Write a Killer Job Description. Attract High Calibre People. Simple.

We’ve all been there before. Nipped outside the office ‘to grab a coffee.’ Waited for the recruiter to call. Then BANG! The dream job.

“…and they’ve just raised $2bn worth of equity. Discretionary capital. In a Luxembourg structure. Closed out all positions in fund one – achieved targeted 15% returns. Closing out positions in fund two – despite Covid, on track to achieve mid-teen returns. Flexible mandate. Nice, normal, friendly people. Great culture. A no douchebag policy. Eligibility to participate in the firm’s carried interest scheme, subject to passing probation….”

Wow! All the stars are aligned.

That is, until you receive the job description. A couple of bullet points. Spelling mistakes. Incorrect formatting.

Nothing about the company. No history, structure, culture or values. Lack of information on their business. No AUM, discretionary capital, deal sizes, jurisdictions or sample transactions. Nothing about candidate requirements. No qualifications or experience requirements. Nothing about ‘softer’ personal attributes.

Did the recruiter make it all up? Must be! Blame the damn recruiter. They can forget about hiring me… if that’s the best they can come up with to convince me to join a smaller, more entrepreneurial firm... their investors must have rocks in their head! Such a shame, as it really did sound like the dream gig. And I really was thinking of moving. No thank you. I’ll stay at Blackstone for the time being. Wait for something more serious.

A missed opportunity to hire someone fabulous. A future industry leader. They’ll end up working for a direct competitor instead.

Key ingredients of a killer job description.

The importance of writing a killer job description cannot be overstated. In my experience, killer job specs usually cover the following:

·??????? Company Description: History, structure, culture and values. Don’t go ‘light’ on this. Candidates want to hear this stuff, particularly from a company that has a developing brand. Give them reasons to want to join you. Show you care. High calibre people align themselves with firms that share similar values.

·??????? Business overview: Candidates want to get a feel for your business. The more the merrier!? AUM, asset classes, how much capital to deploy, deal sizes, jurisdictions, list of sample transactions, are all things to consider. These questions will be raised during the interview process. So don’t waste time. Give candidates the information they need to make a decision before investing their time and yours in an interview.?????? ??

·??????? Role overview: High-level; what the job entails and why it is important to your business. Make the candidate feel special: you’ll be an integral part of our business going forward. If this is not true, why hire in the first place?

·??????? Position description: Standard stuff. The bear minimum. Specifics of the role. Day-to-day responsibilities.

·??????? Candidate requirements: Give candidates an honest account of the minimum educational, ‘hard’ skill and ‘soft’ skill requirements. Key competencies to successfully perform in the role. In my experience, most candidates are honest with themselves around their suitability for a role. Particularly, when dealing with a specialist recruiter that smells BS a mile away.

My Observations

·??????? Bigger firms tend to trade off the strength of their brand. They get lazy when writing job descriptions. They expect people to already know who they are. Candidates still like to be sold to. Made to feel special. Remember what made your brand so recognizable in the first place. Excellence. In everything the firm does.

·??????? For a company that’s developing its brand, it is even more important to write a killer job description. It’s particularly important to go into a lot of detail about the company and its business.

·??????? First impressions count. A job description is a marketing tool. It provides a window into what its like working for your company. It shows how much a company cares. It sets standards.

·??????? A killer job description in the hands of a specialist recruiter is a lethal combination. It maximises the probability of success that you will recruit a high calibre person for your business.

Whether your company is about to hire, or you are planning to recruit in the future, get in touch to discuss how we can help you write an appropriate job description, to attract high calibre people.