What does a Dispatcher do?

Schedule and dispatch workers, work crews, equipment, or service vehicles for conveyance of materials, freight, or passengers, or for normal installation, service, or emergency repairs rendered outside the place of business. Day to day that includes work like schedule or dispatch workers, work crews, equipment, or service vehicles to appropriate locations, according to customer requests, specifications, or needs, using radios or telephones and Prepare daily work and run schedules.

What skills should a Dispatcher put on a resume?

O*NET rates Active Listening, Speaking, Coordination, Monitoring, and Reading Comprehension among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.

What software should a Dispatcher list?

Software recorded for this occupation includes Air-Trak Cloudberry, Bornemann Associates Flight Plan, Command Alkon COMMANDconcrete, Computer aided design CAD software, and Computer aided dispatch software. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.

What other job titles cover Dispatcher work?

O*NET records 40 titles for this occupation, including Dispatchers, Except Police, Fire, and Ambulance, City Dispatcher, Dispatch, and Taxi Dispatcher. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

What qualifications does a Dispatcher need?

In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 47% reported their level of education as "High School Diploma, or the equivalent". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

Will this resume pass an ATS for a Dispatcher role?

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Dispatcher resume example

A resume for a Dispatcher needs to show the work itself: schedule and dispatch workers, work crews, equipment, or service vehicles for conveyance of materials, freight, or passengers, or for normal installation, service, or emergency repairs rendered outside the place of business. Day to day that means work like this: schedule or dispatch workers, work crews, equipment, or service vehicles to appropriate locations, according to customer requests, specifications, or needs, using radios or telephones; prepare daily work and run schedules. Recruiters and applicant tracking systems both read for the tasks and tools this role actually involves, so the strongest resume names them in your own experience rather than describing the job in the abstract. Below are the tasks O*NET records for this occupation, the software and tools it uses, the titles it is advertised under, and the skills worth naming if they are genuinely yours.

Also advertised as

The same job is posted under many titles. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

Dispatchers, Except Police, Fire, and Ambulance
City Dispatcher
Dispatch
Taxi Dispatcher
Train Dispatcher
Aircraft Dispatcher
Charter Coordinator
Mine Dispatcher
Paratransit Dispatcher
School Bus Dispatcher
Truck Dispatcher
Auto Service Dispatcher
Airplane Dispatch Clerk
Automotive Service Dispatcher
Automobile Rental Dispatcher
Bus and Trolley Dispatcher
Bus Dispatcher
Bus Starter

O*NET records 40 titles for this occupation in total.

What this work actually involves

Tasks recorded for this occupation, in O*NET's words. If your experience covers one of these, it belongs on your resume in your own words.

Schedule or dispatch workers, work crews, equipment, or service vehicles to appropriate locations, according to customer requests, specifications, or needs, using radios or telephones.
Prepare daily work and run schedules.
Confer with customers or supervising personnel to address questions, problems, or requests for service or equipment.
Relay work orders, messages, or information to or from work crews, supervisors, or field inspectors, using telephones or two-way radios.
Receive or prepare work orders.
Record and maintain files or records of customer requests, work or services performed, charges, expenses, inventory, or other dispatch information.
Arrange for necessary repairs to restore service and schedules.
Monitor personnel or equipment locations and utilization to coordinate service and schedules.
Determine types or amounts of equipment, vehicles, materials, or personnel required, according to work orders or specifications.
Advise personnel about traffic problems, such as construction areas, accidents, congestion, weather conditions, or other hazards.
Oversee all communications within specifically assigned territories.
Order supplies or equipment and issue them to personnel.

Example bullets for this role

Built from this occupation's own tasks. The brackets stay empty on purpose: we will not invent a number for you, and a fabricated metric is the fastest way to lose an interview you had already won.

