1. Overview What is job analysis?
How can you use this tool in your organization?
Methods of job analysis
How it works
Real world example
An exercise
Summary

2. What is job analysis?
A systematic approach to collect information about a job such as tasks, responsibilities and the skills required to perform those tasks
An important part of Human Resources (HR) planning
Most tasks performed by HR are directly involved with job analysis.

3. How can it be used in your organization?
Job analysis assists HR in determining:
Necessity of the job
Equipment needed
Skills required
Supervision
Working conditions
Management/employee interaction
Using job analysis, HR can determine whether a job is necessary to the company. They can also decide how many supervisors are necessary. The amount of interaction between employees and management, as well as the amount of information flow throughout the company, is important to the HR department.

4. How can it be used in your organization?
Recruiting
Keyword searches on resumes that match job requirements
Selection
Appraisal
Salaries and Incentives
Training and Development
The HR department can use job analysis in the recruitment process to target applicants who are qualified for the job. They can use key words to search for items that match the job description. In the selection process, applicants are given tests, such as personality tests, that help recruiters select the appropriate applicant for the job. Salaries can be set according to the level of skills involved with the job. Job analysis also helps to determine the amount and types of training that will be required. If skill gaps are apparent after doing the analysis, training programs can be instituted to correct the problems.

5. The Multifaceted Nature of the Job Analysis
Labor Relations
Recruiting
*DeCenzo and Robbins, p. 145
Selection
Strategic HR Planning
Safety and Health
Job Analysis
Job Description
The roles of the HR department and job analysis go hand in hand.
Employee Training
Compensate
Job Specifications
Performance Appraisal
Career Development
Employee Development

6. How can it be used in your organization?
Job analysis can also:
Help the company remain profitable and competitive
Help the company keep up with technology
Prevent employees from being overworked
Help the company stay
in compliance with
government regulations
Rotate jobs among employees to prevent boredom. Being aware of particular jobs can be an insight into whether the company needs to make technological changes to remain competitive. Job analyses can also help companies to defend themselves against legal actions taken because of discrimination, etc.

7. Nuts and bolts What is analyzed? Work activities Working conditions
Supervisors
Location
Schedule
Machines and equipment
Job analysis is not only important to determine the activities performed in the job itself, but also to determine what kind of conditions the employee will have to work in, and whether these conditions would be able to accommodate a person with a handicap, etc. This way the company could avoid discrimination lawsuits and be in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

8. Nuts and bolts What is analyzed? (cntd.) Job performance
Operations
Standards
Time
Experience, training, and skills
Supervision and promotion patterns
Products/services completed
The actual products made, or services given, can be analyzed to determine the actual worth to the company of a particular job.

9. Nuts and Bolts Who is involved in the job analysis? Management
Supervisors
Job analysts
Job incumbent
Unions
Consultants
Job incumbents are the employees holding the jobs to be analyzed. Consultants may be hired but are not always necessary.

10. Methods of Job Analysis
Observation
Interview
Individual
Group
Questionnaires
PAQ
Diary
Technical Conference
Critical Incident Technique
PAQ is the Position Analysis Questionnaire, which contains questions about information that applies to any job.

11. Methods of Job Analysis
Observation Method
Analyst observes incumbent
Directly
Videotape
Useful when job is fairly routine
Workers may not perform to expectations
If the observation method is used to analyze a job, then all tasks involved with that job must be observable within a certain amount of time. Thus, jobs such as managerial positions are difficult to observe using this method. Also, if the workers are aware that they are being observed, they may feel under pressure and will not perform their tasks to their actual capabilities.

12. Methods of Job Analysis
Interview Method
Individual
Several workers are interviewed individually
The answers are consolidated into a single job analysis
Group
Employees are interviewed simultaneously
Group conflict may cause this method to be ineffective
The interview method requires that all employees are asked the same questions in the same order. The individual interview method is useful to obtain a group consensus about the job.

13. Methods of Job Analysis
Questionnaires
Employees answer questions about the job’s tasks and responsibilities
Each question is answered using a scale that rates the importance of each task
Not all jobs are the same, so questionnaires may overlook certain aspects of the job. Also, follow-up methods are not usually organized to gather extra information. Computerized versions of questionnaires can be very expensive.

14. Methods of Job Analysis
Questionnaires (ctnd.)
Position Analysis Questionnaire (PAQ)
A structured, behavioral questionnaire
194 items in 6 categories
Information input
Mental processes
Work output
Relationships
Job context
Other characteristics
PAQ questions are either rated on a 5 point scale or are checked if they apply. The questions concern where and how employees obtain information, how they make decisions, how they relate to co-workers and managers, how they actually perform the job physically and socially, and other miscellaneous items.

