Job Requisition vs. Job Description – How Do They Differ?

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As your business grows, you expect the best talent to come on board and steer the business towards greater heights. But amidst the challenging recruitment environment, it is not as easy as it sounds. The average employee exit costs up to 213% of their yearly salary to get them replaced (Source). To make the hiring process financially efficient, it is quite important to keep a check on every element involved carefully.

While most business owners think of recruitment as creating job postings on different job boards, it is more comprehensive than just that. Establishing a budget, creating a job description, or deciding whether to opt for direct hiring or via a staffing agency, there are several related aspects you must consider to hire right. If you want to streamline the current hiring process in your organization, you should also know about job requisition.

In this guide, we will cover job requisition in detail, starting from its definition, how it differs from a job description, how to write one, and more.

What is a Job Requisition?

A job requisition to the formal request that needs to be raised to create a new position or fill a recently vacant role in your organization. In other words, it is a document that department managers need to formally fill in to ask for hiring new employees to their team. This document is first submitted to the HR department and is then forwarded to the leadership teams after review for their final approval. Once this document is approved by all the parties involved in the decision, the hiring manager then uses it to create a job description and take things forward.

It is also considered the first step in the talent acquisition process and can be taken in either offline or online format. It holds the necessary information about the need for creating a new position or filling the existing vacancy, whether the role is full-time, part-time, permanent, or temporary.

In companies where the formal HR procedures are followed, job requisition forms a crucial part of the hiring process. It also helps in determining the budget for the new hire. While you might have heard of companies where informal requests for new employee hiring are processed, you can simplify the hiring process by formalizing the same with a job requisition.

Elements of a Job Requisition Form

In general, a job requisition includes specific information about the position to be filled or created. It forms the basis of job descriptions and postings created by the hiring managers. Given below are some of its primary elements:

  • Title of the position to be filled
  • Department information
  • Name of the department manager placing the request
  • Type of employment – full-time or part-time
  • Preferred start date
  • Range of compensation to be offered and other employment benefits
  • Justification for the new hire
  • Job description
  • Outline of the interview process if needed at this stage

How to Write a Job Requisition?

For the successful placement of a new hire request, it is crucial to ensure that you write a thorough job requisition that demonstrates the need for a new position or employee within your organization. Although the exact requirement may vary from one company to another, a job requisition can be written using the following three-step process:

  • Explain the need to fill a role or to create one

The lack of required team members can certainly affect work productivity, irrespective of the department. This is something that needs to be highlighted via the job requisition. If possible, explain how much more work can be done by having a new employee within a team and how it will be beneficial for your company as a whole. Also, list the key responsibilities that this employee will be in charge of once hired. 

  • Get other employees to sign off on your job requisition request

Having other employees and executives sign off the requisition can support your request and get it approved more easily. For this, you can pitch your request to other department managers who can also benefit from this new hire.

For example, a new accounting professional in your team can quicken the delivery of financial reports, which will also be beneficial for the leadership team to plan for growth in the next few quarters. The related leaders in the organization can vouch for this job requisition to begin with the hiring process. 

  • Use quantifiable metrics to explain the benefits resulting from a new hire

When it is about backing your request before presenting it for approval, statistical data and numbers can help. The quantifiable metrics can prove to the hiring managers how beneficial it will be to fill the vacant position or create a new one. You can further make the request impactful by matching the data points with the company’s goals.

Now that you know what a job requisition is, you might have got a clear idea that there are various elements related to it. However, many individuals/business owners think of job requisition and job description to be the same thing. Let’s dig deeper to understand the finer differences.

What is a Job Description?

A job description is written documentation that covers the duties, tasks, qualifications, and responsibilities related to a job role. It is mainly used in the recruitment process to attract the right applicants to an organization. It also states the skills and experience level expected to work for the given job position.

Other than the specifications related to a job role, a job description acts as a window to the expectations you would have from the candidates, the job location (that can be remote or from the office), and a hint of the office culture to let the applicants realize how they would fit into the company.

As you can see here, there is a fine line that differentiates a job description from a job requisition.

