3PL Summit: Nolan Transportation president on takeaways from pandemic

Geoff Kelley says ‘collaborative approach between tech and people is critical’

Nolan Transportation Group President Geoff Kelley chats with FreightWaves. (FreightWaves)

SUPPLY CHAIN SPOTLIGHT TOPIC: What will the ‘new normal’ look like for 3PLs? 

DETAILS: The past 12 to 15 months turned the freight transportation and logistics world upside down as stakeholders grappled with the effects that the COVID-19 pandemic had on the supply chain. How did 3PLs adapt and what lessons will the industry take into the future?  

SPEAKER: Geoff Kelley, president, Nolan Transportation Group

BIO: As president of Nolan Transportation Group (NTG), one of the largest and fastest-growing non-asset truckload freight brokerages and providers of third-party logistics services in North America, Kelley manages all aspects of the business, from setting the strategy to ensuring its execution. He previously served as chief operating officer of Coyote Logistics, a subsidiary of UPS. He also held various leadership positions at UPS, including roles in global freight forwarding, M&A and treasury.

KEY QUOTES FROM KELLEY

“How do we want to enable our internal people to do their jobs better, leveraging the technology so that they’re efficient and quick, and leveraging the data to help them make better decisions? But ultimately, all that speed and intelligence has to better serve our shippers and carriers, taking the technology from the perspective of what does this technology do to make stickiness and efficiency for our shippers?”

“We want to make sure our tech also has a people influence. We want to make sure that … a pricing algorithm, where people are monitoring [the algorithm] through operational processes to make sure our intelligence [is] leveraging that data, is keeping up with how the market is going. And also thinking longer term, whether you’re trying to cover a load for the day or for the next week, that you’re thinking about that intelligently. So, harmonizing the intelligence of the people operating as well as the intelligence of the system but not relying on one versus the other necessarily. I think that collaborative approach between tech and people is critical.”

“We want to build a network, from a carrier perspective, that we can present to our shippers to better match trucks with their freight. And in reverse, we want to make sure we can build a network of freight that we can present to our carriers and better match that freight with their trucks to keep them running full all the time.”

Upcoming FreightWaves Events
Compliance

Brokerage Compliance Symposium

The day before F3. Every compliance issue you face - fraud exposure, carrier liability, FMCSA rules, cargo theft, insurance gaps - navigated by attorneys and operators defining best practices in a changing industry.

October 26, 2026
The Signal at Chattanooga Choo Choo • Chattanooga, TN
Register Now
Awards

F3 Awards Dinner

The night before F3. FreightTech100 companies honored. FreightTech 25 and Shipper of Choice winners revealed live. Cocktail reception into dinner and live music - 300 industry leaders in one purpose-built room.

October 26, 2026
The Signal at Chattanooga Choo Choo • Chattanooga, TN
Register Now
FreightTech

F3: Future of Freight Festival

Industry-defining keynotes, rapid-fire technology demos, and industry leaders networking in experiences across Chattanooga - plus the inaugural F3 Awards Dinner featuring the FreightTech and Shipper of Choice reveals.

October 27, 2026 – October 28, 2026
The Signal at Chattanooga Choo Choo • Chattanooga, TN
Register Now
Compliance Brokerage Compliance Symposium Oct 26 • The Signal at Chattanooga Choo Choo • Chattanooga, TN

The day before F3. Every compliance issue you face - fraud exposure, carrier liability, FMCSA rules, cargo theft, insurance gaps - navigated by attorneys and operators defining best practices in a changing industry.

The Signal at Chattanooga Choo Choo • Chattanooga, TN Register Now
Awards F3 Awards Dinner Oct 26 • The Signal at Chattanooga Choo Choo • Chattanooga, TN

The night before F3. FreightTech100 companies honored. FreightTech 25 and Shipper of Choice winners revealed live. Cocktail reception into dinner and live music - 300 industry leaders in one purpose-built room.

The Signal at Chattanooga Choo Choo • Chattanooga, TN Register Now
FreightTech F3: Future of Freight Festival Oct 27 – Oct 28 • The Signal at Chattanooga Choo Choo • Chattanooga, TN

Industry-defining keynotes, rapid-fire technology demos, and industry leaders networking in experiences across Chattanooga - plus the inaugural F3 Awards Dinner featuring the FreightTech and Shipper of Choice reveals.

The Signal at Chattanooga Choo Choo • Chattanooga, TN Register Now

Joanna Marsh

Joanna is a Washington, DC-based writer covering the freight railroad industry. She has worked for Argus Media as a contributing reporter for Argus Rail Business and as a market reporter for Argus Coal Daily.