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Job Analysis and Design

McGraw-Hill/Irwin
Human Resource Management, 10/e © 2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Introduction

 Organizations evolved because:

 The mission and objectives of most institutions are
too large for any one person to accomplish
 There must be a systematic way to determine which
employees should perform which tasks
 The cornerstone of an organization is the set of jobs
performed by its employees
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The Vocabulary of Job Analysis

 Many use the terms of job analysis interchangeably
 An expert uses them precisely, in order to avoid
confusion and misinterpretation
 Precision is required by federal and state legislation

 Definitions provided by the federal government:

 Job analysis: a purposeful, systematic process for
collecting information on the important work-related
aspects of a job
 Job description: the principal product of a job analysis.
It represents a written summary of the job as an
identifiable organizational unit
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Introduction
 Job specification: a written explanation of the knowledge,
skills, abilities, traits, and other characteristics (KSAOs)
necessary for effective performance on a given job
 Tasks:
Coordinated and aggregated series of work
elements used to produce an output
 Position: the responsibilities and duties performed by an
individual. There are as many positions in an organization
as there are employees
 Job:group of positions that are similar in their duties, such
as computer programmer
 Job family: group of two or more jobs that have similar
duties
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Why JA?
 Jobanalysis is vital to any HRM program and
answers such questions as:
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Why JA?
 Job analysis is vital to any HRM program and
answers such questions as:
 How long does it take to complete important tasks?
 Which tasks are grouped together as a job?
 How can a job be designed or structured so that
employee performance can be enhanced?
 What behaviors are needed to perform the job?
 What kind of person, in terms of traits and
experience, is best suited for the job?
 How can the information acquired by a job analysis
be used in the development of HRM programs?
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The Steps in Job Analysis

Step 1 Step 2 Step 3 Step 4 Step 5 Step 6

Examine the Determine Select jobs Collect data Prepare job Prepare job
total organi- how job to be by using description specification
zation and analysis analyzed acceptable
the fit of information job analysis
each job will be used techniques

Use information from

Steps 1–6 for:
Job design
Planning
Recruitment
Selection and training
Performance evaluation
Compensation and benefits
EEO compliance
Follow-up evaluations

Fig 6-1
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Uses of Job Analysis

 The data collected is the foundation for which HRM
activity?
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Uses of Job Analysis

 The data collected is the foundation for virtually
every other HRM activity:
 Recruitment
 Selection
 Training
 Performance evaluation
 Compensation
 Job design and redesign
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The Uses of Job Analysis

 Job analysis is critical to assessments of
discrimination under most employment-related laws
 It is linked to these laws through court rulings
 For job analysis to be viewed favorably by the
courts, it must:
 Yield a thorough, clear job description
 Assess the frequency and importance of job behaviors
 Allow for an accurate assessment of the knowledge,
skills, abilities, and KSAOs required by the job
 Clearly determine which KSAOs are important for
each job duty
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The Uses of Job Analysis

 Job analysis is used extensively in these areas:
 Recruitment and selection
 Training and career development
 Compensation
 Strategic planning

 To minimize resistance, HR managers must

communicate:
 Why job analyses are important
 How the information will be used
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Who Should Conduct the Job Analysis?

 Part of the planning process involves choosing who

will conduct the analysis
 Hire a temporary analyst from outside
 Employ a full-time job analyst
 Use supervisors, job incumbents, or a combination
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Who Should Conduct the Job Analysis?

 Each choice has strengths and weaknesses:
 Job incumbents know what work is actually being
done, rather than what is supposed to be done
 Involving incumbents might increase their acceptance
of any work changes resulting from the analysis
 Incumbents tend to exaggerate the responsibilities and
importance of their work
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Who Should Conduct the Job Analysis?

