Cambridge Capital Team
Cambridge Capital has assembled a unique combination of operating and investment professionals
with unmatched expertise in the applied supply chain.
Our team creates value by bringing proven expertise to companies throughout the growth cycle, from early-stage to late-stage. The firm’s senior investment professionals have invested in excess of $1.5 billion in growth-stage companies over the last 20 years (including at previous firms before joining Cambridge Capital). Our Operating Partners, each of whom is a successful entrepreneur and experienced operating executive, provide critical operational and strategic assistance to portfolio company management throughout the investment lifecycle. Cambridge Capital’s team also provides additional support with strategic planning, financial structuring, recruitment, M&A and all other areas associated with company growth.
Cambridge Capital Operating Advisors
Bill Conley is an Operating Advisor with Cambridge Capital.
Bill has been involved with several start-ups in the technology and logistics sector, including as a current Board Member and former CEO of Sky-Trax (dba: Total Trax). In that role, Bill brought over 35 years of supply chain logistics experience, extensive managerial experience with both large-scale and growth-oriented operations, and strong relationships with key players in the supply chain industry.
Before Sky-Trax, he was President of ATC Logistics and Electronics, a $360 million division on ATC Technologies Corporation, where he held responsibility for the overall leadership and management, while providing strategic vision for value-added logistics and supply chain services for high value, high velocity, and serialized products from post-manufacturing to end of life. Prior to ATC, Bill was Vice President- General Manager, of FedEx Supply Chain Services-Europe, Middle East and Africa, where he was responsible for value added logistics and supply chain services, including e-fulfillment for Federal Express Corporation. Bill held a number of positions during his FedEx career, including Vice President, Logistics and Electronic Commerce Asia; Managing Director, Air Freight Systems; Managing Director, System Control; and Managing Director, National Accounts. Earlier in his career, Bill was National Manager, Sales and Service, for Allied Airfreight, a division of Allied Van Lines, and he also worked for Delta Air Lines.
Bill holds a BS in Aeronautics from St. Louis University, Director Certification from the Anderson School of Management, UCLA, Executive Development Certification from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, and did post-graduate work at DePaul University. He served as a Captain in the U.S. Air Force and received various commendations for his service during the Vietnam Era.
Bill Phelan is an Operating Advisor with Cambridge Capital.
Before joining Cambridge Capital, Bill was the founder and CEO of Charter Brokerage LLC, a premier non-asset based third-party logistics provider to the petroleum, chemical and airline industries. Charter’s services include customs and export brokerage and compliance services, duty drawback consulting and claims processing, and administration of storage and distribution facilities for foreign-trade zone status jet fuel. Bill was responsible for the growth of Charter from a start-up to an industry leader, and in 2014 oversaw the sale of the business to Berkshire Hathaway.
Prior to Charter, Bill was a partner in the international trade law firm of Phelan & Mitri.
Bill holds J.D. from New York Law School and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Holy Cross College, where he serves as a trustee.
Bill Vitti is an Operating Advisor with Cambridge Capital, specializing in transportation technology.
Bill has over 25 years of experience and a proven track record of building high-growth supply chain and logistics tech companies. He possesses a unique 360-degree industry perspective, as he has served in key leadership roles at Truckstop.com (SaaS marketplace), Swift Logistics and Transplace (3PL), Swift Transportation (asset carrier), CHEP Pallets (equipment pooling) and Tenneco (shipper).
Most recently, Bill was Chief Commercial Officer at Truckstop.com, where he rapidly scaled the company to a market leader with a $1B+ valuation. At Truckstop.com, he was a key player in two successful private equity transactions with Bregal Sagemount and ICONIQ Capital, as well as three strategically important and accretive acquisitions. Bill remains an investor in and strategic advisor to Truckstop.com.
Prior to Truckstop.com, Vitti served as the President of Swift Logistics for three years where he built the business from a start-up to a top 20 US 3PL.
Bill earned his Master’s in Business Administration from Pepperdine University and his Bachelor’s in Business Administration from Saginaw Valley State University. He has two children and resides in Phoenix, Arizona.
David Brooks is an Operating Advisor with Cambridge Capital.
David is the former President of the Cargo Division of American Airlines, a position he held for 16 years. During his tenure he implemented numerous industry-leading improvements to American’s airfreight and mail franchise in the areas of product development, business process reengineering, and customer service. American’s Cargo Division has been routinely recognized for its service levels, and was voted the best North American Cargo Airline for the third year in a row by its customers in a highly regarded industry survey.
