Competition for attracting the top talent is high among organizations — especially when it comes to niche skills. Starting from offering lucrative perks and benefits to an exciting learning curve, each organization has its own strategy to attract and retain their top talents. However, the entire cycle of attracting, interviewing, hiring, and retaining candidates starts with writing a job description that would catch the attention of a potential employee. And if your job description is not attractive enough, you are going to miss out on a chunk of top talent. So, how do you write the most appealing job description that stands out and grab some eyeballs? In this article, we are going to take you through a step-by-step guide on how to write the best job description ever.
How to Write a Job Description?
Before we talk about how to write a job description, let’s understand the different sections of a job description. A JD usually has a Job Title, Company Mission and Values, Key responsibilities, Qualification and Skills, and finally Company Benefits. Now take a deep dive to understand how to write each section better.
Writing a Compelling Job Title
Title hooks the readers and it holds true for job titles too. But don’t get overly creative with the job title. Remember the job title should be attractive but at the same time people should be able to find them while searching on the job portals. If you have a creative internal job title, add a suitable title along with it while posting it on job sites. This will make it relatable, easily findable, and retain the creativity too. For example, if you have a job title like – Chief Happiness Officer, you can tweak it as Chief Happiness Officer – Chief People’s Officer. So, in short, a good job title should be crisp, descriptive of the job role, and also mentions the seniority of the job.
Talk About Your Company Mission and Vision
This can be a missed opportunity if you’re not leveraging this section well. It is not just a place where you jot down your mission and value statement, but you should be highlighting why a candidate would want to join your organization. Talk about your brand, it’s mission, vision, the products or services that you offer and how it touch/impact lives. Give a hint of your work culture to help people visualize how would be the work experience.
Tell Them What to Expect
In this section, you talk about the key responsibilities of the candidate. Give out as much information as possible to help candidates understand if this is something they want to do. Key responsibilities should include what kind of tasks they would be doing on a strategic level and operational level, is it going to be a team role or individual contributor role, if it’s a team role, what would be the team hierarchy and so on. Also, include if the candidate needs to travel or has special job hours. If you want to be creative, talk about what the candidate can achieve in three months, six months, or in a year. That would send out a clear career growth message. An elaborate section on key roles will ensure you have more qualified candidates because they are already aware of the job roles and have applied because they are keen to work with it.
Skills Needed
This is another important section where you should be listing all the skills that are desired for the job role. Include technical skills like certifications or any system knowledge required. Also include the soft skills like communication, interpersonal skills, etc. which might be necessary to do the job. Include behavioral skills too like negotiation, leadership, persuasion, etc. as the job demands. However, be realistic in your search for the perfect candidate. Mentions those that are must-haves and those which can be nice to have.
Perks and Benefits
Include all the perks and benefits that your organization offers. Candidates are interested to learn what you have for them. Talk about the traditional benefits like insurance policies, health benefits, etc along with some quirky benefits that will help you to stand out. For example, talk about the breakout zones where you might have carrom arrangements or where candidates can unwind over a game of pool. Talk about those free lunch coupons, pick up drop facilities, or the free snacks to munch on.
Here are Some Quick Tips
- Ensure your job description is free from gender bias.
- Keep it simple.
- Be mindful of your tone.
- Proofread it well before putting it up on the job boards.
Writing a top-notch job description is crucial to attracting the right talent. So, spend enough time to craft that perfect thought-through job description. Remember, your job description is a perfect opportunity to make that first impression. So, make sure that you make the most out of it.
