The Most Common Mistakes Made When Writing A Job Description

Have you ever encountered problems with your job ad? You receive a lot of applications, but not many of them fit the bill or worse, your job ad attracts a lot of attention but not many people applied. 

The reality is you need to pay close attention to your job description. These are the typical mistakes you can find in so many job ads:

1. Confusing application process

Some big corporations have these complicated procedures when it comes to job applications and some ask applicants to provide extra documentation. Employers need to explain why they are necessary. 

Some candidates had to go through numerous interviews with different people for hours. It’s alright if they understand how the application process works especially if the position is an important one. But something is wrong if it’s just a regular position or the application process is still unclear to them.

2. Not providing a career path

No one wants a dead-end job. There is no point for someone to start their career at a company that will not let them develop professionally, especially fresh graduates. If your recruiter cannot go into detail about how a career path can be established at your organisation, future candidates may find it a turn-off and decline your job offer.

5 Most Common HR Mistakes

3. Low wage and not enough benefits

These are hard times, companies might not have enough funds to hire a candidate with a high salary. But they can also offer a good compensation package instead. For example, a good insurance plan or 21 days of paid leave could convince a candidate to apply.

The problem comes when you offer a low wage but without any extra benefits. For many candidates, it’s a red flag when they propose an expected salary but the interviewer only countered with an offer of a lower wage without any extra benefits.

4. Too many requirements

Some job descriptions are missing the requirement part, and others have way too many of them. If you think you are guilty of this, chances are you have no idea what you are looking for in a candidate. You might be unsure of what essential skills a candidate should have.

In this case, your recruiter will have a hard to manage expectations with the candidates. Keep in mind that the suggested salary should reflect the experience and qualifications.

5. One-sided job description

It’s very important for the employer and the employee to share a mutual understanding of their relationship. Always include the benefits in your job description. Otherwise, candidates will think that the employer is only interested in the employee’s results and not their interests.

This will be a larger problem later especially when it comes to negotiating wage, compensation package, promotions or any other conditions. So, be prepared to discuss benefits with the candidate during the job interview and make it clear when it comes to the career path, bonuses and compensations. 

How the write the perfect job description

6. Not caring about work-life balance

It’s fine if you pay your employees extra to catch up with the loss you’ve suffered during the Movement Control Order (MCO). But what’s not fine is ignoring your employee’s work-life balance. 

Many companies made the mistake of telling applicants to be prepared for late-night work and overtime. Yes, there are strict deadlines and important projects eventually happen and there may be some extra work to be done. But you cannot let it be a daily routine, it will show that your company has no regard for your employee’s work-life balance.

Under certain situations, if an employee agrees to accept extra work, negotiate so they can receive fair compensation so they won’t risk getting a burnout.

7. Unclear job description

When you write a job description, here’s what you need: 

• A general overview of the expected responsibilities

• Qualifications that you require

• The benefits for the potential employee

This will make it easier for applicants to fully understand the key objective of the job. Applicants will not apply when the job description is missing these key points. 

Many job searching platforms such as MauKerja and Ricebowl have made it easier for employees to apply for jobs. Employers also benefit from these platforms as it is now easier to post job ads and review applications instead of going through resumes over and over. Plus, if you use Ajobthing to hire, you can select from over 500+ quality job description templates that will increase your chances of getting quality applicants!

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