Birmingham, Alabama developer of LoadMaster for motor carriers and PowerBroker for freight brokerages, serving trucking and logistics companies since 1985.
Services
Who it serves
Overview
McLeod Software is a privately held developer of transportation management software based in the Birmingham, Alabama area. The company was founded in 1985 by Tom McLeod, who still leads it as president and CEO. Its website says it has served the trucking industry for more than 35 years, and it sells to carriers, freight brokers, 3PLs and logistics service providers.
McLeod has two main product lines: LoadMaster, its operations and dispatch system for motor carriers, and PowerBroker, its system for freight brokerages. Both now have browser-based versions, branded LoadMaster//web and PowerBroker//web, and the company releases regular numbered versions with new features.
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Services
LoadMaster. LoadMaster is McLeod's carrier TMS, covering dispatch, planning, driver and equipment records and billing. The 25.2 release, covered by Heavy Duty Trucking in December 2025, added a visual planner view with drag-and-drop assignments, a dispatch slide-out showing driver activity, automatch and equipment alert tools, and task filters that surface late loads and appointment conflicts. McLeod also offers LoadMaster LTL, which added electronic proof of delivery with digital signatures and photos in an earlier release.
PowerBroker. PowerBroker is built for brokerages that need to quote, cover, track and settle loads. Recent releases added an order payables workspace with factoring controls, multi-select load planning for batch carrier assignments and rate confirmations, call-in tracking that updates from incoming SMS messages, and a carrier sales board for load matching. The 24.2 release added an SMS module for texting carrier drivers, lane history analytics, one-click quoting and multi-currency support for Canadian and Mexican operations.
Supporting products. DocumentPower handles document imaging. FlowLogix provides business process automation that can trigger next-step workflows. Driver Sidekick is a mobile app for drivers. MPact products, including MPact.IQ and MPact.RatePro, provide dashboards and rate prediction tools.
Deployment. McLeod offers on-premise software and a cloud hosting service for customers that do not want to host it themselves. A customer testimonial on its homepage describes reaching LoadMaster through a secure VPN after an outage.
Who it is for
McLeod's software is aimed at truckload carriers, LTL carriers, private fleets, and brokerage and 3PL operations. A 2022 article from Parade, a McLeod partner, said McLeod had more than 1,100 customers in North America. Companies that run both an asset fleet and a brokerage can use LoadMaster and PowerBroker together, since many features are shared across the two.
Because of the depth of the product and the configuration involved, McLeod tends to fit established operations with dedicated back-office and IT staff more than very small startups looking for a quick self-serve tool.
How working with them works
McLeod sells through its own sales team, with separate enterprise sales and enterprise consulting services groups listed on its leadership page. Pricing is not published on its website, so expect a quote based on your company size, modules and deployment choice.
Implementations typically involve configuring the system to your workflows, migrating data and training staff. McLeod also works with third-party technology partners; Parade, for example, built a capacity management tool that layers over PowerBroker. The company holds an annual user conference where it presents product updates and partner news.
Questions to ask before you sign
How is pricing structured: per user, per truck, per module, or a license plus annual maintenance? What would your specific configuration cost in year one and year two?
How long does a typical implementation take for a company of your size, and what staff time will it require from you?
Which integrations are standard and which carry extra cost? Ask about load boards such as DAT and Truckstop, accounting systems, ELD and tracking providers, and factoring companies.
Should you choose on-premise or McLeod's cloud hosting, and how do upgrades to new versions work under each?
How can you export your data if you ever move to another system?
What is the contract term, and what support tiers, response times and training options are included?
Company background
Tom McLeod founded the company in 1985. According to Bhamwiki, McLeod had more than 300 employees in the Birmingham area by 2017 and bought and renovated a 140,000 square foot building at Meadow Brook Corporate Park in Hoover, which opened in April 2019 with 388 employees. The company remains privately owned.
Its leadership team includes long-tenured executives, with several vice presidents who joined in the 1990s and 2000s. McLeod's press releases list its location as Birmingham, Alabama.
Sources
Information compiled from public sources. Last verified November 2026. Confirm details directly with the company.
