Job Descriptions – Building A Strong Foundation For A Successful Recruitment Process

Creating a high-quality recruitment process begins with a compelling job description, however, candidates don’t think employers do this well. The recent whitepaper Staying in Front: An Inside Look at the Changing Dynamics of Talent Acquisition from our parent company Allegis Group found that only 34% of candidates vs 44% of employers think job descriptions contain adequate detail. Similarly, only 35% of candidates think that job descriptions are accurate and align to the actual job, whilst 50% of employers think this. This misalignment of job descriptions can hinder the recruitment process, and potentially lead to the hiring of candidates that do not possess the required skills. So, what are some things that need to be considered when creating a job description?

Information on the Company

It is imperative that job descriptions contain information that sells the opportunity and the company. An important aspect of this is conveying the employer value proposition (EVP). Allegis Group research supports this idea as 74% of high performers surveyed referenced including an EVP as a key part of their job descriptions. When incorporating an EVP into job descriptions keep in mind the following points

• Does the current perception of your company from a recruitment perspective align with your values, mission and vision?
• Understand the benefits that are important to prospective employees and what factors will impact their attraction and retention
• Include information on workplace culture.

Ultimately, the EVP should depict the workplace and its culture to the candidate. For more information on the importance of an EVP when attracting talent read our blog here.    

Role Requirements 

To ensure a successful recruitment process the requirements of the role must be easily understood by candidates. The whitepaper research cites providing adequate details and an accurate representation of the role as key factors. Consider including the following

• Information on the day- to-day work
• Top three requirements plus preferred skills
• Problems the employee will solve and opportunities their work will enable

Expectations  

Articulating expectations in the job description is imperative as this can impact its ability in attracting the right talent. Creating a 30, 60 or 90-day plan for the role can assist in communicating what success would look like in the role.  Additionally, compensation is another expectation that can impact either positively or negatively the quality of candidates and the overall recruitment process. Allegis Group research suggests tracking (and adjusting) the pay versus job description to improve talent attraction and align to expectations.           

From the Candidate Perspective

According to the whitepaper candidates say organisations can build the best job descriptions by including information on the following:

• Compensation – 73%
• Culture/environment – 49%
• Job responsibilities – 46%
• Advancement opportunities
• Skills development – 31%
• Schedule flexibility – 27%
• Employers market brand – 11%
• Employers employee brand – 7%

   For more insights or to download the full whitepaper click here