Director of Pricing, Ocean Freight

Noatum; Schaumburg (IL); On-site; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Permanent Contract

Flexible Benefits Plan

Birthday leave

11 paid holidays and 5 floating days

Flexible work schedules

Professional growth opportunities

Collaborative international team

Job summary

Noatum Logistics in Schaumburg, IL seeks a Director of Pricing, Ocean Freight to lead the ocean pricing function for FCL and LCL services. You will develop disciplined pricing strategies, govern rate structures, and partner with Sales, Ocean Product, Trade Management, and Operations to drive margin, yield, and win rate.

This role requires strong analytical, negotiation, and leadership skills to build scalable processes, mentor the pricing team, and ensure accurate pricing data across tools such

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Logistics, Supply Chain, Transportation, Finance or equivalent.
• 8–10 years in ocean freight pricing, tender management or related roles.
• 3+ years of people leadership, cross-functional leadership, or team mentorship.

Responsibilities

• Lead ocean pricing strategy for FCL and LCL across key trade lanes.
• Own pricing governance, rate validity standards, and quote/tender pricing quality.
• Partner with Sales, Tender Management, Ocean Product, Trade Management, Operations, and global offices to deliver profitable customer solutions.
• Direct pricing support for RFQ/RFPs and post-bid analysis.
• Oversee rate management tools and data accuracy (CargoWise, CargoSphere).
• Establish pricing analytics, KPIs, and dashboards to monitor performance.

Skills

Pricing strategy

Negotiation

Leadership

Analytical thinking

Cross-functional collaboration

Market intelligence

Education

Bachelor's degree in Business, Logistics, Supply Chain, Transportation, Finance

Tools

CargoWise

CargoSphere

Job description

As a global client-centered logistics operator, Noatum Logistics provides integrated value-added solutions for the supply chain of all our clients. With a vast network of offices in 27 different countries, Noatum Logistics has onsite experts to develop and execute logistics solutions tailored to meet our client's needs.

Renowned for its excellent service and specialized staff, the company has positioned itself as an industry leader, offering solutions to meet the needs of clients across various sectors. Our services include Air Freight, Ocean Freight, Road & Rail Freight, Customs Brokerage, Warehousing & Distribution, and Value Supply Chain services. The solutions offered are Integrated Supply Chain Solutions, 3PL for eCommerce business (eSolutions), Reefer/Cold Chain Logistics, and Project Cargo.

Noatum Logistics responds to different industry needs with in-depth knowledge and experience in defined industries, including Fashion & Retail, Industrial & Construction, High Tech & Consumer Electronics, Automotive, Food & Consumer Goods, Mining, Energy and Oil & Gas, Defense & Aerospace, and Pharma & Healthcare.

About The Role

We are looking for a Director of Pricing, Ocean Freight to join our dynamic team at Noatum Logistics. In this role, The Director of Pricing, Ocean Product leads the ocean freight pricing function and current Ocean Pricing team for FCL and LCL services, developing disciplined pricing strategies that balance market competitiveness, carrier capacity, customer retention, and margin performance. This role owns ocean rate governance, rate database integrity, tender and RFQ pricing quality, trade-lane pricing guidance, and cross-functional alignment with Sales, Ocean Product, Trade Management, Operations, and Global Tender Management. The Director also builds scalable processes and analytics that improve win ratio, yield, service consistency, and visibility into market movement.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead ocean pricing strategy for FCL and LCL import and export services across key trade lanes, ensuring pricing decisions support growth, profitability, service reliability, and customer commitments.
• Own pricing governance, approval thresholds, rate validity standards, surcharge handling, exception management, and documentation for spot quotes, named-account pricing, and long-term contractual pricing.
• Partner with Sales, Tender Management, Ocean Product, Trade Management, Operations, overseas offices, network agents, and domestic carriers to deliver complete, competitive, and profitable customer solutions.
• Direct pricing support for RFQ/RFP and tender opportunities, including rate strategy, lane analysis, assumptions, risk review, surcharge validation, response quality, and post-bid lessons learned.
• When received, share ocean market intelligence related to capacity, blank sailings, port congestion, competitor information, and any other market drivers.
• Negotiate and maintain effective relationships with domestic drayage carriers, overseas partners, and internal procurement stakeholders to support competitive cost positions and reliable space options.
• Oversee rate management tools and databases, including CargoWise, CargoSphere, and related reporting resources, to maintain accurate, current, and traceable pricing data.
• Establish pricing analytics, scorecards, and KPIs to monitor quote turnaround time, win/loss trends, margin performance, rate competitiveness, appropriate surcharges, and data quality.
• Provide proactive trade-lane guidance to commercial teams, including pricing guardrails, target margins, product positioning, routing alternatives, and customer-specific pricing recommendations.
• Review pricing terms and commercial assumptions to reduce operational risk, including transit commitments, free time, equipment availability, inland requirements, accessorial exposure, special equipment, and service scope.
• Lead, coach, and develop pricing team members by setting priorities, improving workflows, strengthening analytical capabilities, and promoting high standards for accuracy, responsiveness, and customer service.
• Support service integrity and customer satisfaction by escalating pricing, space, carrier, or routing issues and coordinating alternatives with operations and product leadership.
• Ensure compliance with company policies, applicable transportation regulations, NVOCC practices, tariff guidance, and internal financial controls.
• Participate as an effective leadership team member with the ability to manage competing priorities in a fast-paced environment while maintaining courteous, prompt, and efficient internal and external customer relations.

