Ask around the freight industry, and we have no doubt that you’ll hear the word “partnership” thrown around left and right. Many freight agent networks say it, but few actually mean it. At Tallgrass, partnership isn’t some catchy buzzword we throw into a pitch deck.
Here, we see partnership as a two-way street, and the real reason why our program works the way it does. At Tallgrass, partnership means aligning around a shared goal and committing to help each other achieve it. We bring the resources, expertise and support. Our agents bring the vision, effort and ownership.
Together, we build businesses that are stronger than either of us could create alone.
Tallgrass President Sean Richardson shares what makes our approach to partnership so unique, and what support looks each day like when you choose Tallgrass.
What Partnership Means to Us
When we think about partnership, the first word that comes to mind is alignment.
“A true partnership really means aligning the agent’s goals and expectations for their business with what we can provide and how we can support them,” Sean shares.
At Tallgrass, partnership means shared success. When our agents win, we win. That mindset shapes every conversation, every investment and every decision we make.
Success looks different for everyone — and that’s something we really celebrate. Some agents may want a dedicated office, their own branding and a team of three within the first year. For others, they may want to build their book solo for a couple of years before hiring their first employee. Some want us to stay out of the way and let them run, while others prefer a standing weekly call during a growth stretch.
Partnership means your goals are our goals. However you define success is how we define it for you. We’re cool with any approach; we just want to know what direction an agent is walking toward so we can ensure the support we provide fits. “It’s important to have that conversation up front and discuss how we can best communicate with you, support you and help you thrive,” Sean says.
And that conversation isn’t just limited to a measly few-month onboarding period. Tallgrass wants to be as good of a partner six years into an agent’s tenure as it was on day 60.
Having that consistency, more than any single perk or program, is what agents notice at the end of the day. The best partnerships grow over time. The support a brand-new agent needs isn’t the same support a $5 million producer needs, and that’s exactly the point. As your business grows and evolves, so does ours.
What We Look For in an Agent
Partnerships call for commitment from both of us. It takes two! Setting aside freight experience and your previous track record of production (both a given, of course), there are qualities we look for when deciding if someone is a good fit.
Something that matters to us here at Tallgrass is a cultural fit, and that starts with the right combination of character and ambition. “Do they have the right attitude, the right effort? Are they gonna be able to gel into the culture we’ve already got here? Do they have a plan? How are they going to execute it?” Sean asks.
The agents who know where they want to take their business — and are willing to say so out loud — tend to be the ones who get the most of what Tallgrass has to offer. After all, if you don’t have a plan, all you really have is a wish.
Partnership only works if it goes in both directions, and we don’t dance around that. Tallgrass truly invests in its agents. That means real back-office support, answers when you need them, and help navigating hurdles or unfamiliar situations, with the team as hands-on as an agent needs. But agents own their book of business too. They know their customers and their team best, and Tallgrass expects them to run their agency the way any business owner would.
“Truly successful agents understand that a partnership requires mutual accountability,” Sean says. “Freight doesn’t always cooperate. A claim can go sideways through no fault of an agent’s own, and it still lands on their desk. The agents who lean in during those moments, who get on the call and work the problem instead of pointing fingers, tend to be the ones building agencies that stick around for the long haul.”
If you’re ready to give it your all? We are too. That’s what partnership looks like at Tallgrass: two people pulling in the same direction, each bringing something valuable to the table.
How We Show Up: Our Commitment to Your Growth
Talk is easy. Partnership always sounds good on paper, but it’s easier to show than explain. Here’s a real example of what showing up looks like at Tallgrass. This year, we piloted something new with a small group of local agents by helping them identify the trade associations their best customers belonged to, then funding the trip so they could show up in person, not just show up in an inbox. It’s just a small example of a big pattern at Tallgrass: when an agent flags an opportunity, we’ll find a way to back it.
We’re laser-focused on helping our agents become the best leaders they can be for their freight agency. “We’re willing to invest in our agents with the resources they need to grow their book of business,” Sean shares. A handful of agents tried it early, built real relationships inside those associations, and started seeing new business come from people who’d heard their names mentioned by a customer already in their corner.
And we can’t forget about our beyond-compare back office. Behind every successful freight agency is a strong operational foundation. That’s why Tallgrass provides experienced back-office support to help agents stay focused on growing their business instead of getting buried in administrative work. Whether it’s billing, collections, claims, accounting, our industry-leading CRM or the day-to-day operational questions that inevitably pop up, our team is there to help keep things moving. It’s not about taking ownership away from agents. It’s about giving them the resources and expertise to operate with confidence while spending more time serving customers and building relationships.
Why Tallgrass?
Sean’s been on the other side of this question himself. Before Tallgrass, he spent almost a decade at a traditional brokerage, not totally sure where he wanted to land next. What sold him on becoming a Tallgrass agent was watching how Damon Anderson and Dave Barnes actually treated people. Partnership requires trust. We trust our agents to run their business like owners, and they trust us to have their backs when they need us.
That’s the same standard Sean and the leadership team hold the company to today. It’s about getting to know our agents, finding out what they’re working toward — and when they call, giving them a real answer instead of a script. Some of that happens through monthly learning calls, mini roundtables on the road, or the legendary Roundtable back in Kansas City. A lot of it happens in the day-to-day conversations and problem-solving over the phone. However it shows up, our heart for professional development stays the same: Agents are out there building something real, and Tallgrass wants to be building right alongside them.
Curious what a partnership with Tallgrass could look like for you? Reach out to our recruiting team today to start the conversation.