Let’s be honest: position descriptions (PDs, sometimes called job descriptions) don’t exactly get the heart racing. No one starts a business dreaming about writing them. But if you want a team that’s aligned, accountable, and actually moving your business forward, well-written PDs are one of the simplest and most effective tools you’ve got.
What is a position description, really?
A PD is a clear, practical summary of what a role exists to do, how success is measured, and what it takes to do the job well. It’s not a wishlist of “do everything” tasks or a legal document gathering dust in a drawer. It’s a living, working guide that keeps the person, the team, and the broader business aligned and headed towards a common vision/purpose.
What’s typically included in a good PD?
Keep it simple and useful. Aim for:
- Role purpose: In one or two sentences, why does this job exist? How does it contribute to the business vision and strategy?
- Key responsibilities: The 5 to 10 big rocks (not every pebble). What must get done consistently?
- Success measures/metrics: How will you know it’s working? Think outcomes, not just activities.
- Delegations & authority: What decisions can this role make? What needs approval?
- Key relationships: Who does the role work with (internal and external)?
- Skills and capabilities: The core competencies, behaviours, and any essential qualifications.
Why PDs matter (especially in small businesses)
Smaller teams feel every gap, overlap, and misunderstanding. PDs reduce the friction and help you build a culture that actually delivers. Here’s how PDs connect and contribute to some of the key components of the Success Through People (STP) Model:
- PDs aligns people to your vision, values, and strategy: When each PD starts with a clear role purpose and links responsibilities to business priorities, every person understands how their work contributes to the bigger picture. That’s the “Clear Vision, Values & Strategy” component in action: people don’t (or shouldn’t) just do tasks, they need to contribute to outcomes that matter.
- PDs set clear expectations: Ambiguity is expensive, and PDs make expectations explicit; what great looks like, where the boundaries are, and what to prioritise. That’s “Setting Clear Expectations”: fewer mixed messages, fewer crossed wires, and more effective onboarding.
- PDs build accountability (without becoming heavy-handed): Accountability isn’t about blame, it’s about clarity. With responsibilities and measures defined, you’ve got a fair basis for “Ensuring Accountability.” It’s easier to recognise strong performance and to have constructive conversations when things slip, because you’re both referring to the same, agreed standard.
- PDs help you recruit right (and faster): A sharp PD is the backbone of a good job advert and interview plan. It keeps you focused on must-haves versus nice-to-haves and helps candidates self-select. That’s “Recruiting Right”; avoiding costly mis-hires and the vague role statements that attract vague applicants.
- PDs provide a fair basis for recognising and addressing performance: Because PDs define responsibilities and success measures, they give you a clean reference point to acknowledge and value good performance, and to address sub-par performance early and fairly. That touches both the “Valuing Others” and “Ensuring Accountability” components of the STP Model, and it keeps performance conversations objective rather than personal.
- PDs help to reduce risk: Role clarity reduces compliance and safety risks by defining responsibilities and decision rights. That’s the “Managing Risk” component; particularly useful where you have regulated tasks, client promises, or WHS obligations that can’t be left to chance.
How to write PDs that people actually use
- Write like a human: Keep it clear, brief, and jargon-free. If it reads like legalese, no one will read it.
- Focus on outcomes, not micromanagement: “Increase repeat purchases by consistent and effective client follow-up” beats “Make calls and send emails.”
- Make them visible: Store PDs where people can access them. Refer to them regularly in onboarding, 1:1s, and reviews.
- Update lightly, regularly: Treat PDs as living documents. Review annually and/or when strategy shifts.
- Connect to values: Try to include the behaviours that show your values in action; how we do things around here.
Common mistakes (and how to avoid them)
- The laundry list: If it’s over three pages, it’s probably a task dump. Prioritise.
- Copy-paste from big corporates: You’re an SME. Make it real and relevant to your context.
- Setting and forgetting: If the business evolves but PDs don’t, they lose credibility fast.
- Measuring only activity: Track outcomes that matter to the business, not just busy-ness.
Where PDs fit in your broader people system
PDs aren’t standalone paperwork. They’re the connective tissue across your business, and critical to the Success Through People Model:
- Clear Vision, Values & Strategy: PD purpose statements tie roles to strategy.
- Effective Leadership: Leaders use PDs to coach, prioritise, and give feedback.
- Recruiting Right: PDs sharpen selection and onboarding.
- Setting Clear Expectations: PDs define “what good looks like.”
- Ensuring Accountability: PDs provide the agreed standard.
- Equipping Others: PDs help identify training and tools required.
- Managing Risk: PDs clarify responsibilities and authority.
- Valuing Others: PDs help you recognise the right behaviours and achievements.
Final thoughts
You don’t need gold-plated HR processes to run a great SME. You need a few simple, well-executed basics. Position descriptions are one of them. Done well, they make work clearer, faster, and fairer, for you and your team.
Boring? Maybe.
Powerful? Absolutely.
Want a simple PD template, complete with guidance notes to get you started? Click HERE to download it now.
Keen to learn how your business is tracking in terms of the 8 core components of the Success Through People Model? Take the free online self-assessment now and receive your comprehensive report with personalised recommendations: https://scorecard.successthroughpeople.com.au/