Why are job descriptions getting worse?

Job hunting can be a nightmare, and trying to find gainful employment can be a hard race to run. Filled with anxiety-inducing interviews, task assignments, nervously awaited callbacks, and with a disturbing uptick in frequency, many companies are falling over the first hurdle: the job description.

In our careers we’ve all come across at least one bizarre job spec that had us scratching our heads, and asking the question “did a human being even write this?”. Sadly, that used to be a purely hypothetical, but now the market is becoming increasingly flooded with AI-penned job advertisements.

In the wake of the government’s recently announced AI Action Plan we’re going to see an increasingly artificial hand in the hiring process. But is AI solely to blame for sloppy job ads?

Whatever happened to the well-written job spec?

Sadly, it’s not just your imagination; there’s been a slip in quality control with recent job specs. In 2023, analytics firm Revelio Labs discovered an unnerving trend: job specs that use “red-flag” phrases have been increasing steadily. There’s been an uptick in job postings that use phrases like “work under pressure”, which sets alarm bells ringing for candidates.

There’s also one critical piece of information that’s been missing from job ads with more frequency, and it’s giving job-hunters a headache: how much am I going to be paid? Job ads that disclose the salary have hit a record low. According to Adzuna “only half of UK job ads include a salary”, leaving candidates completely in the dark about how much they’ll be taking home each month before even applying for the role.

Adzuna also reveals that “46% of jobseekers won’t attend an interview unless they know the salary”, so if you’re deciding to omit this piece of information (whether intentionally, or by error) just know you might be cutting your talent pool almost in half.

To make matters worse, job specs aren’t just getting worse, they’re becoming outright misleading. The Independent reported last week that one in five job posts aren’t actually real. So on top of red flags and missing monetary info, job-seekers are having to play their own depressing twist on Russian Roulette each time they send off a CV.

This is because of the increasing amount of ‘ghost jobs’, which is actually spookier than it sounds (who ya gonna call? Well, not the companies, because that’s becoming much harder to do as well). Ghost hiring is when companies intentionally list job ads with no intention of actually employing anyone.

This isn’t just negatively affecting the candidates though, it’s hurting companies as well. A survey, conducted by iHire, suggested that currently only “48.6% of employers think their job ads are effective”, with employers finding the trickiest part of writing a successful job ad was “knowing what information to include to attract the right hires, ensuring the ad effectively “sells” their company”.

AI: advertising immorality?

So what’s to blame for the diminishing quality in job ads? Well, the natural inclination is to point the finger towards those two little incendiary letters: AI. Indeed, the world’s number one job site, now even advertises its own AI-powered job description tool for employers to use. But is there more than meets the AI on this one?

We can’t completely blame those who are turning to AI to assist with recruitment, as supply is not meeting demand in the UK job market. The number of job vacancies has fallen back to pre-pandemic numbers, but UK employers who are providing graduate training schemes have seen a staggering 59% rise in applications since 2023.

The amount of Gen Z job applications are piling up, the economy is on the downslide, and companies are understandably looking to cut costs as much as possible. A big way to save on budget is by cutting out the middle-man, and instead of using recruitment agencies, companies are turning to AI-recruitment tools to keep everything in-house and under their control.

It’s also something of a two-way street, as almost half of all UK job seekers are turning to AI to lie on their job applications. Last year, Singapore Management University (SMU) said it would be doing away with personal statements in undergraduate admissions due to concerns around applicants’ using ChatGPT.

While it appears that we all have our hands dirty when it comes to turning to AI in the job hunt, arguably it seems that it’s the lack of jobs, and rise in applications, that’s causing the specs to decline. So can AI actually lend a helping hand?

Is it all bad?

AI is out there, and there’s no putting that genie back in the bottle, especially in the shadow of the AI Opportunities Action Plan. There’s no doubt that AI is transforming traditional recruitment, but it’s important to remember that it’s a tool like anything else, and if used responsibly, can be incredibly useful.

There’s actually quite a few strong arguments in favour of using AI in the recruitment process. There’s a debate to be had that it removes an element of human-bias from the process, and also makes things more accessible to those who don’t have traditional personality skills, with ChatGPT becoming especially critical for the neurodiverse community.

It can also streamline your hiring process, and free up time for you or your staff, making that increasing pile of submissions more manageable. Another big benefit of using AI to assist in recruitment is keyword optimisation. This helps create target job ads so candidates find relevant roles much faster. AI isn’t just used to write copy either, you can use it to analyse your language to make sure your spec is as targeted and relevant as it can be, and help with the tone of your voice.

Writing a job application: how to do it right way

So maybe AI isn’t completely to blame, but that’s still no excuse for putting a poorly conceived job spec out into the world.

Having a well constructed job application is just as critical to the employer as it is to the prospective employee, as it means you’ll hire faster and receive a higher quality of candidate.

Here are our five key tips for writing a successful job spec, with or without a little help from AI.

1. Keep it short and sweet

Modern recruiters advise keeping things concise and to the point. Candidates will be sifting through dozens of job postings daily, so they don’t want to be reading an essay. It’s a waste of your time and theirs. Keep it jargon free, and include the essential information: job title, salary, location (or if it’s hybrid), key responsibilities and role requirements.

2. Keep your tone consistent

You want to convey your company’s culture in your job description. This will help you narrow down the types of personalities you’ll want joining your business. If you’re a fun, energetic startup, you don’t want to come across sounding like an austere, multi-national corporation (again, AI can help you out with this).

3. Be specific

Murky, unclear and confusing job specs will only have your inbox flooded with unsuitable candidates, and may even have you missing out on some rising stars. Be upfront and clear about what it is you require, whether it be hard skills or soft skills. Also, try to be realistic, if you’re trying to fill a project manager position, there’s no point listing ten years experience in nuclear physics as a “must have”.

4. Avoid red flags!

As we mentioned, those pesky red flags are littering the playing field at the moment. Avoid them like the plague, avoid descriptions like “must handle stress well”, and don’t refer to your staff as being “like a family”. You’ll only have candidates running for the hills.

5. Finally…that human touch

Using AI to pen your job specs to save time and money is perfectly understandable, just get a good old-fashioned Homo sapien to give it the once over before hitting publish. After the robots have worked their magic, just ask yourself “if I was looking for a job, would this make sense to me?”.

Curically, make sure to check on our recruitment process guide for small business owners. For the next stage in the hiring process, you can consult our range of interview guides that will help you nail down the best questions to ask in an interview, and find out if there are any interview questions that can land you in hot water with the law.

If you find yourself on the other side of the table, we also have guides to help you ace your interview, covering everything from how to introduce yourself in a job interview to what you should be asking at the end of a job interview. We also provide guides on how to answer the classic interview questions, including:

• How to answer “what are your weaknesses?”
• How to answer “tell me about yourself?”
• How to answer “why do you want to work for us?”