What is Job Design, Job Analysis, and Job Evaluation?

Job design is defined as the process of deciding on the content of a job in terms of its duties and responsibilities and on the relationships that should exist between the jobholder and his superiors, subordinates and colleagues.
Job analysis is a systematic investigation and identification of the tasks, duties, and responsibilities necessary in the performance of work.

Job Evaluation is the method and practice of ordering jobs or positions with respect to their value or worth to the organization in order to set up internally equitable pay structures.

From the above definitions, we see the interrelationship that exists between job design, job analysis, and job evaluation.
That is:
Job Analysis determines the scope of the job
Job design determines the content of the job and
Job evaluation determines the monetary value of the job

Job design is defined as the process of deciding on the content of a job in terms of its duties and responsibilities; on the methods to be used in carrying out the job, in terms of techniques, systems, and procedures and on the relationships that should exist between the jobholder and his superiors, subordinates and colleagues.

Jobs are generally designed to meet two important goals: (i) to meet organizational requirements such as higher productivity, operational efficiency, quality products/services etc. and (ii) to satisfy the needs of the individual employees like interests, challenge, achievement or accomplishment, etc.

There are three important approaches to job design viz.; Engineering approach, Human approach, and the Job characteristics approach.

Engineering Approach:

The most prominent single element in the Engineering approach, envisaged by F. W. Taylor and others, was the task idea i.e. “The work of every workman is planned out by the management at least one day in advance and each man receives in most cases complete written instructions, describing in details the task which he is to accomplish. This task does not only specify what is to be done but how it is to be done and the exact time allowed for doing it.The following are a summary of the principles offered by the scientific management to job design:

Work should be scientifically studied.
Work should be arranged such that employees can be efficient.
Employees selected to 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.

The following are the problems identified with this approach to job design, Repetition, Mechanical pacing, No end product, Little social interaction, and No input.

Human Approach

The human relations approach recognized the need to design jobs which are interesting and rewarding such that job incumbents can satisfy their needs for growth, recognition and responsibility. Herzberg’s research popularized the notion of enhancing needs satisfaction through what is called job enrichment. According to Herzberg there are two types of factors namely
i. Motivators like achievement, recognition, work itself, responsibility, advancement and growth, and
ii. Hygienic factors (factors which merely maintain the employee on the job and in the organization) like working conditions, organizational policy, inter-personnel relations, pay and job security. According to Herzberg, an employee will be satisfied and be more productive only if the right balance of Motivators and the Hygienic factors are employed. Thus Herzberg has laid emphasis on the psychological needs of employees in designing jobs.

The Job Characteristic Approach

The Job Characteristics Theory of Hackman and Oldham states that employees will work hard when they are rewarded for the work they do and when the work gives them satisfaction. Hence they suggested that motivation, satisfaction, and performance should be integrated in the job design.
The five core job dimensions which are defined under this approach are; Skill variety, Task identity, Task significance, Autonomy, and Feedback.
The job design process has to start from what activities need to be done in order to achieve organizational goals. It requires the use of techniques like work-study, process planning, organizational methods and organizational analysis.

Personnel departments use a variety of methods to improve jobs motivating potential such as job rotation, job enlargement and job enrichment.

Job Rotation refers to the movement of an employee from one job to another. Jobs themselves are not changed, only the employees are rotated among various jobs for a specified period of time. This measure relieves the employee boredom and monotony, improves employee skill regarding various jobs and prepares the competent employees to meet the contingencies. It also improves the worker’s self-image and provides personal growth.

Job Enlargement refers to the process where the tasks being performed are either enlarged or several short tasks are given to a worker. Thus, the scope of the job is increased because there are many tasks to be performed by the same worker. Although it actually changes the pace of the work and the operation by reallocating tasks and responsibilities, job enlargement does not increase the depth of a job. Worker satisfaction is also increased as the boredom is reduced as a result of the expanded scope of the job.

Job Enrichment is the process of job enlargement to add greater responsibility to a job based on the job characteristics approach in order to motivate the workers. Under job enrichment there is a conscious effort to build into jobs a higher sense of challenge and enrichment. In a job enrichment programme, the worker decides how the job is performed, planned, controlled, and makes more decisions concerning the entire process. Consequently, the employee receives a greater sense of accomplishment as well as more authority and responsibility.

Job Analysis is a systematic investigation and identification of the tasks, duties, and responsibilities necessary in the performance of work. It is the determination of the tasks, which comprise the job, and skills, knowledge, abilities and responsibilities required of the holder for the job performance. Job Analysis serves as the corner stone of all human resource functions such as training and development, recruitment and selection, performance appraisal, determination of salaries and wages, for promotions, re-organizing a company’s structure, etc.

