In the current skills short job market, manufacturing organisations are having to work harder than ever to attract the specific employees they need to fulfil critical positions. Ensuring you get the best possible candidates to work in your plant can be a struggle for many U.K. based companies.
To make certain you employ staff that will, and can do the roles you are recruiting for, you need to provide a compelling and comprehensive job description that gives the detail a candidate or your recruitment partner needs to make informed decisions.
In this article, we discuss the key elements needed to create job descriptions that work.
Identify the Exact Skill Set and Experience the Role Requires
You might have an idea of the kind of candidate you want in your mind, related to their skill set, attitude, and the value they can add to your organisation.
This being the case, it’s then essential to list this in black and white and recruit against the criteria you have set.
As an example in a new software design engineer, you know you need them to have a degree or masters level qualification in electronics engineering, but do they need to have previous experience leading a design team or is this a ‘desirable’ quality only and therefore not a deal–breaker?
Yes or no? Whichever is fine, just make sure this is clear and transparent in your description.
Many employers will hire the wrong candidate because they need someone right now. A gap anywhere in the process from design to production has the potential to cause huge disruption.
Try to avoid getting caught in the vicious cycle of hiring the wrong candidates, who ultimately end up leaving because they weren’t right for the job, meaning you have to start the entire recruiting process again.
Once you identify the critical skills your new hire will need to have, make sure these are at the forefront of your mind when writing the specification.
Update Your Previous Job Descriptions
As manufacturing recruiters, we are reading job specifications on a daily basis. What often surprises us is that we see the same job specification delivered from the same companies year after year.
Changes in our industry are happening at a rapid rate.
Given this, make sure you update your job specifications regularly to keep up with current developments in the market. A new role or someone moving gives you an opportunity to recruit someone to the team with additional skills or experience.
Be Competitive and Build on What the Role Will Offer
Across the board, employers are being challenged about what their company can offer their employees, and job descriptions are a vehicle to demonstrate the range of activities within the role and the opportunity to work on new projects; in return for a compelling offer which includes a good salary, benefits, pension and private healthcare.
Baby boomers are exiting the workforce as their retirement age looms, and they are being replaced with Gen X and increasingly Millennial workers. With them, they have brought a new set of workplace ideals which are centred around flexibility, inclusivity and wellness in the workplace.
Does your manufacturing firm have a cycle to work scheme? Does it offer flexible working hours? Do you offer your employees a good work-life balance? These are the things that 75% of the workforce will be looking for in the coming years.
Remember: Use your job description to sell the opportunity the role will bring that links to individuals’ current drivers to change jobs.
Ensure Your Job Description Is Transparent
One of the main reasons people leave their jobs quickly is because they discover the company isn’t a good fit for them. This can mean anything from not being a good fit culturally to finding the fundamentals of the job are not what you expected.
The job description you write should always be honest and representative of the duties your new hire will undertake on a daily basis. For instance, if the role requires the individual to develop new ideas to improve current products and then new development is shelved; you risk having a disgruntled employee. Always be transparent and clear on the specifics of the role.
Work with a Recruiter
If your job descriptions aren’t delivering the quality of talent your organisation wants, it might be time to enlist the help of a specialist recruiter.
Manufacturing positions are currently victim to the UK wide skills shortage, with 6 out of 10 open skilled positions currently unfilled.
Partnering with a recruitment company such as Sigma can help you retain and attract the top talent to your organisation.
Millennial’s in the workplace
If you are interested in how this can apply to millennial’s, then there is a good article available here
How Sigma Recruitment Can Help
We are a South Wales Recruitment Specialist based in Cardiff, Wales.
We offer a full range of permanent recruitment solutions to many of South Wales’ and the South Wests’ leading manufacturing, technical, automotive and life science organisations. This includes companies in Cardiff, Swansea, Newport, Ebbw Vale, Port Talbot, Bridgend and the surrounding areas in South Wales.
Sigma Recruitment has one of the largest and most comprehensive recruitment candidate databases in the area. To get in touch with our team, call us now on 02920 450 100. Alternatively, contact us here.
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