C.H. Robinson CEO ties AI overhaul to Lean management

C.H. Robinson CEO Dave Bozeman is applying Lean management techniques to the company’s push into artificial intelligence, using the approach to decide which work should change and where employees should move next. Fortune reported that the freight broker and forwarder is using AI agents to automate parts of logistics work while keeping people involved in higher-level decisions.

Bozeman leads C.H. Robinson, which Fortune lists as No. 277 on the Fortune 500. Fortune also identified him as one of 11 Black chief executives running Fortune 500 companies.

In an interview with Fortune’s Diane Brady, Bozeman described C.H. Robinson as a company using technology to solve logistics problems. Fortune reported that the company’s stock has doubled over the past year as Bozeman has pushed what he calls a Lean AI transformation.

Bozeman’s planning process starts with time horizons rather than specific software, according to Fortune. He uses a three-part framework that looks at the next zero to three years, the three-to-seven-year period and a longer period beyond seven years.

That structure is meant to balance current operating needs with investment in future growth, Fortune reported. Bozeman told Brady that he expects the way companies bring employees into organizations to change within several years, with workers supported by added intelligence and digital tools.

Lean methods are central to the effort, according to Fortune. Bozeman told Brady that Lean is often viewed too narrowly as a manufacturing-floor system, while he sees it as a continuous-improvement discipline that can be used across business processes.

At C.H. Robinson, teams map workflows to identify delays, duplicate work and other sources of waste, Fortune reported. The company then applies AI agents to tasks that can be automated.

Bozeman cited load tracking, appointment scheduling and quote responses as areas where AI agents now handle work that previously required large numbers of employees, according to Fortune. He said the company has moved people into more valuable work rather than rebuilding the same roles after automation.

Fortune reported that Bozeman does not frame the program around headcount targets. He told Brady he does not favor judging performance mainly by employee count or ordering across-the-board cuts to staff or budgets.

The company’s redesign of work begins with senior leaders, according to Fortune. Bozeman uses Lean as a way to study problems, identify where work should change and push innovation through the organization.

Brady reported that Bozeman had recently come from a call that used a Socratic style of questioning to identify the root cause of a business issue. Bozeman said his role as CEO is to multiply the effect of leadership across the company by building an organization that knows how to question its own operations.

Even as C.H. Robinson expands the use of AI agents, Fortune reported that Bozeman expects humans to remain part of the process. His focus, according to the interview, is on changing how work is performed rather than treating automation as a stand-alone technology rollout.

This story draws on original reporting from Fortune.