Top 4 Job Description Mistakes - Your Career Intel

Top 4 Job Description Mistakes - Your Career IntelCrafting the perfect job description can be deceptively tricky, especially when it comes to the skills, experience, and responsibilities sections. Skimp on details here and youll cast your net too wide, attracting unqualified applicants. Get too specific and you might scare away your best talent. Sure, that CPA with Big 5 experience who knows three programming languages, speaks fluent Japanese and can juggle blindfolded exists somewhere, but shes harder to find than a needle in a haystack.Vague or verbose job descriptions can set your hiring search up for failure. Heres how to find the right balance by correcting common mistakesMistake 1 Failing to reach internal consensus before writing the job description. Confusion or internal disagreement over the new hires role within your team, department and company can make it difficult to write an effective job description. Get everyone on the same page by asking these questionsWhat is the ma in dicke bretter bohren mssen this hire will solve?What skills will the hire need to solve this problem?Are any of these skills we can teach?Ideally, every stakeholder who will be involved in the hiring decision will also be involved in this conversation. Hash out the details before you start interviewing Establishing clear expectation for the role makes it easier to describe the position correctly, yielding qualified applicants from day one.Mistake 2 Skipping the essentials.Once youve reached internal consensus on the role, concisely communicate the essentialsState the 2-3 main functions with a one-sentence explanation of each.Include the management structure, the supervisor, and the place of the role within the team.List example of possible tasks and projects to spur imagination and conversation for interviews.Mistake 3 Listing too many required skills.The thinking goes something like this, The mora specific I get with my skill list, the better the candidate, so Ill just list as m any skills as possible. Unfortunately, long skill lists often backfire. They deter qualified candidates who worry they arent the perfect fit and actually increase the number of unqualified candidates who apply. These unqualified candidates recognize one or two items and think, I can do thatIf you find yourself with a laundry list of skills, consider differentiating between skills that are required and preferred. A required skill is one that is vital to a new hires success in this role. A preferred skill is one that is nice to have, but not vital. These skills contribute to success but are not essential or can be taught.Mistake 4 Overusing buzzwords.The words you choose to describe the role should excite and engage applicants. The right words will inject a bit of personality into your description and convey why your company is unique. Resist the temptation to fall back on cliched terms like out-of-the-box thinker, industry disruptor, problem solver or jupe star that have lost their i mpact through common use. Replace these phrases with thoughtful language that speaks to the role in more genuine terms.Next Steps Culture, Purpose and Career PathwayA job description is more than just essential responsibilities and requirements. It should also paint a clear picture of where your company is going. Top talent wants to know about your companys future plans. What opportunities lie ahead? Why is now an exciting time to join your team? Address culture, purpose and career pathwayand youve got yourself a winning job description.

Which Industries Have Most Diverse Boards PwC Shares Surprising Findings

Which Industries Have Most Diverse Boards PwC Shares Surprising Findings An increasing number of industries are recognizing the geschftliches miteinander benefits of diversity, and while many are taking steps to diversify their boardrooms, others are trailing behind. Which sectors are leading the way? You might be surprised.A new report from PwC titled A Look at Board Composition finds that boards in the banking and capital markets industry -- a field traditionally considered to be dominated by men -- actually have one of the highest percentages of women at 26%. The report compares board demographics across select companies in nine industries banking and capital markets, communications, entertainment and media, industrial products, insurance, pharmaceutical and life sciences, power and utilities, retail, and technology.Why did PwC decide to examine board composition? Because its one of the top issues for investors this year. PwC reports that 61% of directors who responded to their 20 16 Annual Corporate Directors Survey said that they have added a director with a specific skillset as a result of investor pressure, while nearly half of those surveyed said they added a diverse director.Companies in every industry are feeling investor pressure to refresh their boards, and many are focusing on diversity and adding more women directors, Paula Loop, Leader of PwCs Governance Insights Center, explained in a press release about the findings. But diversity is more than a gender issue its about race, ethnicity, skills, experience, age and even geography, in addition to diversity of thought and perspective, Loop continued. The picture of what a particular industry looks like today may not be the same in a few years as industry lines have started to blur, making a diverse boardroom even more important. In fact, experts weve interviewed prioritize skills like technology expertise for new directors.PwC decided to explore gender diversity on boards because this is representat ive of some of the initiatives boards are implementing to become more generally diverse. Though fruchtwein industries didnt stray much from the S&P 500 averages for most benchmarking categories (including percentage of women on boards, female directors added in the latest proxy, mandatory retirement age, and term limits), a few set themselves apart. In addition to banking and capital markets, the retail industry is leading the way in terms of board diversity -- and it also has the lowest average age (60). Both the entertainment and media and the communications sectors also came out ahead they had the highest and second-highest percentages, respectively, of new female directors. Retail tied with communications for second-highest.In an article published on LinkedIn, Loop explains why she thinks some industries seem to be making more progress than others. The banking and capital markets industry BCM is facing a whirlwind of challenges due to economic and political uncertainty, she writ es, so BCM companies need to be strategic when adding new board members. One example of this is gender diversity on boards. An industry that is considered to be highly dominated by men actually had one of the highest percentage of women on their boards -- at 26 percent.Loop suggests that industries and companies that havent made as much progress in the realm of diversity turn to others for inspiration. One way to fill holes is to look at other industries to see how they approach this challenge, she explains. As industry lines blur, other perspectives could actually help your company. PwCs report serves as a helpful reminder that more diverse teams are better for business -- and were glad to see increased transparency on the issue. We hope these findings encourage industry and company leaders to prioritize diversifying not only their boards, but their teams in general. As Loop puts it, taking a look at your board refreshment efforts more often will help ensure that directors are comi ng to the table with diversified skill sets, opinions and experience. And this will benefit both the company and all of its stakeholders.Fairygodboss is committed to improving the workplace and lives of women.Join us by reviewing your employer