This week’s guests are my two DAT iQ colleagues: Ken Adamo, Chief of Analytics, and Dean Croke, Principal Analyst. This is our annual end of the year podcast where we revisit our predictions from last year, discuss the major issues of the current year, and take our best guesses as to what will happen next year.  We did not do that well in our annual predictions for 2025 - we all expected dry van spot rates to increase by anywhere from 3 to 12% when in fact they dropped by more than 2%.  Tariff uncertainty and weak demand were noted as the primary culprits.  Ken aptly described 2025 as "a long protracted sigh." Dean expressed the surprising influence of social media on regulatory policy, as a questionable TikTok video led to an executive order and strengthened FMCSA policy regarding English language proficiency and CDL standards.   This led to predictions that 2026 will bring a gradual recovery mainly due to the exodus of capacity rather than any increase in demand.  The conversation concludes with predictions for 2026 dry van spot rates, with forecasts ranging from an increase of 3% to 10% by the end of the year.  Let’s see how we do!

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In this episode, we’re joined by Corey Klujsza, VP of Pricing and Procurement Strategy at RXO. With experience spanning Coyote Logistics, UPS, and now RXO, Corey brings deep insight into how the truckload market works. He walks us through RXO’s quarterly market analysis framework—the RXO Curve—which tracks year-over-year truckload rate changes to understand market cycles and risk.

We dig into the logistics business cycle from equilibrium to peak and through the downturn, examine current market conditions, and discuss factors like tariff uncertainty, the flat market since Q2 2023, and the ongoing gap between spot and contract rates. Corey also weighs in on whether technology and faster information flow are changing the fundamentals of supply and demand or simply speeding up how the market reacts.

If you work in freight procurement, carrier relations, or market analysis, this episode offers valuable perspective on today’s truckload market.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In this episode, we welcome Tim Gagnon (VP of Analytics and Data Science) and Mark Albrecht (VP of AI and Enterprise Strategy) from C.H. Robinson to discuss how AI is transforming the freight industry. We explore the evolution of AI—from traditional methods like machine learning and robotic process automation, to generative AI, and now Agentic AI, which can plan, use tools, learn from past mistakes, and act like a true assistant.

C.H. Robinson’s unique approach, “Lean AI,” aligns operational discipline with AI priorities, focusing on high-leverage initiatives while keeping customers and carriers at the center. They also limit AI agency in critical areas like order building to maintain reliability and low failure rates.

This episode is a deep dive into how AI is fundamentally rewiring logistics and a must-listen for anyone interested in the state-of-the-practice AI in freight transportation.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This week’s guest is John Motley, the founder and CEO of LogNet.  LogNet was founded over 30 years ago and in our conversation we discussed the evolution of supply chain technology over that time.  John recounts LogNet's origins as an early pioneer, being the first client-server solution to utilize SQL databases on PCs, focusing specifically on visibility across order, transportation, and warehouse management. Today, LogNet’s core technology centers on a "large trade model" which is similar to a large language model but based on graph theory with attributes like weight, cube, and carrier data.  We also discuss how AI is replacing traditional User Interfaces by fostering conversational, agentic solutions and moving past aesthetically pleasing but often useless features like maps. This episode is essential for understanding how importers and retailers can leverage advanced technology to mitigate volatility from tariffs, geopolitical challenges, and other disruptions and keep the majority of their freight on what John refers to as the Happy Path.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This week’s guest is Patrick Pretorius, Senior Director of Enterprise Shipper sales at DAT. Patrick provides unique insight, drawing on his extensive international experience that began in Cape Town, South Africa, and included working across multiple continents with steamship lines, global 3PLs, and other transportation providers. In our conversation Patrick outlines the distinctions between managing ocean and truck shipping, particularly regarding the challenges of treating freight as a commodity. He addresses how shippers are transforming procurement by focusing on continuity of supply, rationalizing carrier bases, making strategic shifts in their allotment of asset-based carriers and brokers, and leveraging dynamic pricing technology (such as the "buy now" or "best offer" approach) to execute shipments. 

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This week’s guest is Dr. Angi Acocella, a Research Scientist here at MIT’s Center for Transportation & Logistics and a key member of the MIT FreightLab.   Angi was last on the Freightvine in the fall of 2021 - 4 years ago - when she was a doctoral student.   A lot has changed over that time and after a post-doc in the Netherlands, Angi is back at MIT doing great research exploring shipper-broker-carrier relationships within the full truckload industry.  For this conversation, I have asked Angi to describe some of her more recent work to include the idea of Ghost Lanes, Network segmentation and transportation portfolio management, Predicting truckload market cycles, and, finally, the idea of whether shippers and carriers are Elephants or Goldfish.  That is, do they remember how they were treated in one part of the business cycle after the market turns - or not.  All of Angi’s work is both theoretically rigorous and immediately applicable to actual transportation procurement and management.  

