Technical Generic+ Job Description Guidance

This guidance is for managers using the Technical Generic+ descriptors for recruitment-related activity. For further information on the Generic+ descriptors please refer to the Technical Role Types Information Toolkit in the Career Framework for Technical Staff.

How to use the Generic+ job descriptions

Overview

• All queries on the suitability of Generic+ Technical roles for recruitment or related activity should be directed to your local HR team as usual to identify the closest template.
• The review and approval of the most appropriate Generic+ job description must involve the local technical staff lead and the HR Business Partnering Team.
• The Generic+ roles have been developed to provide the core elements of all technical roles supporting academic work.
• The generic elements of the role define the broad job title, level of activity, skills, knowledge and experience required, as well as the general position in the technical reporting structure.
• The '+' (plus) element of the role defines the specific title, specific activities, specific skills, knowledge and experience, as well as the specific technical reporting structure. These areas are indicated by yellow highlighting and managers may make small changes to the content to reflect the local variations.
• Should a required role not be available in the Career Framework discuss this further with your HR contact.

Step by step guidance

• Having identified the closest Technical Generic+ job description with HR the following guidance is to be used.
• Please use ‘Track Changes’ to make it easier for HRBPs to see what changes have been made from the generic versions.
• Where small changes are made or non-relevant parts of the generic are removed, please ensure that readability is maintained. 

Job Title

• The generic job title should be retained. For advertising and contracting purposes the level should be removed, however a specific descriptor could be added after the generic title. For example, 'Specialist Technician – Workshop'.

Main Job Purpose

• Maintain the generic wording, specifics may be added where guided by the yellow highlighting.
• If you are adding some additional description or text, please ensure it is succinct and does not repeat the advert text.

Main Statement of Responsibilities:

• Do not add additional responsibilities, except in the case where you need to add one additional responsibility taken directly from another technical generic of the same grade.
• No more than two responsibilities may be removed.
• If you add any specifics ensure they are relevant to the generic statement they are added to.
• Specifics and detail should be kept to a minimum, do not duplicate anything in the generic statements, and only reflect necessary information.

Relationships

• In the case of technical staff managed by a PI or academic member of staff, an appropriate technical or professional services manager must be included as an associate line manager. This person should be involved in agreeing the job description and play a role in the recruitment process.

Organisation Chart

• Ensure that reporting lines are clear and that enough detail is included so that someone external to the University could understand the team structure and where the role fits.

Job Hazards/Safety Critical Duties

• If the role or working environment will expose the employee to hazards listed in the guidance please include these hazards here so that appropriate health screening can occur.

Person Specification

• Essential criteria should not be deleted.
• Any additional qualifications that are essential for the role (e.g. essential safety qualifications to meet legal requirements) can be added as an essential criteria though these should be kept to an absolute minimum (1-2 max).
• No additional essential criteria should be added to Relevant Experience, Skills and Knowledge, Communication and Interpersonal Skills, or Additional Criteria.
• Keep additional desirable criteria to a minimum and ensure these could be meaningfully tested as part of a recruitment exercise.
• Where you add any specifics, ensure these are relevant to the generic statement they have been added to.

Work Examples

• While it is not essential to complete new work examples, or revise the generic work examples that are there, it may be a useful exercise to consider these and write one specific work example. This can ensure you are clear on what is expected of the role and test that the JD selected is at the right level. Your HR contact may ask you to do this as part of their checking process.

Contacts

• Identify only the most significant internal and external relationships that the role has, and the overall purpose of the relationship. Remove any of generic relationships that aren’t significant to the role.

 

This policy was last reviewed and updated: Jan 2022