Carrier Sales Manager

Atlas Global Talent; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Performance-based incentive options

Full-time permanent position

Access to carrier procurement tech &运营

Long‑term management and career growth

Job summary

Atlas Global Talent is seeking an experienced Carrier Sales Manager to lead the brokerages team in Chicago, driving capacity, pricing and strong carrier partnerships. This hands-on manager role combines leadership with direct involvement in negotiations and procurement to protect profitability.

Base salary ranges from $90,000 to $120,000, with opportunities for performance-based incentives. This is a full-time permanent position based in Chicago, Illinois within an established asset-based

Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience within carrier sales, freight brokerage or transportation.
• Experience managing, supervising or mentoring carrier sales representatives.
• Proven history of generating and improving gross profit through effective carrier procurement.
• Strong understanding of the US domestic trucking market.
• Experience negotiating capacity across FTL, LTL and other domestic transportation modes.
• Strong knowledge of carrier pricing, freight margins and transportation market conditions.
• Experience building and maintaining strategic carrier relationships.
• Ability to develop and implement effective carrier procurement strategies.
• Strong understanding of brokerage operations and freight execution.
• Experience managing performance through measurable KPIs.
• Confidence handling complex negotiations and service escalations.
• Familiarity with transportation management systems and load boards.
• Strong leadership, communication and relationship-building skills.
• Ability to motivate and develop people while maintaining high performance expectations.
• Strong commercial awareness and analytical skills.
• A proactive approach to improving processes and solving operational challenges.

Responsibilities

• Lead, manage and develop a team of carrier sales representatives.
• Establish clear performance expectations and maintain accountability across the team.
• Coach team members on carrier prospecting, rate negotiation and relationship development.
• Oversee daily carrier procurement activity and ensure customer freight is covered efficiently.
• Develop strategies to improve carrier capacity, service consistency and gross profit.
• Build and maintain relationships with key carrier partners across the US transportation market.
• Support negotiations on high-volume, strategic and commercially sensitive freight.
• Identify opportunities to develop repeat carrier capacity across important transportation lanes.
• Monitor individual and team performance against gross profit, margin, service and productivity objectives.
• Review carrier buy rates and identify opportunities to improve procurement efficiency.
• Work closely with customer sales and pricing teams to support competitive customer solutions.
• Collaborate with operations teams to resolve service failures, capacity shortages and escalated shipment issues.
• Monitor freight market conditions, seasonal trends, capacity availability and pricing movements.
• Ensure carrier partners meet relevant insurance, safety and compliance requirements.
• Improve carrier utilisation and reduce unnecessary reliance on spot-market capacity.
• Support the recruitment, onboarding and training of new carrier sales professionals.
• Maintain accurate carrier records, pricing information and performance data within internal systems.
• Identify opportunities to improve workflows, technology utilisation and overall team efficiency.
• Contribute to the wider commercial strategy and continued growth of the brokerage division.

Skills

Carrier sales

Team leadership

Gross profit

US trucking market

Capacity negotiations

Pricing & margins

Carrier relationships

Procurement strategy

Brokerage operations

KPIs

Negotiation

TMS & load boards

Leadership skills

People development

Commercial awareness

Process improvement

Tools

Transportation Management Systems (TMS)

Load boards

Job description

My client is a major asset-based transportation and logistics provider with an established freight brokerage division, looking to appoint an experienced Carrier Sales Manager to support the continued growth of its Chicago operation.

This is a player-coach style leadership opportunity for someone who understands the commercial side of carrier sales, knows how to build strong carrier networks and has experience developing high-performing brokerage teams.

Unlike a traditional non-asset brokerage, the business combines its own substantial transportation infrastructure with an extensive third-party carrier network, creating a strong platform for delivering reliable and competitive freight solutions.

The successful candidate will take responsibility for driving carrier sales performance, developing the team, improving procurement strategies and ensuring the business continues to deliver strong service and profitability.

With a base salary of $90,000 - $120,000, this is an opportunity for an established carrier sales professional to step into a position with greater responsibility and influence.

The Role

As Carrier Sales Manager, you'll lead the carrier sales function within the brokerage operation, ensuring the team consistently secures reliable capacity at commercially competitive rates.

You'll be responsible for developing the people, processes and carrier relationships that contribute to successful freight execution and profitable account growth.

This is a hands-on management position. You'll remain closely involved in carrier negotiations, capacity planning, pricing strategy and resolving more complex transportation challenges.

You'll work alongside customer sales, account management and operations teams to ensure carrier procurement supports both customer commitments and commercial objectives.

