How C.H. Robinson’s CEO acquired his customer obsession

Hello and welcome to Modern CEO! I’m Stephanie Mehta, CEO and chief content officer of Mansueto Ventures. Each week this newsletter explores inclusive approaches to leadership drawn from conversations with executives and entrepreneurs, and from the pages of Inc. and Fast Company. If you received this newsletter from a friend, you can sign up to get it yourself every Monday morning.

Before becoming CEO and president of C.H. Robinson in 2023, Dave Bozeman worked at four of the world’s most iconic companies: Harley-Davidson Motor Company, Caterpillar, Amazon, and Ford Motor Company.

During each stop, he gleaned valuable lessons:

• Harley-Davidson (16 years): The motorcycle maker educated him on the power of lean principles, including continuous improvement and just-in-time inventory management. He adds: “I learned the value of connecting with people who do the work. I came in as an engineer, but I wanted to be on the [manufacturing] floor.”
• Caterpillar (9 years): The construction and mining equipment maker offered him an opportunity to experience operational excellence globally and at scale. “Cat allowed me to see that people around the globe want to do a great job, but they want clean process and workflows to do that,” he says.
• Amazon (5+ years): Bozeman built the tech giant’s Middle Mile global transportation business, which moves customer orders from vendors and fulfillment centers to its sorting facilities and delivery stations. “Amazon allowed me to learn how to solve problems at scale with technology,” he says.
• Ford (1 year): While heading customer service and enthusiast brands such as Mustang and Bronco, Bozeman says his time at the automaker offered a deeper, tactile understanding of how things get made. “It was really about getting back to touch, feel, smell,” he says.

Bozman’s collection of experiences—industrial, technology, transportation—prepared him to run C.H. Robinson, a freight broker connecting shippers with truck, rail, ocean, and air carriers. But it is a customer-centricity he learned from all four companies that is helping propel his modernization and transformation of the 120-year-old company.

“These companies, at their heart, are all about the customer,” he says. “It’s an obsession at Amazon; at Harley-Davidson, the customers tattooed themselves [with the company logo]; at Caterpillar, you’re in the dirt with them; and Ford is all about the brand and its customers. That’s why I’m obsessed with customers and customer service.”

Dealing with the “freight recession”

C.H. Robinson customers have benefitted from several new programs announced on Bozeman’s watch. The company is deploying artificial intelligence (AI) to increase the speed and volume of freight quotes—the estimated cost to ship goods. “Touchless appointments” technology schedules freight pickups and deliveries, replacing a process traditionally handled by phone or email, and AI chooses the ideal appointment time.

As a result of cost cutting, divestitures, and productivity gains, the company earlier this year reported an 11% reduction in staffing. “It’s not just about headcount,” Bozeman counters. “We look at it as upskilling; we’re investing in customer-facing people, who can now help solve supply-chain, logistical problems with customers as we move away from manual tasking.”

Bozeman says implementing new technology and disciplined execution have been keys to its improved financial performance. Despite a “freight recession,” marked by weak demand and low rates, C.H. Robinson posted a 68% increase in third-quarter net income even as revenue fell 11% to $4.1 billion. The company says the recent quarter was its seventh straight period of outperforming analyst earnings-per-share estimates.

At a time when many of C.H. Robinson’s customers face supply-chain challenges and tariff uncertainty, Bozeman is applying lessons he’s learned firsthand from timeless brands and putting them to work in new ways. The result: C.H. Robinson’s company’s ability to innovate may prove to be a competitive edge during a challenging time for freight.

Experience counts

Leaders often use their past experience in new ways. What are some of the lessons you’ve collected from the different companies you’ve helped lead? How have they benefited the company you lead now? Share your top takeaways from each role—brief bullet points are great—and we’ll compile unexpected experiences in a future newsletter.

Also, we’re still soliciting nominations for the 2025 Modern CEO of the Year. Please nominate yourself or someone you admire via this link. Submissions are due November 21.

Read more: CEO lessons

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