Houston Vaughn & Brian Barze Discuss what Drives Alabama’s Largest Logistics Company
President Bruce Rogers and Rotarian Dan Bundy with Houston Vaughn and Brian Barze
This week, the Rotary Club of Birmingham welcomed Houston Vaughn, President, and Brian Barze, CFO, of PS Logistics, Alabama’s largest trucking and logistics company. They shared how P&S grew from 20 trucks in 2004 to over 5,000 today, becoming North America’s largest flatbed carrier. Vaughn and Barze emphasized their driver-first culture, including a unique pay model that treats drivers as partners and helps reduce turnover. They highlighted the company’s asset right strategy, blending owned assets with a strong brokerage network, and credited Birmingham-based tech partners like McLeod Software and Fleetio for supporting their growth. With more than 40 successful acquisitions and a strong focus on safety, training, and innovation, the company continues to expand, aiming to become Birmingham’s next major IPO.
Speaker Bios
Houston Vaughn joined PS Logistics in 2007 as Chief Operations Officer. PS Logistics is the largest for-hire flatbed trucking company in the United States with over 4,500 over-the-road trucks and 50 locations across the country. It is also the largest logistics company based in Alabama with over $1.7 billion of revenue. At PS Logistics, Houston oversees the company’s assets including all operations of trucks, trailers, drivers, customers, recruiting, maintenance, and safety.
Prior to joining PSL, he was the Regional Manager of the Western Division for Falcon Transportation from 1990-2007. He began his career as an accountant and has 30 plus years of industry experience. Mr. Vaughn has a BS in Accounting and Economics from the University of Tennessee.
Brian Barze, a CPA, is a 1990 graduate of the University of Alabama, with a BS in Commerce and Business Administration (accounting major). Mr. Barze has over 24 years of experience working as a CFO; primarily with privately held and private equity backed companies. Mr. Barze joined PS Logistics in 2012 as Chief Financial Officer and Chief Risk Officer. PS Logistics is the largest for-hire flatbed trucking company in the United States with over 4,500 over-the-road trucks and is also the largest logistics company based in Alabama with over $1.7 billion of revenue. At PS Logistics, Brian oversees the company’s Risk Management, Governance, Mergers and Acquisitions, Capital Markets, and the Accounting, Tax and Finance Departments. Mr. Barze has managed dozens of Mergers and Acquisition throughout his career, closing over 30 buy-side transactions in his current role, as well as 5 sell-side transactions, including the most recent sale of PS Logistics to two large Private Equity firms in 2021 for over $1.1 Billion. PS Logistics has grown from $125 million to over $1.7 billion in revenue during his tenure.
Prior to PS Logistics, Brian served as CFO, Treasurer, and Chief Risk Officer of Sterne Agee Group, a regional financial services firm. Prior to Sterne Agee, he served as Senior Vice President of Finance and CFO of Oakstone Publishing, a private-equity backed publishing company and worked as the CFO of a private-equity backed software company prior to Oakstone. Prior to his CFO roles, he worked as controller of operations for Drummond Company, travelling monthly to Colombia, South America. His public accounting experience was primarily focused on financial institutions and manufacturing companies.
Brian currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Alabama Trucking Association and on the Board of Visitors of the Culverhouse College of Business at the University of Alabama. He is a member of the Samford Business School CFO Roundtable and participates on the Bank of America - Birmingham CFO Roundtable. He regularly speaks on industry Risk Management and M&A panels and served as an Entrepreneurial Mentor for the Birmingham Venture Club. Brian enjoys the outdoors, mountain biking, traveling, and spending time with his wife and three boys.