In “Good Freight Hunting”, Les Akin joins Harris + Sydney to trace a career that spans everything from being on a brokerage floor, to over on the shipper side, consultancy, + startups. They dive into why three-letter city codes were drilled into memory over at Coyote, run through Les’s experience at Pepsi as transportation-as-a-service was just getting off the ground, + then what he calls his real-world MBA at Accenture, where he learned that consultants are really just professional storytellers. After all those experiences, he is convinced that what ails supply chains today isn't a technology problem at all.

From there the conversation turns to the back half of 2026, like what it will look like to lock in multi-year rail contracts against a volatile market + why relationships still outperform every single tool on the market when capacity tightens. Les makes the case for "decision quality" as the metric that is worth chasing, argues that AI without master data management is just an expensive way to make an even bigger mess, + gives his opinion on the freight he would go hunting for (it will probably surprise you!). Harris offers a theory to close: organisations don't innovate because they're visionary. They innovate because someone made it worth their while.

Most companies aren't short on good ideas - they are short on people who still think it's worth mentioning them.

About Telegraph

Telegraph is a leader in delivering digital solutions to railroads, shippers, logistics service providers, terminals, + railcar leasing companies. With an integrated platform that provides price transparency, shipment visibility, + proactive business intelligence, Telegraph empowers customers, and makes shipping by rail easier + more effective. For more details, visit www.telegraph.io and follow us on LinkedIn.

Roughly 140,000 miles of track. Around 600 railroads. Nearly 580 of them are shortlines. So why then does the industry still treat them like their kid brother?

In this episode, Harris + Sydney delve into what actually defines a shortline (hint: it's annual revenue, not track miles), + why the smallest operators are so often the first to trial new technology. They also talk about the proximity advantage shortlines have - it doesn’t take thirty meetings + ten different committees when your shippers are close enough to quickly tell if your “good idea” worked or not.

Perhaps not unexpectedly, they also find a chance to touch on how shortlines are reacting to the merger news. And with over 500 different voices at the table, that’s a lot of opinions to digest - though you might just be surprised to hear where we think they land!

About Telegraph

Telegraph is a leader in delivering digital solutions to railroads, shippers, logistics service providers, terminals, + railcar leasing companies. With an integrated platform that provides price transparency, shipment visibility, + proactive business intelligence, Telegraph empowers customers, and makes shipping by rail easier + more effective. For more details, visit www.telegraph.io and follow us on LinkedIn.

The railcar leasing industry didn't appear out of nowhere - it was born the moment railroads stopped trying to do absolutely everything (they even owned hotels + golf courses!) + started focusing on the one thing they actually do best. In (Rail)Car Talk, Harris + Sydney are back with Erica Ray, SVP of Sales at AITX, for Part 2 of their conversation, this time focusing on the mechanics of railcar leasing + what it actually takes for a new shipper to get their hands on equipment.

Erica doesn't sugarcoat it: for a first-time shipper, breaking into the railcar market is not the easiest thing. She walks through the whys of that + what technological advancements could do to close the gap. The conversation also touches on what current market activity is signalling, from data center buildouts driving boxcar + aggregate hopper demand, to the rising appetite for cement.

Shortlines get their due, as the most underrated part of the industry, + Erica shares her reflection on what a career in rail does to your grit. Spoiler alert: it builds it considerably because nothing is as bad as a bad day on the railroad!

About Telegraph

Telegraph is a leader in delivering digital solutions to railroads, shippers, logistics service providers, terminals, + railcar leasing companies. With an integrated platform that provides price transparency, shipment visibility, + proactive business intelligence, Telegraph empowers customers, and makes shipping by rail easier + more effective. For more details, visit www.telegraph.io and follow us on LinkedIn.