Table of contents:

Why should I spend time creating a job spec?

Taking the time to really consider and craft what you need from the role, allows you to have a strong grip on your companies plan, run more efficient hiring processes, have better communication internally and externally, make informed hiring decisions.

<aside> 💡 Also, by creating a job spec you can capture what you do know about the role right now, this gives you the ability to evolve your thinking as you go through the process.

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What can go wrong if I don't create a job spec?

If you don't know what you are hiring for, you may have a hard time communicating what you are looking for and evaluating candidates.

Too often I hear questions like, 'should we focus on a marketing person with more experience in using digital channels or branding?'

Spending time crafting a job spec is a vital and time consuming piece of work that allows you to really consider what you are looking for in this role/what your business needs/what your business priorities are so that you can start searching for the right person.

Your business goals and budget inform which roles you should prioritise. Doing a job spec really helps founders and managers really think through what they need and find clarity.

Additionally it's difficult to conduct an effective interview process if you don't have a firm handle on what skills and expertise the candidate needs to have.

Equally you can't expect your team to contribute to the interview process if they haven't been given a clear outline of the role, responsibilities.

<aside> 💡 Remember to consider what you know the role requires today and what it will take to thrive in the role within the next year.

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What is an Internal job spec, and how do I create one?

An internal job spec is your opportunity to capture absolutely every aspect of the role, in one place, just for you. Keep this as your internal reference so you can easily remind yourself of what you were looking for in this role. It's surprisingly easy to forget. As you start to speak to recruiters/candidates from different backgrounds and get a fresh perspective on how this role may work, go ahead and update your internal (and external spec).

Follow the job spec template but feel free to make it as long as you need to brain-dump all your thinking, this is for your eyes only.