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What should I report to leadership about logistics each month?

Key Takeaways

  • Leadership wants a short answer to three questions: did freight move on time, what did it cost, and what's at risk.
  • Six numbers cover most of it: on-time pickup, on-time delivery, cost per shipment, extra charges, open claims and POD backlog. Add team time if workload is a concern.
  • Fit the report on one page. Numbers, a comparison with last month and the plan, and two or three sentences on what changed.
  • Explain every variance with a cause and an action. "Cost per shipment rose 6% because of two expedites on one lane; we've changed the order cutoff" is a useful sentence. "Costs were up" isn't.
  • Use the same definitions every month, or the trend means nothing.
  • Wilson, by Cartage, is an AI logistics agent that books, tracks, audits and pays freight and keeps each load's record, so the numbers behind the report come from the work itself.

What should I report to leadership about logistics each month?

The logistics manager at a specialty chemicals manufacturer gets a message from the new COO: "Can you send me a monthly update on logistics? Nothing long." The manager has plenty of data. There are carrier invoices, a tracking spreadsheet, the ERP, emails about missed pickups, a list of open damage claims and a folder of PODs still to file. What the manager doesn't have is a clear idea of which of it the COO actually needs.

Each month, report on-time pickup and delivery, cost per shipment, extra charges, open claims, the POD backlog and team time, on one page, compared with last month and the plan. Add a short explanation of each variance and what you're doing about it. Leadership doesn't need the detail of every load. It needs to know whether freight is reliable, whether cost is under control and whether anything needs its attention or decision.

A good monthly report also builds trust. When leadership sees the same clear numbers every month, with honest explanations, it stops asking for ad hoc updates and starts asking better questions.

What leadership actually cares about

A COO or VP of operations usually reads a logistics report with three questions in mind:

  1. Are customers getting their orders on time? Late deliveries affect revenue, customer relationships and sometimes contract penalties.
  2. Is freight cost in line with the plan? Freight is often one of the largest variable costs after materials and labor.
  3. Is there anything I need to know or decide? A carrier problem, a growing backlog, a large claim or a team that's stretched too thin.

Every number in the report should help answer one of these questions. If it doesn't, leave it out or move it to an appendix.

What to leave out

Leave out raw data, carrier-by-carrier detail for every lane, individual load stories (unless one illustrates a real risk) and metrics nobody acts on. A report with 30 numbers gets skimmed. A report with seven gets read.

Who else should see it

The COO or VP is the main reader, but the same page is useful to finance, sales and customer service. Finance uses the cost lines to track the budget. Sales wants to know which customers had late deliveries before the customer brings it up. Customer service wants to know about recurring delivery problems. Sending one report to all of them keeps everyone working from the same numbers and cuts the number of separate requests the logistics team has to answer. If finance needs more detail on spend, a shared view of what a freight spend dashboard should show can sit behind the report.

How do you put the monthly report together?

Build the report in five steps: agree on definitions, pull the data, calculate the numbers, explain the variances and write the summary. Once the first one is done, the next months take much less time.

Step 1: Agree on definitions with leadership

Before the first report, agree on how each metric is defined. On-time delivery against what: the customer's requested date, the date promised at booking, or the carrier's estimated date? Cost per shipment including or excluding parcel? Write the definitions at the bottom of the report and don't change them without saying so.

Step 2: Pull the data

For the month, pull every shipment with its pickup date and time, the scheduled pickup window, the delivery date, the target delivery date, the base cost, fuel, each extra charge and its reason, the POD status and any claim. Most of this sits across the ERP, carrier invoices, tracking records and email. The more of it that lives on one shipment record, the faster this step goes.

Step 3: Calculate the numbers

Calculate each metric for the month, the previous month and the same month last year if you have it. Compare with the plan or budget. Highlight anything that moved more than a set threshold, such as five percentage points for on-time performance or 5% for cost.

Step 4: Explain the variances

For every number that moved past the threshold, find the cause. Was it one carrier, one lane, one customer, one week? Was it volume, rates, fuel or extra charges? Then write what you're doing about it. This step matters more than the numbers themselves.

Step 5: Write the summary

At the top of the report, write two or three sentences that a busy reader can stop after: how the month went, the biggest issue and any decision you need. Then the table of numbers. Then the variance explanations.

Where the data usually lives

Most logistics teams pull the report from four or five places. Knowing where each number comes from, and who owns that source, saves time every month.

