The most important product of job analysis is the job description. A job description is a written statement of what the worker actually does, how he or she does it, and what the job s working conditions are. You use this information to write a job specification; this lists the knowledge, abilities, and skills required to perform the job satisfactorily.
There is no standard format for writing a job description. However, most descriptions contain sections that cover:
1. Job identification 2. Job summary
3. Responsibilities and duties 4. Authority of incumbent 5. Standards of performance 6. Working conditions 7. Job specification
Figures 4-7 and 4-8 present two sample forms of job descriptions.
Job Identification
As in Figure 4-7, the job identification section (on top) contains several types of infor- mation.27The job titlespecifies the name of the job, such as supervisor of data processing operations, or inventory control clerk. The FLSA status section identifies the job as exempt or nonexempt. (Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, certain positions, primarily administrative and professional, are exempt from the act s overtime and minimum wage provisions.) Dateis the date the job description was actually approved.
There may also be a space to indicate who approved the description and perhaps a space showing the location of the job in terms of its facility/division and department.
This section might also include the immediate supervisor s title and information regarding salary and/or pay scale. There might also be space for the grade/level of the job, if there is such a category. For example, a firm may classify programmers as programmer II, programmer III, and so on.
4 Write job descriptions, including summaries and job functions, using the Internet and traditional methods.
FIGURE 4-7 Sample Job Description, Pearson Education Source: Courtesy of HR Department, Pearson Education.
JOB TITLE: Telesales Respresentative
SUMMARY (Write a brief summary of job.)
SCOPE AND IMPACT OF JOB Dollar responsibilities (budget and/or revenue)
The person in this position is responsible for generating approximately $2 million in revenue, for meeting operating expense budget of approximately $4000, and a sampling budget of approximately 10,000 units.
Prior sales or publishing experience preferred. One year of company experience in a customer service or marketing function with broad knowledge of company products and services is desirable.
The person in this position is responsible for selling college textbooks, software, and multimedia products to professors, via incoming and outgoing telephone calls, and to carry out selling strategies to meet sales goals in assigned territories of smaller colleges and universities. In addition, the individual in this position will be responsible for generating a designated amount of editorial leads and communicating to the publishing groups product feedback and market trends observed in the assigned territory.
RECOMMENDED SALARY GRADE:
JOB FAMILY: Sales
DIVISION: Higher Education DEPARTMENT: In-House Sales
JOB CODE:
EXEMPT/NONEXEMPT STATUS:
EEOC:
REPORTS TO:
LOCATION:
100001
Nonexempt Sales Workers
District Sales Manager Boston
DATE: April 2009
Supervisory responsibilities (direct and indirect) None
Formal education or equivalent
Bachelor s degree with strong academic performance or work equivalent experience.
Skills
Must have strong organizational and persuasive skills. Must have excellent verbal and written communications skills and must be PC proficient.
Other
Other
Limited travel required (approx 5%)
REQUIRED KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE (Knowledge and experience necessary to do job) Related work experience
(Continued)
Job Summary
The job summary should summarize the essence of the job, and include only its major functions or activities. Thus (in Figure 4-7), the telesales rep . . . is responsible for selling college textbooks. . . . For the job of mailroom supervisor, the mailroom supervisor receives, sorts, and delivers all incoming mail properly, and he or she handles all outgoing mail including the accurate and timely posting of such mail. 28
While it s common to do so, include general statements like performs other assignments as required with care. Some experts state unequivocally that one item frequently found that should never be included in a job description is a cop- out clause like other duties, as assigned, 29since this leaves open the nature of the job. Finally, make it clear in the summary that the employer expects the employee to carry out his or her duties efficiently, attentively, and conscientiously.
Submitted By: Jim Smith, District Sales Manager Date: April 10, 2007
Approval: Date:
Human Resources: Date:
Corporate Compensation: Date:
PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES (List in order of importance and list amount of time spent on task.) Driving Sales (60%)
Achieve quantitative sales goal for assigned territory of smaller colleges and universities.
Determine sales priorities and strategies for territory and develop a plan for implementing those strategies.
Conduct 15 20 professor interviews per day during the academic sales year that accomplishes those priorities.
Conduct product presentations (including texts, software, and Web site); effectively articulate author s central vision of key titles; conduct sales interviews using the PSS model; conduct walk-through of books and technology.
Employ telephone selling techniques and strategies.
Sample products to appropriate faculty, making strategic use of assigned sampling budgets.
Close class test adoptions for first edition products.
Negotiate custom publishing and special packaging agreements within company guidelines.
Initiate and conduct in-person faculty presentations and selling trips as appropriate to maximize sales with the strategic use of travel budget. Also use internal resources to support the territory sales goals.
Plan and execute in-territory special selling events and book-fairs.
Develop and implement in-territory promotional campaigns and targeted email campaigns.
Determine the strategic use of assigned sampling budget to most effectively generate sales revenue to exceed sales goals.
Determine the priority of customer and account contacts to achieve maximum sales potential.
Determine where in-person presentations and special selling events would be most effective to generate the most sales.
Publishing (editorial/marketing) 25%
Report, track, and sign editorial projects.
Gather and communicate significant market feedback and information to publishing groups.
Territory Management 15%
Track and report all pending and closed business in assigned database.
Maintain records of customer sales interviews and adoption situations in assigned database.
Manage operating budget strategically.
Submit territory itineraries, sales plans, and sales forecasts as assigned.
Provide superior customer service and maintain professional bookstore relations in assigned territory.
Decision-Making Responsibilities for This Position:
FIGURE 4-7 (Continued)
Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) Classifies all workers into one of 23 major groups of jobs that are subdivided into minor groups of jobs and detailed occupations.
FIGURE 4-8 Marketing Manager Description from Standard Occupational Classification
Source: www.bls.gov/soc/
soc_a2c1.htm, accessed May 10, 2007.
Relationships
There may be a relationships statement (not in Figure 4-7) that shows the jobholder s relationships with others inside and outside the organization. For a human resource manager, such a statement might look like this:30
Reports to:Vice president of employee relations.
Supervises:Human resource clerk, test administrator, labor relations director, and one secretary.
Works with:All department managers and executive management.
Outside the company:Employment agencies, executive recruiting firms, union representatives, state and federal employment offices, and various vendors.31
Responsibilities and Duties
This is the heart of the job description. It should present a list of the job s significant responsibilities and duties. As in Figure 4-7, list each of the job s major duties separately, and describe it in a few sentences. In the figure, for instance, the job s duties include achieve quantitative sales goal . . . and determine sales priorities. . . . Typical duties for other jobs might include making accurate postings to accounts payable, maintaining favorable purchase price variances, and repairing production-line tools and equipment.
This section may also define the limits of the jobholder s authority. For example, the jobholder might have authority to approve purchase requests up to $5,000, grant time off or leaves of absence, discipline department personnel, recommend salary increases, and interview and hire new employees.
Usually, the manager s basic question here is, How do I determine what the job s duties are and should be? The answer first is, from the job analysis; this should reveal what the employees on each job are doing now. Second, you can review various sources of standardized job description information. For example, the Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) (www.bls.gov/soc/socguide.htm) classifies all workers into one of 23 major groups of jobs, such as Management Occupations and Healthcare Occupations. These in turn contain 96 minor groups of jobs, which in turn include 821 detailed occupations, such as the marketing manager description in Figure 4-8. The employer can use standard descriptions like these to identify a job s duties and responsibilities, such as Determine the demand