Terminal Manager

Forward Air•Austin, TX

3d•Onsite

About The Position

The Terminal Manager leads all aspects of multimodal transportation and forwarding terminal operations, providing strategic and day-to-day leadership to ensure safe, compliant, and efficient freight movement from inbound receipt through final delivery. The role ensures operational performance meets contractual, service, financial, and regulatory commitments across supported modes. It leads workforce planning, multimodal capacity management, cost control, and terminal productivity through operational discipline and data-driven decision-making, while partnering with transportation providers, carriers, customers, and internal teams to support seamless handoffs and service delivery.

Requirements

High school diploma or GED/equivalent required.
Valid forklift certification/licensure, or ability to obtain it before operating equipment, required; applicable material handling equipment may include sit-down and stand-up forklifts, reach trucks, order pickers, pallet riders, or other specialized equipment required by the site.
At least 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 systems such as McLeod, SAP, or Oracle, 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 when handling and protecting sensitive information.
Proficiency with common office technologies, including Windows PCs, Microsoft O365 applications, and web conferencing tools such as Teams, Zoom, or Webex.
Comfort commuting to and working in a 100% on-site setting, with travel for related meetings and events.

Nice To Haves

Undergraduate degree in Supply Chain Management, Business, Transportation, Logistics, or a related field preferred.
Training in Lean, Six Sigma, DOT compliance, IATA/IMDG familiarity, or similar preferred.
Additional equipment certifications may be required depending on facility needs.

Responsibilities

Lead terminal operations across ground, air, ocean, and rail transportation flows from inbound receipt through final delivery.
Ensure service, financial, safety, quality, and regulatory requirements are met across transportation modes.
Coach operations and support teams to promote 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 according to network and customer demand.
Monitor operational and financial performance, identify variances, and implement corrective actions.
Manage capital expenditures related to approved investments, terminal improvements, and multimodal handling needs.
Lead initiatives to improve productivity, quality, velocity, safety, and multimodal cost performance.
Establish and manage terminal KPIs for 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.
Manage employee relations through communication, coaching, performance feedback, and team development.
Ensure robust safety practices and 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 support smooth multimodal operations.
Promote continuous improvement through data, structured problem-solving, and transportation analytics.
Perform other duties as assigned to meet evolving business needs.