Freight is a dynamic and rewarding industry. One way to get your start in the shipping industry is to become a truck dispatcher.
Dispatchers play a key role in getting trucks out to collect and deliver loads for businesses shipping goods.
You need to consider everything from how to navigate a load board and create an effective website to how to negotiate contracts and find and work with carriers.
Truck dispatchers are usually employed directly by a shipping company or an owner-operator. They could be employed by a freight company to coordinate a set portfolio of shipping lanes. Some truck dispatchers work freelance for multiple trucking companies as independent freight dispatchers.
The best truck dispatchers have a mix of interpersonal and analytical skills that help them solve problems in every section of the supply chain.
Dispatchers need to have a good sense of how all the pieces of the puzzle fit in order to quickly respond to changes or customer requests.
To become a freight dispatcher you need:
Education and training.
Get industry experience.
Register your business.
Subscribe to a quality load board.
Running a successful truck dispatcher business is hard work, like so many of the jobs in the freight industry, dispatching can be lucrative. It takes a keen eye for detail and an organized mind to be successful in the role. If you have those qualities, this might be a career worth pursuing.
Growth + Change = Opportunity!