What We Are Looking For

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Logistics, Supply Chain, Transportation, Finance, or equivalent combination of education and freight forwarding experience.
• 8 to 10 years of ocean freight forwarding, NVOCC, carrier, procurement, pricing, trade-lane, or tender management experience, with significant exposure to FCL and LCL pricing.
• 3 or more years of people leadership, team mentorship, process ownership, or cross-functional leadership experience.
• Strong understanding of ocean freight products, carrier contracts, rate structures, surcharges, tariffs, Incoterms, detention/demurrage exposure, routing options, inland components, and global trade-lane dynamics.
• Demonstrated ability to develop pricing strategies, evaluate profitability, analyze market conditions, negotiate with drayage providers and overseas partners, and support large customer bids.
• Advanced analytical and financial skills, including strong competency with currency, weight, volume, distance, margin, yield, and cost-to-serve calculations.
• Advanced proficiency with Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office, rate management tools, transportation management systems, CRM or quoting workflows, and database-driven reporting.
• Excellent communication, negotiation, stakeholder management, project management, problem-solving, and decision-making skills.
• Ability to lead through ambiguity, manage urgent requests, prioritize high-value opportunities, and maintain accuracy under deadline pressure.

Preferred Qualifications

• Hands-on experience with CargoWise, CargoSphere, WebCargo, rate procurement platforms, business intelligence tools, and structured pricing databases.
• Experience leading annual bid cycles, global account tenders, and trade-lane specific pricing strategies.
• Established knowledge of carrier contracts, transpacific service options, transatlantic, LATAM, intra-Americas, and other major trade lanes relevant to company strategy.
• Experience building pricing playbooks, approval matrices, margin guardrails, dashboard reporting, and workflow improvements that improve speed, quality, and commercial outcomes.
• Familiarity with predictive analytics, market indices, pricing models, or automation opportunities that improve pricing decision support.

Physical Requirements

• Noatum is committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals. As part of this commitment, Noatum will ensure that persons with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations.
• The job is performed indoors in a traditional office setting. Activities include extended periods of sitting while working at a computer and occasional fast-paced operations and events.
• The employee is occasionally required to stand, walk, sit, and reach with hands and arms.
• Specific vision abilities required by this position include close vision, distance vision, and the ability to adjust focus.
• Ability to communicate orally with customers, vendors, management, and co-workers. Regular use of the telephone, virtual meetings, and e-mail for communication. Hearing, vision, and speaking within normal ranges are essential for normal conversations, to receive ordinary information, and to prepare or inspect documents.
• Good manual dexterity for the use of common office equipment such as computers, calculators, and copiers.
• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit, handle, use hands to grasp, or feel and operate a computer keyboard, mouse, and telephone keypad.

What We Offer

• Permanent Contract - Enjoy stability and long-term career opportunities.
• Flexible Benefits Plan - Choose what suits you best: Health, Dental, Vision, 401K Plan with company match.
• Celebrate Your Birthday - Take a day off to make your special day even better.
• 11 paid Holidays and 5 floating holidays.
• Flexible work schedules.
• Professional Growth - Access continuous learning and development opportunities to boost your career.
• Collaborative & International Environment - Work with diverse teams and be part of a global network.
• Corporate University - Benefit from ongoing training programs designed to keep you ahead.

At Noatum Logistics, we guarantee equal opportunities and non-discrimination based on sex, gender, race, religion, disability, age, or sexual orientation in our selection processes. Our goal is to maximize people's talents in all their diversity while eliminating any form of discrimination.