Prior to leading American’s Cargo Division, David was President of the Airline Services Division of AMR Services, an aviation services company owned by AMR Corporation, where is was responsible for the international growth of the business. AMR Services was sold by AMR in 1996 and is now known as Worldwide Flight Services, a leading global provider of aviation services.
David is currently a member of the Board of Directors of Cargo Airport Services, the largest ground handling company in North America. CAS is owned by ICV Partners, a New York-based private equity fund that manages $400 million in committed capital.
Davids’ former Board affiliations include NASCO (North American Super Corridor Coalition), and a member of the Advisory Board of CNS (Cargo Network Services), an IATA-owned company.
David is a graduate of Dickinson College (BA) and Cornell University (MBA) and resides in Dallas, Texas with his family.
David Warrick is an Operating Advisor with Cambridge Capital.
In his current role as GM of Global Supply Chain for Microsoft, David manages the order to cash cycle, Channel Operations, Demand Planning and Fulfillment & Logistics for all Microsoft physical products worldwide including Xbox, Surface, Accessories and Surface Hub. He also manages all aspects of Channel Management, Software Manufacturing, and numerous other functions as the customer facing part of the Manufacturing and Supply Chain organization. David and his team are responsible for all products in all channels including Retail, Commercial, Operator, and Direct to Consumer through Microsoft Online stores and marketplaces.
David joined Microsoft in 1999 and has worked through many different Global roles throughout Supply Chain and Product Release. Prior to Microsoft, David was a Management Consultant with Andersen Consulting and was also a Project Engineer on the construction of the Hong Kong Airport.
Dave holds a B.Eng (Hons) in Manufacturing Engineering, a Diploma in Industrial Studies and is a C.Eng (Chartered Engineer) with the IET (Institute of Engineering and Technology – Manufacturing Division).
David is focused on the opportunity presented around Supply Chain as a Service and works with numerous start-ups and established businesses to further that vision and push supply chain forward leveraging technology at every chance.
David advises on several different boards, speaks frequently in the industry and mentors through college networks to build the next generation of Supply Chain talent.
Essa Al-Saleh is an Operating Advisor with Cambridge Capital.
Prior to Cambridge, Essa was the President and CEO of Agility’s Global Integrated Logistics (GIL) based in Baar, Switzerland. During his time at Agility, Essa led the transformation of Agility GIL from a 300-person operation in one country into one of the top ten global logistics businesses with over $4 billion in revenue, operating in over 100 countries with more than 18,000 people.
Essa had been with Agility since 1998 and assumed the CEO of Agility Global Integrated Logistics in 2007. During his time at Agility, Essa led the business through various stages including the global financial crisis and the acquisition and integration of 40+ businesses across the world, and its transformation into a global network with a single operating platform and common culture.
Essa has an MBA from Boston College and a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Tufts University. Both degrees were earned with honors.
Essa enjoys spending time with his family, traveling, reading and being active with running, skiing and hiking.
View Essa’s LinkedIn profile.
Gene Tyndall is an Operating Advisor with Cambridge Capital.
Gene is also former President of Ryder Supply Chain Solutions and President of MonarchFx, a Division of Tompkins International, a leading consulting and services firm that provides eFulfillment services to sellers of products online. Gene is a globally experienced and recognized management consulting and business executive, having advised over 100 corporations in over 40 countries. He has co-authored four books (including SUPERCHARGING SUPPLY CHAINS); authored dozens of articles; and is frequently quoted in business and industry media, including SCDigest, where he is an Associate Editor. He is a frequent seminar/conference chairperson, speaker, moderator, and panelist around the world. He is a Director on two Boards.
Prior to merging his executive advisory firm (SCEA) into Tompkins, Gene was Executive Vice-President at Ryder System, Inc., and President of the company’s Global Supply Chain Division, a $1.8 Billion Business Unit providing logistics services for over 200 client companies around the world. Prior to joining Ryder, Gene was a Senior Partner and Leader of the Ernst & Young Global Supply Chain Management Consulting Practice, growing the business to over $1.5 Billion annually. He advised and led business transformations for over 100 well-known global corporations during his consulting career across several industries.
Gene was awarded the “Global Logistics Person of 2007” by the Global Institute of Logistics, which also voted him into the Global Logistics Hall of Fame. He was named one of the “Top Ten Innovators for 2002” by Information Week magazine. He has won several awards as a Keynote Speaker, Seminar Leader, Group Facilitator, and Conference Chairman.
