A3 - Job Analysis: Critical First Step in Job-Based Pay Systems

Question 1

Summary of job info gather during a job analysis that proved a word pic of a job

Answer 1

job description

Question 2

smallest unit of analysis and specific stmt fo what a person does

Answer 2

task

Question 3

grouping of related jobs w/ broadly similar content

Answer 3

job family

Question 4

the movement of jobs to locations beyond a country’s borders

Answer 4

offshoring

Question 5

process that examines how an org. does its work: activities pursued to accomplish specific objs. for specific custs.

Answer 5

supply chain analysis

Question 6

• 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

Answer 6

job analysis

Question 7

(4) purposes of job analysis

job-based structure

or

competency/skill- based

Answer 7

* 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

Question 8

major decisions to be made in designing a job analysis

Answer 8

• why perform job analysis
• what info is needed
• how to collect info
• who to involve
• how useful are the results

Question 9

• summ. rpts that ID, define, and describe the job as it is actually performed

Answer 9

job descriptions

Question 10

• comparison of jobs w/in an org.

Answer 10

job evaluation

Question 11

• an ordering of jobs based on their content or relative value

Answer 11

job structure

Question 12

Why perform job anaylsis?

Answer 12

• 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.

Question 13

compensation and job analysis

potential benefits of performing a job analysis

Answer 13

• (2) critical uses
  
  1. establishes similarities and differences in the work contents of the jobs
  2. 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

Question 14

Job Analysis Procedures

Answer 14

• 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

Question 15

• smallest unit of analysis, a specific stmt of what a person does

Answer 15

task

Question 16

group of tasks perf’d by one person that make up the total work assignment of that person

Answer 16

job

Question 17

group of tasks performed by one person

Answer 17

position

Question 18

grouping of related jobs w/ broadly similar content

Answer 18

job family

Question 19

• 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

Answer 19

conventional job analysis methods

Question 20

Job Analysis Procedures

Answer 20

1. 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
2. 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
3. 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
4. Conduct 2nd tour of worksite
   
   • designed to clarify, confirm, and otherwise refine the info developed in the interviews
5. 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
6. _Verify job info. _
   
   • bring all interviewees together for the purpose of determining if the consolidated job descript. is accurate and complete

Question 21

What information s/b collected?

Answer 21

• 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

Question 22

Job Data: Identification

exps of info that ID’s a job

Answer 22

• EXAMPLES: job titles, depts, # of ppl who hold the job, and whether it is exempt
• not necessarily always straightfoward

Question 23

Job Data: Job Content

Answer 23

• 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

Question 24

• 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

Answer 24

task data

Question 25

Employee Data

Answer 25

* 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

Question 26

* 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

Answer 26

position analysis questionnaire (PAQ)

Question 27

* ***_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_***

Answer 27

***_"essential elements"_***

Question 28

level of analysis

Answer 28

* 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

Question 29

How can info be collected? CONVENTIONAL METHODS

Answer 29

* 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_***

Question 30

* 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

Answer 30

***_quantitative job analysis (QJA)_***

Question 31

quantitative job analysis (QJA) process

Answer 31

* ***_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.

Question 32

What about discrepancies?

Answer 32

* 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.

Question 33

***_Job Descriptions Summarizes the Data_***

Answer 33

* 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)_***

Question 34

***_describing managerial/professional jobs in a job descript. _***

Answer 34

* ***_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_***

Question 35

* 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._***

Answer 35

***_supply chain analysis_***

Question 36

***_offshoring_***

Answer 36

* ***_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_***

Question 37

***_Judging Job Analysis_***

Answer 37

* ***_reliability_*** * ***_validity_*** * ***_acceptability_*** * ***_currency_*** * ***_usefulness_***

Question 38

Judging Job Analysis ***_Reliability_***

Answer 38

* ***_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

Question 39

Judging Job Analysis ***_Validity_***

Answer 39

* ***_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_***

Question 40

Judging Job Analysis ***_Acceptability_***

Answer 40

* ***_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_***

Question 41

Judging Job Analysis ***_Currency_***

Answer 41

* ***_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

Question 42

Judging Job Analysis ***_Usefulness_***

Answer 42

* ***_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_***