In the rough-and-tumble man’s world of over-the-road trucking, J.B. Hunt Transport Services has always stood out for strong women in key positions, starting with co-founder Johnelle Hunt. To that distinguished list add Shelley Simpson, chief commercial officer and president of highway services.
Simpson, who took over the role in 2017, oversees commercialization of J.B Hunt 360, the company’s next-generation supply chain solution, part of $500 million in technology investment to better match carriers with shippers.
These solutions include Carrier 360 which gives carriers of all sizes better access to available freight via a mobile app that provides thousands of loads daily for carriers to find and make offers. She also oversaw the launch of J.B. Hunt 360box, a service that gives shippers access to a pool of J.B. Hunt trailers they can reserve for drop-and-hook purposes. Carriers can then make offers on transporting the drop-and-hook freight using the Carrier 360 by J.B. Hunt app.
Simpson has steadily risen through the ranks of the trucking giant since joining the firm out of the University of Arkansas in 1994. In 2007 she was named president of Integrated Capacity Solutions, a business unit where she expanded the total number of available services and increased annual revenue from $92 million to more than $850 million. She was promoted to chief marketing officer in 2011 and to president of the company’s truckload segment in 2014.
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