How To Write Strong Job Descriptions To Attract International Talent

Welcome to Talaera's HR Series on how to attract top talent. It is made up of four parts where we cover strong job descriptions, successful interviews, negotiating salary and benefits, and effective onboarding. It is aimed at non-native recruiters and HR professionals and here you will find simple ways to quickly improve your business English. In this guide, you will learn professional vocabulary and expressions, communication tips, and templates for talent acquisition and recruiting.

What will you learn here?

This series is mainly for non-native English HR professionals aiming to attract top talent globally. In part one, you will learn how to increase your language confidence, avoid common mistakes, and expand your vocabulary to write a great job description.

As an HR manager or recruiter in a global economy, you need to attract candidates from all over the world. But as a non-native speaker, how can you ensure that your job descriptions are both compelling and effective? This guide will help you improve your writing skills and attract the right applicants.

Here you will find:

• I. Frequently Asked Questions Related Job Descriptions
• III. Vocabulary For Job Descriptions
• III. Examples of Great Job Descriptions
• IV. Putting it all together: An Example of a Strong Job Description
• V. Additional Resources to Improve Your Communication Skills

You can also download our PDF with 150 adjectives, 35 verbs, and 18 phrases to craft your own job descriptions.

I. Frequently Asked Questions Related to Job Descriptions

Let’s start by answering some of the most frequently asked questions from some of our learners who are active in the world of Human Resources.

1. How can I keep my sentences shorter or say the same in fewer words?

Let verbs do the work. Verbs drive the action forward in a concise way (see our vocab section below for a useful list of action verbs). For each key requirement of your job posting, try to focus on the specific action.

Try the structure "You’re great at + verb-ing": "You’re great at working remotely / at solving problems / at resolving support issues."

This idea also works from the 'we' perspective: "We are looking for someone is great at marketing / at managing large teams."

→ Top tip: Avoid overusing the verb to be.

🚫 Poor: Grammatically, the following example is correct, but always using the same verb is a little boring. Let’s try rewriting this with different verbs.

• "Our main office is located in Sydney. Our customer support team is responsible for resolving technical issues with the product. There will be some assignments in the Berlin office, and you will be part of a dynamic team." .

✅ Strong: The following rewrite replaces all to be verbs with more interesting choices.

• "Want to know what it’s like to work at our main office in Sydney? You’ll fit right in if you love to: resolve technical support issues, contribute to our dynamic team, and travel to Berlin for assignments." 

2. How formal or casual should my writing be?

In English, overly formal job posts tend to scare candidates away. We recommend a business casual tone. When replying to applicants, it is almost always fine to address candidates by their first name.

🚫 Too formal: "Dear Mr. Smith, we are grateful that you applied to this position."

✅  Business casual: "Hi John, thanks for applying."

Try to avoid third-person forms in job posts; they are too formal and distanced.

🚫 Third person (he/she/it/they): "The successful candidate will be a hard-working, dedicated, self-starter."

✅  "You" or "we" perspective: "Are you a hard-working, dedicated, self-starter? Join our team by applying today." OR "We are looking for a hard-working, dedicated self-starter to join our team."

→ Top tip: Test your writing by reading it out loud.

Does it sound like something you would say? If not, try to write the job post to reflect the way you speak. This will sound more natural and less formal.

4. When I address a potential candidate, should I use 'I' or 'we'?

When talking about the company as a whole, you often use 'we,' 'our' and 'us.' For example: "Working with us is fun because X, Y, Z. We offer many benefits. Our company motto is ABC."

When replying to candidates it is also usual to use the ‘we’ form: "We have scheduled an interview for next Thursday." When writing about key requirements use either ‘you’ or ‘we’ perspective: "You need to have three years' experience" or "We are looking for a Python programmer with three years' experience."

5. How can I make my writing more engaging for candidates?

Structure your sentences and paragraphs

Stop and think about the structure of your text. This can really boost your writing skills! Start your paragraph with a benefit, following with something unique or personal about your company and closing with requirements:

[Question > Benefit > Personal/Unique > Requirements]:"Would you like to work for a company who is as passionate about data as you are? At Numbers Ltd. our flat hierarchy allows you to define your own research projects and set your own goals. If you have more than 2 years' experience in data science and a propensity for python, get in touch."

