A Guide to Writing Job Descriptions

Every applicant looks through dozens of job descriptions every day when looking for a new workplace or monitoring the available options. There are numerous platforms with listings and millions of available careers, so providing a good job description is the only way to draw skilled potential candidates.

Just as the recruits spend limited time on their resumes, applicants also have specific interest points that they are looking for. Job descriptions are an important part of the hiring process since this is one of the first things qualified candidates can be attracted by.

In this article, you will learn what job descriptions are and their structure, as well as tips on how to create a compelling job description that will help you find your ideal candidate. Let's get started.

The Definition of the Job Descriptions

Job descriptions are a succinct listing of the most vital job elements presented that act as a job advert for qualified candidates. It provides details on responsibilities, requirements, the organization's mission, and other essential activities that can provide an understanding of who the qualified candidates are for the position.

Job descriptions are the basis of the recruiting process since they can attract qualified job seekers. It saves time for both sides and helps navigate the interview by aligning the expectations of the two parties.

How to Write a Job Description

Apart from the general structure, there are some essential features of any quality job description template to keep in mind. The first thing to consider is the length of the text.

The text should be about 400 to 700 words in total. Such concise job descriptions usually have better conversion rates, are not too long or too short, and provide all the essential information to the applicants.

Any well-written job description must outline enough details to help potential applicants understand whether they have the necessary qualifications. The concise description of the job posting should include the following:

• must-have skills required for the job;

• job title purpose;

• goals of the company and position's relevance to their accomplishment;

• work specification;

• processes of completing the tasks.

Why Job Descriptions are Important?

Doing something just because everyone else is doing it is not very productive. It might seem that compelling job descriptions require too much time and effort, yet there are many benefits an effective job posting can provide to both the company and the candidate.

Helps to Create a Good First Impression

An effective job description is one of the main things that influence the first impression of the candidate regarding your company. Any grammatical errors or vagueness in the text diminish any previous errors and lead the person away. It can have more long-lasting consequences if the candidate shares the opinion with other prospects in the industry.

Creating the Baseline

When the prospect starts working in the company, a job description can be used as a baseline for a person's accomplishments. This makes it easier to review the difference in responsibilities, gained qualifications, and general impact. Such data can be used to apply for promotions or receive additional benefits.

Outlines What to Expect

Creating an effective job description will help both parties. On the one hand, the candidate can clearly understand whether he is qualified for the job. On the other hand, the recruitment team won't have to go through the under qualified applicant pool. This will save everyone time and effort.

Attracting Qualified Applicants

A well-written job description has a vital role in attracting highly qualified applicants. Presenting your job descriptions on all necessary platforms can help you reach more professionals in the industry.

Eases the Search

Thousands of candidates are in search of a workplace every day, whether actively or passively. Comparing all the postings is much easier when there is a clear outline of benefits, salary ranges, and responsibilities, making it much easier to make the final choices.

Interview Preparation

The job description can help interviewers and the applicant prepare for the first one-on-one conversation, whether it's online or offline. The applicant will be familiar with the interview topics, and the human resources department will have a questionnaire that aligns with the person's qualifications.

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Effective Job Description Structure

There is a set of common free job description templates that companies in all industries apply when creating a job listing. These have a standard set of structure parts that allow applicants to locate satisfactory listings.

Job Title

A job title is a brief description (up to 4 words) that provides a clear understanding of the position, including purpose and scope. Any job title should be consistent with the general standard for the roles in the industry when added to the job description.

Examples include Senior Technical Writer, Assistant Manager, QA Analyst, Manager of Customer Support, and Associate Director of Disability Services.

You can also take into consideration that almost 50% of job seekers are looking for positions on job boards that use search engine optimization (SEO). So, if you want to create a stellar job description that will attract the right people, be careful to use common titles.

Company Description

This is an additional part that can be implemented to create a more engaging job description. List details about the general working environment, benefits packages, and your company mission.

If there are some unusual company culture activities, you can add them as well to help the job description stand out. Maybe there are some well-known clients or collaborations that can interest a candidate.

Job Purpose

This part is a high-level overview of the position that provides more clarity about the general responsibilities and management level in the company. It consists of three to four sentences and outlines the reason the role is necessary for the company.

Job Responsibilities

This part includes bullet points of all key responsibilities and duties the job entails. Everything that the section contains will be the main focus of the perspective and will take up most of the work time.

It should provide more detail regarding the following:

• What results are expected from the person's work;

• All accountabilities (both direct and indirect);

• How the tasks are completed;

• Financial areas of responsibility;

• Company interactions and extended collaboration;

• What areas will be impacted by direct decision-making.

Supervisory Responsibilities

When the job posting is for any management position, you must also add details on supervisory responsibilities that will be expected of the person. This usually applies to major decisions regarding the work of the other employees, like hiring, contract termination, workload distribution, training, and compilation of performance reviews.

