fbpx
SME Toolkit Caribbean Logo
No Result
View All Result
  • Contact
  • Starting Up
    • All
    • Business Planning
    • Starting a Business
    business owner surprised at start up business mistake

    A Brave New Entrepreneur for A Brave New World

    business checklist of things to look out for

    Things Entrepreneurs Should Watch Out For

    step by step business plan creation

    A Great Business Plan

    businessman using calculator seated at a table with spreadsheets

    Commingling – The New, ‘Dirty’ Word in Banking

    two young business owners give high five after they set up business

    How to Start a Business in Ghana

    entrepreneurs successfully open their business

    Top 10 Dos and Don’ts for Entrepreneurs

    business owner surprised at start up business mistake

    Start-Up Mistakes

    Building Your Business Series – Part 1

    Building Your Business Series – Part 1

    Building Your Business Series – Part 2

    Building Your Business Series – Part 2

  • Managing Growth
    • All
    • Accounting & Finance
    • Operations & Technology
    • People & Culture
    • Planning for Growth
    • Sales & Marketing
    finding business location on map online

    Business Location and Leasing Rules

    business owner thinking of expanding their business

    Rules for Business Expansion

    business owner holding ipad with cash flow icons floating

    Managing Your Cash Flow to Help Your Business Grow

    A businessman presenting in front a diverse group of professionals

    The Creditworthiness of Your Business

    A businesswoman selecting a Mortgage Approved business concept on a futuristic portable computer screen

    How Bankable is Your Business?

    employees give high five in office

    Ways to Motivate Key Employees: Reward and Recognition

    business owner facing problems

    Common Business Problems and Basic Rules to Handle Them

    business owner making cold calls

    Making Cold Calls

    section of a printed job description

    Creating an Effective Job Description

  • Scaling Up
    • All
    • Growth Finance
    • Operations & Technology
    • People & Culture
    • Planning for Scale
    • Sales
    Get Ready to Sell Online

    Get Ready to Sell Online

    young business woman sitting on sofa planning her insurance

    Top 10 Do’s and Don’ts of Insurance

    Insurance Coverage for Small Businesses

    Insurance Coverage for Small Businesses

    Effective Strategies for Closing the Sale

    Effective Strategies for Closing the Sale

    Guide to Preparing Your Cash Flow Projection

    Guide to Preparing Your Cash Flow Projection

    Creating a Business-Friendly Environment – Part 2

    Leading with Integrity; Leading by Example

    Integrity and the Entrepreneur at Work

    Integrity and the Entrepreneur at Work

    Creating a Business-Friendly Environment – Part 2

    Creating a Business-Friendly Environment – Part 2

    Creating a Business-Friendly Environment – Part 2

    Creating a Business-Friendly Environment – Part 1

  • COVID-19 Resources
    • All
    • Accounting & Finance
    • Business Planning
    • Managing Growth
    • Starting Up
    Stay Connected

    Staying Connected in the New Normal

    Rediscovering the leader

    Rediscovering the Leader From Within

    Personal Brand Development: What’s Your Story?

    Personal Brand Development: What’s Your Story?

    Customer Focus

    How Customer Focus Can Drive Innovation

    fair leadership

    Fairness in Leadership

    Coping with Covid

    Coping with COVID-19

    Online only

    Can Caribbean Banks Embrace Online Banking Only?

    business checklist of things to look out for

    Things Entrepreneurs Should Watch Out For

    business owner surprised at start up business mistake

    Start-Up Mistakes

  • Webinars
    • Home-Owner’s Guide To Securing A Mortgage
    • Getting Business Credit From Your Bank
    • Succeeding in the Low Touch Economy
    • Get Going With Ecommerce
    • Mindset To Success
  • Sustainable Development
    • Building Resistance to Disruption
    • Creativity and Sustainable Societies
  • Business Videos
SME Toolkit Caribbean Logo
  • Starting Up
    • All
    • Business Planning
    • Starting a Business
    business owner surprised at start up business mistake

