Jobs and the Design of Work Chapter 14 Organizational Behavior: Foundations, Realities, & Challenges Nelson & Quick, 5th edition Jobs and the Design of Work

Job Compared to Work Job – a set of specified work and task activities that engage an individual in an organization Organizational position – a job in relation to other parts of the organization Career – a sequence of job experiences over time Work – mental or physical activity that has productive results Meaning of Work – the way a person interprets and understands the value of work as part of life

by South-Western, a division of Thomson Learning. B – provides personal affect and identity A – value comes from performance; accountability is important Six Patterns of Work C – profit accrues to others by work performance F – activity constrained to specific time periods; no positive affect through its performance E –generally unpleasant physically and mentally strenuous activity D – physical activity directed by others and performed in a workplace Copyright ©2006 by South-Western, a division of Thomson Learning. All rights reserved

by South-Western, a division of Thomson Learning. Job Characteristics Theory Scientific Management Traditional Approaches to Job Design Job Enrichment Job Enlargement/ Job Rotation Copyright ©2006 by South-Western, a division of Thomson Learning. All rights reserved

Scientific Management Emphasizes work simplification (standardization and the narrow, explicit specification of task activities for workers) - Undervalues the human capacity for thought and ingenuity + Allows diverse groups to work together + Leads to production efficiency and higher profits

Job Enlargement – a method of job design that increases the number of activities in a job to overcome the boredom of overspecialized work Job Rotation – a variation of job enlargement in which workers are exposed to a variety of specialized jobs over time Cross-Training – a variation of job enlargement in which workers are trained in different specialized tasks or activities Job Enlargement/ Job Rotation

Job Enrichment – designing or redesigning jobs by incorporating motivational factors into them Emphasis is on recognition, responsibility, and advancement opportunity Job Enrichment

Job Characteristics Model – a framework for understanding person–job fit through the interaction of core job dimensions with critical psychological states within a person Job Diagnostic Survey (JDS) – the survey instrument designed to measure the elements in the Job Characteristics Model Job Characteristics Theory

Job Characteristics Model Core job dimensions Critical psychological states Personal and work outcomes Experienced work’s meaningfulness Experienced responsibility for work’s outcomes Knowledge of work activities’ results Skill variety Task identity Task significance High internal work motivation High-quality work performance High satisfaction with the work Low absenteeism and turnover Autonomy Feedback Employee growth, need, strength Copyright ©2006 by South-Western, a division of Thomson Learning. All rights reserved J.R. Hackman and G.R. Oldham, “The Relationship Among Core Job Dimensions, the Critical Psychological States, and On-the-Job Outcomes,” The Job Diagnostic Survey: An Instrument for the Diagnosis of Jobs and the Evaluation of Job Redesign Projects, 1974. Reprinted by permission of Greg R. Oldham. 2

Five Core Job Characteristics Motivating Potential Score MPS = Skill variety Task identity significance x [Autonomy] x [Feedback] 3 + Copyright ©2006 by South-Western, a division of Thomson Learning. All rights reserved

Social Information Processing (SIP) Model SIP Model – a model that suggests that the important job factors depend in part on what others tell a person about the job Four premises 1) people provide cues to understanding the work environment 2) people help us judge our jobs 3) people tell us how they see our jobs 4) people’s positive and negative feedback help us understand our feelings about our jobs

Interdisciplinary Approach Motivational Mechanistic Biological Perceptual/ motor Ergonomics – The science of adapting work and working conditions to the employee or worker

Outcomes of Various Job Design Approaches Decreased training time Higher utilization levels Lower error likelihood Less mental overload Lower stress levels Higher job satisfaction Higher motivation Greater job involvement Higher job performance Lower absenteeism Mechanistic Approach Motivational Approach + + - - Lower job satisfaction Lower motivation Higher absenteeism Increased training time Lower personnel utilization Greater chance of errors Greater chance of mental overload and stress Copyright ©2006 by South-Western, a division of Thomson Learning. All rights reserved 3

