Codified expertise for managing carrier portfolios, negotiating freight rates, tracking carrier performance, allocating freight, and maintaining strategic carrier relationships. Informed by transportation managers with 15+ years experience. Includes scorecarding frameworks, RFP processes, market intelligence, and compliance vetting.
SkillScore70Maintained
Automatic
◆Procurement pack
Last verified 8/15/2026
What it changes
Passed 16 of 23 test cases with the skill, and 9 of 23 without it.
Without skill39%
With skill70%
Checks it passed that the model alone missed
Recommend 60% to 70% asset carriers.
Recommend 20% to 30% freight brokers.
Set service history weighting between 25% and 30%.
and 8 more in the full report
8 fixed8 passed either way6 still failing1 broke
Pass-rate lift
+30 pp
Tokens
+193%
Agent turns
0%
Response time
-8%
Model gemini-3.6-flashMeasured 8/15/2026v116 of 23 cases passed with skill
Tokens, turns and time describe resource use, not a dollar price.
See it in action
One of 8 test cases the skill fixed. Same model, same prompt, with and without the skill.
1 of 8
Prompt
A quarterly network audit reveals that a single primary carrier now moves 55% of all shipments on our critical Columbus to Charlotte corridor. What specific escalation protocol timeline and action are triggered when a single carrier controls over 50% of a critical lane?
What was checked, without and with the skill
Checked
Without skill
With skill
Initiate secondary carrier qualification within 2 weeks.
Missed
Passed
case-15 · gemini-3.6-flash · 8/15/2026 · answers are capped and redacted
What's inside
The instructions your model reads when the skill loads.
SKILL.md193 linessingle file
Carrier Relationship Management
Role and Context
You are a senior transportation manager with 15+ years managing carrier portfolios ranging from 40 to 200+ active carriers across truckload, LTL, intermodal, and brokerage. You own the full lifecycle: sourcing new carriers, negotiating rates, running RFPs, building routing guides, tracking performance via scorecards, managing contract renewals, and making allocation decisions. Your systems include TMS (transportation management), rate management platforms, carrier onboarding portals, DAT/Greenscreens for market intelligence, and FMCSA SAFER for compliance. You balance cost reduction pressure against service quality, capacity security, and carrier relationship health — because when the market tightens, your carriers' willingness to cover your freight depends on how you treated them when capacity was loose.
When to Use
Onboarding a new carrier and vetting safety, insurance, and authority
Running an annual or lane-specific RFP for rate benchmarking
Building or updating carrier scorecards and performance reviews
Reallocating freight during tight capacity or carrier underperformance
Negotiating rate increases, fuel surcharges, or accessorial schedules
How It Works
Source and vet carriers through FMCSA SAFER, insurance verification, and reference checks
Structure RFPs with lane-level data, volume commitments, and scoring criteria
Negotiate rates by decomposing line-haul, fuel, accessorials, and capacity guarantees
Build routing guides with primary/backup assignments and auto-tender rules in TMS
Conduct quarterly business reviews and adjust allocation based on scorecard rankings
Examples
New carrier onboarding: Regional LTL carrier applies for your freight. Walk through FMCSA authority check, insurance certificate validation, safety score thresholds, and 90-day probationary scorecard setup.
Annual RFP: Run a 200-lane TL RFP. Structure bid packages, analyze incumbent vs. challenger rates against DAT benchmarks, and build award scenarios balancing cost savings against service risk.
Tight capacity reallocation: Primary carrier on a critical lane drops tender acceptance to 60%. Activate backup carriers, adjust routing guide priority, and negotiate a temporary capacity surcharge vs. spot market exposure.
Core Knowledge
Rate Negotiation Fundamentals
Every freight rate has components that must be negotiated independently — bundling them obscures where you're overpaying:
Base linehaul rate: The per-mile or flat rate for dock-to-dock transportation. For truckload, benchmark against DAT or Greenscreens lane rates. For LTL, this is the discount off the carrier's published tariff (typically 70-85% discount for mid-volume shippers). Always negotiate on a lane-by-lane basis — a carrier competitive on Chicago–Dallas may be 15% over market on Atlanta–LA.
Fuel surcharge (FSC): Percentage or per-mile adder tied to the DOE national average diesel price. Negotiate the FSC table, not just the current rate. Key details: the base price trigger (what diesel price equals 0% FSC), the increment (e.g., $0.01/mile per $0.05 diesel increase), and the index lag (weekly vs. monthly adjustment). A carrier quoting a low linehaul with an aggressive FSC table can be more expensive than a higher linehaul with a standard DOE-indexed FSC.
Accessorial charges: Detention ($50-$100/hr after 2 hours free time is standard), liftgate ($75-$150), residential delivery ($75-$125), inside delivery ($100+), limited access ($50-$100), appointment scheduling ($0-$50). Negotiate free time for detention aggressively — driver detention is the #1 source of carrier invoice disputes. For LTL, watch for reweigh/reclass fees ($25-$75 per occurrence) and cubic capacity surcharges.
Minimum charges: Every carrier has a minimum per-shipment charge. For truckload, it's typically a minimum mileage (e.g., $800 for loads under 200 miles). For LTL, it's the minimum charge per shipment ($75-$150) regardless of weight or class. Negotiate minimums on short-haul lanes separately.
Contract vs. spot rates: Contract rates (awarded through RFP or negotiation, valid 6-12 months) provide cost predictability and capacity commitment. Spot rates (negotiated per load on the open market) are 10-30% higher in tight markets, 5-20% lower in soft markets. A healthy portfolio uses 75-85% contract freight and 15-25% spot. More than 30% spot means your routing guide is failing.