In my experience, job descriptions have been all over the place. The entry-level jobs and leadership roles I have applied for have extremely varied. Some are very accurate, while others are almost entirely useless. Due to my experience with a wide range of job descriptions, I can confidently say they are crucial to get right. According to the lecture “Job Analysis” by Dr. Michele Swift, job descriptions are more than just paperwork; they influence recruiting, performance management, and legal issues (Swift).
Some challenges in developing and maintaining a useful job description include the need for accurate, detailed data to write it. When creating these position summaries, one may draw on information from past employees or supervisors. Still, each individual has a different idea of what the job entails, leading to incomplete knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics (KSAOs). This issue of incomplete data can also be exacerbated because, in many modern occupations, technology is actively changing how work is completed. With this ever-changing job market, many businesses provide outdated role profiles, leaving new employees with unlisted tasks and potentially unfair compensation.
To combat these problems, companies should regularly audit their job descriptions with input from multiple individuals. Companies need to ensure the group working on these summaries is well-rounded, including current staff, leadership, stakeholders, and others, to provide accurate KSAOs for potential employees. Another way to fix position profiles comes from First Break All Rules: What the World’s Greatest Managers Do Differently by Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman. They state that great managers break conventional rules by focusing on employees’ unique talents (Buckingham and Coffman). By focusing on this distinctiveness and avoiding rigid, generic roles, job descriptions should emphasize outcomes and performance, fostering greater adaptability. Making role profiles adaptive helps companies avoid critical mistakes in descriptions, leading to greater organizational and individual success.
Swift, Michele. Lecture 1: Job Analysis. Canvas, 20 Jan. 2026, W4 Lecture 1 – Job Analysis.pptx.
Buckingham, Marcus, and Curt W Coffman. First, Break All the Rules: What the World’s Greatest Managers Do Differently, Gallup Press, 2014. ProQuest Ebook Central, https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/osu/detail.action?docID=1584214.