Attracting the best candidate for a role includes how the description for the job is built. In putting this together the choice of language is important. Here there are some words and phrases that irritate people more than others.
To assess the best and worst phrases for a job description, a review of the most liked and hated business buzzwords that people say at work has been undertaken. This comes from Preply (an online learning platform).
The study surveyed more than 1,551 U.S. citizens who worked in an office setting either in-person or remotely.
As to the ten terms most likely to be red flags in job descriptions, the phrase to avoid are:
- Rockstar
- Wear many hats
- Thick skin
- Work hard, play hard
- Schedule TBD
- Urgently hiring
- Ninja
- Hit the ground running
- Fast-paced environment
- Overachiever
In contrast, phrases and words that seem to be more acceptable when putting a job brief together are:
- Proactive
- Empower
- Leverage
- Lots of perks and benefits
- Proven track record
- Resilient
- Fun/Amazing/Unique company culture
- Sense of humor
- Passionate
- Competitive salary
Commenting on the data to Digital Journal, Mary Glowacka, Centre of Excellence Lead in the Human Resources Chapter of Preply, says: “Buzzwords are common in the workplace, but a lot of people hate many of them. In addition, some buzzwords are so bad that if people see them in a job ad, some won’t bother to apply.”
She adds: “Business jargon is at times a necessary evil, with three out of four respondents saying it can make a person sound more professional, but that doesn’t mean people love every snappy catchphrase exchanged between coworkers.”
