Job Requisition: The Ultimate Guide & FREE Template

Hiring the right talent shouldn’t be a game of resume roulette. Yet, for so many hiring teams…it is. While there are several reasons for that, it’s often because they don’t know what kind of employee they’re looking for. They identify a need for a new employee, write a job description, and post it.

And listen, we get it! Hiring the right candidate can be tough, but creating an effective job requisition is a significant first step. A recruitment requisition form is essentially a request for a new position in your organization, outlining the skills and qualifications required for the role. It helps your HR team to identify the ideal candidate, streamlining the recruitment process and ensuring a successful hire.

Want to ace your hiring game? Keep reading for the ultimate guide on job requisition, complete with a free job requisition template to get you started. You’re welcome! 😮‍💨

TL;DR – Key Takeaways

• Job requisitions formally request resources and approval to create new job roles. They’re internal documents that kick-start the hiring process and require careful preparation to ensure recruitment runs smoothly.

• A job requisition form includes the job title, payment information, reasons for the new role, reporting structures, and how the role fits into the company organization. It should provide recruiters with sufficient information to find ideal candidates.

• Benefits of job requisitions include more targeted recruitment and aligning hires with organizational priorities. Requisitions make managing skills, successions, and compliance issues much easier.

• Companies need a consistent process to create effective job requisitions. HR teams should collaborate with key stakeholders — executive buy-in is essential. Using requisition templates ensures uniformity, and they (usually) link smoothly with applicant tracking systems.

• Job requisitions are part of skills-based hiring. Skills gap analyses determine what roles and abilities are needed. Tools like Toggl Hire’s skills tests ensure candidates possess those skills and meet business goals.

What is a job requisition?

A job requisition is a document that highlights the need to fill a job opening and makes a formal request to fill that role. They define why recruitment is needed and include a budgetary estimate for the cost of that new hire (or promotion, in some cases).

There are different types of job requisitions, including a new position requisition, replacement requisition, promotion requisition, transfer requisition, seasonal requisition, and internship requisition.

A job requisition isn’t just a routine administrative request, though. It serves as the foundation for a solid, streamlined recruitment process, as a well-written job requisition form tells recruiters exactly what type of candidates to look for.

Based on the job req, recruiters can write an accurate job listing that defines expectations. Managers can then ensure every hire will meet business demands. Basically, a job requisition can…

✅ Make it easier to source and screen candidates for the right skills

✅ Reduce the risk of bad hires (and can, thereby, reduce employee turnover rate)

✅ Improve legal compliance

✅ Streamline the entire hiring process

Job requisition vs. job description vs. job posting

The recruitment process involves many moving parts, and human resources team leaders must know what each part does to achieve the best results. One of the biggest areas of confusion is the difference between a job requisition, job description, and job posting.

So, let’s clear that up before diving into what makes a great job requisition.

Job requisition

A requisition is a formal request for a new role or hire. It’s an internal document and is usually written in a formal style and tone of voice. The main goal of a job requisition is to define how new roles will fit into the organization — basically, how the role meets organizational needs.

Requisitions aim to persuade senior managers that a job position is necessary and affordable. The form explains the skills, traits, and qualifications required by ideal candidates and explores how to fill the role (for instance, via external talent acquisition or internal promotion).

Job description

A job description is an internal document explaining the requirements and responsibilities associated with different roles. It should be informative and persuasive, but it’s usually fine to adopt a less formal tone than requisitions (actually, in some cases, it’s even better, depending on your employer brand!).

Generally, HR teams use job requisition forms as the basis for a job description. Therefore, the main difference between a job requisition and a description is that requisitions help inform descriptions, as they’re full of critical information that helps align the description with internal needs and goals.

Job postings

A job posting is a public announcement that advertises an open role. Postings are usually produced from job descriptions and appear as job ads on marketplaces, newspapers, job boards, or social media — wherever they can reach a wide audience of job seekers.

A job posting should be as short as possible while retaining critical information about the role, compensation, benefits, and required skills or qualifications. The more informative and transparent the job posting, the better quality candidates you’ll attract.

What are the reasons for a job requisition?

Considering all of the tasks associated with recruitment processes, you might be tempted to skim over job requisitions. Don’t!

Well-produced requisitions add structure to the hiring process. They organize recruitment from beginning to end, ensuring you cover every base. They also ensure higher-ups are in the loop from the start.

But that’s not all —there are many other benefits of writing great job requisitions, and we’re about to fill you in on what they are (in case, you know, you need to convince someone higher up why they’re just so darn important).

Time and resource management

On average, companies in the US take 44 days to hire an employee, and that time-to-hire metric continues to increase each year (especially post-pandemic). Job requisitions streamline the hiring process and speed things up.

