Want an employee to do a job? Make sure the job description is up to scratch. If there is none, create one. If one exists, review it.

Some organisations get the past staff member to write it and hope for the best. I suggest that the whole process could become a great collaboration of the staff and management to describe the role adequately without scaring the applicant with too many tasks for the role.

A job description should outline the role in a way that ensures clarity of communication. It can include various things, just as there are many versions of an Indian curry, so to are there job descriptions.

Showing who the person is responsible to is a start, then outline specific aspects of the role. Some do this in sections to allow the overall role to be appreciated in sections rather than as a whole series of arduous tasks. These sections could involve administrative duties, specific job tasks and specific criteria the applicant should answer in application for the role.

In time job descriptions can be altered to suit the role. They should not be a chore to create and they can be more effective when they are completed by a team rather than an individual.

One of the overall roles of the document is to serve as a back stop device if a problem happens with the employee. This way the description can be used to show discrepancies between the tasks undertaken and the actual expectations on the staff member.

I guess that if the role of the employee and the employer gets to this stage of discussion then there are probably other things wrong in the business. Before long other dramas can evolve.

Knowing your staff, their limitations and how to overcome them can all be a part of the learning process that a job description can provide. Whatever your use for it make it work for you and not against you.