Terminal Manager

Forward Air Corporation

• $175K — $190K *
Transportation
5 - 7 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Undergraduate degree in Supply Chain Management, Business, Transportation, Logistics, or related field preferred.
  • Valid forklift certification/licensure required; ability to operate specialized material handling equipment (MHE).
  • Training in Lean, Six Sigma, DOT compliance, or IATA/IMDG familiarity is preferred.
  • 5+ years of leadership experience in multimodal transportation or operational environments.
  • Strong knowledge of multimodal transportation processes and terminal coordination.
  • Ability to manage operational KPIs, labor planning, and transportation capacity.

Responsibilities

  • Lead all operations across terminal transportation flows including ground, air, ocean, and rail.
  • Ensure compliance with service, financial, safety, quality, and regulatory standards.
  • Coach teams to drive consistent execution and operational discipline.
  • Own terminal P&L performance and manage cost-to-serve across modes.
  • Lead workforce planning and resource allocation based on customer demand.
  • Monitor operational and financial performance, implementing corrective actions as needed.
  • Manage capital expenditures for terminal improvements and multimodal handling.

Benefits

  • Work in a dynamic, fast-paced environment with multimodal operations.
  • Opportunities for professional development in transportation logistics.
  • Exposure to and collaboration with diverse transportation providers and stakeholders.
  • Participation in continuous improvement initiatives focused on operational excellence.
Full Job Description
Job Description

Terminal Manager

Compensation: $175,000 - 190,000 Annually

The Terminal Manager is responsible for leading all aspects of multimodal transportation terminal operations, including ground, air, ocean, and rail workflows. This role provides strategic and day-to-day leadership to ensure safe, compliant, and efficient movement of freight from inbound receipt through final delivery. The Terminal Manager ensures operational performance aligns with contractual, service, financial, and regulatory commitments across all supported modes. They drive workforce planning, multimodal capacity management, cost control, and terminal productivity through strong operational discipline and data-driven decision-making. They partner with transportation providers, carriers, customers, and internal teams to ensure seamless multimodal handoffs and service delivery.

Responsibilities

  • Lead all operations across the terminal's transportation flows, including ground, air, ocean, and rail processes from inbound receipt through final delivery.
  • Ensure service, financial, safety, quality, and regulatory requirements are met across all transportation modes.
  • Coach operations and support teams to drive consistent execution, operational discipline, and multimodal process accuracy.
  • Own terminal P&L performance, including labor, variable costs, period expenses, and cost-to-serve across modes.
  • Lead workforce planning, volume forecasting, transportation capacity alignment, and cross-mode resource allocation based on network and customer demand.
  • Monitor terminal operational and financial performance, identify variances, and implement corrective actions.
  • Manage terminal capital expenditures tied to approved investments, terminal improvements, and multimodal handling needs.
  • Sponsor and lead initiatives that improve productivity, quality, velocity, safety, and multimodal cost performance.
  • Establish and manage terminal KPIs aligned with safety, regulatory compliance, on-time performance, mode accuracy, cost, and productivity.
  • Lead regular operational, transportation, and performance reviews to assess results and identify improvement opportunities.
  • Proactively manage employee relations through communication, coaching, performance feedback, and team development.
  • Ensure robust safety practices and full compliance with DOT, OSHA, TSA, FMC, IATA, rail, and other mode-specific regulations.
  • Collaborate with carriers, drayage providers, freight forwarders, brokers, linehaul partners, and regulatory authorities to ensure smooth multimodal operations.
  • Support and promote continuous improvement methodologies using data, structured problem-solving, and transportation analytics.
  • All other duties as assigned to meet evolving business needs.


Qualifications

  • Education: Undergraduate degree in Supply Chain Management, Business, Transportation, Logistics, or a related field preferred; High School Diploma or GED/equivalent required.
  • Certification/Licensure: Valid forklift certification/licensure (or ability to obtain before operating equipment) required, including operation of applicable material handling equipment (MHE) such as sit-down/stand-up forklifts, reach trucks, order pickers, pallet riders, or other specialized MHE as required by the site. Additional equipment certifications may be required depending on facility needs.
  • Training in Lean, Six Sigma, DOT compliance, IATA/IMDG familiarity, or similar is preferred.
  • Experience: 5+ years of leadership experience in multimodal transportation, 3PL, contract logistics, or operational environments involving ground, air, ocean, or rail.
  • Strong working knowledge of multimodal transportation processes, carrier operations, freight flow management, and terminal/linehaul coordination.
  • Strong functional understanding of TMS, WMS, ERP (McLeod, SAP, Oracle, etc.), and reporting/data tools.
  • Proven ability to manage operational KPIs, labor planning, transportation capacity, and cost performance.
  • Experience developing and using dashboards, scorecards, and transportation KPI reporting to manage terminal performance.
  • Ability to create, track, and interpret safety, quality, delivery, cost, and productivity metrics across multiple transportation modes.
  • Demonstrated discretion and confidentiality in handling and protecting sensitive information.
  • Technical: Proficient with common office technologies, including Windows PCs, Microsoft O365 (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.) and web conferencing (Teams, Zoom, Webex, etc.).
  • Environment: Comfort commuting to/from and working in a 100% on-site setting (listed in this posting), with travel for related meetings/events.


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