First, we highlight a benefit of the company. They are passionate about data. Next, we show something unique about the company the flat hierarchy. Finally, we close with the requirements of the job. This keeps the tone of the paragraph much more friendly and less boring.

Ask questions

Use questions in your job posts to keep your message interesting. Limit the number of questions to one or two per paragraph.

• Do you think you have what it takes?
• Are you great at problem-solving?
• Do you have more than three years' experience in PHP?
• Do you thrive in a dynamic work environment?

Use the active voice

The active voice makes your writing more clear and dynamic. To convert your sentences into active, ask "Who did it?" and when you know who performed the action, write that first! This person needs to be the subject of your sentence. 

These examples are in the passive voice: "The markets are managed by…" and "Our conversions are optimized by our predictive marketing team." You can identify them because they include the verb to be plus a past participle verb (managed, optimized) and use the preposition by. 

Because these sentences in passive are more complicated to understand and also longer, try this instead: "Our sales team manages the markets..." and "Our predictive marketing team optimizes our conversion rates..."

Be precise and avoid vagueness

Avoid weak words like ‘quite,’ ‘maybe,’ ‘some,’ 'various,' and 'diverse.' They weaken the meaning of what you're trying to say.

🚫 Poor: "You will be responsible for diverse IT projects."

✅ Strong: "You will be responsible for IT projects in Java, Python, and PHP."

If you are unable to specify, at least use a more specific adjective: "You will be responsible for data-driven/challenging/advanced IT projects."

Following these tips will make your writing more engaging to candidates. Work on your job descriptions with one of our expert instructors.

II. Vocabulary for Job Descriptions

We have compiled a list of useful words and phrases to help you write better job descriptions. If you want to keep this word list as a reference, download it as a PDF here. This word list contains 150 adjectives, around 35 useful verbs, and 18 interchangeable set phrases. These phrases are interchangeable. You can replace the brackets with adjectives and verbs to create many more variations. To do so, check out our verb and adjective lists below and give it a try!

18 Awesome Interchangeable Phrases for Job Descriptions

Use these phrases to begin your job description by stating who you are looking for. Remember to try out the verbs and adjectives in our word lists below!

Describe the right candidate:

1. We are looking for/searching for a candidate who is [+ ADJ] > "We are looking for a candidate who is amicable, hardworking, and imaginative."

2. We are looking for a candidate who can + [VERB] > "We are looking for a candidate who can coordinate international marketing campaigns."

3. Are you great at + [VERB ing form]? > "Are you great at reaching out to clients?"

4. Are you passionate about + [VERB ing form]? > "Are you passionate about analyzing data?"

5. Do you love + [VERB ing form]? > "Do you love solving problems?"

6. Are you + [ADJ] > "Are you creative, logical and hard-working?"

Describe your company:

7. We are a + [ADJ] company/startup/agency that + [VERB] > "We are a growing startup that compiles research."

8. Our + [ADJ] company + [VERB] > "Our dynamic marketing agency monitors social media accounts for our clients."

9. Would you like to work for a company that is + [ADJ]? > "Would you like to work for a company that is innovative, creative and dynamic?"

10. Are you interested in working for a company that [verb phrase]? > "Are you interested in working for a company that tests user experience in web applications?"

Describe the job and responsibilities:

11. As [job title] you will be responsible for + [VERB ing] > "As a marketing manager, you will be responsible for projecting figures for each quarter."

12. One of your key responsibilities will be [VERB ing form] > "One of your key responsibilities will be delegating tasks to your team of sales rep."

13. You’ve got: ADJ + NOUN, ADJ + NOUN, and ADJ + NOUN > "You’ve got: accomplished PHP knowledge, astute problem-solving abilities, and great organizational skills."

14. You love to: VERB + NOUN > "You love to: solve problems / compile data, work as a team."

15. If you love + [VERB ing], then you’ll fit right in our [ADJ] team of + [NOUN] > "If you love designing new apps, you’ll fit right in our imaginative team of Android developers."

Encourage them to apply: 

16. If you would like to be part of our [ADJ] team, apply today by + [VERB ing] > "If you would like to be part of our creative team, apply today by sending us an email."

17. Sound like you? Then, send your resumé/CV and cover letter to [email address.] > "Sound like you? Then, send your resumé and cover letter to apply@thiscompany.com."

