From Workflow Doc to Job Description: The 3-Document Hiring System.

You're about to post a job description for a Maintenance Coordinator.

Do you:

1. Copy one from Indeed and swap out the company name

2. List every possible task you can think of and hope for the best

3. Let HR write something generic about "facility management duties"

If you picked any of these, you've already lost the hiring game.

Here's what happens next: You get 200 applications. Maybe 10 are remotely qualified. You interview 5 people who all sound good on paper. You hire someone with "great experience." Three months later, they're drowning in work orders, vendors aren't being managed, and you're spending your evenings fixing problems that should never have happened.

The issue isn't that you hired the wrong person. It's that you never actually defined what the right person looks like.

The Expensive Mistake Nobody Talks About.

Most companies write job descriptions in a vacuum. They're either too vague ("manage facility operations") or too specific ("must have experience with Johnson Controls HVAC systems in medical facilities built after 2015").

The result? A broken process that costs you real money.

According to Wrike's 2024 Impactful Work Report, unclear processes and poorly defined roles waste an average of $15,138 per employee annually on unnecessary work. That's just one employee. Multiply that across a facilities team, and you're looking at a six-figure problem.

But here's the counterintuitive truth: Your job description shouldn't be your starting point. It should be your output.

The 3-Document Cascade: How Top Facilities Teams Actually Hire.

The best facilities managers don't start with a job posting. They start with documentation. Specifically, they build three interconnected documents that transform hiring from guesswork into a predictable system:

1. The Workflow Document (what happens in your department)

2. The Standard Operating Procedure (what this person does)

3. The Job Description (what you tell candidates)

Each document builds on the previous one, creating a hiring process so clear that mediocre candidates self-eliminate before you waste time interviewing them.

Let me show you how this works.

Document 1: The Workflow Document

What it is: A complete map of how work gets done in your facility, from the moment a work
order is created to the moment it's closed.

Why you need it: You can't hire someone to manage a process you haven't defined. Period.

Most facilities managers have workflows that live entirely in their heads. Someone calls about a
broken door. You figure out who should fix it. You follow up... eventually. It works, but it's not
repeatable. And it definitely can't be delegated.

The Workflow Document fixes this by answering four critical questions:

• What happens under what conditions?

• Who is responsible for what?

• Which roles execute which tasks?

• What does "great" look like?

A Real Example

Let's say an emergency repair request comes in. Here's what a documented workflow looks like:

Undocumented (in your head): "Handle emergency repairs quickly"

Documented (in the Workflow Doc):

• Work order flagged as Priority 1 in FM Dashboard triggers automatic notification

• On-call Facilities Manager receives Teams message + SMS within 2 minutes

• Manager assesses severity and determines if contractor dispatch is needed

• If yes: Manager selects contractor from approved vendor list based on trade and availability

• Contractor receives work order via FM Dashboard with expected response time (30 min for true emergencies)

• Manager monitors contractor ETA and arrival

• Upon completion, contractor uploads photo documentation and closes work order

• Manager reviews and approves within 4 hours

See the difference? One is a hope. The other is a system.

How to Build Your Workflow Document

The best way to create this document is through a structured conversation with your team. You need to dig into every aspect of how your department operates:

• How does a work order originate?

• Who reports it and through what channel?

• What are the routine maintenance tasks vs. reactive repairs?

• How do you handle emergency situations?

• What software or tools does your team use?

• How do you communicate with other departments?

• How do vendors fit into the process?

This isn't a 30-minute exercise. It's a comprehensive discovery process. We use a 50-point checklist with our clients to map every workflow from start to finish, covering everything from intake processes to vendor management to reporting structures.

Pro tip: Record this conversation using a transcription tool like Granola AI or Google Meet with Gemini. Then use an AI tool (we use Gemini Workspace or Microsoft Copilot) to transform the transcript into a structured workflow document. This two-step process of AI transcription plus expert review is exactly how we streamline operations for clients without spending weeks on documentation.

