CHAPTER 4: WORKERS, JOBS, AND JOB ANALYSIS

I. Workforce Composition
- Diversity reflects the differences in human characteristics and composition in an organization.
- Individuals can be multicultural and be included in several groups.
- Business contribution of diverse workers
- Race and ethnicity
- Immigrant workers: the growth in the number of immigrants to the United States and other
developed countries.
- Generational differences: matures, baby boomers, generation X-ers, generation Y-ers
- Gender workforce diversity
II. Nature Of Jobs And Work
- Work flow analysis: the study of the way work moves through an organization
- Technology and work flow analysis: factor that must be considered in work flow analysis in
organizations is technology.
- Business process reengineering:
 Rethink
 Redesign
 Retool
III. Job Design
- Organizing tasks, duties, responsibilities, and other elements into a productive unit of work.
 Can influence performance in certain jobs
 Can affect job satisfaction
 Can impact both physical and mental health
- Workers and job design:
 Full-time employees
 Part-time employees
 Independent employees
 Temporary employees
 Contingent employees
- Person-job fit: Matching characteristics of people with characteristics of jobs.
- Common approaches to job design:
 Job enlargement: broadening the scope of a job by expanding the number of different tasks to
be performed.
 Job enrichment: increasing the depth of a job by adding responsibility for planning, organizing,
controlling, or evaluating the job.
 Job rotation: process of shifting a person from job to job.
 Job sharing: scheduling arrangement in which two employees perform the work of one full-time
job.
- Characteristics of jobs:
 Skill variety
 Task identity
 Task significance
 Autonomy
 Feedback
- Using worker teams in jobs
 Special types of teams: special-purpose team, self-directed team, virtual team
 Global teams
 Teams and work efforts
IV. Jobs And Work Scheduling
- Telework: Employees work with technology via electronic, telecommunications, and Internet
means
 Teleworking considerations: more employers use telework, there are both advantages and
concerns to consider.
- Work schedule alternatives
 Shift work: common work schedule
 Compressed workweek: in which a full week’s work is accomplished in fewer than fi ve 8-hour
days.
- Work flexibility and scheduling
 Employees working at home
 Employer policies on flexible work schedules
 Work-life balancing
V. Job Analysis
- Systematic way of gathering and analyzing information about the content, context, and human
requirements of jobs.
- Purposes of job analysis
 Work activities and behaviors
 Interactions with others
 Performance standards
 Financial and budgeting impact
 Machines and equipment used
 Working conditions
 Supervision given and received
 Knowledge, skills, and abilities needed
- Job analysis responsibilities: require a high degree of coordination and cooperation between the
HR unit and operating managers.
- Different types of job analysis are used as part of HR efforts.
 Task-based job analysis: most traditionally and widely used method
 Competency-based job analysis:

+ Competencies: individual capabilities that can be linked to performance by individuals or teams

+ Technical competencies: often used to refer to specific knowledge and skills of employees.
- Behavioral competencies:
 Customer focus
 Team orientation
 Technical expertise
 Results orientation
 Communication effectiveness
 Leadership
 Conflict resolution
 Innovation
 Adaptability
 Decisiveness
VI. Implementing Job Analysis
- Planning the job analysis
 Identify objectives of job analysis
 Obtain top management support
- Preparing for and introducing job analysis
 Identify jobs and methodology
 Review existing job documentation
 Communicate process to managers/employees
- Conducting the job analysis
 Gather job analysis data
 Review and compile data
- Developing job descriptions and job specifications
 Draft job descriptions and specifications
 Review drafts with managers and employees
 Finalize job descriptions and recommendations
- Maintaining and updating job descriptions and job specifications
 Update job descriptions and specifications as organization changes
 Periodically review all jobs
VII. Job Analysis Methods
- Observation
 Work sampling: allows a manager to determine the content and pace of a typical workday
through statistical sampling of certain actions rather than through continuous observation and
timing of all actions.
 Employee diary/log:
- Interviewing: requires a manager or an HR specialist to talk with the employees performing each
job.
- Questionnaires: is a widely used method of gathering data on jobs.
 Position Analysis Questionnaire (PAQ): a specialized instrument that incorporates checklists
 Managerial job analysis questionnaire: Management Position Description Questionnaire
(MPDQ). Composed of more than 200 statements, the MPDQ examines a variety of managerial
dimensions, including decision making and supervising.
- Computerized job analysis systems:
- Combination methods
- Job analysis and O*Net
VIII. Behavioral And Legal Aspects Of Job Analysis
- Current incumbent emphasis
- “Inflation” of jobs and jobs titles
- Employee and managerial anxieties
 Employee fears: may have concerns the purpose of a detailed investigation of their jobs
 Managerial straitjacket:
- Legal aspects of job analysis:
 Job analysis and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

+ Percentage of time spent on tasks

+ Frequency of tasks done

+ Frequency of tasks done

+ Identify the physical demands of jobs

 Job analysis and wage/hour regulations