McGraw-Hill/Irwin© 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

The Analysis and Design of Work After reading this chapter, you should be able to:  Analyze the work flow process, identifying the output, activities, and inputs in the production of a product or service.  Understand the definition and the importance of job analysis.  Describe job analysis and the stages and methods used in the process.  Understand the different approaches to job design. Chapter 2 © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.McGraw-Hill/Irwin

Work-flow Analysis  Work-flow analysis is useful because it provides a means for the managers to understand all the tasks required to produce a high-quality product as well as the skills necessary to perform those tasks.  Work flow analysis includes:  analyzing work outputs  analyzing work processes  analyzing work inputs McGraw-Hill/Irwin© 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

Developing a Work-Flow Analysis McGraw-Hill/Irwin© 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Raw Inputs - material - information Equipment - facilities - systems People - knowledge - skills - abilities ACTIVITY what tasks are required? OUTPUT - product/service - how measured?

The Importance of Job Analysis to HR Managers Job Analysis Work Redesign HR Planning Recruitment Selection Performance Appraisal Job Evaluation Career Planning Training and Development McGraw-Hill/Irwin© 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

The Importance of Job Analysis to Line Managers  Managers must have detailed information about all the jobs in their work group to understand the work-flow process.  Managers need to understand the job requirements to make intelligent hiring decisions.  Since the manager is responsible for ensuring that each individual is performing his or her job satisfactorily, the manager must clearly understand the tasks required in every job. McGraw-Hill/Irwin© 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

Necessity of Continuous Job Analysis Factors causing the change of job characteristics: a. Technology: technological improvement results in the change of tasks and duties. b. People: people’s ability, interest and needs may cause the change of tasks and duties. c. Environment: changes in legal and social environment may require the change of tasks and duties.

Definition of Job Analysis  Job analysis refers to the process of getting detailed information about jobs. including the information about the content, context, and the human requirements of jobs. Job Analysis= Job Description+Job Specification

Job Analysis Information  Job Description - a list of tasks, duties, and responsibilities (TDRs)  Job Specification - a list of knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics (KSAOs) McGraw-Hill/Irwin© 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

Sample Job Description Job Title: Maintenance Mechanic General Description of Job: General maintenance and repair of all equipment used in the operations of a particular district. Includes the servicing of company used vehicles, shop equipment, and machinery used on job sites. 1. Essential duty (40%) Maintenance of Equipment 2. Essential duty (40%) Repair of Equipment 3. Essential duty (10%) Testing and Approval 4. Essential duty (10%) Maintain Stock Nonessential functions: Other duties assigned McGraw-Hill/Irwin© 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

Sample Job Specification

Stages in the Job Analysis Process

Job Analysis Methods Observation Interviewing Standardized Interviews Panel Interviews Job logs/incidents report Questionnaires PAQ, DOL,FJA

A. Interview: individual, group and supervisor interviews. Simple but not quite reliable. B. Questionnaire: ask job incumbents to fill in prepared questionnaire to collect information. Better than interview but still not very reliable. C. Observation: observe job activities, working conditions, human behavior and traits at work place. Feasible for some jobs but not all. D. Job logs/incidents report: study job logs and incident reports. Require careful analysis.

Questionnaire A. Position Analysis Questionnaire (PAQ) Containing 194 items of six categories: information input; thinking process; work output; interpersonal relationship; working conditions; other traits. B. Department of Labor Procedure (DOL) Containing job title, industry and its code, and worker functions with respect to data, people and things. Each function has an importance level. C. Functional Job Analysis (FJA) Rates the job not just on data, people and things but also on necessary instruction, reasoning, calculation, and verbal ability.

Job Design  Job design is the process of defining the way work will be performed and the tasks that will be required in a given job.  Job redesign refers to changing the tasks or the way work is performed in an existing job.  The four approaches used in job design are:  mechanistic approach  motivational approach  biological approach  perceptual-motor approach McGraw-Hill/Irwin© 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

Classic Approaches to Job Design Job Enlargement Job Enrichment Job Rotation Job Design

Mechanistic Approach  Has its roots in classical industrial engineering.  Focuses on designing jobs around the concepts of task specialization, skill simplification, and repetition.  Scientific management, one of the earliest mechanistic approaches, sought to identify the one best way to perform the job through the use of time-and-motion studies.  The scientific management approach was built upon in later years and resulted in a mechanistic approach that calls for the job to be designed very simply.  New employees can be trained to perform the job quickly and inexpensively. McGraw-Hill/Irwin© 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

Motivational Approach  The motivational approach to job design focuses on the job characteristics that affect the psychological meaning and motivational potential of job design.  A focus on increasing job complexity through job enlargement, job enrichment, and the construction of jobs around sociotechnical systems.  A model of how job design affects employee reaction is the “Job Characteristics Model”. McGraw-Hill/Irwin© 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

Job Characteristics Model Core Job Dimensions Skill Variety Task Identity Task Significance Autonomy Feedback Psychological States Meaningful Work Responsibility for Outcome Knowledge of Results Work Outcomes High Motivation High Quality of Work High Satisfaction Low Absenteeism and Turnover McGraw-Hill/Irwin© 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

Biological Approach  Comes primarily from the sciences of biomechanics, or the study of body movements  Is referred to as ergonomics, or the concern with examining the interface between individuals' physiological characteristics and the physical work environment.  The goal of this approach is to minimize the physical strain on the worker by structuring the physical work environment around the way the body works.  Focuses on outcomes such as physical fatigue, aches and pains, and health complaints. McGraw-Hill/Irwin© 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

Perceptual-Motor Approach  Has its roots in the human-factors literature.  Focuses on human mental capabilities and limitations.  The goal is to design jobs in a way that ensures that they do not exceed people's mental capabilities.  Tries to improve reliability, safety, and user reactions by designing jobs in a way that reduces the information processing requirements of the job. McGraw-Hill/Irwin© 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

Trade-Offs among Different Approaches to Job Design Job Design Approach Positive Outcomes Negative Outcomes Motivational Mechanistic Biological Perceptual-Motor Higher job satisfaction Higher motivation Greater job involvement Lower absenteeism Decreased training time Higher utilization levels Lower likelihood of error Less chance of mental overload and stress Less physical effort Less physical fatigue Fewer health complaints Fewer medical incidences Lower absenteeism Higher job satisfaction Lower likelihood of error Lower likelihood of accidents Less chance of mental overload and stress Lower training time Higher utilization levels Increased training time Lower utilization levels Greater likelihood of error Greater chance of mental overload and stress Lower job satisfaction Lower motivation Higher absenteeism Higher financial costs because of changes in equipment or job environment Lower job satisfaction Lower motivation McGraw-Hill/Irwin© 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.