JOB:
“Job is a ‘group of tasks to be performed everyday.”
JOB ANALYSIS
Definition 1: (Process of Collecting Information)
“Job Analysis is a process of studying and collecting information relating to operations and responsibilities of a specific job. The immediate products of this analysis are ‘Job Description’ and ‘Job Specifications’.”
Definition 2: (Systematic Exploration of Activities)
“Job Analysis is a systematic exploration of activities within a job. It is a basic technical procedure that is used to define duties and responsibilities and accountabilities of the job.”
Definition 3: (Identifying Job Requirements)
“Job is a collection of tasks that can be performed by a single employee to contribute to the production of some product or service, provided by the organization. Each job has certain ability requirements (as well as certain rewards) associated with it. Job Analysis is a process used to identify these requirements.”
MEANING OF JOB ANALYSIS
Job Analysis is a process of collecting information about a job. The process of job analysis results into two sets of data.
- Job Description
- Job Specification
As a result Job analysis involves the following steps in a logical order.
Steps of Job Analysis
- Collecting and recording job information
- Checking the job information for accuracy
- Writing job description based on information collected to determine the skills, knowledge, abilities and activities required
- Updating and upgrading this information
PURPOSE OF JOB ANALYSIS: –
- Human Resource Planning (HRP): – The numbers and types of personnel are determined by the jobs, which need to be staffed. Job related information in the form of Job Analysis serves this purpose or use.
- Recruitment & Selection: – Recruitment precedes job analysis. It helps HR to locate places to obtain employees. It also helps in better continuity and planning in staffing in the organization. Also selecting a good candidate also requires detailed job information. Because the objective of hiring is to match the right candidate for right job
- Training & Development: Training and development programs can be designed depending upon job requirement and analysis. Selection of trainees is also facilitated by job analysis.
- Job Evaluation: Job evaluation means determination of relative worth of each job for the purpose of establishing wage and salary credentials. This is possible with the help of job description and specifications; i.e. Job Analysis.
- Remuneration: Job analysis also helps in determining wage and salary for all jobs.
- Performance Appraisal: Performance appraisal, assessments, rewards, promotions, is facilitated by job analysis by way of fixing standards of job performance.
- Personnel Information: Job analysis is vital for building personnel information systems and processes for improving administrative efficiency and providing decision support.
- Safety & Health: Job Analysis helps to uncover hazardous conditions and unhealthy environmental factors so that corrective measures can be taken to minimize and avoid possibility of human injury.
PROCESS OF JOB ANALYSIS
Process 1: Strategic Choices
Process 2: Collecting Information
Process 3: Processing Information
Process 4: Job Description
Process 5: Job Specification
Strategic Choices: –
Extent of involvement of employees: Extent of employee involvement is a debatable point. Too much involvement may result in bias in favor of a job in terms of inflating duties and responsibilities. Too less involvement leads to suspicion about the motives behind the job. Besides it may also lead to inaccurate information. Hence extent of involvement depends on the needs of the organization and employee.
Level of details of job analysis: The nature of jobs being analyzed determines the level of details in job analysis. If the purpose were for training programs or assessing the worth of job, levels of details required would be great. If the purpose is just clarification the details required would be less.
Timing and frequency of Job Analysis: When do you do Job Analysis?
- Initial stage, for new organization
- New Job is created
- Changes in Job, Technology and Processes
- Deficiencies and Disparities in Job
- New compensation plan is introduced
- Updating and upgrading is required.
Past-oriented and future-oriented Job Analysis: For rapidly changing organization more future oriented approach would be desired. For traditional organizations past oriented analysis would be required. However more future oriented analysis may be derived based on past data.
Sources of Job Data: For job analysis number of human and non-human sources is available besides jobholder himself. Following can be sources of data available for job analysis.
| Non-Human Sources | Human Sources |
| Existing job descriptions and specifications Equipment maintenance records Equipment design blueprints Architectural blueprints of work area Films of employee working Training manuals and materials Magazines, newspapers, literatures | Job Analysis Job Incumbents Supervisors Job Experts |
Collecting Information: –
Information collection is done on the basis of following 3 parameters
Types of Data for Job Analysis:
- Work Activities (Tasks details)
- Interface with other jobs and equipments (Procedures, Behaviors, Movements)
- Machines, Tools, Equipments and Work Aids (List, Materials, Products, Services)
- Job Context (Physical, Social, Organizational, Work schedule)
- Personal Requirement (Skills, Education, Training, Experience)
Methods of Data Collection:
- Observation
- Interview
- Questionnaires
- Checklists
- Technical Conference
- Diary Methods
Who to Collect Data?
