Distinguish between Job Description and Job Specification

Distinguish between Job Description and Job Specification

Job description is important documents that are basically descriptive in nature and contains a statement of job analysis. It is an organized, written and financial statement of job contents in the form of duties and responsibilities of a particular job. It describes the scope and functions of a job and summarizes the nature and type of the job. The sample of job description is shown as below.

A Sample of Job Description

Job title	: Director of wage and salary Administration.
Job Summary	: Responsibility for company wage and salary programs including job and analysis, job   evaluation, wage surveys, and benefit administration.
Job Duties	: 1. Supervisor job analysis studies and approves final form of job description. 2. Develops, executes and monitors job evaluation procedures in cooperation with operating management. 3. Acts as chairman of the company-wide job evolution committee. 4. Conducts periodic wage and salary surveys in the community and industry. 5. Administers the company’s supplementary benefit programme. Recommends changes in and additions to existing benefit. 6. Supervises members of the wage and salary division.

Working conditions: Normal working condition eight hours per day.

It describes the job title, job summary, job duties and working conditions. According to Earnest Dale, following demerits for writing the job description.

1. The job descriptions should be clear regarding the work of the position, duties etc. 
2. The job descriptions should indicate the scope and nature of work including all important relationships.

Job Specification: Job specification also called as man specification, are a written statement of qualification, traits, physical and mental characteristics that an individual must posses to perform the job duties and discharge responsibilities effectively. The specimen of job specification is as follows:


A sample of Job Specification

Physical Requirement	: Good health, muscular energy.
Education-Knowledge	: Must be graduate in any discipline.
Work Experience	: No previous work experience necessary, however a history of work performed in any capacity would be desirable.
Aptitudes	: Should have the ability to learn and retain instruction.
Personal Characteristics	: Should be emotionally stable and have the ability to adapt himself to varying conditions and work harmoniously with other individuals.

Job specification specifies the knowledge skills, background, aptitude and experience which an individual should possess in order to perform job effectively. Job specification serves as a guide for the selection, training in development of employees.

Contents of Job Description

The following are the contents of job description statement

1. Job title: It explains the title of the job. It means, what the particular job is about identified under this contents. 
2. Job location: It refers to the name of the department where the job under consideration exists in the organization. 
3. Job summary: It tells about a brief history of job. It is a short paragraph which explains the tasks and activities to be performed by an incumbent. 
4. Duties: Duties refers to the tasks performed by an employee. It is necessary to mention simply because it helps how much time is devoted by an incumbent. 
5. Machines, tools and equipments: Under this head, the machines tools and equipments used by an incumbent for the performance of task are included. From the type of machines and equipments involved in the job, we can find the riskiness or complexity necessarily maintained. 
6. Nature of supervision: This explains what kind of supervision does the job require? For example, unskilled job requires intensive supervision, whereas other jobs required less supervision. 
7. Working environment: The working environment is concerned with the actual work place. It defines working conditions in terms of heat, light, noise level etc. 
8. Job hazards: Job hazards are obstacles and obstructions that may arise during actual performance of the task.