Skill Codes & SOC Code Management in AviontéBOLD

This article explains how Standard Occupational Codes (SOC) are created in Avionté Classic Back Office when job orders are entered in AviontéBOLD, why this matters for tax filing (especially W-2s and state quarterly filings), and what best practices teams should follow to avoid large-scale SOC code correction work at year-end.

Key Takeaways

• Every unique job title entered in BOLD creates a new skill code in Classic Back Office — including typos, capitalization variations, and shift-specific titles.
• Each skill code requires a SOC (Standard Occupational Classification) code to pass Greenshades filing validation for states that require it.
• BOLD-created skill codes default to the "Clerical" category regardless of the actual job type and must be corrected manually.
• Job order templates with a locked Job Title field are the most effective way to prevent skill code sprawl before it starts.

How the BOLD-to-Classic Skill Code Relationship Works

When a job order is created in AviontéBOLD, the Job Title field is free text — there is no enforced dropdown or standardized list. Each unique job title string entered creates a corresponding skill code in Classic Back Office Admin Tools.

This means the following all become separate skill codes:

• Forklift Operator
• Forklift Operator 1st Shift
• Forklift operator (lowercase 'o')
• Forklif Operator (typo, missing 't')

All four are essentially the same job, but each requires its own SOC code assignment. One client reported manually updating over 2,200 skill codes in 20+ hours before year-end filing.

Note: When BOLD creates a new skill code in Classic, it is automatically categorized as "Clerical" regardless of the actual job type. This means both the SOC code and the category will need to be corrected for non-clerical roles. Update the category in Admin Tools > Skill Codes.

Best Practices: Proactive Setup

1. Use Job Order Templates with a Locked Job Title

The most effective way to prevent skill code sprawl is to require job order templates per customer and lock the Job Title field within each template. This prevents free-text variation and ensures that all orders for a given role produce the same, consistent skill code in Back Office.

To set this up:

1. Navigate to the Customer record in BOLD.
2. Open the Job Order Templates section.
3. Create a template for each standard role (e.g., Forklift Operator, General Laborer, Warehouse Associate).
4. Lock the Job Title field in the template so it cannot be edited when the job order is created.

💡 Pro Tip: A common concern is that locking a template will prevent recruiters from adjusting pay rates for individual assignments. This is not the case. Locking only applies to fields where a value has been entered in the template. If you leave pay rate fields blank, recruiters can still enter rates at job creation. Lock the title — leave rates open.

2. Require Job Order Templates in Customer Settings

In addition to creating templates, configure BOLD to require a template when creating job orders for a customer. This enforces consistent title use and prevents users from creating unintentional one-off skill codes.

Setting this option ensures that even newer or less experienced staff cannot inadvertently introduce variations in skill codes.

3. Limit Who Creates Job Orders

The more users who can create job orders with free-text titles, the more skill code variations will accumulate. Consider restricting job order creation to a smaller group of trained staff, or at a minimum, ensure all users are trained on the importance of using templates and consistent job title naming.

4. Use a Standard Naming Convention

Even when templates are in use, establish and document a standard naming convention for all job titles. Share this with all staff who create job orders and include it in onboarding training.

Example naming standards to consider:

• No shift information in the job title (e.g., use "Forklift Operator" — not "Forklift Operator 1st Shift")
• Consistent capitalization (e.g., Title Case for all job titles)
• No special characters or extra spaces
• Abbreviated titles should be standardized (e.g., always "Warehouse Associate" not "WH Associate" or "Whse Assoc")

Ongoing Maintenance: The "Get Missing SOC Data" Report

Even with templates and naming conventions in place, new skill codes will occasionally be created, especially as new customers, roles, or job types are added. Running the Get Missing SOC Data report on a regular cadence ensures issues are caught and resolved before year-end.

Recommended Cadence

Frequency	When to Run	Why
Weekly	Ongoing during active hiring seasons	Catch new skill codes before they accumulate
Monthly	Minimum recommendation	Balance effort with compliance readiness
Quarterly	Before each quarterly state filing	Required for states that mandate SOC codes in filings
Before Year-End	October–November (at the latest)	Avoid last-minute corrections before W-2 and Greenshades processing

How to Run the Report

For full instructions on running the report and understanding its parameters and output fields, see Standard AQ — Get Missing SOC Data.

How to Assign SOC Codes to Skill Codes

For step-by-step instructions on assigning SOC codes in Admin Tools, see Standard Occupational Code (SOC) Support. Two things to keep in mind specific to BOLD-created skill codes:

• In the SOC Lookup field within Admin Tools > Skill Codes, you must press the Enter key after typing a title or code to trigger the dropdown results. Simply typing and waiting will not populate options. This is a common point of confusion when working through SOC code corrections.
• BOLD defaults all new skill codes to the "Clerical" category. When assigning a SOC code, verify the category is correct for the role and update it if needed.

Cleanup Options for Existing Backlogs

If a client has accumulated a large number of skill codes without SOC codes, especially common for clients who have been on BOLD for a while without using templates, there are a few approaches:

Option A: Run the Get Missing SOC Data Report and Correct Manually

Use the report to generate the list, then correct codes in Admin Tools > Skill Codes one by one. Best for smaller backlogs (under approximately 100 codes).

Option B: Map Duplicate or Similar Codes to One Uniform Code

Classic Back Office allows you to map duplicate or similar skill codes to a single standardized code. This was a common cleanup step when clients transitioned from Classic to BOLD. If a client has many variations of the same role (e.g., all the Forklift variants), mapping them to one code and assigning the SOC code once is far more efficient than updating each individually.

Option C: Engage Avionté Technical Services for Mass Updates

For clients with very large backlogs, Avionté's Technical Services team may be able to assist with a mass SOC code update depending on scope. Clients should open a support ticket and discuss options with their support agent.

Quick Reference Summary

Topic	Key Point
Root Cause	Free-text job titles in BOLD create new skill codes in Classic with every variation
Default Category	All BOLD-created skill codes default to "Clerical" — must be corrected manually
Best Prevention	Use job order templates with the Job Title field locked per customer
Rate Flexibility	Locking a template only locks fields with entered values — leave pay rates blank to keep them editable
Ongoing Maintenance	Run "Get Missing SOC Data" report weekly or quarterly — do not wait until year-end
Fix Location	Classic Back Office > Admin Tools > Skill Codes
SOC Code Reference	BLS Occupational Structure (SOC Code Lookup)
Press Enter!	The SOC Lookup dropdown requires pressing Enter — typing alone won't populate results
Large Backlog?	Consider mapping duplicate codes or engaging Avionté Technical Services for mass updates

Related Articles & Resources

• Standard Occupational Code (SOC) Support
• Standard AQ — Get Missing SOC Data
• Greenshades Overview
• Custom Job Order Templates (Requirements)
• Create and View Company Contract Statuses and Types
• BLS Occupational Structure (SOC Code Lookup)