How To Prepare An Effective Job Description So You Hire The Right Person For The job

So many small business owners seem to struggle with the people side of managing their business so in this article I thought I would focus on how to prepare a job description in preparation for hiring a new person, whether that person be an employee or a contractor. 

First of all, what is a job description?  Well, a job description is a document that contains specific information about a job, what it is, who it reports to, how it is performed, including any responsibilities, and also a description of the ideal person for the job. 

Why is it important to have a job description prepared in advance if you are planning on hiring someone new into your business?  A job description will give your new person a structure to operate within where they know what they should be doing on a daily basis.  It provides the parameters that they should operate within so it becomes clear to both the employee/contractor and the business owner (not to mention other people who work for you) what the expectations are of the person performing the position because they are clearly documented out in black and white. 

To prepare a job description here is the basic template you should use which will cover all the key elements into a clear and concise document that you should prepare well in advance of hiring someone new.  

1.    JOB TITLE:  Decide the name of the job you're hiring for.  Sounds simple enough, but you'd be surprised the number of business owners that just pluck a job title out of thin air without actually thinking about how it relates to what the job actually is.  The title of the job is what prospective new employees/contactors will see first so make sure it accurately describes what the role is and it is appropriate for the level of job you intend to hire for. 

2.    JOB REPORTS TO:  Decide who the job reports to ensuring that there is a relevant connection there.  For example having someone report to a person that is of the same level as them and who performs exactly the same role and is getting paid the same may not be a good idea as it causes inequities in what each person does relative to the pay they are getting..  Think about your organisation chart and who reports to who in terms of a logical hierarchy. 

3.    JOB SUMMARY:  Describe the job in 100 words or less.  This is basically a summary of the job and is essential for you to be able to communicate in a concise way to prospective new employees/contractors what the job is "in a nutshell" 

4.    JOB RESPONSIBILITIES:  Describe the main responsibilities of the job. These are broad overarching statements of what the employee/contractor will be expected to deliver – this could include the responsibility for a particular process or set of activities.  For example "Responsible for the customer ordering process, ensuring that customer orders are taken accurately and confirmed before work is commenced", or "Responsible for ensuring that office equipment is maintained and in good working order at all times" 

5.    JOB DUTIES:  Next are the duties of the job.  These are the tasks that the person will be required to perform and they are more detailed than the responsibilities.  For example "Take customer orders", "Confirm customer orders", "Follow up with customer orders", "Re-stock the stationary cabinet", "Greet customers upon entering" 

6.    JOB AUTHORITY:  Next include any decision making authority that the role will have such as authority to spend money on stationary, kitchen items, or other larger items such as computers, phones etc. Include decision making authority around financial decisions as well as non financial decisions.   

7.    PERSON SPECIFICATION:  Next is the Person Specification section of the Job Description where you include a description about the type of skills required for the job and this is usually abound 4-7 dot points and you should be thinking in terms of what kind of skills, experience and knowledge you would like the perfect candidate to have. 

8.    SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS OF JOB:  Finally, include any special requirements that are particular to the job such as early mornings, weekend work, travel with the state or outside of the state, attending functions etc. 

Once you have all the information together you can then easily compile it into a 1 page document, or 2 pages at most and you are well prepared for understanding the type of person you need to hire and what they need to be doing.  This document will make it clear for you as the business owner and the new hire exactly what is required, and what is expected.