A job description is a useful document to both the organisation and the job holder, in that it provides information about the purpose and main accountabilities of the role. In some sectors, it is also useful to show people specifications at the end of the main job description, but this is not mandatory.
A job description sets the expectations of the company from the time of joining but should remain organic and it is best practice to review it annually or within two years, as responsibilities change and jobs evolve.
By listing the main responsibilities of the role, it will help draw and clearly set the main objectives and facilitate 121 discussions between managers and employees with regard to performance.
A job description, however, is not a job advert. It is usually a much longer document that fleshes out the following headings.
Job description example
- Reporting line
- Position within the internal structure (organisation chart)
- Direct reports/line management responsibilities (if applicable)
- Budget ownership (if applicable)
- Main purpose of the role (usually top 5 bullet points)
- Main duties, which can be divided between sub-headings depending on the role. For example: client/customer relationships; line management; health & safety; financial/procurement; administrative duties; confidentiality; governance; etc
Where people specifications are necessary to name, for example in roles where there may be specific qualifications required or because of the nature of the job and any risks associated (such as medical roles), these can be shown as a table at the end of the main description of the job. Typical heading may include, but are not limited to:
- Qualifications and experience
- Skills
- Role-based competencies
The specification table will typically show two columns: one for ‘essential’ and one for ‘desirable’. Each description will then show a tick under one of those two criteria. They are useful for the job applicant to understand what the hiring managers are looking for when recruiting for this role. Such a full job description with person specs can be shared when advertising the role and in those cases, it is not necessary to copy and paste the whole document; use the advert to tell the applicants more about the organisation and attach the job description for full details.
Which leads us nicely onto job adverts.
These days, no one wants to read 3 pages of job advert – the attention span just isn’t there! If you are not intending to attach a full job description, then the job advert should contain the following main sections but keep it concise, snappy, encouraging and motivating – you are selling your organisation at this point, so always think ‘why should someone choose us?’
Job advert example
- About Us – 2-3 paragraphs about your organisation, what you do and who your customers are
- About You and the Role – 3-4 short paragraphs to highlight why you need this role (is it new?), the main accountabilities, the main skills/competencies required and what would put an applicant at the top of the list. We recommend addressing the reader as ‘you’, rather than ‘the post holder’ as it will make the advert more personable.
- Essential Skills – no more than 5-6 bullet points
- Desirable Skills – no more than 2-3 bullet points
- What You Can Expect – salary; hours; place of work; benefits
- How to apply; who to contact for questions; etc.
Don’t be tempted to put all skills under ‘essential’; this may put the readers off if they think they must absolutely have all the skills to be considered and you may miss out on someone exceptional who could bring transferrable competencies and knowledge.
Think about what the post holder must have as a minimum in terms of qualifications and/or knowledge, and experience. If you wish to specify a number of years of experience in ‘XYZ’, remember that age discrimination is a real grey area for discrimination. We would usually only start it at ‘1 year+’, with a very maximum of ‘5 years+’.
Job adverts should be interesting to read while still informative enough that the reader can determine whether they want to apply. Let’s face it, a job description is very useful but dull as dishwater, which is why we are not fans of copying/pasting its content and calling it the job advert!
Recruitment & selection is a two-way process. You want to attract the best qualified and experienced candidates and the reader wants to feel they want to join your organisation. The job advert will, ideally, be long enough to provide sufficient information, yet be short enough that its content can be read and digested in under 5 minutes.
And here’s our free hot tip: if attention to detail and ability to follow instructions are essential skills to have for the role you are advertising, and the candidates that apply are so obviously not qualified, regret them straight away!
If the job advert is spot on, it will have offered enough pointers that could not be misunderstood. Anyone not qualified who applies will either have failed to read the advert in full, not bothered reading it at all and ticked the ‘quick apply’ button, or failed to follow the application process. And that in itself is a selection test!
Do you feel you or your team need additional HR training? At OneHR, we provide one-off or ongoing purposeful training sessions, which equips employees with skills they can immediately use in real life HR scenarios. Want to know more? Contact us at: kaye@one-hr.co.uk.