 The choice of an analyst depends on such factors as:
 The location and complexity of the jobs
 How receptive incumbents are to an external analyst
 The ultimate intended purpose of the analysis

 Regardless of who collects the information, the

individuals should:
 Thoroughly understand people, jobs, and the total
organizational system
 Understand how work should flow within the
organization
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The Use of Organization Charts

 Beforebeginning analysis, an overview of the
organization and its jobs is required
 This provides a better understanding of work flow

 An organization chart presents the relationships

among departments and units of the firm, as well as:
 Line and staff functions
 Number of vertical levels in the organization
 Number of functional departments
 Formal reporting relationships
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The Use of Charts

 A process chart shows how a specific set of jobs

relate to each other
 This chart does not show
structural relationships among
job titles
 It shows the activities and
work necessary to produce a
desired product or service
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Methods of Data Collection

 When collecting job data, these basic methods can be
used separately or in some combination:
 Observation
 Interview
 Questionnaires
 Job incumbent diaries or logs

 In each method, job information is:

 Collected
 Studied in terms of tasks completed by the job
incumbent (job oriented analysis)
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Methods of Data Collection

 A job
can also be analyzed in terms of behaviors
(work-oriented analysis)
 What the job incumbent does to perform the job

 Both orientations are acceptable under the Uniform

Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures
 They must identify job duties and behaviors that are
critical to performing the job
 Becausetime and cost are considerations, managers
must collect comparable, valid data
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Methods of Data Collection

 The job analysis information format (JAIF) provides
core information for any job analysis method
 The questionnaire provides a thorough picture of the
job, job duties, and requirements
 Questionnaire answers are used to structure the data
collection technique that will be implemented
 Incumbents and supervisors may not view a job in
the same way
 Collect information from a variety of incumbents
 Don’t assume everyone has the same amount
of job knowledge
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Observation

 Direct observation is used for jobs

that require manual, standardized,
and short-job-cycle activities
 Direct observation is not usually
appropriate when the job involves
significant mental activity
 Jobanalysts must be trained to:
 Observe relevant job behaviors
 Be as unobtrusive as possible
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Interviews
 Interviewing job incumbents is often done in
combination with observation
 This is the most widely used technique
 It allows the job analyst to talk with job incumbent

 Interviews can be conducted with a:

 Single incumbent
 Group of incumbents
 Supervisor who is familiar with the job

 A structured
set of questions is used so answers
can be compared
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Interviews
 Interviews are difficult to standardize
 Different interviewers may ask different questions
 The same interviewer might ask different questions
of different respondents
 Information may be unintentionally distorted by the
interviewer
 Interviewingcosts can be high, especially if group
interviews aren’t practical
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Questionnaires
 Questionnaires are the least costly data collection
method
 They can collect large amounts of data in a short time
 A structured questionnaire includes specific questions
about the job, working conditions, and equipment
 An open-ended format permits job incumbents to use
their own words and ideas to describe the job
 Theformat and structure of a questionnaire are
debatable issues
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Questionnaires

 To make a questionnaire easier to use:

 Keep it as short as possible
 Explain what the questionnaire is being used for
 Keep it simple
 Test the questionnaire before using it
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Job Incumbent Diary or Log

 The diary or log is a recording by incumbents of:
 Job duties
 Frequency of the duties
 When the duties are accomplished

 Most people are not disciplined enough to keep a log

 Kept properly, the log permits an examination of
routine duties and exceptions
 The diary or log is useful when analyzing jobs that
are difficult to observe
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Which Method to Use?

 There is no agreement about which methods of job
analysis yield the best information
 Interviews should not be the sole data collection
method
 Certain methods may be better for a given situation

 Most organizations base their choice on:

 The purpose of the analysis
 Time and budget constraints
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Which Method to Use?

 Many organizations use a multi-methods job analysis
approach
 The analyst interviews incumbents and supervisors in
conjunction with on-site observation
 A task survey based on expert judgments is
constructed and administered
 A statistical analysis of the responses is conducted

 Using a comprehensive process is relatively

expensive and time-consuming
 The quality of information derived from a compre-
hensive approach is strongly endorsed by courts
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Specific Quantitative Techniques

 Three of the more popular quantitative techniques:
 Functional job analysis
 Position analysis questionnaire
 Management position description questionnaire
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Functional Job Analysis

