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4 tips to make your job descriptions easy to understand

If you’ve ever struggled to get applicants for a position at your company, it could be because of the job description you’ve written. 

We’ve included some quick tips and reminders to help you make sure that the job descriptions you write are clear and easy to understand for potential candidates. 

1. Make sure your job titles are clear and specific.

If you want to make sure your job descriptions are easy to understand, one of the first things you need to do is make sure the title of the job is clear and specific. For example, if you are hiring for a senior-level software engineering position for a tech company, make sure the title in your description matches and says, “Sr. Software Engineer.” 

According to a report from Indeed, 36% of job seekers search by title alone. The first choice to search is always for a job of the same title as their current role, or the role they are looking to move up into. 

When candidates filter by job title, they should be able to find what they are looking for and have a general understanding immediately of what their roles and responsibilities might be. 

2. Use job summaries to provide a high-level overview of the position.

Your job summary gives you the chance to hook your readers in, provide an overview of what your company does, and a high-level overview of what this job’s main objectives are. This needs to be brief, clear and concise. No more than 3-4 sentences. We’ll use the rest of the description to go into greater detail on responsibilities. 

3. Explain job functions simply and make them easy to scan.

What are the essential functions of the job? This is how candidates will be spending the majority of their time. Let employees know the fundamental nature of the job. Including how this individual will perform tasks, the frequency with which the tasks are performed and who they will be reporting to. 

Use simple words and be as thorough as possible so that things don’t get lost in translation, and try to Include bulleted lists of the most important things you want to stand out. For example:

• Talk about the primary job focus. What are they handling day to day?
• What decision-making responsibilities do they have? —this is especially important for a leadership position.
  
  This makes your job description easier to scan and easier for applicants to understand whether or not they qualify and should continue forward with the job application.

4. Focus on the minimum level of qualifications needed.
   
   List out the experience level, education, and skills and abilities that are the minimum to apply for the job. You can also specify what the “preferred qualifications” are for the position. 

Some other helpful tips:

• When writing your job description, use active verbs and descriptive language.
• Avoid ambiguity. Make sure you aren’t creating more questions than you’re answering with a job description. 
• Avoid gender-specific language
• Make sure to highlight different perks, benefits and anything you want people to know about your company’s culture. 

The job description is the first impression you make on a potential employee, make sure you have all the details you need to make it an effective job posting. We have other tips for what to consider including in your job descriptions here.