What does an Order Taker do?

Updated January 8, 2025
6 min read
What does an Order Taker do
On This Page

Order taker responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real order taker resumes:

  • Manage tracking for all orders, manage invoice input via QuickBooks and maintain communications with all clients and vendors.
  • Assist customers with food selections, using micros.
  • Assist concierge with guest amenities and VIP events.
  • Cash out checks through micros, take and complete to go orders.
  • Deliver all amenities direct to room when ready for VIP guest check-ins.
  • Possess extensive knowledge of menu in order to upsell and assist guests with suggestions.
  • Expect to educate guests on an extensive wine list while also explaining the seasonal cuisine.
  • Enlarge bills by upselling liquor and offering a full menu including appetizers, entrees and desserts.
  • Operate a POS system to itemize and complete an average of [50-60 per hour] customer purchases.
  • Communicate any special needs or allergies to the manager on duty, kitchen, servers, and chef.
  • Handle end of shift cashier checking and money counting to ensure amounts match with POS counter for next shift.
  • Look at orders on a screen make from drive-thru or front counter and make correct food item and amount according to screen
  • Assist in maintaining overall cleanliness of restaurant.
  • Operate cash register and process customer orders/prepare food/maintained cleanliness in the restaurant
  • Maintain legal obligations for responsible bartending by verification of legal age of all customers.

Order taker skills and personality traits

We calculated that 9% of Order Takers are proficient in Wine, Cleanliness, and Guest Satisfaction. They’re also known for soft skills such as Integrity, Interpersonal skills, and Organizational skills.

We break down the percentage of Order Takers that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Wine, 9%

    Acted as In-Room Dining Server & Cashier Served as Restaurant Hostess Performed Wine & Beer Inventory

  • Cleanliness, 9%

    Operated cash register and processed customer orders/prepared food/maintained cleanliness in the restaurant

  • Guest Satisfaction, 6%

    Resolve guest complaints to ensure guest satisfaction.

  • POS, 6%

    Handled end of shift cashier checking and money counting to ensure amounts matched with POS counter for next shift.

  • Basic Math, 6%

    Maintain knowledge of store inventory and sales activities * Enter transactions in the cash register and request payment using basic math.

  • Room Service Orders, 6%

    Received and processed room service orders and cash and credit transactions from hotel guests and wait staff.

"wine," "cleanliness," and "guest satisfaction" are among the most common skills that order takers use at work. You can find even more order taker responsibilities below, including:

Integrity. One of the key soft skills for an order taker to have is integrity. You can see how this relates to what order takers do because "information clerks, particularly human resources assistants, have access to confidential information." Additionally, an order taker resume shows how order takers use integrity: "trusted wholeheartedly with training young, new unexperienced employees while maintaining customer satisfaction. "

Interpersonal skills. Many order taker duties rely on interpersonal skills. "information clerks who work with the public and customers must understand and communicate information effectively to establish positive relationships.," so an order taker will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways order taker responsibilities rely on interpersonal skills: "learned strong skills for interpersonal relationships and team work in high-volume food services. "

Organizational skills. This is an important skill for order takers to perform their duties. For an example of how order taker responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "information clerks must be able to retrieve files and other important information quickly and efficiently." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of an order taker: "utilized high organizational and customer service skills. ".

Communication skills. order taker responsibilities often require "communication skills." The duties that rely on this skill are shown by the fact that "information clerks must be able to explain policies and procedures clearly to customers and the public." This resume example shows what order takers do with communication skills on a typical day: "utilized excellent verbal and written customer service and communication skills"

See the full list of order taker skills

The three companies that hire the most order takers are:

