A typical TMS supports the following transportation processes within a supply chain:

A TMS can consist of functions that provide freight management, global trade management, and trade compliance.

Freight management is a transportation execution system that automatically selects the lowest cost carrier, consolidates loads, and provides carrier-approved labels and electronic manifesting for all modes of shipment, from parcel deliveries to ocean containers.

Global trade management creates all international documentation required to execute import and export shipments, including the new e‑reporting functions now required by the U.S. and the European Union. It handles preferential trade and pricing agreements, as well as providing an option of attaching any electronic file to the documentation of any shipment.

Trade compliance ensures that shipments are not made to any individual, corporate entity, or country that has been listed by the various trade and customs agencies of the governments of the U.S., the European Union, and the United Nations. It provides an audit trail of all activities relevant to compliance issues, and ensures that corporate policies and procedures are followed by all shippers, regardless of their location within the company.