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•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