Logistics Coordinator II Job Description

A Logistics Coordinator II is the senior operational resource in a logistics coordination team. They handle the freight that requires judgment — the spot market loads, the international shipments, the high-priority customer accounts where a service failure causes a real business problem — and they are the person Coordinator I staff bring their difficult questions to.

The core of the job is the same as Coordinator I: manage the shipment lifecycle, handle exceptions, keep documentation accurate, and keep communication clear. But the scope is wider and the problems are harder. A Coordinator II is expected to negotiate a spot rate during a capacity crunch, not just tender to a contracted carrier. They are expected to manage a freight forwarder relationship and process a set of export compliance documents, not just hand them to a specialist. They are expected to sit in a quarterly business review with a major carrier and discuss service trends, not just report exceptions to their manager.

The team leadership dimension matters at this level. Coordinator IIs often train new hires, set the standard for exception documentation, and create informal mentorship relationships that raise the quality of the whole coordination team. This is preparation for the management track, and companies promote from this level into logistics management roles frequently.

Data analysis is more prominent at the II level than at I. When recurring exception patterns emerge — a carrier consistently picking up late on a specific lane, a vendor persistently shipping with incorrect documentation — the Coordinator II is expected to identify the pattern, build a simple analysis, and bring it to the manager with a recommendation. This analytical dimension distinguishes strong IIs from those who only execute well.

Education:

• Associate or bachelor's degree in supply chain, logistics, or business (preferred)
• High school diploma with 4+ years of progressive logistics coordination experience accepted
• APICS CLTD certification valued and often pursued at this level

Experience:

• 3–5 years of logistics coordination experience with demonstrated handling of complex situations
• Track record of managing high-volume or high-value freight accounts
• International freight experience for roles with import/export scope
• Informal training or mentoring of junior staff

Technical skills:

• TMS advanced operation: beyond data entry to report generation, exception workflow management, carrier performance tracking
• Spot market procurement tools: DAT, Coyote, Transplace, or similar load boards
• Excel intermediate: pivot tables, data sorting, and exception trend analysis
• Carrier portal proficiency: major TL, LTL, and ocean carriers
• International: Incoterms, commercial invoice and packing list requirements, SLI preparation, freight forwarder coordination

Domain knowledge:

• Spot market rate dynamics: understanding what drives rate movement and how to evaluate market pricing
• Carrier performance management: what metrics matter, how to document failures, how to have productive carrier performance conversations
• Import/export documentation for roles with international scope
• Customer SLA management: understanding how to prioritize freight when multiple customers have delivery windows at risk

Leadership skills:

• Training and onboarding of Coordinator I staff
• Escalation judgment: knowing when to solve independently vs. involve management
• Pattern recognition in exception data

The Logistics Coordinator II level represents the first clear differentiation in the coordination career ladder — the point where a coordinator demonstrates enough operational depth and judgment to be trusted with complex freight, significant accounts, and informal team leadership. Demand at this level is consistent and meaningful, particularly at 3PLs, freight brokerages, and large shippers with complex transportation operations.

The automation trend that is simplifying some Coordinator I work is raising the bar for what it means to be an effective Coordinator II. As TMS platforms handle more routine tendering, the coordinators who stay valuable are the ones who can handle what the automation can't — spot market negotiations, carrier relationship management, complex international shipments, and situations requiring judgment under time pressure. Coordinator IIs who develop these capabilities are less vulnerable to automation than those who primarily do routine booking.

For coordinators at the II level who want to advance into management, the combination of operational credibility, team leadership exposure, and logistics knowledge is strong preparation. The move from Coordinator II to logistics manager typically requires either building the team management skills that distinguish an individual contributor from a supervisor, or developing the analytical skills that qualify for a logistics analyst or transportation analyst role. Some Coordinator IIs make lateral moves into freight brokerage, where the market-facing, commission-driven environment rewards the carrier relationship and negotiation skills they've built.

Pay at the II level is solidly middle-market for logistics professional roles. Total compensation with overtime at high-volume operations can add meaningfully to the base. The role is available across most logistics employment markets nationwide, with concentration in the same distribution center hubs as the broader sector.

Dear Hiring Manager,

I'm applying for the Logistics Coordinator II position at [Company]. I've been a logistics coordinator at [Company] for four years, managing domestic freight for six manufacturing clients with a combined volume of about 900 shipments per month. For the past year I've also been handling our spot market procurement when contracted carriers reject tenders on short-notice shipments.

The spot market work has been the most technically challenging part of the role. When our contracted carrier on a key lane rejects a tender — which happens about twice a week on one of our more difficult corridors — I have about two hours to find capacity before the customer's delivery window is at risk. I've built relationships with five backup carriers on that lane through consistent communication, and my rebook success rate in under two hours is about 85%. That's not a number our manager tracks formally, but it's one I track because it matters to our service outcomes.

On the team side, I've been training our two most recent Coordinator I hires. I built a checklist-based onboarding process for our TMS that standardized the exception documentation workflow — previously new hires had inconsistent habits around exception notes that made it hard to track recurring problems. The process I put in place has improved the quality of our exception records, which has made it easier to identify carrier patterns that warrant a formal performance conversation.

I have some international freight exposure from an import program we picked up last year. I learned the commercial invoice and customs documentation requirements, coordinate with our freight forwarder on ocean shipments, and manage the occasional customs exception. I want to develop that capability further, which is part of why I'm interested in [Company]'s operation.

I'd welcome the chance to discuss the role.

[Your Name]