A3 - Job Analysis: Critical First Step in Job-Based Pay Systems Flashcards
1
Q
Summary of job info gather during a job analysis that proved a word pic of a job
A
job description
2
Q
smallest unit of analysis and specific stmt fo what a person does
A
task
3
Q
grouping of related jobs w/ broadly similar content
A
job family
4
Q
the movement of jobs to locations beyond a country’s borders
A
offshoring
5
Q
process that examines how an org. does its work: activities pursued to accomplish specific objs. for specific custs.
A
supply chain analysis
6
Q
- the systematic process of collecting info that ID’s similarities and differences in the work
- provides knowledge needed to define jobs and conduct job evals.
- collecting info on essential responsibilities
A
job analysis
7
Q
(4) purposes of job analysis
job-based structure
or
competency/skill- based
A
* collect, summarize work content info.
- determine what to value
- assess relative value
- translate into structure
- job-based - look at what ppl are doing and expected outcomes
- skill-based - look at the person
8
Q
major decisions to be made in designing a job analysis
A
- why perform job analysis
- what info is needed
- how to collect info
- who to involve
- how useful are the results
9
Q
- summ. rpts that ID, define, and describe the job as it is actually performed
A
job descriptions
10
Q
- comparison of jobs w/in an org.
A
job evaluation
11
Q
- an ordering of jobs based on their content or relative value
A
job structure
12
Q
Why perform job anaylsis?
A
- type of data needed varies by function
- ID’g skills/experience required to perform the work helps clarify the hiring and promotion standards and ID’s training needs
- provides mgrs and EEs with job-related info that will give a work-related rationale for pay differences
- EEs - if they understand, then can see where their work fits into the bigger pic. and can direct their behavior toward org. objs.
- ERs - helps them defend their position on decisions when they are challenged.
13
Q
compensation and job analysis
potential benefits of performing a job analysis
A
-
(2) critical uses
- establishes similarities and differences in the work contents of the jobs
- helps establish an internally fair and aligned job structure
- still need to ensure that the data collected is useful and acceptable to the EEs and mgrs involved
- EEs who understand this rationale can better direct their behavior toward org. objs.
- helps mgrs defend their decisions when challenged
- can also be used to ID the skills and experience req’d to perform the work, which clarifies hiring, promo, and training standards
14
Q
Job Analysis Procedures
A
-
collects info about specific tasks or behaviors
- task
- position
- job
- job family
-
step-by-step approach to conducting conventional job analysis
- develop prelim. info, interviewing jobholders/supers, using the info to create/verify job descripts.
- jobs follow steady progression in a hierarchy of incresasing responsibility, and the relationship b/w jobs is clear
15
Q
- smallest unit of analysis, a specific stmt of what a person does
A
task
16
Q
group of tasks perf’d by one person that make up the total work assignment of that person
A
job
17
Q
group of tasks performed by one person
A
position
18
Q
grouping of related jobs w/ broadly similar content
A
job family
19
Q
- methods that typically involve an analyst using a questionnaire in conjunction w/ structured interviews of jobholders and supers.
- methods place considerable reliance on analysts’ ability to understand the work performed and to accurately describe it
A
conventional job analysis methods
20
Q
Job Analysis Procedures
A
-
Develop prelim job info.
- review existing docs in order to create initial overview of the job, its main mission, its major duties or functions and workflow patterns
-
Conduct initial tour of worksite
- get info on work layout, tools/equipment used, general conditions, mechanics assoc’d w/ end-to-end perf. of major duties
-
Conduct interviews
- first s/b done w/ the first-level super who is considered to be in a better postiion than the jobholders to provide an overview of job and how the major duties fit together
-
Conduct 2nd tour of worksite
- designed to clarify, confirm, and otherwise refine the info developed in the interviews
-
Consolidate job info
- piecing together into one comprehensive job descript. the data obtained from several sources: super, jobholders, on-site tours, and written materials about the job
-
_Verify job info. _
- bring all interviewees together for the purpose of determining if the consolidated job descript. is accurate and complete
21
Q
What information s/b collected?
A
- review of info already collected to develop framework to make sure it is still accurate or if it needs to be updated.
- good job analysis collects sufficient info to adequately ID, define, and describe a job
22
Q
Job Data: Identification
exps of info that ID’s a job
A
- EXAMPLES: job titles, depts, # of ppl who hold the job, and whether it is exempt
- not necessarily always straightfoward
23
Q
Job Data: Job Content
A
- heart of the job analysis
-
involves the ID’g tasks or units of work, w/ emphasis on the purpose of each task
- task data
- compiling data on each task reveals the actual work perf’d and its outcome
-
other data gathered for job content purposes:
- info on constraints on actions, perf. criteria, critical incidents, conflicting demands, working conditions and roles
24
Q
- info. on the elemental units of work (tasks), w/ emphasis on the purpose of each task, collected for job analysis
- work data describe the job in terms of actual tasks performed and their output
A
task data
25
Q
Employee Data
A
- a look at the kinds of behaviors that will result in the outcomes
-
can categorize based on:
- EE characteristics - classified as prof/tech. knowledge and manual, verbal, written, quantitative, mechanical, conceptual, managerial, leadership, and interpersonal skills
- internal relationships - behavrior b/w the EE and his/her superiors, peers, and subordinates
- external relationships - behavior w/ suppliers, custs, reg. personnel, prof/industry personnel, community, and the union/EE groups
- use of Position Analysis Questionnaire (PAQ) to group work info into basic characteristics
- can compare similarities and differences easily among jobs
26
Q
- a structured job analysis technique that classifies job info into (7) basic factors:
- info input
- mental processes
- work output
- relationships w/ other persons
- job context
- other job characterisitcs
- general dimensions
- analyzes jobs in terms of worker-oriented data
A
position analysis questionnaire (PAQ)
27
Q
- parts of a job that cannot be assigned to another EE
- ADA - requires that if apps w/ disabilities can perform the essential elements of a job, reasonable accommodations must then be made to enable the qualified indivs. to perform the job
- tech. chgs tend to make some tasks easier for all ppl, by reducing the physical strength or mobility req’d to do them
A
“essential elements”
28
Q
level of analysis
A
- depending on the level analysis, jobs can be made to look similar (job family level) or made to look different (job level)
- if job data suggests that jobs are similar, must be paid similarly
- if job data suggests that jobs are different, can be paid differently
- do not have to go to the microscopic level - unable to justify the time and expense of collecting task-level info
- just need to collect enough data to make comparisons in the external mkt for setting wages
- ADA requirements require more detail than required during pay decisions
- designing career paths, staffing, and legal compliance may also require more detailed, finely grained info.
