Are Your Job Descriptions Bad? Probably!

Let’s face it: writing a job description is not fun. It’s perceived as a necessary evil in the business world, being time-consuming while adding no value to the bottom line.

That’s why it’s so tempting for managers to simply visit your company’s bank of job descriptions or a job site, find a job description that’s relevant, copy and paste it into a Word document, and call it a day.

As the owner of a search firm, I can tell you that many organizations fall into this trap, resulting in a seriously flawed recruiting and hiring process. The reason? Your job description is a foundational activity for a job search, and if it doesn’t reflect the actual duties of the role, your HR and recruiting teams will waste a ton of time trying to find candidates whose skills aren’t a match for your team’s needs.

So, what are the elements of a bad job description, and how can you avoid those in order to create a compelling document that is not only accurate but motivates candidates to join your team?

The below lists will get us started by highlighting the distinctions between good and bad job descriptions (this is not an exhaustive list):

Good Job Description:

• Gets to the point

• Uses everyday language

• Detailed, but focuses on position’s goals

• Requirements are realistic

• Major duties of job are accurately summarized

• Provides context about company, team, etc.

• Uses job titles the market will recognize

• Flawless spelling, punctuation, grammar

• Emphasizes the impact employees have

Bad Job Description

• Extremely long

• Uses jargon

• Overly detailed

• Requirements are not realistic

• Not accurate

• No company or team info

• Uses internal job titles

• Includes typos, bad grammar, etc.

• Emphasizes needs of the company  

Let’s discuss the first point. If you’re a job seeker, do you want to read a long, meandering document that can’t seem to get to the point? Of course not. You want to read something that will hold your attention by providing the right amount of information and helps you understand the position.

For the sake of illustration, I just found a job description on LinkedIn that lists 33 requirements (yes, I counted) for you to be qualified for that job. 33! Is anyone in the world good at 33 things? I have my doubts.

By the time a potential applicant finishes reading a job ad like that, how do you think she feels? My guess is she’ll feel bored, defeated (“There’s no way I will get an interview for that job”), and no longer interested in clicking the “Apply” button.

In this job market, you need to treat every potential applicant like a lead, and if you know anything about sales, the best sales executives treat leads like gold. If you’re posting a job with 33 bullet points, you’re telling people “Please don’t come work for us” whether you know it or not.

But don’t lose hope! You don’t need to do much to eliminate this terrible practice. Just start by trimming the fat. Focus on what you absolutely must communicate to candidates in the job ad and eliminate everything else. Focus on what’s essential and honestly assess what you need this person to be good at.

If you’re still struggling with this exercise, review each skill and experience requirement and ask yourself if candidates absolutely must possess these things in order to succeed in the role.

As Henry David Thoreau once wrote, “Our life is frittered away by detail. Simplify. Simplify.”

The same can be said about job descriptions.