Notes on Job Analysis: Meaning, Elements and Importance

After reading this article you will learn about:- 1. Meaning of Job Analysis 2. Elements of Job Analysis 3. Importance.

Meaning of Job Analysis:

Job analysis is pre-requisite to manpower planning. It helps to understand the nature of jobs. Different jobs are performed in the organisation and, therefore, different kinds of people are to be selected, trained, compensated and placed at those jobs. Job analysis means to analyse the requirement of the job and match it with the requirement of the person who will work on that job. It, thus, matches the jobs with the job holders.

Job analysis is “identification of the specific activities performed in a job and the characteristics of the person, the work situation, and the materials or equipment necessary for performing the job effectively.” It is the “systematic collection and recording of information concerning the purpose of a job, its major duties, the conditions under which it is performed, the contact with others that performance of the job requires, and the knowledge, skills and abilities needed for performing the job effectively.” It, thus, identifies contents of the job (job description) and characteristics of the persons (job specifications) who will perform those jobs, Why job analysis

Elements of Job Analysis:

There are two elements of job analysis: Job description and job specification. These are the important documents that managers prepare before recruitment and selection.

1. Job Description:

It describes the duties, responsibilities and working conditions of a specific job. It specifies requirements of the job so that standards of performance can be developed and actual performance can be measured against these standards. It also helps in job grading, recruitment and selection parameters, training and development needs, developing career paths and providing standards for performance appraisal.

It provides details of the job like name, code number, tools and equipment’s, location, duties, working conditions, working hours and relationship with other jobs etc. “It is a written statement of what a job holder does, how it is done and why it is done. It typically describes job content, environment, and conditions of employment.”

Specimen of job description:

Job Title: Sales Girls.

Job Number: MK/ 2.

Job Department: Marketing.

Job Summary: Promote sales in rural areas.

Job Duties:

1. Sell in rural areas.

2. Train people to sell goods in rural areas.

3. Impart knowledge to field workers to convince consumers.

4. Acquire knowledge of operating computers.

5. 10 days touring every month anywhere in India.

Working Hours: 8 hours every day.

2. Job Specification:

It describes the knowledge and skills of people who perform the job. Job specification enables to select individuals with skills to perform the job. If people are not competent to do the job, managers provide them training facilities. Selection, training and placement programmes largely depend upon job specification, ie., knowledge possessed by individuals and knowledge required to be possessed by them.

“Job specification states the minimum qualifications that a person must possess to perform a given job successfully.” It identifies the knowledge, skills and attitudes needed by job holders to perform their jobs effectively.

Its basic contents are:

1. Personal characteristics (age, gender, education, extracurricular activities etc.).

2. Physical characteristics (height, weight, health, skin, hearing etc.).

3. Mental characteristic (intelligence, memory, farsightedness, judgment etc.).

4. Social and psychological characteristics (emotions, creativity, initiative, flexibility etc.).

Specimen of job specification:

Job Title: Sales Girls.

Job Number: MK/2.

Job Department: Marketing.

Experience: Applicant must have 2 years’ experience in sales.

Qualification: Diploma in sales management and a graduate degree in any course.

Personality: Pleasing personality with good communication skills.

Age: Between 18 to 25 years.

After identifying job description and job specification, the jobs are evaluated. Job evaluation means rating the jobs on the basis of their importance in the organisation. The importance of a job can be judged on the basis of skills required to do that job, complexities of the job and difficulties and stress to be faced while performing that job. The jobs are arranged in the descending or ascending order of their importance and rewards and compensation are fixed for each job. It helps in fixing equal pay for equal jobs.

Importance of Job Analysis:

Job analysis is important for the following reasons:

1. Job design:

It provides information about what work is to be performed on the job. It helps in identifying the work, grouping it on the basis of similarity of features, defining relationship amongst different jobs and authority-responsibility structure required to perform those jobs. It, thus, helps in designing the organisation structure.

2. Human resource planning:

It helps in knowing the type of people to be appointed and placed (manpower requirement) on respective jobs. By determining the types of jobs to be performed in the organisation, it also helps in determining the number and type of people (in terms of knowledge, skills and experience) required to work on those jobs.

3. Recruitment and selection:

It helps in recruitment and selection by identifying the sources from where people will be acquired and selecting those who meet the criteria specified in job description. It aims at maintaining balance between the jobs (tasks and responsibilities of the job) and the job holders (skills, knowledge and experience of job holders). While responsibilities of the jobs define job description, skills of job holders define job specification.

4. Placement:

It helps in placing the right person at the right job. When people are appointed for a group of jobs (for example, trainees) rather than specific jobs, job analysis helps in matching requirements of jobs with people who can be placed at those jobs. It, thus, helps in placement — right person at the right job.

5. Training and development:

It helps in training and developing the employees by making them skilled and competent to perform the specific jobs. People work on dynamic jobs with changing job requirements, both present and potential. Job analysis helps in analysing the requirement of jobs up the hierarchy and provides information about training and development needs so that people can be prepared to assume jobs of higher importance.

6. Job evaluation:

It helps in modifying the nature of jobs. Job analysis evaluates jobs in terms of their worth and helps in fixing compensation for the respective jobs. If compensation is not worth the qualification and skills of job holders, it helps in revising either the job contents or the compensation policies.

7. Performance appraisal:

Employees’ performance is appraised against job standards to make it conform to desired performance and identify training needs and people worthy of promotions and transfers. Promotions involve assuming jobs of higher status and also have advanced compensation attached to them.

Job analysis helps in effectively identifying the characteristics of jobs at different levels so that promotions and transfers are worth the effort and benefits arising out of them are more than the costs (higher compensation, payment to outside experts for appraisals, etc.).