Candor Expedite’s NICOLE GLENN Brings Honesty to the Transportation Space

Nicole Glenn is known for walking the talk—what you see is what you get. She gives her heart and soul to everything she does and does so with purpose and candor.

But when she thinks back to the past 23 years of her logistics career, it’s the lack of candor and honesty in transportation that prompted her to develop Candor Expedite Inc., an expedited delivery and logistics service provider.

“The name Candor was selected based on my experiences of being in logistics for 18 years. I had witnessed time and time again the dishonesty that ripples throughout our industry. This dishonesty comes in all forms and creates a domino effect within the supply chain for a client; it stops production lines from running and causes manufacturers to lose clients. It has an unidentifiable amount of time spent for a company tied to it; whether it’s chasing answers or making contingency plans, it’s a waste,” Glenn says.

“I knew we could develop a company that cut through this issue and bring clarity, honesty, transparency and deserved service to the manufacturing world, allowing our clients to become the hero of their stories when partnering with us,” she adds.

Since then, under Glenn’s leadership, Candor Expedite has seen a 158% increase in revenue from $4 million to $11.1 million in 2021 and into 2022. She’s doubled Candor’s staff with a focus on hiring and empowering females in logistics. She was awarded by the Women’s Best Enterprise

Network Council for giving female logistics leaders the opportunity to connect with supplier diversity programs across the United States. She also developed the Ladies Leadership Coalition podcast, which spotlights women in supply chain and logistics making a difference in the industry and their respective communities.

What’s more, Candor Expedite has helped many companies reduce their freight budgets by re-evaluating how they are moving freight, some saving 30-40%.

“When entering transportation, I never envisioned it would become my entire career until I quickly realized that I would love the chaos to help the world move. I would tell people that I worked in logistics, and they would look at me strangely; trucking was not a place for a young woman in their minds. Yet, I pressed on with my love of solution-generating and developing a profound learning on ‘making things happen’ for my clients and partners,” says Glenn.

It's these reasons and more that warrant

Glenn, founder and CEO of Candor Expedite, the overall winner of Supply & Demand Chain Executive’s 2023 Pros to Know award.

What differentiates Glenn from the 400plus nominations is her ability to build the smartest and most efficient freight business while advocating for supply chain education and mentoring other women in a male-dominated industry.

For the past 6 years, “we have since evolved our company due to the candidness that has come back from our clients on what matters most to them. This has led to the growth of our truckload division, our white glove services, our air freight services and our first and final-mile division,” Glenn says. “We grew a company focusing on candidness, which led to growth for all parties involved, including our employees, vendors and clients.”

Glenn entered the transportation space at just 18 years old, after being recruited by a small transportation brokerage. There, she learned the inner workings of handling a small business and working with manufacturers, carriers and drivers, all while attending community college courses at night.

Then, in 2008, Glenn accepted a position in transportation sales, where she was eager to learn more from others and experience all there is to the transportation segment.

In 2011, she took on her first executive role as president of a transportation brokerage company, where she planned to prevail as a leader, but instead was very uncomfortable in the space.

“I would be frustrated with where individuals desired change from my experiences with them in the past. Then it happened; I fell in love with the development of people. I decided then that I was never going back to a sole contributor role as this space became the most fulfilling role I could ever want. During this time, not only did the people also grow in their positions, the company flourished,” Glenn says.

That’s when Candor Expedite was born. Glenn and her team continue to evolve Candor Expedite to be more things to all customers. For instance, it helps reduce empty truck miles with distribution points at 80 partner warehouses across the country. Candor Expedite also maximizes its customers’ equipment usage, eliminates claims and brings in centralized communication from the start of purchasing materials through delivery.

What also really separates Glenn from other award winners is her candidness with regards to her journey and her mission to diversify the supply chain.

“Being a female in transportation has taught me to be audacious to seek challenges and turn them into opportunities. But also, it's humbling to me that a mid-size company can be acknowledged for striving for excellence,” Glenn says. “Receiving this award is very humbling as it makes me reflect upon the many positive things in my career, and hopefully, the impact I have made on others.”

By Marina Mayer, Editor-in-Chief