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Switchboard Operators, Including Answering Service resume example

A resume for a Switchboard Operators, Including Answering Service needs to show the work itself: operate telephone business systems equipment or switchboards to relay incoming, outgoing, and interoffice calls. Day to day that means work like this: operate communication systems, such as telephone, switchboard, intercom, two-way radio, or public address; answer incoming calls, greeting callers, providing information, transferring calls or taking messages as necessary. 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.

  • CBX Operator
  • Computerized Branch Exchange Operator
  • Communications Specialist
  • PBX Operator
  • Private Branch Exchange Operator
  • Switchboard Operator
  • SB Operator
  • Central Communications Specialist
  • Communications Operator
  • Information Specialist
  • Switchboard Receptionist
  • SB Receptionist
  • Telecommunications Clerk
  • Telecommunications Operator
  • PBX Service Adviser
  • Police District SB Operator
  • PBX Switchboard Operator
  • Telephone SB Operator

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

What people in this job call themselves

Titles reported by people actually doing this work, which is often not the title on the job posting.

  • CBX Operator (Computerized Branch Exchange Operator)
  • PBX Operator (Private Branch Exchange Operator)
  • Switchboard Operator (SB Operator)
  • Switchboard Receptionist (SB Receptionist)

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.

  • Operate communication systems, such as telephone, switchboard, intercom, two-way radio, or public address.
  • Answer incoming calls, greeting callers, providing information, transferring calls or taking messages as necessary.
  • Greet visitors, log them in and out of the facility, assign them security badges, and contact employee escorts.
  • Monitor emergency and code alarms, make emergency announcements, or route emergency calls to the appropriate location.
  • Record messages, suggesting rewording for clarity or conciseness.
  • Page individuals to inform them of telephone calls, using paging or interoffice communication equipment.
  • Relay or route written or verbal messages.
  • Perform various cash handling tasks, such as collecting payments, making bank deposits, or managing petty cash.
  • Place telephone calls or arrange conference calls as instructed.
  • Process incoming or outgoing mail, packages, or deliveries.
  • Perform various data entry or word processing tasks, such as updating phone directories, typing or proofreading documents, or creating schedules.
  • Perform administrative tasks, such as accepting orders, scheduling appointments or meeting rooms, or sending and receiving faxes.

19 tasks are recorded in total; these are the most central.

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.

  • Operate communication systems, such as telephone, switchboard, intercom, two-way radio, or public address, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
  • Answer incoming calls, greeting callers, providing information, transferring calls or taking messages as necessary, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
  • Greet visitors, log them in and out of the facility, assign them security badges, and contact employee escorts, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
  • Monitor emergency and code alarms, make emergency announcements, or route emergency calls to the appropriate location, 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.

  • IBM Notes
  • M-Tech Hotel Service Optimization System HotSOS
  • Microsoft Access
  • Microsoft Excel
  • Microsoft Office software
  • Microsoft Outlook
  • Microsoft PowerPoint
  • Microsoft Windows
  • Microsoft Word
  • SAP software
  • Word processing software

Tools and equipment

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

  • Alarm system monitors
  • Computer inkjet printers
  • Copy machines
  • Intercom equipment
  • Laser facsimile machines
  • Mobile radios
  • Multiline telephone systems
  • Paging systems
  • Personal computers
  • Premise branch exchange PBX equipment
  • Public address PA systems
  • Radiotelephones

Skills an ATS reads for

Worth naming only if they are genuinely yours. Keyword overlap is one input to a resume's score, not a verdict.

  • type documents
  • sort mail
  • schedule appointments

What this job rates as most important

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

  1. 01Active Listening
  2. 02Speaking
  3. 03Social Perceptiveness
  4. 04Service Orientation
  5. 05Coordination
  6. 06Reading Comprehension

Knowledge areas

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

  • Customer and Personal Service
  • English Language
  • Administrative
  • Computers and Electronics
  • Telecommunications

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.

  • 89%High School Diploma, or the equivalent
  • 5%Post-Secondary Certificate, awarded for training completed after high school
  • 3%Post-Baccalaureate Certificate, awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master.

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 Switchboard Operators, Including Answering Service do?
Operate telephone business systems equipment or switchboards to relay incoming, outgoing, and interoffice calls. Day to day that includes work like operate communication systems, such as telephone, switchboard, intercom, two-way radio, or public address and Answer incoming calls, greeting callers, providing information, transferring calls or taking messages as necessary.
What skills should a Switchboard Operators, Including Answering Service put on a resume?
O*NET rates Active Listening, Speaking, Social Perceptiveness, Service Orientation, and Coordination 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 Switchboard Operators, Including Answering Service list?
Software recorded for this occupation includes IBM Notes, M-Tech Hotel Service Optimization System HotSOS, Microsoft Access, Microsoft Excel, and Microsoft Office 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 Switchboard Operators, Including Answering Service work?
O*NET records 40 titles for this occupation, including CBX Operator, Computerized Branch Exchange Operator, Communications Specialist, and PBX Operator. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.
What qualifications does a Switchboard Operators, Including Answering Service need?
In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 89% 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 Switchboard Operators, Including Answering Service 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.