JOB ANALYSIS

Job analysis is primary tool in personnel management. In this method, a personnel manager tries to gather, synthesize and implement the information available regarding the workforce in the concern. A personnel manager has to undertake job analysis so as to put right man on right job. There are two outcomes of job analysis : 1. 2. Job description Job specification

The information collected under job analysis is : 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Nature of jobs required in a concern. Nature/ size of organizational structure. Type of people required to fit that structure. The relationship of the job with other jobs in the concern. Kind of qualifications and academic background required for jobs. Provision of physical condition to support the activities of the concern. For example- separate cabins for managers, special cabins for the supervisors, healthy condition for workers, adequate store room for store keeper.

Advantages of Job Analysis 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Job analysis helps the personnel manager at the time of recruitment and selection of right man on right job. It helps him to understand extent and scope of training required in that field. It helps in evaluating the job in which the worth of the job has to be evaluated. In those instances where smooth work force is required in concern. When he has to avoid overlapping of authority- responsibility relationship so that distortion in chain of command doesn t exist. It also helps to chalk out the compensation plans for the employees. It also helps the personnel manager to undertake performance appraisal effectively in a concern.

A personnel manger carries analysis in two ways : a. b. 1. Job description Job specification JOB DESCRIPTION is an organized factual statement of job contents in the form of duties and responsibilities of a specific job. The preparation of job description is very important before a vacancy is advertised. It tells in brief the nature and type of job. This type of document is descriptive in nature and it constitutes all those facts which are related to a job such as : a. Title/ Designation of job and location in the concern. b. The nature of duties and operations to be performed in that job. c. The nature of authority- responsibility relationships. d. Necessary qualifications that are required for job. e. Relationship of that job with other jobs in a concern.

f.

The provision of physical and working condition or the work environment required in performance of that job.

Advantages of Job Description g. h. i. j. k. l. It helps the supervisors in assigning work to the subordinates so that he can guide and monitor their performances. It helps in recruitment and selection procedures. It assists in manpower planning. It is also helpful in performance appraisal. It is helpful in job evaluation in order to decide about rate of remuneration for a specific job. It also helps in chalking out training and development programmes.

2.

JOB SPECIFICATION is a statement which tells us minimum acceptable human qualities which helps to perform a job. Job specification translates the job description into human qualifications so that a job can be performed in a better manner. Job specification helps in hiring an appropriate person for an appropriate position. The contents are : a. Job title and designation b. Educational qualifications for that title c. Physical and other related attributes d. Physique and mental health e. Special attributes and abilities f. Maturity and dependability g. Relationship of that job with other jobs in a concern. Advantages of Job Specification h. i. j. k. l. m. It is helpful in preliminary screening in the selection procedure. It helps in giving due justification to each job. It also helps in designing training and development programmes. It helps the supervisors for counseling and monitoring performance of employees. It helps in job evaluation. It helps the management to take decisions regarding promotion, transfers and giving extra benefits to the employees.

From the above advantages, we can justify the importance of job analysis and it s related products. Both job description as well as job specification are important for personnel manager in personnel management function. Therefore, job analysis is considered to be the primary tool of personnel management.

Where to place the employees in order to best utilize their skills and talent? How to determine the need of new employees in the organization? How to eliminate unneeded jobs? How to set realistic performance measurement standards? How to identify the jobs and prepare a plan to fill them? Well, all this can be effectively done by a proper and thorough job analysis. Managers deal such kinds of challenges in day-to-day company operations where they need to fulfill effectively and efficiently fulfill the organization s requirements related to human resource recruitment, selection, performance, satisfaction and cutting down and adding extra responsibilities and duties. And there is no scope where they can avert the risk of being wrong.An effective and right process of analyzing a particular job is a great relief for them. It helps them maintain the right quality of employees, measure their performance on realistic standards, assess their training and development needs and increase their productivity.

Job Analysis Process

 Identification of Job Analysis Purpose: Well any process is futile until its purpose is not identified and defined.
Therefore, the first step in the process is to determine its need and desired output. Spending human efforts, energy as well as money is useless until HR managers don t know why data is to be collected and what is to be done with it.

 Who Will Conduct Job Analysis: The second most important step in the process of job analysis is to decide who
will conduct it. Some companies prefer getting it done by their own HR department while some hire job analysis consultants. Job analysis consultants may prove to be extremely helpful as they offer unbiased advice, guidelines and methods. They don t have any personal likes and dislikes when it comes to analyze a job.

