The Job Specification

Nail the Job Specification and you’re half way there!

What is a job specification

A job specification is a statement of employee characteristics and qualifications required for satisfactory performance of defined duties and tasks comprising a specific job or function.

What is the difference between job specification and job description

The difference between a job description and a job specification is:- a  job description is the duties to be performed. A job specification is what requirements are necessary to perform the task. Job specifications are more specific and more in depth.

When you are considering a new member of staff, you know what the role entails, but have you really taken the opportunity to look at what your company needs in terms of experience, personality and qualifications?

Whether your business has just lost a member of staff or needs to recruit to expand, bringing in a new team member is an ideal time to evaluate and reflect upon the distribution of tasks within the business. Often, rather than simply replacing ‘like with like’ it is more profitable to re-design the way your team works in order to maximise overall performance.

A well-considered job specification will not only benefit the company but will also aid recruitment, as potential employees will find it easier to grasp what the company requires in order to fulfill what the role has to offer.  By ensuring you have a thorough job specification the individuals applying will have a much better understanding of how they would fit into the role. As a recruiter it will help you focus on the key areas at interview.A lack of attention to detail on the job spec often results in employees leaving after a short time as they discover the role does not suit them. This is expensive, not only in the extra recruitment costs, but also in the time valuable individuals spend away from their roles interviewing and doing extra work to cover.

What you should include in a good job specification:

• A summary of the organisation, include size,
• Company philosophy, aims and successes. The company culture.
• A description of the team in which the position will be based. How many team members are there? What is the reporting line? How does the team fit into the organisation as a whole?
•  An Overview of the role
• Job title; salary and benefits; working hours; department; reporting to; summary of role; key responsibilities.
• The Role in Detail
• Day-to-day tasks; weekly/monthly tasks; ad-hoc duties; projects (spice up the role by adding detail).

 The Individual

• Abilities and skills needed
• specific qualifications
• length of experience required
• attitude and personality.

The Ideal Candidate including briefly describing the key qualities the applicant should possess.

Expected time frame for recruitment into the new position

If you wish to perform your own  recruitment process but you do require assistance to write a job specification help is at hand – contact us  now and one of our experienced CIPD professionals will be in touch immediately.