Job descriptions aid in giving employees clear descriptions of the expectations within their job title. It helps distribute the workload accordingly, train employees, assess performance, etc. In “Job Worth Doing: Update Descriptions”, Jill Tidwell states, “I preach to all our managers and HR staff that the job description is the mother of all HR processes. Everything from recruitment and training to performance evaluations and compensation all stems from that document.”
In my personal experience with job descriptions, the lines can get a little blurry. I have found myself doing tasks that are outside of my actual “job description” in situations where something needs to get done. For example, I worked at the front desk of a small clinic and would occasionally help train the medical assistants if it was slow that day. Because I had experience as a medical assistant as well, I had the skillset to be able to help out in a role that was not necessarily part of my current job description.
Despite having an actual “job description” and regular tasks, this work environment included helping out others when necessary. A benefit to this is that it helped me personally become more well-rounded and see all the dimensions of the clinic. The challenge I faced was that at times I was being pulled in different directions and had more tasks on my plate than what I should have based on my described duties.
This can be true for other organizations as well- in many cases, the success of an organization is assisted by everyone working together to achieve the desired outcomes.When some employees are consistently doing additional tasks outside of their described tasks, this can lead to unclear expectations, affect performance review, training, among other negative outcomes. Over time, job responsibilities and expectations may evolve, which is why it is important for HR to continuously conduct reviews and update expectations.
Sources:
Tyler, Kathryn. (2013, January 1). Job worth doing: Update descriptions. https://www.shrm.org/topics-tools/news/hr-magazine/job-worth-update-descriptions