Our Community
Recognizing Accomplishments
Events
Our Community
Recognizing Accomplishments
Events
The annual award recognizes the contributions of an outstanding individual for her achievements and leadership in the field of logistics in North America.
Brent Hutto, Chief Relationship Officer, Truck Parking Club; Chris Burroughs, President & CEO, TIA; Aurélie Doucette, Vice President of Dedicated Contract Carriage Operations, Penske Logistics; Jennifer Hedrick, President & CEO, Women In Trucking Association
Congratulations to Aurélie Doucette, Vice President of Dedicated Contract Carriage Operations at Penske Logistics, on being named the 2026 Distinguished Woman in Logistics Award (DWLA). With more than two decades of industry experience, Doucette has demonstrated a steadfast commitment to operational excellence, team development, and advancing opportunities for women across the supply chain. Her leadership continues to drive meaningful impact—both within her organization and throughout the broader logistics community. Doucette's dedication to mentorship, her role as executive champion of Penske Logistics’ Women’s Business Resource Group, and her passion for fostering inclusive growth make her a true ambassador for the industry.
Sponsored by
Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Apex Tide Consulting
Eileen Dabrowski is the Founder/CEO of Apex Tide Consulting, a firm dedicated to helping transportation and logistics companies strengthen leadership, elevate talent, and drive meaningful growth. Drawing on experience across learning and development, sales, marketing, and organizational strategy, she partners with organizations to build stronger teams, clearer direction, and more sustainable success.
Prior to launching Apex Tide in 2025, Dabrowski served in leadership roles within both private and publicly traded transportation companies, where she built training programs, led strategic initiatives, and supported enterprise growth. She is also a recognized speaker and industry contributor, with active leadership involvement across transportation, logistics, and supply chain associations.
Her contributions have earned industry-wide recognition, including Transportation Marketing & Sales Association (TMSA) Member of the Year, the DEI Pioneer Award, and Leading Lady in Logistics honors. Through Apex Tide, Dabrowski continues to make a lasting impact by helping people and companies in logistics rise, grow, and lead with purpose.
VP of Dedicated Contract Carriage Operations
Penske Logistics
Aurélie Doucette, Vice President of Dedicated Contract Carriage (DCC) Operations at Penske Logistics (PL), is a wife, mother of two girls, and an accomplished leader with more than 20 years of logistics experience.
Doucette moved from France to the United States in 1998 to pursue an MBA at the University of Missouri-Saint Louis. Beginning her career at Transfreight in 2001, she moved through the leadership ranks, entrusted to deliver excellent customer relationship management for multiple accounts. Following PL’s 2015 acquisition of Transfreight, Doucette continued making impactful contributions across all PL product lines.
As VP of DCC Operations, Doucette works closely with her team to accelerate supply chain performance for customers spanning several industry verticals. She places great value on the mentorship she provides and the customer relationships she nurtures in this role.
Doucette is the executive champion of the Women’s Business Resource Group at Penske and a two-time President’s Award winner.
Chief Operating Officer
YMX Logistics
Erin Mitchell is the Chief Operating Officer of YMX Logistics, where she oversees yard and trucking operations, as well as human resources, IT, customer success, engineering, fleet safety, and maintenance. She joined YMX in 2024 following more than 20 years with The Kraft Heinz Company, where she most recently served as Vice President of Logistics and Head of Network Restructuring, overseeing more than 100 warehouses and five North American distribution networks.
Known for delivering transformative results at the intersection of operations and technology, Mitchell has consistently built high-performing teams and led complex, large-scale initiatives. At YMX, she is applying that same discipline to modernize outsourced yard logistics, strengthening safety, sustainability, scalability, and operational performance.
A committed advocate for inclusion, Mitchell has made expanding opportunities for women in trucking a priority, with more than half of recent leadership hires filled by women. She continues to mentor future leaders and drive meaningful impact across the supply chain.
Mitchell was also named a 2026 Supply Chain “Pros to Know” by Supply & Demand Chain Executive and Food Logistics, and in 2025 earned multiple honors, including the Women in Supply Chain Award (Trailblazers), recognition on Global Trade Magazine’s Women in Logistics list, and designation as a Top Woman to Watch in Transportation by WIT.
“Martha knows our industry and is sought after for her balanced, thoughtful, and succinct counsel. She has made an extraordinary impact on the transportation and logistics industry by combining her legal expertise, business acumen and practical solutions. Beyond her professional accomplishments, her commitment to mentorship and effective advocacy has helped cultivate the next generation of industry leaders. We are honored to recognize her with this prestigious award."
Ambyr O’Donnell
Chief Legal Officer, Truckstop
"TIA is proud to sponsor the Distinguished Woman in Logistics Award, recognizing the outstanding contributions of women who shape the transportation and logistics industry. This year, we celebrate Martha Payne, whose dedication, expertise, and leadership have left a lasting mark—not only at Benesch but across the entire industry. As a longtime TIA member and active advocate for legal and compliance standards in transportation, Martha has played a pivotal role in advancing the field. We are thrilled to congratulate her as the 2025 award winner and honor her exceptional achievements."
Chris Burroughs
President & CEO, TIA
Nominations can be made by any individual or by an organization familiar with the nominee and her work in the field of logistics. Employees of the sponsoring organization or of Women In Trucking and the award selection committees are excluded as nominators and/or as candidates for any award under their purview.
Industry participation that would qualify a potential candidate for consideration for this award broadly encompasses high-performing women in the third-party logistics and supply chain management fields, as well as trucking operations in North America. By their commitment to their profession, desire to further the industry’s success and participation in civic and community affairs, DWLA award winners exemplify role models for other women seeking or advancing careers in logistics.
A complete award nomination form consists of the following:
No, there is no fee to nominate.
Once an individual has been selected as a winner of the DWLA, she can be renominated for two consecutive years after the initial nomination and then again after a one-year waiting period.
Nominations will be accepted through Friday, February 27.
After the nomination deadline, all submissions are reviewed by the award selection committee appointed for that year. Finalists will be notified by WIT and may be publicized to industry and trade media. The winning candidate will be announced during the official award presentation.
The winner of the 2026 DWLA will be announced during the TIA 2026 Capital Ideas Conference & Exhibition taking place April 15-18 in Phoenix, AZ. (Upon notification of selection, the finalist must notify WIT if they plan to attend the conference.)
Contact Lana Nichols
Phone: (208) 217-2147
Email: programs@womenintrucking.org.