A major focus will be developing a team that understands the importance of building long‑term carrier relationships rather than relying exclusively on transactional load‑board coverage.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead, manage and develop a team of carrier sales representatives

• Establish clear performance expectations and maintain accountability across the team

• Coach team members on carrier prospecting, rate negotiation and relationship development

• Oversee daily carrier procurement activity and ensure customer freight is covered efficiently

• Develop strategies to improve carrier capacity, service consistency and gross profit

• Build and maintain relationships with key carrier partners across the US transportation market

• Support negotiations on high‑volume, strategic and commercially sensitive freight

• Identify opportunities to develop repeat carrier capacity across important transportation lanes

• Monitor individual and team performance against gross profit, margin, service and productivity objectives

• Review carrier buy rates and identify opportunities to improve procurement efficiency

• Work closely with customer sales and pricing teams to support competitive customer solutions

• Collaborate with operations teams to resolve service failures, capacity shortages and escalated shipment issues

• Monitor freight market conditions, seasonal trends, capacity availability and pricing movements

• Ensure carrier partners meet relevant insurance, safety and compliance requirements

• Improve carrier utilisation and reduce unnecessary reliance on spot‑market capacity

• Support the recruitment, onboarding and training of new carrier sales professionals

• Maintain accurate carrier records, pricing information and performance data within internal systems

• Identify opportunities to improve workflows, technology utilisation and overall team efficiency

• Contribute to the wider commercial strategy and continued growth of the brokerage division

The Experience We're Looking For

My client is looking for someone who has developed their career within carrier sales or freight brokerage and understands how to manage both people and commercial performance.

Ideally, you'll have:

• 5+ years of experience within carrier sales, freight brokerage or transportation

• Previous experience managing, supervising or mentoring carrier sales representatives

• A proven history of generating and improving gross profit through effective carrier procurement

• Strong understanding of the US domestic trucking market

• Experience negotiating capacity across FTL, LTL and other domestic transportation modes

• Strong knowledge of carrier pricing, freight margins and transportation market conditions

• Experience building and maintaining strategic carrier relationships

• Ability to develop and implement effective carrier procurement strategies

• Strong understanding of brokerage operations and freight execution

• Experience managing performance through measurable KPIs

• Confidence handling complex negotiations and service escalations

• Familiarity with transportation management systems and load boards

• Strong leadership, communication and relationship-building skills

• Ability to motivate and develop people while maintaining high performance expectations

• Strong commercial awareness and analytical skills

• A proactive approach to improving processes and solving operational challenges

Candidates currently working as Senior Carrier Sales Representatives, Carrier Sales Team Leads or Carrier Sales Managers will be considered, provided they can demonstrate strong commercial performance and leadership potential.

What Success Looks Like

This position is about more than making sure every load gets covered.

My client wants someone who can develop a carrier sales operation that consistently delivers strong service while protecting profitability.

You'll be expected to improve the quality and reliability of the carrier network, strengthen repeat carrier relationships and help the team become more commercially effective.

Success will be measured through improvements in team gross profit, carrier performance, procurement efficiency, service reliability and the continued development of individual team members.

You'll also play an important role in creating a culture where people are accountable, commercially aware and motivated to improve their performance.

The Advantage of an Asset-Based Platform

One of the key benefits of this opportunity is the wider transportation infrastructure supporting the brokerage division.

The business operates an established asset-based transportation network alongside its third‑party brokerage capabilities, providing additional resources and market knowledge.

This creates opportunities to develop stronger capacity strategies, improve transportation planning and deliver more comprehensive solutions to customers.

As Carrier Sales Manager, you'll have the opportunity to influence how carrier relationships are developed and how the brokerage operation continues to grow.

Compensation & Benefits

• $90,000 - $120,000 base salary, depending on experience and previous performance

• Performance-based incentive opportunities, subject to agreement

• Full‑time permanent position

• Chicago, Illinois

• Established asset-based transportation and brokerage infrastructure

• Access to carrier procurement technology and operational resources

• Opportunity to lead and develop a carrier sales team

• Long‑term management and career progression opportunities

Why Consider This Opportunity?

For an experienced carrier sales professional, moving into management should mean more than simply taking responsibility for a team.

This opportunity offers the chance to influence how a brokerage operation develops, improve commercial performance and help build a stronger carrier sales function within an established transportation business.

You'll have the backing of a major asset-based logistics organization while retaining the ability to make a meaningful impact on carrier procurement, team development and profitability.

With a base salary of $90,000 - $120,000, this could be an excellent next step for an established Carrier Sales Manager or a high‑performing senior carrier sales professional ready to take on greater leadership responsibility.