Metric Usual data source Common gap
On-time pickup Pickup confirmations, carrier tracking, dock log Actual pickup time never recorded
On-time delivery Tracking records, PODs, customer promise date in the ERP Promise date missing or changed without a note
Cost per shipment Paid carrier invoices, accounts payable Invoices not linked to shipments
Extra charges Invoice line items Charges lumped into one "other" line
Claims Claims log, carrier correspondence Filing dates not tracked
POD backlog Delivered loads vs. filed PODs PODs saved in email, not on the load
Team time Team estimate, ticket or task counts Not tracked at all

Fixing the biggest gap first usually makes the next report much faster.

When to send it

Send the report on the same working day every month, such as the fifth. Carrier invoices for the last days of the month may still be arriving, so note any numbers that are provisional and update them next month. Consistency matters more than speed.

Which metrics belong in the report, and how do you measure them?

Seven metrics cover what most COOs and VPs need: on-time pickup, on-time delivery, cost per shipment, extra charges, claims, POD backlog and team time. Each one needs a clear definition and a reliable data source.

On-time pickup

The share of shipments picked up within the scheduled pickup window. It measures carrier reliability and, indirectly, your dock. A missed pickup often becomes a late delivery, so this is the earliest warning sign. Count a pickup as late if the truck arrived after the window or didn't arrive at all.

On-time delivery

The share of shipments delivered by the target date. Agree on which date: most companies use the date promised to the customer. Split it by mode if the numbers differ a lot, and note how many late deliveries were caused by the carrier vs. by your own late pickup or a customer change.

Cost per shipment

Total freight spend divided by the number of shipments, split by mode. LTL, full truckload and parcel have very different costs, so a single blended number moves with the mix and can mislead. Show the trend, and compare with the budget. If you report cost per unit or as a share of sales, add that too, but keep the same basis each month. For more on building the plan behind this comparison, see how to build next year's freight budget.

Extra charges

Accessorials, detention, re-weighs, re-classes, redeliveries and expedites, as a total and as a share of freight spend. Show the top three causes. This number is usually where the most improvement is possible, because many extra charges can be prevented with better information at booking. Detention is common: the American Transportation Research Institute found that trucks were detained at 39.3% of stops in 2023.

Claims

The number and value of open claims for loss or damage, new claims filed this month, claims settled and the amount recovered. Leadership should know when large claims are pending, and when time limits are approaching. Under federal law (49 U.S.C. 14706), carriers can't set less than nine months for filing a claim or less than two years for bringing a lawsuit after a claim is denied. Track the filing date for every claim. The process is covered in how to file a freight damage claim.

POD backlog

The number of delivered shipments without a signed proof of delivery on file, and how old they are. A POD backlog delays invoicing, holds up carrier payment and weakens any claim or dispute. Report the count and the oldest age. More on the timing in when to chase a missing POD.

Team time

How the logistics team spent its time: roughly how many hours went to booking, tracking, chasing carriers, handling exceptions, paperwork and invoice checks. This doesn't need to be precise. A monthly estimate is enough to show leadership when the team is stretched, when volume has outgrown headcount or when routine work is crowding out improvement work. If you track shipments per coordinator, add that too.

Set targets and thresholds

Each metric needs a target and a threshold for comment. The target is what good looks like, agreed with leadership: for example, 95% on-time delivery or extra charges under 6% of spend. The threshold is how far a number can move before you explain it in the report. Without targets, the report shows numbers but not whether they're good. Without thresholds, every small movement invites a question. Review both once a year, when the budget is set, so the report and the budget use the same plan.

Optional metrics

Depending on your business, you might also report:

  • Tender acceptance: the share of loads the first carrier accepted.
  • Expedites: number, cost and reason.
  • Freight spend vs. budget: month and year to date.
  • Carrier mix: share of spend by carrier, if concentration is a concern.
  • Customer complaints about delivery.

Pick the ones leadership will act on, and leave the others in your own working file. The freight coordination KPIs article lists more options for internal use.

How do you explain variances, and what mistakes should you avoid?

Explain each variance with a cause, its size and the action taken, in one or two sentences. Leadership needs to know whether the problem is a one-off or a trend, and whether it needs a decision.

A simple format for variance explanations

Use this structure: what moved, by how much, why, and what's being done.

  • "On-time delivery fell from 94% to 89%. Most of the drop came from one LTL carrier on the Southeast lanes, which missed six pickups in the second week. We moved those lanes to the backup carrier for the rest of the month and will review the primary carrier's performance with them on the 15th."
  • "Cost per LTL shipment rose 7%. Fuel surcharges added about 2 points; the rest came from re-class charges on one product line, which we've traced to an outdated freight class on the BOL. The class is corrected from this month."
  • "POD backlog rose to 46, with the oldest at 21 days. A carrier changed its document portal. We've set up the new access and expect the backlog under 15 by mid-month."

