Earlier this week, our very own Mitch Stephens sat down with Kevin Grossman, the host of the WorkingTech podcast, to talk about job description management. WorkingTech focuses on innovations in world of work tech – including HR, recruiting and related technologies. So, it was our honor to speak with Kevin and his audience about the innovations made in job description management and how technology has impacted the way in which we manage our job descriptions.

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Conduent, a strategic partner of HRTMS, just released the result of their 2018 Compensation Survey. This year’s survey asked 116 U.S organizations, ranging from small (less than 500 employees) to very large (greater than 25,001), a series of questions related to compensation philosophies, attraction and retention tools, pay equity, employee engagement, and of course job descriptions.

PayScale’s compensation platform and the HRTMS JDXpert job description software provide a better talent management experience for enterprise customers

Today, PayScale, the leader in compensation data and software, and HRTMS a leader in job description management, announced a partnership to help companies manage their job descriptions and align pay. Well-written job descriptions are critically important to attract talent and determine pay, especially for hot jobs in dynamic labor markets. However, these descriptions are often in a state of disarray at most companies. Businesses today want a structured and efficient approach to job description management, so HRTMS developed JDXpert to allow organizations to turn these stagnant documents into dynamic assets.

College graduation is upon us and that means an influx of millennials eagerly awaiting entry into the workforce.

Having worked with this generation for the last decade or so, HR departments are relatively versed in what makes this group tick. All workers, no matter the age, appreciate security, variety in career, being challenged, and being part of a company that brings them pride. However, millennials differ from their predecessors in their motivations, expectations, and communication preferences. So how do HR departments recruit, foster, and retain millennials who bring value to the organization? Let’s start by looking at what motivates this generation and what they expect from their employers.

A clear understanding of the job is required to do just about everything that we do in HR. From recruiting the right people and evaluating their performance, to benchmarking jobs and developing an equitable salary structure--all these tasks require reliable job information. However, if you’re like most of us, your job descriptions aren’t the reliable super-sources of information they have the potential to be.

Throughout the years, we've helped numerous organizations improve their job descriptions and how they manage them. In order to help you do the same, we'd like to share with you our top 10 tips. Click here to download your free copy!

As soon as I walk through the doors of a shopping mall during the holidays, I’m immediately reminded of my time as a retail employee. The smells, the music, the bright Christmas sweaters, all bring back memories of hectic shoppers, long hours and even longer lines.
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To make it through the busiest time of year, many retailers hire seasonal employees to supplement their permanent staff. ​These employees are expected to jump into a position they may know little about and quickly acclimate to their new surroundings without losing a step. As someone who has interacted with seasonal employees on both sides of the counter, it’s not their technical skills that I admire the most but their enthusiasm and a willingness to learn that really makes these employees special.

Most job descriptions give little or no guidance to the associate or the manager about the job. That's because, for all their wordiness, they focus mainly on the experience and qualifications applicants are expected to bring with them, and the activities he or she will engage in once they get the job.
 
Despite the dramatic increase in the use of outside resources -- contractors, vendors, consultants -- and the use of agreements with specific expectations about results and time, not much of that experience has been ported over to be of any help in setting the specs for work done by employees. Now, more than ever, it's critical to use every opportunity to be clear about what's expected of each position in your organization.

​A clear understanding of each job within an organization is required to do just about everything that we do in HR and Compensation. From recruiting, evaluating employee performance, learning and career pathing to benchmarking jobs, succession planning and developing an equitable salary structure, these tasks all require reliable job information. When you look at job descriptions in this context, it’s obvious how critical this information is to an organization. But unfortunately, job descriptions are not living up to their potential and could contain a wealth of untapped information.

Released last week, the tenth annual Compensation Planning Survey conducted by Buck Consultants, now Conduent, provides insight into how companies view and interact with their job descriptions. The 172 organizations participating in this survey ranged from small to very large. Although it would not surprise anyone at HRTMS, a majority of participants (63%) reported challenges in maintaining their job descriptions.  Participants (43%) also cited limited resources such as time or manpower and difficulty coordinating efforts with managers and other team members (33%) as top contributing factors. They also stated that there is a concern that job information is either outdated (23%) or inconsistent with the actual duties/responsibilities/qualifications of the job (23%).

Does your company have operations in California or New York? Then how are you planning on complying with the new, more stringent Equal Pay laws?
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We’d like to share with you this free mini ebook entitled, Job Descriptions & Fair Pay Act: Could The Answer To Equal Pay Compliance Lie Within Job Description Management? This ebook focuses on California’s Fair Pay Act that went into effect this past January, but many of the recommendations apply to other states with similar equal pay requirements. It also explains how job descriptions play an integral part in complying with these laws.