I recently reviewed several hundred job postings to see if the content would compel me to join the company. Most began with a generic job description sharing the various functions the individual in the role would carry out. The approach was formulaic, with a title, brief job description, job duties, qualifications, and benefits. Some would include a link at the end to a company website. However, the postings could have done more to entice me to join their organization. Therefore, we will explore my belief that employee engagement begins with the job posting, a position I learned others share.
“When people are financially invested, they want a return. When people are emotionally invested, they want to contribute.” - Simon Sinek
I subscribe to Sinek’s belief that we should look for employees who desire to invest emotionally in working for our organizations. However, that led me to consider at what point the emotional investment process should begin. While it could start earlier, I will share recommendations for beginning this emotion-building with the job posting. A logical first step seemed to be a review of existing job postings.
As I worked my way through the various opportunities, one that understood that employee engagement begins with the posting is from Northrop Grumman. The first paragraph is:
Join Northrop Grumman on our continued mission to push the boundaries of possible across land, sea, air, space, and cyberspace. Enjoy a culture where your voice is valued and start contributing to our team of passionate professionals providing real-life solutions to our world’s biggest challenges. We take pride in creating purposeful work and allowing our employees to grow and achieve their goals every day by Defining Possible. With our competitive pay and comprehensive benefits, we have the right opportunities to fit your life and launch your career today.
The role is for a Principal Supply Chain Subcontract Specialist. In the job description are words like collaborates, owns, coordinates, in conjunction with, and identifies. A similar position with another organization begins with a generic job description that includes providing, maintaining, processing, assisting, and performing. Nowhere in the second posting do they share why you would want to become an employee of their organization. Which company is giving you a sense of the importance of employee engagement?
A recent post on LinkedIn caught my attention. Karla Troutman, the president and CEO of Electro Soft Incorporated, shared her experience changing their job posting. The result yielded the highest level of candidates to date for the company. Some of the key points she mentioned are:
• Highlighting the company is a minority, woman, and family-owned business.
• The organization's core values.
• Her desire as a Gen2 owner is to take the company to the next level.
• A desire to hire good humans and be willing to train those with this qualification.
• Photos of the work environment.
The result was to receive five times the typical applications. Of course, as she stated, that meant getting forty instead of five, but it was significant to her small company. When asked why they applied, the responses aligned with the key points from the job posting. A small sample size, but I like real-world examples that show the value of reworking job postings. You may get less than five times the number of candidates with your posting, but any improvement is beneficial in the current challenging recruiting market.
An article on the benefits of developing employee engagement with job postings includes additional information to consider. The author’s advice to drive desirable talent to your company consists of the following:
• Everything you write about your company is an opportunity to enhance employee engagement.
• Less is more, as job duties from one company to another are similar. The emphasis should be on elements of the work that sets you apart from other employers.
• Generate a level of interest that would excite experienced candidates to move to your organization as a better environment for maximizing their talent.
• Boost your image by sharing your organization's specific accomplishments that would interest potential employees.
• Utilize social media to share significant accomplishments that job candidates will find when investigating your company.
• Create initial excitement in those who come across your organization in the list of many other job opportunities.
Ultimately, the objective is to share your organization unambiguously, leaving no opportunity for dissatisfied future employees. Read your job postings and ask yourself if you want to work for the company sharing the opportunity. You want to create a legitimate buzz that will compel ideal applicants in high numbers leading to a stronger pool from which to choose. If this is impossible, the organizational leader must address a likely deeper issue.
Innovative organizations will develop employee engagement from the first interaction a potential employee has when viewing a job posting. The objective is to create a legitimate buzz that your company should be the employer of choice for high-caliber employment candidates.
Those responsible for job postings can gain further insight by reading Writing a job Description that Attracts Ideal Candidates [8 Tips]. The article provides steps to guide the posting author through developing content that will increase the potential to attract desirable employment candidates.
I extend my gratitude this week to all human resources personnel. They work each day in an ever-challenging environment to recruit employees to meet the many needs of their organizations. But unfortunately, my experience is that they often lack the appropriate respect and the necessary resources to effectively attract the organization's lifeblood, the people they employ.
Next week's blog will continue to deepen organizational employee engagement essential to humanist manufacturing.
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Cover Image Credit: Tima Miroshnichenko