Such responsibilities can be listed as a separate task or as a part of the job duty. There are different levels of supervision that include:

• Instructional aid to other employees.

• General supervision, hiring, and training, as well as instructional and issue-solving aid for parents and student employees. Work processes monitoring of other employees.

• General supervision, hiring, workload distribution, schedule assessment, and frequent performance review. Additionally, all payment responsibilities, contract changes, and termination.

• Manager of the other managers.

Listing the Duties

All job duties must be present based on their impact on the company's work or how much work time they usually take up. Job descriptions must include only up to several of the main duties that can be listed as bullet points.

It is also useful to add the percentage of work time every duty takes up based on the data from previous years. Or, you can list how many hours each of them takes per week. When the duty takes no more than 5 percent, you should combine it with the other similar ones or emit it from the job ad.

Required Job Qualifications

This part of the job description is necessary to highlight the base of what the person must know to be able to complete the tasks. This includes education, working experience, and skills. If the person does not possess the necessary qualifications, he will be rejected throughout the hiring process.

Education

Provide information regarding the educational qualification the person must have to be able to perform the tasks. You must also provide details about education areas and degree types that are necessary to receive knowledge to fulfill the position.

Relevant Experience

Specify the minimum work experience you are expecting from the prospect as well as the type of work and qualification areas. Make sure to mention whether undergraduate experience, assistance, or apprenticeship can be counted as work experience for this specific job posting.

Knowledge

You must always add a level of knowledge to the job descriptions. There are several levels of knowledge depth, which can be described as the following:

• Working knowledge

The person must be greatly familiar with the subject and be aware of the basic principles and terms to have the ability to solve simple issues.

• General knowledge

The candidate must have great knowledge of the industry so he is able to complete tasks in usual circumstances. The job requires the person to have an understanding of usual situations and be aware of the most important parts of the subject.

• Thorough knowledge

The person must possess profound knowledge of the subject. There must be a sufficient comprehension of the industry to be able to solve unusual and usual issues. He must also have the knowledge to provide advice on technical matters and other related subjects.

• Comprehensive knowledge

The applicant must have complete mastery of the necessary subject. Such knowledge is required rarely and only for specific reasons like creating new and original methodologies, approaches, and hypotheses.

Skills

Provide a list of abilities and skills the applicant should have to fulfill his duties successfully. These can include additional licenses and certifications as well. You can add the following:

• communication skills

• soft skills

• ability to easily learn new skills

• analytical thinking

• multi-tasking

• problem-solving

• creative thinking

Preferred Qualifications

Preferred qualifications are the addition to the list of required qualifications. These are essential to help human resources learn whether the candidate can be successful in the role.

Preferred qualifications are so-called nice-to-have skills that are not vital for daily tasks, yet their presence will improve their effectiveness. This part consists of the same segments as the previous one. You can add details about education, experience, knowledge, skills, or all together.

Working Conditions

When you write a job description, you must clarify the working conditions as well as any physical requirements that are linked directly to the main responsibilities. This part can include the following points:

• Essential physical requirements, including standing and climbing.

• Potential exposures to hazardous materials, extreme temperature, and additional noises.

• Working environment: indoor or outdoor.

• Travel requirements.

• Non-standard working hours: weekend or night shifts, the necessity to be on call 24/7.

• Additional physical effort, like lifting with a description of the weight-lifting requirements.

Errors to Avoid when Creating Job Descriptions

Creating an effective job description is one of the initial and vital steps to finding the perfect candidate to fulfill the duties. However, if you want the prospects to get a clear understanding of the job posting and attract the right people, there are several errors you might want to avoid.

Repetitions

When trying to be as detailed as possible, we tend to repeat ourselves. Always check the created text for possible redundancy.

You could have repeated yourself and used the same words or added the same title to the description several times in different words. Such small errors can be very confusing for the applicant.

Not being Clear about the Responsibilities

There is no place for being mysterious and vague when listing the responsibilities in job descriptions. List what the person is going to do with the active verbs and add the description of operations performed.

Language Style and Jargons

There are certain rules to the language you use in job descriptions. First of all, you must stay inclusive.

This means no statements and words that can specify any particular gender, religion, age, etc. Look over the final text in case this requirement was not thought of.

Secondly, use the same language style throughout the text. Using inappropriate slang might seem unprofessional to the candidate.

Misunderstanding What Qualification to List

Asking too much of the candidate when you write a job description will only draw everyone away. The qualifications section includes the minimum necessary to complete the vital daily tasks.

This is where the fewer bullet points - the better. But do not create unreasonable expectations.

High-density

Do not add too much of everything. Overwhelming the potential candidate with the enormous amount of information will make him leave before reading through the text.

Provide only the most essential details for every segment. Everything that can be added to the duties later or is an occasional task should be left out.

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