Vice President, Global Sales - International Forwarding, North America

Forward Air•Minneapolis, MN

1d•Remote

About The Position

The Vice President, Global Sales - International Forwarding is responsible for leading the commercial growth strategy for Air and Ocean freight across the region. They will develop and execute strategies that accelerate profitable international revenue growth while leading a team of dedicated international sales professionals. They balance direct sales leadership with broad commercial influence across Product, Operations, Pricing, Solutions Engineering, and Regional Sales leadership teams. They serve as the commercial champion for international forwarding solutions, ensuring Air and Ocean capabilities are fully integrated into customer strategies and go-to-market efforts. They drive market expansion, strengthen global collaboration, improve commercial effectiveness, and enable all sales channels to successfully position international solutions. The role also serves as a key executive partner to customers and global stakeholders, supporting multinational growth initiatives and long-term business performance.

Requirements

Undergraduate degree in a related field from an accredited college or university required.
10+ years of progressive commercial leadership experience within international freight forwarding, logistics, transportation, or global supply chain organizations.
Demonstrated success leading Air and Ocean Freight sales organizations and delivering sustained revenue and profit growth.
Extensive knowledge of international transportation, global forwarding, customs processes, trade compliance, and worldwide logistics solutions.
Experience leading geographically dispersed teams within complex matrixed organizations.
Proven ability to develop high-performing sales organizations through coaching, talent development, succession planning, and performance management.
Executive-level customer relationship management experience with the ability to influence internal and external stakeholders.
Strategic thinker with strong commercial acumen, executive presence, and the ability to align diverse stakeholders around common objectives.
Demonstrated discretion and confidentiality in handling and protecting sensitive information.
Proficient with common office technologies, including Windows PCs, Microsoft O365 (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.) and web conferencing (Teams, Zoom, Webex, etc.).

Responsibilities

Develop and execute the North American commercial strategy for Air and Ocean Freight, aligning growth priorities with corporate objectives.
Create annual and multi-year business plans that drive profitable revenue growth while maintaining disciplined margin performance.
Identify target industries, customer segments, trade lanes, and strategic market opportunities to expand international forwarding business.
Lead, coach, develop, and retain a high-performing North American International Sales organization.
Establish sales goals, pipeline management expectations, forecasting discipline, and performance management processes that drive accountability and results.
Partner with Sales Enablement to strengthen international sales capabilities, solution selling effectiveness, and commercial excellence.
Collaborate closely with Product, Pricing, Solutions Design, Operations, Customer Experience, and Implementation teams to deliver innovative customer solutions.
Serve as the voice of the customer by ensuring commercial feedback influences product development, service enhancements, and business priorities.
Build strong relationships with commercial leaders across EMEA, APAC, and Latin America to support multinational account strategies and revenue growth opportunities.
Act as the international forwarding subject matter expert for the broader North American sales organization by providing coaching, deal strategy, and executive support on complex opportunities.
Drive greater penetration of international solutions within existing customer portfolios through strategic account planning and cross-selling initiatives.
Personally engage with executive stakeholders and key customers to support major pursuits, solution design, and long-term account growth.
Monitor market trends, competitive activity, industry developments, and emerging opportunities to strengthen commercial performance and market position.
Own international sales forecasts, pipeline quality, revenue attainment, business reviews, and executive reporting through effective use of CRM and commercial analytics.
All other duties as assigned to meet evolving business needs.