1. Chapter 4: Job Design and Job Analysis

2. Objectives After reading this chapter, you should be able to:
Explain the importance of job design.
Describe how managers use efficiency and motivational approaches to design jobs.
Explain the trade-offs between the efficiency and motivational job design approaches.
Understand the importance of job descriptions and job specifications.
Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of different sources of data for job analysis.
Understand how organizational demands influence job design.
Discuss how environmental challenges affect job design.
Explain the importance of job design and job analysis for legal compliance.

4. 11/21/2018
Job Design
Determining job tasks and responsibilities employees are expected to perform
Key issues to consider:
Which tasks should be emphasized?
How simple or complex are these tasks?
How many tasks can employees perform?
How much flexibility is given to employees?

5. Job Analysis
Definition: Systematically identifying tasks, duties and responsibilities expected to be performed in a job as well as competencies to be successful
Job descriptions — written summaries of the specific tasks, responsibilities, and working conditions of a job
Job specifications — specific competencies required by a jobholder to be able to perform the job successfully

7. Job Design: Efficiency Approach
Key goal is to maximize efficiency; emphasizes standardization of production processes
Time and motion studies
Job specialization focused on breaking jobs down into core elements
Repetition increased skill and speed
Job simplification removed decision-making authority from employees and placed it with a supervisor

8. Job Design: Motivational Approach
Maximizes employee’s drive to work as hard as possible
Focuses on making jobs more interesting, challenging and complex
Job characteristics model — identified 5 job dimensions and 3 psychological states that affect motivation and satisfaction

11. Job Descriptions
A written summary of specific tasks, responsibilities and working conditions of a job
Includes the following:
Job title
Job identification specifying important aspects of job
Essential duties and responsibilities
Job specifications—the competencies that are required (knowledge, skills, abilities)

15. Performing a Job Analysis
Job Information
Observation: job analyst observes and documents activities performed while employee works
Diary: employee keeps log of tasks and activities
Interview: job analyst conducts structured interviews of jobholder and supervisor (time-consuming and may be inaccurate)
Questionnaire: standard questionnaire administered to large number of employees performing the job (requires considerable time up-front, doesn’t offer opportunity for follow-up)

16. Job Analysis
Identifying tasks, duties and responsibilities expected to be performed in a job as well as competencies to be successful. Involves several steps:
Collecting Job Information
Analyzing Job Information

20. Department of Labor version of FJA
Data
People
Things
0 Synthesizing
0 Mentoring
0 Setting Up
1 Coordinating
1 Negotiating
1 Precision Working
2 Analyzing`
2 Instructing
2 Operating-Controlling
3 Compiling
3 Supervising
3 Driving-Operating
4 Computing
4 Diverting
4 Manipulating
5 Copying
5 Persuading
5 Tending
6 Comparing
6 Speaking-Signaling
6 Feeding-Offbearing
7 Serving
7 Handling
8 Taking Instructing-Helping

21. Position Analysis Questionnaire (PAQ)
Information Input – Where and how employees get the information they need in performing their job?
Mental processes – What reasoning, decision making, planning, and information processing activities are performed by an employee in their job?
Work output – What physical activities are required to perform the job and what tools are used?
Relationships with other persons – What relationships with other people are required to perform the job?
Job Context – What are the physical and social aspects of the work environment in which the job is performed?
Other characteristics – What activities, conditions, or characteristics, other than the previous five are relevant for the job?

24. Job Design in Practice: Organizational Demands
Strategy
Managerial choices of job design tactics
Employee acceptance of job design decisions
Company characteristics
Perception of fairness of job duties
Need for flexible work arrangements

25. Job Design in Practice: Organizational Demands (continued)
Culture
Job Design Approach Adopted
Breadth of tasks, duties, and responsibilities performed
Employee concerns
Formalization of jobs
Breath and depth of tasks

26. Job Design in Practice: Environmental Demands
Labor force
Skill availability to perform tasks
Job design decisions for the aging labor force
Technology
Telecommuting
Virtual teams

27. Job Design in Practice: Environmental Demands (continued)
Globalization
Need to address cross-cultural issues
Relevant labor market
Ethics/social responsibility
Concerns about types of tasks required
Attitudes toward physical conditions of job design

29. Job Design in Practice: Regulatory Issues
Importance of understanding essential and non-essential job duties
Job design and employee safety

30. Appendix: Standardized and Customized Approaches to Job Analysis
Standardized Approaches
Functional Job Analysis (FJA)
Dictionary of Occupational Titles
O*Net
Position Analysis Questionnaire (PAQ)

34. Appendix: Standardized and Customized Approaches to Job Analysis
Critical Incidents Approach
Task Inventory Approach
Job Element Approach