How to Crush Your Job Description with 6 Key Elements
One of the most effective tools to hire the best talent is by writing a standout job description. But how many organizations are able to attract the top tiers of talent through a well-crafted job description that makes an impact on the job applicant? Oftentimes, far too many job postings seem lackluster and could deter the best candidates from applying.
If HR leaders have to prepare for the future of work, they need to anticipate and plan for a changing talent landscape that places a premium on talent branding. They need to focus on reimagining how to approach job descriptions. Since the modern workplace demands less rigidity and more flexibility, hiring managers should actively help their organizations to formulate new workplace processes and rules. The starting point for this revolution is the humble job description that is expected to bring onboard individuals whose values align with your organization.
In this blog, we examine the best approach to craft a job description that sizzles and attracts great talent into your hiring pipeline. Trust us; this is the roadmap to follow to build your company’s employer brand.
In a nutshell, the 6 key elements are:
- Write right
- Avoid a laundry list of skills
- Be imaginative
- Culture matters
- Recruit for the digital age
- Embrace inclusivity and diversity
Use these key elements in your job description that candidates will actually read:
#Write right
Today’s picky job seekers expect organizations to leverage their employer brand to build transformative talent branding experiences.
Therefore, only if you pick the right words for the job description will the right talent walk through the door. Let’s see how it’s done:
- Ensure your posting appeals to a diverse mix of job seekers, including women, religious minorities and the LGBTQ community. Use gender-neutral language to keep the tone inclusive. Research has shown that job posts that use the words ‘ninja’, ‘rockstar’, ‘outspoken’ and ‘competitive’, discourage women from applying.
- Use language that doesn’t alienate candidates who don’t belong to the mainstream workforce, such as gig workers and women returning to work after a career gap.
- Use words that inspire and motivate job seekers to apply—only then will the best talents join your company. The job posting should describe how the prospective employee would be able to achieve personal growth, career advancement, job satisfaction and creative fulfillment, if hired.
- Be aware of the target audience for the job listing. For example, any job description for millennials should communicate what this generation wants from their career. Increasingly, millennials are focused on the non-tangibles, such as work-life balance, autonomy and opportunities for networking and growth. So make sure you nail the posting.
Sample Creative Job Description and a Template to Create One
#Avoid a laundry list of skills:
While it is important to outline the standard list of requirements that the job entails, avoid big blocks of text and trite statements.
For example, avoid clichés like ‘The successful applicant should be a team player’ or ‘The successful applicant will be required to demonstrate initiative in prioritizing tasks’. If you want to bolster your talent brand, the job descriptions should be concise, conversational, and ‘speak’ to the candidate and motivate them to apply. Avoid verbose postings demanding a bucket-list of skills and experience as this would be a sure-fire way to drive talent away from your organization.
Internet media company BuzzFeed had us hooked with this opening line in the JD for a ‘Shopping and Products Writing Fellow’: “Are you the type of person who is always discovering bizarre kitchen gadgets, coupon codes, or interesting stores and sending links to your friends until they beg you to stop? We want to hear from you!”
#Be imaginative
Increasingly, recruiters have become more creative with their job descriptions as today’s younger candidates—especially the Gen-Zers—seek an immediate connect with the organization. Short videos that describe the work environment and eye-catching and tongue-in-cheek job postings on social media are some ways to entice talented youngsters to onboard your team.
Also, volunteers opportunities and initiatives aimed at repaying student loans will be good selling points to attract Gen-Zers, as research shows they more focused on giving back to society and securing their financial future.
Microsoft’s intern recruitment program is a fine example of how the job description can be humanized through video-based storytelling.
#Culture matters
If companies are assessing how well job seekers would fit within their organizational culture, the latter also seek clarity on the same. To ensure there is complete transparency in the hiring process, the job description should clearly communicate the cultural norms in the workplace. It’s important to positively describe the company’s culture and ‘personality’ to prospective candidates to help them visualize the work environment.
Some of the popular key words used to describe a company’s culture include innovative, adventurous, empowering, authentic, fast-paced, and collaborative, among others.
To attract the best talent, the job posting should present an honest picture of the organization’s culture. For example, does it allow employees to work remotely and offer ample learning and development opportunities?
The best job descriptions clearly articulate the mission, vision, ethics and core values of the organization to find people who are the best ‘cultural match’. Lately, companies are getting serious about their employer brands and send a strong message about their work culture through their job descriptions.
For instance, Etsy, the global online marketplace describes its culture thus: ‘We’re large enough that you’ll focus on meaningful, complex challenges, but small enough that you can make a rewarding impact.”
#Recruit for the digital age
Job advertisements no longer appear only in the staid classified columns of newspapers. They have progressed to the din and show of social media and appear in multimedia formats across devices. While employers should ensure job postings are optimised for the mobile, the need to be tech savvy takes on a whole different meaning in today’s digital-first job market.
Job listings should be constantly updated to suit the shifting trends in a particular industry.
For example, the job descriptions for school and university teachers in the post-pandemic era would require them to be tech savvy and leverage the hybrid teaching model. This may not have been the case prior to the pandemic.
#Embrace inclusivity and diversity
Today’s organizations seek to achieve greater diversity, equity and inclusion through their hiring practices. From an employer brand standpoint, the job description should clearly bring out the company’s long-term commitment to fostering a culture of inclusion and belonging. It should emphasize that the leadership aims to build a diverse workforce that supports and empowers people of different backgrounds and experiences.
Google has been at the forefront of creating such a diverse workforce and focuses on ‘hiring for culture add and not culture fit’ to ensure candidates ‘add’ something unique to the organization’s fabric.
Looking beyond the humble job description
If you want the best and brightest to apply to your company, make sure to prioritize the above checklist.
Further, as the aftermath of the pandemic changes work, organizations have had to grapple with white-collar workers experiencing burnout as their duties stretched beyond the original job description.
The phenomenon of the ‘great resignation’ is a clarion call for employers to pay closer attention to crafting job descriptions that address future of work challenges and ensure businesses can meet the needs of all stakeholders.
FAQs
1. What should you avoid in a job description?
Jargons, vague titles, too lengthy job titles that are generic, gender-specific.
Why do people care about job titles?
For some, it's a reflection of their self-esteem. It allows members of your organization to know the role, authority, type of work you do, and the level of experience you have (if it's a hierarchical organization). In a flat structure, it's a reflection of your role.
It also helps in a person's career for the next role they may be aspiring to get into.
This will give potential customers a real sense of what kind of person they will be interacting with when they work with you.
Is job title more important than salary and should you negotiate?
The job title is important, but the salary is not.
Salaries are set by supply and demand. If there are no jobs to be filled, then you can't expect to make more than you would if you had a job. So while the title of your position is important—it's an indication of how awesome your work will be—it does not determine the amount of money you'll earn.
However, some startups give away titles easily to lure talent. For instance, a person with 2-3 years of experience may be given the title of Head of Product that may typically take years of experience in an established firm.
Balance what the job requires you to do with the title and salary. Placing importance on just one aspect - salary / title may not be prudent. Some established firms with a flat hierarchy may not have Head / VP/ Director roles but would be progressive with respect to salaries.