5 Common Mistakes Made When Writing Job Descriptions

Five Common Mistakes Recruiters Make When Writing Job Descriptions

Take a moment to consider the expectations you place on job seekers interested in joining your company. From well-written resumes and evidence of prior experience on the advertised job title. Have you ever considered that your organization plays a critical role in the type of talent you attract?

Like employers, potential candidates may veer off from you based on their initial point of contact. Which, in this case, is a job posting. Writing job descriptions is akin to learning an art form. For this reason, we’ve gathered the five common mistakes to avoid when writing a job description; that’ll make your job ads attract attention.

Defining Job Descriptions and Why You Need to Get Them Right

A job description breaks down a job posting by:

• Explaining the roles the person will undertake
• The ideal candidate eligibility requirements
• Highlighting what the company does
• And describing the remuneration, the candidate should expect

So why is it critical that your company gets the job description right?

First, a well-written job description helps the job seeker determine whether they are suitable for the position. Secondly, this document will prove helpful during employee performance management.

Finally, a job description offers legal protection to your organization—the reason being that your company can use this document to justify its decision. For instance, if the company categorizes the job as a non-exempt position.

5 Common Job Description Mistakes to Avoid

There are different ways your job ad could discourage qualified candidates from sending their applications.

Here are our top 5:

1. Failure to undertake a job analysis

For most organizations, the first misjudgment occurs way before writing a job description. It’s the failure to perform a job analysis. A job analysis is necessary even if your organization has recruited for this posting several times.

Failure to do this means that your company is unaware of market changes regarding that position, how it’s advertised, and the compensation package offered. That’s not all! A job analysis is important for other reasons. Doing this research ensures:

• You identify the target audience for the job advert
• Understand the trends regarding benefits
• Work out your company’s attractiveness to talented professionals

If your company cannot perform the job analysis, we recommend working with a trusted staffing agency. Usually, the agency will research the following:

• The type of pressure that has necessitated the job opening
• Industry and job demands change over the past couple of years
• How competitors are writing job descriptions
• How the compensation your company provides compares to your competitors

2. Your job titles are extremely long

While you would like to share as much information as possible, the secret to a good job title is finding a balance. This information applies to jobs posted on your company’s site and job boards.

Ideally, the job title shouldn’t exceed 60 characters. According to Glassdoor, job postings with extremely long job titles have a low click rate compared to those with 60 characters or less. If your company is a culprit of extremely long job titles, chances are you are including the following.

• Location. We recommend placing this in the body section of your JD.
• Your organization’s name. No need to add your company as it is already listed below the job title.
• Job posting level. Remember, each organization is different. So, indicating the level is internal-speak, something you can explain in the body section and not the title.
• Clever language. Words like “ninja” and “guru” do not attract qualified candidates.

3. The job posting is either too short or overly long

Similar to the job titles, the whole job description length matters. Ideally, the wording should range anywhere between 300 and 700. There are some exceptions, however. This is why partnering with an experienced staffing agency is crucial.

For instance, Muse found that social media job ads with less than 750 words have a 2.8 higher click rate than those exceeding this number. The company also found that this precise and to-the-point strategy wouldn’t apply for legal job postings. Legal job descriptions require detailed breakdowns of more than 750 words to attract top talent.

4. You are using gender-biased wording

The recruitment process is not the only thing that should be free from bias. It all starts with your job description. Unfortunately, while gender bias is unacceptable in the US, gendered wording could be creeping into your job ads unknowingly.

This bias could be manifesting itself in these two ways.

• Gender-biased terms. Certain wording could discourage a particular gender from clicking your job descriptions. Some of these terms include rockstar, outspoken, strong, nurturing, and understanding.
•  Equal opportunity statement. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) mandates that organizations select candidates based on their qualifications and gender. While it is common knowledge, failure to include an equal opportunity statement may deter talented job seekers from applying.

There are various steps your human resource department can take to eliminate gender bias in job descriptions. These include:

• Using neutral job titles like “engineer” or “developer.”
• Not using pronouns like he/she. Rather, “the software developer will be responsible for.”
• Balance your use of superlatives like “superior.” Research shows that such wording may discourage female job seekers from applying.
• Describe your commitment to offering equal opportunities

5. Your job requirements are unsatisfactory

Now that we’ve established the wording and length matters, it’s time to address the content. Employers skim through an application to determine whether they should proceed. Job seekers do the same. Potential applicants want to swiftly locate the job functions and experience required before deciding whether the position is worth considering.

Additionally, unrealistic job requirements can deter top talent from giving your posting a second look. There’s no denying that the current job market is competitive and dynamic. However, this shouldn’t be an excuse to post strict eligibility requirements. For instance, expecting five years of experience for a project management trainee is unrealistic.

Another mistake you could be making is listing basic job requirements, yet the required qualifications are extremely high. Doing this makes your company appear undiscerning of the industry. For instance, listing down all Microsoft applications instead of stating “proficiency in Microsoft Office suite.” Another mistake would be listing intangible personality traits. We recommend testing for such qualities through interviews.

Work With an Expert Staffing Agency in Fort Lauderdale

Getting job descriptions right has a significant impact on your hiring process. PrideStaff Fort Lauderdale staffing agency has supported many employers in attracting and retaining top talent. Our recruiting services include well-crafted writing job descriptions, background checks, and rigorous interviews. We also offer a call center, administrative and clerical staffing solutions. Wondering how to create a job description that attracts the right audience? Reach out to us at 754 800-2850 today!