How to write Job Descriptions and Role Profiles

Before any job is recruited for or advertised it is essential to identify what exactly the need is, what skills and behaviours are required for an individual to be successful in the role and what you can afford. In the initial stages you need to check that the potential need is an actual need and then produce/update the job description or role profile if there isnt already one in place. Is there a need? Recruitment can be a costly activity; therefore it is essential that you ensure that you are channelling this activity effectively and not over-resourcing. This can be established by asking some basic questions:! Has the need arisen by someone leaving? ! Has the role changed? Has it been influenced by new products, services or changes in technology? ! Have work patterns changed? ! Has an exit interview been conducted? This could highlight important points about the potential vacancy. ! Could the role be broken down and key tasks distributed among the team? ! Is it a new role? ! Does it fit in with budget? ! Will it be cost-effective? Do the benefits justify the expense? ! Should it be full-time, part-time or contract? ! Could the work be distributed among the current team? Can individuals be trained? Could technology make an impact? Could shift patterns be altered? Once you have established that there is a specific need, the next stage is to update the current Role Profile and/or produce a new one if necessary. Role Profiles/Job Description? The term "Role Profile" is a blend of both a Job Description and a Person Specification or outline of the type of person who would fit the role. Role Profiles are simple documents which demonstrate clearly the relationship between specific activities/tasks and the personal attributes required to undertake them. In short it describes a job, and the personal qualities required to do that job well.

The job is usually described in terms of the purpose, responsibilities and key deliverables of the job, and the personal qualities required are described in terms of the knowledge, skills and behaviours that are necessary to perform the job well. Role Profiles provide clarity (both to those doing the job and to managers) on what is expected from people doing the role. They focus people's attention on the key factors required to deliver results. They provide information that enables: ! A much clearer understanding of what the role holder is being asked to do. ! More effective appraisal, against a clear benchmark. ! More effective recruitment, against clearly specified requirements linked to business objectives. ! More effective development of people, focussing learning on the areas that will bring most business benefit. ! More effective promotion and career development, where people can see what they need to do to fulfil a future role, and in turn the organisation can assess people's capability more accurately. Key benefits businesses gain from using Role Profiles as opposed to Job Descriptions include: ! Increased effectiveness from jobholders who are more focussed on what success looks like in their role. ! Reduced recruitment and retention costs, with people better matched to role requirements. ! Reduced training and developments costs, with learning targeted on activities with defined business benefit. ! More successful promotion decisions. ! Fairer, simpler and more transparent grading structures. Producing a Role Profile If you need to produce a new Role Profile, it should be clear, concise and include the following: Job Description Job title A named role and location. The job title should communicate the function and status of the job. Reporting line The person to whom the individual will be reporting. It is important that this is clarified particularly where there may be more than one reporting line for different issues. Job purpose A simple statement to identify clearly the objective of the job. Key accountabilities This details what actually needs to be done. The duties and expected outcomes. Knowledge/experience/skills This section is used to identify the overall expertise needed to perform the job to the required standards for example: Knowledge of specific procedures (e.g. computer systems and software for an IT programmer) Experience in working with Microsoft packages
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The skills to apply computer knowledge, skills to work as part of a team Person Specification Qualifications Work Experience Knowledge Skills/Abilities Academic/vocational/professional. Outline the minimum requirement for the jobholder and what is ideal. The amount of experience in a specific environment at a specific level Specific background/essential knowledge needed to do the job i.e. working practices Skills and abilities required that are specific to the role i.e. numerical/verbal/communication It is recommended to identify a minimum level of skill and also a maximum level of skill to indicate development What motivates the candidate is the role likely to restrict someone who enjoys working with people if it is one which has limited contact with others. Availability/mobility i.e. is the candidate able to work the hours required, or can they travel to the work location. A description of which core competencies are required for the job

Personality/Motivation Circumstances Competencies/Behaviours It is also useful to identify:

! The essential criteria (skills, experience, attributes) which must be available to undertake the job ! The desirable criteria (other abilities, attributes, further experience), that would enhance the quality of the candidates. This should outline your 'ideal' candidate for the vacancy. Candidates who don't have the essential criteria should be rejected at application stage. While the desirable criteria are not essential, they may enhance the quality of the candidate and this may be useful if you have a number of good candidates. You should ensure that candidates meet the benchmark in the competency based assessment when you shortlist, and that you can evidence objective recruitment decisions have been made. Attached is a suggested template to help facilitate your new role profile.

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Role Profile Template

Job Title: Reports To: 1. Job Purpose
A brief 1 to 2 sentence summary of the primary reason why this job exists. XXXXXXX Job Title of Line Manager

2. Principal Accountabilities
Aim to describe around 10 Principal Accountabilities, although some jobs may have less and others more, but avoid listing every single activity. The description should be generic for any broad role which covers a number of jobholders e.g. Manager, Adviser etc Detail the most important aspects of the role spelling out: ! Responsibilities what does the jobholder do? ! Accountabilities what decisions does the jobholder make? Start with an active verb, e.g. ! Manages a team of 4 people to ensure.... ! Develops new methods of.... ! Coaches people to ensure that they have the capability to... ! Responds to telephone calls in a professional manner and ensures that ..... It may also be useful to have a general accountability, which lends scope for new tasks e.g. ! Executes additional tasks in order to meet departmental project-related or development and change objectives.

3. Knowledge/Experience/Skills
Consider the qualifications / specific knowledge / type of experience / skills/ type of behaviours and attributes a person may be required to possess in order to carry out the job. a) Knowledge ! Academic level of qualification required is an academic level essential? ! Professional level of qualification required is there a relevant qualification? ! is it essential or desirable? ! What specific knowledge is required? E.g. knowledge of European family law b) Experience This should include an element of time spent to gain the experience therefore consider: ! experience in specific ! of specific techniques environments ! of specific practices ! of specific tools ! of specific exposures
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e.g. From a Retail background with 3 years customer service experience including one year at team manager or supervisory level c) Skills Consider the skills or abilities that are required to do the job e.g. ! Working knowledge of Excel ! Has attention to detail ! High level of numeracy ! Can think on feet ! Communication skills ! Can assimilate data including written and presentational d) Attributes and Behaviours Consider the behaviours / attributes or competencies required to carry out the role e.g. in Team Work: ! Develops and maintains positive working relationships with others ! Shares ideas and information ! Assists colleagues unprompted ! Takes pride in the achievement of team objectives Other elements may include eg ! Has credibility with peers and senior managers ! Self motivated driven to achieve results ! High customer service ethic is passionate about meeting customer ! expectations and improving service levels. ! Keeps pace with change acquires knowledge/skills as the business develops 4. Context Explain the context of the role if it is ! a new role ! a change to the role Put into context how this role fits into the department/company Detail the complexity of the role, commenting on impact of role and highlighting any statistical supporting data, e.g.: budgets, numbers of staff, numbers of sites