Schedule or dispatch workers, work crews, equipment, or service vehicles to appropriate locations, according to customer requests, specifications, or needs, using radios or telephones, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Prepare daily work and run schedules, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Confer with customers or supervising personnel to address questions, problems, or requests for service or equipment, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Relay work orders, messages, or information to or from work crews, supervisors, or field inspectors, using telephones or two-way radios, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].

Software used in this role

Recorded for this occupation by O*NET. An applicant tracking system matches the exact product name, so write the tool the way the posting writes it.

Air-Trak Cloudberry
Bornemann Associates Flight Plan
Command Alkon COMMANDconcrete
Computer aided design CAD software
Computer aided dispatch software
Computer aided dispatching auto routing software
Database software
Digital Gateway e-automate
Dr. Dispatch
Email software
ESRI ArcIMS
Geomechanical design analysis GDA software
Global positioning system GPS software
Kronos Workforce Timekeeper

35 software entries are recorded in total.

Tools and equipment

The physical equipment this occupation is recorded as using. Worth naming when a posting asks for it by name.

Call management systems CMS
Centralized traffic control units
Desktop computers
Dispatch servers
Job dispatch and vehicle tracking systems
Mobile data terminal MDT equipment
Mobile radios
Multi-line telephone systems
Personal banking chamber PBC telephones
Personal computers
Signal controls
Switch controls

What this job rates as most important

O*NET rates every skill for importance to this occupation. These are the highest rated, in order.

01Active Listening
02Speaking
03Coordination
04Monitoring
05Reading Comprehension
06Time Management
07Complex Problem Solving
08Critical Thinking
09Judgment and Decision Making
10Service Orientation

Knowledge areas

The subject knowledge this occupation draws on, rated by importance.

Customer and Personal Service
Public Safety and Security
Administration and Management
Administrative
English Language
Transportation
Personnel and Human Resources
Computers and Electronics

What qualifications people in this job have

From O*NET's survey of people doing this work. This is what postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

47%High School Diploma, or the equivalent
26%Some College Courses
8%Associate's Degree

What level this role is pitched at

O*NET places this occupation in “Some Preparation Needed”. These occupations usually require a high school diploma.

Some previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is usually needed. For example, a teller would benefit from experience working directly with the public.

Common questions

What does a Dispatcher do?: Schedule and dispatch workers, work crews, equipment, or service vehicles for conveyance of materials, freight, or passengers, or for normal installation, service, or emergency repairs rendered outside the place of business. Day to day that includes work like schedule or dispatch workers, work crews, equipment, or service vehicles to appropriate locations, according to customer requests, specifications, or needs, using radios or telephones and Prepare daily work and run schedules.
What skills should a Dispatcher put on a resume?: O*NET rates Active Listening, Speaking, Coordination, Monitoring, and Reading Comprehension among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.
What software should a Dispatcher list?: Software recorded for this occupation includes Air-Trak Cloudberry, Bornemann Associates Flight Plan, Command Alkon COMMANDconcrete, Computer aided design CAD software, and Computer aided dispatch software. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.
What other job titles cover Dispatcher work?: O*NET records 40 titles for this occupation, including Dispatchers, Except Police, Fire, and Ambulance, City Dispatcher, Dispatch, and Taxi Dispatcher. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.
What qualifications does a Dispatcher need?: In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 47% reported their level of education as "High School Diploma, or the equivalent". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.
Will this resume pass an ATS for a Dispatcher role?: No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Related roles

Occupations O*NET records as closest to this one, and worth looking at if this search is not moving.

What this page cannot tell you

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer’s ATS is configured, including ours.
This page makes no claim about pay, demand or how many people hold this job. O*NET does not publish that here and we will not estimate it.
Keyword overlap is one input to a resume’s score, not a verdict on you. A resume that names skills you do not have is worse than one that names fewer.

If this is the job you are aiming at, the guide to tailoring a resume covers how to aim one posting properly, and building and exporting a resume here is free.

Occupation data from the O*NET 29.1 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under CC BY 4.0. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. SpartanResume is not endorsed by USDOL/ETA.