BRIANNE MCCARTHY
AMAZON FREIGHT
BRIANNE MCCARTHY
TITLE: STRATEGY LEAD COMPANY: AMAZON FREIGHT INDUSTRY: LOGISTICS
Brianne has been with Amazon for 11 years and has a background in operations management. Having supported a number of startup businesses within Amazon, she joined the freight division in 2024 to head up the strategy team.
Technology as the foundation for innovation As one might imagine, technology sits at the heart of Amazon Freight’ s approach.
The business operates according to Amazon’ s“ one-way and two-way doors” philosophy, which encourages experimentation with technologies that can be easily reversed while maintaining high standards for decisions with lasting consequences.
“ We encourage experimentation, especially when it comes to technology,” Chris continues.“ We have a start-scrappy, build-scalably way of working where, when we see the customer’ s need and work backwards to see how we can solve it.”
The approach has enabled Amazon Freight to implement machine learning and AI capabilities across its operations.
Sustainability through collaboration Today, technology goes hand in hand with sustainability ambitions.
Amazon’ s sustainability efforts reflect the company’ s ambitious climate pledge to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2040.
Chris acknowledges the significant challenge ahead:“ If we are going to have a chance of hitting that very ambitious target, we have to experiment.”
What’ s more, in 2023, the company matched 100 % of the energy used across its operations, including data centres, with renewable energy.
The company is investing in battery electric vehicles, partnering with Mercedes-Benz on 500-kilometre range trucks and placing what Chris describes as“ their biggest-ever order ever of battery electric trucks for Europe”.
Beyond vehicles, Amazon is addressing infrastructure challenges by open-sourcing its charging network planning tool, CHALET.
“ We recognised that, on our own, we will not get where we need to be,” says Chris.“ As a result, we’ ve open sourced the technology because it’ s in everyone’ s interest to have the right charging infrastructure.”
The company is also exploring intermodal solutions, with Chris noting that using intermodal transportation enables Amazon to reduce carbon emissions by almost 50 %. And Amazon Freight is offering intermodal solutions to its shippers. supplychaindigital. com 95