One point that was abundantly clear in our conversation was the importance of having empathy for, and understanding, the customer. Truckstop's customer base includes truck drivers and freight brokers. As Kendra came into her role at Truckstop, one of the first things she did was a ride-along with an owner operator, Wayne, and longtime Truckstop customer. This experience opened her eyes to the day-to-day life of our nation's truck drivers, and Kendra felt a relatability to many drivers with a similar immigrant backstory to her own. One truth for Kendra from this experience was the validity of the American dream, something Truckstop is helping it's customers pursue through it's technology platform to improve the life and productivity of America's truck drivers.

As the conversation progresses, we talk about the evolution and maturation of Truckstop over the years. We talk about business strategy, and how Truckstop is focused on trust as a pillar to drive growth across the entire life cycle of a load. Through acquisitions, Truckstop has moved into factoring, carrier identity through RMIS, and productivity through FreightFriend. Truckstop wants to be the place that truckers can come to make their business better, end to end. 

We close our journey with an exploration of the critical role trust and transparency play within the freight community. As we delve into Truckstop's strategic endeavors to combat fraud and enhance broker confidence, we also examine the human side of tech business. Kendra Tucker's rise to CEO is a testament to the transformative power of personal growth, empathy in leadership, and the enduring bonds within the transport sector. It's a narrative that celebrates the complexity, community, and the often-overlooked allure of the freight industry—an industry that tends to hook its professionals for a lifetime.

***This episode is brought to you by Rapido

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*** This episode is brought to you by Rapido Solutions Group. I had the pleasure of working with Danny Frisco and Roberto Icaza at Coyote, as well as being a client of theirs more recently at MoLo. Their team does a great job supplying nearshore talent to brokers, carriers, and technology providers to handle any role necessary, be it customer or carrier support, back office, or tech services. Visit gorapido.com to learn more.

A special thanks to our additional sponsors:

• Cargado – Cargado is the first platform that connects logistics companies and trucking companies that move freight into and out of Mexico. Visit cargado.com to learn more.
• Greenscreens.ai – Greenscreens.ai is the AI-powered pricing and market intelligence tool transforming how freight brokers price freight. Visit greenscreens.ai/freightpod today!
• Metafora – Metafora is a technology consulting firm that has delivered value for over a decade to brokers, shippers, carriers, private equity firms, and freight tech companies. Check them out at metafora.net. ***