How to Write a Job Description for a Senior Exec
Or: It’s not a formality. It’s your first test of leadership.
🚧 This is (maybe) the first post in a new series I’m exploring: How To Be a CEO. 🚧
I’m thinking about building a library of tactical, real-world guides for CEOs—based on what I’ve learned as a 3x CEO and coach. No fluff. No generic advice. Just practical tools, hard-won lessons, and real examples.
Starting with hiring and managing senior execs. If this is helpful—or if there’s something you want me to cover—let me know.
I read every reply.
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One of the most common mistakes I see CEOs make is treating job descriptions like a box to check. They copy and paste from a website, slap a few bullets on top, and wonder why they’re not attracting the right candidates. Especially at the senior level, this is a big miss.
I’ve been there and I get it. By the time you’re hiring an exec, you’re usually already underwater. You’ve been shouldering the function yourself, or you’ve outgrown your current team, or someone just left and you’re scrambling. You’re under pressure. Time matters. You want to move fast.
I spoke with Rohan Vaidya, Head of Talent at Writer (formerly at Ramp, Teachers Pay Teachers, and Facebook) about this. He's worked with CEOs and hiring managers through amazing fast growth and pivots, and here's what he said that stuck with me:
“Most exec job descriptions fall into two traps: too vague or too bloated. The best ones are sharply focused on outcomes, not activity.”
This is exactly right.
Writing a job description isn’t just about outlining a role. It’s a strategic act of leadership. It’s your chance to get clear about what the business truly needs next. It’s your first signal to candidates about how you operate. It’s your shot to attract someone great—not just someone available.
A good job description is thoughtful, specific, and rooted in the truth. It defines expectations. It tells a compelling story. And it sets the tone for everything that comes next—how you hire, how you onboard, and how you manage.
Let’s break it down.
Describe the Company Like It Matters
Most JDs treat the company description like an afterthought. But for senior hires, who you are and why you exist are part of the job. They’re signing up for your mission and your way of working—not just your comp package.
So be clear. Be specific. Be human.
What to include:
• What you do (in plain English—ditch the jargon)
• Why it matters (what change you’re trying to make in the world)
• Where you’re at (stage, momentum, growth, size, funding)
• How you work (values, culture, leadership tone)
This is your moment to set the tone. Candidates don’t just want to know what the company does—they want to know how it feels.
Examples:
Castiron is a software platform built for independent food artisans. We help small food businesses thrive by giving them the tools they need to sell online, manage orders, and grow sustainably. We’re a small, mission-driven team that cares deeply about entrepreneurship, economic inclusion, and real human connection. We just raised our Series Seed and are growing quickly—but thoughtfully.
We’re a post-Series B SaaS company helping enterprise teams convert more site traffic through smarter personalization. Our platform combines experimentation, machine learning, and customer behavior tracking. We’re 60 people, remote-first, and intensely focused on outcomes over optics. Our culture is high-trust, low-ego, and dead serious about learning fast.
Share Your Values—Clearly and Specifically
Every company should have values. They’re not just internal slogans—they’re a signal to candidates about how people are expected to work, behave, and lead.
Senior execs aren’t just responsible for driving results. They shape the culture. They model the behavior. They become the “how we do things here.” So if you don’t tell them what that is, you’re leaving a massive gap—and risking a costly misfire.
Include the values you actually use—not the ones you wish you had. Keep it simple, specific, and real.
Examples of values that work in job descriptions:
Customers First, Always — We build with the people who use our product in mind. We solve real problems, not theoretical ones and always choose what is best for our customers.
Win as a Team — We don’t do heroics. We collaborate, share wins, and support each other when things get hard.
Go the Extra Mile — We take pride in the quality of our work. We sweat the details, deliver on time, and always push for better.
Clarity Over Consensus — We make decisions, move fast, and own outcomes. We listen, but we don’t stall.
No Surprises — We communicate early and often. We say the hard things, directly and respectfully.
