A job spec can be an invaluable tool to help focus your recruitment on what really matters to you – right from the start of the search.

It doesn’t need to be a formal written document. An informal discussion with your recruiter in which you lay out the description you need can be equally effective. The main benefit to a job spec agreed with your recruiter is that it provides an objective measure throughout the recruitment process. Until you’ve sat down and made a list of the key criteria – the must haves and the would likes, it can often be difficult to picture your preferred candidate, both for you and your recruiter.

For analyst and associate recruitment – where the number of candidates which meet the general requirements is broad – this is especially important. On first thoughts your needs may appear universal and easily identifiable – e.g. good training in investment banking; exposure to private equity transactions; a commercial mindset; good modelling skills. But you might be surprised by just how specific your needs turn out to be once you and your recruiter start putting them to paper. And it is crucial your recruiter understands these needs to identify just the right person for you.

Think about what this person will be doing and how you expect their career to develop with you. If you’re recruiting to fill a two year analyst position, you’ll probably want to focus on the technical skills they’ll mostly employ – they need to be able to hit the ground running. If you’re thinking long term, then perhaps a few gaps in their current skill set might not be an issue, provided they demonstrate the longer term potential to grow within your business.

It’s a question of recruitment objectives.

The value of the job spec lies in your ability to track your thinking. After meeting a tremendous candidate everyone in the team likes, it can be tough to step back and assess honestly if they’ve ticked all the boxes you need. This is where the job spec is invaluable. Did they have the LBO modelling skills you decided from the start were essential? If not, they probably aren’t the right candidate for this position, no matter how much you liked them. It’s a valuable objective measure and allows you to benchmark effectively.

And not just your candidates. Equally an agreed job spec is a powerful tool to ensure your recruiter is identifying the right people. The more specific the requirements you list, the easier it is to judge if they’re finding candidates with the particular skills you want. There can be less room for misunderstanding and time wasted reviewing CVs or interviewing candidates that just aren’t quite right – both your time and the recruiter’s. It’s a fine quality control. You might even want to define a successful recruitment process by percentage of relevant high quality candidates interviewed, rather than simply placement itself. You might be surprised how well or otherwise the process is working. You’ll soon tell if the relationship with your recruiter is what you would expect it to be.