Gene was a U.S. Navy Officer, serving globally on an aircraft carrier and at the Pentagon. He graduated from the University of Maryland; The George Washington University; the Institute of International Management Development in Switzerland; and several executive training programs at Stanford, Harvard, and the University of Miami.
Herb Shear is an Operating Advisor with Cambridge Capital.
Herb spent his career as principal owner, chairman and chief executive officer of GENCO Supply Chain Solutions, North America’s 2nd largest and a Top 50 Global third-party logistics provider based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Joining GENCO in 1971, Herb became the family’s third generation involved in the logistics business. Herb successfully transformed the company by pioneering supply chain processes, which focused on optimizing the value of customer assets. In the early 90s he founded the centralized returns process, known today as reverse logistics, through partnership and collaboration with leading retail and manufacturing companies.
GENCO’s proprietary reverse logistics software combined with innovative product liquidation solutions is now utilized by many companies to generate revenue from their returned and overstocked inventory. Herb grew GENCO into a complete suite of supply chain management and technology solutions serving a diverse range of retail, manufacturing and government customers. GENCO employs over 7,000 teammates, operates over 37 million square feet of warehouse space at more than 130 operations throughout North America and has numerous software installations in Australia and the United Kingdom. In 2015, GENCO was sold to Fedex for $1.4 billion.
Herb is a past recipient of the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals’ Distinguished Service Award, the association’s highest honor to an individual who has made significant, career-long contributions to the supply chain management and logistics professions.
Herb holds a bachelor’s degree in Finance & Marketing and completed post-graduate studies in Business Administration from Southern Illinois University. He has also completed Executive Entrepreneurial and Leadership Programs at Stanford University, Carnegie Mellon University and Northwestern University. He is an active member of the Young Presidents Organization, World Presidents Organization, Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals and the Warehouse Education and Research Council. He also sits on the advisory board of Southern Illinois University College of Business Administration.
Jack Holmes is an Operating Advisor at Cambridge Capital.
Jack serves as Chairman of the Board for 10-4, a provider of SaaS-based logistics solutions including an automated transportation exchange that connects shippers, carriers, and 3PLs. Jack also serves as a board member for Simplified Logistics, which provides services and technology solutions in the areas of freight payment, savings, and data analysis.
Jack has had a distinguished career in the freight transportation industry. He served as President of UPS Freight from 2007-2016, a company where he first began his career as a package handler in 1979. He worked his way up through various operations and transportation management assignments, before taking his post as President in 2007.
Jack also previously served as co-chair of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Freight Advisory Committee’s Conditions, Performance and Data Subcommittee under U.S. Secretaries of Transportation Ray LaHood and Anthony Foxx. He attended West Chester University of Pennsylvania as well as Cornell University, where he studied labor and industrial relations.
Dr. James A. Tompkins is an Operating Advisor with Cambridge Capital.
Jim is an international authority on designing and implementing end-to-end supply chains. As the founder and Chairman of Tompkins International, his focus over the last several years has been in the areas of digital commerce, unichannel and supply chain reinvention. Over the last 40 years, Tompkins International has evolved from a supply chain consulting firm into an end-to-end supply chain consulting and solutions company, with business units focusing on supply chain consulting, material handling integration, and robotics. His 40-plus years as CEO of Tompkins International and his focus on helping companies achieve profitable growth give him an insider’s view into what makes great companies even better. Jim recently founded Tompkins Ventures, LLC, a firm that helps executive teams address four big problems: entrepreneurial growth, industrial development, supply chain resilience and logistics partnerships.
Jim received the prestigious Frank and Lillian Gilbreth Industrial Engineering Award from the Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers (IISE) on June 1, 2015. The award is an attribute that recognizes Dr. Tompkins through the contributions he has provided to the welfare of mankind in the field of industrial and systems engineering. In addition, Jim has served as President of the IISE, the Materials Management Society and the College-Industry Council on Material Handling Education and has been named a Distinguished Engineering Alum by Purdue University. He has also received more than 50 additional awards for his service to his profession.
Jim is a thought leader, sharing insights on supply chain excellence through his thousands of presentations around the world and his YouTube videos have had over a million views. Jim also shares his knowledge and provides up-to-date information on supply chain and business trends via Linkedin and Twitter. He has written or contributed to more than 30 books and over 1,000 articles and has been quoted in hundreds of business and industry magazines.
