Ted Alling is a Founding Partner of Dynamo Ventures. Prior to Dynamo, he was the co-founder and former CEO of a $500M logistics startup, Access America, that eventually merged with UPS subsidiary, Coyote Logistics.
In 2017, Ted and his wife, Kelly, embarked on their true passion project, the creation of Chattanooga Preparatory School (Chatt Prep), an all-boys public charter school for middle and high school students. Chattanooga Prep is designed to provide unique and impactful educational opportunities for the young men in the city’s urban communities.
Ted is an ardent supporter of Chattanooga which he calls home along with Kelly and their three children.
I think the most important trait a startup CEO would have is vision. The CEO has to set the vision for their company. They must get investors, employees, customers, and vendors to buy-in to that vision. A CEO has to see the invisible. They have to be crystal clear on what exactly success looks like and inspire others to believe in the startup.
The most influential person in my life is my wife. We got married right out of college. We took a chance early starting our third party logistics company and she has been fully committed to my entire entrepreneurial career. We even used to go to truck stops on the weekends and talk to truck drivers to learn where they needed help on their backhauls. Heck, we would even get in the back of their cabs. She holds our marriage to a high bar and is one of the hardest workers that I know. She personifies the quote, "The way you do anything is the way you do everything." I love her and am lucky to be married to her.
