The basic meaning of a job description is a list that a person has which can be used by them for maintaining certain tasks along with some functions and responsibilities pertaining to a certain position in the firm.
It normally includes the person having the particular position in the office, the qualifications required for getting that job, its salary etc. But sometimes a job description can comprise of simple things needed for a person by which the human resources of the company are well planned and are strategic in nature.
A job description is mainly done by a company after a certain analysis regarding the job is completed and what are necessary for performing the job are acknowledged by the company.
These studies are mainly done to identify what set of skills are required in specific for the job and what are roles required for carrying the job. This concept of having a job description mainly involves in the recruitment process for the company.
So it is really necessary for every person to understand the concept of a job description which they can do so by the following ways.
Why is it Important to Understand and Review Job Description?
In a company every employee always like to know what is really expected by them working in that particular company from the management. Knowing a job description is a great way for the person to really understand what the management wants them to do and how they are being evaluated in the company.
They also come to know how important and critical the job they are doing in the firm at the moment is for the benefit of the company and what are the characteristics required for the employees who are new.
As mentioned above it mainly comprises of what are the necessary skills in particular need for the person along with the basic training and required education needed for the person to get the job.
A good management of a company will always have a job description ready for the company to let the new employees know what their responsibilities are and what is expected by them from the management as they realize how essential a job description is for the future of the company.
So here are some of the important components of a basic Job description prepared by the company:
1. Summary Statement:
A summary of the job is just the basic duties of the job which are provided just in simple one or two sentences which can be mentioned at the beginning of the job description for the benefit of both the employees and the management.
The employee at once gets a better understanding regarding what is expected by them for the job which they wish to pursue or have already got in the company.
2. Detailed Functions:
This is the part in the job description which is lengthy in comparison to the letter as a whole. The main functions that are expected by the employee to be fulfilled in the company are described in a detailed and a specific manner.
It mainly details all the necessary functions with respect to supervision and describing in the most specific way what kinds of tasks the person will come across on an every day basis.
Functions even regarding towards whom the employee will interact to most either customers, the workers internally in the office or the general public are described in detail in this section.
3. Attributes required:
At times the job that is given or offered to a person mainly involves the use of certain kinds of machinery and so in this section the person needs to be provided with kinds of machinery or software they will be using.
Also mention in detail all the necessary requirements with respect to educational and a technical aspect that are required in the company.
Moreover some of the necessary insights of the job and the working environment should be mentioned with which the person wanting the job will realize what they need to contribute in the company.
4. Reporting:
The management should also provide details regarding the reporting process as well as the organization of the company to be provided in the job description.
With providing this information to the person they will realize how the on going activities of the company fits along with them and how they have to put in their total efforts and dedication in the organization so that progress can be achieved in the company for the long run.
5. Criteria for Evaluation:
It is always recommended that the more specific a person can be is mentioning something, the better the person sitting in front of them can understand it.
Writing a particular evaluation in the job description it can mainly be determined in detail what would be the most important thing for the organization as well as for the employee.
The evaluation criteria mentioned in the job description should refer to mentioning and promoting the activities by which success can be achieved in the organization for the future.
6. Compensation provided:
In the job description the management of the company should also mention what kind of compensation in a range not a specific career so that more flexibility can be maintained and as the person will always prefer the amount at the top most range.
But most of the people may be preferred to have given a specific sum in the job description as they realize it in a better way what their expectations are and whether they are being met by the company. If the company has a procedure of using pay grades then also include it in the job description.
7. Location and Surrounding Areas:
In the job description also as better information to be provided regarding the workplace, something with regarding to the physical location where it is situated should be mentioned.
It should contain the elements such as how many floors does the office have, how many departments etc. Also the surrounding areas where the office is placed and in which kind of physical environment it is placed in should also be mentioned.
With the help of a detailed job description provided to the person will help them understand the working of the office in a better way and help learn the importance of their role in the office much faster.
With the set of unique skills the individual possesses they can help bring success to the firm as well as benefit them in the future. Also both the company and the individual come to better understanding once a detailed job description has been provided to them.
Importance of Understanding your Job Role:
One of the main reasons a job description is provided to an individual isn’t always for the purpose for which explains the on going situation currently going on the workplace or what kind of work is currently expected to be carried out by the individual.
One of purposes would be just to set out certain goals what needs to be fulfilled by the individual and what the company can achieve and be beneficial in the future and so it is important to understand all the different roles that a job requires.
1. First Stage of Applying:
When the person is at the initial stage of applying for the job they firstly need to understand the job roles and tasks in a detailed manner.
Also make sure that there aren’t any limitations or drawbacks they would have within themselves which may cause as an obstruction or a complete stop towards carrying out those tasks on an everyday basis as it would put the future of the company along with their own profession in danger.
2. Various Roles:
The roles that are mainly included in the job description may be referring to different kinds of relationships between other people of the organization.
It also may include the different levels of supervision in the office, all the different managerial requirements essential in the workplace and also different relationships with the colleagues and peers in the company itself which helps the person grow as a member of the organization.
3. Knowing your Pay:
One of the things which is also mentioned in the job description is how much the pay slip will be for the individual if they get the job. This is also considered as one of the job roles that a person needs to identify also.
This helps the person understand in a much better way how much they will be paid on fulfilling all the responsibilities assigned to them. If the person needs to identify all the roles with respect to their pay then they can also find certain tips to understand this concept in a much better way.
4. Understanding Pay Cuts:
Knowing the importance of a job role also includes knowing how deductions on the person’s salary can affect them. By law every month the company is liable to cut some portion of the salary earned by the individual.
These may be towards certain funds such as the ‘Unemployment Insurance Fund’ or PAYE i.e. ‘Pay As You Earn’. So all this needs to be informed to the individual in the job description itself so that they may understand the benefits and deductions to their salary.
5. Understanding Benefits Provided:
It should always be known by the individual that all the companies will provide benefits to the person who may differ from company to company.
Certain benefits such as medical, provident fund (PF) and retirement annuity needs to be discussed by the management when they provide the job description to an individual. The person should also remember that all these benefits refer directly to the company in which they have currently applied to.
Understanding the Elusive Job Description:
As we know the basic necessity as to why a job description is provided to a person, it helps know the kind of work which is to be carried out on a daily basis by them and what are the necessary skills required as a specialization towards that particular field.
But in today’s time most of the companies mainly use the concept of a job description considering it as a ‘placeholder’. This is mainly for the company to ensure that the job is fairly provided to all the applicants and there is no partiality.
Mainly there are two basic uses of a job in particular. One is that the management is able to go through all applicants who are applied for the job and the second would be to see who has the most job experience with respect to a similar type of a job and with this it helps the management to only consider those people whose profile and experience fits the job completely.
And on knowing this, the management will look for the person who stands out among all the other candidates as with their skills they may get the task done much faster and is a better way benefiting the company.
Though there might be a number of benefits that a job description may provide there are also certain disadvantages which may arise in certain circumstances:
- Providing a Job description may not be favourable for some of the senior managers of the company as they may not have the same impact and freedom towards taking an initiative towards coming up with new directions which may benefit the company.
- Some kinds of job descriptions may also not be so flexible due to raid changes being done in the organization.
- Certain changes made in the job content can also cause the job description coming to a stage where it is out of date.
- It may not be optimal in nature for an organization that uses a certain process towards creating a particular job description.
So towards understanding a specific job description the person needs to always at first understand the basic concept, the importance, the roles and responsibilities that a person carries if they wish to achieve success later on in their life in future.
