Job descriptions are often the first introduction someone has to your company, and they have the potential to set a lasting impression. When hiring feels urgent, it may feel easy to just press send on a hastily-assembled or recycled job description. But consider some of the ways you can make improvements that will draw in the best talent for the role.
Focus on Clarity
Clarity describes the ability to convey your point using specific, precise, and engaging language. Achieving clarity almost always takes a few editing passes to cut unnecessary words, rephrase clunky sentences, and ensure your meaning is clear.
When writing job descriptions, there are a few ways to achieve clarity:
- Avoid clichés. Job descriptions across industries are often filled with buzzy words that no longer have meaning. Rockstar. Team-player. Self-starter. Competitive salary. Set your job descriptions apart by avoiding them altogether.
- Include essential information. This can include compensation, benefits, work location, work type (in-person, remote, or hybrid), and reporting structures.
- Describe specific responsibilities. Use specific, descriptive words for job responsibilities rather than generic language. For example: “Responsible for keeping manager’s daily schedule, including email follow-ups and recording meeting minutes” instead of “Assists manager.”
- Define any company-specific terms. Different companies may use the same words to describe different roles; for example, your company’s program manager may have direct reports, whereas at another company, a person in that role works alone. Watch out for jargon that could be ambiguous or confusing.
Be Specific About Qualifications
Qualifications can fall into two categories: “not optional” and “nice to have.” Too often, job descriptions are written as if they all carry the same weight, which may discourage an otherwise talented candidate who thinks they don’t meet your absolute requirements.
While for some jobs a college degree is not optional for both legal and training reasons (e.g. physician, attorney, accountant), for other jobs a college degree may fall into the “nice to have” category to widen the potential pool to include people who have the job experience and soft skills that would make them an ideal candidate. Using it as a hard requirement for certain jobs may draw a line in the sand that narrows your options significantly.
Consider the soft skills that an ideal candidate might have. Browse this comprehensive list from the U.S. Department of Labor and match soft skills to job duties to best describe the candidate you’re seeking.
Use Inclusive Language
Among the reasons to edit past job descriptions before posting is to scrutinize them for unconscious bias. Though many companies’ stated objectives and core values include diversity and inclusion, you may not realize that language in job descriptions can undermine those goals. Biased language can discourage talented people from even applying for open positions if they perceive that you’re looking for a certain type of person.
Stereotypes persist based on age, gender, race, and class, and many people may not realize that certain phrases reinforce those stereotypes. Some examples are obvious; for example, “We don’t need you to be a slave to your work,” which uses a harmful racial reference in a casual idiom, or “Looking for a young go-getter,” which clearly excludes older job seekers.
Others may not feel as obvious; for example, “Work hard, play hard” may imply a company culture where long workdays are followed by the expectation of socializing outside work hours, which excludes parents, people who care for elderly parents, or people who feel uncomfortable in crowded social situations.
Consider that words like “aggressive” or “outspoken” are unconsciously associated with masculinity and may discourage a woman from applying. Words like “college-graduate” or “cultural fit” may discourage minority applicants. Those words can imply racial bias. A phrase like “hit the ground running” can alienate a disabled job applicant.
This kind of language doesn’t overtly violate Title VII of the Civil Rights Act prohibiting employment discrimination, but it may turn off potential candidates who feel uneasy with what it implies.
Create a Company Template
The Human Resources department at Northwestern University created a template and guide to use for writing job descriptions. It includes HR’s approach to job descriptions and provides a template that includes fields like “Job Summary” and “Job Description,” a bullet-pointed list of 7 to 9 duties in order of importance.
By establishing a house style guide for job descriptions across all departments of your company, you can both make the task easier to approach and present a unified brand identity to job searchers in a variety of roles. Your company can be known for its clear, concise, and uniform job descriptions. ApplicantStack makes it easy to create templates and share them when roles open up that need to be filled. Explore how the platform simplifies this step in the recruiting process by ensuring that job descriptions are consistent and compliant.
Posting a job description is an act of faith that the right person will see it, recognize themselves in the job duties, and submit their application. To give yourself an edge in attracting the best talent, focus on clarity, specificity, and inclusivity in your job descriptions.
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