Page 64 - DMGT406_HUMAN_RESOURCE_MANAGEMENT

Unit 4: Job Design

The current trend is to redesign jobs to improve worker satisfaction and productivity. There are, Notes
however, no easy solutions to redesigning jobs because there are too many variables: the worker,
the nature of the work, the organisation climate, and the manager's styles.

4.1 Definition of Job Design

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 job holder and
his superiors, subordinates and colleagues.
It integrates work content (tasks, functions, relationships), the rewards (extrinsic and intrinsic)
and the qualification required (skills, knowledge, abilities) for each job in away that meets the
needs of employees and the organization.
Two important goals of job design are:
1. To meet the organizational requirements such as higher productivity, operational efficiency,
quality of product/service.
2. To satisfy the needs of the individual employees like interests, challenge, achievement or
accomplishment.

4.2 Job Design Process

Job design process has to start from what activity needs 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.

4.3 Job Design Methods

Job design motivates the employees for higher efficiency, productivity and generates job
satisfaction. Specification should be introduced in job design so that the needs of the employees
for accomplishment, recognition, psychological growth can be satisfied. Personnel departments
such as Job simplification, job rotation, job enlargement and job enrichment.

4.4 Job Simplification

Job simplification is a design method whereby jobs are divided into smaller components and
subsequently assigned to workers as whole jobs. Simplification of work requires that jobs be
broken down into their smallest units and then analysed. Each resulting sub-unit typically
consists of relatively few operations. These subunits are then assigned to the workers as their
total job.
Many fast food restaurants such as McDonald's, Burger King and Nirula's use simplification
because employees can learn tasks rapidly; short work cycles allow task performance with little
or no mental effort and low-skilled and low-paid employees can be hired and trained easily.
On the negative side, job simplification results in workers experiencing boredom, frustration,
alienation, lack of motivation and low job satisfaction. This, in turn, leads to lower productivity
and increased cost. Most current competitive challenges demand a committed and involved
workforce that is able to make decisions and experiment with new ways of doing things. Many
people seek jobs that allow greater discretion and offer more of a challenge. In other words,

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