A design-build inventory specialist tracks the materials a firm buys for its additions, remodels and custom homes. They keep the screws, drywall and floor protection every job uses in stock. They also check the tile, fixtures and cabinets each family picked during design as they arrive, and hold them until the crew is ready.
By the HireBus team · Updated · Pay data: BLS, May 2025
The Inventory Specialist plays a pivotal role in ensuring the smooth flow of materials and supplies for our design-build projects. This individual is responsible for tracking stock levels, ordering supplies, and maintaining updated records to support our operational excellence. The role directly contributes to efficient project execution and overall customer satisfaction while minimizing waste and reducing costs.
2. Essential Duties and Responsibilities
Manage and monitor inventory levels to ensure uninterrupted supply for design-build projects.
Place orders for materials and supplies in a timely and cost-effective manner.
Maintain accurate records of inventory transactions and update systems consistently.
Collaborate with project managers and vendors to resolve supply chain issues promptly.
Conduct periodic audits of stock to minimize discrepancies and optimize usage.
3. Key Tasks / Daily Activities
Review daily stock reports and update inventory management software.
Coordinate with vendors and suppliers to verify order status and delivery schedules.
Perform routine inspections of storage areas and manage stock rotation.
Communicate with the project team regarding material availability and potential shortages.
4. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Inventory Accuracy Rate: 98% or higher.
Timeliness of Order Replenishment: 100% of orders placed on schedule.
Cost Reduction Initiatives: Achieve a minimum of 10% reduction in waste and excess inventory annually.
Record Maintenance Accuracy: Maintain over 99% accuracy in inventory documentation.
5. Required Qualifications and Skills
High school diploma or equivalent; associate or bachelor’s degree preferred.
Minimum of 2 years’ experience in inventory management or a related role.
Proficient in using inventory management software and Microsoft Office Suite.
Strong attention to detail with excellent organizational and communication skills.
6. Preferred Experience
Experience working within design-build or home services firms.
Background in supply chain management or logistics within the construction or design industry.
Familiarity with industry-specific safety and quality standards.
Proven track record of implementing effective inventory control strategies.
7. Physical Requirements
Ability to lift and carry items up to 25 lbs.
Frequent standing, walking, and bending during inventory audits.
Exposure to variable temperatures in warehouse or storage settings.
Occasional use of ladders and manual handling equipment safely.
8. Work Environment and Schedule
Typical work hours: Monday to Friday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM.
Minimal travel required between storage facilities and job sites.
On-call support available during peak inventory periods if needed.
Collaborative office environment with occasional site visits.
9. Compensation and Benefits
Salary range: $45,000 - $55,000 USD annually, based on experience.
Performance-based bonus opportunities available annually.
Comprehensive benefits package including Health, Dental, and Vision coverage.
401(k) plan with company match, paid time off, and other fringe benefits.
10. Company Culture and Overview
At [INSERT COMPANY NAME HERE], we foster a culture of innovation, collaboration, and continuous improvement, empowering each team member to excel and grow professionally. We believe in investing in our people and providing a work environment that balances professional success with personal well-being, making our team dynamic and innovative in delivering exceptional design-build services.
11. How to Apply
If you meet the above criteria and want to be part of a growth-oriented company focused on customer satisfaction, please send your resume to [INSERT EMAIL HERE] or apply online at [INSERT WEBSITE LINK HERE].
Need help filling this role? HireBus posts the ad, Iris interviews every applicant by phone before you do, and you decide who to hire. Start hiring now
What a design-build inventory specialist keeps straight
Most of what a design-build firm buys belongs to one house: the cabinets, tile, faucets and lights a family chose with the designer. The specialist keeps those apart from the shared stock and makes sure each one is right before a crew is waiting on it.
Selections are checked against the signed sheet
A purchase order says what was ordered. The signed selection sheet says what the family chose: the model, the finish, the size and the room it goes in. The specialist checks each delivery against that sheet, down to a matte black faucet that came in brushed nickel or a vanity top with the sink offset the wrong way. Found at receiving, a mistake costs a reorder. Found by the plumber at trim-out, it costs a return trip and a delay the family notices.
Tile cartons have to match each other
Most tile cartons list a shade and a caliber, or size range, on the label. Under the industry's ANSI definitions, boxes with the same shade value are meant to look right together. The Ceramic Tile Education Foundation's academic director warns that mixing shades or calibers can leave uneven color and grout joints. So the specialist compares every carton for a job with the others when it arrives, before the setter opens any, and sends a mismatch back that day. Source: Stone World (Ceramic Tile Education Foundation): reading shade and caliber on tile cartons, November 2024.
Family-bought items get their own records
Some families buy their own lighting, appliances or plumbing fixtures online and ship them to the firm. The specialist logs each one as client-supplied, opens the box with photos, and checks for missing parts or damage long before the installer needs it. Then they tell the project manager, since the contract decides who replaces a broken or wrong item. Kept on a shelf tagged with the family's name, those items never land on their bill or in another house.
Returns run on the supplier's clock
Learn each supplier's return terms: how long it takes back extra lumber, drywall and boxed stock for credit, and which special orders it won't take back at all. Then the specialist collects leftovers when a phase ends, returns what the supplier will take, and logs each credit back to its job. Unopened boxes of a family's tile or flooring may stay with the house instead, labeled for future repairs, if the project manager agrees.
How much design-build inventory specialists make
The closest BLS group for design-build inventory specialists is shipping, receiving, and inventory clerks. Shipping, receiving, and inventory clerks who work for building contractors earned a median of $25.79 an hour ($53,630 a year) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s above the $45,260 median for shipping, receiving, and inventory clerks in all industries. About 1,420 of the 816,870 shipping, receiving, and inventory clerks in that survey work for building contractors.
The job is salaried, with the yearly performance bonus the template names. By BLS figures for these clerks at building contractors, the range brackets their median: its top sits just above it, and its bottom about where the lowest-paid quarter tops out. A fair bonus measure: counts that match, and wrong selections caught at receiving rather than by a crew.
Building contractors
$53,630$53,630 median Middle half $44,410–$65,880 10th–90th $35,450–$76,930
All industries
$45,260$45,260 median Middle half $38,200–$51,570 10th–90th $34,650–$62,190
$20k$30k$40k$50k$60k$70k$80k$90k
10th–90th percentileMiddle halfMedianAnnual pay, May 2025. Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics.
Annual pay by percentile
Group
10th
25th
Median
75th
90th
Building contractors
$35,450
$44,410
$53,630
$65,880
$76,930
All industries
$34,650
$38,200
$45,260
$51,570
$62,190
BLS doesn’t publish pay for design-build firms on their own. These figures cover construction of buildings, which include them. Post a real range for your market in the ad.
The pay line in the template above is an example from our Role Blueprint. Set yours from these figures and what local companies pay.
Skills to hire for, and what you can teach
Hire for these
Checks a delivery against a selection sheet, not just a packing slip
Reads model numbers, finish codes and tile shade codes without skipping a character
Keeps each family's items apart from shared stock and from other jobs
Calls a supplier the same day about a wrong or damaged item
Keeps receiving records with photos in inventory software or a spreadsheet
Teach these on the job
Your selection sheets and how to find them in your project software
The suppliers you buy from and each one's return terms
How your firm labels and stores a job's materials
Which items you keep in shared stock
Product names in tile, plumbing, lighting and cabinetry
Expect the selection and purchase order screens in the firm's project management software, a label printer and a phone for photos of everything that arrives. Online accounts with the lumber yard, plumbing supply house and lighting showroom track open orders, back orders and return credits.
Two of the 6 questions we'd ask, and what a strong answer sounds like. Ask every candidate the same questions, and rate each answer on your own before you compare notes.
Situational · Discontinued selections
A client's selected tile is discontinued after the order was placed. What do you do?
A strong answer: Tells the project manager and designer right away, finds options (other lots, similar products), helps the designer get a quick client decision, and updates the schedule.
Behavioral · Smart cost savings
Tell me about a time you cut supply costs on a construction or remodeling job without hurting quality.
A strong answer: Compared options with the designer or project manager, checked specs and warranty, got the client's approval when a selection changed, and confirmed quality held after the switch.
Score a family's selections more strictly than shared stock: one wrong vanity can stall a bathroom for weeks, while a short box of screws costs a run to the store. Leave the template's numbers in place until a year of your own receiving records shows what to expect.
Inventory Accuracy Rate
Two checks: a few shelves of shared stock counted against the system each week, and a monthly walk of the job bays to find every stored family item where its record puts it.
Timeliness of Order Replenishment
Shared stock reordered before it ran out, and job materials ordered by the order date on the PM's schedule, from purchase order dates. Note orders that waited on a family's late selection.
Cost Reduction Initiatives
Credits from returns, stock written off as damaged or unused, and leftover material thrown away instead of returned, each logged by job and added up for the year.
Record Maintenance Accuracy
A monthly sample of receiving records checked against photos, selection sheets and supplier bills. A delivery logged without photos, or a family's item without its client-supplied tag, counts as a miss.
Career path
Supply house counter clerkLearns plumbing, lighting or tile products and how contractors order them.
Inventory specialistChecks in, stores and tracks every family's materials and the shared stock.
BuyerOrders materials for every job and keeps supplier pricing current.
Warehouse managerLeads the warehouse staff and decides how every job is stored and loaded.
Mostly what every job uses up: screws and nails, adhesives and caulk, drywall and mud, floor protection, and plastic and tape for dust walls. Anything a family picks, from tile to faucets, is ordered for that job only. Before stocking a costly item, check how many jobs used it last year, since a few slow sellers can fill a shelf for months.
How much does a design-build inventory specialist make?
Shipping, receiving, and inventory clerks who work for building contractors earned a median of $25.79 an hour ($53,630 a year) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The middle half earned between $44,410 and $65,880 a year. Pay also depends on your local market, experience and overtime.
Who fixes a selection that arrived wrong?
The specialist finds it and the designer settles it. The specialist sends photos, the selection sheet and the supplier's answer to the designer and the project manager that day. If the right item is weeks out, the designer offers the family choices and the project manager prices any change. The specialist never picks a substitute alone, even one that looks close.
Should the specialist check supplier order confirmations?
Yes, the day each one comes in. A confirmation repeats back the model, finish, size, quantity and ship date the supplier entered. Compare it line by line with the signed selection sheet and the purchase order. A wrong finish caught on paper costs an email; caught at the door, it can cost weeks. Pass any ship date that slipped to the operations manager, who tracks long-lead items against the crew's start.
Where do good design-build inventory specialists come from?
Time at a lumber yard, a plumbing showroom or a tile shop fits well, because those workers already read finish codes and model numbers the way this job needs. A retail warehouse teaches careful counting but not what a wrong finish costs on a remodel. During interviews, give candidates a tile carton label and a faucet box and ask what each code on them means.
