How do you write a job description?
Write a job description with a clear title that matches how candidates search, a short summary of the role's purpose, the main responsibilities, the required and preferred qualifications, the salary range and benefits, and the location or remote arrangement. Keep it specific, state the seniority honestly and cut anything that would apply to every job.
Start with the title, because it is what search engines, job boards and candidates match on. Use the common market phrase rather than an internal level code, and put the seniority in it. The summary is a few sentences on what the role exists to do and who it reports to. Responsibilities should be outcomes the person owns, not a list of tasks. Split qualifications into required and preferred, and keep the required list short, since every extra requirement narrows the pool. State the location and whether the role is remote, hybrid or on site in plain words, and name the employment type.
The posting data is blunt about what is missing. Across the collected boards, the share of active postings that state a salary varies widely: on some boards a majority disclose one, on others it is a small minority. A posting without a salary is also the most common warning sign in JobsPipe's ghost score, alongside a thin description and a stale posted date, and the max_ghost_score filter lets buyers of the data exclude such postings. Seniority is the other gap: a large share of postings state no level at all, so a title without one is filtered out by anyone searching with job_seniority_or.
Salary disclosure is also a legal question in some places. Several US states and cities require a pay range in postings, and the EU has adopted a pay transparency directive that member states are putting into national law. Check the rules for the location you hire in. As a practical matter, a disclosed range, a clear seniority and a specific description are what distinguish a posting that reads as a real opening from one that reads as a pipeline exercise.
- Y Combinator67.7%
- Ashby56.1%
- Greenhouse46.8%
- Indeed36.8%
- Workday23.3%
- Lever22.7%
- LinkedIn22.1%
- Workable19.6%
- Paylocity10.7%
- SmartRecruiters5.3%
The full treatment is on Job titles and descriptions.
Related questions
How do I write a job description?
Name the role with the phrase candidates search for, summarize its purpose in a few sentences, list the outcomes it owns, separate required from preferred qualifications and keep required short, state the salary range, and give the location, arrangement and employment type in plain words. Read it back as a candidate and cut anything that does not help them decide.
Should a job description include a salary range?
Yes. Several US states and cities require it in postings, the EU's pay transparency directive is being put into national law, and candidates screen on it. In the posting data a missing salary is the most common warning sign in JobsPipe's ghost score, and buyers filtering with min_salary_usd never see postings that omit one.
How do I write a job description for a remote role?
State which countries or regions the company can employ in, any time-zone overlap required, whether the role is fully remote or hybrid, and where the salary range applies. Postings that only say remote without eligibility attract applicants you cannot hire. JobsPipe marks postings with a remote flag, so an unclear posting is also harder for tools to classify.
What is the difference between required and preferred qualifications?
Required qualifications are the conditions without which a candidate cannot do the job: a license, a language, a specific system. Preferred qualifications are advantages you would weigh. Keep the required list to what you would reject a candidate for lacking, because every extra requirement narrows the pool and pushes qualified people away.
How do I pick the right job title for a posting?
Search live postings for the role at comparable companies and use the phrase most of them use, with the seniority in it. A query on job_title_or with a few candidate phrases shows which one the market prefers. Internal level codes and creative titles cost you search visibility and confuse candidates.
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