They allow organizations to limit recruitment to essential positions that meet their hiring needs. This usually results in a decreased need for back and forth between recruiters and department managers to request details or clarify job requirements.

Legal compliance

Recruitment must comply with equal opportunity regulations, internal policies, and labor laws. Falling foul of these requirements can result in costly re-hires or even compliance fines. Job requisitions consider relevant regulations so HR professionals can tailor descriptions and postings to reflect regulatory requirements.

For example, European recruiters must follow EU-wide directives on gender and racial equality, respecting LGBTQ rights and equal treatment for disabled applicants. Job requisitions create objective, neutral processes that help to prevent discrimination and follow EU rules.

Filling skills gaps

Skills gaps are becoming a huge issue across all sectors, with up to 87% of companies reporting current or imminent skills deficits. Job requisitions help by identifying the skills that organizations need so HR teams can source a new employee, well, with those skills.

Succession planning

When staff members leave, requisitions specify how to prepare successors, helping organizations manage change. For instance, the job req could discuss training or mentoring junior employees to climb the company hierarchy. This could minimize awkward, unproductive periods after employees leave, ensuring continuity and smooth operations.

Job requisition process

Processes for submitting and approving job requisitions vary from one business to the next (especially in the case of small businesses and startups), so it’s best to use existing workflows if possible. If you don’t have any pre-defined job requisition process, here’s a sample workflow to see how it works within a traditional hiring process.

Step 1: Create a job requisition document

The first step is creating a job requisition document. It’s a good idea to store a standard template that suits your organization (or a set of templates if requirements vary between departments).

The job requisition form should always reflect an organization’s goals while providing flexibility to define diverse job positions. The free template below (which you can download here) provides a good example of how the form should look.

Step 2: Determine selection criteria

Next, assess the critical selection criteria for the new role. What mix of technical and soft skills does the ideal candidate need? Are there any non-negotiable formal qualifications or certificates?

Think hard about this. With today’s skill-testing tools, you can hone in on specific skills and abilities, so don’t restrict yourself to vague requirements. Determine what makes a suitable candidate, and you’ll have a good chance of finding one.

Remember that selection criteria should be a key part of the job description. Briefly describe the skills a successful new candidate needs to carry out their core responsibilities. Keep neutrality in mind, too. Selection criteria shouldn’t encourage bias. They should objectively assess candidates.

Step 3: Screen candidates

Now that you’ve identified important skills and hiring criteria from the job requisition form, it’s time to create a great job description, post an ad, and start screening candidates.

If you work in a smaller HR department or are hiring one or two employees, you might get away with manual resume reviews. However, manually screening hundreds or thousands of candidates can overwhelm human resources teams with unqualified potential candidates during the interview process.

Skills testing helps here. Using skills tests in the initial application phase filters out unsuitable candidates without the skills needed to succeed on the job. This way, hiring managers don’t have a mountain of CVs to consider — just a set of qualified candidates for each role.

Step 4: Hiring decision

When you’ve screened candidates and tested their abilities, it’s decision time. Hiring teams should consider every criterion included in the job requisition. Qualifications, work experience, skills, and personality traits all contribute to the final hiring decision.

A good requisition form makes this stage relatively simple. All you need to do is compare candidate data with objective recruitment criteria and make an offer. Because you’ve created an outstanding job requisition form, HR teams should know the appropriate protocols and legal requirements regarding extending an offer.

Step 5: Onboarding

Onboarding integrates a new hire into your organization, and it matters a whole lot because as many as 44% of hires report having doubts about their decision in the first week. Poor first impressions lead to lower productivity and higher employee turnover, so it may be no coincidence that 18 months after hiring, about 46% of recruits are seen as “failures” by managers.

Avoid that situation by mentoring new hires and providing constant support as they learn the ropes. Build onboarding into the job requisition by specifying who will mentor new recruits and the resources available to help them acclimate to your company culture and their new role.

What to include in a job requisition form

Getting the details of job requisition forms right is extremely important. A systematic process with clear templates reduces human error and streamlines role creation.

The content of job requisition forms depends on your organization’s operations and goals. Every detail on the form should assist hiring managers as they create roles, search for talent, and choose candidates. So, always include these core sections.

💼 Job title

The job title should be short and easy to understand while describing the role and responsibilities that come with it (because, honestly, Word Wizard sounds cool, but what the heck even is it?). Candidates often see titles first and use those titles to decide whether or not to apply for the job, so ensure the title is clear and accurate.

👩‍💻 Department and hiring manager

Which department or team will the role be a part of, and why are you adding the role to that department? Who is the hiring manager responsible for managing the recruitment process? Including this information adds valuable context for HR managers as they keep track of skills and roles.

