Kristy Knichel is the president, CEO and majority owner of Knichel Logistics, a family-founded transportation and logistics company.

In this episode, Kristy shares how she developed her leadership skills at a young age, entered the logistics industry and helped grow the company alongside her father and siblings. She discusses the opportunities and difficulties that come with working in a family business, taking over leadership from a parent and earning respect in a traditionally male-dominated industry.

Kristy also opens up about scaling the company, building systems, developing leaders and learning from expensive hiring and management decisions. We explore the importance of company culture, financial discipline, employee accountability and creating a business that does not depend entirely on its owner.

The conversation also covers changes within freight and transportation, the future of intermodal shipping, artificial intelligence in logistics and the responsibility Kristy feels to continue her father’s legacy.

This episode offers an honest look at the sacrifices, setbacks and difficult decisions behind building a successful company that is designed to last.