Barnes & Noble is the leading book retailer in the United States, with roots dating back to 1873 and a long history of growth through innovation and expansion. Today, under CEO James Daunt and private ownership by Elliott Advisors, Barnes & Noble operates approximately 700 bookstores nationwide, serves over 700 communities across all 50 states, and maintains a robust digital presence through BN.com, NOOK® eBooks and audiobooks, and educational resources such as SparkNotes. The company also includes complementary retail brands such as Paper Source, Books Inc., Tattered Cover, and B. Dalton, further strengthening its market reach. Following a period of revitalization, Barnes & Noble is experiencing strong momentum, with plans to open approximately 60 new stores in 2026, underscoring renewed confidence in physical retail and local bookselling. Combining expansive store networks, curated selections, enhanced in-store experiences, and growing omnichannel capabilities, Barnes & Noble remains the #1 bookseller in the U.S. and a trusted, evolving partner within the publishing and retail ecosystem.
The Senior Manager, Freight Logistics, is responsible for leading, optimizing, and scaling the company's regional and national freight transportation network. This role owns transportation strategy, carrier partnerships, network performance, and cost optimization across Truckload (TL), Less-Than-Truckload (LTL) and pooling operations and related transportation services while overseeing a 80-million-dollar freight transportation budget.
The ideal candidate is a strategic and analytical logistics leader with deep expertise in transportation procurement, carrier management, network optimization, freight technology, and supply chain strategy. This position plays a critical role in ensuring transportation capacity, improving service performance, managing freight spending, and enabling scalable growth through a high-performing transportation network.
Position Responsibilities:
- Lead transportation strategies that optimize regional and national freight networks, improve service performance, and support business growth through efficient and scalable transportation solutions.
- Oversee daily international logistics and trade compliance operations to ensure efficient product flow and regulatory compliance and supply chain continuity.
- Lead annual transportation RFPs and contract negotiations with asset-based carriers, brokers, and third-party logistics providers (3PLs) to secure capacity and competitive pricing.
- Build strategic partnerships with carriers and logistics providers to support network scalability and evolving business requirements.
- Develop and maintain routing guides that maximize contract compliance, improve carrier utilization, and minimize spot-market exposure.
- Establish carrier performance scorecards and conduct regular business reviews to drive accountability for service, cost, and operational performance.
- Serve as the primary escalation point for significant transportation disruptions, service failures, and capacity challenges.
- Monitor transportation market conditions and recommend procurement strategies that balance service requirements with cost efficiency.
- Manage and optimize a multi-million-dollar annual freight transportation budget by analyzing transportation spending, cost trends, and variance reporting.
- Identify and implement cost-saving initiatives through network optimization, lane balancing, shipment consolidation, cross-docking, and mode selection strategies.
- Analyze freight flows and transportation performance to improve service levels while reducing total landed cost.
- Oversee freight audit and payment processes to ensure billing accuracy, compliance, and recovery of overcharges and accessorial discrepancies.
- Lead the utilization, optimization, and continuous improvement of Transportation Management Systems (TMS) to support planning, execution, visibility, and reporting.
- Partner with IT and business stakeholders on transportation technology enhancements, system integrations, and process automation initiatives.
- Develop executive-level dashboards and reporting tools that measure key performance indicators (KPIs), including:
o On-time delivery (OTD)
o Cost per hundredweight (CWT)
o Freight cost per shipment
o Carrier utilization
o Accessorial spend
o Transit performance
- Leverage market intelligence and predictive analytics to anticipate capacity constraints, evaluate carrier performance, and support strategic decision-making.
- Lead, mentor, and develop a team of logistics analysts and coordinators, fostering a culture of accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
- Partner closely with Warehouse Operations, Procurement, Finance, Customer Service, Sales Operations, and Supply Chain teams to align transportation capabilities with business objectives.
- Provide data-driven recommendations and transportation insights to senior leadership regarding network performance, cost management, and capacity planning.
- Champion operational excellence initiatives that improve service, efficiency, and customer satisfaction.
Position Requirements and Qualifications:
- Bachelor’s degree in supply chain management, Logistics, Business Administration, or a related field.
- 10+ years of progressive experience in transportation, freight logistics, or supply chain management.
- Demonstrated success managing high-volume TL, LTL, pooling and brokerage transportation networks.
- 5+ years of leadership experience managing transportation, logistics, or supply chain professionals.
- Experience managing transportation budgets, carrier negotiations, and large-scale network optimization initiatives.
- Strong knowledge of transportation procurement, carrier management, routing strategies, and freight network design.
- Expertise with Transportation Management Systems (TMS)
- Working knowledge of ERP systems.
- Thorough understanding of freight market dynamics, NMFC classifications, LTL pricing structures, and accessorial management.
- Advanced proficiency with Excel, SQL, Power BI, Tableau, or similar analytics and reporting tools.
Expected Behaviors:
- Demonstrated ability to build strong carrier partnerships while securing favorable commercial terms, service commitments, and transportation capacity.
- Ability to evaluate complex transportation challenges, identify root causes, and implement effective, data-driven solutions.
- Skilled at translating transportation and financial data into actionable insights for executives and cross-functional stakeholders.
- Committed to coaching and developing high-performing teams while fostering accountability, engagement, and professional growth.
- Thrives in a dynamic transportation environment and can rapidly adjust strategies in response to market shifts, capacity constraints, and changing business needs.
An employee in this position can expect an annual salary between $155,000 - $175,000 depending on experience, seniority, geographic locations, and other factors permitted by law.
Benefits for those who are scheduled to work less than 20 hours per week include Employee Discount, EAP and Sick Pay. For those scheduled to work between 20 and 29.99 benefits include Employee Discount, EAP, Sick Pay and Paid Time Off including paid Maternity and Parental Leave, Company Paid Holidays, Transit and 401(k) with Company Match. For those scheduled to work 30 hours or more benefits include Employee Discount, EAP, Sick Pay and Paid Time Off including paid Maternity and Parental Leave, Company Paid Holidays, 401(k) with Company Match, Comprehensive Health Benefits (Medical, Dental and Vision), Healthcare and Dependent Care Spending Accounts, Healthcare Spending Account, Disability Benefits, Life Insurance, Transit, and Tuition Reimbursement. All benefits provided are in accordance with the terms of the current plan and may be subject to future change. Benefits may vary depending on location/state regulations. More information can be received by the recruiter or Human Resources.
