Workflow analysis

the effectiveness of each work unit. For the outputs identified, work flow analysis
then examines the work processes used to generate those outputs. Work
processes are the activities that members of a work unit engage in to produce a
given output. Every process consists of operating procedures that specify how
things should be done at each stage of developing the output. These procedures
include all the tasks that must be performed in producing the output. Usually, the
analysis breaks down the tasks into those performed by each person in the work
unit. This analysis helps with design of efficient work systems by clarifying which
tasks are necessary. Typically, when a unit�s work load increases, the unit adds
people, when the work load decreases, some members of the unit may busy
themselves with unrelated tasks in an effort to appear busy. The final stage in
work flow analysis is to identify the inputs used in the development of the work
unit�s product. These inputs can be broken down into the raw inputs,
equipment, and human skills needed to perform the tasks. Makers of athletic
shoes need nylon and leather, shoemaking machinery, and workers to operate
the machinery, among other inputs.
Work Flow Design and Organization�s Structure: Besides looking at the work
flow of each process, it is important to show the work fits within the context of
the organization�s structure. Units in organizations must be able to cooperate
with each other and communicate with each other to accomplish the goals of the
organization or create an output. The organization�s structure will bring people
together to accomplish their desired goals. The structure can be centralized or
decentralized. Centralized order has a few individuals with a lot of authority who
directs the rest of the organization, decentralized structure has the authority
spread across the organization. The organization may group jobs according to
functions, or it may set up divisions to focus on products or customer groups.
Although there are an infinite number of ways to combine the elements of an
organization�s structure, we can make some general observations about the
structure and work design. If the structure is strongly based on function, workers
tend to have low authority and to work alone at highly specialized jobs. Jobs that
involve teamwork or broad responsibility tend to require a structure based on
division other than functions. When the goal is to empower employees,
companies therefore need to set up structures and jobs that enable broad
responsibilities. The organization�s structure also affects manager�s jobs.

Managing a division responsible for a product or customer group tends to require
more experience and cognitive ability than managing a department that handles a
particular function. Work design often emphasizes the analysis and design of jobs,
as described in the remainder of this chapter. Although all of these approaches
can succeed, each focuses on one isolated job at a time. Although all of these
approaches can succeed, each focuses on one isolated job at a time. These
approaches do not necessarily consider how that single job fits into the overall
work flow or structure of the organization. Work flow design should consider the
whole organization in order to create an effective work flow design.
Job Analysis: To achieve high-quality performance, organizations have to
understand and match job requirements and people. This understanding requires
job analysis, the process of getting detailed information about jobs. Analyzing
jobs, and understanding what is require to carry out a job provide essential
knowledge for staffing, training, performance appraisal, and many other HR
activities.
Job Descriptions: is a list of the tasks, duties and responsibilities (TDR) that a job
entails. TDRs are observable actions. When a manager is evaluating an employee
it is important to have a detailed TDR in order for the employee to effectively
judge the employees work performance. Job Description are usually documents
that contain the following, job title, a brief description of your job tasks, job
duties, and job responsibility. All job descriptions in an organization should follow
the same format for consistency. This helps the organization show that it makes
human resource decisions fairly. Because making job description can be timely
organizations usually use templates or forms with areas in which they can fill in,
for each specific job. All organizations should hand out their job descriptions
before they begin work, however employees should understand that this is
expected and that employees should feel free to go above and beyond their duty.
Inside the job description most forms usually add the clause that their job duties
include anything that your supervisor directs you to do, because employees who
are assigned a task that is not apart of their job descriptions do not have the
excuse of �that�s not my job�.
Job Specifications: Whereas the job description focuses on the activities involved
in carrying out a job, a job specification looks at the qualities of the person
performing the job. It is a list of the knowledge, skills, abilities, and other
characteristics (KSAOs) that an individual must have to perform the job.
Knowledge refers to the factual or procedural information that is necessary for
successfully performing a task. A skill is an individual�s level of proficiency at

