562: Navigating Today’s Transportation Landscape to Deliver in Peak Season, with Infios
Steve Blough, Chief Strategist at Infios, is a supply chain technology veteran with 40 years of experience who co-founded MercuryGate before it became part of Infios. He shares his journey from loading trucks to building enterprise software, emphasizing his focus on using technology to reduce costs and improve efficiency. Blough argues that today's capacity crunch is a network problem, not a rate problem, urging shippers to adopt a holistic view of their entire freight network to find hidden capacity. He sees AI as a transformative tool for improving data quality, automating manual processes, and enabling systems to automatically adapt to disruptions.
Today I’m joined by Infios, a company with over 5,000 customers operating in over 70 countries and supported by over 2,300 employees that is committed to meeting you where you are to create the future you need.
Born from the combined strengths of Körber Supply Chain Software and MercuryGate, Infios make the best in supply chain execution accessible to every company. With a portfolio of adaptable solutions, they empower businesses to simplify operations, optimize efficiency and drive measurable impact.
Today Steve Blough, Chief Strategist at Infios, joins me to talk all about navigating today’s transportation landscape to deliver in peak season. We’ll be exploring the state of the market right now, from capacity to rates; what’s driving this year’s peak; the capacity crunch; and where AI and technology are taking the market next.
Guest bio:
As Chief Strategist, Steve is helping Infios transform supply chain technology through purposeful innovation, creating solutions that enable businesses to thrive while maximizing supply chain efficiency. Steve’s leadership is defined by driving innovation—championing cutting-edge technology, empowering teams to think differently, and welcoming new ideas to anticipate and plan for the future. Across a career spanning more than four decades in supply chain information systems, Steve has gained a powerful combination of technical expertise and strategic vision. He is now guiding the evolution of Infios’s product innovation and development, guiding the company through bold technological advancements—from innovative supply chain solutions to comprehensive alignment with business objectives.
Steve’s career background, his key areas of focus in supply chain, and the challenges he currently hears from shippers and carriers.
The state of the market in 2026 and why capacity is a big challenge.
What rates look like now, and where Steve expects them to go through the remainder of 2026.
2026 peak season and why it’s arriving earlier than usual, from tariff fear to changes on the Panama Canal.
How current challenges and technologies are changing the way shippers operate, communicate and seek out partners.
Why the capacity crunch is a network problem, not a rate problem, and an example of an Infios client leveraging the capacity in their network to move more goods at lower rates.
Why good data and communication between systems are critical.
What network-level decision-making actually looks like in practice, compared to the lane-by-lane process most teams are still running.
Consolidation, and the capacity hiding inside a shipper’s own network that most companies aren’t using.
Whether tighter capacity creates more business risk.
What AI can actually do for a shipper during peak season, and technology’s role looking ahead.
How much autonomy we should give AI as organizations look to manage effective automation, risk, cost and people.
An overview of Infios, and what it means to deliver Intelligent Supply Chain Execution.
What shippers should focus on between now and the holiday peak.
Resources & Links Mentioned
- Head over to Infios’ website now to find out more and discover how they could help you too. You can also connect with Infios and keep up to date with the latest over on LinkedIn or YouTube, or you can connect with Steve on LinkedIn.
- If you enjoyed this episode and want to hear more from Infios, check out:
- 544: How To Move Toward Intelligent, Connected Execution, with Infios
- 532: Turning Purposeful AI into Business Outcomes, with Infios
- 520: Enter the New Era of Supply Chain Management, with Infios
- Check out our other podcasts HERE.
