How to Write a Job Description with Claude
You'll finish with a ready-to-post job description that actually sounds like your company — even if you've never hired for this role before, you have no template, and you need it live by end of day. Answer four questions, run one prompt, refine twice. That's it.
TL;DR
- You'll have a complete, publishable draft in under two minutes — from a rough brief.
- Free plan at claude.ai handles this easily; no upgrade needed.
- Claude writes the structure; you add the context that makes it actually yours.
- What used to take an hour of blank-screen frustration takes 15 minutes, including edits.
Before you start
- A Claude.ai account — free plan is fine. The whole workflow fits comfortably in one conversation without hitting any limits.
- A rough idea of what the role involves — even bullet points on a napkin. You don't need a polished brief; you need enough to answer four basic questions about the job.
- A sense of where this posting will live — LinkedIn, Indeed, your website, a specialist job board. This shapes the length and tone more than you'd expect, so decide before you open Claude.
- Your company name and a one-sentence description of what you do. Without this, Claude defaults to a generic "fast-paced, innovative environment" blurb that nobody reads.
How to do it — step by step
Define the role before opening Claude
Start by answering four questions in a plain text doc or even a notes app: What will this person actually do day-to-day? What does good look like at 90 days? What do they genuinely need to know on day one versus what can be learned on the job? Who do they work with or report to? Spend an extra minute on these — especially the day-one requirements — because the single most common mistake in job descriptions is listing everything you'd want in a perfect candidate instead of what you actually need to get started. That inflated list is what drives qualified people away. If you're hiring for a role you've never filled before, the HR Workflows hub has a short exercise that helps you separate must-haves from nice-to-haves before you write a word.
Set the tone and describe your company honestly
Before moving on, decide how this job description should sound: direct and no-fluff, warm and team-focused, or formal and precise. The tone you choose should match how your company actually communicates, not how you think companies are supposed to sound. Then write one to two honest sentences about your company — size, what you do, and ideally one thing that makes working there genuinely different. This is the part that gets ignored most often, and it's the part candidates actually read first. Don't worry if your company is small or the role is new — honesty about that is itself a differentiator. The HR Prompt Builder has company description templates you can adapt if you're drawing a blank.
Run the prompt and get a first draft
Now open Claude, paste the prompt below, fill in the green placeholders with your answers from steps one and two, and hit send. Claude returns a structured job description — role summary, responsibilities, requirements, and a company blurb — in under a minute. Don't try to perfect your inputs before sending; a rough first pass gives you something real to react to, which is always faster than trying to write from scratch. At this point, you're looking at a working skeleton. The goal is not a final posting yet — it's a draft you can actually edit.
Cut the wish list and sharpen the responsibilities
Now check the draft for two things: requirements that crept in as aspirational rather than real (cut them — every unnecessary bullet reduces your applicant pool), and responsibilities written so vaguely they could apply to any job (rewrite them). If the output feels generic in places, push back in the same Claude conversation. Be specific: "Remove any requirement that isn't genuinely blocking on day one" gets better results than "make it more realistic." Likewise, "Rewrite the responsibilities section so each line starts with an action verb and names a real output" turns a blurry list into something candidates can actually picture doing. The AI for HR Teams hub has more examples of these follow-up instructions for common sticking points.
Personalise and publish
Before moving on from Claude, swap in your actual company name, location, salary range if you're including it, and the exact application instructions — link, email address, deadline, or whatever you're using. Then read the full posting aloud once. If any sentence makes you hesitate or sounds nothing like how your team talks, rewrite it — either yourself or with another quick Claude request. Don't worry if a few small tweaks are needed; that's expected. Post the final version wherever your candidates actually look. Start to finish: 15 minutes.
