Throw together a pressured recruitment professional and a harried hiring manager and charge them with creating a job description, and what's likely to result will be vague, hackneyed, and not altogether useful.

The more time that recruiters and hiring managers spend together researching and jointly crafting a job description for an open position, the more likely their efforts will result in quicker and better-quality hires. Many recruiters have a lot to learn, however.

"Too often, recruiters won't have a good relationship with the hiring manager," says Kevin Wheeler, a strategic staffing consultant and president of Global Learning Resources Inc. "They are often seen by the manager in a clerical role. He might say 'Go get me an Oracle programmer' in the same way he'd say 'Go get me a turkey sandwich.'"

A savvy recruiter will understand that his or her role is to bring hiring managers to the understanding that recruiting the right candidates is a process in which time, education, and teamwork must be invested.

Three Questions to Ask When Writing a Job Description
"Don't just wait around for the manager to give you the req," says Barbara Ling, author of The Internet Recruiting Edge and creator of RISE recruiting seminars. "Go out there and engage them in a fact-seeking conversation, and strive to make the relationship a partnership. The next req may even be a little easier because you have taken these steps."

Ling proposes that recruiters begin by asking three questions of their hiring managers about open positions:

• What are the specific skills required for that position?

• What are the goals they are trying to accomplish with the position?

• Is there something unique and exciting about the job that can be presented to the candidate as a compelling selling point?

Don't try to create a job description on the fly. Wheeler recommends that recruiters develop an interviewing protocol strictly for hiring managers. "Develop a set of questions that would give you the specifics you need to start looking for a candidate. Take the hiring manager to lunch, or set up a 30-minute meeting for the interview. A well-structured presentation, focused on facts, can show that you are on top of things, that you understand the market and have a strategy in place to deal with the issues if you can have their cooperation."

Study Your Company's Top Talent
In addition to the questions proposed by Ling, Wheeler recommends another very effective gambit: "Say to the hiring manager very specifically, 'Tell me about someone who works for you who is really, really great.'" In those named you'll find the components of the ideal candidate.

"By defining the behaviors of the valued people in the company, you have the makings of a profile that goes well beyond simple factors like GPA or previous experience," says Wheeler. You can then go interview these staffers, and come back to the hiring manager with a list of desirable traits they share.

This approach can transcend a common problem in dealings between recruiters and hiring managers—preconceptions. "Every manager with an open position usually has some concrete specifics in mind," says Wheeler. Often, it's a laundry list of desired employment background, certification, GPA, etcetera—qualifications that tend to be overplayed by hiring managers.

"During your interview with the manager, try to isolate the one or two most critical 'must haves,' as opposed to the 'nice-to-haves.' Make sure you understand why he or she feels a particular skill, trait, or educational level is needed. If the manager can't articulate why it is important, you've sown the seeds of doubt, and now you're ready to negotiate a more serviceable profile."

Educate Your Hiring Managers
The staffing marketplace has changed dramatically in recent years, but many hiring managers are still somewhat oblivious to the fact that recruiting has been transformed from a function of screening and elimination into a wholesale marketing effort. You can enlist the enthusiasm of hiring managers by pointing out that the job description is as potent a marketing tool as an annual report or sales brochure.

Together, the recruiter and hiring manager can forge a jargon-free, positive marketing statement for the position and the employer. The job description will usually serve to publicize or announce the open position, so why not approach it as a tool for spreading the word about your organization and getting the hottest talent in the door?

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