- using broad, more generic descripts that cover a large # of related tasks are closer to job-family level - increases flexibility
29
Q
How can info be collected?
CONVENTIONAL METHODS
A
- Types
- questionnaires - most common
- interviews with jobholders/supers - in order to understand the Q’s and that the info is correct
- observation of the jobholder/super
- Adv.
- involvement of EEs increases their understanding of the process
- Disadv.
- subjectivity - open to bias and favoritism
- results are only as good as the ppl that supplied them
- hard for the analyst to understand a whole business’s processes
- issues with these methods have given way to more quantitative data collection
30
Q
- job analysis method that relies on scaled questionnaires and inventories that produce job-related data that are documentable, can be statistically analyzed, and may be more objective than other analyses
- more data can be collected faster
A
quantitative job analysis (QJA)
31
Q
quantitative job analysis (QJA) process
A
- direct jobholders to a website to complete a questionnaire online
- asks jobholders to assess each time in terms of whether or not that particular item is part of their job
- results can be analyzed statistically
- typically asks a jobholder to assess each item for whether or not that particular item is part of their job
- asked to rate how important it is and the amt of job time spent on it
- results are then used to develop a profile of the job
- questions are grouped around (5) compensable factors - knowledge, accountability, reasoning, communication, and working conditions
- if more than one person is doing the job, then results can be compared and average to develop the profile
- profiles can be compared across jobholders in both the same and different jobs.
32
Q
What about discrepancies?
A
- differences in views of the job can come up between supers, mgrs, EEs/jobholders
- if so, collect more data (best option)
- ensures consistent, accurate, useful, and acceptable results
- asking all parties to then sign off on those results.
33
Q
Job Descriptions Summarizes the Data
A
- now will be useful for HR decisions
- provides a ‘word picture’ of the job
- contains info on the tasks, ppl, and things included
- job is ID’d by its title and its relationships to other jobs in the structure
- job summ. provides an overview of the job (short paragraph)
- essential responsibilities elaborates on the summary including tasks and tasks dimensions
- job specifications section - knowledge, skills, and abilities required to perform the task adequately (qualifications needed to be hired for the job)
34
Q
_describing managerial/professional jobs in a job descript. _
A
- often include more detailed info on the nature of the job, its scope, and accountability
- must capture the relationship b/w the job, the person performing it, and the org. objs.
- issues with subjectivity
- rather than focusing on the tasks to be done, this focuses on the accountabilities
35
Q
- as applied to work flow analysis, supply chain analysis looks at how an org. does its work:
- activities pursued to accomplish specific objs. for specific cust.
A
supply chain analysis
36
Q
offshoring
A
-
the movement of jobs to locations beyond a country’s borders
- historically, mainly used for manual, low-skill jobs due to lower labor costs
- lower labors costs usually are offset by productivity levels that are diff. in other countries
- availablity of workers w/ needed educ. and skills is another constraint
- proximity to customer - another issue
37
Q
Judging Job Analysis
A
- reliability
- validity
- acceptability
- currency
- usefulness
38
Q
Judging Job Analysis
Reliability
A
- consistency of the results obtained, that is, the extent to which any measuring procedure yields the same results on repeated trials
- reliable job info doesn’t mean that it is accurate (valid), comprehensive, or free from bias
-
research on EE and super agreement on the reliability of job analysis info is mixed
- job that the EE is doing now may not be the same job that was originally assigned by the super
- differences in perf. seem to influence reliability
- research has found that reliability is lower for jobs that are more interdependent w/ other jobs had have more autonomy/are less routine
- increase reliability = reduce sources of difference
- quantitative job analysis helps with reliability
- training = increases reliability
39
Q
Judging Job Analysis
Validity
A
- confergence of results among sources of data and methods - similar results
- the accuracy of the results obtained compared to what was supposed to happen
- that is the extent to which any measuring device measures what it is supposed to measure
- ideally - you want jobholders, supers, and peers to respond in similar ways to questionnaires to increase validity
40
Q
Judging Job Analysis
Acceptability
A
- if jobholders and supers are dissatisfied w/ the initial data collected and the process, they are not likely to buy into the resulting job structure or the pay rates attached to that structure
- not always accepted due to the potential for subjectivity and favoritism
41
Q
Judging Job Analysis
Currency
A
- job info must be up to date
- it may be useful to develop a systematic protocol for evaluating when job info needs to be updated
42
Q
Judging Job Analysis
Usefulness
A
- practicality of the info coll’d
-
if job analysis is done in a reliable, valid, and acceptable way, then the technique is of practical use
- easier to buy into
