JOB DESIGN
Definition• Job design involves systematic attempt to
organize tasks, duties and responsibilities into a
unit of work to achieve certain objectives.
• Job design is the process of
a) Deciding the contents of the job.
b) Deciding methods to carry out the job.
c) Deciding the relationship which exists in the
organization.•
Job design is the conscious efforts
to organize tasks, duties and
responsibilities into one unit of
work. It involves
› identification of individual tasks
› specification of methods of
performing the tasks
› combination of tasks into specific
jobs to be assigned to individuals
JOB REDESIGN - aimed at reducing or overcoming
job dissatisfaction and employee alienation arising
from repetitive and mechanistic tasks. Through job
redesign, organizations try to raise productivity
levels by offering non-monetary rewards such as
greater satisfaction from a sense of personal
achievement in meeting the increased challenge
and responsibility of one's work. Job enlargement,
job enrichment, job rotation, are the various
techniques used in a job design exercise.
Job Design Factors The complexity of the work - to be carried out, both in
terms of its variety or breadth and its technical
difficulty or depth.
The work processes involved -It might be desirable for
one person to be involved in an entire process, or the
work flows may be such that the work process has to
be divide between several different people.
The nature of the people currently employed in the
organization-The extent to which jobs can be
redesigned depend largely on the kind of people
employed
•The timescales - where immediate responses are required.
•The geographical scattering of the organization’s activities .
•The effect of information technology
•The growth level of an organization & available The level of resources available expertise need to perform a task.
•Availability of human resource in the environment.
Approaches to Job Design
Engineering Approach
› The most important single element in
the Engineering approaches, proposed
by FW Taylor, was the task idea.
› “The work of every workman is fully
planned out by the management at least
one day in advance and each man
receives in most cases complete written
instructions, describing in detail the
task which he is to accomplish
Engineering Approach
The scientific management principle
› Work should be scientifically studied
› Fragmentation and routinization of work
will reap the advantages of specialization
› Work should be arranged so that workers
can be efficient
Engineering Approach
Employees selected for work should be
matched to the demands of the job
› Employees should be trained to perform
the job
› Monetary compensation should be used to
reward successful performance of the job
Problems with Engineering Approach
› Walker and Guest
Repetition: Performing a few tasks
repeatedly led to boredom
Mechanical pacing: Assembly line
workers were compelled to maintain a
certain regular pace of work and could
not take needed breaks
Problems with Engineering Approach
No end product: Not turning out any
identifiable end product led to less
enthusiasm in work
Little social interaction: Because the
assembly line demanded constant attention,
there was very little opportunity to interact
on a casual basis and share work experiences
Problems with Engineering Approach
No input: No opportunity to choose the
methods for performing their jobs
the tools which they used
the work procedures
This created little interest in the job
because there was nothing which
employees could improve or change
The Job Characteristics Approach
Hackman and Oldham -
Employees will work hard when
they are rewarded for the work they do
when the work gives them satisfaction
The Job Characteristics Approach
Any job can be described in terms of five core job
dimensions:
› Skill variety: The degree to which the job
requires workers to use a variety of different
› activities
› talents
› skills
in order to successfully complete the job
requirements
The Job Characteristics Approach
› Task identity: The degree to which the job allows
workers to complete whole tasks from start to
finish, rather than disjointed portions of the job
› Task significance: The degree to which the job
significantly impacts the lives of others both
within and outside the workplace
The Job Characteristics Approach
› Autonomy: The degree to which the job allows
workers freedom in planning, scheduling and
the methods used to complete the job
› Feedback: The degree to which the job itself
provides workers with clear, direct and
understandable knowledge of their performance
Job Design Options of Modern Management
Modern management recognizes the disadvantages
of highly specialized jobs - specialization increases
cost of employee absenteeism and turnover, and
decreases productivity and quality
HR managers have to balance employees’ human
needs and employers’ economic goals
Approaches modern job design
Job rotation Job enlargement Job enrichment
Job rotation Job design involves periodic
assignment of an employee to
completely different sets of job
activities.
job rotation is low in both impact and
complexity because it typically moves
employees from one routine job to
another.
At McDonald's, cross-functional job rotations are encouraged, globally and in India. "It is a win-win situation -- win for the organization, the team and the employee," says Amit Jatia, joint venture partner and managing director, McDonald's, Western India
advantages It is an effective way to develop multiple skills
in employees, which benefits the organization
while creating greater job interest and career
options for the employee.
Job rotation may be of considerable benefit if
it is part of a larger redesign effort and/or it is
used as a training and development approach
to develop various employee competencies
and prepare employees for advancement.
Job enlargement
Job enlargement combines into one job with two or more tasks which are to be performed. Sometimes it is called “ horizontal loading” as all tasks involve
the same level of responsibility .The job enlargement approach often has positive effects on employee effectiveness.
However, some employees view job enlargement as just adding more routine, repetitive tasks to their already boring job. Other employees regard it as disturbing their time to perform their core jobs.
Job Enlargement is the horizontal expansion of a job. It involves the addition of tasks at the same level of skill and responsibility. It is done to keep workers from getting bored. It is different than job enrichment
Thus the worker who previously only bolted the seat to legs might attach the back as well
ADVANTAGE
Job enlargement and job rotation approaches are useful in many work settings.
One of their biggest advantages is that : They offer a form of training. They allow workers to learn more than
one task, thus increasing their value to the employer. As they allow workers to perform many
tasks, they can be used more flexibly as circumstances require
Examples: Small companies may not have as many opportunities for promotions, so they try to motivate employees through job enlargement.
Job Enrichment Frederick Herzberg, suggested a clear and
distinct job design method called “job enrichment”.
Job enrichment seeks to add profundity to a job by giving workers more control, responsibility, and freedom of choice over how their job is performed.
It occurs when the work itself is more
challenging, when there is prospect for growth, and when responsibility, feedback, and recognition are provided.
Nonetheless, employees are the final judges of what enriches their jobs.
advantages Herzberg developed the following set of
principles for the enrichment of jobs: removing some controls while retaining
accountability increasing personal accountability for
work; assigning each worker a complete unit
work with a clear start and end point; granting additional authority and freedom
to workers; making periodic reports directly available
to workers rather than to supervisors only; the introduction for new and more difficult
tasks into the job
Principles of Job Design
provide variety in terms of the kind of
work carried out
allow people to get direct feedback on
results;
allow scope for development by enabling
the job to become bigger as the person
becomes more skilled and knowledge;
have clear objectives and outputs;
have clear reporting lines; give people some control over
output and pace; give people the opportunity to
comment and suggest changes to the work process;
be supported by the appropriate level of resources and effective process
Top Related