Workers must change their perspective on their job descriptions. They should be considered as a motivator for professional progress rather than a check-the-box activity to ensure that the fundamentals of any particular role are satisfied.
This is according to transformative people management specialists and Imizizi co-founders Yolisa Tshabalala and Mponeng Seshea.
A job description is a document that outlines the important employment criteria, tasks, responsibilities and abilities needed to complete a certain activity.
These job profiles are chances to discuss duties, goals and possibilities in addition to stating the fundamental expectations of each specific employment.
Here is how you can use job profiles to your advantage and advance your career, according to Tshabalala and Seshea:
- Use your job profile as a growth driver
It is important to ensure that a job description is discussed in detail during a new employee’s on-boarding session, and to ensure that it is understood and signed off by the new recruit and employer representative, and that it then becomes part of KPIs going forward.
But job descriptions are not something to be discussed only when a recruit starts a job. There is no point in using it as a recruitment tool and then putting it in a file.
It should be used as a career guidance and growth tool. Going forward, it’s essential to have continuous conversations for alignment on both sides relating to expectations and delivery – regular reviews, both formal and informal, planned and spontaneous.
- Take responsibility for your job role
There needs to be a mindset shift here at employee level. People expect companies to push the job description and review agenda – to ensure that job reviews, aligned to job descriptions, happen at regular intervals, be it quarterly, every six months or annually.
But there is a strong argument that this responsibility should shift to the employee – it’s their career, their job to deliver against the original job description and their career growth at stake.
If people started viewing these as skills they are gaining, which is adding to their overall job profile, whether they stay or leave that organisation, maybe they would start seeing the reason why this shift is necessary.
- Impress on formal job review
Instead of limiting a job description’s function to merely outlining responsibilities, a job description should be seen as a career development tool.
There are career growth opportunities within job descriptions that, by and large, workers at all levels, junior to senior, blue collar or white collar, are not taking advantage of.
The reality faced by many managers is that today’s working environments don’t present enough space for managers to manage.
While line managers should have the bandwidth and skills to manage, coach and mentor junior staff members, they don’t always have the skills to do so and sometimes don’t have time.
One of the elements that commonly falls away is the formal review – another reason for employees to take ownership of these interactions.
IOL Business