- Trained Job Analysts
- Supervisors
- Job Incumbents
Processing Information: –
Once the job information is collected it needs to be processed, so that it would be useful in various personnel functions. Specifically job related data would be useful to prepare job description and specifications, which form the next two processes of job analysis.
METHODS OF DATA COLLECTION:
Observation: Job Analyst carefully observes the jobholder and records the information in terms of what, how the job is done and how much time is taken. It is a simple and accurate method, but is also time consuming and inapplicable to jobs involving mental activities and unobservable job cycles. The analysts must be fully trained observers.
Interview: In this analyst interviews the jobholders, his supervisors to elicit information. It can be Structured or Unstructured Interview. Again this is also a time consuming method in case of large organizations. Plus there is also a problem of bias.
Questionnaires: A standard questionnaire is given to jobholder about his job, which can be filled and given back to supervisors or job analysts. The questionnaire may contain job title, jobholder’s name, managers name, reporting staff, description of job, list of main duties and responsibilities etc. It is useful in large number of staffs and less time consuming. However the accuracy of information leaves much to be desired.
Checklists: It is more similar to questionnaire but the response sheet contains fewer subjective judgments and tends to be either yes or no variety. Preparation of checklist is a challenging job itself.
Technical Conference: Here a conference of supervisors is used. The analysts initiate the discussions providing job details. However this method lacks accuracy.
Diary Methods: In this method jobholder is required to note down their activities day by day in their diary. If done faithfully this technique is accurate and eliminates errors caused by memory lapses etc.
Quantitative Methods of Job Data Collection: –
Position Analysis Questionnaire (PAQ): –
PAQ is a highly specialized instrument for analyzing any job in terms of employee activities. The PAQ contains 194 job elements on which job is created depending on the degree to which an element is present. These elements are grouped together into 6 categories.
- U – Usability / Use of Job
- I – Importance of Job
- T – Time
- P – Possibility of Occurrence of Job
- A – Applicability of Job
- S – Specialty Tasks of Job
The primary advantage of PAQ is that it can be used to analyze almost every job. This analysis provides a comparison of a specific job with other job classifications, particularly for selection and remuneration purposes. However PAQ needs to be completed by trained job analysts only rather than incumbents.
Management Position Description Questionnaire (MPDQ): –
Highly structured questionnaire, containing 208 elements relating to managerial responsibilities, demand, restrictions and other position characteristics These 208 elements are grouped under 13 categories.
PAQ and MPDQ yield standardized information about the worker and the job.
Functional Job Analysis: –
It is a worker oriented job analytical approach, which attempts to describe the whole person on the job.
BARRIERS OF JOB ANALYSIS
- Support from Top Management
- Single means and source, reliance on single method rather than combination
- No Training or Motivation to Jobholders
- Activities and Data may be Distorted
JOB DESCRIPTION
“Job Description implies objective listing of the job title, tasks, and responsibilities involved in a job.”
Job description is a word picture in writing of the duties, responsibilities and organizational relationships that constitutes a given job or position. It defines continuing work assignment and a scope of responsibility that are sufficiently different from those of the other jobs to warrant a specific title. Job description is a broad statement of purpose, scope, duties and responsibilities of a particular job.
Contents of Job Description
- Job Identification
- Job Summary
- Job Duties and Responsibilities
- Supervision specification
- Machines, tools and materials
- Work conditions
- Work hazards
- Definition of unusual terms
Format of Job Description
- Job Title
- Region/Location
- Department
- Reporting to (Operational and Managerial)
- Objective
- Principal duties and responsibilities
Features of Good Job Description
- Up to date
- Proper Job Title
- Comprehensive Job Summary
- Clear duties and responsibilities
- Easily understandable
- State job requirements
- Specify reporting relationships
- Showcase degrees of difficulties
- Indicates opportunities for career development
- Offer bird’s-eye-view of primary responsibilities
JOB SPECIFICATIONS
“Job Specification involves listing of employee qualifications, skills and abilities required to meet the job description. These specifications are needed to do job satisfactorily.”
In other words it is a statement of minimum and acceptable human qualities necessary to perform job properly. Job specifications seeks to indicate what kind of persons may be expected to most closely approximate the role requirements and thus it is basically concerned with matters of selection, screening and placement and is intended to serve as a guide in hiring.
Contents of Job Specifications
- Physical Characteristics
- Psychological characteristics
- Personal characteristics
- Responsibilities
- Demographic features
Further the job specifications can be divided into three broad categories
Essential Attributes
Desirable Attributes
Contra-Indicators – indicators hampering the success of job