Today’s post is from Russ Bray with Southern Recruiting Solutions in Tampa, Florida. Russ is a two-time member of the NPA Board of Directors, as well as a long-time member of the network. Southern Recruiting Solutions specializes in placing engineering and information technology professionals throughout the U.S.
Have you ever read a job description that never seems to end and that no one could possibly qualify for? Or one that really tells you nothing because it’s all generic jargon? Candidates have too—and either no one replied, or everyone replied. We hear so many complaints about poor response to job postings. Here are a few tips that may help you increase your reply from quality candidates. If you are sharing the job with a member of your split placement network, he or she will thank you as well.
- A little sizzle to start – ‘Opportunity to join a software development team building new applications using .NET Framework 4.’ Regardless of the industry or job, provide some detail at the beginning to excite a potential candidate. This will set you apart from the rest of the crowd. It will also help your split placement partner get more excited about conducting a search and targeting the right candidate.
- Several bullets that clearly state what this person will be doing. There is no magic number, but I like to keep it brief; 5 or so bullets that don’t ramble on forever.
- Several bullets that clearly state what is necessary to qualify for this position. Usually this section is the one that seems to go on and on. Try to focus on the top 5 experiences this person will need to qualify for the job. Is a Masters degree absolutely necessary or will the right experience offset that requirement? Do they have to have experience from another chemical plant or could someone from another manufacturer do the job just as well? Don’t make it hard for your split placement partners and/or candidates to figure out what is needed; they’ll just give up in frustration.
If the job description you are working from is much longer, just list the most important bullets and state that more detail can be provided to qualified candidates. Items like ‘good team player’ and ‘excellent verbal and written communication skills’ are a given and not really necessary. Some sizzle, concise and brief, is usually best. Better job descriptions will help you make more placements, including split placements.
If you are sharing the job with a member of your split placement network, he or she will thank you as well.