Month: January 2025

When it comes to effective human resource management, developing and maintaining accurate and compelling job descriptions is vital. This task is often rife with challenges that can severely hamper and impede the ability for an organization to attract and retain top tier talent. After having reflected upon my experiences within the construction and automotive industries, I have identified a few key obstacles/challenges which I will use to discuss efforts to mitigate said obstacles/challenges.

First and foremost, keeping job descriptions up to date is one of the most tedious and rapidly evolving aspects of job description creation. The fast pace of work within organizations can often change how certain roles or positions operate which can render job descriptions obsolete. As a result, there are often expectations by employers which employees cannot meet and vise versa. Leveraging annual or bi-annual reviews of what exactly employees are doing can help to maintain accurate and effective job descriptions no matter the role. Taking examples from construction and automotive industries, employees are often given broad requirement of what they should or should not be doing. When these employees come in for formal interviews, they are often blindsided by requirement which they didn’t know they needed as they were not mentioned in job descriptions.

Another aspect of job descriptions that can be rather disconnecting for potential employees is the ability to balance specificity and flexibility. Overly detailed job descriptions can turn off employees as they may feel that the employer is evoking too much control which will interfere with the employees ability to find their “groove” and operate efficiently. Being in construction myself, it is a common pain point where employers often expect too much from younger workers as experience within the field is required to grow in the industry. According to SHRM.org, there are many tools and templates available from the Society of Human Resource Management to aid in creating effective and compelling job descriptions (Tyler). Utilizing resources such as the Society of Human Resource Management is a reliable method to understand whether or not current job descriptions are being seen as “too demanding”.

Finally, it is crucial to maintain and ensure compliance and inclusivity from all employers and employees. Being able to craft descriptions that comply with legal and local standards while also promoting inclusivity requires very intricate and precise wording and language. Tackling this issue is two pronged with efforts both legal experts as well as the effort from the individual crafting these descriptions. It is crucial to regularly consult legal experts along with upper management to ensure that regulatory standards are met while also remaining inclusive through the usage of proper language in order to attract the diversity that is desired within the candidate pool.

Sources Cited:
Tyler, Kathryn. “Job Worth Doing: Update Descriptions.” Welcome to SHRM, 21 Dec. 2023, www.shrm.org/topics-tools/news/hr-magazine/job-worth-update-descriptions.

As a manager within a business, it is critical to maintain a transparent, mutually beneficial and positive environment for the individuals that you manage. This provides for a healthy and supportive environment within which individuals can flourish and in turn allow the company to reach new heights and capture new goals. Attained from “2020 Fortune Best Companies to Work For” are three examples of businesses that are actively finding ways to provide the aforementioned environment for their employees. These companies are Cisco, Ultimate Software and Stryker. Cisco and Ultimate Software are both within the information management space while Stryker is within the manufacturing and production space. While these companies all have overlaps, the fundamentals between information management and manufacturing and production are very different. As a result, we are provided with a great range of examples through which employees can be managed efficiently and effectively. Moreover, Cisco and Stryker are fairly large companies at over 20,000 employees within each one. Ultimate Software only has 5,000 employees which creates a more close-knit space for individuals within their workplace.

At Ultimate Software, it is shown that employees within this company feel as if they are family [1]. This makes sense as their company is on the smaller side comparatively which provides for more opportunities for the employees to mingle and become involved in each other’s business and personal life. Employees at Ultimate Software also say that they are not afraid to communicate with one another and that the culture at this company provides a sense of community [1] which is corroborated by their ‘family’ atmosphere.

At Cisco, individuals said that there is a good work life balance and that they are able to pursue their own personal passions and goals while also pursuing the goals of the company [2]. A good work life balance gives employees a sense of peace so that they are able to handle their own lives. This provides a form of stress relief as employees can remain in a good headspace while they are at work for the company as they know their personal lives are in good shape. Employees at Cisco also stated that they do not feel like robots and that they are satisfied that their workplace provides a team-like mentality [2]. The ability for a large company such as Cisco to maintain such a healthy workforce goes to show that even large companies have the ability to maintain worker happiness and enthusiasm. 

At Stryker, individuals and members of the company feel there is a strong culture within the workforce that provides for a driven and balanced environment [3]. An environment such as this provides for a good foundation upon which employees are able to build their professional careers. Unsurprisingly, Stryker also has the longest retention of their workforce as they are able to provide for a balanced and driven workplace environment. This enables employees to think about their own goals and keeps them motivated to stay and work with the company. Stryker also provides opportunities for growth and support to allow their workforce to flourish. 

Overall, we can see that across multiple different sized companies, the ability of a business to provide a healthy, positive and nurturing environment for employees is paramount to the longevity and success of that business. The concept of human capital is understood more in depth due to this. If employees are happy with their workplace, they will not want to leave and as a result, the business can develop its human capital and remain wealthy and abundant in talent and individual skill and ideas. This way, the business is able to remain fluid in spite of unknown and complex challenges that can make or break businesses.

Sources Cited

[1] Work, G. P. T. (n.d.). Ultimate Software. Great Place To Work®. https://www.greatplacetowork.com/certified-company/1000847 

[2] Work, G. P. T. (n.d.-a). Cisco. Great Place To Work®. https://www.greatplacetowork.com/certified-company/1000064 

[3] Work, G. P. T. (n.d.-b). Stryker. Great Place To Work®. https://www.greatplacetowork.com/certified-company/1001307