Porter Job Description, Key Duties and Responsibilities

Porter Job Description, Key Duties and Responsibilities

This post provides complete information on the job description of a porter, to help you learn what they do.

It presents the key tasks, duties, and responsibilities that typically make up the porter work description.

It also shows the requirements that individuals seeking the porter role may be expected to meet by recruiters to be hired.

Please, continue reading to increase your knowledge of the porter career:

What Does a Porter Do?

A porter is responsible for executing duties such as helping to carry guests’ luggage and fixing minor issues such as changing of light bulbs and cleaning of building areas, including entrances.

A porter serves as the first point of contact of an organization as he/she is mainly focused on assisting guests.

In other words, a porter can be described as a professional individual who is responsible for performing basic cleaning and maintenance duties for the organization in which he/she works.

A porter is typically employed in an organization that has grounds such as apartment complexes, country clubs, retirement communities, golf courses, and airports that need to be maintained.

The porter job description may also include performing janitorial duties, as this will help to solve some maintenance-related problems.

It also involves carrying out a variety of important day to day tasks which include providing a first-class customer service by showing guests or passengers to their rooms or cabins, and answering any questions they might have about facilities if the porter works in a hotel, motel, or cruise ship, or with several other organizations that require such services.

The porter is responsible for greeting guests as soon as they check in on the front desk, responding to a variety of maintenance calls from guests, and assisting the room service workers by ensuring that they have an efficient schedule.

Other tasks that commonly make up the porter work description include carrying and labeling guests’ luggage with tags, sweeping and mopping floors and vacuum carpets, and ensuring that the building entrance is free of clutter at all times.

It also involves ensuring and maintaining a clean and safe environment by removing debris, maintaining common room areas, restocking bathrooms, and responding to all required cleaning emergencies.

Individuals interested in the porter role are required to possess and demonstrate certain skills and characteristics that guarantee efficiency and effectiveness on the job.

These include high organizational skills, good multitasking skills, well-developed communication, and interpersonal skills, good physical condition, stamina and strength, and the availability to work in shifts and flexible schedules.

In terms of academic qualifications, the ideal candidate should possess at least a High School diploma or GED, though there is no formal minimum educational requirement for the job.

He/she must also own a driver’s license, as the job may involve transporting equipment to and fro.

Most employers also prefer candidates with several years of professional work experience in a similar position.

Porter Job Description Example/Sample/Template

Here are major tasks, duties, and responsibilities that commonly define the porter job description in most organizations:

• Ensuring the cleanliness and maintenance of the areas assigned to him/her such as lobbies, staircases, bathrooms, and other building areas, as well as surrounding outer space
• Overseeing the monitoring of the inventory by taking note of missing cleaning supplies and notifying the management when additional stock is needed
• Extending a professional, warm and respectful attitude towards customers by greeting them and ensuring that they feel welcome within the organization
• Carrying, labeling, and monitoring guests’ luggage with tags
• Vacuuming carpets and ensuring that floors are swept and mopped
• Ensuring that the entrance of the building is free of clutter at all times
• Strictly adhering by evacuation rules in case of emergencies
• Overseeing the fixing of minor technical issues such as changing bulbs
• Preparing conference rooms before and after important meetings
• Placing safety hazard signs such as wet paint and wet floor warning signs in the building when applicable.

Porter Job Description for Resume

If you have worked before as a porter or are presently working as one and you are preparing a resume for a new job, it is important to include the professional experience section in your resume.

With the professional or work experience section, you can effectively inform the recruiter of the duties and responsibilities you have successfully carried out as a porter.

This can help boost your resume and gain an interview from the recruiter, especially if the new position you are applying for requires working experience as a porter to be effective on the job.

You can create the perfect professional experience for your resume by applying the sample porter job description provided above.

Porter Requirements – Skills, Knowledge, and Abilities for Career Success

If you are seeking the porter role, here are major requirements recruiters may expect you to meet to be qualified for hiring:

• Good endurance skills as he/she must be able to endure long hours of work and work on flexible schedules, including nights and weekends.
• Good physical strength and stamina, since a porter must be in good physical condition to lift heavy equipment and luggage
• Well-developed oral communication and interpersonal skills, as he/she must be able to interact efficiently and effectively with cleaning staff, technicians, and customers
• Attention to detail which enables a porter to ensure that the areas assigned to him/her, as well as all fixtures and furniture within them, are well arranged and presentable
• Several years of previous work experience as a porter or in a relevant position
• At least a High School diploma or GED, though there is no formal educational requirement for the job.

Conclusion

If you are a recruiter or HR manager needing to hire for the porter position for your organization, you will need to let prospective candidates know what the duties and responsibilities of the vacant porter job are.

This information will help interested individuals to screen themselves and decide if they have what is required to perform the expected porter duties and responsibilities effectively.

You can make the perfect description of the porter role in your organization by applying the job description example above.

This post is also beneficial to individuals interested in the porter career, to learn all they need to know about the duties commonly carried out by porters.

This will help them to be sure that the porter career is right for them.