    A Brave New Entrepreneur for A Brave New World

    business checklist of things to look out for

    Things Entrepreneurs Should Watch Out For

    step by step business plan creation

    A Great Business Plan

    businessman using calculator seated at a table with spreadsheets

    Commingling – The New, ‘Dirty’ Word in Banking

    two young business owners give high five after they set up business

    How to Start a Business in Ghana

    entrepreneurs successfully open their business

    Top 10 Dos and Don’ts for Entrepreneurs

    business owner surprised at start up business mistake

    Start-Up Mistakes

    Building Your Business Series – Part 1

    Building Your Business Series – Part 1

    Building Your Business Series – Part 2

    Building Your Business Series – Part 2

  • Managing Growth
    • All
    • Accounting & Finance
    • Operations & Technology
    • People & Culture
    • Planning for Growth
    • Sales & Marketing
    finding business location on map online

    Business Location and Leasing Rules

    business owner thinking of expanding their business

    Rules for Business Expansion

    business owner holding ipad with cash flow icons floating

    Managing Your Cash Flow to Help Your Business Grow

    A businessman presenting in front a diverse group of professionals

    The Creditworthiness of Your Business

    A businesswoman selecting a Mortgage Approved business concept on a futuristic portable computer screen

    How Bankable is Your Business?

    employees give high five in office

    Ways to Motivate Key Employees: Reward and Recognition

    business owner facing problems

    Common Business Problems and Basic Rules to Handle Them

    business owner making cold calls

    Making Cold Calls

    section of a printed job description

    Creating an Effective Job Description

  • Scaling Up
    • All
    • Growth Finance
    • Operations & Technology
    • People & Culture
    • Planning for Scale
    • Sales
    Get Ready to Sell Online

    Get Ready to Sell Online

    young business woman sitting on sofa planning her insurance

    Top 10 Do’s and Don’ts of Insurance

    Insurance Coverage for Small Businesses

    Insurance Coverage for Small Businesses

    Effective Strategies for Closing the Sale

    Effective Strategies for Closing the Sale

    Guide to Preparing Your Cash Flow Projection

    Guide to Preparing Your Cash Flow Projection

    Creating a Business-Friendly Environment – Part 2

    Leading with Integrity; Leading by Example

    Integrity and the Entrepreneur at Work

    Integrity and the Entrepreneur at Work

    Creating a Business-Friendly Environment – Part 2

    Creating a Business-Friendly Environment – Part 2

    Creating a Business-Friendly Environment – Part 2

    Creating a Business-Friendly Environment – Part 1

  • COVID-19 Resources
    • All
    • Accounting & Finance
    • Business Planning
    • Managing Growth
    • Starting Up
    Stay Connected

    Staying Connected in the New Normal

    Rediscovering the leader

    Rediscovering the Leader From Within

    Personal Brand Development: What’s Your Story?

    Personal Brand Development: What’s Your Story?

    Customer Focus

    How Customer Focus Can Drive Innovation

    fair leadership

    Fairness in Leadership

    Coping with Covid

    Coping with COVID-19

    Online only

    Can Caribbean Banks Embrace Online Banking Only?

    business checklist of things to look out for

    Things Entrepreneurs Should Watch Out For

    business owner surprised at start up business mistake

    Start-Up Mistakes

  • Webinars
    • Home-Owner’s Guide To Securing A Mortgage
    • Getting Business Credit From Your Bank
    • Succeeding in the Low Touch Economy
    • Get Going With Ecommerce
    • Mindset To Success
  • Sustainable Development
    • Building Resistance to Disruption
    • Creativity and Sustainable Societies
  • Business Videos
No Result
View All Result
SME Toolkit Caribbean Logo
No Result
View All Result
section of a printed job description

This is an image of paper text.

Creating an Effective Job Description

Adapted from content excerpted from the American Express® OPEN Small Business Network

0
SHARES
ShareTweetLinkedinMail

Creating a clear job description before you begin the hiring process can help you choose the best candidate from a pool of applicants. It usually consists of two areas — a summary of the job’s responsibilities, and a list of the key duties that will be performed. It’s worth your time and effort to think the job description through completely. A confusing, hazy, or incorrect description can make it much harder for you to match a candidate and a job, because you’re not sure about exactly what the job entails.

An accurate job description is also essential for drafting classified ads, job postings or other recruitment efforts. It lets you be clear on exactly which talents you’re looking for, and focus your ad on those attributes to attract the most qualified candidates.

