One essential job duty for any human resources or recruiting professional is to advertise available job openings in a manner that will attract qualified applicants who will be a good fit for the company. A job description should provide clear and succinct details that will both entice potential employees and provide them with a fair picture of what the job entails and how they can be successful if they are hired. The most straightforward method to use for formulating job descriptions is a bullet point format.

Summarize the position in the first several lines of the description by stating the company and location, job title, department, employment status (temporary or permanent, full-time or part-time) and to whom the position will report. Write a few sentences with an overall summary of the position, for example, "Supervise customer service department and interact with customers, managers and employees."

Use your word processing software's bullet point function to select a bullet point style. Try a few different options and practice typing a line of text to see what looks most pleasing to the eye. Choose a style that is not too large in size and does not distract the reader from the content of the description.

Add a category titled "Essential Job Functions" or "Key Areas of Responsibility." Bold and underline the category title. Indent the first line below the category title and begin adding bullet points that highlight the key duties of the job. For example, "Approve all returns and exchanges over $100" or "Attend all management meetings." Although you will not be able to include all job responsibilities, be as complete as possible while sticking to 10 or fewer bullets. To cover all bases, you may want to state "All other job duties as assigned" as the last bullet point.

Add a category titled "Qualifications" or "Required Competencies." Again, bold and underline the category title and indent the first line below to begin typing relevant bullet points. For example, "Bachelor's Degree in Business or related field," "Strong sense of customer service," or "Minimum of two or more years of supervisory experience." It is also helpful to state if you are willing to take a combination of experience and education as an alternative to a specific degree or field of study.

End the description with the appropriate contact information and disclosures about background checks that may be required and/or your company's policy on Equal Opportunity.

Tip

Be specific. Instead of stating "Computer skills needed," write "Must be proficient in Word and Excel."

Focus not only on what the job has been in the past but also what your organization would like it to become in the future. If you have a previous description that you are working from, review the information with the appropriate manager to get their input and make sure it is current.