The Difference Between a Job
Description and a Job Posting
A job description and a job
posting are the same thing,
right? Not necessarily.
“In the U.S., we tend to use the terms job
description and job posting interchangeably,”
says Datapeople spokesperson Charlie Smith.
“Recruiters in the United Kingdom, for example,
distinguish between the terms. It’s fine, either
way. Just as long as you distinguish between the
two documents.”
Technically speaking, a job description is
an internal document used by human
resources teams, hiring managers, and
employees as an overview of a role. A job
posting or job ad is, technically speaking,
an external document used by hiring
teams in recruiting efforts.
It’s not terribly important whether
you use job description or job
posting. What is important,
however, is that you have two
separate documents, one for
internal use and one for external
use.
Many companies use a job description as
an internal reference and compliance
document. It’s a complete description of a
position, including its roles and
responsibilities, its place on the org chart,
and potential skillsets required for the
position.
A job description can clarify expectations for
both the organization and the person in the
position. It helps in setting salaries, conducting
performance reviews, defining advancement
possibilities, complying with internal and
external rules, and writing a job post to
advertise a role.
A job post or job ad can introduce your
organization and describe an open role. It
just does it in a shorter, more digestible form
that’s better at selling the role to potential
candidates than the full-length version. It may
help to think of it as the recruitment
marketing version.
A job post includes the basic roles and
responsibilities as well as the minimum
requirements. It also provides an overview of
your compensation, benefits, and perks
packages. And it (hopefully) conveys your
approach to company culture, work-life
balance, and diversity and inclusion.
A job description is the internal
document you use to keep your
house in order. A job posting is
the external version of that
document which you use to
recruit talent.
Whether or not you use the two terms
interchangeably, it’s important to know the
difference so you don’t use the two documents
interchangeably. Because, in the end, a good
job description (i.e., an exhaustive internal
document) doesn’t make a good job post (i.e., a
succinct marketing document).
Contact Us At:
https://datapeople.io/