Baton Appoints Schneider's Shaleen Devgun to its Advisory Board

SAN FRANCISCO, June 8, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Baton, a logistics technology start-up that handles the "final mile" of deliveries, has strengthened its advisory board by appointing Shaleen Devgun, executive vice president and chief information officer at Schneider, (NYSE: SNDR), a premier provider of trucking, intermodal and logistics services in North America.

Shaleen also serves as an advisor to 8VC, a venture firm that is one of the main investors in Baton.

Baton, a San Francisco-based start-up that in March announced $10.5 million Series A funding from a handful of investors, enables long-haul truckers to drop off and pick up loads at Baton drop zones in major metro areas. A network of local fleets does the first and final mile of delivery to warehouses.

Mr Devgun, who leads Schneider's strategic technology, logistics engineering, and business transformation initiatives, said, "I am excited to be working with the team at Baton as they are building a platform with potential to optimize and transform freight movement. Additionally, Baton's platform and business model has a significant application in autonomous context."

Baton co-founders Nate Robert and Andrew Berberick have known Mr Devgun since before Baton was founded. "We are excited to have him as part of our team," Robert said. "The problems we're trying to solve aren't problems that technology can solve alone. It has to be technology combined with a deep understanding of the freight and logistics industry."

"Shaleen brings a wealth of invaluable experience in transportation, logistics and freight technology," Berberick said. "More importantly, he is an industry practitioner, who can speak directly to the pains that stakeholders in the ecosystem feel daily. That direct perspective is hugely valuable."

Mr Devgun joins Baton's advisory board at a time of rapid growth for the company. Last month the start-up launched its fourth top-10 carrier and will launch its fifth top-10 carrier in June.

Baton − founded in 2019 − is committed to solving some of the trucking industry's biggest and most intractable problems, including the more than two billion hours lost annually to "dwell" and "detention" time, i.e., when truck drivers wait for cargo to be loaded or unloaded during the first and final miles. This "slack" time can last for as long as six to 12 hours at a time.

Reducing this wasted time can help companies increase productivity, increase profits, and boost pay for drivers, who are paid by the mile not the hour. Amid a shortage of truck drivers during the pandemic, offering drivers better terms and conditions could help trucking companies recruit them.

For more on how Baton is dramatically accelerating a more efficient, sustainable and safer trucking future, read its latest post.

Note to editors

Baton's other advisers include:

• Craig Fuller, CEO of FreightWaves
• Alan Gershenhorn, former CCO of UPS
• Justin Hall, former CCO of YRC
• John Larkin, Operating Partner, Clarendon
• Shoaib Makani, CEO, KeepTruckin
• Jett McCandless, CEO of project44
• David Petersen, Co-Founder, Flexport
• Ryan Petersen, Co-Founder, Flexport
• Andrew Smith, CEO, Outrider
• Chris Hines, former President/COO, Celadon

About Baton

Baton is a logistics technology platform that eliminates waste (wait time, traffic, empty miles) for carriers (trucking companies) in the final mile of long-haul trucking through a nationwide network of drop zones positioned just outside major metro areas. Carriers drop off and pick up loads at these drop zones, and Baton's network of local drivers handle the final mile of delivery. Baton's software coordinates the operation between carriers, drop zones, warehouses, and local drivers, optimizing journey times and minimizing cost. Visit baton.io or follow us on linkedin.com/company/baton-trucking/ and twitter.com/BatonTrucking.

SOURCE Baton