How strong the foundation of a castle where the employees are not clear on what each of them are expected to do. Many a times we come across the situations where the individual, team, and organization as a whole had to accept the failure due to the limited clarity on who should have shouldered the responsibility of a particular task.
To avoid such confusion over who is suppose to do what, when and how, it is always better to have clearly and accurately written Job Descriptions which helps organization and people to cope with many challenges while onboard.
A job description typically outlines the necessary skills, training and education needed by a potential employee to perform the job at the best. Further job description summarizes the duties of a position and states the essential responsibilities the individual must be holding for a job role.
Once a job description is prepared, it can serve a basis for interviewing candidates, orienting a new employee and finally in the evaluation of job performance.
Some of the important purpose of a Job Descriptions are:
Once a job description is prepared, it can serve a basis for interviewing candidates, orienting a new employee and finally in the evaluation of job performance.- To state job-related data in order to advertise for a particular job.
- Brings the clarity on kind of profile needed for holding the role
- Facilitates in attracting, targeting, recruiting and selecting the right candidate for the job.
- Put across the details of what an employee is supposed to do if selected for that particular job opening.
- It gives in-depth understanding to recruiting members on kind of candidate is required by a particular department or division to perform a specific job.
There are different formats followed by organizations related to pronouncing the Job Description, however, almost all of them will consist of a few of the basic elements like job title, summary, primary duties, job location, skills and competencies, reporting structure, compensation, and so on.
Job Title: The first part of most job descriptions contains the official job title and a brief which will have a direct link to the function and role the employee will do. For ex: The sales Manager, where individual will be part of the sales function and perform the role of a manager managing the sales team.
Job Summary: This section gives a brief on why the organization needs it and what is the basic purpose of the job role. For ex: Organization is looking for a reliable Loan Processor to perform appraisals of business or individual loans. You will undertake an intermediary role between potential clients and our financial institution.
Primary Duties: This portion can be quite lengthy and lists out the duties in its expected order and importance. Will determine the various responsibility aspects associated with the job role. And conclude with the job’s goals and objectives as well as the metrics that measure their completion.
Required qualification: This segment of the job description details the required qualifications for the job, which can range from education to physical abilities. It should list any specific knowledge, skills, or certifications that the employee should have, as well as any prior experience required in any specific tool supporting the job role.
Job Location: This will determine the site where the employee will be based at to perform the job role.
Reporting: Provide details on the reporting structure. This will help the employee better understand how their activities fit into the total organization.
Compensation: This includes the range of compensation figures an employee can expect by accepting the job role. It is often shared in the form of a range instead of a specific figure that shall indicate the flexibility attached to the job role.
When job descriptions are written by individuals who are not intimately familiar with the job, key components are inevitably missed. While HR may control the process of job description creation, including the heavy lifting of writing and updating job descriptions, it is essential that the job description is shared with someone who has first-hand knowledge of the inner workings of the job. Incumbents or managers can be brought in early in the process through interviews and questionnaires, and/or late in the process to review the final description.
