JOB DESIGN AND ERGONOMICS RELEVANT TO OPERATIONS
Job design involves conscious efforts to organize tasks, duties, and responsibilities into a unit of work to achieve a certain objective. It specifies the content of each job and determines how work is distributed within the organization. Job design integrates work content (tasks, functions, and relationships), the extrinsic and intrinsic rewards, and the qualifications required (skills, knowledge, and abilities) for each job in a way that meets the needs of employees and the organization.
The design of jobs has a critical impact on organization and employee objectives. From the organization's perspective, the way tasks and responsibilities are grouped can affect productivity and costs. Jobs that are not satisfying or are too demanding may be difficult to fill. Boring jobs may experience higher turnover. For an employee, motivation and job satisfaction are affected by the match between job factors (content, qualifications, and rewards) and personal needs. Therefore, the thoughtful design of jobs can help both the organization and its employees achieve their objectives.
Jobs are more than a collection of tasks recorded in a job analysis schedule and summarized in a job description. Jobs are the foundation of organizational productivity and employee satisfaction. How well jobs are designed will play an increasingly important role in the success, even survival, of any organization. As the number of new workers entering the labor market slows and international competition increases, well-designed jobs will become even more important in attracting and retaining a motivated workforce capable of producing quality products and services. It may be stated that poorly designed jobs may lead to lower productivity, low employee turnover, absenteeism, complaints, sabotage, unionization, and other problems.
Objectives of Job Design
A job is a long-term assignment of tasks by means of which a person can contribute to the effectiveness of an organization. A firm depends on its employees for success. Anything that affects the employee's job performance should, therefore, be of interest to management.
The three main objectives that a manager tries to realize in specifying jobs are:
1. Technical feasibility
2. Economic feasibility
3. Behavioral feasibility
Technical Feasibility
A job is a set of tasks or duties assigned to be performed. The person who holds the job must be capable of performing the assignment with the equipment and system available, and the job must involve the necessary transformation of inputs into outputs. A job must not exceed the reasonable limits of a person's skills or physical and mental endurance. Proper selection of processes and equipment, as well as proper training of employees, helps ensure technical feasibility.
Economic Feasibility
The cost of performing the job should not be too high. Since many businesses must perform in a competitive environment, they are subject to pressure to keep prices at reasonable levels.
Behavioral Feasibility
Some characteristics of a job may affect the job holders' perception of themselves, their perception of others, and their relationships with others. The feelings that people desire from a job affect their motivation to perform it. Since a job is often more than just a set of mechanical motions to be performed, it requires motivation and mental stimulation for successful performance. Beyond the individual, jobs carry social interactions that may lead to group reactions. Informal organizations or work groups have a significant impact on the effectiveness of an organization. Attitudes are contagious, and peer relations or peer pressure may be responsible for many of the motivational reactions of workers.
An organization must achieve economic feasibility to survive. This may make it necessary to stress technical efficiency at the expense of employee satisfaction and motivation. Jobs must be made satisfying to enhance the workers' motivation, leading to no reduction in efficiency and perhaps even an improvement in quality and cost performance.
Behavioral scientists and managers strive to seek answers to the question of how to achieve optimal designs that balance technical objectives and social or behavioral objectives.
One promising approach is the social-technical-systems approach because it involves the interrelationships between the social needs of workers and the technical needs of the task to be performed. Considering all the above aspects and following them may satisfy the needs of employers as well as employees.
From India, New Delhi
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7Job design involves conscious efforts to organize tasks, duties, and responsibilities into a unit of work to achieve a certain objective. It specifies the content of each job and determines how work is distributed within the organization. Job design integrates work content (tasks, functions, and relationships), the extrinsic and intrinsic rewards, and the qualifications required (skills, knowledge, and abilities) for each job in a way that meets the needs of employees and the organization.
The design of jobs has a critical impact on organization and employee objectives. From the organization's perspective, the way tasks and responsibilities are grouped can affect productivity and costs. Jobs that are not satisfying or are too demanding may be difficult to fill. Boring jobs may experience higher turnover. For an employee, motivation and job satisfaction are affected by the match between job factors (content, qualifications, and rewards) and personal needs. Therefore, the thoughtful design of jobs can help both the organization and its employees achieve their objectives.
Jobs are more than a collection of tasks recorded in a job analysis schedule and summarized in a job description. Jobs are the foundation of organizational productivity and employee satisfaction. How well jobs are designed will play an increasingly important role in the success, even survival, of any organization. As the number of new workers entering the labor market slows and international competition increases, well-designed jobs will become even more important in attracting and retaining a motivated workforce capable of producing quality products and services. It may be stated that poorly designed jobs may lead to lower productivity, low employee turnover, absenteeism, complaints, sabotage, unionization, and other problems.
Objectives of Job Design
A job is a long-term assignment of tasks by means of which a person can contribute to the effectiveness of an organization. A firm depends on its employees for success. Anything that affects the employee's job performance should, therefore, be of interest to management.
The three main objectives that a manager tries to realize in specifying jobs are:
1. Technical feasibility
2. Economic feasibility
3. Behavioral feasibility
Technical Feasibility
A job is a set of tasks or duties assigned to be performed. The person who holds the job must be capable of performing the assignment with the equipment and system available, and the job must involve the necessary transformation of inputs into outputs. A job must not exceed the reasonable limits of a person's skills or physical and mental endurance. Proper selection of processes and equipment, as well as proper training of employees, helps ensure technical feasibility.
Economic Feasibility
The cost of performing the job should not be too high. Since many businesses must perform in a competitive environment, they are subject to pressure to keep prices at reasonable levels.
Behavioral Feasibility
Some characteristics of a job may affect the job holders' perception of themselves, their perception of others, and their relationships with others. The feelings that people desire from a job affect their motivation to perform it. Since a job is often more than just a set of mechanical motions to be performed, it requires motivation and mental stimulation for successful performance. Beyond the individual, jobs carry social interactions that may lead to group reactions. Informal organizations or work groups have a significant impact on the effectiveness of an organization. Attitudes are contagious, and peer relations or peer pressure may be responsible for many of the motivational reactions of workers.
An organization must achieve economic feasibility to survive. This may make it necessary to stress technical efficiency at the expense of employee satisfaction and motivation. Jobs must be made satisfying to enhance the workers' motivation, leading to no reduction in efficiency and perhaps even an improvement in quality and cost performance.
Behavioral scientists and managers strive to seek answers to the question of how to achieve optimal designs that balance technical objectives and social or behavioral objectives.
One promising approach is the social-technical-systems approach because it involves the interrelationships between the social needs of workers and the technical needs of the task to be performed. Considering all the above aspects and following them may satisfy the needs of employers as well as employees.
From India, New Delhi
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JOB DESIGN & JOB ANALYSIS.ppt
Job Description - HR & Admin.doc