Jim received his Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering in 1969, his Master of Science in Industrial Engineering in 1970 and his Ph.D. in 1972, all from Purdue University.
Kamal Sundar is an Operating Advisor with Cambridge Capital, specializing in eCommerce-oriented supply chains and relevant technology solutions.
Prior to joining Cambridge Capital, Kamal was the Senior VP of Supply Chain at ShipBob, where he led the development of supply chain, inventory management and logistics capabilities. Previously he held global leadership roles at Amazon focused on supply chain capability development, P&L ownership and strategy development for both B2C (Amazon.com) and B2B (Amazon Business) organizations. He has also worked at Ernst & Young (EY) where he led the Procter & Gamble – EY Alliance (Center of Excellence) focused on created best-of-the-breed supply chain solutions, productized, and monetized a portfolio of innovative services in the marketplace enabling an annuity revenue flow.
Earlier in Kamal’s career, he worked at IBM Corporation building their supply chain consulting practice and developing a portfolio of supply chain management software applications.
Kamal received a Master of Science in Industrial Engineering degree from Texas A&M University and a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering degree from P.S.G College of Technology. He has also completed multiple executive education programs at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and is an APICS certified Operations Management Professional (CPIM).
Kamal is passionate about sustainability and water conservation and currently serves on the advisory board of SurgeforWater.org, a non-profit organization that invests in communities with safe water, sanitation, and hygiene solutions to help end the cycle of poverty.
View Kamal’s LinkedIn profile
KC Pelle is an Operating Advisor with Cambridge Capital.
KC is also an important business development executive in the marketplace. As an influencer and innovator, KC is always ready to talk shop and hear what our clients have to say. KC maintains very strong personal relationships with all of the key players in the industry. His experience provides him with a unique perspective on all of our Cambridge investment opportunities.
Before joining Cambridge, KC accumulated 25 years of industry experience as an Owner, CEO, COO, President and/or Senior Supply Chain Executive for multiple multi-national companies, some of which were managing and/ or purchasing close to a half a billion dollars in annual freight spend.
Earlier in KCs career, he first gained recognition within the logistics sector when he secured a $30 million investment from China to fund his customers’ U.S.-China joint venture logistics company. This company was then purchased two years later by one of China’s largest State-Owned Enterprise Vessel Lines for more than $80 million.
Over the next 20 years, KC became a widely respected figure in his senior and/or Board roles for the industry’s largest associations including the International Federation of Freight Forwarders Association (FIATA), the Transportation Intermediaries Association (TIA), the American Trucking Association (ATA), the Truckload Carriers Association (TCA), the Los Angeles Customs Brokers and Freight Forwarders Association (NCBFFA), and the Environmental Protection Agencies (EPA) California Air Resources Board. KC volunteered his time through his participation in twenty-five different committees and sub-committees, as well as delivering upon more than a hundred large auditorium public speaking engagements and podium presentations.
In 2011, KC was elected as an official representative of the global logistics industry to the World Trade Organization (WTO), the World Customs Organization (WCO), the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the International Road Transport Organization (IRU), the United Nations (UN) and also on Capitol Hill as the Vice President and FIATA Ambassador for North and South America. For many years, KC also performed services as a Board Member and independent contractor for the USCOC Trade Security Task Force reporting to the DoD, DHS, NSA, as well as the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate’s Homeland Security Committees.
Over the span of his career, KC has been employed for a Top 10 freight brokerage, a mid-sized motor Carrier, a multi-national CTPAT certified CHB, IATA & NVOCC operation, a large freight forwarder and a major retail warehousing operation that managed over 2,000,000 square feet.
KC has a B.A. Degree from the University of California Santa Barbara.He is a licensed 50 Ton Maritime Captain. If KC is not finding outstanding logistics companies with Cambridge, there’s a really good chance you’ll find him on his charter boat in Hawaii fishing for Blue Marlin.
Michael Durham is an Operating Advisor with Cambridge Capital.
Michael has spent decades serving in a variety of leadership roles in supply chain businesses. He began his career at American Airlines, where he spent 16 years. He ultimately served as CFO of American, after progressing from Senior Vice President of Finance to Treasurer. Mr. Durham led the spin-off of Sabre Holdings from American Airlines in 1995 and served as Sabre’s President and CEO. While leading Sabre, a publicly traded provider of information technology services to the travel industry, Michael oversaw the development of Travelocity.com.
