Receptionist Job Description: Duties, Template and Best Scheduling Software

A receptionist job description spells out what your front-desk person does all day: greeting visitors, answering calls and passing them on, signing for parcels, keeping the visitor book and booking meeting rooms. It should also say who you're after (usually someone calm, clear on the phone and comfortable with Microsoft Office or Google Workspace), plus the hours, the location and who they report to. Most receptionist jobs don't ask for formal qualifications, which is exactly why the description matters: it's how you end up judging attitude and experience rather than certificates. Below there's a template you can pinch, a word on UK pay and a few thoughts on keeping the desk covered.

Picture the job before you write it

Say you run a 30-person accountancy practice, and Jo, who's sat on reception for six years, has just handed in her notice. Before you copy a template off the internet, spend a morning watching what Jo actually does. It's more than "answers the phone". She signs clients in and walks them to the meeting room. She knows which partner hates being disturbed before ten. She chases the courier who dropped off the wrong box, sorts out room two when it's double-booked, orders the coffee pods and keeps half an eye on whoever's wandering in through the front door. That last bit matters. A receptionist is often the first person a visitor meets, and quietly the first line of security too.

What makes a good receptionist?

Clear English, spoken and written. The knack of handling a ringing phone, a courier and a visitor at once without looking flustered. Customer service experience helps, and it doesn't have to come from an office; plenty of brilliant receptionists learned the trade behind a shop counter or a hotel bar. Discretion is the one people forget. Jo has heard every partner's phone call and seen every visitor's name, which brings UK GDPR responsibilities with it. Qualifications? Rarely needed. Most of the job is picked up on the job.

Receptionist job description template

Here's a starting point you can adapt:

• Job title: Receptionist
• Reports to: Office Manager
• Hours: for example, Monday to Friday, 8am to 4.30pm
• Purpose: first point of contact for visitors and callers; keep the front office running smoothly
• Responsibilities: greet and sign in visitors, answer and route calls, handle post and deliveries, book rooms, keep reception tidy and secure, order supplies
• Skills: communication, organisation, customer service, Microsoft Office or Google Workspace

Then change the detail for your sector. A healthcare receptionist books appointments and guards patient records like a hawk. A hotel front desk in hospitality checks people in at 11pm and fields complaints about the Wi-Fi.

What do receptionists earn in the UK?

A lot of roles pay at, or a bit above, the National Living Wage, which is £12.71 an hour for workers aged 21 and over from April 2026. Medical, legal and corporate front desks usually pay more, and London pays more again. Have a scroll through local job adverts before you fix a rate; the gap between regions can be wider than you'd expect.

Which software helps you manage front-desk staff?

Reception is one of the few jobs that can't be left empty, not even for a sandwich. So there are usually two people on overlapping shifts, and someone keeping track of lunch breaks and holidays. When you look at HR tools, start with the rota. Then think about how quickly you'd know that Jo's replacement is stuck on the M62, and whether the new starter's contract and right-to-work check end up in one file or scattered across three inboxes.

How OfficePortal helps

OfficePortal plans the cover in shift scheduling software, shows late arrivals through attendance tracking and keeps every new starter's paperwork in HR management software, so onboarding the new receptionist takes days rather than weeks. One tip no software will give you, though. In the interview, ring the desk phone while the candidate is greeting a pretend visitor. Two minutes of that tells you more than the CV.

Conclusion: Hire and schedule front-desk staff with OfficePortal

The job description finds you the next Jo. OfficePortal helps keep the desk covered once she starts. You build overlapping shifts, see late arrivals as they happen and approve holiday in the same place, while her contract and right-to-work check sit safely in one employee file. It's made by Awarious Technology Solutions, and the data is protected with AES-256 encryption on SOC 2 compliant infrastructure. Create a free OfficePortal account for up to five users, check the pricing page for bigger teams, or book a demo and we'll show you shift scheduling in action.