Transportation Planner

Job Summary

The Transportation Planner is responsible for coordinating and optimizing the movement of goods and materials within a supply chain network. Their primary role involves planning, organizing, and managing transportation activities to ensure efficient and cost-effective delivery of products.

Job Responsibilities

• Shipment Coordination: Coordinating the pickup, delivery, and tracking of shipments, ensuring on-time and accurate transportation of goods. Collaborates weekly/monthly with AP/Carriers to ensure carriers are being paid in a timely manner. Communicating with carriers, suppliers, and customers to facilitate smooth operations.  
• Performance Monitoring: Tracking and analyzing key performance indicators (KPIs) such as on-time delivery, carrier performance, transportation costs, and customer satisfaction to evaluate transportation performance and identify areas for improvement. 
• Continuous Improvement: Identifying opportunities to streamline transportation processes, optimize routes, improve carrier relationships, and enhance overall transportation efficiency.  
• Technology Utilization: Utilizing transportation management systems (TMS) or other relevant software tools to manage transportation operations, track shipments, generate reports, optimize routing, load planning, and ensures the integrity of the planning system. 
• Risk Management: Identifying potential transportation risks, such as delays, disruptions, or damages, and implementing contingency plans or risk mitigation strategies to minimize their impact.   
• Freight Cost Optimization: Analyzing freight costs, consolidating shipments, and implementing cost-saving measures such as backhauling or optimizing truck loads to minimize transportation expenses.   
• Carrier Selection and Negotiation: Identifying and selecting transportation carriers based on their capabilities, pricing, and service levels. Negotiating contracts and rates to ensure competitive pricing and favorable terms.  
• Collaboration: Collaborating with internal stakeholders such as procurement, warehouse, and customer service teams to align transportation plans with overall supply chain goals and customer requirements. 
• Sales and Operations Planning (S&OP): Participating in S&OP meetings to provide transportation insights, assess risks, and contribute to decision-making processes. 

Job Requirements

• High School Diploma or GED required.  Bachelor’s degree preferred.
• Minimum of three years of transportation procurement & planning experience required. 
• Previous areas of experience include Business, Logistics, and/or Planning in an ever-changing, demanding environment.   
• Prior experience working with Planning systems and Procurement software. 
• Strong understanding of Supply Chain activities and the related dependencies to other functions. 
• Working knowledge of Inventory and Capacity management methodologies. 
• Strong communication skills, including both written and verbal as well as strong presentation skills. 
• Exceptional process improvement skills (Six Sigma & LEAN) with the proven ability to implement process changes, improving efficiency and cost savings across functions. 
• Capable of driving change, cross-functionally, utilizing project management approaches and concepts.