The prompt
You are helping me write a job description for a role I need to fill. Context: - Job title: [e.g. Operations Coordinator, Senior Account Manager, Part-time Bookkeeper] - Company name and what we do: [e.g. Hartwell Consulting — a 12-person HR advisory firm working with mid-size UK businesses] - Day-to-day responsibilities: [List 4–6 things this person will actually do most weeks — be specific] - Must-have requirements: [What they genuinely need to know or have done on day one — not a wish list] - Nice-to-have skills: [Optional — leave blank if unsure] - Who they report to / work with: [e.g. Reports to the Managing Director; works closely with the sales and finance teams] - Location and working arrangement: [e.g. London, hybrid 3 days in office; or fully remote, UK only] - Salary range: [Include if sharing publicly, or leave blank] - Tone: [e.g. direct and no-fluff, warm and team-focused, formal and professional] - Where this will be posted: [e.g. LinkedIn, Indeed, our website] Using the information above, write a complete job description with the following sections: 1. A 2–3 sentence role summary that leads with what the person will accomplish, not just what they'll do. 2. A responsibilities list (5–7 bullet points, each starting with an action verb and naming a real output). 3. A requirements list — split into "You'll need" (must-haves) and "Bonus if you have" (nice-to-haves). Keep the must-have list short and honest. 4. A 2–3 sentence company description that sounds like a real place to work, not a corporate brochure. 5. Application instructions placeholder. Write in the tone I specified. Avoid filler phrases like "fast-paced environment," "team player," "passionate," or "dynamic." If any information I've given you is vague, make a reasonable assumption and flag it at the end so I can correct it.
What the output looks like
Operations Coordinator — Hartwell Consulting
We're looking for an Operations Coordinator to keep the day-to-day running of a 12-person HR advisory firm running smoothly — from managing client scheduling and supplier relationships to keeping our internal systems up to date. This is a role where attention to detail and good judgment matter more than prior HR knowledge.
What you'll be doing
Coordinating client-facing schedules and preparing briefing materials ahead of advisory sessions. Managing relationships with two to three external suppliers, including contract renewals and invoice sign-off. Maintaining our project tracking system and flagging any delivery risks to the Managing Director. Handling internal logistics for quarterly off-sites and team events. Supporting the onboarding admin for new hires, working alongside our external HR partner.
You'll need
At least two years in an operations, admin, or coordination role. Confidence managing multiple priorities independently, without needing daily check-ins. Proficiency in Google Workspace. Clear written communication — you'll be drafting client-facing emails from day one.
Bonus if you have
Experience with project management tools (we use Asana). Previous work in a professional services or consulting environment.
Claude vs Gemini for this workflow
| Dimension | Claude | Gemini |
|---|---|---|
| Tone control and naturalness | Better | Good |
| Avoiding corporate filler phrases | Better | Good |
| Flagging its own assumptions | Better | Good |
| Integration with Google Docs / Jobs | Good | Better |
| Speed on free plan | Good | Better |
| Overall recommendation | Recommended | Solid alternative |
How to customise this workflow
For small business owners hiring for the first time
If you've never written a job description before, the hardest part is separating what you want from what you actually need. Add this line to the prompt: "I'm a first-time hirer — after writing the description, give me a short list of any requirements that look like nice-to-haves masquerading as must-haves." Claude will flag the ones that are likely shrinking your candidate pool without good reason. Also, before running the prompt, ask Claude in a separate message: "What sections do job candidates typically read first, and what makes them click away?" It's a 30-second orientation that shapes which parts you spend time on. The AI for HR Teams hub has more guides built specifically for business owners doing HR work without a dedicated team.
For freelance HR consultants writing descriptions for clients
If you're producing these for three different clients a month, the setup time compounds fast. Save a base version of the prompt in your notes tool with your most common client formats, then swap in their company name, tone, and role specifics before running it — that drops the setup from five minutes to under two. For clients who always struggle to articulate what the role involves, run a quick intake: ask them to describe what the person in this role will do on their best day in six months. That single question usually unlocks the specifics that make a job description actually useful. The HR Prompt Builder is designed for exactly this kind of reuse — build the prompt once per client type and reuse it without starting from scratch.
For roles that are genuinely new or hard to define
Don't worry if the role doesn't fit a standard title or the responsibilities feel fuzzy — that's actually where Claude helps most. Paste in whatever you have, even if it's just "I need someone to help me with X, Y, and maybe Z" and let Claude produce a first pass. Then use the draft as a conversation starter with the hiring manager or client: "Does this match what you had in mind?" It's much easier to react to something concrete than to write from nothing. If the output feels too generic after the first pass, ask Claude: "Rewrite this assuming we've never hired for this role before and candidates may not recognise the title — lead with the problem this person will solve, not the tasks they'll do."
For remote or part-time roles
Remote and part-time roles need more specificity in the description, not less — candidates are filtering harder and faster. Add these two instructions to your prompt: "Be explicit about the working hours and time zone requirements" and "If the role is remote, describe how the team communicates and collaborates day-to-day." The second one matters because "remote-friendly culture" means nothing; "we use async Slack communication with one weekly video call" tells a candidate something real. Before moving on to the final edit, check that the location and arrangement details appear in the first three lines of the posting — that's where candidates look first on mobile.