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Here we are at the beginning of a new year, with indications things are getting better, including the prospect of increased hiring. Since you may be in the position to hire employees this year, you should give some thought to the life cycle of employment. That life cycle can be analogized to marriage. First, you're looking, then dating and, hopefully, finally married. Each stage has its own issues and potential pitfalls that should be addressed at the beginning of each step in the relationship, rather during the "divorce." We'll examine each phase in the coming months, but let's start with looking, i.e., you have a job opening.
In order to attract people, you have to let them know what you have and what you want. That's the function of the job description. A good job description will include responsibilities, duties, required qualifications, the most important contributions and outcomes needed for the position, and the reporting relationship and coworkers of a particular job. Although you will have to analyze the work duties, tasks, and responsibilities that are to be accomplished by the employee filling the position, several organizations, like the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), have job descriptions available and the tools to help you draft yours.
The time spent drafting a good job description will get qualified candidates to your door and will pay off in other ways. The job description is a factor in determining whether an employee is exempt under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). It also has a role in functional capacity analyses for Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) purposes and is used in performance appraisals.
You cannot, however, prepare a job description and think you are done. Job descriptions need to be reviewed and updated regularly. What if a long-time employee leaves and you are filling that position? How many different and additional duties, tasks, and responsibilities have been added to the position as your business, the world and technology changed? It's too late if you only learn the job description failed to include a qualification or requirement when it's pointed out in a lawsuit. On the other hand, a job description should be flexible enough so that a relevant assignment won't be refused because it's "not in my job description." If it's been a while since you reviewed your written job descriptions, you may want a labor and employment law attorney to conduct a job description audit.
So what are you going to include as qualifications? During the 1980's, "breathing" was pretty much the only required qualification for a job. Now, because of the larger pool of applicants you are likely to get, you can be more selective. However, in setting the required qualifications for a position, you should not include a limiting requirement that is not really essential to perform the job. For instance, why require that an applicant have a degree if you know that a person with a certain level of experience would be equally able to perform the job? Qualifications should be as objective, accurate and correct as possible. Subjective criteria will leave you open to second guessing about your motives.
Once you decide what you're looking for, and someone thinks they fit the bill, then you can begin the "dating" process. Next time, we'll discuss interviewing, testing and background checks.
The Life Cycle of Employment, Part I: The Job Description (Joann N. Wilkins, Employment Newsletter, February 2010)
March 23, 2010Here we are at the beginning of a new year, with indications things are getting better, including the prospect of increased hiring. Since you may be in the position to hire employees this year, you should give some thought to the life cycle of employment. That life cycle can be analogized to marriage. First, you're looking, then dating and, hopefully, finally married. Each stage has its own issues and potential pitfalls that should be addressed at the beginning of each step in the relationship, rather during the "divorce." We'll examine each phase in the coming months, but let's start with looking, i.e., you have a job opening.
In order to attract people, you have to let them know what you have and what you want. That's the function of the job description. A good job description will include responsibilities, duties, required qualifications, the most important contributions and outcomes needed for the position, and the reporting relationship and coworkers of a particular job. Although you will have to analyze the work duties, tasks, and responsibilities that are to be accomplished by the employee filling the position, several organizations, like the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), have job descriptions available and the tools to help you draft yours.
The time spent drafting a good job description will get qualified candidates to your door and will pay off in other ways. The job description is a factor in determining whether an employee is exempt under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). It also has a role in functional capacity analyses for Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) purposes and is used in performance appraisals.
You cannot, however, prepare a job description and think you are done. Job descriptions need to be reviewed and updated regularly. What if a long-time employee leaves and you are filling that position? How many different and additional duties, tasks, and responsibilities have been added to the position as your business, the world and technology changed? It's too late if you only learn the job description failed to include a qualification or requirement when it's pointed out in a lawsuit. On the other hand, a job description should be flexible enough so that a relevant assignment won't be refused because it's "not in my job description." If it's been a while since you reviewed your written job descriptions, you may want a labor and employment law attorney to conduct a job description audit.
So what are you going to include as qualifications? During the 1980's, "breathing" was pretty much the only required qualification for a job. Now, because of the larger pool of applicants you are likely to get, you can be more selective. However, in setting the required qualifications for a position, you should not include a limiting requirement that is not really essential to perform the job. For instance, why require that an applicant have a degree if you know that a person with a certain level of experience would be equally able to perform the job? Qualifications should be as objective, accurate and correct as possible. Subjective criteria will leave you open to second guessing about your motives.
Once you decide what you're looking for, and someone thinks they fit the bill, then you can begin the "dating" process. Next time, we'll discuss interviewing, testing and background checks.