Beyond the Last Mile

What does it take to build a profitable DSP without being stuck at the station every day?
Tameeka Holmes shares how she turned around struggling operations, tripled her profits, built a high-performing team, and created systems that allowed her to step away while maintaining strong performance.
She breaks down hiring, safety, scorecard coaching, accountability, team culture, and the fundamentals that help DSP owners improve both profitability and performance.
Key Discussion Points
00:04—Tameeka's journey into the DSP world
05:00—Turning around a struggling operation
08:00—Building a safety-first culture
10:00—How she tripled her DSP's profits
12:00—Hiring and building the right team
20:00—Changing driver behavior through transparency
23:00—Understanding and coaching the scorecard
27:00—Driver engagement and accountability
32:00—Setting clear expectations
37:00—Going back to the basics
42:00—Finding hidden costs in a successful DSP
44:00—Incentives and investing in your team
49:00—Building a leadership team that can operate without you
53:00—The experiences that shaped her leadership
Don't forget to:
👍 Like this video if you found a strategy you can use🔔 Subscribe for more authentic conversations with last-mile owners and operators💬 Comment with your biggest takeaway📤 Share this with someone who needs to hear this
#BeyondTheLastMile #DSP #AmazonDSP #LastMileLogistics #DSPOwner #FantasticPlus #Logistics #Leadership #Profitability #TeamBuilding

What does it take to run an Amazon DSP that performs without you buried in the day-to-day?
Matthew Goldman, founder of Hera and a former Amazon DSP owner, has lived both sides of it. After running his own DSP on spreadsheets and manual processes, he built Hera, the DSP software now helping more than 1,000 DSPs run smarter.
In the latest episode of Beyond the Last Mile, Matthew gets real about time management, mentorship, leadership, systems, margins, and risk, and why DSP owners need to start treating their operations like the big businesses they are.
Want to get out of the weeds and run your DSP like a real business? Check out Hera → www.hera.app
 
Key Discussion Points
00:03—Running a DSP before proper systems
00:08—Lessons from the Marine Corps and Apple
00:15—The power of mentorship and community
00:20—Why taking care of drivers matters
00:23—Why Fantastic Plus isn't always enough
00:31—The problem with AI and "vibe coding"
00:38—How word of mouth built Hera
00:40—Moving owners out of the weeds
00:43—The hidden cost of overstaffing
00:46—Why DSPs need better inventory management
00:48—Solving real-world fleet problems
00:53—Matthew's entrepreneurial roots
Don't forget to:👍 Like this video if Matthew's insights changed how you think about your DSP🔔 Subscribe for more real-world conversations with last-mile operators💬 Comment with the biggest lesson you took away🔗 Share this episode with a DSP owner who needs to hear it
 
#AmazonDSP #DSPSoftware #Hera #MatthewGoldman #BeyondTheLastMile #DSP #DSPOwner #LastMileLogistics #DeliveryBusiness #Leadership

What does it take to transition from driving a missile truck in the military to delivering packages, and eventually running a top-tier Amazon DSP with 120 employees and 70 vans? 
In this episode of Beyond the Last Mile, Demetrius "DJ" Jefferson shares his journey. DJ is the founder of Guardian Express Logistics and an active firefighter in Bayonne, New Jersey. He unpacks how he adapted to civilian choices, managed daily crisis operations, and relied on mentorship to accelerate his growth. 
 
Key Discussion Points
00:02—Military Experience & Logistics Fundamentals 00:04—Leaving the Army for Family & Lifestyle 00:06—The Shift to Civilian Life as a Delivery Driver 00:07—Transitioning From Driver to DSP Owner 00:09—Mentorship, Resumes, & The Mario Connection 00:15—Navigating the Challenges of Managing People 00:16—Understanding Your Team's "Love Language" 00:19—Driver Recruitment & Giving Everyone a Fair Chance 00:23—Crisis Control: Managing Dog Bites & Heavy Call-Outs 00:27—Financial Mentorship & Understanding Your Numbers 00:30—Prioritizing Team Health & Retention Benefits 00:34—Balancing Business Ownership, Firefighting, & Family 00:38—Childhood Work Ethic & Lessons From McDonald's 00:41—Best Local Eats in Bayonne & Final Shoutouts 
 
Ready to scale your own last-mile logistics business and build a resilient team? 
Don't forget to:👍 Like this video🔔 Subscribe for more authentic conversations💬 Comment with your biggest takeaway🔗 Share with someone who needs to hear this
#LastMileLogistics #AmazonDSP #LogisticsLeadership #VeteransInBusiness #BusinessMentorship #BeyondTheLastMile

From FedEx Driver to Consultant: The Conversation That Changes Everything
What does it actually take to turn a stressed, high-turnover driver team into a loyal one? Ray Charette has done it from every seat — driver, dispatcher, general manager, and now consultant — and in this episode, he shares the exact systems that cut turnover from 60% to just 10-15%.
But this conversation goes beyond metrics. Ray opens up about a personal story of estrangement from his sister, reminding us that the same principles that build trust with a team can rebuild trust in our own relationships. Real leadership lessons, real talk, and a story that might just inspire you to make a call you've been putting off.
#LastMileLogistics #DriverRetention #Leadership #DSPOwners #Entrepreneurship

The Seatbelt Hack, the Fake Clock-Ins, and the Secret to F+ Ratings
What does it actually take to run a Fantastic Plus DSP? Mario Nicolaou, founder of Flash Direct, sits down to share the real, unfiltered systems behind his top-rated Amazon Walker DSP — including how he caught field managers stealing from him, his method for confronting unsafe drivers in real time, and a clever hack that solved a costly seatbelt-camera problem.
This episode dives deep into hiring, retention, safety compliance, and mentorship — the exact playbook that helped Mario's company hit a jaw-dropping 1.7% unemployment rate.
#MarioNicolaou #MarioDSPmentor #MetricsmasterDSP #ScorecardDSPmentor #DSPCoachMario

Beyond the Last Mile, hosted by Jeremiah Desmarais and Cristina Neal, is a podcast built for last mile logistics owners who are done with corporate-speak and driver-level noise.
Every episode is an unfiltered, owner-to-owner conversation with the vendors, consultants, and operators who've actually been in the trenches—scaling routes, cutting costs, and fixing operations that were bleeding money.
No theory. No fluff. Just real breakthroughs (and real mistakes) you can learn from and put to work in your business today. If you run a last mile operation and want insights you can act on before your next shift starts, you're in the right place.
New episodes drop every other Tuesday. Follow now so you don't miss the next one.
 
#LastMileLogistics #LastMileDelivery #AmazonDSP #FedExISP #DSPOwner #ISPOwner #LogisticsLeadership #DeliveryBusiness #SmallBusinessOwner #FleetManagement #LogisticsPodcast #DeliveryOperations #BusinessOwnerLife #ScalingYourBusiness #OperationsExcellence