Best/Next Practices in Job Description Design and Management

About Don BermanProfessional Services Leader - HRTMS

Since 1989, Don Berman has spearheaded the introduction and adoption HR and talent management applications and technology driven best practices at large and mid-sized companies throughout the U.S. As co-founder and Professional Services Lead, Don has helped guide HRTMS Talent Management solutions toward a new Job Description-centric model that resulted in HRTMS Jobs--the leader in Job Description Management.

Best/Next Practices in Job Description Design and

Management presented by Don Berman

Why Job Descriptions Lag Behind• People think of them as documents/paper• No one person can complete them

– HR/Comp knows how to write them– Managers/Stakeholders know the

details of the job• People don’t know where to start

– Especially for new Jobs– Lack of content

• No Structured way to go about it– Different formats/focus

• Everything else is more important– Recruiting, Performance Reviews,

Compensation, Market PricingDespite the fact that none of these can be done well without an effective Job Description

• No Urgency (until you need to hire someone)

About this presentation• Although we provide recommendations -- Not an Ivory Tower• Based on what our clients are doing

– Components they are using– What they are using them for – Samples/Guidelines– Statistics – Screenshots/document snippets for context

We see Job Descriptions differently• Job Descriptions

– Cater to the lowest common denominator– Consist of blocks of dense, opaque text

• Job Repository– Leverages conversations with Stakeholders

• Collects all the info you need• Controls who can see what

– Provides information to those that need it• Folks in other roles, hiring managers, recruiters, Compensation, OD• Other systems: ATS, Performance Management, HRMS

– Turn blocks of text into Data Points • That you can search/query/interface with other systems

• Change the way you think about Job Descriptions

Looking for a cookbook?

Job Descriptio

n

ATS/Recruiting Process

Performance Management

System/Process

Career Pathing Succession

Training

ADA/AccommodationFLSA Determination

Compensation PlansSalary Structure

Corporate Culture

Future Plans

- Not One Size Fits all - What’s in your Job Description depends on:

The Agenda • General Guidelines• Legal Consideration• Job Description Elements– What/How/Why• Competencies, Skills, and Essential Functions• Collaboration• Content• Job Descriptions and Job Posting• FLSA Determination• Reusable Components (Inheritance)• Organizing Job Descriptions• Similar JDs/Consolidation• Access• Historical Job Descriptions

General Guidelines - Job• It’s about the Job– Everything in your JD must be about the Job– Resist using JD to describe an individual or personality

traits• Upbeat personality• Excellent customer services skills

– For ADA Include only relevant necessary requirements• If the item is not absolutely necessary to do the job

– Leave it out – Include it as a Non-Essential function

– Future of the Job• Look forward to the what may be needed down the road

General Guidelines - Language• Clear– Avoid flowery overwritten and vague verbiage:

• “…responsible for communicating any internal issues of importance to any of the constituencies involved in the company’s day-to-day happenstances, in formats including, but not limited to daily updates, weekly publications, annual reports.”

Vague, Confusing, Does not describe what the person will actually do • “Handles internal communications regarding company decisions and

accomplishments on an as needed basis”

• Reasonable/Truthful– Avoid Hyperbole “On call 24/7”– Don’t Glamorize the JD

General Guidelines – Language (cont’d)

• Use language that points to desired results• That indicates how success can be measured• Without exaggeration uses powerful/influential

language– “Through the use of direct marketing, candidates must be able to build

and measurably grow sales to a sustainable client base.”

Legal Considerations• Don’t discriminate by:

Age “…Youthful energy…”

Race/Religion “Must be able to work on Yom Kippur”

Marital Status “Travel Requires unmarried…”

Gender Specific “Previous experience as a waitress”

• Don’t undermine at will employment“This is a permanent Position” Don’t Mention unless Temp“…prides itself on employee retention” Omit. Implies ongoing employment

• Don’t make promises you can’t keep“…performance will be rewarded”“…will lead to training opportunities”“…supervises a staff of trained professionals”

• Don’t violate Applicants Privacy“…Ability to function without sleep…”“…single able spend full energy on the job”“…must have “blue state” mentality”“…candidate must not have other work commitments”

• Don’t create FLSA Classification Problems– JDs are not required but essential function are usually central in any dispute“…Supervise 2 employees/can hire and fire” “…Will supervise department”“Eligible for overtime pay” Omit.“This is an exempt position” Don’t use these terms or “…Salaried position” Discuss this topic

Legal Considerations – cont’d

Legal Considerations – cont’d• Protect against FLSA wage and hour lawsuit

In an article, Beware 'Misclassification Creep' in Employee Exemption, Littler Mendelson shareholder and co-chair of the firm’s wage-and-hour practice group, Lee Schreter states, “It’s easy enough for companies to ask their employees to sign off on their job descriptions during their periodic performance reviews, so there is both mutual understanding and, for the employer, well-documented proof that the employee knows where they stand. That kind of evidence, I believe even the courts will be hard-pressed to dismiss.”– Compliance - Job Description Acknowledgement

