Transportation dispatcher vs dispatch technician

The differences between transportation dispatchers and dispatch technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a transportation dispatcher and a dispatch technician. Additionally, a transportation dispatcher has an average salary of $36,218, which is higher than the $34,469 average annual salary of a dispatch technician.

The top three skills for a transportation dispatcher include customer service, patients and data entry. The most important skills for a dispatch technician are customer service, emergency calls, and POS.

Transportation dispatcher vs dispatch technician overview

	Transportation Dispatcher	Dispatch Technician
Yearly salary	$36,218	$34,469
Hourly rate	$17.41	$16.57
Growth rate	-8%	-4%
Number of jobs	12,205	30,551
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 31%	Associate Degree, 34%
Average age	43	43
Years of experience	2	2

What does a transportation dispatcher do?

A Transportation Dispatcher's job is to coordinate the transportation of goods by trucks with suppliers, drivers, etc. He/She schedules drivers for pickups and deliveries on specific routes. He/She maintains up-to-date records and reviews the driver log to check for violations and errors. As a Transportation Dispatcher, you will basically act as the middle man between several units and people. You will be required to always be in communication with the maintenance team to see which vehicles are ready for use and when the out-of-service ones will be returned to the fleet.

What does a dispatch technician do?

A dispatch technician specializes in providing technical support to clients, particularly when it comes to network services. They primarily gather client information, identify their needs, sort out emergency and non-emergency calls, help clients troubleshoot issues, process requests, coordinating field technician services when necessary, and provide step-by-step instructions to solve problems. They may also call clients to follow-up on their requests and offer additional support, aiming for client satisfaction. Moreover, as a dispatch technician, it is essential to maintain records of all calls and transactions while adhering to guidelines and regulations.

Transportation dispatcher vs dispatch technician salary

Transportation dispatchers and dispatch technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Transportation Dispatcher	Dispatch Technician
Average salary	$36,218	$34,469
Salary range	Between $28,000 And $46,000	Between $27,000 And $43,000
Highest paying City	Paramus, NJ	-
Highest paying state	Alaska	-
Best paying company	Northrop Grumman	-
Best paying industry	Manufacturing	-

Differences between transportation dispatcher and dispatch technician education

There are a few differences between a transportation dispatcher and a dispatch technician in terms of educational background:

	Transportation Dispatcher	Dispatch Technician
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 31%	Associate Degree, 34%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Transportation dispatcher vs dispatch technician demographics

Here are the differences between transportation dispatchers' and dispatch technicians' demographics:

	Transportation Dispatcher	Dispatch Technician
Average age	43	43
Gender ratio	Male, 45.9% Female, 54.1%	Male, 55.4% Female, 44.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.3% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 17.5% Asian, 3.8% White, 62.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	Black or African American, 10.3% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 17.5% Asian, 3.8% White, 62.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between transportation dispatcher and dispatch technician duties and responsibilities

Transportation dispatcher example responsibilities.

Manage customer service satisfaction by providing update eta and location of drivers.
Monitor and report various GPS routes, road and weather conditions.
Work with different lines of accounting (LOA) for DTS and PCS transactions.
Keep track of all drivers on the road and delivery times and departure times through GPS tracking.
Schedule and coordinate HVAC technician's daily activities, part requisitions, and deliver detail customer information for technicians.
Determine the nature of the call and deploy the proper medical units and equipment need within the contracted eta time standards.

Dispatch technician example responsibilities.

Manage the customer relationship and expectations, communicate effectively, and troubleshoot and resolve technical issues.
Work in service industry with plumbing, drain and HVAC techs.
Maintain and develop positive business relationships with a customer's key personnel involve in or directly relevant to a logistics activity.
Used AS400 to track and identify work relate assets.
Create interactive PowerPoint structures for artists to continue in development.

Transportation dispatcher vs dispatch technician skills

Common transportation dispatcher skills

Customer Service, 33%
Patients, 17%
Data Entry, 9%
Patient Care, 6%
Patient Transport, 5%
CPR, 4%

Common dispatch technician skills

Customer Service, 15%
Emergency Calls, 8%
POS, 6%
Inbound Calls, 5%
Troubleshoot, 5%
Service Calls, 5%

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Office and Administrative Industry
Transportation Dispatcher
Transportation Dispatcher vs Dispatch Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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