Half of UK HR managers believe poor job descriptions can distort employee expectations, resulting in them being a poor fit for the role and ultimately driving them to leave. Almost 70% of HR professionals told consultants Hay Group that inadequate job descriptions contribute to weak candidate pools during recruitment, meaning that HR teams waste time with irrelevant candidates who have the wrong skills.
Evidence from the Hay Group survey of 253 managers suggests that the drafting of job descriptions in many organisations is weak; 42% believe that the quality of descriptions in their organisation is poor and over three-quarters of HR managers agreed that getting good job descriptions from line managers is time consuming.
Adam Burden, consultant, Hay Group, said:
‘The lack of clarity is demotivating for individuals, and affects engagement and loyalty to the organisation. This has a knock on effect for teams, which are much more likely to perform when each member has an accurate picture of their role. Get job descriptions wrong and there’s a risk you’ll recruit the wrong people. Get them right, however, and you can attract the best candidates, who know what to expect from the role and how to make an impact.’