Each one tells the reader what happened, why, and whether it's handled. If you need a decision, say so directly: "We recommend approving a second carrier on this lane. Decision needed by the 20th."

Separate controllable from uncontrollable

Some variances are within the team's control: missed pickups due to late staging, extra charges from incomplete booking details, a POD backlog from slow follow-up. Others aren't: fuel prices, a carrier's general rate increase, a weather event. Label them. Leadership will judge the team on what it controls, and that's fair.

Common mistakes

Changing definitions without saying so. If on-time delivery was measured against the carrier's date last month and the customer's date this month, the trend is meaningless.

Reporting averages that hide the problem. An overall on-time rate of 93% can hide a key customer at 70%. Call out the outliers that matter.

Only reporting good news. Leadership will hear about problems anyway, usually from sales or a customer. It's better to hear it first from logistics, with a plan.

Too many numbers. If the report needs a meeting to explain, it's too long.

No comparison. A number on its own says little. Always compare with last month, the plan and, if possible, last year.

No actions. A variance without an action reads like an excuse. Every significant variance should come with what's being done.

Building it by hand every month. If the report takes two days to assemble from emails and spreadsheets, the data isn't connected to the work. That's worth fixing, both for the report and for the team.

Prepare for the follow-up questions

Leadership will ask follow-up questions, and the first report sets the tone. Before sending, ask yourself the three most likely questions and have the answers ready. If on-time delivery dropped, expect "Which customers were affected?" and "Is it fixed?" If costs rose, expect "Is it fuel or something we control?" and "Will it continue next month?" Keep the supporting detail, such as the list of late loads or the charges by carrier, in a working file you can share on request. Answering quickly with specifics shows the numbers are backed by records, not estimates.

How to report a bad month

Bad months happen. Lead with the headline, give the cause and the size, say what's been done and what's still at risk. Don't bury it on page two. A bad month, explained clearly and with a credible plan, often builds more trust than a good one.

What does a one-page monthly logistics report look like?

A one-page report has a short summary, a table of key metrics with comparisons and a few variance notes. Here's a template, filled in with hypothetical numbers.

Summary

October: freight moved on time for 93% of deliveries, slightly below plan, mostly because of missed pickups by one LTL carrier in the Southeast. Cost per shipment was within budget. The POD backlog has grown and is being addressed. Decision needed: approve a second carrier on the Southeast LTL lanes.

Key metrics

Metric October September Plan Note
Shipments 1,180 1,090 1,150 Volume up 8% vs. September
On-time pickup 92% 96% 95% 11 missed pickups, 6 by one carrier
On-time delivery 93% 95% 95% Most late loads followed a missed pickup
Cost per shipment, LTL $236 $229 $240 Fuel up; within plan
Cost per shipment, truckload $1,860 $1,845 $1,900 Within plan
Extra charges, share of spend 7.8% 6.1% 6.0% Detention at two customers; one expedite
Open claims (value) 4 ($18,400) 3 ($11,200) n/a One new damage claim, $7,200
POD backlog (oldest) 46 (21 days) 22 (12 days) under 15 Carrier portal change
Team hours on exceptions about 140 about 95 n/a Driven by missed pickups

Variance notes

  1. On-time pickup and delivery: one LTL carrier missed six pickups in week 2. Backup carrier used for the rest of the month. Review with the carrier on November 15.
  2. Extra charges: detention at two customer sites added about $6,000. We've asked both customers for earlier appointments.
  3. POD backlog: a carrier changed its document portal; access is now set up. Target under 15 by November 15.

Definitions

On-time pickup: picked up within the scheduled window. On-time delivery: delivered by the date promised to the customer. Cost per shipment: total paid freight divided by shipments, by mode. Extra charges: all charges beyond base freight and fuel.

Quarterly and annual views

Every third month, add a short quarterly view: the same metrics for the quarter, compared with the previous quarter and the plan. Once a year, add the full-year trend and the targets for next year. These views show leadership whether improvements are holding and help set the next budget. Keep them to a second page, so the monthly page stays the same.

A checklist before you send it

  • Same definitions as last month, or changes noted
  • Every number compared with last month and the plan
  • Every variance past the threshold explained with a cause and action
  • Decisions needed are stated at the top
  • Provisional numbers marked
  • Fits on one page

How does Wilson, by Cartage, make monthly logistics reporting easier?