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This week’s guest is Ari Ashe, Senior editor of the Journal of Commerce which is part of S&P Global.  Ari explains the ins and outs of the proposed, and potentially transformational, merger between the Union Pacific (UP) and the Norfolk Southern (NS) railroads.  This deal would create the first transcontinental railroad across the United States. Our conversation delves into what is driving the merger, what's at stake, and the potential benefits for carload customers by addressing messy interchanges in key hubs like Chicago and Memphis. Ari also discusses the timeline for approval, the motivations behind UP's pursuit of this historic deal, and the “Christmas Wish Lists” of concessions that opposing parties, such as other railroads, shippers, and unions, will be assembling.  And as required in all podcasts, we talk a little bit about AI - using it as an example of where technology adoption can be used to improve effectiveness vs. efficiency.  

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This week’s guest is Dr. Alex Leslie, Senior Research Associate at the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI), a not-for-profit research arm for the trucking industry. 

Alex is the lead author on ATRI’s latest research publication “Analysis of the Operational Costs of Trucking: 2025 Update”.  Using detailed polling and data analysis, Alex is able to reveal not only the current average per mile costs, but also changes in the individual cost components, the impact of carrier size on costs and underlying trends in trucking activities.  In our conversation, we discuss the report in detail and try to understand changes year over year - as well as what to expect going forward.   In the conversation, we discuss the deceleration of overall operational costs due to falling fuel prices, contrasted with rising non-fuel costs like truck and trailer payments, which are nearing the cost of fuel. The conversation also addresses driver wages and benefits, the shrinking of fleet sizes by carriers in response to a prolonged freight recession, and the challenges of forecasting market shifts given current economic and geopolitical uncertainties.

Following my conversation with Alex, I will provide the truckload market update.  So let’s get started . . .

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This week’s guest is Vishal Jadhav, Product Director at Blue Yonder. Everyone listening to this podcast knows of Blue Yonder. It is a company with a long history, from I2 to JDA, that has consistently been on the cutting edge of supply chain management software. Vishal has spent almost 20 years at Blue Yonder. His recent work and writings have delved into the evolution of Large Language Models (LLMs) and how they are being incorporated into supply chain solutions. Our conversation explores the differences between traditional Operations Research (OR) techniques and modern AI. Vishal highlights how these technologies can enhance optimization and decision-making by mimicking human reasoning and learning from experience. We also address the challenges of explainability in AI and the emerging concept of agentic AI, which suggests a future of more proactive and autonomous systems within the supply chain.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This week’s guest is Andres Mendoza Pena, Partner at Kearney.  Andres is here to discuss Kearney and CSCMP's annual State of Logistics report, aptly titled "Navigating Through the Fog." This title reflects the high uncertainty in the macro context impacting supply chain executives, like driving through dense fog.  In our conversation, we discuss the "fragile optimism" in the economy and the "certainty of uncertainty" that supply chain executives need to embrace.  Andres also talks about the shifting dynamics in different transportation markets to include the reduction in size of the FTL market, the expansion of dedicated/private, and the LTL segment’s strong pricing discipline and high barriers to entry, leading to stable rates.  Finally, we talk about the future growth and adoption of autonomous trucking in the middle mile. 

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This week’s guest is Chadd Olesen, CEO of AVRL.  Founded in 2017 as Advanced Voice Research Labs, AVRL brought voice technology to business applications such as predictive maintenance.   They shifted however to dynamic pricing models after meeting with pricing analysts at some larger carriers and brokers.  Today, AVRL automates over 25 million spot transactions monthly and provides pricing engines for two thirds of the top 100 3PLs.  In our conversation, Chadd explains AVRL's approach to dynamic pricing, focusing on understanding client strategy (high volume/low margin or vice-versa) and utilizing custom market definitions rather than solely lane-based or standard zip code data. Olesen emphasizes the importance of analytics and data scientists in successful dynamic pricing, advocating for a human-in-the-loop approach where brokers and analysts collaborate. He also touches on the challenges of change management and the future of AVRL as a strategic partner for increasing yield and identifying market opportunities.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.