Writing Job Descriptions
A job description is not a wish list of qualifications. It's a filtering mechanism that attracts the right candidates and repels the wrong ones. The best job descriptions define success in terms of outcomes and progress, not years of experience or generic skills.
The Guide
5 key steps synthesized from 6 experts.
Define success at 12 months, not tasks on day one
Start by imagining you're celebrating with champagne a year after the hire. What changed about the business? Document that vision of success and use it as the foundation for the role. This shifts the focus from 'what they'll do' to 'what they'll achieve.'
Featured guest perspectives
"Start with, it's 12 months later, you hired the person, they started today, 12 months have gone by, you're clinking champagne because of how great it's been. What's changed about the business? What does success look like 12 months later? Document it."— Jonathan Lowenhar
"Job descriptions should really be, here's the context we're in. Here's what this role is about. Here's what progress means in this role and here's how we will actually reward you for actually doing this work."— Bob Moesta
Use polarizing language to filter, not attract everyone
Generic job descriptions attract generic candidates. If you need someone who thrives in chaos, say so explicitly. Sharp, honest language about intensity, pace, and expectations causes the wrong candidates to self-select out before wasting anyone's time.
Featured guest perspectives
"Long hours, high pace, candidates must thrive under a high urgency under AGI timelines approaching, difficult mission ahead, honor and recognition in case of success, those seeking comfortable work need not apply."— Anton Osika
Replace requirements with outcomes
Instead of listing '5 years of experience' or 'proficient in Excel,' describe what the person will actually do with those skills. Requirements should be framed as capabilities and experiences rather than checkboxes. This attracts people who can do the job, not just those who match arbitrary criteria.
Featured guest perspectives
"Look at the way you've written the job description, look at the way you've wrote the requirements and be more specific. It's like, yeah, you need to know Excel, PowerPoint and word, why? What do you do with it? Tell me what I'm going to do with those. Don't tell me I need the skills in that."— Bob Moesta
Identify the specific 'spike' you need
Every role has a primary competency where you need excellence. Determine whether this person should spike on design, execution, vision, or team building. Trying to hire a generalist who does everything often means getting someone who does nothing exceptionally well.
Featured guest perspectives
"I think it's trying to determine where this person should major and minor, where they should spike. Is this someone that's going to really lean into the design efforts? Is it someone that actually kind of needs to just operate like a very senior PM and continue to build out a team?"— Lauren Ipsen
Iterate based on the candidates you meet
Treat the job description as a product, not a contract. As you meet candidates and learn what's available in the market, refine the role definition. The best hires often emerge when you flex the role around exceptional talent rather than forcing people into rigid boxes.
Featured guest perspectives
"I think taking a product mindset where I meet people all the time now where I don't really know exactly what role they're necessarily going to fill... and looking at a product that we can mold flexibly and think of the same way... I think a product mindset on hiring and iterating on it based on the candidates you're meeting."— Jason Shah
Common Mistakes
- Listing arbitrary years of experience instead of specific capabilities needed
- Writing generic descriptions that could apply to any company
- Focusing on tasks rather than outcomes and business impact
- Using inflated titles that create future problems when you need to layer
Signs You're Doing It Well
- Strong candidates mention specific parts of the job description that resonated with them
- Candidates self-select out during the process because they know the role isn't right for them
- You can clearly articulate how success will be measured after 90 days and 12 months
All Guest Perspectives
Deep dive into what all 6 guests shared about writing job descriptions.
Anton Osika
"Long hours, high pace, candidates must thrive under a high urgency under AGI timelines approaching, difficult mission ahead, honor and recognition in case of success, those seeking comfortable work need not apply."
- Use polarizing language to filter for specific mindsets
- Be transparent about the intensity and urgency of the role
Bob Moesta
"Job descriptions are made up. They're literally just made up. And there are a list of stuff that the manager will say, all right, we want them to do this. And then they'll think of all the stuff they don't want to do and they put that in there. And so the reality is if you actually start to look at it and say like, hey, I can do these 15 things, but there's these five things that will literally take all my energy. Is there any way we can think about where I get more of the stuff I can do versus the stuff that I really suck at?"
- Design roles to fit the specific energy drivers of high-potential candidates rather than forcing candidates into rigid descriptions.
- Focus on the 'progress' the role enables rather than just a list of required features or skills.
"Job descriptions should really be, here's the context we're in. Here's what this role is about. Here's what progress means in this role and here's how we will actually reward you for actually doing this work."
- Clearly state the context of the company and the specific problem the role is meant to solve.
- Define what 'making progress' looks like in the first 6-12 months.
"Look at the way you've written the job description, look at the way you've wrote the requirements and be more specific. It's like, yeah, you need to know Excel, PowerPoint and word, why? What do you do with it? Tell me what I'm going to do with those. Don't tell me I need the skills in that. Tell me you're going to need to be able to build PowerPoints and do things around this."
- Replace 'X years of experience' with the specific capabilities or experiences that time is supposed to represent.
- Describe the actual work outputs (e.g., 'building PowerPoints for executive alignment') instead of just listing software names.
Jason Shah
"I think taking a product mindset where I meet people all the time now where I don't really know exactly what role they're necessarily going to fill... and looking at a product that we can mold flexibly and think of the same way... I think a product mindset on hiring and iterating on it based on the candidates you're meeting, the needs of the business."
- Iterate on the role definition after meeting candidates rather than sticking to a static description.
- Focus on the 'product' of the role—what the person will actually do—rather than just checking boxes.
Jonathan Lowenhar
"Start with, it's 12 months later, you hired the person, they started today, 12 months have gone by, you're clinking champagne because of how great it's been. What's changed about the business? What does success look like 12 months later? Document it."
- Document exactly what success looks like 12 months after the hire.
- Focus on how the business will have changed because of this person's work.
- Use these success criteria to screen for candidates who have already achieved similar results.
Lauren Ipsen
"I think it's trying to determine where this person should major and minor, where they should spike. Is this someone that's going to really lean into the design efforts? Is it someone that actually kind of needs to just operate like a very senior PM and continue to build out a team? Is this someone that really should be focused on product vision for the long haul?"
- Determine if the role majors in design, vision, or execution.
- Work backwards from the specific outcome you want the hire to solve.
"A lot of startups at this point are almost allergic to C titles or VP titles or are just more title agnostic than I've seen in the past, so you see a lot more of these head ofs... start as a head of product, and then as the company continues to grow, you lean into the growth side of things more, and so you become that head of growth or an SVP of growth."
- Use 'Head of Product' for early senior hires to allow for future layering if a more experienced CPO is needed later.
Peter Deng
"I was like, 'Hey, can you just write up a job description of what is this thing? Because there's something magical here, but I don't fully understand it.'... The role was model designer... it was just a really interesting way that she framed it."
- Ask high-performing individuals to write their own 'ideal' job description to identify new functional needs
- Codify roles that bridge technical depth and product taste (e.g., Model Designer)
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