Learning Activity #3: Job Description Template

Below is an example of a job description for a talent acquisition specialist at YYZ Company. You may pick any job of your choice at any organization.

Modify, replace, or delete instructional text in dark grey. Once the job description is finalized, remove all instructions. Be sure to change all final text to black.

Organization Information

Briefly describe the organization that you have selected.

Example:

YYZ Company is an international family business whose quality products have appealed to people’s taste for generations. With us you have the chance to shape your future and ours alongside more than 12,000 colleagues in over 40 countries.

General Job Information

Job Summary

This section is the elevator pitch for the job. Briefly describe the purpose of the job.

Example:

The Talent Acquisition Specialist will collaborate with all stakeholders to recruit, develop and retain talent. The incumbent will effectively balance business partner responsibility with employee advocacy in order to build a positive employee relations culture and work environment. Further, the Talent Acquisition Specialist will support other aspects of HR throughout YYZ Company.

Main Responsibilities

Outline 3-5 main responsibilities related to the job. Break them downaccording to accountability (these may be the strategies or values) and outcome (behaviours). Think back to what you learned in Module 2 around managerial and behavioural strategies and Module 4’s discussion of the graphic rating scale to help with this section.  Accountability specifies how the job contributes to the strategic priorities of the department, and the associated outcome outlines how that accountability adds value or the expected result. Use action verbs when defining accountabilities.

Keep in mind that responsibilities should have enough detail so the job can be differentiated from others, but not so much that minor changes in how outcomes are achieved renders the job description out of date.

Key Relationships

Identify and briefly describe 2-4 key relationships to be developed and maintained in order to successfully perform the job and drive forward key initiatives at the department and organization levels. Are these relationships internal (such as peers, management, direct reports) or external (such as customers, suppliers)?  Be sure to review the main responsibilities section to ensure you have captured the key relationships.

Job Requirements

List the education, certificates, technical skills, and/or experience involved in fulfilling the job. Include only what is necessary to successfully achieve the main responsibilities of the job.

Complete this section as though you are hiring someone into the job for the first time. Required qualifications are the must-haves in order for candidates to move forward, and preferred qualifications are the nice-to-haves that help identify more qualified candidates.

Required Qualifications

Preferred Qualifications

Other

Use this section to outline any other elements of the job that do not fall under the previous sections of the template. For instance, working conditions, travel, immigration/visa requirements, etc.  Think about any other components that have not been captured in the template or compensable factors that you wish to elaborate upon.

Example:

• Normal recruitment activities may require travel and so incumbents must be able to obtain and maintain valid travel documentation at all times.
• Normal recruitment activities may require working outside of standard business hours (9:00am-5:00pm).
• Recruiting consultants must be comfortable maintaining an up-to-date and active professional social media presence. This may require updating social media feeds outside of regular business hours on occasion.