Carrier Performance Management

Carrier performance management is the discipline of holding carriers accountable to the service levels they've committed to – and rewarding or adjusting based on the results. It sits at the intersection of analytics, procurement, and daily execution, connecting data from shipment tracking, freight audit, and claims into a structured evaluation that drives carrier behavior.

A carrier performance management program typically includes defined KPIs with clear measurement methodology – on-time pickup and delivery, tender acceptance rate, claims ratio, billing accuracy, and responsiveness. Carriers are scored against these KPIs on a regular cadence, often monthly or quarterly, using a carrier scorecard. Results feed into routing guide adjustments – carriers who perform well move up; those who don't move down or are replaced. The best programs include a feedback loop: sharing scorecard results with carriers so they know where they stand and have an opportunity to improve.

Without a structured performance management process, carrier relationships drift. The carrier that won a lane in last year's RFP with a competitive rate and strong service pitch may have quietly degraded – declining tenders on tough days, generating more claims, or padding invoices with accessorials. Without measurement, the shipper doesn't notice until a customer complains or a quarterly cost review reveals unexplained increases. By then, the damage to service and margin has already accumulated.

Effective carrier performance management requires automated data collection – manually tracking carrier KPIs across dozens of carriers and hundreds of lanes is the kind of task that gets deprioritized when the team is busy, which is exactly when it matters most.