Operations Supervisor - Ocean

The Operations Supervisor - Ocean Freight is responsible for leading daily ocean import and export operations to ensure compliant, efficient, and cost‑effective international freight movement. They supervise a team of ocean freight forwarding professionals while serving as a subject matter expert across FCL and LCL shipments, carrier coordination, documentation, and import/export customs processes. They partner closely with internal teams, steamship lines, customs brokers, drayage providers, and overseas offices to maintain high service levels.

They play a key role in managing operational performance, meeting customer SLAs, and resolving complex shipment issues. This hands-on leader brings strong background in international ocean freight operations, and a continuous improvement mindset.

Responsibilities

* Supervise day‑to‑day ocean import and export operations, ensuring compliance with international trade regulations and company SOPs.

* Lead, coach, and develop a team of ocean freight coordinators, fostering accuracy, accountability, and service excellence.

* Oversee end‑to‑end ocean shipment execution, including booking, documentation, customs coordination, and final delivery.

* Ensure compliance with FMC, customs, carrier, and port authority requirements for international ocean freight movements.

* Manage both FCL and LCL shipments, including coordination with steamship lines, NVOCCs, CFS facilities, and drayage providers.

* Monitor operational KPIs such as transit times, dwell time, demurrage and detention exposure, service levels, and cost control.

* Serve as the primary escalation point for customer issues, port delays, rollovers, and documentation discrepancies.

* Review and approve ocean freight documentation, including B/Ls, commercial invoices, packing lists, ISF filings, and export documentation.

* Coordinate closely with overseas agents, carriers, customs brokers, and inland transportation partners.

* Support pricing, routing, and capacity decisions in partnership with sales, procurement, and network teams.

* Identify process inefficiencies and implement continuous improvement initiatives to enhance operational performance.

* Ensure accurate and timely system updates within freight forwarding and transportation management platforms.

* Maintain strong customer relationships through proactive communication and issue resolution.

* Support staffing, scheduling, and workload planning to meet volume fluctuations and service commitments.

* All other duties as assigned to meet evolving business needs.

Qualifications

* Education:

High School Diploma or GED equivalent required;
Associate's or Bachelor's degree in Logistics, Supply Chain, Business, or a related field preferred.

* Certification/Licensure: FMC, CCS, FIATA, or other industry‑recognized logistics certifications preferred.

* Experience:

5+ years of experience in international ocean freight import and export operations.

* Prior supervisory or team lead experience within a freight forwarding, NVOCC, or logistics environment.

* Strong working knowledge of international trade compliance, Incoterms, and ocean freight documentation.

* Experience working with freight forwarding systems and transportation management platforms required;
Cargo Wise experience highly preferred.

* Experience managing FCL/LCL shipments, port operations, and demurrage/detention mitigation.

* Strong analytical, organizational, and time‑management skills in a high‑volume, deadline‑driven environment.

* Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to coordinate across global teams and customers.

* Demonstrated discretion and confidentiality in handling and protecting sensitive information.

* Technical:
Proficient with common office technologies, including Windows PCs, Microsoft O365 (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.) and web conferencing (Teams, Zoom, Webex, etc.).

* Environment:
Comfort commuting to/from and working in a 100% on-site setting (listed in this posting), with travel for related meetings/events.

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