Difference between Job Requisition and Job Description

Many people often use these two terms interchangeably, not knowing the fact that they are two distinct terms having unique meanings and importance. To be more precise:

  • A job requisition is an internal document written formally to address the need for new hiring or creating a new job position within the organization. On the other hand, a job description refers to the detailed description of an open job position to attract the right candidates, including the skills and experience needed, qualifications, job KRAs, and more.
  • On the scale of the recruitment process, a job requisition comes first and is followed by the step to create a job description (once approved).
  • A job description when published on job boards and listing sites becomes a job posting.
  • Another difference between these three types of hiring documents is the tonality used in their wordings. While a job requisition and description are written in a formal tone, a job posting can have a casual, communicative tone to attract the right candidates.

The following table highlights these differences at a glance:

Parameter Job Posting Job Description Job Requisition
Use External Internal Internal
Type Advertisement Document Document
What it covers Details about the job, company, and benefits Explain the job position in particular Explains the need to hire more employees or create a new position
Tone Engaging Formal Formal
Length Short Medium Long

Importance of Job Requisition in Recruitment

For many business owners, creating a requisition for a new hire seems like a waste of time. However, its purpose goes much deeper than just getting the required approval for hiring a new employee. In organizations that follow well-defined recruitment policies, job requisitions are numbered and then stored in the database maintained by the HR team. Usually, the requisition tiles and numbers are standardized for easy identification of the role type and departments with ease. As a result, they also help the hiring managers in making comparisons for future vacancies.

The requisitions also serve as a paper trail of the number of positions a company advertised and the related successful hires. Besides this, they also play a crucial role in the HR audits in which the compliance with labor and financial laws are thoroughly checked. By keeping a track of the number of job requisitions created during a specific period, you can also get better clarity on metrics like time to hire and time to fill.

Is It Must to Have a Job Requisition in Your Hiring Process?

Having job requisitions as a part of your hiring process will definitely streamline various sides of recruitment. However, since you know your business better than others, it is up to you to decide how to define different steps of recruitment within your organization.

Simplify Hiring Hassles By Connecting with Connect Tech+Talent

Maintaining the required candidate pipeline is quite crucial for every organization. However, it does make sense to deal with the related challenges in a smart way and hire Connect Tech+Talent – a renowned Austin-based staffing agency. They can also help you create the right job description to hire the best candidates. To know more, click here.

As your business grows, you expect the best talent to come on board and steer the business towards greater heights. But amidst the challenging recruitment environment, it is not as easy as it sounds. The average employee exit costs up to 213% of their yearly salary to get them replaced (Source). To make the hiring process financially efficient, it is quite important to keep a check on every element involved carefully.
While most business owners think of recruitment as creating job postings on different job boards, it is more comprehensive than just that. Establishing a budget, creating a job description, or deciding whether to opt for direct hiring or via a staffing agency, there are several related aspects you must consider to hire right. If you want to streamline the current hiring process in your organization, you should also know about job requisition.
In this guide, we will cover job requisition in detail, starting from its definition, how it differs from a job description, how to write one, and more.

What is a Job Requisition?

A job requisition to the formal request that needs to be raised to create a new position or fill a recently vacant role in your organization. In other words, it is a document that department managers need to formally fill in to ask for hiring new employees to their team. This document is first submitted to the HR department and is then forwarded to the leadership teams after review for their final approval. Once this document is approved by all the parties involved in the decision, the hiring manager then uses it to create a job description and take things forward.
It is also considered the first step in the talent acquisition process and can be taken in either offline or online format. It holds the necessary information about the need for creating a new position or filling the existing vacancy, whether the role is full-time, part-time, permanent, or temporary.
In companies where the formal HR procedures are followed, job requisition forms a crucial part of the hiring process. It also helps in determining the budget for the new hire. While you might have heard of companies where informal requests for new employee hiring are processed, you can simplify the hiring process by formalizing the same with a job requisition.

Elements of a Job Requisition Form

In general, a job requisition includes specific information about the position to be filled or created. It forms the basis of job descriptions and postings created by the hiring managers. Given below are some of its primary elements:

  • Title of the position to be filled
  • Department information
  • Name of the department manager placing the request
  • Type of employment – full-time or part-time
  • Preferred start date
  • Range of compensation to be offered and other employment benefits
  • Justification for the new hire
  • Job description
  • Outline of the interview process if needed at this stage

How to Write a Job Requisition?

For the successful placement of a new hire request, it is crucial to ensure that you write a thorough job requisition that demonstrates the need for a new position or employee within your organization. Although the exact requirement may vary from one company to another, a job requisition can be written using the following three-step process:

  • Explain the need to fill a role or to create one

The lack of required team members can certainly affect work productivity, irrespective of the department. This is something that needs to be highlighted via the job requisition. If possible, explain how much more work can be done by having a new employee within a team and how it will be beneficial for your company as a whole. Also, list the key responsibilities that this employee will be in charge of once hired. 