 Functional job analysis (FJA) is the result of 60 years
of research on analyzing and describing jobs
 Conceived in the late 1940s
 Developed to improve job classifications in the
Dictionary of Occupational Titles (DOT)
 DOT descriptions helped job analysts learn what was
involved in a particular job
 FJA could then be used to elaborate and more
thoroughly describe the content of a job
 The goal was creating a common language for
accurately describing jobs
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Functional Job Analysis

 FJA assumes jobs can be described in terms of three
basic relationships the worker has with the work:
 Physically relating to things
 Using mental resources to process data
 Interacting with people

 Usingbehavioral terms, each relationship can be

organized along a continuum of complexity
 Lowest to highest

 Each job has a quantitative score

 Jobs with similar ratings can be assumed to be similar
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Functional Job Analysis

 The Occupational Information Network (O*NET) is
replacing the DOT
 An internet accessible database
 It describes occupations, worker KSAOs, and
workplace requirements
 Is more user-friendly than the DOT
 Reduced 12,000 occupations to just over 1,000
 Categorizes data into six groups known as the O*NET
Content Model
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Functional Job Analysis

Experience Requirements
• Training
• Experience
• Licensing

Worker Requirements
• Basic skills Occupational Requirements
• Cross-functional skills • Generalized work activities
• General knowledge • Work context
• Education • Organizational context

O* NET

Worker Characteristics Occupational Specific Requirements

• Abilities • Occupational skills, tasks,
• Interests and work values and knowledge
• Work styles • Machines, tools, and equipment

Occupational Characteristics
• Labor market information
• Occupational outlook
• Wages
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Functional Job Analysis

 Create a Functional Job Analysis for your dream job
using the ONet
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Position Analysis Questionnaire

 The position analysis questionnaire (PAQ):
 Was developed by researchers at Purdue University
 Contains 195 items
 Requires considerable experience and a high level of
reading comprehension to complete properly
 Is often filled out by a trained job analyst, who must
decide whether each item applies to a particular job
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Position Analysis Questionnaire

 PAQ items are divided into six major sections:
 Information input
 Mental processes
 Work output
 Job context
 Other job characteristics
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Position Analysis Questionnaire

 Computerized scoring of the PAQ is based on seven
dimensions:
 Decision making
 Communication
 Social responsibilities
 Performing skilled activities
 Being physically active
 Operating vehicles or equipment
 Processing information

 The scores permit development of job profiles and

job comparisons
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Position Analysis Questionnaire

 PAQ advantages:
 Has been widely used and researched
 Is an effective tool for a variety of purposes
 Is reliable, with little variance among job analysts’
ratings of the same jobs
 Is an effective way to establish differences in the
abilities required for jobs
 Is valid; jobs rated higher with the PAQ prove to be
those compensated at higher rates
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Position Analysis Questionnaire

 PAQ disadvantages:
 Requires time and patience to complete
 No specific work activities are described, so
behavioral activities performed in jobs may distort
actual work task differences
 Example: A typist and a ballet dancer may have similar
profiles because both require fine motor skills
 Ratingsmight represent the job analyst’s stereotype
about the work, rather than actual differences among
jobs
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Management Position Description Questionnaire

 Conducting a job analysis for managerial jobs is

challenging because of:
 The disparity across positions
 Levels in the hierarchy
 The type of industry

 An attempt to systematically analyze managerial

jobs was conducted at Control Data Corporation
 The result is the management position description
questionnaire (MPDQ)
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Management Position Description Questionnaire

 The MPDQ is:

 A checklist of 208 items related to the
concerns and responsibilities of managers
 A comprehensive description of managerial work
 Intended for use across most industrial settings
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Management Position Description Questionnaire

 The latest version of the MPDQ has 15 sections:

General information Decision making
Planning, organizing Administering
Controlling Supervising
Consulting, innovating Contacts
Coordinating Representing
Monitoring business indicators Overall ratings
Knowledge, skills, abilities Organization chart
Comments, reactions
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Management Position Description Questionnaire

 The common metric questionnaire (CMQ) is another

method of quantitative job analysis
 It is completed by a job incumbent
 Questionnaire items require a lower reading level
 It is more behaviorally concrete, making it easier for
incumbents to rate their jobs
 It is applicable to exempt and nonexempt positions

