What is a job requisition?
Quick answer
A job requisition is the internal request to open a new position or refill an existing one. It records the job title, why the role is needed, the budget or pay range, the reporting line and the must-have skills, and it must be approved before recruiting begins.
Last updated
Updated · By Robert Breen
Why it matters for a small business
A requisition forces the questions that save time later. Is this a new role or a replacement? Who pays for it? What must a person be able to do on day one, and what can be learned? When those answers are written down and approved, the job posting, the interview questions and the scorecard all come from the same page.
It also protects fairness and budget. A named approver means a manager cannot start recruiting on a hunch, and a stated pay range keeps offers consistent. Small companies may keep the requisition to one page in a shared document. The name and format matter less than having a clear written yes before the work begins.
In a real lesson: Turn an Interview Debrief into a Scorecard and a Candidate Follow-Up (Recruiting & HR)
The Interview Debrief to Scorecard lesson starts after a requisition would have been approved, but it shows what comes out of one. In the lesson, Willow Bend Physical Therapy, a made-up clinic, is hiring a Front Desk Lead, and the prompt lists four must-haves: two or more years running a front desk, insurance verification, calming upset patients and training other staff.
Those must-haves are the center of a good requisition. Hannah, the HR manager, feeds the same list into ChatGPT so the debrief is scored against it, with Strong, Partial or Not discussed for each. One gap shows up: training other staff was never discussed, so the panel decides the final round should cover it.
The lesson does not show a requisition, an approval or a budget, so what Willow Bend wrote is unknown. The lesson's point is simply that the role's requirements, written first, make later steps quicker and fairer.
Try this lesson free or read the step-by-step guide.
Common confusions
Requisition vs job description
The requisition is an internal approval to hire. The job description is the public text that describes the role. The second is usually written after the first is approved.
Requisition vs purchase requisition
A purchase requisition asks to buy something, and may lead to a purchase order. A job requisition asks to hire someone. Same idea, a request waiting for approval.
Tips
- Limit must-haves to the few skills truly needed, and label the rest as nice to have.
- Put the pay range on the requisition and decide it before the first interview.
- Name one person who approves and one who owns the hire.
Related terms
More Business terms
Where you use it: free lessons
- Turn an Interview Debrief into a Scorecard and a Candidate Follow-Up (Recruiting & HR) (ChatGPT, 9 min)
- Summarize a Meeting Transcript with ChatGPT (ChatGPT, 9 min)
Prompt templates that use it
Frequently asked questions
- Do small teams need a requisition?
- A short written version helps even a small team. It can be as simple as a page with the title, reason, pay range, must-haves and an approver's name.
- Can AI help draft a requisition?
- It can organize your notes into a clear page. You decide the budget, the pay range and the requirements, and HR should confirm they follow local rules.