Operating Partner, Food Grade Tanker and Logistics Platform, Deal by deal, Remote with Traveo

Venture Equities is evaluating the acquisition of a scaled West Coast logistics platform focused on food grade liquid bulk freight, with meaningful operations across transportation, brokerage, warehousing, and drayage. The business is generating roughly $18 million of EBITDA today, with a clear path to grow through operational upgrades and targeted add on acquisitions. This is a deal by deal operating partner relationship, not a full time W2 role. Location: United States, remote. Travel to California as needed for diligence, site visits, and periodic operating reviews post close. What success looks like We want an operator who has already played at larger scale, ideally inside a private equity backed environment, and can bring that playbook to a platform we can build. You will help us win diligence, then help management execute a KPI driven operating cadence that drives margin expansion, safety performance, service reliability, and scalable integration. Responsibilities Pre close, diligence and underwriting • Pressure test the operating story and confirm the real drivers of normalized EBITDA • Build a clean view of customer and lane profitability, pricing discipline, accessorial capture, and service level performance • Assess dispatch operations, load planning, fleet utilization, maintenance practices, and capex priorities • Evaluate driver recruiting and retention levers, training, safety culture, and compliance posture • Review insurance and claims workflows, and identify practical risk reduction moves that protect enterprise value • Produce a first 100 day plan with a short list of high conviction initiatives, owners, timelines, and measurable KPIs • Join management calls as a credible operator, help us ask the right questions, and help us avoid surprises Post close, value creation and governance • Serve as a hands on execution partner to the CEO and senior team, not a passive advisor • Implement an operating rhythm, weekly scorecards, KPI accountability, and decision making cadence • Drive margin and cash improvement through pricing, utilization, maintenance discipline, and claims reduction • Improve brokerage and agent productivity where applicable, with clear controls and reporting • Strengthen middle management, incentives, and key hires where needed • Lead integration planning for add ons, including systems, processes, safety standards, reporting, and culture • Support board and lender reporting with clear, operator grade communication Ideal profile, we are intentionally selective • Senior operator in asset based trucking, bulk tanker, food grade logistics, or adjacent freight and logistics • Proven experience in a sponsor owned or private equity backed setting, comfortable with board cadence, lender expectations, and KPI driven execution • Track record executing acquisition integrations, multi site standardization, or roll up style scaling • Has operated in businesses or platforms with roughly $20 million to $200 million of EBITDA, or comparable scale and complexity, and is excited to apply that playbook here • Strong command of safety, DOT compliance, claims management, maintenance economics, dispatch operations, and driver retention • Direct, practical, high integrity, comfortable operating under NDA and moving fast Nice to have, not required • Public company exposure in transportation or logistics, including IPO readiness, SOX, or public grade reporting Time commitment • Pre close, typically 3 to 8 hours per week, with spikes around diligence deadlines • Post close, typically 5 to 15 hours per week, flexible based on what we agree is needed Travel is concentrated around diligence and the first 100 days, then becomes periodic and planned. Economics, deal by deal We structure this as aligned upside tied to outcomes. Depending on experience and involvement, economics can include: • Diligence fee or success fee paid at close • Equity participation in the acquisition vehicle • Performance based upside tied to value creation milestones • Optional board compensation or a light monthly advisory retainer post close How to express interest Send a short note with: • Your operating background in trucking and logistics • The fleet types, services, and geographies you have managed • Two or three examples of integrations or value creation you led, with outcomes • Your availability over the next 30 to 60 days Confidentiality required, NDA will be provided early in the process. Apply tot his job