By Lakelan Fennell

When it comes to military compensation agreements, many moving agents feel the stress of the unknown.  What will the rates be like?  What will the TSP’s be willing to pay?  Can I provide the quality of service necessary at those rates?

To help calm these fears, plan ahead!  Being a good agent partner with the TSP’s means just that;  PARTNER.  The more you can be the eyes and ears in your particular market for the TSP’s, get ahead of claims issues by providing timely information to the TSP’s, providing great service not just to the military members, but to the TSP’s as well (they are both our customers), the more business you can expect to receive from the TSP’s and the more likely you are to receive better compensation.    

One of the easiest ways to be a good partner is to provide your compensation schedule for Code 4 business to the TSP’s early, well before the rate filing window.  They need to know what you are going to charge for your services, as well as the other compensation schedule details, BEFORE they develop the rates they are going to file.  This way, they can incorporate your rates into the rates they file for each channel.  This is not to say they will always agree to your rates, but in many cases there can be an open dialogue to help you and the TSP come to an agreement which helps both of you be successful with the combination of volume and revenue.  If you wait until after rate filing or wait until they offer you a shipment to send the TSP’s your compensation schedule, they cannot change the rates they filed and therefore many times cannot agree to pay what you need for your services.

Agents do not like uncertainty, neither do the TSP’s.  Get your compensation schedules agreed to early and be more than just an agent.  Be a true partner!