Job analysis

Introduction, importance, methods etc.

 What is a Job?
• Job
– A group of related activities
and duties
Job
Job
• Position
– The different duties and
responsibilities performed by
only one employee Job
Job Job
Job Job
Job
• Job Family
– A group of individual jobs
with similar characteristics

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Western. All rights reserved.
 Job Analysis
• Job analysis is a systematic investigation of the tasks,
duties and responsibilities necessary to do a job.
• Job analysis is the process of collecting job related
information.
 Job Analysis
• Job Analysis
– The process of obtaining information about jobs
by determining what the duties, tasks, or activities
of jobs are.
• HR managers use the data to develop job descriptions
and job specifications that are the basis for employee
performance appraisal and development.

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 Why Bother??
• The Job Analysis provides the foundation for
almost everything HR is involved in.
– Job Descriptions
– Employee Selection
– Training
– Performance Appraisals
– Job Classification
– Job Evaluation
– Job Design
 Job Analysis
• Analyze the job, not the person doing the job
• KSAs-the three key elements of job analysis

– Knowledge
– Skills
– Abilities

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 Job Analysis
• Goal
– Determine the duties and responsibilities of a
particular job
– Determine how the job relates to other jobs and the
level of importance of the job
– Determine the necessary qualifications in order to
perform the job
– Determine the working conditions associated with
the job.

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 Nuts and bolts

• What is analyzed?
– Work activities
– Working conditions
• Supervisors
• Location
• Schedule
– Machines and equipment

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 Nuts and bolts
• What is analyzed? (cntd.)
– Job performance
• Operations
• Standards
• Time
– Experience, training, and skills
– Supervision and promotion patterns

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 Nuts and Bolts

• Who is involved in the job analysis?

– Management
– Supervisors
– Job analysts
– Job incumbent
– Unions
– Consultants

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 Sources of Job Information
• SMEs (Subject Matter Experts)
– people who have in-depth knowledge of specific
job under analysis, job skills, and abilities

– Job Incumbent
– Supervisors
– Job Analyst
Objectives/Purpose of Job Analysis
The Process of
Job Analysis

Figure 3.1
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Western. All rights reserved.
Methods of Collecting Job Analysis
Data
• Observation
• Performing the job.
• Critical incidents
• Interview- individual & group
• Panel of experts
• Diary method
• Questionnaire
– Structured
– Unstructured
 Types of Job analysis Information
 Work Activities:

 Machines, Tools, Equipments and Work

Aids used

 Personal requirements

 Job context
 Interviews
• Most commonly used method
– very adaptable
• Usually conducted with
– job incumbents
– technical experts
– supervisors
• Questions like:
– what are your most typical duties?
– How long do they take?
– How do you do them?
• Con: people may misrepresent/exaggerate job
 Observation
• Unobtrusive method
– camera; video; audio
• Excellent for understanding and
appreciating conditions under which job is
performed
• Allows analyst to experience aspects of job
that worker may not be aware of
• Not as good for understanding why
behaviors do/do not occur
 Questionnaires
• Unstructured format is more useful when:
– Questions are open ended.
– Questions that probing
– The number of incumbents is less
– Roles are unclear

• Structured more useful when:

– The jobs are fixed and duties extremely clear.
– Number of incumbents is large.
 Outcomes of Job Analysis
• The information obtained from job analysis is classified
into three categories.

–Job description

–Job specification

–Job evaluation
 Job Description
• A job description is a written statement of the duties,
responsibilities, required qualifications and reporting
relationships of a particular job.

• The job description is based on objective information

obtained through job analysis.

• Job description acts as an important resource for

– Describing the job to potential candidates
– Guiding new hired employees in what they are specifically
expected to do
– Providing a point of comparison in appraising whether the
actual duties align with the stated duties.
 Job Description
• Title: compensation manager
• Code: HR/235
• Department: Human resource department
• Duties: conduct job analysis
prepare job descriptions
relate salary to performance
Develop and administer PA system
Conduct periodic salary survey’s
Working condition : normal , eight hours per day, five days a
week
Report to : Director of Human resource department
 Job specification

• Job specifications specify the minimum acceptable

qualifications required by the individual to perform the task
efficiently. Based on the information obtained from the job
analysis procedures, job specification identifies the
qualifications, appropriate skills, knowledge, and abilities and
experienced required to perform the job.

• Job specification is an important tool in the selection process

as it keeps the attention of the selector on the necessary
qualifications required for that job.
 Job specification
• Education : MBA with specialisation in HR/PG diploma in HR
• A diploma in Labor Laws
• Experience: At least 3 years experience in a similar position in a
manufacturing company
• Skill, Knowledge, abilities: Knowledge of compensation
practices
• Skill in writing job descriptions, in conducting job interviews
• Ability to conduct meetings, to plan and prioritise work
• Work orientation factors: position may require upto 15% travel
• Age: Preferably below 30 years
 Job Evaluation
• Job evaluation provides the relative value of each job
in the organization. It is an important tool to
determine compensation administration.

• If an organization is to have an equitable

compensation program, jobs that have similar
demands on terms of skills, education and other
characteristics should be placed in the common
compensation groups.
 Typical Job Analysis
• Read any info available re: job
– training manuals
– job descriptions
– equipment manuals
• Interview middle managers
– pick up lingo
– understand job importance acc. to management
– get feel for job
– develop questions for later interviews
 Typical Job Analysis cont.
• Observe 3 or 4 people doing job
• Schedule interviews with incumbents and
supervisors
• Distribute questionnaires/inventories re: job
duties
• Combine/compile info (most imp.)
– must summarize using all info.
– no standard procedure; uses creativity
 Role Analysis
• At operating level it is possible to write JD that reflect what
workers do while at work. At middle and higher management
levels, a clear defination of job related behaviours is not
possible. JA fails to capture the behavioural expectations of
various groups that influence the actions of job holder.
• A roles to be played by a job holder may undergo a complete
transformation over a period of time
• Role analysis gives answer to the above. A role is a set of
expectations people have from the behaviour of the person
in a position
 Role analysis ( contd.)
• A position holder may perform three roles in a
day: expected role, perceived role and enacted role.
• Expected role: what other people expect from a
person
• perceived role : how individual thinks he should
behave to fulfill the expected role
• Enacted role: the way person actually behaves in
the org
•
 Why do we do Job Analyses?
• Reduce Role Conflict and Ambiguity
– reduce discrepancy between what organization thinks
job is and what job is in reality
• Design and Evaluation of Training
– focus training on most difficult and/or most frequent
elements of job
• Performance Appraisal
– criteria for appraisal should be matched with most
important elements of job
 Why Job Analysis?
• Job Design
– simplify job with too many disparate activities
• Personnel Selection
– once KSAs are identified, job requirements can
be generated
– items on job tests can be written based on JA
• e.g., if job requires high intelligence, give
intelligence test
 Competency analysis
• A skill is a task or activity required for
competency on the job. Competency in a skill
requires knowledge, experience, attitude, and
feedback .It is a behaviour
• When organisations work in fast changing
environment employees have to work in
different teams , take up tasks of varied
nature and perform multiple roles
 Competency Approach
• This approach encourages employees to
develop role based competencies (KSA
needed to perform to perform) and to be
used in various work situations
• These would be in line with organisation
strategy like interpersonal communication,
decision making ability, conflict resolution
skills, adaptability and self motivation
 Other terms
• Job rotation: involves moving employees
from job to job to add variety and reduce
boredom
• Job enlargement: refers to expansion of
number of different tasks performed by an
employee in a single job.
• Job enrichment: involves adding more
motivators to make job rewarding