Angi Acocella, PhD
Research Scientist MIT Center for Transportation & Logistics
- Boston MA
Dr. Acocella's research focuses on freight transportation and the relationships between shippers and motor carriers.
MIT Center for Transportation & Logistics
View more experts managed by MIT Center for Transportation & Logistics
Media
Social
Biography
(1) the relationships between shippers and motor carriers and their implications on pricing and performance;
(2) improving the experience of truck drivers for higher utilization, higher pay, and better parking opportunities by incorporating driver preferences into assignment and scheduling. The goal is to improve industry-wide retention;
(3) transportation nework resilience and how shippers and carriers can incorporate measured risk into strategic transportation planning.
Dr. Acocella uses data analytics, ML, and AI to develop models and incorporate uncertainty into these complex decisions;
Dr. Acocella received her Ph.D. at CTL and MIT’s Civil Engineering Department. Prior to joining CTL, Angi was a Research Associate at Harvard Business School where she co-authored cases for both elective and required curriculum in the Technology and Operations Management unit and the Business, Government, and International Economy unit. Her previous research has appeared as peer-reviewed articles in leading engineering, economics, and business journals.
Angi received her BS in Mechanical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and her MSc from MIT in the Technology and Policy Program in the Engineering Systems Division on a Fellowship from the Tata Center of Technology & Design. Angi’s industry experience includes work at IBM modeling and testing the thermal management design of the Z-series mainframe servers and thermal stress testing at the chip manufacturing and packaging levels.
Research Focus
Future Logistics & Infrastructure Systems
Shaping freight, mobility, and infrastructure systems that enable global supply networks.
Supply Chain Strategy & Network Architecture
Designing the structural configuration and competitive positioning of supply networks.
Critical Systems & Supply Network Resilience
Ensuring continuity, preparedness, and mission assurance under disruption and geopolitical volatility.
Areas of Expertise
Education
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
PhD
Logistics & Transportation Engineering
2021
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
MS
Systems Engineering, Technology & Policy Program (TPP)
2015
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
BS
Mechanical Engineering
2012
Languages
- English
Media Appearances
The Latest Technology in Freight Transportation with Samsara
MIT Supply Chain Frontiers Podcast online
2026-07-21
Joining tech journalist Jason Del Rey are Dr. Angi Acocella, Research Scientist in the FreightLab at the MIT Center for Transportation and Logistics, and David Gal, Vice President of Product and Engineering for Connected Equipment at Samsara, on a panel held at Samsara Beyond 2026 in Las Vegas.
Data quality, system integration, and data aggregation remain the absolute biggest bottlenecks to future tech implementation
FreightWaves online
2026-06-25
Dr. Angi Acocella, Research Scientist at the MIT Center for Transportation & Logistics, explains that while the possibilities of advanced tech are endless, the underlying data layer is often deeply flawed.
Elephants or Goldfish? Shipper-Carrier Memory Impact on Relationships, Reciprocity, and Dynamic Freight Markets
C.H. Robinson Blog online
2024-06-25
Truckload freight market cycles are nothing new for seasoned transportation practitioners. Yet these swings between periods of over- and under-supply (soft and tight markets, respectively) create considerable challenges and costs for shippers and carriers alike and put stress on their relationships. These professional relationships matter and require intentional communication and collaboration to build mutually beneficial arrangements and foster trust.
Why a "Coverage Approach" to RFPs Doesn't Pay: The Hidden Costs of Ghost Lanes
C.H. Robinson Blog online
2022-08-29
I recently had the opportunity to sit down with Dr. Angi Acocella, research affiliate at MIT’s Center for Transportation & Logistics, to discuss her work as part of the MIT FreightLab. In searching for an answer for our earlier question on improving RFPs, Angi’s research focused on the impact “ghost lanes” can have on supply chains*. Here are some of the key insights that came up about her research during our conversation.
An Inside Look at Shipper-Carrier Relationships | Angi Acocella
Freightvine Podcast online
2021-09-09
Chris Caplice is joined by Angi Acocella, doctoral candidate and Freight Lab Member at MIT’s Center for Transportation & Logistics. She discusses her nearly completed dissertation that explores the relationship between shippers and carriers on a number of levels. Angi shares her results and the analytical research behind them, providing intriguing insight.
Do carriers have short-term memories in tight freight markets?
Commercial Carrier Journal online
2021-05-21
Graduate assistant and PhD candidate Angela Acocella led the research and isolated the strength of shipper-carrier relationships to a single variable — the load acceptance ratio of carriers.
