2025 in review: Transport & Logistics
- Gov Kandola
- 8 hours ago
- 4 min read
Senior Consultant Gov Kandola and Principal Consultant Joe McCormack look back on major developments in their markets
It seems clear to us now, as we close out 2025, that the transport and logistics sector has moved into a phase defined by recalibration, resilience, as well as targeted opportunity. After several years of disruption and volatility, this year saw a return to greater stability, which allowed organisations to act decisively, rather than reactively. As market conditions levelled out over the course of the year after a tricky start, we witnessed fewer swings in capacity as rate pressure eased and planning horizons extended. Companies that had invested in optimising their network, end-to-end supply chain visibility, and nearshoring strategies emerged in a stronger position – not least within contract logistics and temperature-controlled networks, where the reliability of service remains paramount.
Further examples of organisations grasping the nettle in 2025 included the growing adoption of telematics, predictive maintenance, and connected-vehicle platforms among fleet operators. Companies that successfully embed these technologies into their day-to-day operations can drive measurable improvements in safety, asset utilisation, and cost efficiency: elements that are also important for autonomous and semi-autonomous tech, which we’ve seen progress steadily.
Geopolitical trends
Of course, 2025 has been marked by geopolitical uncertainty, which naturally always has significant repercussions for transport and logistics. Trade between China and the US slowed significantly in the wake of Donald Trump’s return to the White House and his ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs. We saw ocean rates spike, though resilience from the e-commerce sector meant that air cargo stayed robust.
What happens on the global stage, of course, has an impact on hiring. The current environment has given rise to fewer, yet more strategic mandates. Organisations want leaders that have seen cycles play out before, and who are able to work on solutions across transformation and employ cross-border and -modal metrics to achieve their goals.
Cold chain leadership and global reach
Overall, 2025 has been a strong year for our practice, with continued growth across logistics and mobility solutions. Strong traction in cold-chain and temperature-controlled operations reflects market demand for leadership and execution in complex environments. Regular travel to the US has helped us to grow our presence in North America, including in key logistics hubs such as Miami. Such trips have helped us deepen relationships with operators, investors, and leadership teams across cold chain and networks in the perishables space as we offer unique, transatlantic expertise and vision on market trends.
Industry engagement and thought leadership has been a priority for us this year. Just one example was Gov’s appearance as a guest lecturer as part of DePaul University’s Transportation and Logistics curriculum, allowing him to share insights with and hear from the next generation of leaders in the sector. We also made sure to maintain our strong presence at major global events, including Transport Logistic and Air Cargo Europe in Munich, where discussions around digitalisation, sustainability, and capacity discipline reinforced many of the themes we observed throughout the year.
Talent and leadership trends
As we mentioned above, from a talent perspective 2025 was defined by precision hiring rather than scale. Organisations prioritised leadership depth at director- and SVP levels. Frequently, we observed a preference for targeted searches aimed at high-calibre, often passive candidates instead of broader hiring drives. At board level, there is a growing desire for non-executive directors (NED) that offer both technological fluency as well as adeptness operating in complex environments. Driving cultural and operational transformation alike is also key for NED appointments in the industry at present.
Elsewhere, we’ve seen the continuation of quiet but deliberate C-suite adjustments as businesses aligned leadership capability with more digital, data-driven strategies. Encouragingly, high-performing leaders demonstrated greater openness to new opportunities this year, particularly where the strategic mandate was clear and the mission compelling.
Challenges at leadership level
However, obstacles remain at senior levels. For example, low margins and sustained cost pressure are reshaping the demands placed on, and expected of, leaders in transport and logistics. In the current landscape, there seems to be less tolerance for overhead-heavy structures, consensus-led decision making, and leaders that lack significant commercial nous. From what we’ve seen in the market, making hard calls early and balancing cost discipline with customer retention – as well as driving productivity without destabilising culture – are more and more important markers for industry leaders to reach.
We’ve also heard several senior leaders privately reference that their top teams were at risk of burnout. Continuous transformation, prolonged uncertainty, and limited depth for replacements internally – see our next section – are contributing to a phenomenon in which retaining key executives is becoming as important as attracting them. However, relatively few organisations are address this problem at a structural level, which also feeds into wider concerns and patterns about succession planning.
Succession planning
This has been a hot topic in transport and logistics for a while now, and 2025 was no exception. From multiple conversations we had over the course of the year, it became clear that succession planning is no longer seen as a future risk but a current operational issue. The industry continues to rely heavily on a small number of longstanding leaders, with limited suitable options at C-1 or -2 level for critical roles. It remains to be seen whether the plans that exist on paper can translate effectively for those waiting to take the reins.
The next generation will need to step up and demonstrate strong ownership of P&L margins, cross-functional leadership, and clear management of uncertainty, transformation, and investor scrutiny. Competent functional operators does not necessarily mean candidates can or should be promoted, especially in margin-constrained, capital-disciplined environments.
Looking ahead
Our outlook for next year remains optimistic. The industry has adapted and organisations that keep investing in transformative leadership, infrastructure, and technology will define the next chapter. Here’s to another year working in this fascinating space!