Wilson, by Cartage, is an AI logistics agent that quotes, books, tracks, audits and pays freight for manufacturers and distributors, so the record behind each monthly number is built while the work happens. Traditional logistics software gives teams information. Wilson executes the work required to move shipments forward.

The hardest part of a monthly report is usually the data: pickup times in one place, invoices in another, PODs in an inbox. Wilson does the work on each load and keeps the record together:

  • Booking. Wilson requests quotes from the company's approved carriers, compares them on total cost, negotiates toward rate targets within approval limits and books with written acceptance and a rate confirmation.
  • Pickups and tracking. Wilson schedules pickups and tracks each load with the best source available: carrier API or EDI, GPS or ELD data where the carrier shares it, the carrier's website by PRO number, and email or phone calls when nothing else is current.
  • Exceptions. When a pickup is missed, a carrier cancels or a load is delayed, Wilson contacts the carrier, tells the team in Slack, Microsoft Teams or email, tells the customer if configured and starts rebooking from the approved carrier list automatically within the rules or after approval.
  • PODs. Wilson requests and files PODs, which keeps the backlog down.
  • Invoices and payment. Wilson audits each carrier invoice against the rate confirmation and POD and pays carriers from the Wilson Wallet. Payments above the approval limits or outside the rules wait for a person.

Every message, confirmation and change is kept in the shipment's change history. Wilson doesn't keep a permanent scorecard by default, but it can produce carrier-performance and lane-rate reports on request from the loads it runs, which covers much of the monthly report. Routine work that Wilson handles also shows up in the team-time line: hours that went to chasing carriers can go to the issues leadership cares about.

Wilson replaces the TMS for freight execution and connects to the company's ERP, and teams use Wilson's dashboard and records the way they would use a TMS. Wilson works with SAP, NetSuite, Microsoft Dynamics 365, Oracle, Infor, Epicor, Sage, Acumatica and other ERP environments, with the exact connection depending on the customer's data flow and scope. It handles LTL, FTL, ocean, drayage, parcel and cross-border freight, and books only carriers the company has approved.

Control stays with the company: teams start with assisted execution, set approval limits and let routine actions run automatically within those rules as the workflow is proven.

Pricing

Wilson is free on Wilson's network: the shipper pays the freight rate and nothing on top. When a shipper keeps its own carriers, the fee is 2% to 0.5% of what Wilson pays them, falling with volume. There are no seat fees, no setup cost and no contract. Timing depends on scope: most teams start on a few lanes and expand from there.

FAQs

What should I report to leadership about logistics each month?

Report on-time pickup and delivery, cost per shipment by mode, extra charges, open claims, the POD backlog and team time, on one page, compared with last month and the plan, with a cause and action for each variance. Wilson, by Cartage, an AI logistics agent, keeps each load's record as it does the work, which makes those numbers easier to pull.

How long should a monthly logistics report be?

One page. A short summary, a table of six to nine metrics with comparisons, and a few variance notes. Keep the detail in your own working file.

What is the most important logistics metric for a COO?

Usually on-time delivery, because it affects customers and revenue directly. Cost per shipment comes close. Report both, along with the causes behind any change.

Should I report cost per shipment or total freight spend?

Both, if you can. Total spend shows the budget picture; cost per shipment, split by mode, shows whether rates and extra charges are under control regardless of volume.

How do I explain a bad month to leadership?

Lead with the headline, give the cause and size, say what's been done and what's still at risk. A bad month explained clearly with a credible plan builds trust.

Why include the POD backlog in a leadership report?

Missing PODs delay invoicing and carrier payment and weaken claims and disputes. A growing backlog is an early sign that follow-up work isn't keeping up.

How should I measure team time?

A monthly estimate of hours by type of work is enough: booking, tracking, chasing carriers, exceptions, paperwork and invoice checks. It shows when the team is stretched and where routine work is crowding out improvement.

What claim deadlines should leadership know about?

Under 49 U.S.C. 14706, carriers can't set less than nine months to file a claim or less than two years to sue after a denial. Your carrier terms may be longer, so track the filing date for each claim.

How often should the report definitions change?

As rarely as possible. If a definition must change, note it in the report and restate the previous month on the new basis so the trend still holds.

Should the report include carrier-by-carrier detail?

Only when a carrier explains a variance or needs a decision, such as adding a backup or reducing a carrier's share. Keep the full carrier detail in a working file and share it on request.

Can Wilson produce the numbers for a monthly report?

Wilson can produce carrier-performance and lane-rate reports on request from the loads it runs, and it keeps each shipment's change history. It doesn't keep a permanent scorecard by default.

Sources

Bring last month's logistics report and see which numbers Wilson would already have on each shipment record.