Processing Work Orders Overview – Cahoot

As a Cahoot Fulfillment Partner, Work Orders are assignments Cahoot sends you to prepare inventory, ship it out of your warehouse, or complete a special project. This article covers the process every work order follows and the details specific to each type.

Important: If a work order requires unexpected corrective work or is taking significantly longer than expected, do not spend additional time trying to resolve the issue yourself. Notify Cahoot through the Conversations panel on the work order before proceeding.

Finding Your Assigned Work Orders

Go to Work Orders → Work Orders → Assigned to Me to see the full list or navigate to the Open Work Orders & Inbounds section of your Cahoot Dashboard.

When Cahoot approves a work order, you will receive a Conversation message on the work order, which also triggers an email notification to your Cahoot login email address.

Start Date and Due Date

The Start Date is when Cahoot expects you to begin the work. The Due Date is the deadline for completing it. Work orders that are not ready on time count as a performance violation and can affect your inventory allocation — see Performance Violations and Resolutions Policy. If you cannot meet the due date, say so in the Conversations panel as early as possible rather than letting the date pass.

How to Process a Work Order

Every work order type follows the same lifecycle from assignment to invoice.

Open the work order from your Dashboard or the Assigned to Me tab and review the details, including the shipment method and any special instructions.
Click Acknowledge Work Order. The status changes to In Progress.
Complete the work according to the work order type and any special instructions.
For work orders shipping inventory out, package the inventory and enter box or pallet dimensions and weights in the Packing Information section, then upload photos of the packed parcels or pallets.
Update the status to Pending Pickup when the shipment is ready for the carrier, and send a Conversation message so Cahoot knows to provide shipping labels or a Bill of Lading.
Mark the work order Completed once all work is finished — or, for outbound shipments, once the carrier has picked up and the inventory has left your facility.
Click Submit Invoice within 7 days of completion. A countdown timer on the work order page shows the time remaining.

Use the Other Fees - Special Projects - Per hour service line for work order labor and enter your time spent in minutes as the Qty. See Creating Invoices for more details.

Processing Outbound Work Orders

Inventory Removal, Inventory Transfer, and B2B Fulfillment Work Orders follow the same outbound shipping process. Pack the requested inventory according to the Shipment Method on the Work Order, enter the final packing information, and prepare the shipment for carrier pickup.

Check the Shipment Method section on the work order to see whether the shipment goes out as Small Parcel in boxes or LTL on pallets.
Pack the inventory according to that method.
Enter the dimensions and weights for each box or pallet in the Packing Information section. You can leave NMFC Code blank.
Send a Conversation message when packing is complete so Cahoot knows the shipment is ready and can provide the shipping documents.
Print the shipping labels or Bill of Lading from the Shipping Documents section once Cahoot uploads them, and affix the labels to the packed cartons or pallets.
Upload photos of the packed parcels or pallets, then mark the work order Pending Pickup.

Important: Photos of the packed parcels or pallets are required before an outbound work order can move to Pending Pickup. Take them after packing is complete and before the carrier arrives — once the shipment leaves your dock, you cannot go back and document it.

For LTL shipments, have the driver sign the Bill of Lading at pickup, keep a copy for your records, and upload the signed copy to the work order.

Note: B2B Fulfillment work orders read the special instructions before you begin: they may call for vendor-specific labeling, a packing list or commercial invoice inside the shipment, or a delivery appointment scheduled in advance.

FBA Forwarding Work Orders

FBA Forwarding Work Orders ship inventory from your warehouse to an Amazon fulfillment center. Follow Processing FBA Forwarding Work Orders for the complete process.

Inventory Prep Work Orders

Inventory Prep work orders cover work performed on inventory that stays in your warehouse. They do not ship anything out, so no packing information or photos are required. There are two types.

Barcoding: used to add, replace, or correct barcode labels on units already in your warehouse. Print the labels directly from the approved work order using Other Actions → Barcode Labels, then apply them to the quantities specified. See Printing Product Barcodes for label templates and formats.
Reboxing and Polybagging: used to repackage existing inventory — combining SKUs into bundles or multi-packs, or breaking packs down into smaller units. The specific configuration is in the special instructions on the work order, so read them before you start. Use Cahoot-supplied boxes and polybags where available, and record the final package counts and dimensions on the work order.

Other Work Orders

Other work orders cover special projects that do not fit a standard category — inspections, photography, cycle counts, consolidation, sorting, or returns processing. The requirements are unique to each one and live entirely in the special instructions, so read them in full and ask in the Conversations panel before starting if anything is unclear. Document your work with photos and notes as you go, and post progress updates in the Conversations panel on longer projects.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does my work order show an On-Hold tag?

An On-Hold tag blocks all action on a work order so it cannot be edited or updated. It means Cahoot Support needs additional information from the carrier, the seller, or your warehouse before the work can continue. If the work order was in progress when the hold was applied, stop processing it immediately and set any partially packed inventory aside until the hold is lifted. Ask about the hold in the Conversations panel on the work order.

What if the shipping labels or Bill of Lading are never uploaded?

Send a message in the Conversations panel on the work order requesting them. Do not hand a shipment to a carrier without the correct labels or BOL attached.

What if the carrier does not show up for a scheduled pickup?

Report it in the Conversations panel on the work order the same day. Leave the shipment staged and the work order in Pending Pickup status — do not mark it Completed until the inventory has physically left your facility. Cahoot will reschedule the pickup.

What if the work order instructions are unclear?

Ask in the Conversations panel before you start. All communication about a specific work order goes through its Conversations panel rather than a separate support ticket, which keeps the full history attached to the work order. For account-level issues unrelated to a specific work order, Submit Ticket.

What if I missed the 7-day window to submit my invoice?

Submit a standalone invoice instead. Go to Work Orders → All Invoices, select Add New Invoice, and enter the Work Order ID under Reference ID so Cahoot knows what the invoice is for. See Creating Invoices for the full process.

Do I need to request a carrier pickup for a work order shipment?

No. Cahoot arranges the pickup for work order shipments. Mark the work order Pending Pickup and send a Conversation message once the shipment is packed, labeled, and staged.