Lecture 05:People & Organisations London Metropolitan University MBA Programme || Module Number: MN7181 || Lecturer: Mr Laleen Katagodage || E-Soft batch-14-- HRM and the Design of Work

Job Design

The process of job design has been defined as, “specification of the contents, methods, and relationships of jobs in order to satisfy technological and organizational requirements as well as the social and personal requirements of the job holder.” (Buchanan, 1979)

Process of Job Design 

Job design is a systematic process of collecting all information about the job for preparing of job description, job specification and Job evaluation which meant to selection of employee, satisfaction, and motivation etc.

        

       Maura J. Mills (2012) says " One of the first industrial-organizational psychologists to introduce job analysis was Morris Viteles in 1922, he used job analysis in order to select employees for a trolley car company.

 

Job analysis is defined by Mondy et,al (1999) as, “the systematic process of determining the skills, duties and knowledge required for performing specific duties in an organization”

In other words, in the process of forming an organization, the Human Resource Managers must ascertain and establish the following key milestones (after designing positions)

1.  What skills are required for one to perform well in that position?

2.  What actual duties will that person perform?

3.  How do those duties fit in within the context of the whole organization?

While in this case job analysis was conducted when the organization was being founded.

As a process (not an event or activity), job analysis continues throughout the life of an organization and will be again be carried out when

1.  New jobs are created.

2.  Change management in the organization processes is taking place.

Few Definitions about Job Analysis by Different Authors

According to Michael J, (1975) "Job analysis refers to the process of studying the operations, duties and organizational aspects of jobs in order to derive specification or, as they are called job description"

In the words of Edwin B. Flippo, (1984)"Job analysis is the process of studying and collecting information relating to the operations and responsibilities of a specific job"

In the words of Scott, Clothier and Spriegel, (2007) "Job analysis is the process of critically evaluating the operations, duties and relationship of the job.

         According to Maura J. Mills (2012) says one of the first industrial-organizational psychologists to introduce job analysis was "Morris Viteles" in 1922, he used job analysis in order to select employees for a trolley car company. 

Job Descriptions (Position Content Summary)

When the job analyst has discovered through the process of job analysis, the content of a job.  the sets of information in a descriptive document called a job description, which is also known as a ‘Position Content Summary’.

The, a job description is defined by Armstrong M (2001), as follows, “a job description sets out the purpose of a job, where it fits in the organization structure, the context within which the job holder functions and the principal accountability of job holders, or the main tasks they have to carry out”.

Job Specification (Person specification)

Mondy et al, (1999) defines a job specification as a, “document that outlines the minimum acceptable qualifications a person should possess to perform a particular job”.In other words, job analysis would have identified what the job holder should possess for him/her to successfully carry out the tasks and responsibilities in a job. This information is set out in the document called a job specification of the person.

Job evaluation

Job evaluation refers to studying in detail the job performance by all individual. The difficulty levels, skills required and on that basis the salary is fixed. If someone would not be able to reach the level of expectation which had been designed, will be paid less than who would be able to reach the expectation of the organization. According to Flippo, (1984) "the Information regarding qualities required, skilled levels, difficulty levels are obtained from job analysis.

According to Buchanan, (1994) after Taylorism ‘Maslow’ s influence is clearly stamped across the work design theories and practices of the latter half of the twentieth century.

Maslow’s theory of Motivation

Maslow (1943, 1954) stated that people are motivated to achieve certain needs and that some needs take precedence over others. Our most basic need is for physical survival, and this will be the first thing that motivates human behavior. Once that level is fulfilled the next level up is what motivates, and so on.

 

Critical evaluation of Maslow’s Theory

The most significant limitation of Maslow's theory concerns his methodology. Maslow formulated the characteristics of self-actualized individuals from undertaking a qualitative method called biographical analysis.

References 

Armstrong, M. (2001) A handbook of human resource management practice, 8th edition, Kogan Page, London.

Buchanan, D. (1979). The Development of Job Design Theories and Techniques. New York: Praeger Publishers.Herzberg, Frederick (January–February 1968). "One More Time: How Do You Motivate Employees?"

Scott, W.D, Clothier, R.C and Spriegel, W.R. (2007). Personnel Management:  Principles,Practices and Point of View, Fourth Edition. Madison: McGraw-Hill Book Company.

Flippo, E.B. (1984). Personnel Management,sixth edition. New York: McGraw-Hill College.

Maslow, A. H. (1943). A Theory of Human Motivation. Psychological Review, 50(4), 370-96.

Maslow, A. H. (1954). Motivation and personality. New York: Harper and Row.

Maura J. Mills (2012). "The Beginnings of Industrial Psychology: The Life and Work of 

Morris Viteles". Society of Industrial and Organizational Psychology.

Mondy et al., (1999) Human Resources Management.

Michael J, (1975) Personnel Management.

Bibliographical Reference:

http://www.authorstream.com/Presentation/kahonaajayhai-98409-job-design-education-ppt-powerpoint/