Job Analysis and Design

Introduction

Currently, companies are inventing and implementing new approaches in the market and within the organization to compete in the competitive business environment. The human resource department is involved in ensuring that the strategies are effective and efficient. Before enforcing the process, they require a critical component that includes job analysis as well as job design. Job analysis and design are among the essential techniques in Human Resource Management. Job analysis provides information needed to create a job description, task profile, and individual and leaning specifications (Armstrong, 2010). It is of great importance for a company that is recruiting new employees. Job designs include plans and specifications of job tasks and the work that the worker needs to accomplish (French, 2011). It helps in making jobs meaningful, engaging and challenging. Developing an effective job design assists a company in competing in the international market.  As a Human Resource Manager, there are different approaches that one can undertake to perform job analysis as well as job design so as to make sure that the job reflects the current workload and expectations. 

Job analysis is an essential function of Human Resource that links to various activities of human resource management. The HR manager can take various approaches when conducting a job assessment of the CSR position. Interviews are among the strategies that HR manager can apply to perform job analysis (Cunningham, 2016). They can be structured or unstructured, and the manager can ask for information concerning work activities to demonstrate principal activities, skills, and accountabilities. Interviews are utilized in cases where the managers feel that it is important to depend on the worker’s job description. Structured questions, help the interviewers to compare jobs in the same category. However, the unstructured questions, assist in gathering in-depth information. Interviews are important as they help the interviewers to describe the roles and duties that cannot be observed. Nevertheless, a person can exaggerate or omit tasks and roles during the process.

Observation is another approach that is used by the HR managers when conducting a job analysis. The method allows the HR manager to observe employees and record all the tasks that they have performed and those that they have not performed. A common observation approach is the time and motion study (Cunningham, 2016). It is used to measure the average time involved in different tasks. The method is utilized in describing various activities. The human resource manager observes the worker and records the way distinct parts of the job are performed. It allows the human resource manager in gathering firsthand information. Observation also helps in verifying data from other sources. Additionally, it is a simple method to use when performing a job analysis. Despite its many advantages, it also has its disadvantages, for example, it can be time-consuming. Another drawback is that it can be challenging to gather valid and reliable information when using the method. Observation approach also requires a small sample and can favor a worker’s performance.

Moreover, human resource manager can use the questionnaire approach when performing job analysis of Customer Service Representative Position. Employees and managers are given a survey instrument to complete during the process (Cunningham, 2016). An advantage of the approach is that it allows the human resource manager to gather information from many employees. Also, the approach is less expensive, and the collected data is standardized. However, it can be hard to construct, and employees can give incomplete information.

The retail company can use the interview approach in performing a job assessment of the CSR Position. One important factor about the approach is that it will help the organization to collect in-depth information about the position (Cunningham, 2016). In this case, the Customer Service department is critical to the success of the organization, hence, the approach will offer precise information concerning the position. It also allows the interviewers to compare jobs in the same category.

Job design method is another important technique in human resource management. A human resource manager can choose from different significant job design approaches.  Job simplification is one of the approaches to job design that a human resource manager can consider (French, 2011). It includes standardization of work procedures as well as employing individuals with tasks that are well distinct and specialized. The approach involves simplified jobs that are specific and entail a person to complete a narrow set of jobs repeatedly. The method requires minimal training and can be handled by unskilled labor.  Another important aspect is that it enhances the time taken for a person to finish a task because every employee performs only a small portion of a job.

 For instance, the retail company can simplify the tasks because it requires minimal training and they can use unskilled labor. However, workers can experience boredom and frustration as well as low job satisfaction (French, 2011). Customer Service department is an important part of the growth of the company. Hence, it is significant for the HR manager to ensure that there is enhanced job satisfaction. However, the organization risks losing job satisfaction if it applies job simplification approach. It can also lead to minimal productivity and increased cost.  Another challenge that a human resource manager can encounter when designing a job utilizing job simplification is that employees can experience alienations which can affect the entire process.  Workers at the small retail company may feel alienated, which may affect their job performance and the entire company.

