Shipping Manager Job Description, Duties, and Responsibilities

This post provides detailed information on the shipping manager job description, including the key duties, tasks, and responsibilities they commonly perform.

It also highlights the major requirements you may be expected to meet to be hired for the shipping manager role by most recruiters/employers.

What Does a Shipping Manager Do?

A shipping manager is a particular form or type of storage and distribution manager that oversees the shipping and receiving units of a company. In some cases, he or she is usually referred to as a warehouse manager with a job description that entails responsibility for both people and resources of shipping warehouses.

The shipping manager usually has a hand in the hiring of new employees for the department.

He/she might even handle the entire recruitment process alone or may assist the human resource person in carrying out this role. This is basically to ensure that the right individuals for the unit are hired.

The staff size that a shipping manager works with is dependent on the size of the warehouse or the company at large. The level of responsibility that he/she takes up is usually based on the size of his/her staff support.

The manager is responsible for the training of all new employees. He/she may make use of senior employees to administer the daily training requirements.

His/her duties may also include overseeing delegation of staff, staff motivation, and every other form of safety oversight.

The shipping manager plays the role of a mediator in a situation where conflict arises amongst the staff of the unit. He/she is also responsible for carrying out disciplinary actions towards erring workers in the department.

He/she generally oversees the smooth running of affairs in the warehouse and within logistics unit, making sure that work is done effectively by working hand-in-hand with other shipping staff of the company.

He/she also sets up employees’ schedules that usually spans over long periods of work or operations.

The manager calls the shots on issues concerning picking up of goods and shipping procedures in a bid to enhance productivity, speed, and accuracy.

It is important to note that certain businesses that involve shipping processes tend to operate on a round-the-clock (24-hour) schedule, hence a need for the manager and staff of the shipping unit to put in abnormal work-hours.

In some cases, it is part of the work description of the shipping manager to monitor inventory levels, ensure safety within the unit, and also complete necessary paperwork where it is required.

The manager in charge of shipping commonly works with other departments of the company, such as the customer service unit to identify and resolve complaints from customers; the purchasing unit to maintain a healthy inventory level; and the accounting unit.

Shipping Manager Job Description Example/Template

Shipping managers perform various functions that ensure a company’s shipping and receiving processes for materials are efficient and effective.

Here is a job description example that captures typical shipping manager duties, tasks, and responsibilities:

• Closely supervise/monitor the productivity levels of the unit’s staff in order to make sure that goals/targets are reached
• Report or give feedback on how the unit is or has been faring to the company’s top management whenever it is needed
• Make sure that the shipping unit adheres to all legal rules and/or company guidelines
• Resolve all shipping-related issues that may arise in the company
• Draw up and monitor the shipping department’s yearly budget
• Control and direct the movement of packages from the preparation level to the delivery level
• Manage all shipping-related documents like pick-up slips and any other shipping and/or delivery document
• Run checks on already packaged orders to make sure that the proper labels, bar codes, and batch numbers are placed on them
• Work in collaboration with other departmental managers to ensure a free-flowing process
• Make use of necessary computer software to check and track shipped orders at all times.

Requirements – Skills, Abilities, and Knowledge – for Shipping Manager Role

If you are seeking the job of a shipping manager, here are important requirements and qualifications you may need to provide to be called up for an interview with most employers:

• Good communication and interpersonal skills are highly required
• Excellent organizational and coordinating abilities
• Ability to work as part of a team or even as a leader of a team
• Must possess good leadership skills
• Must be someone that is able to multitask and carry out his/her duties based on priorities. The shipping manager must also be able to meet and/or beat deadlines
• Must be self-motivated and also be able to motivate junior staff of the department
• Must be a person that pays attention to even the smallest of details when dealing with customers’ orders
• Problem-solving abilities on all fronts
• BS in supply chain management or in any other logistics-related field
• Proven previous experience in the role of a shipping manager
• Basic knowledge of computer operations.

Conclusion

If you are an employer in the process of hiring a shipping manager, you can use the sample job description and information about the role provided in this post to make one for the position in your company.

The content of this post can help you create a detailed description for the shilling manager role that can increase your chances of hiring the best candidate for the position.

This article is equally beneficial to people aspiring to get into the shipping management career. They will be able to improve their knowledge of what a manager in charge of shipping does in a company.