Air Export Operations Supervisor

Kuehne+Nagel; Bensenville (IL); On-site; USD 75,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health benefits

401k plan

Tuition reimbursement

Incentive compensation

Job summary

Kuehne+Nagel is seeking a seasoned Freight Forwarding leader responsible for directing export/import operations, pricing collaboration, and cross-functional alignment. You will supervise teams, optimize processes, and drive KPIs to ensure on-time, high-quality service for critical shipments including medicines and machinery.

Ideal candidates bring 5+ years in air freight, strong stakeholder management, and proficiency with Kuehne+Nagel systems.

Qualifications

• 2+ years of leadership/supervisory experience within Freight Forwarding.
• 2+ years of experience in Air Logistics.
• 2+ years of experience in Air Export Operations.
• 5+ years of Air import experience
• 2+ years of freight forwarding industry experience.
• Project management and international experience (preferred).
• Strong knowledge of freight forwarding, airfreight operations, and import/export regulations.
• Understanding of Kuehne+Nagel products, services, and processes.
• Good market knowledge and strong carrier relationship management capability.
• Proficiency in Kuehne+Nagel systems and Microsoft Office suite.
• Demonstrated leadership with strong communication skills.
• High attention to detail and sound decision-making ability.
• Commercially minded and performance driven.
• Strong planning, organizing, and time‑management skills.
• Flexible, able to work well under pressure, and open to change.
• Continuous improvement mindset with willingness to drive improvements.

Responsibilities

• Supervise the Export Operational Care center team under their direct management.
• Ensure operational excellence through high-quality shipment/process management.
• Support the development of pricing strategies (liaise on pricing / RFQ preparation).
• Ensure close cooperation with National Airfreight Managers of the Customer Care teams and Systems & Processes teams for optimized operations.
• Actively manage interfaces and information / knowledge exchange between Kuehne+Nagel teams.
• Contribute as process owner to continuous improvements of processes and controls for lean and cost-efficient processes.
• Optimize proceedings to ensure development of Airfreight operational KPIs To ensure the highest levels of productivity within the organization.
• Support Airfreight procurement and carrier relationship management.
• Ensure a high level quality of export/import services.
• Closely collaborate with Sales on strategic accounts as needed.
• Closely collaborate with Customer Service to gain specialized customer specific knowledge and to receive first-hand feedback about operational execution.
• Support to develop new / existing customer targets.

Skills

Leadership

Air Logistics

Air Export Ops

Air Import Ops

Freight Forwarding

Project Management

International Experience

Freight/Freight Forwarding Knowledge

Carrier Relationship Mgmt

Microsoft Office

Communication

Attention to Detail

Time Management

Adaptability

Continuous Improvement

Tools

Kuehne+Nagel systems

Microsoft Excel

Job description

Kuehne+Nagel is seeking a seasoned Freight Forwarding leader responsible for directing export/import operations, pricing collaboration, and cross-functional alignment. You will supervise teams, optimize processes, and drive KPIs to ensure on-time, high-quality service for critical shipments including medicines and machinery.

Ideal candidates bring 5+ years in air freight, strong stakeholder management, and proficiency with Kuehne+Nagel systems.