Freight Tech Conversation with Sean Santiago

In this episode, hosts Adam Perlmutter and Teresa Ronquillo chat with a very special guest, Sean Santiago, SVP of Technology Platforms at TI/NTG. Sean shares about his journey to freight tech, the highlights and challenges along the way, and the exciting advancements he’s seeing in the space.

Background

Sean brings nearly 20 years of experience in the industry, with a diverse background encompassing various roles and responsibilities, primarily in the 3PL space. He began his career at a small mom and pop 3PL in Florida, specializing in refrigerated freight and backhaul optimization, which provided him with invaluable niche market experience. From there, he transitioned to a larger brokerage where he spent 11 years in a variety of positions from carrier sales to operations. It was during this time that Sean’s career took a techie turn, as he became more involved in automation and discovering ways to enhance productivity without increasing workload.

As Sean’s interest in technology continued to grow, he gradually shifted towards the IT side of the industry, ultimately landing a role with UPS Freight’s LTL department. There, he worked on developing a digital supply chain before joining TI/NTG in 2020, where he currently works.

What First Interested Sean about the Tech Side of T&L

When asked about what sparked his interest in the tech side of the industry, Sean shared that for years, colleagues had been suggesting he explore the field. Despite his lack of technical background and training, he was often the person who caught mistakes before a release went to production. Eventually, he took the advice of others and decided to try his hand at tech. It turned out to be the best career decision he ever made.

When asked about some of the most notable advancements Sean has seen in freight tech over the course of his career, Sean commented,

“I think some of the biggest advancements of the last couple of years have been advanced analytics, the ability for NLP, which is natural language processing, machine learning, and artificial intelligence. All that has brought pricing, route optimization, and freight matching to a completely new level. That is really, really exciting and I think it still has a ton of improvement to go.”- Sean Santiago

Sean Comments on TI/NTGs Biggest Accomplishments Since 2020

• Digital transformation: TI/NTG started a digital transformation in 2020 and they’re wrapping the initial part of that program up this year.

• Beon Shipper Platform: This is focused on small to medium size shippers. It can handle everything from spot quoting and shipment generation and tendering loads, not only to NTG but other carriers or providers.

• Beon Carrier platform: This application is geared toward dispatchers and managing their interactions with the brokerage.

Build vs Buy: It’s The Hybrid Approach for TI/NTG

At TI/NTG, they have a strong belief in the proprietary approach, which involves acquiring or building unique solutions that set the company apart from its competitors. For industry standards or other basic requirements that do not provide significant differentiation, the company follows a “buy” approach to accelerate the process. Integrating purchased solutions is often simpler and quicker than creating something from scratch. By adopting this hybrid strategy, TI/NTG can focus on creating truly innovative solutions that drive their business forward.

TLDR: Buy what you can. Build what will differentiate you.

Learn more about TI/NTG at https://tiholdco.com/ and https://ntgfreight.com/

Sean Santiago can be found on LinkedIn here.

How Sean Stays Connected to the Needs of the Business Sean’s Comments on Notable Advancements in Freight TechSean Notes Three Things He is Bullish About for 2023
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