When I started my consulting practice, I had no idea how many organizations operate without the most critical tool needed to practice good human resource management; humble, sloppy and often unused job description. Wrongly viewed as insignificant by many and nonessential by some, a well-written job description is truly the cornerstone in building your compensation and human resource infrastructure. Let’s take a few minutes to review why they are so important in HR management and how they should be used every day in HR departments.

1). It affects your ability to recruit quality candidates while minimizing discriminatory hiring complaints.

When you have a quality job description that truly reflects the minimum knowledge, skills, abilities, and qualifications of the job, you can develop job-related questions that help you and your managers recruit effectively for open positions. . You’ll use the job description to develop job postings, posts, and interview questions to use when hiring. By using the job description as a hiring tool, your managers will learn to ask applicants objective job-related questions rather than subjective questions that are illegal or irrelevant (and can cause problems for your company!).

2). Adaptation of ADA and Workers’ Compensation.

Due to the ADA, you are charged with writing job descriptions that clearly identify the essential job functions of each job in your company. As part of the mandatory interactive process to return an employee to work while adjusting to their disability and / or medical restrictions, a well-written job description is a critical tool.

Having a well-written job description that identifies the required essential job function, physical requirements, and work environment is essential to participate in the interactive process as required by law.

3). Measurement of employee performance in your performance appraisal process.

Your managers will use the job description as an objective basis for measuring their employees’ performance over the past year and setting goals for the following year.

4). It answers the critical employee question, “How do I fit into the organization?”

This problem is HUGE! How can an employee contribute to the goals and objectives of the organization if he does not understand his role in the company? They can not!

Writing a quality job description creates a link between the employee and the company by identifying what is expected of them in their job. Establishing an organizational structure with well-written job descriptions creates an alignment within and between departments that is positively leveraged to contribute to your organization’s goals and objectives.

5). Management of performance problems in employees.

Unfortunately, there are some bad apples in every company. The job description again serves to outline performance expectations and sets the stage for discussions about performance improvement and possible disciplinary actions.

6). Establish career paths for employee development.

One of the most frequently cited reasons for departing employees to leave to join another employer in exit interviews is that they did not believe there were promotional opportunities for them, that is, “nowhere to go.” By creating job families and career ladders to formalize your organizational structure and internal promotion system, you will help retain staff and reduce your turnover costs.

7). Market price of your jobs.

With the big change in the labor market during the recession, you’ll want to keep an eye on the market to track the spike and return of inflation at the end of 2010. It is essential to base your market pricing project on job content, not job content. job titles. . You will need well-written job descriptions in order to produce solid market pricing results.

8). Assess the FLSA’s job status to properly classify your jobs as exempt or nonexempt.

Now more than ever, because of all the class action wage and hour litigation for misclassified jobs, you need to know how your jobs should be classified. These class action lawsuits have cost many employers dearly and could have been avoided entirely if the companies had conducted their own internal FLSA audits.

Certainly, job descriptions cannot be considered “attractive”, they are misunderstood, unused and / or neglected by many, but they remain the cornerstone of good human resource management and compensation for all organizations. Isn’t it time for you to review the writing or update them in your company? With the huge change in market payment practices that occurred during the recession, you will need to keep track of the market to pay your people properly. Now is the time to make sure you are ready …

copyright 2009 Regan HR, Inc.