What does a Floater do?
A floater is a person who has no definite position in an organization and usually serves as a substitute for a team member who is away. Floaters ideally must have comprehensive knowledge with the general operations of an organization, especially on filling in a task as told by management even under minimal supervision. A floater employee must be detail-oriented, a fast learner, and an excellent communicator to handle various tasks and escalate concerns as needed.
Floater responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real floater resumes:
- Manage and enter all admission records through the use of CareLogic EMR.
- Train in HIPAA, OSHA, CPR, BSL, and EMR.
- Work closely with USDA food regulate programs.
- Push carts, stock shelves, pack groceries, maintenance.
- Restock pick locations using narrow aisle reach truck and RF system.
- Use company RF scanner equipment to ensure correct product for orders.
- Plan and teach daily activities to prepare students to enter kindergarten.
- Make offset adjustments and tool changes to the CNC program when need.
- Make sure all patient demographic information is up to date in all EMR systems.
- Greet visitors, answer phone, bookkeeping, purchasing, payroll, substitute assignments, and classroom relief when need.
- Complete various office and computer duties include payroll verification, weekly tuition deposit, and end of the month report compilation.
- Improve quality and effectiveness of teaching, developing and launching new kindergarten program.
- Maintain a developmentally appropriate, emotionally nurturing, and aesthetically pleasing classroom in compliance with NAEYC accreditation criteria.
- Develop and deliver lessons following the Montessori method to encourage the development in reading and sensory skills.
Floater skills and personality traits
We calculated that 41% of Floaters are proficient in Customer Service, CPR, and Safety Standards. They’re also known for soft skills such as Creativity, Interpersonal skills, and Communication skills.
We break down the percentage of Floaters that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Customer Service, 41%
Provided quality customer service and expedited speedy checkout for customers, assisted with returns, auditing and inventory.
- CPR, 7%
Trained to work with any age child Work up front at desk when needed CPR Certified SIDs CertifiedSkills: Computer Skills
- Safety Standards, 7%
Maintain health and safety standards in the classroom, know DPW regulations, and work with supervisor to ensure compliance.
- Quality Standards, 5%
Reported directly to the Production and Distribution Leader and ensured products met Wholefoods Market quality standards.
- Child Care, 4%
Assisted in various childcare classrooms and field trips as assigned, following agency and child care regulations and ratios.
- Patient Care, 4%
Document patient care, interact with facility staff, providing education and feedback to family members on patient's progress.
Common skills that a floater uses to do their job include "customer service," "cpr," and "safety standards." You can find details on the most important floater responsibilities below.
Creativity. The most essential soft skill for a floater to carry out their responsibilities is creativity. This skill is important for the role because "preschool teachers must plan lessons that engage young children." Additionally, a floater resume shows how their duties depend on creativity: "facilitate inventory management and inform management of low inventory; record inventory counts in company computer systems. "
Interpersonal skills. Another essential skill to perform floater duties is interpersonal skills. Floaters responsibilities require that "preschool teachers must understand children’s emotional needs and be able to develop relationships with parents, children, and coworkers." Floaters also use interpersonal skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "handled multiple tasks effectively and efficiently to include customer service via phone, interpersonal, sales and maintaining customer accounts. "
Communication skills. This is an important skill for floaters to perform their duties. For an example of how floater responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "preschool teachers need good writing and speaking skills to talk to parents and colleagues about children’s progress." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of a floater: "enhanced my customer service and communication skills rancho cucamonga".
The three companies that hire the most floaters are:
- Octapharma Plasma44 floaters jobs
- Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings25 floaters jobs
- WWCCA - Wright County Community Action
19 floaters jobs
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Compare different floaters
Floater vs. Assistant director, lead teacher and director
An infant and toddler teacher is an individual who aids in the cognitive and social development of preschool children by teaching them the most basic skills that focus on play-centered learning and creativity. Infant and toddler teachers must help children develop positive self-images and encourage them to explore their interests and develop social skills. They must plan and carry out a curriculum that teaches children basic skills such as color, shape, and letter recognition. Infant and toddler teachers must also meet the children's parents to discuss concerns.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a floater are more likely to require skills like "customer service," "safety standards," "quality standards," and "patient care." On the other hand, a job as an assistant director, lead teacher and director requires skills like "payroll," "kindergarten," "state regulations," and "childhood." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
The education levels that assistant director, lead teacher and directors earn slightly differ from floaters. In particular, assistant director, lead teacher and directors are 4.6% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a floater. Additionally, they're 0.3% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Floater vs. Infant and toddler teacher
Preschool teacher assistants, paid an average of $25K per year, must have skills in childcare and communication. This career requires a minimum of a high school diploma, though in some situations, a bachelor's degree may be needed. Those who choose this career path interact with children, prepare snacks, teach things like color and shapes, help children to get dressed and/or change diapers, and evaluate children's development and physical wellness.
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, floater responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "customer service," "safety standards," "quality standards," and "patient care." Meanwhile, an infant and toddler teacher has duties that require skills in areas such as "child development," "professional development," "classroom management," and "emotional development." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
Infant and toddler teachers earn a lower average salary than floaters. But infant and toddler teachers earn the highest pay in the finance industry, with an average salary of $37,267. Additionally, floaters earn the highest salaries in the finance with average pay of $37,237 annually.In general, infant and toddler teachers achieve similar levels of education than floaters. They're 3.1% more likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.3% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Floater vs. Preschool teacher's assistant
A Lead Pre-Kindergarten Teacher is responsible for running a public or private school. Their main duty is to prepare education programs for children, as well as prepare the children for kindergarten.
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from floater resumes include skills like "customer service," "safety standards," "quality standards," and "patient care," whereas a preschool teacher's assistant is more likely to list skills in "open communication," "child development," "compassion," and "art projects. "
Preschool teacher's assistants earn the best pay in the education industry, where they command an average salary of $31,438. Floaters earn the highest pay from the finance industry, with an average salary of $37,237.Most preschool teacher's assistants achieve a similar degree level compared to floaters. For example, they're 2.7% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Floater vs. Lead pre-kindergarten teacher
Types of floater
Updated January 8, 2025