 Muchresearch on job analysis is being conducted in

Europe, focusing on alternative quantitative methods
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Job Descriptions and Specifications

 The job description is one of the primary outputs of
a systematic job analysis
 It is a written description of what the job entails
 It is hard to over-emphasize how important thorough,
accurate, and current job descriptions are to an
organization
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Job Descriptions and Specifications

 Changes in recent years have increased the need for
job descriptions:
 Massive organizational restructurings
 The need for new and creative ways to motivate and
reward employees
 The accelerated rate at which technology is changing
work environments
 New, more stringent regulation of employment
practices
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Job Descriptions and Specifications

 There is no standard format for a job description,
but most well-written, useful descriptions include:
 Job title
 Summary
 Equipment
 Environment
 Activities

 A job specification evolves from the job description

 It is especially useful for recruitment and selection
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Job Descriptions and Specifications

 R. J. Harvey’s guidelines for choosing the
characteristics included on a job specification:
 All job tasks must be identified and rated in terms of
importance, using sound job analysis techniques
 A panel of experts, incumbents, or supervisors should
specify the skills needed to perform each job task
 The importance of each skill must be rated
 Any other characteristics necessary for performing
the job should be identified (physical requirements,
professional certification)
 Each skill identified must be linked to a job task
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Job Descriptions and Specifications

 Any trait or skill stated on the job specification
should be required for performance of the job
 The Americans with Disabilities Act makes the job
analyst’s responsibilities even greater in this area
 Job specifications must differentiate between essential
and nonessential skills
 Essential skills are those for which alternative ways
of accomplishing the job are not possible
 Nonessential skills can be accommodated by
changing the structure or work methods of the job
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Job Analysis and Strategic HRM

 The fundamental nature of work may be changing:
 Functional areas are not as important as they once
were for defining a job
 After reengineering of processes, new job
responsibilities may be poorly defined
 Organizations must continually adapt to changing
business environments
 Thus, reengineering is likely in most organizations
 Job analysts traditionally create descriptions of jobs
as they currently exist
 Now they must also describe future jobs
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Job Analysis and Strategic HRM

 There is a growing need to match human resource
activities to an organization’s strategic planning
 Job specifications must accurately detail the
knowledge and skills that will complement future
strategic initiatives
 Job descriptions will no longer be snapshots of a
static job
 Strategic job analysis will have to capture both the
present and the future
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Job Analysis and Strategic HRM

 Compounding the problems of reengineering,
many work environments offer employees:
 Compressed work schedules
 Telecommuting
 Job sharing
 Flexible hours
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Job Analysis & Employee Competencies

 Competencies are general attributes employees need
across multiple jobs or within the organization
 Includes anything from “teamwork” to “leadership
potential”
 Many organizations identify, communicate, and
reward competencies they believe employees should
have
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Job Analysis & Employee Competencies

 Competency modeling reflects an organization’s
desire to:
 Communicate job requirements in ways that extend
beyond the job itself
 Describe and measure the organization’s workforce in
more general, competency-based terms
 Design and implement staffing programs focused
around competencies, rather than specific jobs, as a
way to increase staffing flexibility
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Job Design
 Job descriptions and specifications can be used for
designing or redesigning jobs
 There is no one best way to design a job
 Different situations call for different arrangements of
job characteristics
 Different emphasis may be placed on performance
and satisfaction as desired outcomes
 A single approach is unlikely to satisfy all a
manager’s goals
 The choice of job design involves trade-offs based on
the critical needs of the organization
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Job Design
 Approaches to the design of work:
 Perceptual-motor
 Biological
 Mechanistic
 Motivational

 The perceptual-motor and biological approaches are

based on human factors engineering
 They emphasize equipment design and matching
machines to operators
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Scientific Mgmt & the Mechanistic Approach

 Jobdesign was a central issue in F. W. Taylor’s
model of scientific management
 The work of every workman is fully planned out by
management at least one day in advance
 Each man receives complete written instructions
 The instructions specify what is to be done, how it is
to be done, and the time allowed for doing it
 Thegoal was to break jobs into simple, repetitive
tasks that could be done quickly and efficiently
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Scientific Mgmt & the Mechanistic Approach

