4 Ways to Bring Life to Your Job Descriptions

Your job descriptions help ensure that you hire the right talent, the first time around. It has become increasingly important to accurately convey your specific wants, needs and culture via your job descriptions. This holds true across both traditional and online media.

Follow these tips to publish the best possible job descriptions and ensure your hiring success:

Develop a dynamic job title.

This is your “lead.” It’s like the first sentence in a news article: You’ll read it and make a choice to either continue on or disregard the entire post. So, make it count.

  • Your job title must accurately reflect the work the employee will perform. This may seem obvious, but you have to be specific and make sure your title reflects both individual job standards and your organizational culture.
  • Define the position, then write a concise but powerful description. Include the purpose of the job, as well as an overview of the main responsibilities.
  • Keep it short and to the point. One to three sentences should suffice.

Outline key responsibilities and qualifications.

This is the “meat” of your job description. List all the essential functions of the role. Generally, this encompasses between five and 10 bullet points.

  • Begin each point with a present-tense, action verb. Be transparent regarding how frequently a task will be performed or what percentage of an employee’s time will be spent on it. This helps candidates to form an idea of what a typical day on the job may look like.
  • List both necessary and preferred qualifications. Follow your list of responsibilities with details on both mandatory and preferred candidate qualifications. Included here are skills, years of experience, certifications and licenses, educational requirements, and technical proficiencies.

Tell your company story.

While candidates should already know the basic details about the job and your company, it’s helpful to describe these things from your own perspective. Include information on your mission, goals and industry. Tell candidates where your company is located and where they will be working.

Other useful details may include:

  • The number of provinces – and if applicable, countries – where your firm has a presence.
  • Number of employees.
  • Annual sales and other general business updates.

Provide the “nuts and bolts” details.

Get back to basics – because these basics matter when a person makes a decision about where to continue their career. Let prospective candidates know:

  • Whether the position is full time or part time.
  • The salary range and benefits – as long as your company policy permits this.
  • Contact information, so applicants can easily follow up and ask questions.

Watch your format, as well. The best job descriptions are neither too detailed nor too vague. Optimize your formatting by using bullet points and direct language, and embodying the unique personality of your organization. In the end, your goal is to attract high-performing individuals who are the right fit for the job and your company.

The recruitment experts at Employment Professionals Canada can help you develop winning job descriptions, as well as enhance your overall souring, recruitment and hiring strategy. Read our related posts or contact us today to learn more.