Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Global Transport Analyst

🎯 Role Definition

The Global Transport Analyst is the analytical engine of our Global Logistics and Supply Chain team. This position is responsible for scrutinizing and enhancing the efficiency, cost-effectiveness, and performance of our worldwide transportation network. By leveraging complex datasets, you will identify trends, pinpoint improvement opportunities, and provide actionable insights that directly influence strategic decisions regarding carrier management, route optimization, and service level agreements. You will be instrumental in ensuring our products move seamlessly from origin to destination, balancing cost, speed, and reliability to meet and exceed customer expectations.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

Logistics Coordinator
Supply Chain Analyst
Data Analyst (with a supply chain focus)

Advancement To:

Senior Global Transport Analyst
Logistics Manager / Global Logistics Manager
Supply Chain Manager

Lateral Moves:

Procurement Specialist (Logistics/Transportation)
Supply Chain Planner
Business Intelligence Analyst

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

Conduct comprehensive and continuous analysis of global freight spend, carrier performance, and service levels to identify and recommend cost-saving opportunities and operational improvements.
Develop, maintain, and publish a suite of key performance indicator (KPI) dashboards and reports for senior leadership, tracking metrics such as on-time delivery, cost-per-unit, carrier capacity utilization, and transit time variability.
Manage and scrutinize large, complex datasets from various sources (TMS, ERP, carrier portals) to model transportation scenarios, forecast future costs, and support network design projects.
Lead the analytical component of transportation procurement events, including RFPs/RFQs, by preparing data packs, evaluating carrier bids, and modeling the financial impact of different award scenarios.
Serve as the primary point of contact for freight audit and payment providers, resolving discrepancies, ensuring accurate invoicing, and analyzing payment data to uncover billing errors or optimization opportunities.
Collaborate closely with regional logistics teams, procurement, and supply chain planners to understand local challenges and ensure that global transportation strategies are effectively implemented and tailored to regional needs.
Monitor global transportation market trends, including fuel surcharges, capacity constraints, and regulatory changes, and provide proactive analysis on their potential impact on the company's cost and service.
Drive continuous improvement initiatives by applying Lean or Six Sigma methodologies to transportation processes, aiming to eliminate waste, reduce lead times, and enhance overall efficiency.
Perform detailed root cause analysis on service failures, delays, and cost overruns, presenting findings and recommending concrete corrective and preventative actions to stakeholders.
Support the development and implementation of new transportation management systems (TMS) or other logistics technologies by defining business requirements, participating in user acceptance testing (UAT), and training end-users.
Manage carrier performance through structured quarterly business reviews (QBRs), preparing performance data, and holding carriers accountable to their service level agreements (SLAs).
Develop and maintain complex cost-to-serve models that provide visibility into the total landed cost of products, incorporating all transportation, customs, and handling fees.
Analyze and optimize multi-modal transportation strategies (ocean, air, road, rail) to find the ideal balance between cost, speed, and service reliability for different product lines and trade lanes.
Provide analytical support for major business initiatives, such as new market entries, distribution center openings, or changes in sourcing strategy, by modeling the transportation impact.
Champion data integrity and governance within transportation-related systems, working with IT and other stakeholders to ensure data is accurate, complete, and accessible for analysis.
Translate complex operational data into compelling narratives and strategic recommendations for executive-level review and decision-making.

Secondary Functions

Support ad-hoc data requests and exploratory data analysis for various internal stakeholders, including finance, sales, and customer service.
Contribute to the organization's long-term logistics and data strategy by providing insights on emerging technologies and analytical best practices.
Collaborate with business intelligence (BI) and IT teams to translate complex business needs into technical requirements for new dashboards and data pipelines.
Participate actively in cross-functional project teams, representing the global transportation perspective and ensuring alignment with logistics objectives.
Assist in the annual transportation budget creation process by providing data-driven forecasts, historical trend analysis, and insights into anticipated market changes.
Develop training materials and provide guidance to junior analysts or regional team members on data analysis techniques and the use of reporting tools.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

Advanced MS Excel: Mastery of complex formulas (VLOOKUP, INDEX/MATCH), pivot tables, Power Pivot, and data modeling for in-depth analysis.
Data Visualization: Expertise in creating intuitive and impactful dashboards using tools like Tableau, Power BI, or Qlik Sense.
Logistics Systems: Strong hands-on experience with Transportation Management Systems (TMS) like Oracle OTM, SAP TM, or Blue Yonder, and ERP systems (SAP, Oracle).
SQL Proficiency: The ability to write and execute complex queries to extract, manipulate, and analyze large datasets from relational databases.
Statistical Analysis: Experience with statistical modeling; knowledge of a programming language like Python (Pandas, NumPy) or R is a significant advantage.
Supply Chain Modeling: Familiarity with supply chain network design and optimization concepts and tools (e.g., Llamasoft, AnyLogistix) is highly desirable.
Financial Acumen: Understanding of freight cost structures, accruals, and the financial impact of logistics operations.

Soft Skills

Analytical & Problem-Solving Prowess: A proven ability to dissect complex problems, see the story in the data, and deliver clear, actionable recommendations.
Exceptional Communication: The ability to translate complex data insights into a clear and compelling narrative for both technical and non-technical audiences, including senior leadership.
Meticulous Attention to Detail: A relentless commitment to data accuracy, integrity, and producing high-quality, reliable work.
Project & Time Management: Superb organizational skills with a demonstrated ability to manage multiple competing priorities and deadlines in a fast-paced, global environment.
Collaborative Spirit: An innate ability to build strong, trusted working relationships with cross-functional partners and international teams to drive collective success.
Inherent Curiosity: A continuous improvement mindset and a passion for asking "why," always seeking ways to innovate and make processes and outcomes better.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

Bachelor's Degree

Preferred Education:

Master's Degree (MBA, MS in Supply Chain or Analytics)

Relevant Fields of Study:

Supply Chain Management
Logistics & Transportation
Business Analytics
Data Science
Economics
Industrial Engineering

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range:

3-5 years of dedicated experience in a transportation, logistics, or supply chain analysis role.

Preferred:

Experience working within a global or multi-national corporate environment, with direct exposure to multiple modes of transport (ocean, air, road, parcel). Proven success in driving cost savings and process improvements through data analysis.