Bryan Keller

Chief Executive Officer Keller Logistics Group

Last Reviewed: September 26, 2026

Executive Summary

Bryan Keller is Chief Executive Officer of Keller Logistics Group, an asset-based third-party logistics provider headquartered in Defiance, Ohio. His uncle, Thomas E. Keller, founded the business in 1978 as a trucking company with one truck. Bryan joined it in 1990 after graduating from Ball State University and became CEO in 2000. Since then he has broadened it from a trucking carrier into a group that also includes warehousing and co-packing, freight brokerage and industrial property businesses. The group employs more than 1,000 people and serves customers across North America. In June 2026 he was named to the Entrepreneurial & Business Excellence Hall of Fame.

Career Highlights

• Chief Executive Officer of Keller Logistics Group since 2000, responsible for strategy and operations across all Keller affiliates.
• Led the creation of Keller Warehousing & Co-Packing, Keller Freight Solutions and Keller Industrial Properties alongside the original Keller Trucking.
• Finalist for Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year award for 2022.
• Named to the 2026 Entrepreneurial & Business Excellence Hall of Fame, receiving its Business Excellence Award.
• Founded Operation K.A.V.I.C. in 2016. The company says the effort has raised more than $400,000 for local veterans in financial crisis.
• First non-veteran to receive the Ohio State Association of County Veterans Service Commissioners Award, in 2018.

Professional Journey

Thomas E. Keller founded Thomas E. Keller Trucking in Defiance, Ohio, in 1978 with a single truck. His nephew Bryan joined in 1990 after earning a bachelor’s degree in marketing at Ball State University. He became CEO in 2000. Over the following years he diversified the trucking company’s customer base and invested in technology and equipment. He also started new affiliates: Keller Warehousing & Co-Packing, Keller Freight Solutions and Keller Industrial Properties. Together they made Keller Logistics Group a full-service provider of transportation, warehousing, distribution and contract packaging.

The company says it has appeared several times on the Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing private companies. Keller was a finalist for Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year for 2022 and has been named to Ohio Business Magazine’s Ohio 500 list of most influential executives. In June 2026 the Entrepreneurial & Business Excellence Hall of Fame announced that he would receive its Business Excellence Award at the 38th annual ceremony. Accepting, he said the recognition “belongs to the more than 1,000 people who show up every day to deliver for our customers and our community.” He runs the group with a senior team that includes Nate Schaublin as President and Chief Operating Officer and separate presidents for the trucking, freight brokerage and warehousing affiliates.

Much of his public profile in Defiance comes from philanthropy and civic work. The Keller Family Foundation gives financial support to local organizations and charitable events. In 2016 he created Operation K.A.V.I.C. (Keller Assists Veterans in Crisis) to help local veterans whose benefits left gaps. That work earned him the Ohio State Association of County Veterans Service Commissioners Award in 2018, the first time a non-veteran had received it, and the Defiance Area Chamber of Commerce’s Michael A. Schultz Leadership award for 2020. He sits on the board of Defiance County Economic Development – Community Improvement Corporation. He has also chaired the Board of Trustees of Northwest State Community College and been involved with trucking and warehousing trade associations. Outside work he runs and has competed in fifteen marathons, and he also does triathlons and cycling.

Education

Ball State University

Bachelor’s degree, Marketing