When was the last time you reviewed and updated your job descriptions?

• Do they reflect what you value as an organization?
• Do they accurately reflect the roles and responsibilities of the position you are hiring for?
• Do they map out a path to success for the recruit as well as the supervisor?

In this short clip from Episode 112 of The DYOJO Podcast, we encourage business owners and managers to review and rethink the standard job description. Achieve better outcomes in recruitment, hiring, development, and employee retention by updating these processes to reflect your unique culture.⁠

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Transcript 

Really rethinking the job description? I think that fork forces us to rethink what do we actually want from this position. And I don't really care. I don't care that company A calls this a project manager and this is what the script is. Or they call this an estimator. That's a lead tech, what matters in your company? For this need, this is what we have a need for. What does that look like in our company? Let's get that on paper, you've got to show them a path to success. Let's think through as we're bringing this person in these will be your pathways to success. This is what success will look like first 30 days, 60 days, 90 days, and then we'll review it after you know, the first year. 

Probably first 90 days, you may think you made a mistake. But just stick through it, you know, do the things we're asking you to do. I don't think we're setting you up for failure with what we're asking you to do, we have a pretty good idea of what we want that to look like, clear job description, a pretty clear plan, you've got to show them a path to success. The trick there being is there's only so much even the project manager that we just trained. There's only so much I can prepare you for. And then it's learn as you go, you know, there's only so much I can show you before it just kind of unless you're doing it, you're not going to make the mistakes that force you to learn. You've got to show them a path to success.

On the flip side, have you ever worked with the lazy Boomer didn't want to pull their weight or felt like they'd put their time in? Recently we hired a project manager with no construction experience no prior project management, direct experience. I talked a lot about in the new book P2T as well as in the project management book about relevant experience, we have this tendency to think, man, if someone has construction experience, there'll be a great project manager. Well, the reality is the majority of project management in our industry and most construction industries is a lot of customer interaction and interacting with subcontractors and trades people and carpenters and employees by mindset change. And so the people management kind of gets overlooked.

​It is good to have in obviously, we can't be doing things the wrong way. But where someone maybe has spent their whole life developing their their technical skills, maybe they haven't quite developed their personal interpersonal skills. And so that needs to be accounted for when someone's being transitioned in that role. And then if someone can come in with a customer service role, they have to have the ability to not get taken advantage of or do things the wrong way or not be able to QC a project. So we hired somebody with no prior experience and they're doing really well actually got complimented by one of our tougher subs, you know, for being on top of their stuff. You know, having good scopes good communication, good communication with the customer. 

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Jon Isaacson, The DYOJO Podcast and ARES, will be speaking at the following construction industry events in 2024. 

January 3, 2024 - March 18, 2024 
Pierce College (Puyallup, WA)
Jon Isaacson is Teaching Estimating 2 (CONST 420) Construction Management

Friday, February 2, 2024
Pete Consigli's Winter Break 2024 (Naples, Florida) 
Jon Isaacson is Speaking on The 3 P's of Project Management for Construction Professionals 

Thursday, February 29, 2024
11:15 AM – 11:45 AM
National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) International Builders Show (Vegas, Nevada)
Jon Isaacson is Speaking on The 3 P's of Project Management for Construction Professionals 

Wednesday, April 10, 2024
10:45 AM to 11:30 AM CT
Restoration Industry Association (RIA) Annual Conference and EXPO (Dallas, Texas)
Jon Isaacson is Speaking on The 3 P's of Project Management for Restoration Professionals