• Healthcare (Joint Commission)• All Companies (FLSA)• Bio Tech (CFR Part 11),

Job Description Elements• Job Attributes

– Job Indicative Information– Organization Information

• Description/Summary • Essential Functions• Qualifications• Physical Demands/Working Conditions• Competencies• Scope

Job Attributes• Indicative Information Typical Elements

– Job Code– Job Title– FLSA Classification– Grade– Date Created/Revised– Reviewed by

Job Attributes• Organizational Information –

– Business Unit/Region/Division, etc.– Reports To– Locations– Departments– Supervision Exercised/Received– Managers/Employees

Description/SummaryOverview of Job, used as a synopsis, for market pricing and recruiting. Used as a hook to draw in the reader.• Sample Guidelines

– Short statement that states why the job exists– Short statement that describes the role and how it supports the

company’s key objectives using specific measures of success – Elevator Pitch for the job

Description/SummaryConcerns for Description/Summary• Blank Page Syndrome• War and Peace SyndromeRemedies• Feedback/Revision Process• Text Limits (75 words)

• Spell Check• Leverage Content

Definition of terms:Essential Functions, Skills and Competencies• You have competencies (measurable/acquired over time)

– Knowledge, behavior, characteristics, aptitudes and/or strengths that are needed to perform and excel.

– e.g., Problem solving

• That allow you to learn Skills (acquired quickly)– Something tangible you can know or learn– e.g., Event Planning

• That you can apply to accomplish Essential Functions– Daily tasks that need to be performed.– e.g., Manages logistics for major corporate events. These include :

“town hall” meetings and webcasts, investor relations…

Essential Functions

• AKA Duties, Responsibilities, Accountabilities… • Used for:

– Performance appraisal.– ADA – Can an employee with a disability perform these functions; if

not, what accommodation can be made?– Recruiting/posting– Less so, for FLSA, Affirmative Action and Joint Commission

Essential Functions

• Sample Guidelines– What they do, not how they do it. If it’s less than 5-10%, should not

include unless it is a highly critical function– Statements that describe the main areas in which the role holder must

produce results in order to achieve the purpose of the role. They start with a verb and describe the end results rather than duties or activities or broad, vague statements. These responsibilities should be limited to the six or seven most important ones and put in descending order of importance.

– Begin each task statement with an action word (verb), which describes a specific kind of behavior. Then describe what, how and why each task is performed.

Essential Functions• Information captured

– Description of Essential Function– Also

• Percent of Time• Frequency • Level• Weight

These can affect FLSA Determination

Essential FunctionsOther options for Essential Functions• Additional Responsibilities

– Used to generalize JDs– Used to define responsibilities that may not be used for all employees

in a job– e.g. Work Nights/weekends, perform a location/business unit specific task

• Entity Specific Functions• Required Responsibilities

– For All Jobs– Mission/Vision

Qualifications• Used for recruiting, career pathing and compliance• Sample Guidelines:

– “We educate our managers that they need to determine the minimum and preferred education/certification, skills, and experience required for the job so that HR can legally defend why an applicant is or is not hired. ”

Qualifications• Most Common Information captured

– Education – Experience– Skills– Licenses/Certifications (Joint Commission)

• Also Captured– Technology/Software Skills– Languages

QualificationsCategory Item Details/

OtherRequired/Preferred

Proficiency Other % Using

Education Level X X ~ 100%

Experience Level X X ~ 100%

Skills Skill X X X ~ 90%

Lic/Cert Lic/Cert X X Timeframe ~80%

Technology Tech Skill X X X ~ 10%

Languages Language X X X ~ 10%

Physical Demands/Working ConditionsUsed for ADA situations to determine if an employee is capable of performing in the job• In conjunction with Essential Functions• Used to determine what accommodations

can be made• Most Common Information captured

– Physical Demand/Working Condition Description

– Frequency– Weight (for weight related items)

Physical Demands/Working ConditionsProcess for determining physical demands/working conditions Items• Industry specific

– Corporate/Healthcare/Manufacturing

• Often culled from disability claims over time• Reviewed periodically to evolve over time with changes in job

equipment and ADA.

