Thanks, folks for a cool look, at a never mentioned enough job!
Human frailty is abundant, however, look how well the system works, as is, and don’t worry about what could happen, or like the cajon says, “Dont’t let the screen door hit you in the ***, on your way out!”.
What basic skills would I need to get in that all dispatching positions would demand?
You should try applying for the same department!!! lol
Junctionfan,
You need excellent people skills, as inferred above. You also need to be able to handle a huge amount of work. Note that I haven’t had the job, but I’m just condensing some of what I’ve read. I have a lot of respect for dispatchers. A good one is worth his weight in gold pressed latinum.
When I dispatched, it was fairly straight forward, move the trains over 155 miles of railroad. Well that sounds easy, but it could be harder than expected. Dispatchers know their territory by repetition, true, but I also made several familirzation trips with train crews over the railroad I worked for. I also had the advantage of working in customer service for a year before sliding into the dispatchers chair. I learned from my predecessors before me on what to say and how to move the trains. The company I worked for was busiest in the middle, between Bloomington, In., and Palestine, Il, may have had as many as seven trains at once and trying to juggle that, the CSX and Soo Line schedules and the 12 hour limit became a circus act. I found my crews were extremely helpful and patient and had great senses of humor, of course they had my respect as I knew they were the ones out doing the work. My problem was with a certain higher up, who never really cared for me and I fell victim to politics, thus my tenure was done.
Air Traffic Controllers must work in a airspace that is stacked like a giant wedding cake upside down. They sometimes can MAKE room for that one problem pilot but TIME is the enemy because those jets burn fuel and must come down sometime.
Dispatchers in trucking send you out on a schedule and you should be able to make it. I refuse to get into the potential problems that causes a dispatcher to have a bad day.
Rail dispatchers I think have the fun part of the railroads. They say this train goes from A to B and it is done. Woe betide a weakling who cannot deal with problems on the job.
Computers are all very well and good. But communication is way better.