What does a document control specialist do?

A document control specialist is in charge of overseeing the data processes in a company, ensuring accuracy and timeliness. They are primarily responsible for managing and storing documents, as well as reviewing and organizing them. There are also instances when they have to subject it for revision and approval, disseminate documents to different departments, file according to systems, and devise strategies for optimal document processes. Furthermore, a document control specialist may train new employees, produce progress reports and presentations, manage schedules, and respond to any inquiries or concerns.
Document control specialist responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real document control specialist resumes:
- Lead cross-functional team in defining product lifecycle stages and corresponding PDM process for each lifecycle stage.
- Design and manage the system maintenance plan, and upgrade schedule, for the OnBase environment (ECM).
- Manage the engineering change order process, including distribution, ECO processing, ERP maintenance, and running the ECO meetings.
- Manage daily ECN activity/implementation priority.
- Manage transmittal of information between company and contractor.
- Manage quality of care improvement initiatives for patients and other mandate hospital standards through surveys and information sessions.
- Prepare QA forms and procedures, gather all customer require QC documents to submit to customer as requested.
- Prepare and input purchase orders, invoices for accounts payable and payroll data; reconcile actual versus commit expenditures and budgets.
- Manage revision control of the procedures including releasing documents for revision and postings of approve revisions using SharePoint software.
- Perform cad drafting duties as required.
- Process fail documents returning from QC.
- Observe autopsies and report any hospital-relate infections to the CDC.
- Research on Medicaid claim that are flagged for fraudulent charges.
- Attend daily meetings with development and QA staff to identify testing problems.
- Maintain all policies of confidentiality at all times and adhere to HIPPA guidelines.
Document control specialist skills and personality traits
We calculated that 7% of Document Control Specialists are proficient in SharePoint, Customer Service, and ISO. They’re also known for soft skills such as Interpersonal skills, Organizational skills, and Writing skills.
We break down the percentage of Document Control Specialists that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- SharePoint, 7%
Managed revision control of the procedures including releasing documents for revision and postings of approved revisions using SharePoint software.
- Customer Service, 7%
Performed customer service retrieval and formatting preparation of documents, and assisted with compilation of regulatory submissions.
- ISO, 7%
Coordinated with the Regulatory/Quality Department and several engineering departments to process ISO and federally regulated documents.
- FDA, 6%
Provided expertise in video and photographic needs for documentation of FDA regulated testing in aseptic environments.
- Computer Database, 6%
Developed and maintained a comprehensive filing systems/computer database to retain all documents.
- Data Entry, 6%
Performed clerical and data entry functions within the organization database using applications such as Microsoft Word and Microsoft Excel.
"sharepoint," "customer service," and "iso" are among the most common skills that document control specialists use at work. You can find even more document control specialist responsibilities below, including:
Interpersonal skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a document control specialist to have is interpersonal skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "secretaries and administrative assistants interact with clients, customers, or staff." Document control specialists often use interpersonal skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "excel, outlook, word, adobe acrobat, other epc data base strong interpersonal skills supports technical projects and departments"
Organizational skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling document control specialist duties is organizational skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "secretaries and administrative assistants keep files, folders, and schedules in order so that an office runs efficiently." According to a document control specialist resume, here's how document control specialists can utilize organizational skills in their job responsibilities: "utilized excellent organizational skills to process plaintiff records quickly and efficiently. "
Writing skills. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of document control specialists is writing skills. This skill is critical to many everyday document control specialist duties, as "secretaries and administrative assistants write memos and emails when communicating with managers, employees, and customers." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "assisted supervisor in writing document control procedures to the iso 9000 standards. "
The three companies that hire the most document control specialists are:
- Danaher12 document control specialists jobs
- ICONMA8 document control specialists jobs
- Hargrove Engineers + Constructors8 document control specialists jobs
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Document control specialist vs. Document manager
Document Managers are responsible for the overall operations of the documentation department of an organization. Their duties include directing documentation projects, developing standardized documentation tools and methods, editing projects, and authorize final approvals. They set key metrics and manage staff's performance, track departmental milestones, and ensure goals are within budget and timeline. Document Managers also work with departmental servers to manage document flow and ensure document accessibility for those who have access approval.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a document control specialist are more likely to require skills like "customer service," "computer database," "data entry," and "gmp." On the other hand, a job as a document manager requires skills like "project management," "technical documentation," "continuous improvement," and "cdi." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Document managers tend to reach higher levels of education than document control specialists. In fact, document managers are 7.0% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 1.2% more likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Document control specialist vs. Specialist
Specialists are employees who are responsible for specific tasks or activities in the department they are assigned to. The actions or tasks they work on are related to their educational background or work experiences. They are usually highly skilled in specializations related to the work they are assigned to. Specialists are also highly trained on the competencies that are required of their specialty. As such, they are focused on the skills and competencies that are needed to enhance their experience in their specific field further.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that document control specialist responsibilities requires skills like "sharepoint," "iso," "computer database," and "data entry." But a specialist might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "patients," "work ethic," "patient care," and "exceptional client."
Average education levels between the two professions vary. Specialists tend to reach similar levels of education than document control specialists. In fact, they're 3.1% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 1.2% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Document control specialist vs. Document management technician
The primary role of a document management technician revolves around managing electronic files. They can store, share, send, and even destroy some private and unnecessary files. With the knowledge of how the internet works, document technicians can find ways to increase storage, follow guidelines to process storage, and complete back-ups as problems such as accidentally deleting files can occur. They are often tasked to retrieve important documents, so a great deal of computer knowledge is required.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, document control specialists are more likely to have skills like "customer service," "fda," "computer database," and "gmp." But a document management technician is more likely to have skills like "hippa," "proofreading," "hipaa," and "litigation."
When it comes to education, document management technicians tend to earn similar degree levels compared to document control specialists. In fact, they're 0.1% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.3% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Document control specialist vs. Imaging specialist
The duties of an imaging specialist depend on one's line of work or industry of employment. Typically, their responsibilities include meeting with clients to identify their needs, editing and scanning images, performing color corrections on photographs and other forms of image manipulation, and creating digital rendings of photos and videos. There are also instances where an imaging specialist may work together with photographers, artists, and graphic designers, all functioning in adherence to the goals and vision of a project.
Types of document control specialist
Updated January 8, 2025











