A useful job description helps a candidate answer three questions: what will I do, can I do it, and is this role worth exploring? For an SME, it also helps the hiring team agree what it needs before interviews begin.
Start with the work that needs doing. A long list of desirable qualities cannot compensate for an unclear role. Use the following template as a starting point and replace every example with accurate information about your vacancy.
Agree the role’s purpose
Write one sentence explaining why you are hiring. For example: “Our customer support coordinator will keep customer enquiries moving from first response to resolution, with clear updates and handovers.”
Then choose a few outcomes you expect the person to work towards. Check that the resources, authority and workload make those expectations realistic. If two managers expect different things, resolve that before publishing.
A job description structure you can adapt
Role title: Use a title that candidates can recognise and search for.
Role purpose: Explain the problem this position helps solve.
Location and arrangement: State the country, workplace and actual remote or hybrid expectations.
Employment type and hours: Describe the working arrangement and any regular shift or travel requirements.
Salary: Give an honest range, currency and pay period; distinguish base pay from variable amounts.
Main responsibilities: List the recurring tasks and decisions.
Essential requirements: Include skills or qualifications genuinely needed from the start.
Skills we can help you build: Separate trainable knowledge from entry requirements.
How to apply: Explain the required information and what happens next.
For responsibilities, use concrete tasks: “Maintain the weekly dispatch schedule and flag delivery conflicts” tells a reader more than “Be a dynamic team player”. Keep company background short enough that it does not hide the work.
Separate essential from trainable
Challenge each requirement: does the job require this from day one, or could an otherwise suitable person learn it? Familiarity with your internal system may be trainable. A qualification legally required to perform a regulated task is a different matter and needs accurate local verification.
Avoid adding a degree, lengthy experience requirement or personal characteristic simply because an old vacancy included it. Focus on job-related evidence and review wording against relevant local fair-hiring guidance.
Make the application process proportionate
Request information that helps assess the role. Explain any work sample in advance, including its scope and expected effort. Avoid asking applicants to produce unpaid business deliverables or disclose confidential work from another employer.
Share the stages you can actually support. If dates are uncertain, say how you will communicate updates rather than promising a response time the team cannot meet.
Review with the person who will manage the hire
Ask a colleague unfamiliar with the role to read the description. Can they explain the main work, must-have skills and package? If they cannot, simplify it before publication.
Use the guide to clear professional job descriptions for the core principles, then explore OpenDoor employer tools to organise the vacancy and incoming applications. A precise brief also gives you the foundation for a consistent interview scorecard.