performing a particular task � that is, the capability to perform it well. With
knowledge and experience, you could acquire skill in the task of preparing job
specifications. Ability, in contrast to skill, refers to a more general enduring
capability that an individual posses. A person might have the ability to cooperate
with others or to write clearly and precisely. Finally, other characteristics might be
personality traits such as someone�s persistence or motivation to achieve. Some
jobs also have legal requirements, such as licensing or certification. When
developing a job specification it is important to keep the KSAO in mind. As with
writing a job description, the information can come from a combination of people
performing the job, people supervising or planning for the job, and trained job
analysts. KSAOs are characteristics of people and are not directly observable. They
are observable only when individuals are carrying out the TDRs of the job � and
afterward, if they can show the product of their labor. Accurate information
about KSAOs is especially important for making decisions about who will fill a job.
A manager attempting to fill a position needs information about the
characteristics required, and about the characteristics of each applicant. When
job specifications call for nighttime work, a person�s ability to handle nocturnal
work life may be the most critical KSAO.
Sources of Job Information: Information about an existing job usually come from
the person currently or previously employed at that position. That is because they
have previous experience with the job it is only logical that they be the definite
source about the job information. The only problem with information from
previously holders at that position is that they may exaggerate their position and
job duties. Supervisors should supplement information with the incumbent�s
information to have an accurate description of the job at hand. Dictionary of
Occupational Titles, created by the Department of Labor in the 1930s the DOT
listed over 12,000 jobs and requirements.
Position Analysis Questionnaire: After gathering information the job analyst uses
the information to analyze the job. One of the broadest and best-researched
instruments for analyzing jobs is the position analysis questionnaire. This is a
standardized job analysis questionnaire containing 195 items that represent work
behaviors, work conditions and job characteristics that apply to a wide variety of
jobs. The questionnaire organizes these items into six sections concerning
different aspects of the job:

1. Information input � where and how a worker gets information needed to
perform the job.
2. Mental processes � the reasoning, decision making, planning, and
information processing activities involved in performing the job.
3. Work output � the physical activities, tools, and devices, used by the
worker to perform the job.
4. Relationships with other persons � the relationships with other people
required in performing the job.
5. Job context � The physical and social context where the work is
performed.
6. Other characteristics � the activities, conditions, and characteristics other
than those previously described that are relevant to the job.
Task Analysis Inventory: Another type of job analysis method, the task analysis
inventory, focuses on the tasks performed in a particular job. This method has
several variations. In one, the task inventory � CODAP method, subject matter
experts such as job incumbents generate a list of the tasks performed in a job.
Then they rate each task in terms of time spend on the task, frequency of task
performance, relative importance, relative difficulty, and length of time required
to learn the job. Because the tasks are measured in terms that are concrete and
specific to the job, the people rating the job tend to agree with one another.
Importance of Job Analysis: Job analysis is important to HR manager that is has
been called the building block of everything that personnel does.
Work redesign � often an organization seeks to redesign work to make it
more efficient or to improve quality. The redesign requires detailed
information about the existing jobs. In addition, preparing the redesign is
similar to analyzing a job that does not yet exist.
Human Resource Planning � as planners analyze human resource needs
and how to meet those needs, they must have accurate information about
the levels of skill required in various jobs, so that they can tell what kinds of
human resources will be needed.
Selection � To identify the most qualified applicants for various positions,
decision makers need to know what tasks the individuals must perform, as
well as the necessary knowledge, skills, and abilities.

