Freight Manager
When you’re the freight manager at a large supply chain operation, it can almost be like running your own logistics business. As well as overseeing teams that ensure fleets are staffed, well maintained and legally compliant, you might also be negotiating deals with third party carriers and logistics hubs, and you will be keeping a close eye on the department’s incoming revenues and outgoing costs, to better balance the books and keep the business profitable.
Freight manager jobs can also be quite specific when it comes to regions and modes of transportation. The typical rail freight manager and road freight manager will have distinct skill sets, responsibilities and abilities, but both will be very different to someone who deals port to port with shipping companies. What they all have in common is a deep understanding of how time pressure and transport capacities go to make freight management an exact science, with as little room for manoeuvre as a supertanker in the Suez Canal.
The skills required
The budgetary oversight of the department or company you are managing will be in your hands. Therefore, you’ll need to be a person who not only understands how finances work in the freight industry, but also how to do it efficiently and to root out areas that are underperforming and replace them with more cost effective solutions.
As freight manager, you’ll also be overseeing a potentially complex team of drivers, warehouse staff, brokers, legal experts and contract specialists who will need to work like clockwork to keep your freight moving to where it’s meant to be. You’ll need to be confident in your decisions and able to communicate them to the whole team to see your strategic vision to completion.
Freight Manager Jobs in West Suffolk
Established in 1889, West Suffolk was an English administrative county until it was combined with East Suffolk in 1974 as part of the Local Government Act 1972.
Although it's no longer an official county, the various settlements in what was once West Suffolk still offer plenty of options for job seekers looking for Freight Manager positions. Indeed, just some of the towns and villages include Bury St Edmunds - the former county town of West Suffolk - Sudbury, Newmarket, Haverhill and Mildenhall.
Historically, West Suffolk was known for producing cloth and during the Middle Ages, there was a thriving cloth trade in the region.
Brewing and malting have long been important industries for the region, while sugar beet processing has also given a boost to the local economy.
Greene King - the UK's largest British-owned brewery - was established in West Suffolk in 1799, while smaller names include the Old Cannon Brewery and Bartrums Brewery.
British Sugar was established in 1936 and it has been processing sugar beet for the Silver Spoon brand at a factory in Bury St Edmunds since 1925.
Other notable businesses include chocolate company Hadleigh Maid, biotech firm Genzyme and International Flavors and Fragrances.
Popular locations
Freight managers needed nationwide
Every supply chain operation needs efficiency, so a good manager is like gold dust to any logistics operation. There’s a thriving market for anyone with the talent, and businesses offer attractive packages to the right candidates.
If you’re a freight manager with good experience, you are in demand right now, so please register your details via the link below. We can then match you up with some of the biggest and best supply chain companies in the world.
Companies that are looking for freight managers need to know they’re getting the cream of the crop when it comes to candidates. At Cast UK we only deal with managerial and executive-level freight managers, so we can whittle down an experienced shortlist for you to choose from. Call us on 0333 121 3345 to talk about specialist recruitment or get in touch here.
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