You don’t need a paragraph for each one. But you do need to show candidates what matters to your team—because you’ll be holding them to it.
Sell the Opportunity
The JD isn’t just an internal doc—it’s a sales sheet. You’re selling the role, the team, the mission, and the chance to do something meaningful.
What makes this opportunity special? What kind of impact could this person have? What’s the personal upside—career-defining impact, wealth creation, purpose?
Here’s what that can look like in different contexts:
Bitly was about global scale, data, and influence. We told candidates:
“You’ll help make sense of one of the largest real-time data sets in the world—we deal in billions and billions—and shape how the internet moves.”
Castiron was about purpose and impact. We said:
“You’ll be building tools that help small food entrepreneurs—most of them women and people of color—run real businesses on their own terms. We’re trying to help them put food on their tables and to live the lives they want.”
Early-stage B2B SaaS might be about shaping the business from the ground up:
“This is a 0→1 opportunity. You’ll define the motion, build the team, and create the infrastructure for scale. What you design now will become the foundation of this company.”
Later-stage growth companies might highlight complexity, career inflection, and upside:
“We’re Series C, growing fast, and looking for someone who’s ready for a seat at the exec table. You’ll work directly with the CEO and board, lead a team of 15+, and have real equity in the outcome.”
Great execs don’t want a job. They want a mission. Show them why this one matters.
Start with the Problems
Once you’ve set the stage, now you tell them the truth about the real work ahead.
Senior execs don’t get hired to “run a function.” They’re hired to own big, complex business problems—ideally, problems you as the CEO no longer want to be solving yourself.
Ask yourself:
What are the 2–3 meaty business problems this person will be responsible for solving?
Examples:
– Our churn rate is too high and we don’t have visibility into why and we need a clear product roadmap to drive engagement and growth.
– We’ve never had a marketing engine—growth is all outbound.
– Our finance function can close the books, but can’t forecast and is not a partner in helping us grow the business.
What does success look like in this role?
Examples:
– Product is consistently shipping product that drives our business. Always on time and always with an impact.
– The GTM team has a predictable pipeline generation, forecasting, and closing model we can trust.
– We present financial plans to the board that actually hold up.
What would I expect them to teach me?
Examples:
– How to think about CAC and LTV in a multi-channel business.
– What makes a world-class product review process.
– How to build a comp plan that actually motivates sales.
This is how you move from “we need a VP of Product” to “we need someone who can solve this.”
Define Expectations, Not Just Responsibilities
Most job descriptions rely on vague verbs: lead, manage, own. Be more specific.
Instead of this:
– “Lead marketing strategy and execution.”
Say this:
– “Own end-to-end funnel performance, from awareness through retention.”
– “Accountable for:
• A 20% increase in qualified pipeline within 3 months
• A content strategy that drives at least 25% of inbound
• Building a 5-person team without ballooning CAC”
Clear expectations create alignment, attract better candidates, and make onboarding easier.
Be Real About Requirements
Yes, experience matters—but only if it’s tied to what the business needs now.
Sometimes you need someone who’s seen the movie before. Other times, you want fresh thinking. But don’t hide behind phrases like “10+ years in a high-growth environment.”
Instead, say:
– “Has built and led a 10+ person product org.”
– “Has owned board-level communication and investor updates.”
– “Has successfully scaled from $5M to $25M ARR.”
This is about miles on the road—not just titles on a resume.
Make It Beautiful and Thoughtful
The JD is your first signal of how you lead. If it’s vague, messy, or uninspired, that’s what your company will feel like.
Put in the effort. Tell a compelling story. Set the tone for how you work and what you expect. You’ll attract people who resonate with that—and save everyone a lot of time.
Pro-Tip.
This one comes from Rohan:
“Collaborate with the senior exec you’ve identified. Sometimes the JD you start with needs to be tailored as you get to the hire, and getting input and alignment is key to driving towards success.”
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