Use the tips below when you’re drafting a job description.

Avoid generalizations

Be as specific as possible when you describe the duties and responsibilities you will need this employee to perform. Think in terms of the benefits this employee will provide to your organization or to your customers/clients. For example, don’t describe a video store clerk simply as someone who will “rent videos to customers.” Instead, if you use something like “will assist customers in choosing movies they will like by sharing his or her knowledge of recent or classic films,” you will know you need someone who loves film and can convey their enthusiasm to your customers.

Prioritize

Once you’ve created a list of responsibilities and duties, put them in order of importance. Start with skills that are integral to the job to be performed. This way you will know what is necessary for the successful execution of the job, what simply is desired, and what may actually be irrelevant. Hiring is often a matter of trade-offs, so by prioritizing, you’re helping yourself determine what you can or can’t live with.

Use measurable criteria

Be explicit about the kind of performance you’re looking for from someone, and whenever possible look for ways to quantify those criteria with numbers or dates. Otherwise, you may find that you’ve hired someone who can perform the necessary tasks, but falls short in productivity or throughput. For example, will an account manager be working with one, four or ten accounts at a time? Will a bookkeeper be expected to update accounts receivable daily, weekly or monthly?

Ask for help

Spend time with others in your organization who will be managing or interacting with a new employee to find out what they think the chief duties of this person should be. Those who are on the front lines with someone often know more about what day-to-day skills are necessary to perform a job successfully. You’ll find this input invaluable.

Copyright © 1995-2016, American Express Company. All Rights Reserved.

How useful was this post?

Click on a star to rate it!

Related Articles

Related Posts

finding business location on map online
Managing Growth

Business Location and Leasing Rules

September 13, 2019
business owner thinking of expanding their business
Managing Growth

Rules for Business Expansion

September 13, 2019
business owner holding ipad with cash flow icons floating
Accounting & Finance

Managing Your Cash Flow to Help Your Business Grow

September 13, 2019

Must Read Articles

Episode 8: Get Organised for the Future
Business Bites

Episode 8: Get Organised for the Future

December 10, 2020
Episode 7: Pitfalls to Avoid While Your Business Grows
Business Bites

Episode 7: Pitfalls to Avoid While Your Business Grows

December 10, 2020
Episode 6: Best Advice for Young Businesses
Business Bites

Episode 6: Best Advice for Young Businesses

December 10, 2020
Episode 5: Plan for the Worst Case Scenario
Business Bites

Episode 5: Plan for the Worst Case Scenario

December 10, 2020

Popular

Business Bites

Episode 8: Get Organised for the Future

December 10, 2020
Business Bites

Episode 7: Pitfalls to Avoid While Your Business Grows

December 10, 2020
Business Bites

Episode 6: Best Advice for Young Businesses

December 10, 2020
Business Bites

Episode 5: Plan for the Worst Case Scenario

December 10, 2020
Business Bites

Episode 1: Planning for Risk in the New Environment

December 10, 2020
Next Post
Building Your Business Series – Part 3

Building Your Business Series – Part 3

Business Stage

  • Managing Growth
  • Starting Up
  • Scaling Up
  • COVID-19 Resources
  • Business Bites

Key Topics

  • Accounting & Finance
  • Business Planning
  • Operations & Technology
  • People & Culture
  • Planning for Growth
  • Sales & Marketing
  • Starting a Business

Additional Links

  • Webinars
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms

© 2021 Republic Bank Limited. All Rights Reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Starting Up
  • Managing Growth
  • Scaling Up
  • COVID-19 Resources
  • Webinars
    • Home-Owner’s Guide To Securing A Mortgage
    • Getting Business Credit From Your Bank
    • Succeeding in the Low Touch Economy
    • Get Going With Ecommerce
    • Mindset To Success
  • Sustainable Development
    • Building Resistance to Disruption
    • Creativity and Sustainable Societies
  • Business Videos

© 2021 Republic Bank Limited. All Rights Reserved.

Cookies

We use cookies to improve your browsing experience on our website, to analyse our website traffic, and to understand where our visitors are coming from. By continuing to browse our website, you consent to our use of cookies. Find out more.