When to Create a Spec This Way
Not every new specification starts with a blank prompt. Sometimes you have existing content — a legacy spec, a position description from another jurisdiction, or just a clear idea of what you need to write — and you want to bring that into Holly without having the AI generate a first draft from scratch.
This creation path gives you two options: type content directly into each section, or upload a PDF and let Holly parse it into your template. Either way, you stay in control of the content from the start.
Tip: If you'd rather have Holly's AI generate a full first draft from a job title and role description, see How to Generate a Specification with AI.
How to Start a Manual Draft
From the Class Specs dashboard, click Create new in the top-right corner above the specs table.
Select Start from draft. The creation modal will open.
Enter the Job Title (required).
Choose how to populate the spec content — enter fields manually or upload a file (see below).
Enter the Salary Range — minimum and maximum compensation in annual, monthly, bi-weekly, or hourly units.
Click Create/Upload to create the draft.
Choosing How to Add Content
Enter Manually
Select Enter Manually to start with blank section fields and type content directly into each one. The modal displays fields that match your jurisdiction's specification template, so you're working within your established structure from the beginning. Whatever you enter becomes the initial version of the document, and Holly will track all future changes from there.
Choose this option when you:
Don't have an existing file to work from
Only have content for one or two fields and want to build from there
Have a document that isn't structured in a way that maps cleanly to your template
Want full control over which content goes into each section
Are creating a partial spec to expand later
Upload a File
Select Upload File to provide an existing document as a PDF. Holly uses AI to parse the content and map it into the appropriate sections of your template. Like the manual path, the parsed content becomes the baseline version of the document for change tracking.
Choose this option when you:
Have an existing spec or draft document in PDF format
Have a complete or near-complete document that generally follows a class spec structure
Are digitizing legacy specifications from your archive
Want help organizing unstructured content into the right template sections
Note: The PDF upload here uses AI to parse your document into template sections. This is different from the full AI generation workflow, which builds a complete spec from a job title and role description. If you want full AI generation, use How to Generate a Specification with AI.
After You Create the Draft
Once Holly creates your draft, it's saved and ready for you to work with. From here you can:
Edit any section by clicking into it to add, revise, or restructure content
Use AI selectively to regenerate individual sections or get improvement suggestions without redoing the whole document
Check quality metrics to identify sections that may need more detail or clarity
Benchmark against comparables to see how your spec stacks up against similar positions
Send for review when you're ready to share with stakeholders
For guidance on editing techniques, AI regeneration, and change tracking, see Advanced Editing: Rewriting vs. Editing and Regeneration.