MGMT Minute: Why A Job Description Is Insufficient For Hiring The Best Person

Read time: 1 minute

Go on LinkedIn and look at 5 job descriptions.

Unless you got lucky, they all sound pretty much the same.

• The roles all require “3-5 years of experience”

• The companies all value “integrity” and “teamwork”

• The people they want are “self-starters” and “capable”

Chances are, your job descriptions are similar.

Part of it is the pressure to comply with company policy.
Part of it is complacency, believing you’ll “know talent when you see it.”

But here’s the thing:

Everyone is an A-player in the right context.

So it pays to build a high-fidelity view of the context you’re offering, so you can attract the right people and spot your A-player:

• Are you a startup or a large corporation? 

• Are you scaling rapidly or cutting costs? 

• Are you in-person or remote? 

That context dictates the rules of the game you’re playing.

Knowing your context means you can identify the behaviors that you believe give you the best chance of winning. 

So the first half of visualizing your role:

What are your non-negotiable behaviors? 

When I worked at Bridgewater, we believed people who were comfortable “metabolizing feedback” had the best chance of thriving: 

• They could hear feedback.

• They could objectively consider it.

• They could take action to improve based on it. 

And not once, but as an ongoing behavior they valued. 

It’s why athletes did well.
It’s why curious researchers did well.
It’s why special forces operators did well too.

They had all been coached and improved based on that coaching.

Here’s a statement I’ve probably written more over the last 4 years than any other:

Why character over credentials?

We can teach people skills. 
We cannot change who they are.

And every time I compromised on character because my team desperately needed capacity, I paid a high price. 

Your non-negotiable behaviors are the character traits you’re looking for.

These behaviors should disqualify a lot of candidates. 
Ideally, scare them away proactively.

That’s ok. That’s the entire point.
You’re not hiring everyone. You’re hiring one ideal person. 

But the right character is necessary but not sufficient.

The other half of the visualization:

What are the necessary capabilities? 

Notice I said capabilities, not abilities. 

Capabilities are abilities put into practice. 

You might be creative, but if you can’t apply that to get the desired results, it’s just not that valuable to me. 

 You want to define the 3-5 capabilities that make someone a star in this role.

Don’t be afraid of being specific.

Listen to the difference:

• Analyze data

• Analyze large data sets

• Produce insightful visualizations of large data sets

• Produce real-team, insightful visualizations of large e-commerce data sets

If you write it so vaguely it applies to everyone, it won’t appeal to anyone you want to hire.

Caution: More Than 5 Might Be A Unicorn

If you really can’t get it down to 5 or fewer, chances are you:

• Aren’t clear enough yet on what you really need

• Are trying to hire someone to do two (or more) jobs

Keep editing until you can recognize real people who could do this job.

Remember: 

We aren’t evaluating if they’re good people. 
We’re assessing if they’re a good fit for our role.

The reason evaluate both behaviors and capabilities is that they’re part of a team. 

Capabilities are how your team will deliver near-term results.
Character is how you’ll build long-term value.

Lead on,
Dave & Mar

Oh, before you go:

Did you miss our workshop? Get the recording:

💡 High-Signal Interviews: How To Avoid Bad Hires and Discover Hidden Talent

Did you miss last week’s playbook? It’s our most-read piece in a while:

⌚ Manufacture Focus: 5 Simple Steps When You Have More Work Than Time

Did you miss our MGMT Accelerator? It actually kicks off in 2 weeks:

📌 Enroll here:  MGMT Accelerator (starts February 4th)