Expeditors

An expeditor is a professional who monitors and accelerates the flow of materials, information, and documentation through the supply chain or project workflow to ensure on-time delivery. Expeditors work across manufacturing, construction, aerospace, automotive, electronics, and other sectors where timely arrivals are critical. They coordinate with suppliers, manufacturers, freight forwarders, and internal stakeholders to resolve delays, adjust schedules, and mitigate risk.

Core duties include tracking purchase orders and production schedules, expediting overdue shipments, verifying order requirements, expediting shipping documentation, and monitoring inventory levels. They maintain milestone trackers, run exception reports, and communicate status updates to procurement and production teams. When delays occur, they negotiate alternative materials, sourcing, or transportation options and escalate issues to managers as needed. They may arrange expedited air or sea freight and help ensure compliance with regulatory and quality requirements.

Expeditors typically use enterprise resource planning (ERP) and materials management systems, supplier portals, and transportation management systems. Strong communication, problem-solving, negotiation, and organizational skills are essential. Knowledge of lead times, incoterms, import/export regulations, and quality control processes helps them coordinate across functions.

Expeditors can be internal specialists within manufacturing or procurement teams, or work for third-party expediting services. The objective is to minimize downtime, reduce production stoppages, and maintain project schedules by recovering delayed material flow and improving supply chain reliability.

Term origins derive from expedite, meaning to speed up. The role has grown with globalization and just-in-time manufacturing, where precise timing is necessary to avoid costly delays.