The Fleet Lead

This week in trucking: Illinois toll increase, condom heist

Here are the headlines from this week in trucking as of July 2 * Illinois Tollway is planning a 30% increase in toll rates * FedEx is selling its 3PL arm for $1.4 billion * Cargo thieves stole $1.7 million in condoms and lubricant * Diesel prices fell 16 cents Have a happy 4th of July!

Cutting-edge fleet technology with Samsara VP Arpan Podduturi

In this episode of The Fleet Lead, Jeremy Wolfe sits down with Arpan Podduturi, VP of product for transportation tech company Samsara, fresh off the Samsara Beyond user conference in Las Vegas. The tech company announced a suite of new cutting-edge technologies for fleet management: from new pedestrian detections to AI dispatch communication, LLMs, and beyond.

Gravitate: How tech is rewriting the fuel supply chain

As downstream fuel margins tighten and market volatility grows, relying on manual spreadsheets and tribal knowledge may no longer be enough for modern fuel haulers. Bulk Transporter's Jason McDaniel sits down with Mike Scharf, CEO of fuel supply chain tech company Gravitate [https://gravitate.energy/], to discuss how specialized software is transforming the sector. Timestamps: 01:55 — Gravitate's market footprint 02:35 — From consulting to software 04:40 — Price volatility pushing fleet innovation 08:14 — How generic freight tools fail fuel 14:44 — Autonomous dispatch 21:50 — How software helps smaller fleets 30:27 — Debunking AI misconceptions

Former SpaceX technical trainer on why some leaders fail to launch, others blast off

It's not rocket science, but people management can be a difficult skill to grasp—especially for those technical employees trained to solve machines rather than personnel. A former pilot instructor and SpaceX training head, Matt Gjertsen has plenty of experience building teams with stellar technical skills. While techs have many attributes that make them ideal managers, they may not realize that management often means stepping away from problems. Gjertsen is promoting his upcoming book based off just that experience [https://builtleaders.com/mvm/]: In this episode, Fleet Maintenance's John Hitch asks Gjertsen how to step back from the wrench, build genuine trust, and help technical management truly blast off. Check out Gjertsen's podcast, Leadership Launchpad, here [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL0NnQkUUf8zvZ-XqU0O47mr6D1F4tG-aj]. Timestamps: * 01:16 – Introduction * 02:39 – Matt Gjertsen’s Background * 06:59 – Shift from technical expert to people leader * 09:54 – The delegation doom loop * 14:21 – Building trust in diverse * 17:33 – First principles leadership Framework * 24:47 – Navigating generational shifts and labor shortages * 30:25 – Root cause analysis for people problems * 42:34 – Technique vs. procedure management

This week in trucking: Dana buys Eaton Mobility, "do not drive" warnings

Here are the headlines from this week in trucking as of June 18: * Dana Inc. is purchasing Eaton Mobility * Nearly 800 Mack and Volvo trucks have “do not drive” warnings * Autonomous truck company Einride goes public * Diesel falls 22 cents, ceasefire hopes rise