Akshit Bagaria

One of the most important functions of the Human Resources Division of any company today is Talent Management Talent management plays an important role in the business strategy since it manages one of the most important assets of the company - its people Talent Management starts with an understanding of the jobs needed to be filled and the human traits and competencies needed for these jobs effectively Job Analysis does precisely this by determining the duties of the company s positions and the characteristics of the people to hire them An integral product of Job Analysis is the Job Description What Is A Job Description A job description is a written statement of what an employee actually does how he or she does it and what the job s working conditions are This information is then used to write a Job Specification a part of Job Description that lists the knowledge abilities and skills required to perform the job satisfactorily An entrepreneur can use a good job description not only as a valuable aid in the job-recruiting process but also as an outline for reporting relationships and working conditions It can be used for Performance Management Training and Employee Development Compensation Recognition and Rewards Maintaining Discipline Elements Of Job Description What all elements should a Job Description contain What should the format of a Job Description be Here is the answer Job Identification It contains the job title specifying the name of the job such as an inventory control clerk management trainee supervisor etc It might also contain the location in terms of its facility division and department or the supervisor s name and details In cases where there a category is used for defining the job such category is clearly stated Job Summary Job summary contains the essence of the job and includes only its major functions and activities Example - For a supervisor the job summary could be - the mailroom supervisor receives sorts and delivers all incoming mail property Responsibilities Duties And Authority Of The Incumbent This essentially forms the heart of the Job Description It should present a list of the job s significant responsibilities and duties Example For a sales role the responsibilities would look like achieve quantitative sales goal and determine sales priorities and fulfil targets This part might also specify the jobholder s authority limits This is essential because it specifies the limits within which the employee has to function and also to give him her an idea of the kind of stakes involved Example a job holder might have the power to approve purchases up to Rs 10000 or take leaves without informing up to 2 times a month or hiring a sales assistant after completion of specific targets etc When a Job Description is written for the disabled care has to be taken to ensure that the person has the required skills and expertise to perform the job Factors to consider are Whether the position exists to perform that function The number of other employees available to perform the function The degree of expertise or skill required to perform the function Standards Of Performance And Working Conditions This section lists the standards the company expects the employee to achieve for each of the Job Description s main duties and responsibilities One way to set standards is to finish the statement I will be completely satisfied with your work when This sentence and the like should result in a usable set of performance standards that can be easily identified and measured Example Duty Accurately posting Accounts Payable Post all invoices within the same working day Allowed to commit no more than 5 posting errors each month Route all the invoices to the proper department managers for approval latest by the following day The Job Description may also list the job s working conditions such as the noise level during work hours any specific hazardous conditions or the exposure to heat level etc Job Specification Also known as employee specifications this section states the human traits qualification and experience required to perform the job It shows what kind of person to recruit and on what qualities should the person be tested Elements of job specifications are - Qualification Experience Training Skills Responsibilities Emotional Characteristics Sensory Demands Company Profile Even though not visible at the first glance the company profile is still a very important element of a job description It gives the job applicants a glimpse of the company s achievements culture and other important information It also includes the links to the social media profiles company mentions and testimonials which may help the job applicant to know more about the company How To Write A Good Job Description Writing a job description is easy Thousands of people do that every minute But how to write a job description that stands out How to improve your job response and get more qualified applicants to apply for your job listing Here s the secret sauce - Write A Crisp Job Title According to a study words like ninja badass unicorn and rockstar are major deterrents for women job seekers Also avoid using superlatives like brilliant excellent etc as they give an impression of unrealistic goals and also result in fewer job applications Write a job title that explains - The job responsibilities For example job titles which include suffix or prefix like the manager chief supervisor etc What the person does on the job For example housekeeper chef social media manager etc The job responsibilities and the job level For example chief accountant head supervisor electrical superintendent etc Keep your job title simple crisp and not misleading For a Call Center Agent write that you re looking for a Call Center Agent not a Sales amp Marketing Executive Such disingenuous job titles attract the wrong people increases your workload and you may even miss out on the qualified candidates Don t Overexplain Be professional and relatable when it comes to writing a job description Most of the candidates skim job descriptions so try avoiding jargons and long paragraphs Be to-the-point You can always explain the intricacies in the later stages Focus On The Structure Your job description should have an aesthetic appeal Divide the description into different sections write small paragraphs and use bullet points and formatting tools to help skimmers find the details they look for Write A Clear Job Specification You should know the difference between a job description and a job specification While job specification is a part of a job description it has a different role altogether The job specification states what qualifications experience and traits etc the company is looking for in an ideal job candidate Writing a Job Specification for trained is relatively simple where the focus is on the previous job experience quality of training and other hard skills The problem is more complex when you re writing a job specification for untrained people Here the focus is on qualities such as physical traits personality interests or sensory skills which show the person s potential for performing the job efficiently Using your own judgement for preparing a job specification would include the use of generic and universal traits that are desired from every employee These would include soft skills like industriousness ability to learn taking initiative displaying high integrity etc Basing job specifications on statistical analysis rather than only judgement is the more desired approach but also more difficult The aim here is to statistically determine the relationship between some human trait and some criterion of job effectiveness such as performance This procedure has the following steps Analyse the job and decide how to measure performance Select personal traits that you believe should predict performance Test candidates for these traits Measure these candidate s subsequent job performance Statistically analyse the relationship between human trait and job performance Another method can be alternatively used The Job Requirements Matrix A typical matrix uses five columns in the following manner Column 1 Each of the job s four or five main duties Column 2 The task statements for the main tasks associated with each job duty Column 3 The relative importance of each job duty Column 4 The time spent on each job duty Column 5 The knowledge skills ability and other human characteristics KSAO related to the main job duty Column 6 Importance of KSAO Focus On Other TouchPoints As Well Sell Your Company Look out for touchpoints other than the job listing portal and make sure that they are in synergy These include company review websites like Glassdoor Google My Business your own website your careers work with us page social media profiles etc A good practice is to mention the positive reviews and give these links in the job description itself Sell Your Job Your job description should also contain triggers and compelling benefits to make candidates apply for your job instead of others in the listing It should also include compelling reasons for the candidates to leave their current job for good Don t Use These Strategies Job descriptions should be an offer to invite everyone who is capable to apply for the job Make sure you stay away from these practices - Discrimination Even an unconscious bias against any specific sex gender race caste etc will cost you a lot of good candidates Unrealistic Requirements Identify what s required and what can be learned during the job Job specifications should only have minimum requirements that are needed for the job You can further select the perfect candidate based on the other stages Negativity The goal of a job description to get as many job applications as possible Try to be as positive as you can Don t sound rude or negative Instead of framing the sentence like this - don t apply if you don t have at least 4 years of experience frame your sentences in this manner - This is a senior level job Preference will be given to candidates having more than 4 years of experience Go On Tell Us What You Think Did we miss something Come on Tell us what you think about our article on How To Write A Job Description in the comments section

Author: Akshit Bagaria

How To Write A Job Description

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