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.
Transportation dispatcher responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real transportation dispatcher resumes:
- 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.
- Experience with budget and accounting terminology, codes, structure of reviewing lines of accounting on TDY orders, PCS orders.
- Enter payroll information into a designate database and review printouts for any possible errors.
- Exhibit eagerness in reinforcing additional accounting, payroll, and administrative functions as necessary.
- Process patients' HVAC service requests timely and accurately into computerized dispatching service system.
- Provide military and DoD civilian and dependents information and advice regarding their entitlements to passenger travel.
- Discuss cable television equipment operation with customers over telephone to explain equipment usage and to troubleshoot equipment problems.
- Request pickups from various LTL carriers with customer approval.
- Generate accurate quarterly IFTA reports.
Transportation dispatcher skills and personality traits
We calculated that 33% of Transportation Dispatchers are proficient in Customer Service, Patients, and Data Entry. They’re also known for soft skills such as Interpersonal skills, Organizational skills, and Writing skills.
We break down the percentage of Transportation Dispatchers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Customer Service, 33%
Ensured excellent and dependable logistics and customer service that exceeded all client expectation levels.
- Patients, 17%
Ensured that patients arrived to their designated areas without complications.
- Data Entry, 9%
Utilized documentation skills and data entry skills to ensure clear communication and accuracy was a priority.
- Patient Care, 6%
Provided basic aspects of patient care, patient mobility and maintenance of equipment under direction of a defined care team.
- Patient Transport, 5%
Function as a liaison between Patient Transportation/EVS and other departments Exhibited excellent telephone etiquette and listening skills
- CPR, 4%
Certified in Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR).
Common skills that a transportation dispatcher uses to do their job include "customer service," "patients," and "data entry." You can find details on the most important transportation dispatcher responsibilities below.
Interpersonal skills. The most essential soft skill for a transportation dispatcher to carry out their responsibilities is interpersonal skills. This skill is important for the role because "secretaries and administrative assistants interact with clients, customers, or staff." Additionally, a transportation dispatcher resume shows how their duties depend on interpersonal skills: "invoice audits, scan into system for payment purposes excellent interpersonal, communication and customer service skills. "
Organizational skills. Another essential skill to perform transportation dispatcher duties is organizational skills. Transportation dispatchers responsibilities require that "secretaries and administrative assistants keep files, folders, and schedules in order so that an office runs efficiently." Transportation dispatchers also use organizational skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "maintained hippa regulations, organizational skills, customer service, and demonstrated time management. "
Writing skills. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of transportation dispatchers is writing skills. This skill is critical to many everyday transportation dispatcher 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: "performed administrative tasks such as filing, spreadsheets, mailings, office supply orders, and writing letters. "
The three companies that hire the most transportation dispatchers are:
- Brigham and Women's Hospital4 transportation dispatchers jobs
- Aramark2 transportation dispatchers jobs
- KAR Auction Services
2 transportation dispatchers jobs
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Compare different transportation dispatchers
Transportation dispatcher vs. Dispatch assistant
A dispatch coordinator is primarily in charge of dispatching and tracking vehicles that provide different services. The extent of their duties varies upon their industry or institution of employment. In emergency dispatch centers, they answer calls from the public and coordinate police cars, ambulances, or fire trucks to respond to emergencies, all while staying on the line with the caller. A dispatch coordinator may also work trucking or delivery companies where they are in charge of coordinating shipping details and schedules, managing routes, and monitoring the vehicles.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between transportation dispatchers and dispatch assistant. For instance, transportation dispatcher responsibilities require skills such as "patients," "patient care," "patient transport," and "cpr." Whereas a dispatch assistant is skilled in "emergency calls," "payroll," "cad," and "eta." This is part of what separates the two careers.
Dispatch assistants tend to reach similar levels of education than transportation dispatchers. In fact, dispatch assistants are 0.5% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.2% less likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Transportation dispatcher vs. Dispatch coordinator
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.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that transportation dispatcher responsibilities requires skills like "patients," "patient care," "patient transport," and "cpr." But a dispatch coordinator might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "excellent time management," "delivery appointments," "windows," and "emergency calls."
Dispatch coordinators earn a higher average salary than transportation dispatchers. But dispatch coordinators earn the highest pay in the finance industry, with an average salary of $42,476. Additionally, transportation dispatchers earn the highest salaries in the manufacturing with average pay of $36,107 annually.dispatch coordinators earn similar levels of education than transportation dispatchers in general. They're 0.7% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.2% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Transportation dispatcher vs. Dispatch technician
A dispatcher supervisor is responsible for monitoring the delivery details, ensuring that the orders are being sent out to the customers timely and efficiently. Dispatcher supervisors manage the order processing, verify the payment receipt, and inspect the items for any defects before delivery. They also coordinate with the customers on the exact schedule of shipment, responding to their inquiries and concerns, and adjust delivery plans as needed. A dispatcher supervisor evaluates the staff's performance, strategizing procedures on maximizing the team's productivity to meet customer demands and increase company profits.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, transportation dispatchers are more likely to have skills like "patients," "data entry," "patient care," and "patient transport." But a dispatch technician is more likely to have skills like "emergency calls," "pos," "troubleshoot," and "service calls."
When it comes to education, dispatch technicians tend to earn similar degree levels compared to transportation dispatchers. In fact, they're 1.0% less likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.3% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Transportation dispatcher vs. Dispatcher supervisor
Even though a few skill sets overlap between transportation dispatchers and dispatcher supervisors, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a transportation dispatcher might have more use for skills like "customer service," "patients," "data entry," and "patient care." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of dispatcher supervisors require skills like "dot," "payroll," "non-emergency calls," and "ems. "
In general, dispatcher supervisors earn the most working in the retail industry, with an average salary of $39,918. The highest-paying industry for a transportation dispatcher is the manufacturing industry.The average resume of dispatcher supervisors showed that they earn similar levels of education compared to transportation dispatchers. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 0.4% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 0.2%.Types of transportation dispatcher
Updated January 8, 2025