Training � Almost every employee hired by an organization will require
training. Any training program requires knowledge of the tasks performed
in a job, so that the training is related to the necessary knowledge and
skills.
Performance appraisal � an accurate performance appraisal requires
information about how well each employee is performing in order to
reward employees who perform well and to improve their performance if it
is below standard. Job analysis help in identifying the behaviors and the
results associated with effective performance.
Career planning � matching an individual�s skills and aspirations with
career opportunities requires that those in charge of career planning know
the skill requirements of the various jobs. This allows them to guide
individuals into jobs in which they will succeed and be satisfied.
Job evaluation � The process of job evaluation involves assessing the
relative dollar value of each job to the organization in order to set up fair
pay structures. If employees do not believe pay structures are fair, they will
become dissatisfied and may quit, or they will not see much benefit in
striving for promotions. To put dollar values on jobs, it is necessary to get
information about different jobs and compare them.
Trends in Job Analysis: Organizations beginning to appreciate the need to analyze
jobs in the context of the organization�s structure and strategy. In addition,
organizations are recognizing that today�s workplace must be adaptable and is
constantly subject to change. Thus, although we tend to think of �jobs� as
something stable, they actually tend to change and evolve over time. Job analysis
must not only define jobs when they are created, but also detect changes in jobs
as time passes. The idea of the �job� is increasingly becoming uncommon,
because many business people believe that a person at work must perform tasks,
or projects that need to be done. Legal requirements discourage businesses from
writing flexible job descriptions.
Job Design: although job analysis, as just described, is important for an
understanding of existing jobs, organizations also must plan for new jobs and
periodically consider whether they should revise existing jobs. When an
organization is expanding, supervisors and human resource professionals must
help plan for new or growing work units. When an organization is trying to

improve quality or efficiency, a review of work units and processes may require a
fresh look at how jobs are designed. These situations call for job design, the
process of defining how work will be performed and what tasks will be required in
a given job, or job redesign, a similar process that involves changing an existing
job design. To design jobs effectively, a person must thoroughly understand the
job itself and its place in the larger work unit�s work flow process. Having a
detailed knowledge of the tasks performed in the work unit and in the job, a
manager then has many alternative ways to design a job.
Designing Efficient Jobs: If workers perform tasks as efficiently as possible, not
only does the organization benefit from lower costs and greater output per
worker, but workers should be less fatigued. The point of view has for years
formed the basis of classical industrial engineering, which looks for the simplest
way to structure work in order to maximize efficiency. Typically, applying
industrial engineering to a job reduces the complexity of the work, making it so
simple that almost anyone can be trained quickly and easily to perform the job.
Such jobs tend to be highly specialized and repetitive. In practice, the scientific
method traditionally seeks the �one best way� to perform a job by performing
time-and-motion studies to identify the most efficient movements for workers to
make.
Designing Jobs that Motivate: Especially when organizations must compete for
employees, depend of skill knowledge workers, or need a workforce that cares
about customer satisfaction, a pure focus on efficiency will not achieve human
resource objectives. These organizations need jobs that employees find
interesting and satisfying, and job design should take into account factors that
make jobs motivating to employees.
1. �Skill variety � The extent to which a job requires a variety of skills to
carry out the tasks involved.
2. Task Identity � The degree to which a job requires completing a
�whole� piece of work from beginning to end (for example, building an
entire component or resolving a customer�s complaint).
3. Task significance � The extent to which the job has an important impact
on the lives of other people.
4. Autonomy � The degree to which the job allows and individual to make
decisions about the way the work will be carried out.

