Last week, we shared some important factors that will improve candidate engagement through great job descriptions. Now we will be discussing how carefully crafted job descriptions can also improve the quality of new hires. This is an area that few companies consider until they struggle to find great candidates, or encounter an overabundance of resumes coming from candidates who lack the skills and qualities they are looking for.
When job descriptions are written accurately and clearly, it can improve the overall experience of candidates searching for opportunities, which in turn increases the likelihood that they will apply for job. This is a great benefit to a company that is trying to control staffing costs.
In an Inc. magazine article, Mark Clark, an associate professor at American University’s Kosgod School of Business, advises that, “A new employee needs to be part of the long-term corporate strategy.” Therefore, “the cleanest way to plot that out is through a well-crafted, future-oriented job description, which can be the single step that begins the hiring process – and makes it simpler, from start to finish.”
This can pose as a challenge for some companies who are unsure of what the future holds for their business or even their industry, in five to ten years. Yet, a clearly defined job description can lay the foundation for the key assignments that you will need to recruit for now and later on. It can also improve retention rates because employees know what is expected of them from day one. In other words, part of writing the job description is understanding your succession planning goals to attract the best candidates who can take you there.
So, where can you start as you improve your job descriptions and the overall candidate experience, to attract a better breed of talent? Here are some suggestions.
- Observe your high performance employees – Take the time to conduct some job shadowing to determine what your current job descriptions include vs. what your employees really do on the job. Then be sure to include the missing elements to set clear expectations for candidates.
- Update all job descriptions to include industry projections – Your industry is evolving, therefore you need new hires who have the skills and abilities needed to maintain innovation. Include references to the skills, experiences, and training you desire in candidates.
- Use performance reviews to gauge the success of new hires – One of the most accurate ways to determine the value of your job descriptions is to actually get input from new hires. During the first few months on the job, have frequent performance review meetings to gather objective feedback from new hires and compare their experience to what your job descriptions say.
- Recruit via niche recruitment agencies – Take the time to consult with a quality recruitment agency that’s involved in recruiting for your market. You’ll be able to work through many challenges together to develop stronger job descriptions and you’ll have access to more suitable candidates.
There are multiple studies that back up the idea of writing effective job descriptions to attract great candidates. Talent Management, a publication of DeVry University School of Business, highlighted a CareerJournal article that provided a case study of Aimco, an apartment management company that “reduced turnover from 22 percent to 3 percent of employees hired after 90 days by using newly written job descriptions that used clearer language and a focus on some of the most important, but little-discussed activities of their jobs, as compared to their old generalized recruiting ads.” Taking the time to write clear and correct job descriptions to attract and retain the best employees can benefit your bottom line in many ways.
If you are looking for assistance landing top talent in the Jackson, MS area, contact the staffing experts at TempStaff today.
