Trucking marketplace Convoy makes more layoffs, citing customer-service efficiency gains – GeekWire

Seattle-based trucking marketplace Convoy has conducted another round of layoffs, its fourth in the past year, the company confirmed to GeekWire on Monday.

The cuts impact the company’s customer-experience operations team. Convoy did not disclose how many people lost their jobs and did not provide an updated overall headcount. LinkedIn lists more than 800 employees at the company.

“Earlier this year, we staffed this team at levels necessary to ensure a smooth transition to our new dedicated service model and to be prepared for a potential freight market rebound,” a Convoy spokesperson said in a statement. “With our customer service model transition complete and demonstrating efficiency levels double that of 2022 in many cases, coupled with a delayed rebound in the overall freight market, we are now right sizing staffing levels accordingly.”

Convoy said the adjustment is specific to, and does not extend beyond, the customer experience operations team. That team’s staffing model is designed to be flexible for changing seasonal and economic conditions.

Convoy previously made layoffs in February and closed its Atlanta office, which it first opened in 2019. Last year, cuts were made in October and June.

Co-founded in 2015 by Amazon vets Dan Lewis and Grant Goodale, Convoy aims to increase earnings for truck drivers while simultaneously reducing cost for shippers by removing inefficiencies in the existing supply chain. Truck drivers download Convoy’s free app to find work without going through brokers who typically use emails and phone calls.

Goodale announced last week that he is stepping down from his position as chief experience officer and transitioning to an advisory role by the end of the month.

Lewis discussed the state of the trucking industry and more during a GeekWire interview on June 15.

Convoy has grown to become one of the highest-valued privately held startups in the Seattle region. It raised $260 million at a $3.8 billion valuation last year. Convoy is No. 5 on the GeekWire 200, our list of the top startups in the Pacific Northwest.