  • Get other employees to sign off on your job requisition request

Having other employees and executives sign off the requisition can support your request and get it approved more easily. For this, you can pitch your request to other department managers who can also benefit from this new hire.
For example, a new accounting professional in your team can quicken the delivery of financial reports, which will also be beneficial for the leadership team to plan for growth in the next few quarters. The related leaders in the organization can vouch for this job requisition to begin with the hiring process. 

  • Use quantifiable metrics to explain the benefits resulting from a new hire

When it is about backing your request before presenting it for approval, statistical data and numbers can help. The quantifiable metrics can prove to the hiring managers how beneficial it will be to fill the vacant position or create a new one. You can further make the request impactful by matching the data points with the company’s goals.
Now that you know what a job requisition is, you might have got a clear idea that there are various elements related to it. However, many individuals/business owners think of job requisition and job description to be the same thing. Let’s dig deeper to understand the finer differences.

What is a Job Description?

A job description is written documentation that covers the duties, tasks, qualifications, and responsibilities related to a job role. It is mainly used in the recruitment process to attract the right applicants to an organization. It also states the skills and experience level expected to work for the given job position.
Other than the specifications related to a job role, a job description acts as a window to the expectations you would have from the candidates, the job location (that can be remote or from the office), and a hint of the office culture to let the applicants realize how they would fit into the company.
As you can see here, there is a fine line that differentiates a job description from a job requisition.

Difference between Job Requisition and Job Description

Many people often use these two terms interchangeably, not knowing the fact that they are two distinct terms having unique meanings and importance. To be more precise:

  • A job requisition is an internal document written formally to address the need for new hiring or creating a new job position within the organization. On the other hand, a job description refers to the detailed description of an open job position to attract the right candidates, including the skills and experience needed, qualifications, job KRAs, and more.
  • On the scale of the recruitment process, a job requisition comes first and is followed by the step to create a job description (once approved).
  • A job description when published on job boards and listing sites becomes a job posting.
  • Another difference between these three types of hiring documents is the tonality used in their wordings. While a job requisition and description are written in a formal tone, a job posting can have a casual, communicative tone to attract the right candidates.

The following table highlights these differences at a glance:

Parameter Job Posting Job Description Job Requisition
Use External Internal Internal
Type Advertisement Document Document
What it covers Details about the job, company, and benefits Explain the job position in particular Explains the need to hire more employees or create a new position
Tone Engaging Formal Formal
Length Short Medium Long

 

Importance of Job Requisition in Recruitment

For many business owners, creating a requisition for a new hire seems like a waste of time. However, its purpose goes much deeper than just getting the required approval for hiring a new employee. In organizations that follow well-defined recruitment policies, job requisitions are numbered and then stored in the database maintained by the HR team. Usually, the requisition tiles and numbers are standardized for easy identification of the role type and departments with ease. As a result, they also help the hiring managers in making comparisons for future vacancies.
The requisitions also serve as a paper trail of the number of positions a company advertised and the related successful hires. Besides this, they also play a crucial role in the HR audits in which the compliance with labor and financial laws are thoroughly checked. By keeping a track of the number of job requisitions created during a specific period, you can also get better clarity on metrics like time to hire and time to fill.

Is It Must to Have a Job Requisition in Your Hiring Process?

Having job requisitions as a part of your hiring process will definitely streamline various sides of recruitment. However, since you know your business better than others, it is up to you to decide how to define different steps of recruitment within your organization.

Simplify Hiring Hassles By Connecting with Connect Tech+Talent

Maintaining the required candidate pipeline is quite crucial for every organization. However, it does make sense to deal with the related challenges in a smart way and hire Connect Tech+Talent – a renowned Austin-based staffing agency. They can also help you create the right job description to hire the best candidates. To know more, click here.

How can Connect Tech+Talent Help?

Connect Tech+Talent is in the business of finding the right talent for companies. Connect Tech+Talent takes the overbearing burden of finding human resources with the right skill set and lets companies focus on their core business. We specialise in IT jobs, helping businesses build and ramp up their technical staffing. We help build entire teams with the right set of skills in the technology that best suits their business.

We at Connect Tech+Talent will also help you as a candidate to acquire most sought after technical skills and forward your candidature to leading enterprises with global reach.

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