Also, Human Resource Manager can consider Job enrichment. In this case, HR managers can design a job in a manner that it offers the employees freedom for planning and managing his or her performance (French, 2011). It focuses on enhancing tasks, efficiency and worker satisfaction. According to the approach to motivate the employees, the organization should ensure that the tasks offer opportunities for achieving recognition, advancement, and growth. One potential advantage a human resource manager can encounter is that workers can acquire new skills. Increasing the employees’ level of responsibility helps them in learning new skills. For instance, a customer service representative can also help to identify the quality of the products sold in a job enrichment situation. Another advantage is that it minimizes boredom as employees are likely to get bored with their everyday tasks. Job enrichment allows the employees to explore other skills.  The customer service representative can explore new skills which can assist in motivating him or her.

Despite the advantages, the human resource manager can also meet various challenges when designing a job using the job enrichment approach. Increased employee’s workload is one of the challenges that HR manager can encounter (French, 2011). Some workers may have a hard time re-prioritizing their time and tasks. In this case, they can get frustrated and minimize their overall work performance. Customer service representatives may have a hard time balancing the regulation of the quality and selling the products to their clients. Poor performance is another challenge that the human resource manager can encounter during the process. In some cases, employees can perform a great work in job enrichment while in another instance they may perform poorly. Some workers may lack proper training or interest about their new tasks. A customer service representative may not understand how to check the quality of the product, and he or she may feel frustrated and incompetent.

Companies utilize different strategies to attract and select qualified persons for a job position. They use different approaches to market the position. Using newspapers is one of the most popular methods applied by most organizations. The approach helps a company to assess and select the sections most likely to be read by targeted candidates (Mello, 2014). For instance, the retail company can use the business sector to reach out to Customer Service Representatives. A company can also use a clip-out coupon with the recruitment message so as to entice the readers. An interested person can mail the coupon to the company instead of writing a resume. The retail company can as well customize the message so as to attract a huge number of candidates.

Using the internet is another approach that the human resource manager can use to entice and choose a competent applicant for the CSR post. Technological advances have updated almost every business operation, including recruiting. Companies use online sources to recruit and select candidates (Mello, 2014). The approach is efficient as it provides various tools for the company to use during the selection process. For instance, the retail company can use personality assessment tool to screen the candidates. Primarily, the method helps in selecting qualified candidates who match the company’s values.  The Internet will also help the retail company to reach a large audience compared to other approaches. An organization can as well attract clients with specific skills.

Information gathered from job analysis can be used in different ways in measuring the performance of Customer Service Representatives. It can be used in periodic evaluation by offering the human resource manager an outline of where the workers should be regarding training and performance. For instance, Customer Service department should be able to perform different tasks correctly after six months. Moreover, it should be able to find information concerning the client’s product with a little help from the system. The Human Resource manager can also use the information to monitor and assess the workers’ performance (Dada, Stanoevska & Gómez, 2013). Measuring performance assists in evaluating employee performance in terms of quality. The Customer Service Representatives are tasked with providing efficient services to the clients. They help in creating a long-term relationship between the business and its clients. Hence, it is important for the HR manager to measure their performance regularly. Monitoring the employees’ performance is also important so as to ensure that they attract and retain clients. They can monitor the workers using different tools such as questionnaires or meeting the workers face-to-face. The retail company can as well measure the employees’ performance by getting feedback from the consumers. The customers’ satisfaction determines the workers’ performance. The Human Resource should take the necessary steps to help in enhancing client’s satisfaction.

References

Armstrong, M. (2010). Armstrong’s essential human resource management practice: A guide to

people management. London: Kogan Page.

Cunningham, J. B. (2016). Strategic Human Resource Management in the Public Arena.

Palgrave Macmillan.

Dada, A., Stanoevska-Slabeva, K., & Gómez, J. M. (2013). Organizations’ environmental

performance indicators: Measuring, monitoring, and management.

French, R. (2011). Organizational behaviour. Hoboken, N.J: Wiley.

Mello, J. A. (2014). Strategic Human Resource Management. Cengage Learning.

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