Physical Demands/Working Conditions

Category % Using

Physical Demands ~ 100%

Working Conditions ~ 100%

Physical Demands with weight requirements ~80%

Coordination/Visual Acuity <10%

Essential Physical Requirements <10%

Bloodborne Pathogens <10%

Cognitive Requirements <10%

Emotional Effort <5%

Competencies• Measurable/score-able• Used for performance reviews• Most use in conjunction with Essential Functions• Corporate – Behavioral• Healthcare - task related due to regulatory requirements• Number Limited

Competencies

Category % Using

Core Competencies ~20%

Departmental Competencies ~50%

Position Specific Competencies ~60%

Leadership Competencies ~40%

Customer Service/others <10%

Scope• Generally, help gauge impact of the job on an organization • More specifically

– Job Evaluation– Grading– Compensation– Participation in bonus plan– Aid in FLSA determination

ScopeSome examples are:

– Freedom to Act– Problem Complexity– Impact– Supervision Exercised/

Received– Financial Responsibility– Budget Responsibility

Scope• Job Evaluation - Factors used for leveling are dictated by the

leveling methodology various IPE(s), Hay or homegrown Excel Point Factor System

• Some examples are:– Nature/Area of Impact – Creativity– Internal/External Contacts– Project Management– Business Expertise– Leadership

Collaboration• Collaboration is the key to effective job descriptions because the

knowledge needed is embedded in multiple Stakeholders. • Typical participants are:

– Hiring Manager– HR Generalists– Compensation

• Track changes paradigm

Collaboration• Collaboration must be flexible, allowing stake holders to reach out to

other contributors on the fly:– Upper-level Managers– Department/Entity/Location Leaders– Other SME’s

• Ad hoc Reviews Provide simplicity/flexibility

Collaboration Best Practice – Stake holders

© 2013 HRTMS, Inc. All Rights Reserved www.hrtms.com

Manager Selects Descriptions HR/HR Business PartnerMark-up Process

Keep it Simple• Allow managers to make requests simply from their perspective• Empower HR Business partners to route for further approval

Collaboration Best Practice - Oversight

© 2013 HRTMS, Inc. All Rights Reserved www.hrtms.com

Step 2 Reviewer(s) Step 3 Reviewer(s)...

HR/Compensation Final Approval

Step 1 Reviewer(s)

Content• Sources of Content

– Stakeholders– Client Job Descriptions– HRTMS Content Library– Client libraries/data from other systems

• Content Applied to– Summary– Essential Function– Competencies– Skills– Less often, Qualifications

Content-Search• Search Content

– By Job Description– By Job Family/Function– By Occupation– By Saved List– Standard Statements

Job Descriptions and Job Posting• Low hanging fruit for integration• Automate or cut and paste• Attended/background integration

FLSA Questionnaires• DOL Questionnaires• State or other Questionnaires

InheritanceInherit Data from Parent Job Descriptions• Typically Essential Function, Skills, Certifications, Competencies• But could be any Job Description ElementChanges to Parent auto populate to children

Inheritance - Uses• Generic Jobs

– Nurses, Accountants, etc.

• Entity– Department, Division, Business Unit, Location etc.

• Job Classification– Job Family/Function– Exempt/Non-Exempt, EEO– Arbitrary Classification

Organizing Job Descriptions (View)• Filter JDs By Entity/Other attributes

– Business Unit, Department, FLSA/EEO Classification, Job with openings, etc.

Organizing Job Descriptions (Job Families)• By Job Family/Function• Career Paths• Related Jobs

• Side-By-Side Views– Career Matrix– Qualifications Comparison– Scope Factor Analysis

Organizing Job Descriptions (Analysis)• Best Practice – Matrix Explorer

Organizing Job Descriptions (Consolidating)Relationship between Job Codes(HRMS) to Job Descriptions• Many (Job Codes) to one Job Description

– Often Driven by concerns due to Legacy JD Management– Facilitated by entity specific Elements

• One (Job Code) to One Job Description– Best Practice for Repository

Similar Jobs/Identification• Identify jobs that are similar enough to be candidates for

consolidation

Similar Jobs/Consolidation• Consolidate Job Descriptions/Create Parent Job Descriptions

Access• Provide access to:

– HR/Compensation– Managers– Employees

HR/CompOnly

ManagersStakeholders

Employees

Employees

ManagersStakeholders

Employees

5%

95%

40%

Keep a Record of Historical Job Descriptions• Defend Hiring Decisions• Protect yourself against Regulatory Audit

Wrap up

If you stop thinking of a Job Description as being limited by the restrictions imposed by documents:

– You’ll see that a Job Description Repository can:• Drive Performance, Compensation, Recruiting, Succession, and Training • Job Descriptions are the logical centerpiece of your Talent management

Landscape

Most of the content in this presentation was drawn from client implementations of HRMS JobsContent for General Guidelines and Legal Consideration was drawn from The Job Description Handbook by Margie Mader-Clark

What did we miss?

Questions

How To Contact Us

Don Bermandon@hrtms.com

Ashley Robinsonashley@hrtms.com

919.351.JOBS (5627) www.hrtms.com