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Order Clerks

It's a bright outlook for

This career will grow rapidly in the next few years.

Learn more about what they do.

Receive and process incoming orders for materials, merchandise, classified ads, or services such as repairs, installations, or rental of facilities. Generally receives orders via mail, phone, fax, or other electronic means. Duties include informing customers of receipt, prices, shipping dates, and delays; preparing contracts; and handling complaints.

Related: Customer Service Representatives Postal Service Clerks Production, Planning, & Expediting Clerks Sales Representatives of Services Shipping, Receiving, & Inventory Clerks

Industries: Wholesale/Commercial Sales Retail Manufacturing

Summary
Details

Review orders for completeness according to reporting procedures and forward incomplete orders for further processing.
Inform customers by mail or telephone of order information, such as unit prices, shipping dates, and any anticipated delays.
Prepare invoices, shipping documents, and contracts.
Compute total charges for merchandise or services and shipping charges.
Verify customer and order information for correctness, checking it against previously obtained information as necessary.
Calculate and compile order-related statistics, and prepare reports for management.
Receive and respond to customer complaints.
Attempt to sell additional merchandise or services to prospective or current customers by telephone or through visits.
Direct specified departments or units to prepare and ship orders to designated locations.
Check inventory records to determine availability of requested merchandise.
Obtain customers' names, addresses, and billing information, product numbers, and specifications of items to be purchased, and enter this information on order forms.
Collect payment for merchandise, record transactions, and send items, such as checks or money orders for further processing.
Inspect outgoing work for compliance with customers' specifications.
Recommend merchandise or services that will meet customers' needs.
Notify departments when supplies of specific items are low, or when orders would deplete available supplies.
Collect payment for merchandise, record transactions, and send items, such as checks or money orders for further processing.
Compute total charges for merchandise or services and shipping charges.
Adjust inventory records to reflect product movement.
Confer with production, sales, shipping, warehouse, or common carrier personnel to expedite or trace shipments.
Calculate and compile order-related statistics, and prepare reports for management.
File copies of orders received, or post orders on records.
Recommend type of packing or labeling needed on order.

Complex Problem Solving
- Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
Operations Monitoring
- Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
Persuasion
- Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
Instructing
- Teaching people how to do something.
Equipment Selection
- Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
Management of Financial Resources
- Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
Time Management
- Managing your time and the time of other people.
Critical Thinking
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
Writing
- Writing things for co-workers or customers.
Systems Analysis
- Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
Service Orientation
- Looking for ways to help people.
Installation
- Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
Programming
- Writing computer programs.
Operation and Control
- Using equipment or systems.
Equipment Maintenance
- Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
Troubleshooting
- Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
Quality Control Analysis
- Testing how well a product or service works.
Operations Analysis
- Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
Judgment and Decision Making
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
Monitoring
- Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
Active Learning
- Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
Learning Strategies
- Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
Science
- Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
Coordination
- Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
Systems Evaluation
- Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
Management of Material Resources
- Managing equipment and materials.
Negotiation
- Bringing people together to solve differences.
Technology Design
- Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
Speaking
- Talking to others.
Active Listening
- Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
Reading Comprehension
- Reading work-related information.
Social Perceptiveness
- Understanding people's reactions.
Repairing
- Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
Management of Personnel Resources
- Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
Mathematics
- Using math to solve problems.

Oral Comprehension
- Listening and understanding what people say.
Deductive Reasoning
- Using rules to solve problems.
Perceptual Speed
- Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
Hearing Sensitivity
- Telling the difference between sounds.
Rate Control
- Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
Trunk Strength
- Using your lower back and stomach.
Reaction Time
- Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
Selective Attention
- Paying attention to something without being distracted.
Fluency of Ideas
- Coming up with lots of ideas.
Visualization
- Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
Multilimb Coordination
- Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
Visual Color Discrimination
- Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
Peripheral Vision
- Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
Dynamic Strength
- Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
Stamina
- Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
Sound Localization
- Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
Speed of Limb Movement
- Quickly moving your arms and legs.
Gross Body Coordination
- Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
Explosive Strength
- Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
Auditory Attention
- Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
Extent Flexibility
- Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Gross Body Equilibrium
- Keeping your balance or staying upright.
Dynamic Flexibility
- Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Originality
- Creating new and original ideas.
Category Flexibility
- Grouping things in different ways.
Written Comprehension
- Reading and understanding what is written.
Speech Clarity
- Speaking clearly.
Near Vision
- Seeing details up close.
Oral Expression
- Communicating by speaking.
Written Expression
- Communicating by writing.
Information Ordering
- Ordering or arranging things.
Mathematical Reasoning
- Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
Number Facility
- Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
Memorization
- Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
Finger Dexterity
- Putting together small parts with your fingers.
Far Vision
- Seeing details that are far away.
Glare Sensitivity
- Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
Speech Recognition
- Recognizing spoken words.
Static Strength
- Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
Wrist-Finger Speed
- Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
Response Orientation
- Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
Speed of Closure
- Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
Arm-Hand Steadiness
- Keeping your arm or hand steady.
Problem Sensitivity
- Noticing when problems happen.
Time Sharing
- Doing two or more things at the same time.
Spatial Orientation
- Knowing where things are around you.
Control Precision
- Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
Inductive Reasoning
- Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
Flexibility of Closure
- Seeing hidden patterns.
Manual Dexterity
- Holding or moving items with your hands.
Night Vision
- Seeing at night or under low light.
Depth Perception
- Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.

Fine Arts
- Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
Building and Construction
- Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
Mechanical
- Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
Physics
- Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
Medicine and Dentistry
- Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
Biology
- Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
Telecommunications
- Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
Philosophy and Theology
- Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
Food Production
- Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
Sociology and Anthropology
- Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
Psychology
- Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
Sales and Marketing
- Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
Education and Training
- Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
English Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
Administrative
- Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
Engineering and Technology
- Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
Administration and Management
- Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Public Safety and Security
- Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
Communications and Media
- Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
Law and Government
- Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
Foreign Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
History and Archeology
- Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
Chemistry
- Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
Therapy and Counseling
- Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
Production and Processing
- Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
Customer and Personal Service
- Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Economics and Accounting
- Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
Design
- Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
Mathematics
- Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Geography
- Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
Computers and Electronics
- Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Transportation
- Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
Personnel and Human Resources
- Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.

Education

Some college, no degree

Work Experience

No work experience

Training

Less than 1 month on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

Washington Annual Salary

46740/yr

Washington Hourly Wage

22.47/hr

Currently Employed

4,730

Yearly Projected Openings

610

Conventional: People interested in this work like activities that include data, detail, and regular routines. They do well at jobs that need:

Attention to Detail
Dependability
Cooperation
Integrity
Social Orientation
Cautiousness

Belt conveyors
Cash registers
Laser fax machine
Package stops
Personal computers
Photocopiers
Point of sale payment terminal
Printer calculator
Special purpose telephones

Accounting software
Data base user interface and query software
Document management software
Electronic mail software
Enterprise resource planning ERP software
Enterprise system management software
Internet browser software
Inventory management software
Materials requirements planning logistics and supply chain software
Office suite software
Presentation software
Procurement software
Spreadsheet software
Word processing software

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