Ward Transport & Logistics Corp. hired Brian Goley, a former TForce Freight sales leader, as its western division sales director, the company announced in a LinkedIn post last week.
Goley worked at UPS Freight for about 15 years, followed by almost four years at TForce after the carrier’s acquisition and rebranding by TFI International in 2021, according to his LinkedIn.
Goley had been regional sales director for TForce’s central region since August 2021. The new hire is joining Tom Matisak, Ward director of sales for its eastern division, to lead the carrier’s sales teams.
“He will be leading our growth-oriented team in the West,” Ward Transport said in its LinkedIn post.
Ward is already investing in that growth: Goley posted a pair of job openings for sales account executives in Columbus, Ohio, and Chicago last week.
The longtime Mid-Atlantic regional carrier moved further into the Midwest with its 2022 acquisition of Chicago-based carrier Quality Cartage. One of its main competitors, A. Duie Pyle, is similarly opening facilities outside its traditional Northeast footprint. The move allows the carriers to capture more business and offer better service to customers.
Hiring leaders from competitors isn’t unusual, especially in an industry where many carriers desire specific talent from the competition.
Old Dominion Freight Line President and CEO Marty Freeman assured investors the carrier is taking good care of its sales workforce amid a hiring spree by FedEx Freight ahead of its spinoff.
But even Old Dominion, now considered the LTL industry darling, knows what it’s like to watch top talent jump to a competing carrier. Pete Woodlief, Old Dominion’s onetime only sales person, was poached by Estes Express Lines in 1954. David Bates, formerly Old Dominion’s SVP of operations, took a job at XPO as COO in 2023.
