Uses of Job Analysis Information

Uses of  Job Analysis  Information 

Job analysis is one of the most pervasive and important task of HR management. Its products job descriptions,  job specifications and job evaluations-have many and varied uses beyond those mentioned previously. A brief listing of these uses is as follows: 

1. Recruitment, Selection and Orientation: It is the first and most important area of use. Job analysis information indicates the requirements of each job. JA information provides a realistic basis for the recruitment and selection activities. Basically the goal is to match the job requirements with workers abilities and interests. For the new trainee, a job description is most useful for orientation purposes, too.

2. Organization and Manpower Planning: It is also helpful in organizational planning. It is true because it defines labour needs in concrete terms and coordinates the activities of the work  force. Again, it clearly divides duties and responsibilities.

 

3. Redesign of the job: Jobs may be studied in order to improvement of work methods, reduce errors, and eliminate unnecessary handling of materials. They  may also be studied to know  duplication of efforts, increase commitment and responsibility, etc. Quite often the optimum results in this work can be gained by combining different approaches. They can be the opinions of the industrial engineer, the human factors, psychologists, and the organizational experts, etc.

4. Training: Due to internal and external reasons training becomes necessary to the employees. Sometimes, the need for training also arises due to lack of abilities of the employees to use the equipment and work methods. So, description of duties and equipment used is highly essential in developing the content of training programs. 

5. Performance Appraisal: Previously employees were evaluated on characteristics such as dependability and motivation. There is now a tendency toward establishing job goal and appraising the work done toward these goals. In this type of appraisal, a job description is useful in defining the areas in which job goals should be established.

6. Health and Safety: It provides an opportunity for identifying hazardous (risky) conditions and unhealthy environmental factors. This information helps managers a lot because they can take corrective measures to minimize and avoid the possibility of accidents.

7. Wage and Salary Administration: Job analysis information indicates the qualifications required for doing a specified job. It  also indicates the  risks and hazards involved in its performance. Analysis of these factors helps in salary and wage administration.

8. Career development: Job information helps the firm to chart channels of promotion. It also provides the employee with data, concerning opportunities, and requirement for careers within the organization. In other words, job analysis information are highly useful in determining career development of employees. 

9. Labour Relations: A job description is a standard of function. If an employee attempts to add or subtract from the duties listed in JDs, the standards has been violated. The labour union as well as the management is interested in this matter. Controversies often result, and a written record of the standard job jurisdiction (description) is valuable in resolving such disputes. 

Meaning and Concept of Job Design

1. Meaning of Job Design

A job can be defined as a group of positions that are similar as to kind and level of work. The logical sequence of job analysis is job design. It involves continuous efforts to organize tasks, duties and responsibilities into a unit of work to achieve certain objectives. It result in a set of purposes, task characteristics and task duties in a given organizational setting. Job design is based on a set of unique organizational and personal qualities. It follows job analysis , According to Mathis and Jackson, Job design integrates: 

1.  Work contents (tasks, functions and relationships),
2. The rewards (extrinsic and intrinsic),  and 
3.  The qualifications required (skills, knowledge and abilities) for each jobs in  a way that,
4.  Meets the needs of the employees and the organization.

2. Concept of Job Design

The main purpose of job design/ re-design is to increase both employee motivation and productivity. The purposes of improved productivity are many. The major ones are listed below: 

• Improving quality and quantity of goods/services. 
• Reduce operation costs.
• Reduce turnover and training costs.

To understand the modern concept of job design lets examine the following two definitions.

Byars and Rue: "Job design is the process of structuring work and designating the specific work activities of an individual or group to achieve certain organizational objectives."

Barry and Alan: "Job  design involves conscious efforts to organize tasks, duties and responsibilities into a unit of work to achieve certain objectives." 

The traditional approach to job design mainly focused on specialization of job. Its credit goes to scientific management theory. F.W. Taylor believed that specialization leads to better job performance and increased productivity. It also helps to reduce the training time and cost. So, there will be increase in quality of goods and services. But, in recent years HR managers' attentions has been directed to alternative ways of designing jobs. Those approaches focus on teamwork rather than an individual doing the work.