Description
Plan, direct, and coordinate an organization's transportation operations—including fleet management, carrier relations, routing, and regulatory compliance—to ensure safe, cost-effective, and on-time movement of goods.
- • Supervise drivers, dispatchers, and staff engaged in routing, loading, and shipping.
- • Plan, develop, and implement transportation safety and security programs.
- • Inspect fleet vehicles and transportation equipment; schedule maintenance, repairs, or replacements.
- • Plan, organize, and manage transportation staff to meet service and compliance requirements.
- • Collaborate with sales, customer service, order management, and finance to align transportation with business processes.
- • Analyze networks, modes, and routes to optimize transportation cost and service.
- • Resolve transportation issues, system exceptions, and customer delivery problems.
- • Develop and document SOPs and contingency plans for routing, loading, shipping, and freight claims.
- • Monitor operations for compliance with company policies, DOT rules, safety, and environmental regulations.
- • Analyze financial impact of changes in routes, modes, fuel strategy, carrier mix, and volumes.
- • Monitor shipment volumes, capacity utilization, and on-time performance.
- • Establish and monitor transportation KPIs and scorecards.
- • Prepare and manage the transportation budget.
- • Oversee import and export transportation processes to ensure customs and trade compliance.
- • Recommend rate changes, surcharges, schedules, and service adjustments to management.
- • Recruit, select, and train drivers, dispatchers, and transportation supervisors.
- • Advise sales and billing on freight terms, accessorials, and transportation charges.
- • Analyze transportation spend to develop cost-saving plans and service improvements.
- • Coordinate transportation with production, warehousing, procurement, and sales to meet delivery requirements.
- • Implement customer-specific routing guides, reporting, and transportation metrics.
- • Maintain transportation KPIs, reports, SOPs, incident logs, and training and safety records.
- • Review freight bills, bills of lading, and customs documents for accuracy and compliance.
- • Plan and implement fuel- and energy-saving initiatives, such as route optimization, mode shifts, and idle reduction.
- • Evaluate carriers and third-party logistics providers for cost, service, safety, and sustainability.
- • Negotiate contracts and service levels with carriers, 3PLs, and insurers.
- • Plan fleet and equipment acquisitions and terminal or yard capacity needs.
- • Direct inbound and outbound transportation operations, safety performance, and quality management.
- • Plan and implement transportation process and system improvements, including TMS, ELD, and visibility tools.
- • Recommend and authorize capital expenditures for vehicles, trailers, telematics, and related equipment.
- • Review forecasts, order backlogs, and freight invoices to plan peak capacity and assign resources.
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Supply Chain & Transportation
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Source
Tasks & skills:
O*NET occupational data (work activities, skills, knowledge).
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Sources & Standards:
This site includes information from O*NET by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. Career Clutch has modified some of this information for student readability. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Last reviewed: Jan 2026