Choose from 10+ customizable order taker resume templates

Build a professional order taker resume in minutes. Our AI resume writing assistant will guide you through every step of the process, and you can choose from 10+ resume templates to create your order taker resume.
Order Taker Resume
Order Taker Resume
Order Taker Resume
Order Taker Resume
Order Taker Resume
Order Taker Resume
Order Taker Resume
Order Taker Resume
Order Taker Resume
Order Taker Resume
Order Taker Resume
Order Taker Resume
Order Taker Resume
Order Taker Resume
Order Taker Resume
Order Taker Resume

Compare different order takers

Order taker vs. Contractor buyer

A contractor buyer is responsible for acquiring materials and resources for construction and manufacturing processes that meet the quality standards and budget limitations. Contractor buyers negotiate offers with trusted suppliers and vendors for cost-effective materials based on design specifications and requirements. They also monitor the accurate distribution and delivery schedules to maintain the consistency of project plans and finish the task within the required deadlines. A contractor buyer must have excellent knowledge of the construction industry to identify the reliability of resources and handle the costings efficiently.

If we compare the average order taker annual salary with that of a contractor buyer, we find that contractor buyers typically earn a $10,402 higher salary than order takers make annually.Even though order takers and contractor buyers are distinct careers, a few of the skills required for both jobs are similar. For example, both careers require pos, customer service, and customer orders in the day-to-day roles and responsibilities.

While similarities exist, there are also some differences between order takers and contractor buyer. For instance, order taker responsibilities require skills such as "wine," "cleanliness," "guest satisfaction," and "basic math." Whereas a contractor buyer is skilled in "purchase orders," "data entry," "logistics," and "erp." This is part of what separates the two careers.

Contractor buyers tend to make the most money working in the technology industry, where they earn an average salary of $48,255. In contrast, order takers make the biggest average salary, $29,583, in the telecommunication industry.The education levels that contractor buyers earn slightly differ from order takers. In particular, contractor buyers are 4.3% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than an order taker. Additionally, they're 0.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Order taker vs. Customer service and serving

On average, customer service and servings earn a $1,526 higher salary than order takers a year.A few skills overlap for order takers and customer service and servings. Resumes from both professions show that the duties of each career rely on skills like "guest satisfaction," "pos," and "beverage orders. "

Each career also uses different skills, according to real order taker resumes. While order taker responsibilities can utilize skills like "wine," "cleanliness," "basic math," and "room service orders," customer service and servings use skills like "strong customer service," "food service," "alcoholic beverages," and "bartending."

Customer service and servings earn similar levels of education than order takers in general. They're 1.0% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Order taker vs. Food handler

On average scale, food handlers bring in higher salaries than order takers. In fact, they earn a $2,198 higher salary per year.By looking over several order takers and food handlers resumes, we found that both roles require similar skills in their day-to-day duties, such as "pos," "basic math," and "math." But beyond that, the careers look very different.

There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, an order taker is likely to be skilled in "wine," "cleanliness," "guest satisfaction," and "room service orders," while a typical food handler is skilled in "food service," "kitchen equipment," "food safety procedures," and "food products."

Food handlers make a very good living in the finance industry with an average annual salary of $37,836. On the other hand, order takers are paid the highest salary in the telecommunication industry, with average annual pay of $29,583.Most food handlers achieve a similar degree level compared to order takers. For example, they're 0.5% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Order taker vs. Customs entry clerk

Customs entry clerks typically earn higher pay than order takers. On average, customs entry clerks earn a $4,246 higher salary per year.According to resumes from order takers and customs entry clerks, some of the skills necessary to complete the responsibilities of each role are similar. These skills include "customer service," "computer system," and "customer complaints. "

Even though a few skill sets overlap between order takers and customs entry clerks, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, an order taker might have more use for skills like "wine," "cleanliness," "guest satisfaction," and "pos." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of customs entry clerks require skills like "data entry," "sales floor," "clean environment," and "purchase orders. "

In general, customs entry clerks hold similar degree levels compared to order takers. Customs entry clerks are 0.1% more likely to earn their Master's Degree and 0.3% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Types of order taker

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

Browse office and administrative jobs