Career profile for Shipping Supervisor

What does a Shipping Supervisor do?

Shipping Supervisors directly supervise and coordinate the activities of helpers, laborers, or material movers, hand.

What kind of tasks does a Shipping Supervisor perform regularly?

Shipping Supervisors are often responsible for overseeing or executing some or all of the following tasks:

Maintain a safe working environment by monitoring safety procedures and equipment.
Review work throughout the work process and at completion to ensure that it has been performed properly.
Inform designated employees or departments of items loaded or problems encountered.
Examine freight to determine loading sequences.
Collaborate with workers and managers to solve work-related problems.
Check specifications of materials loaded or unloaded against information contained in work orders.
Plan work schedules and assign duties to maintain adequate staff for effective performance of activities and response to fluctuating workloads.
Transmit and explain work orders to laborers.
Prepare and maintain work records and reports of information such as employee time and wages, daily receipts, or inspection results.
Inspect equipment for wear and for conformance to specifications.
Estimate material, time, and staffing requirements for a given project, based on work orders, job specifications, and experience.
Evaluate employee performance and prepare performance appraisals.
Conduct staff meetings to relay general information or to address specific topics, such as safety.
Assess training needs of staff and arrange for or provide appropriate instruction.
Recommend or initiate personnel actions, such as promotions, transfers, or disciplinary measures.
Resolve personnel problems, complaints, or formal grievances when possible, or refer them to higher-level supervisors for resolution.
Participate in the hiring process by reviewing credentials, conducting interviews, or making hiring decisions or recommendations.
Perform the same work duties as those supervised, or perform more difficult or skilled tasks or assist in their performance.
Inspect job sites to determine the extent of maintenance or repairs needed.
Inventory supplies and requisition or purchase additional items, as necessary.
Counsel employees in work-related activities, personal growth, or career development.

The above responsibilities are specific to Shipping Supervisors. More generally, Shipping Supervisors are involved in several broader types of activities:

Activities	Importance	Details
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates		Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others		Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks.
Training and Teaching Others		Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.
Getting Information		Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work		Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.

Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates

Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.

Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others

Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks.

Training and Teaching Others

Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.

Getting Information

Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.

Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work

Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.

What is a Shipping Supervisor salary?

The median salary for a Shipping Supervisor is $54,870, and the average salary is $58,300. Both the median and average roughly describe the middle of the Shipping Supervisor salary range, but the average is more easily affected by extremely high or low salaries.

Many Shipping Supervisors earn significantly more or less than the average, due to several factors. About 10% of Shipping Supervisors earn less than $34,210 per year, 25% earn less than $41,370, 75% earn less than $70,630, and 90% earn less than $87,480.

Between the years of 2020 and 2030, the number of Shipping Supervisors is expected to change by 5.8%, and there should be roughly 61,500 open positions for Shipping Supervisors every year.

Median annual salary: $54,870
Typical salary range: $34,210 - $87,480
Projected growth (2020 - 2030): 5.8%

What personality traits are common among Shipping Supervisors?

Interests

Career interests describe a person's preferences for different types of working environments and activities. When a person's interest match the demands of an occupation, people are usually more engaged and satisfied in that role.

Compared to most occupations, those who work as a Shipping Supervisor are usually higher in their Enterprising, Realistic, and Conventional interests.

Shipping Supervisors typically have very strong Enterprising interests. Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business.

Also, Shipping Supervisors typically have moderate Realistic interests. Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.

Lastly, Shipping Supervisors typically have moderate Conventional interests. Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.

Values

People differ in their values, or what is most important to them for building job satisfaction and fulfillment.

Compared to most people, those working as a Shipping Supervisor tend to value Support, Independence, and Relationships.

Most importantly, Shipping Supervisors strongly value Support. Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees.

Second, Shipping Supervisors strongly value Independence. Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions.

Lastly, Shipping Supervisors strongly value Relationships. Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to provide service to others and work with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment.

Psychological Demands

Each occupation brings its own set of psychological demands, which describe the characteristics necessary to perform the job well.

In order to perform their job successfully, people who work as Shipping Supervisors must consistently demonstrate qualities such as dependability, integrity, and leadership.

Below, you'll find a list of qualities typically required of Shipping Supervisors, ranked by importance:

Demands	Importance	Details
Dependability		Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
Integrity		Job requires being honest and ethical.
Leadership		Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.
Attention to Detail		Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
Cooperation		Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.

Dependability

Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.

Integrity

Job requires being honest and ethical.

Leadership

Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.

Attention to Detail

Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.

Cooperation

Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.

What education and training do Shipping Supervisors need?

Working as a Shipping Supervisor usually requires a high school diploma.

Shipping Supervisors need anywhere from a few months to one year of working with experienced employees. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with this occupation.

Educational degrees among Shipping Supervisors

7.0% did not complete high school or secondary school
35.6% completed high school or secondary school
29.6% completed some college coursework
10.8% earned a Associate's degree
13.5% earned a Bachelor's degree
2.9% earned a Master's degree
0.5% earned a doctorate or professional degree

Knowledge and expertise required by Shipping Supervisors

Shipping Supervisors may benefit from understanding of specialized subject areas, such as administration and management, customer and personal service, or transportation knowledge.

The list below shows several areas in which most Shipping Supervisors might want to build proficiency, ranked by importance.

Knowledge areas	Importance	Details
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.
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.
Transportation		Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
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.
Production and Processing		Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.

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.

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.

Transportation

Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.

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.

Production and Processing

Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.

Important Abilities needed by Shipping Supervisors

Shipping Supervisors must develop a particular set of abilities to perform their job well. Abilities are individual capacities that influence a person's information processing, sensory perception, motor coordination, and physical strength or endurance. Individuals may naturally have certain abilities without explicit training, but most abilities can be sharpened somewhat through practice.

For example, Shipping Supervisors need abilities such as oral comprehension, oral expression, and problem sensitivity in order to perform their job at a high level. The list below shows several important abilities for Shipping Supervisors, ranked by their relative importance.

Abilities	Importance	Details
Oral Comprehension		The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Oral Expression		The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Problem Sensitivity		The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.
Deductive Reasoning		The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
Speech Recognition		The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.

Oral Comprehension

The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.

Oral Expression

The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.

Problem Sensitivity

The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.

Deductive Reasoning

The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.

Speech Recognition

The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.

Critical Skills needed by Shipping Supervisors

Skills are developed capacities that enable people to function effectively in real-world settings. Unlike abilities, skills are typically easier to build through practice and experience. Skills influence effectiveness in areas such as learning, working with others, design, troubleshooting, and more.

Shipping Supervisors frequently use skills like active listening, speaking, and critical thinking to perform their job effectively. The list below shows several critical skills for Shipping Supervisors, ranked by their relative importance.

Skills	Importance	Details
Active Listening		Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Speaking		Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Critical Thinking		Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
Coordination		Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
Management of Personnel Resources		Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.

Active Listening

Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

Speaking

Talking to others to convey information effectively.

Critical Thinking

Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.

Coordination

Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.

Management of Personnel Resources

Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.

What is the source of this information?

The information provided on this page is adapted from data and descriptions published by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration under the CC BY 4.0 license. TraitLab has modified some information for ease of use and reading, and the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment, and Training Administration has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.

If you have any questions or suggestions about this information, please send a message.

Career profile Shipping Supervisor

Shipping Supervisor

Table of Contents

Would Shipping Supervisor be a good fit for you?