In the Hot Seat | The Business of Transportation

The transportation and logistics industry is more cyclical than any other industry on the planet. The need for more drivers isn’t. In this episode of The Hot Seat, Spencer Tenney interviews Bryon Wiebold of Tenstreet. They discuss the best practices of driver management, the issues with hiring drivers right now, myths about what works and what doesn’t in recruiting, and what makes certain companie...

At the end of 2021, Wilson Logistics announced the sale of its Western Division to Ashley Pacific Northwest, LLC, an affiliate of Ashley Distribution Services, Ltd. Darrel Wilson joins Spencer Tenney on this episode of The Hot Seat podcast to discuss the deal, why he decided this was the right time, and advice he has for anyone considering M&A in the future.   __  Looking to acquire...

Can humans and data work together to make better decisions? Matt Foster thinks so. Matt is the CEO of Freight Science. They specialize in taking the human experience inside of your organization and combining it with advanced analytics to help your organization make better decisions. In this episode of The Hot Seat, Spencer and Matt discuss what Freight Science is and how it can help other transpor...

Did you know that 85% of truck drivers are overweight? In fact, they are 2x more likely to be obese than the average population. The backbone of our industry is the driver, and we must find a way to start putting their health first.    Dr. Mark Manera, Founder and CEO of Supply Chain Fitness, may have found a significant first step. In this episode of The Hot Seat, Spencer Tenney intervi...

California and the transportation industry have a long and complicated history. AB5 is making it even more complicated. In this episode of the Hot Seat, Spencer Tenney is joined by Paul Mello, a partner with the California-based law firm Hanson Bridgett. We cover how we got here, recent court cases and what operators in California should be thinking about going forward.    __  Looki...

We’ve all seen dozens of headlines in recent months about the recession’s potential impact on the global supply chain. Customers are starting to change their behaviors and big retailers are beginning to put a squeeze on their suppliers. Can technology be used to more easily manage an ever-changing supply chain?     In this episode of the Hot Seat, Spencer Tenney is joined by VP at A...

In this episode of the Hot Seat, Spencer Tenney is joined by President and CEO of CrownSource, Todd Koca. Facing record inflation and a possible recession, transportation and logistics leaders are looking to their P&Ls and considering ways to save on costs. CrownSource’s procurement technology could be just the fix they are looking for.    __  Looking to acquire another transpor...

In this episode of the Hot Seat, Spencer Tenney interviews former client, Jeff Gunnin. Jeff was one of the founders of C2 Freight Resources in Houston, AL. He walks us through why he chose to exit his business, what surprised him about this process and what advice he would give someone that was looking to sell their business in the next five years.   Looking to acquire another transportation...

We have all seen the headlines. Recession this… Inflation that… It’s real and the data says that its here. In this episode of The Hot Seat, Spencer Tenney sits down with AVP of Marsh, Brady Albers. They discuss how inflation is affecting the transportation insurance market and what carriers can do to mitigate their risks.    ___  Looking to acquire another transportation business? J...

In this episode of The Hot Seat, Spencer Tenney sits down with SVP of Cottingham & Butler, Chris Vogel. We’ll be speaking at the Cottingham & Butler Transportation Summit this week! Chris and Spencer talk about this amazing event and then they get into all things transportation insurance. Who’s winning right now? What can transportation companies do to mitigate their risks during a recessi...

In this episode of The Hot Seat, Spencer Tenney sits down with co-founder of Standard Freight, Jay Maxwell. Jay and his partner enlisted the services of Tenney Group to sell their brokerage a few years back and now he’s here to discuss the process, what he learned and what he hopes others considering a sale think about before they enter into the process.    ___  Looking to acquire a...

In this episode of The Hot Seat, Spencer Tenney is joined by Ryan Erickson. Ryan is an EVP at McGriff. They specialize in business and personal insurance, employee benefit solutions, risk management services, specialized industry expertise and more.   Insurance is a wide field with many options when it comes to protecting your transportation business.  In this episode...