15. Methods of Job Analysis
Diary Method
Employees record information into diaries of their daily tasks
Record the time it takes to complete tasks
Must be over a period of several weeks or months
This method can be very expensive because of the time it takes to complete it.

16. Methods of Job Analysis
Technical Conference Method
Uses experts to gather information about job characteristics
The technical conference method can be useful but sometimes look beyond the scope of the employees’ perspectives of their jobs.

17. Methods of Job Analysis
Critical Incident Technique (CIT)
Takes past incidents of good and bad behavior
Organizes incidents into categories that match the job they are related to
Involves 4 steps
The CIT is helpful in illustrating to an employee what kind of behavior is required for the job.

18. Methods of Job Analysis
CIT steps
Brainstorm and create lists of dimensions of job behaviors
List examples of effective and ineffective behavior for each dimension
Form a group consensus on whether each incident is appropriately categorized
Rate each incident according to its value to the company
If a group consensus cannot be reached when grouping the incidents, dimensions may have to be added or combined. If there are differences in opinion of ratings then the behavior in question should be eliminated.

19. How It Works Conducting the job analysis Know the purpose
Gather Information about jobs to be analyzed
Books
Charts
Trade union literature
Government agency literature
Use employee input
Job analysts should collect as much information as possible about the job before actually performing the job analysis. The information can be collected from the sources mentioned on the slide. Employees should be involved in the job analysis as much as possible.

20. How It Works Conducting the job analysis (ctnd.)
Choose an efficient method of collecting information
Gather information from employee/supervisor about the job
Draft a job description
Obtain supervisor approval
Job analysts should choose the most effective, least expensive method they can. They must have supervisor or management approval before drafting the final job description.

21. A Real World Example The Department of Labor
Job analyst uses observation and interview methods to gather information about an employee
Information organized into 3 categories
Data
People
Things
The categories refer to how data is processed or used by the employee, to whom the employee speaks or interacts with, and what tasks are actually handled, respectively.

22. A Real World Example Work Functions Data People Things
Synthesizing Mentoring Setting up
Coordinating Negotiating Precision work
Analyzing Instructing Operating
Compiling Supervision Driving
Computing Diverting Manipulating
Copying Persuading Tending
Comparing Speaking Feeding
7. Serving Handling
8. Helping
Each job is coded using an aspect from each column.
*U.S. Department of Labor, Dictionary of Occupational Titles, 4th ed. Revised (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1991), p.xix.

23. A Real World Example
Job titles are listed in the Dictionary of Occupational Titles
Each job is given a code
Ex. A recruiter might be assigned the code 2, 6, 7 if the job entails analyzing data (2), speaking to people (6), and handling different things (7)
See previous table
Each entry in the Dictionary of Occupational Titles includes a detailed description of the characteristics of the job.

24. An Exercise
Bruce Spuhler, customer service manager at BGS Sports, wants to conduct a job analysis on how his employees interact with customers and other employees.
What steps should Bruce take to implement a successful job analysis, and what method should he use to analyze his employees?
The name of the manager and of the store is made-up and is strictly for the purpose of this exercise.

25. An Exercise Possible Answer:
Determine the Purpose- to reinforce good behavior among employees and provide better customer service
Gather as much information as possible about retail and customer service, including past experiences with customers
Information could be gathered by literature and also employees and customers. Bruce can look at past complaints as well as compliments received when customers were pleased with the service. He should also review the interaction among employees.

26. An Exercise 3. Choose best method of job analysis
-Critical Incident Technique
-This would allow Bruce to discuss with his employees past incidents and whether they were effective or not
-Assign values of effectiveness
4. Gather information from workers and other managers about the job
Assign values on a scale of or similar to whether it is effective, average, or ineffective behavior.

27. An Exercise 5. Draft a behavioral job description
6. Identify areas that need improvement, and implement training programs to improve those areas

28. Summary
Job analysis is an effective approach to gathering information about jobs
There are 6 popular techniques to conducting job analyses
Job analysis is directly related to nearly every function of Human Resource departments in organizations

29. References
Cascio, Wayne F. Managing Human Resources. New York: McGraw-Hill, Inc., 1992.
DeCenzo, David A. and Stephen P. Robbins. Human Resource Management. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1999.
Gomez-Mejia, Luis R. and David B. Balkin. Managing Human Resources. Upper Saddle River: Prentice- Hall, Inc., 2001.
U.S. Department of Labor. Dictionary of Occupational Titles, 4th ed. Revised (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1991), p. xix.