🦾 Job purpose

What’s the purpose of this job? No, not whether they’ll be building a social media strategy or helping develop code for a new software. Put yourself in the place of a C-level executive and convince decision-makers that the role is necessary. Requisitions are more likely to succeed if senior hiring managers and other executives perceive a net gain for the business.

💻 Job duties

Outline what the role entails, including tasks and responsibilities. Define what the role will deliver for the organization as a whole. This section should define the expectations of candidates so the recruitment team knows who to look for and how to sell the job posting to applicants. That way, they can write appealing job descriptions and accurately filter candidates in the applicant tracking system.

💬 Requisition reason

A good reason for creating a new job opening might be because the role may meet organizational growth requirements or add capacity to an ongoing team project. It could also be a response to increasing workloads or general organizational changes. Whatever it is — keep this brief.

💥 Required qualifications

Consider what core skills and criteria you require from an ideal candidate. After defining those skills, you might decide to look internally instead of hiring externally. If you take the recruitment route, list core qualification requirements, experience levels, and fundamental skills.

💰 Salary range

Define a salary range for the position and include other finance-related details like employee benefits. Ensure the details align with your organization’s budget and general compensation packages. Talk to the finance department if you need more information.

📆 Preferred start date

Finally, include an ideal start date for the new position. The start date can change depending on hiring circumstances and position, but putting an ideal date on the form helps to plan succession, recruitment, and onboarding.

Job requisition template

There’s no need to create a new job requisition form every time you create a new position and start looking for the right person to fill the role. Actually, taking a role-by-role approach can be counter-productive, as it may lead to human error.

Instead, download our sample template to guide you (all you have to do is make a copy of the document, and it’s yours for free — no email needed). We’ve custom-built the template to suit most organizations, and it covers the core areas discussed above. Share it with your teams and other executives. Use the feedback to fine-tune details to suit your organizational needs.

6 tips for writing better job requisitions

If you’re still a little confused about creating job requisitions, or your requisition forms aren’t resulting in great hires, it’s time to take a step back. Something isn’t working in the requisition writing or approval process. Follow these six tips to improve your methods, see better results from recruitment campaigns, and create your next job requisition successfully.

1. Identify skills gaps first

Before you start listing out qualifications and requirements, take a moment to think about what skills and experience you’re missing. Whether it’s a lack of technical expertise or a shortage of leadership skills, pinpointing these gaps upfront helps ensure you attract candidates with the right qualifications.

2. Write better job descriptions

Around 17% of job seekers report not applying for a role due to a vague job description, and 27% cite deceptive descriptions as the most frustrating aspect of the hiring process. This highlights the need to write a clear and informative job description that accurately portrays what the role involves. Clear descriptions communicate key points in plain language and don’t leave readers in doubt about what the role entails.

3. Get feedback from different departments

The hiring process is collaborative, so always seek specialist input when crafting job requisition forms, and don’t rush the process. Better information always leads to better results. Pay attention to C-level buy-in as well, as executive stakeholders value being part of the process from the start, and their approval is often crucial when hiring new employees.

4. Follow a job requisition process

If you continue to see inconsistent results, build a formal requisition process. Create policies for filling each position. Define a logical process involving role and skills gap analysis, financial estimates, executive consultation, and approval. If necessary, create a checklist to help keep track of tasks.

5. Highlight the value of a new hire

Are senior managers or finance teams rejecting your job requisition proposals? If so, the problem may be how you make the case for a new position. When writing requisitions, focus on what the new hire will bring to your organization. What value do they add to the company or team they will work with? Why are they essential to achieving growth and meeting organizational goals?

6. Utilize recruitment platforms

Finally, if internal recruitment procedures aren’t working well, you might want to find an HR business partner to share the load. Recruitment platforms help you create job descriptions and collaborate with internal stakeholders while also providing you with access to wider talent pools and automation tools to manage applicants.

Job requisitions as part of skills-based hiring

A well-written job requisition assesses the personnel a company needs and allocates financial resources to find them. It informs recruiters exactly what kind of candidate fits the ideal profile and adds structure to recruitment processes that can easily spiral out of control.

Skills are at the core of a really great requisition process. Skills-based hiring makes it easier to avoid skills gaps and manage succession, and using skills testing helps you focus the recruitment phase on candidates that will enhance your organization and meet strategic goals.

At Toggl Hire, we have more to offer than just a free job requisition template (don’t forget to download yours above!). You can also create an account for free to start hiring based on skills, not gut instinct.

Get started now by exploring the Toggl Hire test library.👇