How Job descriptions help forge a great resume
Ever secured a job only to find that the advertised position and the actual job were different? Not knowing what is expected can make or break a job interview.
Research the job you’re applying for well in advance, not only will it open your eyes to what’s involved and what may be expected, it will assist you with your application.
New Recruits need to have strong guidelines and know what is expected of them.
Therefore a clear job description is critical for any position. A well written job description helps a business and staff in numerous ways because it articulates the following
- The skills and competencies that are required to perform the role
- where the job fits within the overall company (and where they “fit in”)
- the basis for the employment contract, whether temporary, permanent or casual
- points out the areas for evaluation and therefore acts as a valuable performance management tool.
Here are 5 simple steps to building a job description …..
1. A Job title
The fundamental element of a job description is the job title. It should have the following qualities:
- accurately reflects the nature of the job and the duties being performed
- describes ranking order with other jobs in the company
- doesn’t exaggerate the importance of the role
- is free of gender or age implications
- generic enough that it can be compared to similar jobs within the industry and for the purposes of equity in pay and conditions
- is simple and self-explanatory for use in any future recruitment exercises
2. Duties
The job description should contain a clear list of the duties and responsibilities associated with the role, along with the amount of time expected to be dedicated to each task. This should be represented as a percentage (i.e. filing 20%, data entry 40% 20% reception duties).
Descriptions of duties should be no more than two or three sentences in length and should be outcome-based, that is contain an action, an object and a purpose (eg ‘clean main office by 9am prior to busy period, and according to set hygiene guidelines and standards”).
The list of duties and responsibilities will vary in length, but generally, should be as brief as possible, otherwise the it becomes an operational manual rather than a job description. ( Please also consider devising a separate operational manual!)
3. Skills and competencies
Skills and competencies should be listed separately from each other, as they are two quite separate things. Skills are activities the candidate can perform based on what they have learnt, or from qualifications. Competencies are the traits or attributes you expect the candidate to display in the role.
An example of a skill is the ability to deliver effective presentations. It’s a skill that can be learnt through study and practice. An example of a competency, on the other hand, is strong communication, which is an innate characteristic displayed by a person.
The modern trend towards competency-based job descriptions means extra weight is given to behavioural competencies such as leadership, teamwork, flexibility, communication and initiative.
4. Relationships
It is important to include reporting lines and working relationships in your job description. Reporting lines clarify the responsibilities of the position by showing who the candidate reports to and who reports to them. This is important, not only in relation to compliance issues, but also to give the candidate an insight into the hierarchical structure of the organisation and how their position fits into it.
Working relationships are the people and departments the position requires the candidate to work closely with. It is a good idea to give an indication of the size of such departments and the extent of interaction.
An organisational chart is a good way to represent relationships in a job description, with vertical lines between boxes demonstrating reporting lines and horizontal lines showing working relationships.
5. Salary
Rather than assigning a particular salary to the position, work out a salary range to include in the job description that is competitive with similar positions in other organisations and allows for variations in education and experience. Obviously, this would need to be updated from time to time, in line with changing pay scales.
In summary
A good job description is much more than a laundry list of tasks and responsibilities. If well written, it gives the new recruit a sense of the priorities involved. It’s not only a clear picture of the position , but also a useful tool for measuring performance and a vital reference in the event of disputes or disciplinary issues.
So, the more accurate you can make a job description, the more useful it will become in the future!