Speaking Engagements/Featured Conversations
Transportation 2025-26: A Look Back, a Look Ahead with FreightWaves, Bloomberg & MIT
Join Trimble's Chris Keating and an expert panel as they dissect the major trends and events of 2025, analyzing how transportation companies adapted to the challenges and opportunities. They will discuss the current state of freight rates, capacity, and market equilibrium, and examine the impact of government policies, regulations, and infrastructure investments. The role of technology and innovation in driving efficiency and transforming business models will be explored, along with emerging trends like sustainability, automation, and the evolving supply chain. The session will conclude with a detailed market outlook for 2026, including forecasts for key indicators and potential disruptors. Watch full session: https://trimble.swoogo.com/insight25-event/speaker/1685014/angela-acocella
The Billion Dollar Question: When Will the Market Turn?
Join Dr. Angi Acocella, Professor and Research Scientist at MIT's Center for Transportation & Logistics, to hear about market trends and industry research on the leading and lagging indicators of freight recessions and predictions on when the market will recover. Watch full session: https://trimble.swoogo.com/insight25-event/session/3049921/the-billion-dollar-question-when-will-the-market-turn-repeated-session
The Hidden Crisis in Global Freight Procurement
In a revealing presentation at Freightos’ Stable Chaos: A Digital Supply Chain Summit, Dr. Angi Acocella from MIT’s Center for Transportation and Logistics exposed a startling reality that procurement professionals have long suspected but rarely quantified: approximately 70% of contracted freight lanes never materialize with any volume whatsoever. Watch the full presentation: https://www.freightos.com/logistics-technology-insights/logistics-technology/mit-research-70-percent-freight-contracts-fail-ghost-lanes/
Research Papers
Innovators and Transformers: The challenges of warehousification: balancing logistics spatial needs with social and environmental sustainability
International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics ManagementAngela Acocella, Frans Cruijssen, Jan C Fransoo
2025-12-15
Purpose
We propose a framework focusing on logistics space in peri-urban regions and the associated planning decisions. Our approach explicitly incorporates social and environmental sustainability considerations to address growing concerns of large-scale warehouse spatial developments.
Great Expectations: The Moderating Effects of Supplier Service Model and Market Dynamics on Relational Contract Performance
Production and Operations ManagementAngela Acocella, Chris Caplice, Yossi Sheffi
2024-11-01
Under a relational contract, the value placed on expected future business must outweigh the short-term temptations to deviate for the buyer–supplier relationship to persist. Operational and relational factors that influence this trade-off have been explored, however, there is a considerable lack of research on the moderating effects of supplier and market characteristics. We offer insights into how supplier service models and market dynamics impact suppliers’ decisions to renege on the relational contract. Limited access to transactional and contractual data has restricted previous exploration. We overcome this limitation with a detailed dataset in the for-hire truckload transportation sector.
Research on truckload transportation procurement: A review, framework, and future research agenda
Journal of Business LogisticsAngela Acocella, Chris Caplice
2023-04-01
The body of literature on truckload (TL) transportation procurement decisions by firms (shippers) and their transportation service providers (motor carriers) has been driven by real‐world challenges faced by a large and important segment of the economy. The field has received the attention of researchers from a wide range of domains. While this attention demonstrates the appeal of these complex procurement problems, it also underscores a key challenge: the literature is dispersed and uncoordinated. This makes it difficult to identify meaningful new streams of research, risks slowing progress in the field, and limits the exposure of the research to wider supply chain audiences. With this review of the existing literature, we coordinate the growing set of research in this domain and demonstrate how the TL procurement literature is positioned within the broader streams of service procurement research.
An empirical analysis of carrier reciprocity in dynamic freight markets
Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation ReviewAngela Acocella, Chris Caplice, Yossi Sheffi
2020-08-01
Dynamic macroeconomic conditions and non-binding truckload freight contracts enable both shippers and carriers to behave opportunistically. We present an empirical analysis of carrier reciprocity in the US truckload transportation sector to demonstrate whether consistent performance and fair pricing by shippers when markets are in their favor result in maintained primary carrier tender acceptance when markets turn. The results suggest carriers have short memories: they do not remember shippers’ previous period pricing, tendering behavior, or performance when making freight acceptance decisions. However, carriers appear to be myopic and respond to shippers’ current market period behaviors, ostensibly without regard to shippers’ previous behaviors.
Courses
SCM.260 Logistics Analytics
The course provides an introduction to supply chain management from both analytical and practical perspectives. Taking a unified approach, students develop a framework for making intelligent decisions within the supply chain. It covers key logistics functions, such as demand planning, procurement, inventory theory and control, transportation planning and execution, reverse logistics, and flexible contracting. It explores concepts such as postponement, portfolio management, and dual sourcing. Finally, the course emphasizes skills necessary to recognize and manage risk, analyze various tradeoffs, and model logistics systems.