 Recommendations from scientific management:
 Work should be studied scientifically
 It should be arranged so workers can be efficient
 Employees should be matched to the demands of
the job
 They should be trained to perform the job
 Monetary compensation should be tied directly to
performance
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Scientific Mgmt & the Mechanistic Approach

 Managers like the scientific management approach
because the goal is improving performance
 Repetitive, highly specialized work can lead to
employee dissatisfaction
 Efficiency gains may be offset by lower job
satisfaction, higher absenteeism, and turnover
 Job enlargement attempts to increase satisfaction by
giving employees a greater variety of things to do
 They are not additional authority or responsibility
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Job Enrichment: A Motivational Approach

 Jobenrichment tries to design jobs in ways that help
incumbents satisfy their need for:
 Growth
 Recognition
 Responsibility

 The job is expanded vertically

 Employees are given responsibility that might
previously have been part of a supervisor’s job
 According to Herzberg, employees are motivated by
jobs that enhance their feelings of self-worth
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Job Enrichment: A Motivational Approach

 A job must possess “core job dimensions” to lead to
desired outcomes:
 Skill variety
 Task identity
 Task significance
 Autonomy
 Feedback
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Job Enrichment: A Motivational Approach

 Having these core dimensions in a job produces three
critical psychological states:
 Experienced meaningfulness
 Experienced responsibility
 Knowledge of results
 The more these states are experienced, the more
internal work motivation the job incumbent feels
 Skillvariety, identity, and significance contribute
to a sense of meaningfulness
 Autonomy is related to feelings of responsibility
 Feedback is related to knowledge of results
1-61

Job Enrichment: A Motivational Approach

 The job characteristics model describes the
relationships that exist among four sets of factors:
 Core job dimensions
 Psychological states
 Personal and work-related outcomes
 Strength of needs

 After
20 years of research, there are no clear answers
about the effectiveness of enrichment
1-62

Work-Family Balance and Job Design

 Work-family tension is driven by changing
workforce demographics
 Women and single parents entering the workforce
 Dual-career couples
 The aging population

 Some organizations meet employees’ needs through

flexible work arrangements:
 Job sharing
 Flextime
 Telecommuting
1-63

Work-Family Balance and Job Design

 Benefits of family-friendly
arrangements:
 Higher recruitment
and retention rates
 Improved morale
 Lower absenteeism
and tardiness
 Higher levels of employee
productivity
1-64

Work-Family Balance and Job Design

 The success of job sharing depends on:
 Identifying jobs that can be shared
 Understanding employees’ individual sharing style
 Matching “partners” who have complementary
scheduling needs and skills
 With flextime, employees can choose when to be
at the office
 5 days/8 hours
 4 days/10 hours
 Arrive later on Monday, leave earlier on Friday
1-65

Work-Family Balance and Job Design

 Telecommuting allows employees to work at home

part- or full-time
 Communication is through phone, fax, computer
 Often resisted by managers who fear loss of control
and subordinate accessibility
1-66

Work-Family Balance and Job Design

 Three issues to consider when developing and
implementing flexible work options:
 The program should be open to all employees
 Train and reward managers for encouraging
subordinates to use flextime
 Be mindful of laws that impact flexible work
arrangement policies
1-67

Job Design: The Next Challenge

 In the 1980s and 1990s, European and Asian firms
embraced the quality management movement
 Self-directed teams have become important in the
success of manufacturers worldwide
 American firms are implementing self-directed work
teams and reengineering work processes to regain a
competitive advantage
 Reengineeringcannot succeed unless attention is
paid to how employees’ skills are affected
1-68

Job Design: The Next Challenge

 The appropriate response to these changes is
reflected in Coopers & Lybrand’s competency
alignment process (CAP)
 CAP determines the skill levels of employees in order
to identify skill gaps
 When a gap is identified, it is eliminated through a
variety of programs (training, redeployment, and
outsourcing)
 Withoutthese or similar efforts, reengineering will
probably not succeed