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The Basics of Writing a Good Job Description

Ronald F. Smedley | posted 10/24/2007
This article provided by the Engstrom Institute

When asking an employee to perform a task, what you want done, and what the other person thinks you want done can often bring about totally different outcomes. A well-prepared job description, however, offers both employer and employee the clarity, focus, and expectations for any position, eliminating this problem. Clear job descriptions also help employees work smarter and more effectively, thereby increasing an organization's effectiveness.

Why You Should Know How to Write Job Descriptions

• A job description clearlyoutlines an employee's duties and responsibilities, in order for that employee to perform satisfactorily and successfully.
• A job description is helpful in judging how well an employee is doing on each part of his or her assignment.
• A comparison of an employee's job performance with the job description can show where the employee needs special training or additional coaching, in order to develop and grow within a position.
• A job description assists a manager in conducting constructive performance appraisals and in identifying an employee's strengths and weaknesses.
• A job description can become a key tool in the design and administration of a pay/wage program for any given job.

In summary, a basic part of a manager's skills is the ability to describe the duties and responsibilities of the jobs he or she supervises in clear, accurate, and technically correct language.

General Recommendations in Writing a Job Description

• Describe the job as it exists now. If significant changes in job content or structure are planned or anticipated, consider postponing preparation of the job description until the restructuring has been completed.
• If a core job is occupied by more than one person, there may be different responsibilities each employee performs. If so, incorporate the principal elements of the job into a single description. Take the minor differences and break them down as sub-sections to the core responsibilities.

What a Job Description Should Contain

Some basic components should exist in every job description. These are:

• Job Title. Job titles should describe both the nature and level of the work performed by the incumbents. Titles such as "Clerk," "Instructor," "Analyst" and "Mechanic" indicate the general nature of the work, that is, the principal duties and responsibilities of the incumbents.
• Other components of a job title, such as "Senior," "Specialist" and "Lead," indicate the level of work. It often helps to include the department name in the job title for purposes of clarity ("Dental Clinic Aide" or "Quality Control Technician"). Care should be taken to avoid titles which are demeaning and/or patronizing ("Helper"), or which overstate the importance of the work performed ("Sanitary Engineer," instead of "Janitor").

See also:

 hiring, human resources, job description, personnel, writing a job description