LoadStop users can now create internal and external agents and agencies in the TMS. The purpose of creating an agent or agency is to restrict the visibility of the dispatchers/users. In case you want a specific user to only be able to see the customers, drivers, trucks, or trailers that are assigned to them and just work with them and not be able to see other data in the system you can create that user as an agent.

You can add the dispatchers as the (internal) agents by going to Menu> Agency Management> Agents. Once an agent is created, customers, drivers, trucks, and trailers can be assigned to the agents so that the agents can only view those in the system that are assigned to them. If one agent creates some loads, then the other agents will not be able to view those loads.

In order to assign the customers, drivers, trucks, and trailers to the internal agents, you can go to the Menu> Agency Management> Agents> Edit agent, as can be seen in the image below.

These agents can also be assigned from the profiles of the customers, drivers, trucks, and trailers.

If you want to create an external agent, you will have to create an agency first. An agency can be created by going to Menu> Agency Management> Agencies> Create New Agency.

Once an agency is created, the users can open the agency profile and then navigate to the Agents tab and then create an external agent here as can be seen below.

In case of an external agent, whichever customers, drivers, trucks, and trailers are assigned to the agency, will be visible to all the external agents of that agency. However, each external agent will only be able to see the loads that they created themselves and will not see loads created by others. If you want to be able to give permissions to an external agent in the agency so that they would be able to see all the loads that are created by the other agents in that agency, then mark the external agent as an "admin agent". This way they will be able to view the loads created by other agents of their agency.

You have to enable the commission of the agent or agency so that you can create their settlements as well. To set up the agent/agency commission open a profile, click on the “agent commission” tab at the top of the page, and turn on the toggle for Enable Commission as can be seen in the next image.

First, you will have to enable the commission and then you will get two options:

In the Standard-based Commission model, you will have an option to add the invoice percentage. If for example, you add the invoice percentage as 7% and the load had a primary fee of $3,000 and had an accessorial of $500, that would mean that the agent/agency is going to make $245 (7% * 3500 = 245).

You also have an option to add a fuel surcharge percentage and set the minimum gross profit as well. If a load is brokered at a certain amount, and you need to set up a minimum gross profit for your company to make on that load, the system will adjust the amount in the agent/agency's settlement.

For example, if you have a load for $4,600 and you broker it to an external carrier for $4,200. Now if the minimum gross profit is set as $500 in the agent's rate card, then at the time of the creation of the agent's settlement the system will give you a prompt to make an adjustment from the agent's settlement.

If you hit yes, then there will be an adjustment in the agent's settlement to make the amount set as the minimum gross profit as can be seen in the image below. This amount will be calculated based on the minimum gross amount set in the agent/agency's profile and also on the load amount and the carrier pay.

If you choose the standard percentage-based commission model, you will have an option to apply a base deduction on the agent/agency commission. The base deduction is a deduction or a cut that the company takes from the agent/agency. From the same “commission” tab in the agent/ agency profile, enable the base deduction. This will allow you to add the percentage in the box. The base deduction will be applied to the primary fee.

For example,

Primary fee = 1000

Accessorials = 300

Base deduction = 2%

Invoice % = 7%

So the units will be calculated this way

1000 - (1000 * 2%) +300 = 1280

Now the 7% invoice rate will be applied to $1,280 which means that the agent will make $89.60 on this load.

Below are the calculations that apply if, in the Agent/Agency profile, the Tier-Based Percentage commission option is selected.

To discuss it in detail let's take the following example, that you create three tiers in the agent’s profile as can be seen below.

The flat rate or the percentage is applied to the total amount of all the loads included in the settlement. To understand this, calculate the total revenue of all the loads that are included in the settlement and say for example there are 20 loads and each load had a primary fee of $3000 (20 x $3000 = $60,000)

Now deduct the Carrier Pay from the loads e.g. if the external carrier is getting 80% of the load amount then

=> $3000 x 0.80 = $2400 per load

=> which means that the total amount paid to the external carriers is $48,000/-

=> Load Amount - Carrier Pay = $60,000- $48,000 = $12,000/-

As we created three tiers in the agent’s profile and the Total Profit of these 20 loads in the settlement is $12,000, it means that it falls in the third tier, as this is a value greater than what we have set up in the second tier which is $10,000/-

Profit = $12,000 ( falls in tier 3)

So the agent’s settlement amount will be calculated as $2,000/-

If for example, the profit was $8,000 (falls in tier 2) then,

Total Agent Revenue = $8000 x 15 % = $1200

Agency/Agent Settlement = [{(Primary Fee + Accessorials) -Carrier Pay} x Tier Based%]

External Carrier Settlement = ( Primary Fee x Carrier Percentage )

However, If a load has already been created in the system by a normal user and you want to assign an agent/agency on that load then you can manually assign their names on the load as well as can be seen in the image below.

If it is an internal agent, then choose the agent’s name directly from the dropdown, and in case it is an external agent then you will have to choose the agency first and then select the external agent and click on “save” from the bottom left corner.

Open a load and make sure that the agent/agency is assigned to the load and then edit the dispatch information.

Once you edit the dispatch information, then click on the “Agent Settlement” option from the top, and then you will be able to change the commission rate of the agent for just this particular load.

Note: You can create settlements for the internal agents and the agencies only.

To check out the article on how to create a settlement, please click here.

You can also create a balance (additional pay or deduction) from within the settlement by clicking on the “Additional Pay and Deduction” button.

If a balance is already created and you want to add it to the settlement then click on the “Add Load” button and then choose the balance that you want to add to the particular settlement.

You also have the option to create the balances from the “Agency/Agent Balances” as well. You can go to Menu> Agency Management> Agency/Agent Balances to view all the balances that have already been created in the system and from here you can create new balances as well.