18. If this sounds like you, then apply by clicking the button below.

Try some of these phrases out with the adjectives and verbs below!

140 Most Effective Adjectives for Your Job Description

Below we have collected around 140 of the most useful adjectives to help you write more awesome job descriptions. Adjectives describe qualities of the candidate you are searching for. They can also describe your company as well. They are ordered by sections such as creativity, effectiveness and enthusiasm. Each word is also linked to a dictionary definition. Check it out!

Attracting candidates that are good at problem solving:

Attracting creative candidates that can think outside of the box:

Attracting candidates that are efficient and get the job done:

Attracting candidates that are enthusiastic and personable:

Attracting candidates that are hard working:

Attracting organized candidates:

Attracting reliable candidates:

Attracting candidates with good social and communicative skills::

Attracting versatile candidates that can adapt to different situations:

35 Great Action Verbs for Job Descriptions

These action verbs help describe activities related to the job in a concise way. They drive the action forward. This verb list includes the prepositions commonly used with the verb. It also features an easy synonym and a dictionary link. Whenever you want to describe an activity, try to use a verb like the ones listed below:

III. Examples of Great Job Descriptions

Let’s take a look at some well-written job descriptions that use some or all of the tips above.

Github Job Description

This example from Github states formal requirements while still being humorous and fun.

• They use of 'we' to refer to the company and 'you' to refer to the candidate.
• They use bullet points are kept short which makes them easier to read and understand.
• The use of humor balances the paragraph. On the one hand, you have the key requirements 'swiftness' and 'accuracy balanced by the humorous number of 'exclamation points' you receive.

Pizza Hut Job Description

What makes it good?

• Very benefit-orientated independence, fun, making friends, earning extra cash.
• Lots of action verbs driving the action forward.
• Personal with lots of 'you' forms.

Scope AR Job Description

What makes it good?

• Lots of 'you' forms, focus on benefits, lots of verbs driving the action forward and keeping it interesting.
• Use of questions makes the text more engaging.
• Bonus point for creative use of key qualities.

IV. Putting it all together: An Example of a Strong Job Description

Junior Data Scientist at Numbers Ltd, Tel Aviv, Israel

Would you like to work for a company who is as passionate about data as you are? At Numbers Ltd. our flat hierarchy allows you to define your own research projects and set your own goals. If you have more than 2 years' experience in data science and a propensity for python, you’ll be a great fit.

You love to:

• manage your own in-depth data projects
• communicate your data insights effectively
• design attractive visualizations that tell a story

You’ve got:

• astute problem-solving skills
• 2+ years’ experience in Python data projects

Why you’ll love working for us:

• organize your own projects
• enjoy our flat hierarchy
• work remotely
• socialize at regular hackathons and meetups

More about Numbers Ltd:

We are a young dynamic startup with a team of around 30 full-time staff. Our main focus is providing full-stack data solutions to our clients. In 2018 we completed our Series A funding. Read more about Numbers Ltd here.

To apply now, submit your resumé online by following the link below.

We’ll get back to you within 3 working days.

In this job description we used:

• concise sentences
• active voice
• personal ‘you’  and ‘we’ forms
• questions

That’s it for now. Hopefully, these tips will help you the next time you have to write a job post. 

• HR Series 2: How To Attract Top Talent With Successful Interviews
• HR Series 3: How To Attract Top Talent: Negotiating Salary and Benefits
• HR Series 4: How To Attract Top Talent With Effective Onboarding
  

Keep working on your communication skills 

Keep improving your communication skills for the workplace. Write more attractive job description, lead effective interviews, and negotiate salary and benefits effectivelt in English, across cultures. At Talaera, we understand your challenges and will create a training program based on your needs. Explore our English training programs here.

For any additional information or questions, reach out at hello@talaera.com. Interested in getting the best offers and receiving free content on Business English communication for you and your teams? Subscribe to our newsletter!

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• 7 Undeniable Reasons Your Company Needs An English Training Solution
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• 10 Effective Strategies to Build a Diverse and Inclusive Workplace
• 11 Killer LinkedIn Tips for HR Managers
• 8 Companies With Great Company Culture

[Note: This article was originally posted in February 2019 and has been updated to ensure you keep reading relevant content today]