In job analysis two kinds of information are needed viz,
i. Task oriented information and
ii. Worker oriented information.
Job analysis takes three dimensions namely:
i. Job description
ii.  Job specification and
iii.  Personnel specification

Job Description relates to a written document for elaborating on a job and the requirement needed. A job description is normally task oriented and contains sections that include the following: The job name or title, the job location, a brief summary/description of the job, a listing of the job duties and responsibilities, an explanation of organizational relationships pertinent to the job.

Job Specification is a written statement of necessary qualifications needed for a job. It is a human centered job specification concentrated on competence, education, experience and the qualifications that the incumbent must possess to perform the job. Job analysis is a systematic investigation and identification of the tasks, duties, and responsibilities necessary in the performance of work.

Personnel Specification is a written statement that identifies the characteristic of the person expected to do the work. His/her behaviour, attitudes, aptitudes, ability to work with little or no supervision.

Job Evaluation

It is the method and practice of ordering jobs or positions with respect to their value or worth to the organization in order to set up internally equitable pay structures and external job market comparison. The aim of job evaluation is to provide a systematic and consistent approach to defining the relative worth of jobs within a workplace, single plant or multiple site organization. It is a process whereby jobs are placed in a rank order according to overall demands placed upon the job holder. It therefore provides a basis for a fair and orderly grading structure. Job evaluation does not determine actual pay. That is a separate operation, normally the subject of negotiation between management and employees or their trade union representatives. Only the job is evaluated, not the person doing it. It is a technique of job analysis, assessment and comparison and it is concerned with the demands of the job, such as the experience and the responsibility required to carry out the job. It is not concerned with the total volume of work, the number of people required to do it, the scheduling of work, or the ability of the job holder.

Several techniques of job evaluation have developed, varying in approach. Some involve an examination of jobs according to criteria such as skill, responsibility and working conditions. Others are less complex.
 It can be beneficial when the existing grading structure is in need of review
 It can help establish or maintain the credibility and acceptability of a grading system
 Job evaluation facilitates the accommodation of new or revised jobs into the grading structure p
 It can be used by organisations as a basis for job matching and external pay comparisons

From the above discussion, we see the interrelationship that exists between job design, job analysis, and job evaluation. That is; Job Analysis determining the scope of the job that leads to the Job Design which, determines the content of the individual jobs and Job Evaluation which, determines the monetary value and worth of the job to the organization.
The implication of this interrelationship to business organizations undertaking Job Design and Job Analysis can be seen in the following importance of job design and job analysis.

Job Design is very important for the following reasons:
 It answers the questions of how the job is to be performed, who is to perform it, and where it is to be performed.
 It greatly affects how an employee feels about a job – i.e. Job Satisfaction.
 It determines how much authority an employee has over the job – i.e. Autonomy.
 It determines how much decision-making the employee has on the job – i.e. Democracy (worker participation).
 It also determines how many tasks the employee has to complete on the job – i.e. Quantum
 Finally it determines working relationships that must exist between management and employees and among employees themselves – i.e. Industrial Relations.

Job Analysis is such an important activity of the HR department of every business organization such that it is called the building block of everything the personnel department does. This statement refers to the fact that almost every human resource programme requires some type of information that gleaned from Job Analysis, e.g. recruitment & selection, performance appraisal, training & development, job evaluation, career planning, job redesign and human resource planning.

The following are some identifiable importance of job analysis among others:
It enables management to determine the kind of personnel required for a job and the number of persons to be employed. – i.e. Human Resource Planning.
It enables business organizations to find the right man for the right job at the right time. – i.e. Human Resource Management.
It enables career planners to identify the skill requirements of the various jobs in order to guide individuals into jobs in which they will succeed and be satisfied. – i.e. Career Planning.
Through job analysis, the organization can identify the behaviours and results that distinguish effective performance from ineffective performance, in order to reward or punish accordingly. – i.e. Performance Appraisal.
To identify which applicants are most qualified, job analysis must be used to determine the tasks that will be performed by the individual hired and the knowledge, skill, and abilities the individual must have to perform the job effectively – i.e. Selection
Finally, job analysis information is essential for preparing training programmes that best suits both the individual needs of the employees and the objectives of the organization – i.e. Training and Development.

Finally, it is worth concluding by reiterating the fact that job design, job analysis, and job evaluation are interrelated and that they have great implications to business organizations and therefore must be undertaken with maximum seriousness in order to reap the best results from them.


References
1.       Victor Amedzo, Freeman Osei-Tete and Seth Frimpong – Topics In Human Resource Management
2.       P. Subba Rao and V.S.P. Rao – Personnel/Human Resource Management (1990) First Edition.
3.       Michael Armstrong – A Handbook of Personnel Management Practice (1996) Sixth Edition.
4.       William P. Anthony, Pamala L. Perrewe and K. Michelle Kacmer – Human Resource Management –
    A Strategic Approach (1999) Third Edition.