 How to Conduct the Process: Deciding the way in which job analysis process needs to be conducted is surely the
next step. A planned approach about how to carry the whole process is required in order to investigate a specific job.

 Strategic Decision Making: Now is the time to make strategic decision. It s about deciding the extent of employee
involvement in the process, the level of details to be collected and recorded, sources from where data is to be collected, data collection methods, the processing of information and segregation of collected data.

 Training of Job Analyst: Next is to train the job analyst about how to conduct the process and use the selected
methods for collection and recoding of job data.

 Preparation of Job Analysis Process: Communicating it within the organization is the next step. HR managers need
to communicate the whole thing properly so that employees offer their full support to the job analyst. The stage also involves preparation of documents, questionnaires, interviews and feedback forms.

 Data Collection: Next is to collect job-related data including educational qualifications of employees, skills and
abilities required to perform the job, working conditions, job activities, reporting hierarchy, required human traits, job activities, duties and responsibilities involved and employee behaviour.

 Documentation, Verification and Review: Proper documentation is done to verify the authenticity of collected
data and then review it. This is the final information that is used to describe a specific job.

 Developing Job Description and Job Specification: Now is the time to segregate the collected data in to useful
information. Job Description describes the roles, activities, duties and responsibilities of the job while job specification is a statement of educational qualification, experience, personal traits and skills required to perform the job. Thus, the process of job analysis helps in identifying the worth of specific job, utilizing the human talent in the best possible manner, eliminating unneeded jobs and setting realistic performance measurement standards.

Job Analysis Methods

Most Common Methods of Job Analysis

 Observation Method: A job analyst observes an employee and records all his performed and non-performed task,
fulfilled and un-fulfilled responsibilities and duties, methods, ways and skills used by him or her to perform various duties and his or her mental or emotional ability to handle challenges and risks. However, it seems one of the easiest methods to analyze a specific job but truth is that it is the most difficult one. Why? Let s Discover. It is due to the fact that every person has his own way of observing things. Different people think different and interpret the findings in different ways. Therefore, the process may involve personal biasness or likes and dislikes and may not produce genuine results. This error can be avoided by proper training of job analyst or whoever will be conducting the job analysis process. This particular method includes three techniques: direct observation, Work Methods Analysis and Critical Incident Technique. The first method includes direct observation and recording of behaviour of an employee in different situations. The second involves the study of time and motion and is specially used for assembly-line or factory workers. The third one is about identifying the work behaviours that result in performance.

 Interview Method: In this method, an employee is interviewed so that he or she comes up with their own working
styles, problems faced by them, use of particular skills and techniques while performing their job and insecurities and fears about their careers. This method helps interviewer know what exactly an employee thinks about his or her own job and responsibilities involved in it. It involves analysis of job by employee himself. In order to generate honest and true feedback or collect genuine data, questions asked during the interview should be carefully decided. And to avoid errors, it is always good to interview more than one individual to get a pool of responses. Then it can be generalized and used for the whole group.

 Questionnaire Method: Another commonly used job analysis method is getting the questionnaires filled from
employees, their superiors and managers. However, this method also suffers from personal biasness. A great care should be takes while framing questions for different grades of employees. In order to get the true job-related info, management should effectively communicate it to the staff that data collected will be used for their own good. It is very important to ensure them that it won t be used against them in anyway. If it is not done properly, it will be a sheer wastage of time, money and human resources. These are some of the most common methods of job analysis. However, there are several other specialized methods including task inventory, job element method, competency profiling, technical conference, threshold traits analysis system and a combination of these methods. While choosing a method, HR managers need to consider time, cost and human efforts included in conducting the process.

Though job analysis plays a vital role in all other human related activities but every process that has human interventions also suffers from some limitations. The process of job analysis also has its own constraints. So, let us discuss the advantages and disadvantages of job analysis process at length. Advantages of Job Analysis

 Provides First Hand Job-Related Information: The job analysis process provides with valuable job-related data
that helps managers and job analyst the duties and responsibilities of a particular job, risks and hazards involved in it, skills and abilities required to perform the job and other related info.

 Helps in Creating Right Job-Employee Fit: This is one of the most crucial management activities. Filling the right
person in a right job vacancy is a test of skills, understanding and competencies of HR managers. Job Analysis helps them understand what type of employee will be suitable to deliver a specific job successfully.

 Helps in Establishing Effective Hiring Practices: Who is to be filled where and when? Who to target and how for a
specific job opening? Job analysis process gives answers to all these questions and helps managers in creating, establishing and maintaining effective hiring practices.

