Operations and admin
Receptionist job description template
The first person every visitor meets, and the advert most often written as a list of tasks with no sense of the place.
Copy this
Receptionist job description
About the role
We are looking for a Receptionist to be the first point of contact for everyone who visits or calls [company]. You will welcome visitors, manage the front desk, handle calls and post, and keep the reception area running so the rest of the building can get on with its day. You will report to [role].
What you will do
- Welcome visitors, manage sign-in and notify the people they are here to see
- Answer and route incoming calls, taking messages that contain what is needed
- Manage incoming and outgoing post and deliveries
- Keep the reception area presentable and the meeting rooms ready
- Book meeting rooms and help with catering or equipment when asked
- Support the wider admin team with [tasks] during quieter periods
- Follow building security and sign-in procedures
What we need
- A warm, professional manner with people you have never met
- Clear spoken and written communication
- Reliable timekeeping, because the desk cannot open late
- Comfortable with a calendar, email and a phone system
Nice to have
- Previous reception or front-of-house experience
- Experience with [your visitor management or phone system]
- A second language relevant to your visitors
Before you publish the pay
Receptionist adverts are frequently posted without pay and that costs applications, because this is a role where candidates compare several similar adverts in one sitting. State the range and the hours. If the role covers specific shifts, say which.
To appear in Google job results
Fill in title, location, employment type, date posted, a valid-through date and the salary range. This is an on-site role by definition, so set a real location rather than leaving it blank, because job results filter on it heavily.
Adapt it rather than pasting it. The parts worth rewriting are the opening paragraph and the must-haves, because those are what decide whether the right person applies. Our guide to writing a job description covers why.
When it is ready, publishing it on your own site keeps the listing, the applications and the candidate data with you, and generates the structured data that makes the role eligible for Google job results.
Common questions
Should I combine reception with administrative duties?
Very often it makes sense, and the advert should say what proportion. Somebody expecting a front-desk role who finds themselves doing data entry between visitors will feel misled, even if the work is reasonable. Say roughly how the day splits.
What hours should I state?
Exact ones. This role is defined by coverage, so the hours are not a detail, they are the job. Include whether there is any expectation to cover absence or extend at short notice.
Is Receptionist the right title?
It is what candidates search for, so use it as the title even if internally you call the role Front of House or Guest Experience. You can use the internal name in the body of the advert.
Publish it on your own site.
WP Career Board turns the fields you fill in into the markup Google reads, and applications land in a dashboard instead of an inbox. Free.