FreightCaviar Community Asks Kary Jablonski Anything

On a recent flight back to Chicago from the Manifest Conference in Vegas, FreightCaviar CEO Paul-Bernard Jaroslawski found himself seated next to Kary Jablonski, the CEO of Trucker Tools.

FreightCaviar turned to the social media community to host an impromptu "Ask Kary Anything" (AKA) session, inviting followers to pose their burning questions about the freight industry, Trucker Tools, and more.

Who is Kary Jablonski and Trucker Tools?

Kary Jablonski steers the helm at Trucker Tools, a leading brokerage-focused visibility and carrier sourcing tool. Known for its innovative platform, Trucker Tools offers real-time visibility, load tracking, and digital freight matching.

So, let's get to the questions.

The "Important" Stuff: Enough Legroom?

Co-Founder of Alvys, Leo Gorodinski (@eulerfx) wondered about the legroom on the flight.
Kary: "It’s generous and Paul’s the real champ for taking the middle seat."

Industry Outlook and Recovery

Daniel Lowry (@lowrydan11) asked, "What is the outlook for freight over the next 6 months?"

Kary: "Ask me again in 6 months. Just kidding. We've seen some great data this week that the spot market is tightening slightly. The large brokers that I talk to expect the second half of the year to be better."

Daniel Pickett (@Pick3tt) inquired, "Anyone still in the asset business has survived a long winter. What is the Trucker Tools outlook for a recovery in rates/volumes, and how can small fleets best position themselves for a recovery?"

Kary: "As a small fleet, you need to understand your cash flow. Get yourself ready for a recovery by building relationships with brokerages."

Survival and Differentiation

¯\(ツ)/¯ (@the_RealSwag_20) questioned, "How do you feel about the survival of Trucker Tools, P44, and Fourkites? Do you think all three still make it out of this environment, or is consolidation on the horizon?"

Kary: "We're in fantastic shape and continuing to grow fast. What sets us apart is that we are 100% broker visibility focused and make it easier to work with shippers and carriers."

President of A.N. Webber Logistics Zach Webber (@WebberFR8) asked what sets Trucker Tools apart from other DFM platforms.
Kary: "Simple. It's our carrier network. We have over 350k carriers who use our app regularly so we can match freight between brokers and carriers super effectively."

Leveraging Community and Networking

Tim Higham, CEO of AscendTMS, wondered about the number of conferences attended annually and the perfect number to attend.
Kary: "I attend 12 conferences a year. For me, the perfect number is more because I meet awesome prospects at every conference. You should come to the next one I'm at, Tim Higham (TIA)😉."

Takeaways from Manifest Conference
Jonathan Tjoandi sought insight on the biggest takeaways from the Manifest conference.
Kary: "Biggest takeaway is how many exciting new businesses that are solving very specific problems and if we could figure out how to integrate among them we could move so much faster. Best swag: BWS Logistics socks. Thanks, Rob Bussey!"

Check out the full threads on LinkedIn and Twitter to get more insights from Kary at 30,000 feet.

You can also read up on the AMA with Matt Silver on the way to Manifest below.