Document 2: The Standard Operating Procedure (SOP)

What it is: Your new hire's playbook—a step-by-step guide extracted from the Workflow Document that defines exactly what THIS person does.

Why you need it: The Workflow Doc describes the entire department. The SOP describes one role within that system.

This is where the transformation happens. You take the departmental workflows and extract the specific responsibilities, tasks, and expectations for the Maintenance Coordinator position you're hiring for.

The Transformation in Action

Let's continue with that emergency repair workflow. Here's how it translates into an SOP:

Workflow Document (department level): "Emergency repairs escalate through the on-call Facilities Manager who assesses severity and dispatches appropriate contractors from the approved vendor list."

SOP (individual role level): "When you receive an emergency work order (Priority 1 in FM Dashboard):

1. You will be automatically notified via Teams and SMS

2. Acknowledge receipt within 5 minutes

3. Review work order details and assess severity using the Emergency Classification Guide

4. Select appropriate contractor from approved vendor list based on trade specialty and current availability

5. Dispatch contractor through FM Dashboard with expected response time (30 minutes for critical, 2 hours for urgent)

6. Send immediate notification to Facilities Director via Teams

7. Monitor contractor ETA and send 15-minute reminder if no movement

8. Verify arrival on-site and confirm work has begun

9. Follow up every 30 minutes until work is complete

10. Review photo documentation and approve work order closure within 4 hours"

What Makes a Great SOP

An effective SOP includes these critical elements:

Role Definition

• Exact job title

• Clear purpose statement

• Reporting structure (who they report to, who reports to them)

Key Responsibilities

• Specific areas of ownership

• Daily, weekly, and monthly tasks

• Priority hierarchy

Operational Guidelines

• Start time, end time, task sequencing

• Communication protocols and tools

• Documentation and note-taking expectations

Performance Standards

• Service Level Agreements (SLAs)

• Response time requirements

• Quality benchmarks

• Escalation protocols

Success Metrics

• How performance will be measured

• What "great" looks like in concrete terms

The SOP becomes your primary training document and your evaluation framework. When your
new hire asks "What should I be doing right now?" or "Did I handle that correctly?", the SOP has
the answer.

Document 3: The Job Description

What it is: The external-facing translation of your SOP—professional language that attracts the right candidates while accurately representing the role.

Why you need it: This is what candidates see. It needs to be compelling enough to attract A-players while specific enough to make B and C players self-eliminate.

Most job descriptions fail because they're written in isolation. They're either too generic (everyone applies) or too specific (nobody applies). When you build from an SOP, your job description is grounded in reality.

The Final Transformation

Let's take that same emergency repair responsibility and see how it shows up in the job description:

SOP (internal language): "When you receive an emergency work order (Priority 1), acknowledge within 5 minutes, assess severity, dispatch appropriate contractor from approved vendor list, notify Facilities Director, monitor progress every 30 minutes, and approve closure within 4 hours of completion."

Job Description (candidate-facing language): "Serve as the first line of response for facility emergencies, managing rapid assessment, vendor coordination, and stakeholder communication to minimize downtime and ensure safety. You'll own the end-to-end emergency response process, from initial notification through resolution and documentation."

See how that works? The job description captures the impact and responsibility without getting lost in procedural details. But because it's built from the SOP, it's accurate. You're not overselling or underselling the role.

