If you’re looking to hire an exceptional new employee for your business, crafting a good job description is essential. A detailed job role featuring a well-crafted job description and duties to be performed will help you to attract the very best candidates.
Effective job descriptions market your company to job seekers, displaying your company culture and how you offer a fantastic work environment. Writing a job description that attracts well-suited candidates requires some time and thought. Here, we break down a typical job description process and how to convey a role’s duties and responsibilities.
What is A Job Description?
A job description is typically a summary of a job role, including the main duties and responsibilities, qualifications and experience required, any essential key skills needed, as well as job benefits and salary. A typical job description is more than a simple job outline. An excellent description will promote your company mission and values, showcasing your work culture. Potential candidates should be able to read a job description and understand if they are suitably qualified for the role.
How to Write A Full Job Description
Posting a job description requires more than simply outlining a description of work performed. If your business is hiring, here are the steps to follow to ensure you receive job applications from suitable candidates.
State The Job Title
Your job title should be specific. Avoid using any fancy terms that could cause confusion. Instead, be direct. For example, if you’re hiring for a personal assistant position, use that term within the job title. The job title is usually only a couple of words long and should be familiar to the candidate.
Create A Brief Summary
The best description for job applications that match your role should be concise. You should communicate the values of your company within this summary, as well as the main duties. Ideally, you should give candidates an impression of what it will be like to work for your business. You only need to write three or four sentences to deliver a basic understanding of what the job is and what it will involve. Remember to hook the reader in with an attention-grabbing first line. Detail why a candidate should work for your company and include a job location. If a candidate can work flexibly from home, then state that the job is remote.
Main Responsibilities
Detail the key responsibilities of your vacant job role and the working hours required. This is going to help job seekers to know if this is the right role for them. You don’t have to list every responsibility, especially if there is an extensive list. However, be precise about the main responsibilities. A few aspects to consider is if the candidate should have decision-making skills, the level of any financial responsibilities involved and any management of people. You can summarise the day-to-day tasks of the job position, including what the work environment is like. Furthermore, note how the job fits into the organisation.
Job Requirements
Any jobs listed should have a section on job requirements. These are the essential skills or years of experience that a potential candidate should have. This section will help to weed out those who are unsuitable for the role. If a candidate requires a specific employment history, then ensure you state it here.
Job Preferences
There are some skills or achievements that are ‘nice to have’ but that aren’t essential for the job role. Make a list of these desirable skills but keep to the point.
Education/Qualifications
This section determines the level of education and special qualifications that a candidate should possess. This could include a specific degree or area of study. Additionally, you may also want to acknowledge particular grades at GCSE level.
Experience
Job experience is often central to a role as it depicts if a candidate has enough knowledge to tackle the required job. This could be a minimum number of years within a similar role or a certain position that the candidate should have held. This section can also state unpaid work experience or internships.
Job Benefits/Salary
Job benefits could include gym membership, flexible working options, healthcare, childcare, or any other benefit of working for your company. This section helps to set your business apart from competitors, helping to attract and retain top talent. It’s also a good idea to state the salary for the role too. Research has shown that people are more likely to apply for a role when the salary is displayed in a job description.
Explore our example PA & admin role job descriptions here.
Key Points to Note
Once you’ve completed your job description, ask another member of staff to proofread it for you. It then should be signed off by a member of human resources. In addition to publishing a job vacancy on your website, you should also contemplate using popular online job boards, industry magazines and hiring a specialist recruiter to ensure you reach the best candidates. A few other points to consider include:
- Stay specific rather than getting creative
- Speak directly to potential candidates
- Avoid being unrealistic in your requirements
- Avoid being discriminatory
- Be mindful of equal opportunities
- Regularly review your job descriptions and update them
Searching for A New Employee? We Can Match You To The Perfect Candidate!
Are you searching for qualified candidates for an open role within your company? Oriel Partners can help to match you with outstanding admin and PA job seekers. As a boutique recruitment agency in London, we specialise in helping hiring managers fulfil their exact requirements. Get in touch with us today to see how we can assist your search.
