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Status-Based Order Workflow

What is Status-Based Order Workflow?

Status-based order workflow moves shipments through defined lifecycle stages from initial creation through final delivery and invoicing. Each order carries a status (draft, tendered, dispatched, in transit, at delivery, delivered, POD received, invoiced) that indicates where it sits in your operational process. These statuses update automatically based on task completion, driver app actions, or manual dispatch inputs, and they trigger different business processes and visibility at each stage.

This structured workflow helps teams coordinate handoffs between departments and ensures nothing falls through the cracks. When an order moves to "delivered" status, accounting knows it's ready for invoicing. When an order sits in "tendered" status for hours, dispatch knows they need to follow up with the carrier. The status field becomes the organizing principle that keeps operations flowing smoothly without constant communication about where every order stands.

How Status-Based Order Workflow works:

  1. Orders start in "Draft" status when created. New orders you create manually, import from load boards, or receive via EDI begin in draft status. This indicates the order exists in the system but isn't yet confirmed or ready for dispatch. Draft orders don't appear on driver boards or get included in operational reports.
  2. Move to "Tendered" when assigned to a carrier. When you assign a draft order to a carrier partner (not your own driver), the status changes to "Tendered." This signals that you've offered the load to a carrier and are awaiting their acceptance. Tendered orders track separately from active orders since they're not yet confirmed coverage.
  3. Transition to "Dispatched" after carrier acceptance. For orders with your own drivers, dispatch status activates when you assign the driver. For carrier partners, dispatched status triggers when they accept the tender. This status means the load is confirmed covered and the assigned party has the shipment details.
  4. Automatically update to "In Transit" at pickup completion. When the driver marks the pickup task complete in the mobile app or you manually update the pickup status to complete, the order automatically transitions to in transit. This indicates freight is loaded and moving toward delivery.
  5. Change to "At Delivery" when arriving at destination. As the driver approaches the delivery location and marks arrival in the mobile app, or when you update the delivery stop to "driver arrived," the status changes to at delivery. This signals that delivery is imminent and lets customer service know to expect completion soon.
  6. Move to "Delivered" upon delivery task completion. When the driver marks delivery complete and, if configured, uploads POD documentation, the order status updates to delivered. This is the key trigger for accounting that the shipment has physically completed and is ready for invoicing.
  7. Mark as "POD Received" when proof of delivery is captured. If you require POD images or signed documents before invoicing, this intermediate status indicates delivery happened and you're awaiting or processing the delivery documentation. This prevents invoicing loads without proper delivery confirmation.
  8. Final status becomes "Invoiced" after billing completion. When accounting generates and sends the customer invoice, the order status updates to invoiced. This indicates the shipment has moved completely through your operation and entered the collection phase of the business cycle.

What it means for you:

Everyone in your operation knows exactly where each order stands without asking. Your dispatch manager filters the orders board to "tendered" status and immediately sees which loads are awaiting carrier acceptance so they can follow up. Your accounting team filters to "delivered" status and processes all completed shipments ready for invoicing. Your customer service team checks "in transit" orders when customers call asking about deliveries.

This status-driven organization scales as you grow. When you're running 50 orders, everyone might remember where things stand. At 500 orders, that mental tracking becomes impossible. The status field becomes your team's shared coordination system, ensuring shipments move through the workflow smoothly and nothing gets stuck at any stage because someone forgot to hand it off.