Outcomes of Various Job Design Approaches Less physical effort Less physical fatigue Fewer health complaints Fewer medical incidents Lower absenteeism Higher job satisfaction Lower error likelihood Lower accident likelihood Less mental stress Decreased training time Higher utilization levels + Biological Approach + Perceptual Motor Approach - - Higher financial costs because of changes in equipment or job environment Lower job satisfaction Lower motivation Copyright ©2006 by South-Western, a division of Thomson Learning. All rights reserved 3

International Perspectives on the Design of Work The Japanese Approach Emphasizes strategic level Encourages collective and cooperative working arrangements Emphasizes lean production lean production

Lean Production Using committed employees with ever-expanding responsibilities to achieve zero waste, 100% good product, delivered on time, every time

International Perspectives on the Design of Work The German Approach Previously, Technocentric – placing technology and engineering at the center of job design decisions Recently, Anthropocentric – placing human considerations at the center of job design decisions Copyright ©2006 by South-Western, a division of Thomson Learning. All rights reserved

International Perspectives on the Design of Work The Scandinavian Approach encourages high degrees of worker control encourages good social support systems for workers

by South-Western, a division of Thomson Learning. Levels of evaluation of human work Scientific approaches of labor sciences Problem areas and assignment to disciplines Technical, anthropometric, and psychophysical problems View from natural science Practicability Technical, physiological, and medical problems Primarily oriented to groups Endurability Primarily oriented to individuals Economical and sociological problems Acceptability View from cultural studies Sociopsychological and economic problems Satisfaction Copyright ©2006 by South-Western, a division of Thomson Learning. All rights reserved H. Luczak, “’Good Work’ Design: An Ergonomic, Industrial Engineering Perspective,” in J.C. Quick, L.R. Murphy, and J. J. Hurrell, eds. Stress and Well-Being at Work (Washington, D.C.): American Psychological Association. Reprinted by permission.

Work Design and Well-Being: To increase control in work organizations Give workers the opportunity to control aspects of work and workplace Design machines and tasks with optimal response times and/or ranges Implement performance-monitoring systems as source of worker feedback

Work Design and Well-Being: To reduce uncertainty Provide employees with timely and complete work information needed Make clear and unambiguous work assignments Improve communication at shift change time Increase employee access to information sources

Work Design and Well-Being: To manage conflict Use participative decision making to reduce conflict Use supportive supervisory styles to resolve conflict Provide sufficient resource availability to meet work demands, thus preventing conflict

Emerging Issues in Design of Work Telecommuting – employees work at home or in other locations geographically separate from their company’s main location Alternative work patterns Job Sharing – an alternative work pattern in which there is more than one person occupying a single job Flextime – an alternative work pattern that enables employees to set their own daily work schedules

Emerging Issues in Design of Work Technology at work Virtual Office – a mobile platform of computer, telecommunication, and information technology and services Technostress – the stress cause by new and advancing technologies in the workplace Task Revision – the modification of incorrectly specified roles or jobs Skill development

by South-Western, a division of Thomson Learning. Performance Consequences of Role Behaviors Role Characteristics Standard Behavior Extra Role Counter Role Correctly Specified Role Ordinary good performance Excellent performance (organizational citizenship and prosocial behavior) Poor performance (deviance, dissent, and grievance) Incorrectly Specified Very poor (bureaucratic zeal) (task revision and redirection, role innovation) Counter-Role Behavior – deviant behavior in either a correctly or incorrectly defined job or role Copyright ©2006 by South-Western, a division of Thomson Learning. All rights reserved Republished with permission of Academy of Management, PO Box 3020, Briar Cliff Manor, NY 10510-8020. “Task Revision: A Neglected Form of Work Performance,” (Table), R. M. Straw & R. D. Boettger, Academy of Management Journal, 1990, Vol. 33. Reproduced by permission of the publisher via Copyright Clearance Center, Inc.0

The Distinguishing Feature of Job Design in the Future Flexibility