Michael’s experience includes numerous board positions, such as his role as Chairman of Hotwire, Director of Travelport Limited, Non-Executive Chairman of Asbury Automotive Group, Independent Director of The Hertz Corporation, and member of the Board of Advisors of TripAdvisor.
He received a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from The University of Rochester in 1973 and a Masters of Business Administration from Cornell University in 1977.
Randy Mullett is an Operating Advisor with Cambridge Capital.
Randy is also the founder of Mullett Strategies, a consulting practice located in Washington, DC helping clients ranging from well-known Fortune 100 brands to technology startups navigate the intricacies of our Federal government. His practice is focused on freight transportation, sustainability, security, emerging technologies, and aligning business structures and resources to support strategic goals and outcomes.
Prior to forming his practice, Randy was Vice President, Government Relations and Public Affairs, for XPO Logistics (formerly Con-way Inc.) a $7.8B freight transportation and global logistics services company. As a member of Con-way’s Executive Leadership Team reporting directly to the CEO, Randy had global responsibility for all Government Relations and Public Affairs activities, Corporate Security, Corporate Communications, Public Relations, Brand Management, and Corporate Social Responsibility.
He also served as Con-way’s Chief Sustainability Officer. In that role, he directed corporate-wide initiatives focused on improving economic and environmental sustainability through continuous evaluation and adoption of practices that improved operating efficiencies and reduced carbon emissions while adding to the bottom line. One of Randy’s key roles was acting as the executive sponsor for various projects involving the identification, testing, piloting, and implementation of new technologies involving mobile technologies, operations management systems, alternative fuels, and technology enhancements. Before being assigned to his corporate role, he spent 26 years in trucking operations management and sales.
A sought-after international authority and frequent speaker on transportation, business strategy, security, and sustainability, Randy has received several federal government appointments including Vice Chair of the National Cooperative Freight Research Program Oversight Committee, member of the USDOT National Freight Advisory Committee, and member of the USDHS Highway and Motor Carrier Sector Coordinating Committee.
He is also a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Expert Network on the future of supply chains and logistics and has served on the advisory boards of the Maritime Institute at Old Dominion University, the Transportation Sustainability Research Center at Berkeley, and the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute.
Additionally, Randy serves on the Board of Directors for Trucker Tools and previously served on the boards of Fueling California, The American Trucking Associations, The Cargo Airline Association, The Intelligent Transportation Society of America, and The National Association of Manufacturers.
Randy is a graduate of Shepherd University (BS) and Old Dominion University (MBA).
Roger Crook is an Operating Advisor with Cambridge Capital.
A truly global citizen, Roger has lived and worked in many different countries on all three major continents of the world during the last 30 years. A large part of his career has been in the international corporate world, in commercial and general management roles. At DHL Express, his last key roles were CEO DHL Americas and CEO DHL Asia together with Head of Global Sales. He then took on the role of Global CEO for DHL Global Forwarding & Freight and a Management Board Member of DeutschePost DHL.
A few years ago, Roger decided to leave the corporate world to fulfill a long-time dream and make the transition to working amongst thriving, innovative and ambitious Entrepreneurs. Roger’s call to joining a community that aims at disrupting the world started early: when he joined DHL, the company’s mission was indeed to disrupt the transportation industry. It also offered him a platform to test his entrepreneurial capabilities when he set up Global Customer Solutions, an independent global business unit that still operates today at DHL. Being now part of the tech revolution, disrupting traditional industries, improving supply chains globally and being surrounded by high-energy, resilient and fast learning individuals feels like coming home to Roger: it is energising and helps him fulfil his dream of supporting the change for a better world. He is now investing in, advising and mentoring start-ups’ founders and serving in Chairman and board advisory roles at early stage start-ups, as well as advising Private Equity, Strategic Consultants and Venture Capital firms globally on Logistics.
Roger has an extensive leadership and business experience of managing complex, multi-cultural, global network businesses throughout the world. Customer focused, he has sharp commercial and financial business acumen. His functional expertise covers areas such as strategy, business development and internationalisation, marketing, finance, operations, leading teams and designing organisations. A mentor at heart, he thoroughly enjoys helping individuals and teams to grow, and to manage business challenges and opportunities.
A British citizen, Roger holds a degree in Engineering from the university of Liverpool, an MBA from Manchester Business School, and has attended an Executive Leadership program at Wharton Business School.
Roger is passionate about helping the Planet given the climate change challenges we have.