In this episode of The Hot Seat, Spencer Tenney sits down with Thom Albrecht of Reliance Partners Insurance to discuss whether or not the transportation and logistics industry is heading into a recession.   What are the metrics Thom and other experts are looking at?  Will housing affect the freight market?  What is GSTPI and why does it matter?  Given the data that Thom ha...

There is a common misconception that an ESOP or Employee Stock Ownership Plan, is too complex for trucking companies and that it probably just would cost too much. After listening to this week’s Hot Seat episode with KSM's Andy Manchir, you’ll know that isn’t true.   Andy and Spencer go over what exactly an ESOP is and isn’t, the common misunderstandings around ESOPs and the overall pros...

In this episode of The Hot Seat, Spencer Tenney sits down with the founder of recently acquired American PetroLog, Jeff Colonna. Jeff founded the company in a niche space within the transportation business seven years ago and since then business has boomed!   So, why would Jeff choose to sell now?   We talk about why now was the right time to sell, how American PetroLog was fou...

Adam Lowy's family has been in the moving industry for over 100 years. When Adam got involved he noticed how much food was being thrown away every time a customer changed homes. This sparked an idea and the first version of Move For Hunger was born. 35% of all food in the US goes directly into the landfill. Adam knew that if Move For Hunger could save just a portion of this food that he could make...

A lot of transportation business owners come from a similar background. The owner started with one or two trucks. Over time they picked up more and more business until one day they looked up and couldn't believe what they were running. The business started out simple enough but through various business needs the business has expanded into multiple verticals. But did you ever stop to think about wh...

Does your transportation business have extra storage space that is just collecting dust? Maybe you're a transportation owner that doesn't need a whole new warehouse but does need a few extra racks of storage space.   Well, that is where our guest today comes in. Scott LeFevre is the Managing Director of  Business Development at Chunker. They specialize in connecting those with too m...

In this episode of The Hot Seat w. The Tenney Group, Spencer Tenney sits down with Matthew Wiener, a managing director at Aon. The big topic today is around representations and warranties insurance in transportation mergers and acquisitions. What is it? What are the current trends around reps and warranties insurance? What should someone looking to sell or purchase a transportation company in the...

In this episode of The Hot Seat w. Spencer Tenney, we hear from the founder and CEO of DriverReach, Jeremy Reymer. Jeremy has been dedicated to the trucking industry since 2003 and founded DriverReach in 2015. Spencer and Jeremy discuss the hottest topic in all of trucking business operations - the driver shortage. Do we actually have one? Do drivers (or lack thereof) affect the value of your busi...

Tune in to listen to this year's M&A panel that is 100% focused on the M&A challenges within the transportation industry. The panel covers the competitive landscape in the M&A space, what's driving this activity and best practices for anyone considering an M&A deal in the next 12 months.    Interested in selling your transportation business? Click the link below to see ou...

In this episode of The Hot Seat, Spencer Tenney Interviews the Founder of TextLocate, Ryan Rogers. They discuss what exactly TextLocate is and isn't, how TextLocate came to be and whether or not TextLocate is in competition with or just complimentary to the apps that are dominating the transportation tech market today. Ryan also gets into why he founded the company, what leaders influenced him ove...

In this episode of The Hot Seat, Spencer Tenney sits down with Scott Barron. He is a Senior Client Strategist at BNY Mellon Wealth Management. Scott and Spencer discuss the three things every transportation owner should do before they begin the process of selling their business. Then they discuss the trends we're seeing around wealth planning, how business owners can maintain their lifestyles afte...

Frank Iannelli is the Managing Director of Whitley Penn, a full-service public accounting firm. In this episode of The Hot Seat, Spencer Tenney and Frank discuss the Employee Retention Tax Credit. They break down what the ERC is and isn't. Frank lets us know the results he's seeing for transportation owners that are choosing to file for the ERC. And he runs us through the overall timetable a busin...

2022 will be a record year for acquisitions in trucking and logistics. Unfortunately, many companies won't be able to capitalize on these opportunities because they simply aren't ready.  Join Spencer Tenney,CBI CMAA and Davis Looney for this week's training outlining the 16 reasons trucking businesses don't sell.  We get that you're in the day-to-day weeds of running your business. That...