Data entry operator

A data entry clerk is a member of staff employed to enter or update data into a computer system. Data are often entered into a computer from paper documents using a keyboard, optical scanner, or data recorder. The keyboards used can often have specialist keys and multiple colors to help in the task and speed up the work. Proper ergonomics at the workstation is a common topic considered.

While requisite skills can vary depending on the nature of the data being entered, few specialized skills are usually required, aside from touch typing proficiency with adequate speed and accuracy. The ability to focus for lengthy periods is necessary to eliminate or at least reduce errors. When dealing with sensitive or private information such as medical, financial or military records, a person's character and discretion become very relevant as well; training on confidentiality protocols may be required, for instance, in the compliance of HIPAA. Beyond these traits, no technical knowledge is generally required and these jobs can even be worked from home.

The invention of punch card data processing in the 1890s created a demand for many workers, typically women, to run keypunch machines. It was common practice to ensure accuracy by entering data twice, the second time on a verifier, a separate, keyboard-equipped machine, such as the IBM 056. In the 1970s, punch card data entry was gradually replaced by the use of video display terminals.

For a mailing company, data entry clerks might be required to type in reference numbers for items of mail which had failed to reach their destination, so that the relevant addresses could be deleted from the database used to send the mail out. If the company was compiling a database from addresses handwritten on a questionnaire, the person typing those into the database would be a data entry clerk. In a cash office, a data entry clerk might be required to type expenses into a database using numerical codes.

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