Why Most Job Descriptions Fail (and What to Do Instead)

📄 The Job Description Is Broken

You've seen them a thousand times:

"We're looking for a rockstar self-starter with 5+ years of experience in a fast-paced environment…"

It's generic.
It's recycled.
It says everything and nothing all at once.

And worst of all—it's repelling the candidates you actually want to hire.

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🚨 What's Wrong with Traditional Job Descriptions?

1. They're too vague
   "Responsible for growth" tells a candidate nothing about what they'll actually do.
2. They're overloaded with buzzwords
   Rockstar. Ninja. Synergistic thinker. These aren't qualifications—they're branding clichés.
3. They don't describe the actual problem to solve
   Most JDs list tasks, not challenges. Great candidates want to solve problems—not tick boxes.
4. They prioritize credentials over capability
   Requiring a specific number of years in an arbitrary stack filters out high-potential talent fast.

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🎯 What Candidates Actually Want to Know

If you want better applicants, give them better context.

Here's what high-quality candidates are looking for:

• What problem will I be responsible for solving?
• What does success look like in the first 90 days?
• What constraints exist (team size, budget, tools)?
• What's broken, blocked, or urgent?
• Why does this role matter to the company right now?

In other words: don't write a checklist. Write a mission brief.

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💡 The Shift to Problem-Centric Hiring

When you describe the problem first, everything changes:

• You attract people who've solved it before
• You avoid attracting resume-padders who keyword-match and ghost later
• You spark curiosity—and filter for strategic thinking
• You give hiring managers a shared language with candidates from day one

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🤖 How Vetta Helps You Write Better Than a Job Description

With Vetta, you don't even write a job description in the traditional sense.

Instead, you:

1. Describe the problem you're hiring to solve
2. Define what success looks like
3. Let our AI match you to people who've already tackled that challenge
4. Skip the resume scan, the filtering, and the inbox flood

You get blinded matches, STAR-format accomplishments, and analytics that help you hire faster.

No more guessing if someone fits.
You already know they've done it.

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✅ What to Do Instead

If you want different results, start with a different approach.

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🧠 Final Thought: Your Job Description Is the First Filter

Most companies write job descriptions to justify a role.
You should write them to attract the right person.

If you're ready to stop posting laundry lists and start hiring people who solve real problems: