When you neglect job posting best practices, it only complicates the hiring process . But with a keen eye and attention to detail, it’s never been easier to find, source, and onboard highly-qualified applicants.

Keep reading to learn why job descriptions are so important and discover a few tips for crafting the perfect job posting.

The Purpose of Job Descriptions: How They Make or Break Your Hiring Process

Job descriptions are meant to entice potential candidates to apply for a position at your business. With an articulate and detailed job description, the hope is that you’ll have a complete list of qualified applicants to choose from. However, all too often, organizations don’t include the right information in their job listing, and these gaps in information prove to be extremely problematic during the hiring process. Here’s why.

1. Poorly Written Descriptions Attract Unqualified Talent

Want to know the best way to hire great employees? Here’s a secret: it begins with a well-written job description. Unfortunately, if your job posting is vague and poorly constructed, there’s a higher chance you receive an influx of resumes that belong to unqualified individuals.

That’s why, when posting job descriptions, it’s important to be detailed. Job listings that include details about the workload, qualifications, and required skill sets help narrow down your candidate pool deter people who don’t meet your exact requirements.

2. Vague Job Descriptions Places Undue Stress on Your HR Department

The quality of your job descriptions play an important role in the hiring process—for better or worse. When companies post vague job descriptions, your human resources team absorbs the consequences; they have to spend more time vetting, researching, and interviewing potential applicants. This increased workload leads to delays in hiring decisions, backlogs other HR tasks, and decreases overall efficiency.

3. With Unclear Job Postings, It’s Easier to Hire the Wrong Candidate

When posting a new opening, job descriptions serve as an advertisement that converts applications to new hires. The “end goal” should be finding someone who adds value to your business, and your job postings should reflect that.

For example, let’s say you need to hire a new front-end developer. Your job description should clearly articulate that candidates need experience in designing visual user interfaces, aesthetics, and layouts. Otherwise, you’ll end up wasting valuable time and resources. A good job description is so important because it goes a long way toward ensuring the right candidates apply for the right positions.

Why Do Good Job Descriptions Matter?

A good job description has a much larger impact than you might expect. Here are four reasons why your organization’s long-term success starts at the early stages of the hiring process.

• Attract the Right Employees: When you clearly specify the qualifications for vacant roles, it’s less likely you’ll receive resumes from applicants who don’t fit the criteria. In turn, this helps your recruiters limit the number of candidates that come through the door, ultimately improving the quality of the applications processed.
• Guide Training and Development: Let’s face it, identifying the degree of training new hires require is a challenging task. Luckily, a thorough job description helps make this task a bit easier. By taking the time to create detailed job descriptions, it’ll be easier to know where a new employee falls short in terms of knowledge, skills, and experience.
• Boost Employee Retention and Satisfaction: From an applicant’s perspective, job descriptions serve as a snapshot of what day-to-day life within your company looks like. When you clearly accurate the expectations, chances are your new employee has a better understanding of what’s required, which leads to a greater sense of purpose and loyalty towards your company.
• Gauge Key Performance Indicators: In-depth job descriptions are a great tool to gauge competencies, duties, tasks, and responsibilities. Once the onboarding period ends, the original job description sets a baseline in terms of exceeding expectations or performance shortcomings.

Tips & Tricks to Write a Proper Job Description

While crafting the perfect job description isn’t a “one-size-fits-all” process, there’s a consistent theme in every good job posting. Here’s what the best descriptions always include:

• Clear Value Statements: Be sure to include your company’s overall mission, vision, and values—especially when listing your job descriptions outside of your own organization’s website.
• Easy-to-Read Bulleted Lists: What good is a detailed job description if it’s hard to read? To ensure you get the point across, use bullet points, short paragraphs, and concise sentences to improve readability.
• Compensation: Studies show employees want to see total compensation. To avoid wasting their time—and yours—be upfront about salary, commissions, bonuses, and the pay structure.
• Additional Benefits: In addition to total compensation, highlight any holidays, health contributions, retirement plans, and PTO. If applicable, this is where you’d include other perks like flexible schedules, work-from-home options, and other unique benefits.
• Physical Requirements: Nearly one in five adults have some form of disability. Even if you’re hiring for a desk job, by providing physical requirements up front, you avoid missteps during the hiring process.

Your Checklist for Creating Effective Job Descriptions

A detailed job description is important, but let’s face it, crafting one is easier said than done. Whether you’re struggling with writer’s block or simply unsure of what to include, here’s a basic checklist to follow:

• Job Title
• Purpose of the Job
• Detailed Description of the Job
  1. Day-to-day responsibilities
  2. Tasks the employee is expected to handle
  3. Teams/departments they’ll collaborate with
• Job Qualifications
  1. Experience
  2. Education (if applicable)
  3. Baseline skill level
• Job Location
  1. Part-time or full-time
  2. Remote/hybrid setups
  3. Percentage of the job that requires travel
• Ideal Candidate Specifics
• Work Environment
• Salary Range and Benefits
  1. Base salary
  2. Commission and on-target earnings (OTE)
  3. Retirement benefits (401k, pensions, IRA plans)
  4. Insurance (heath, medical, dental)

Find Talent Faster with TIU Consulting

The hiring process can be a time-consuming and resource-intensive task. So why not take the weight off your shoulders and let TIU handle it for you? As a one-stop shop for software development staffing, we know what it takes to find good talent. Sit back, stay focused on your business, and let our experts find your qualified candidates.

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