 Guides through Performance Evaluation and Appraisal Processes: Job Analysis helps managers evaluating the
performance of employees by comparing the standard or desired output with delivered or actual output. On these bases, they appraise their performances. The process helps in deciding whom to promote and when. It also guides managers in understanding the skill gaps so that right person can be fit at that particular place in order to get desired output.

 Helps in Analyzing Training & Development Needs: The process of job analysis gives answer to following
questions:

    

Who to impart training When to impart training What should be the content of training What should be the type of training: behavioral or technical Who will conduct training

 Helps in Deciding Compensation Package for a Specific Job: A genuine and unbiased process of job analysis helps
managers in determining the appropriate compensation package and benefits and allowances for a particular job. This is done on the basis of responsibilities and hazards involved in a job.

Disadvantages of Job Analysis

 Time Consuming: The biggest disadvantage of Job Analysis process is that it is very time consuming. It is a major
limitation especially when jobs change frequently.

 Involves Personal Biasness: If the observer or job analyst is an employee of the same organization, the process
may involve his or her personal likes and dislikes. This is a major hindrance in collecting genuine and accurate data.

 Source of Data is Extremely Small: Because of small sample size, the source of collecting data is extremely small.
Therefore, information collected from few individuals needs to be standardized.

 Involves Lots of Human Efforts: The process involves lots of human efforts. As every job carries different
information and there is no set pattern, customized information is to be collected for different jobs. The process needs to be conducted separately for collecting and recording job-related data.

 Job Analyst May Not Possess Appropriate Skills: If job analyst is not aware of the objective of job analysis process
or does not possess appropriate skills to conduct the process, it is a sheer wastage of company s resources. He or she needs to be trained in order to get authentic data.

 Mental Abilities Cannot be Directly Observed: Last but not the least, mental abilities such as intellect, emotional
characteristics, knowledge, aptitude, psychic and endurance are intangible things that can not be observed or measured directly. People act differently in different situations. Therefore, general standards can not be set for mental abilities.

Problems with Job Analysis

 Lack of Management Support: The biggest problem arises when a job analyst does not get proper support from
the management. The top management needs to communicate it to the middle level managers and employees to enhance the output or productivity of the process. In case of improper communication, employees may take it in a wrong sense and start looking out for other available options. They may have a notion that this is being carried out to fire them or take any action against them. In order to avoid such circumstances, top management must effectively communicate the right message to their incumbents.

 Lack of Co-operation from Employees: If we talk about collecting authentic and accurate job-data, it is almost
impossible to get real and genuine data without the support of employees. If they are not ready to co-operate, it is a sheer wastage of time, money and human effort to conduct job analysis process. The need is to take the workers in confidence and communicating that it is being done to solve their problems only.

 Inability to Identify the Need of Job Analysis: If the objectives and needs of job analysis process are not properly
identified, the whole exercise of investigation and carrying out research is futile. Managers must decide in advance why this process is being carried out, what its objectives are and what is to be done with the collected and recorded data.

 Biasness of Job Analyst: A balanced and unbiased approach is a necessity while carrying out the process of job
analysis. To get real and genuine data, a job analyst must be impartial in his or her approach. If it can t be avoided, it is better to outsource the process or hire a professional job analyst.

 Using Single Data Source: A job analyst needs to consider more than one sources of data in order to collect true
information. Collecting data from a single source may result in inaccuracy and it therefore, defeats the whole purpose of conducting the job analysis process. However, this is not the end. There may be many other problems involved in a job analysis process such as insufficient time and resources, distortion from incumbent, lack of proper communication, improper questionnaires and other forms, absence of verification and review of job analysis process and lack of reward or recognition for providing genuine and quality information.

Conclusion
The process of job analysis involves in-depth investigation in order to control the output, i.e., get the job performed successfully. The process helps in finding out what a particular

department requires and what a prospective worker needs to deliver. It also helps in determining particulars about a job including job title, job location, job summary, duties involved, working conditions, possible hazards and machines, tools, equipments and materials to be used by the existing or potential employee. However, the process is not limited to determination of these factors only. It also extends to finding out the necessary human qualifications to perform the job. These include establishing the levels of education, experience, judgment, training, initiative, leadership skills, physical skills, communication skills, responsibility, accountability, emotional characteristics and unusual sensory demands. These factors change according to the type, seniority level, industry and risk involved in a particular job.