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Carrier Sales Representative

Forward Air

Des Plaines, ILJob$60–72K/yrSeen 1w agoSeen in employer's feed 6 days ago

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At a glance

Compensation
$60–72K/yr
Location
Des Plaines, IL
Work Authorization
Not specified

Olive lists jobs from US employers, including remote roles you can work from the United States.

Job overview

The Carrier Sales Representative develops and manages motor-carrier relationships to secure capacity and move freight across Forward Air’s brokerage network. The role sources capacity, negotiates rates, and supports on-time service execution, while contributing to revenue growth. It offers immediate ownership, high earnings potential, and career advancement pathways. The position is 100% on-site and includes travel for related meetings and events.

Skills & qualifications

RequiredNice to have

Skills

Carrier Relationship Management, nice to haveProspecting, nice to haveCold Calling, nice to haveCarrier Onboarding, nice to haveNegotiation, nice to havePersuasion, nice to haveRelationship Building, nice to haveCommunication, nice to havePhone Outreach, nice to haveMultitasking, nice to havePrioritization, nice to haveAnalytical Thinking, nice to haveProblem Solving, nice to haveBusiness Decision-Making, nice to haveCollaboration, nice to haveCustomer Focus, nice to haveConfidentiality, nice to haveWindows, nice to haveMicrosoft O365, nice to haveMicrosoft Teams, nice to haveZoom, nice to haveWebex, nice to have

Qualifications

High School Diploma or GED, requiredUndergraduate Degree in Related Field, nice to haveFreight Brokerage Experience, nice to haveThird-Party Logistics Experience, nice to haveTransportation Experience, nice to haveSales Experience, nice to haveCustomer Service Experience, nice to have

Full job description

Compensation: $60,000 - 72,000 Annually + Commission

The Carrier Sales Representative is responsible for developing and managing relationships with motor carriers to secure transportation capacity and support the successful movement of freight across the company’s brokerage network. They serve as a key contributor to revenue growth by sourcing carrier capacity, negotiating competitive rates, and ensuring on-time service execution. This role offers immediate ownership, high earnings potential, and clear pathways for long-term career advancement within an industry-leading logistics provider.

Responsibilities

  • Develop, maintain, and grow a network of qualified carrier partners to support customer freight needs across multiple transportation modes.

  • Build strong carrier relationships by understanding carrier capacity, equipment availability, preferred lanes, and business objectives.

  • Prospect, cold call, and onboard new carrier partners to expand available transportation capacity.

  • Negotiate competitive spot and contractual transportation rates while supporting profitability goals.

  • Utilize market intelligence, freight trends, and capacity data to make informed pricing and sourcing decisions.

  • Secure carrier capacity through high-volume outbound communication and relationship management activities.

  • Coordinate load coverage, dispatch carriers, and ensure successful execution from pickup through final delivery.

  • Monitor load status and proactively address service issues, delays, or operational challenges.

  • Maintain accurate carrier records, pricing information, and shipment documentation within transportation management systems.

  • Collaborate closely with Customer Account Managers, Tracking Specialists, and Operations teams to deliver exceptional customer service.

  • Ensure compliance with company policies, transportation regulations, and carrier qualification requirements.

  • Contribute to team performance goals by meeting or exceeding productivity, revenue, and margin expectations.

  • Continuously develop industry knowledge and stay informed of changing transportation market conditions.

  • Support process improvement initiatives designed to enhance operational efficiency and carrier engagement.

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

Qualifications

  • Education: High School Diploma or GED Equivalent required; Undergraduate degree in a related field from an accredited college or university preferred.

  • Experience: Prior experience in freight brokerage, third-party logistics (3PL), transportation, sales, customer service, or a related industry preferred.

  • Strong negotiation, persuasion, and relationship-building skills with the ability to influence outcomes in a dynamic market environment.

  • Excellent verbal and written communication skills with confidence conducting high-volume phone outreach.

  • Demonstrated ability to multitask, prioritize competing demands, and perform effectively in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment.

  • Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with the ability to make sound business decisions using market and operational data.

  • Self-motivated, results-oriented, and highly coachable with a strong desire to meet and exceed performance goals.

  • Ability to work collaboratively across departments while maintaining a customer-focused mindset.

  • 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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About Us

About the Team

How this job compares

Set against the 8,482 open Sales Representative jobs on Olive Jobs, counted November 10, 2026.

Pay
  • This posting$60–72K/yr
  • Illinois median$63–100K/yr189 salary ranges
  • US median$75–108K/yr4,460 salary ranges

This range's midpoint, $66K, is 26% below the Illinois median midpoint ($89K) — in the lowest quarter of Sales Representative salary ranges in Illinois.

Openings
Olive Jobs lists 271 open Sales Representative jobs in Illinois and 8,482 across the US. 5% of them nationwide are listed as remote or flexible.
Hiring the most in Illinois
Experience
Sales Representative postings that state a minimum ask for 2 years of experience at the median; the middle half ask for 2 to 4 years (3,847 postings).
Education
This posting asks for a high school diploma; 3,084 of the 8,482 open Sales Representative jobs (36%) ask for a high school diploma or higher.

Counted across the open, public US postings on Olive Jobs on November 10, 2026. Pay medians are the middle values of the low ends and of the high ends of postings that list both ends of a range in the same cadence (a yearly salary or an hourly rate); a range's midpoint is halfway between its ends. Pay and experience figures resting on fewer than 20 postings are left out.

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