What to Include in Your Job Description

A compelling, SOP-based job description includes:

Compelling Opening

• Job title that accurately reflects the role

• 2-3 sentence summary that captures the impact this person will have

• Why this role matters to the organization

Core Responsibilities

• 5-7 key areas of ownership drawn directly from the SOP

• Written in outcome-focused language (what they'll accomplish, not just what they'll do)

• Specific enough to set expectations, broad enough to allow for growth

Required Qualifications

• Must-have skills and experience

• Technical competencies

• Communication and collaboration abilities

• Any certifications or licenses required

Preferred Qualifications

• Nice-to-have experience that would help someone ramp up faster

• Adjacent skills that indicate cultural fit

Role Context

• Reporting structure

• Team overview

• How this role fits into the bigger picture

Company Culture and Benefits

• What makes your organization unique

• Growth opportunities

• Compensation and benefits (be as transparent as possible)

Clear Call to Action

• How to apply

• What to include in the application

• Timeline expectations

The Payoff: Why This System Works

A compelling, SOP-based job description includes:

When you build these three documents in sequence, something powerful happens:

1. You attract better candidates Your job description is specific and real. It's not corporate fluff. Candidates who read it either think "Yes, this is exactly what I want to do" or "No, this isn't for me." Either way, you win.

2. You conduct better interviews You're not guessing at what to ask. You have the SOP. You can send it to candidates before the interview and see who actually reads it. You can ask specific questions about how they'd handle real scenarios from your workflow.

3. You eliminate bad fits early When candidates see what the job actually entails—the SLAs, the pace, the communication requirements—those who can't handle it self-select out. You're not wasting time interviewing people who will quit in three months.

4. You onboard faster Your new hire starts with the SOP on day one. They're not figuring out the role through trial and error. They have a playbook. Your training time drops from months to weeks.

5. You manage performance fairly When someone isn't meeting expectations, you're not having vague conversations about "doing better." You're pointing to specific SOP requirements they're not meeting. It's objective, not personal.

The Real Cost of Skipping This Process

I know what you're thinking: "This sounds like a lot of work."

You're right. It is.

Building these three documents properly takes time. Mapping workflows, conducting discovery, writing and refining SOPs, crafting compelling job descriptions—it's easily an 80-hour commitment. For most facilities teams already operating at capacity, it feels impossible.

But here's the math you need to consider:

• Time spent hiring the wrong person: 3-6 months of reduced productivity

• Cost of management overhead while they struggle: Countless hours you can't get back

• Impact on team morale when the wrong hire drags everyone down: Immeasurable

• Cost of rehiring when they quit or you let them go: Another 80+ hours plus recruitment costs

Versus:

• Time invested in building a proper hiring system: 80 hours once

• Result: A repeatable process that works every time you need to hire

The ROI is obvious when you look at it clearly.

What Comes Next

This three-document system gets you to the starting line with the right job description. But hiring an A-player requires more than just posting a good job description.

You still need to:

• Conduct focused interviews that actually evaluate whether candidates can execute your SOP

• Score candidates systematically so you're not hiring based on "gut feel"

• Make the final decision using a clear framework

• Manage performance with concrete data and regular feedback

That's Steps 4 through 7 of our complete hiring framework—the proven system we use to help facilities teams out-hire their competition and build maintenance operations that run themselves.

Get the Complete System

Want all three document templates, plus the full 7-step hiring framework?

Download our free guide: "The Ultimate Guide to Hiring a Top-Tier Facilities Maintenance Professional"

Inside, you'll get:

• Our 50-Point Discovery Checklist for mapping maintenance workflows

• The exact AI prompts we use to transform transcripts into workflow documents and SOPs

• Interview question sets designed specifically for facilities maintenance roles

• The interview grading matrix we use to score candidates (including our 3.7 threshold for success)

• Performance management frameworks with KRAs and reporting templates

This is the same system we've used to place dozens of high-performing Maintenance Coordinators with our clients—the battle-tested framework that removes guesswork and delivers results.

Stop settling for "good enough" hires. Get the system that attracts A-players.

Download the Complete Guide Now - Free

At FM Dashboard, we don't just help you hire—we build the entire system for you. Our Virtual Maintenance Coordinator program includes complete process engineering, top-tier talent placement, and ongoing management so you can focus on strategic priorities instead of daily firefighting. Want to see how it works? Schedule a 15-minute strategy call to learn more.