5. Feedback � The extent to which a person receives clear information about
performance effectiveness from the work itself.
Job Enlargement: In a job design, job enlargement refers to the broadening
the types of tasks performed. The objective of job enlargement is to make
jobs less repetitive and more interesting. Methods of job enlargement
include job extension and job rotation. Job extension is enlarging jobs by
combining several relatively simple jobs to form a wider range of tasks. Job
rotation does not actually redesign the jobs themselves, but moves
employees among several different jobs. This approach to job enlargement
is common among production teams. As we job extension, the enlarged job
may still consist of repetitious activities, but with greater variation among
those activities.
Job Enrichment: The idea of job enrichment, or empowering workers by
adding more decision-making authority to their jobs, comes from the work
of Frederick Herzberg. According to Herzberg�s two-factory theory,
individuals are motivated more by the intrinsic aspects of work than by
extrinsic rewards such as pay. Herzberg identified five factors he associated
with motivating jobs: achievement, recognition, growth, responsibility, and
performance of the entire job.
Self-Managing Work Teams: Instead of merely enriching individual jobs,
some organizations empower employees by designing work to be done by
self-managing work teams. Team members typically have authority to
schedule work, hire team members, resolve problems related to the
team�s performance, and perform other duties traditionally handled by
management. Teamwork can give a job such motivating characteristics as
autonomy, skill variety, and task identity. Because team members�
responsibility is great, their jobs usually are defined broadly, and include
sharing of work assignments. Teamwork can certainly make jobs more
interesting, but teamwork�s effectiveness is not guaranteed. A study of
work teams at a large financial services company found that the right job
design was associated with effective teamwork. In particular, when teams
are self-managed and team members are highly involved in decision
making, teams are more productive, employees more satisfied, and
managers more pleased with performance. Teams also tend to do better

when each team member performs a variety of tasks and when team
members view their effort as significant.
Flexible Work Schedules: One way in which an organization can give
employees some say in how their work is structured is to offer flexible work
schedules. Depending on the requirements of the organization and the
individual jobs, organizations, may be able to flexible in terms of when
employees work. Flextime is a scheduling policy in which full-time
employees may choose starting and ending times within guidelines
specified by the organization. The flextime policy may require that
employees be at work between certain hours, say 10:00 AM and 3:00 PM.
Employees work additional hours before or after this period in order to
work the full day. A work schedule that allows time for community and
family interests can be extremely motivating for some employees. Job
sharing is a work option in which two part-time employees carry out the
tasks associated with a single job. Such arrangements can enable an
organization to attract or retain valued employees who want more time to
attend school or to care for family members. The job requirements in such
an arrangement include the ability to work cooperatively and coordinate
the details of one�s job with another person. �Although not strictly a
form of flexibility on the level of individual employees, another scheduling
alternative is the compressed workweek. A compressed workweek is a
schedule in which full-time workers complete their weekly hours in fewer
than five days. Employees may appreciate the extra days available for
leisure, family, or volunteer activities. There are many drawbacks to this
type of scheduling, because of the longer days, employees may become
more exhausted after such a long day, and federal regulations require that
employers pay employees overtime if they work over a certain amount of
hours.
Telework: Flexibility can extend to work locations as well as work
schedules. Before the Industrial Revolution, most people worked either
close to or inside their own homes. Mass production technologies changed
all this, separating work life from home life, as people began to travel to
centrally located factories and offices. Today, however, skyrocketing prices
for office space, combined with drastically reduced prices for portable
communication and computing devices, seem ready to reverse this trend.
For employers, advantages of telework include less need for office space

and the ability to offer greater flexibility to employees who are disabled or
need to be available for children or elderly relatives.
Designing Ergonomic Jobs: The way people use their bodies when they work �
whether toting heavy furniture onto a moving van or sitting quietly before a
computer screen � affects their physical well-being and may affect how well and
how long they can work. The study of the interface between individuals�
physiology and the characteristics of the physical work is called ergonomics. The
goal of ergonomics is to minimize physical strain on the worker by structuring the
physical work environment around the way the human body works. Ergonomics
therefore focuses on outcomes such as reducing physical fatigue, aches, and
pains, and health complaints. Ergonomic job design has been applied in
redesigning equipment used in jobs that are physically demanding. Such redesign
is often aimed at reducing the physical demands of certain jobs so that anyone
can perform them. Often, redesigning work to make it more worker-friendly also
leads to increased efficiencies. Employers are to avoid these specific high risk
work practices:
1. Using a keyboard for four hours straight without a break.
2. Lifting more than 75 pounds.
3. Kneeling or squatting for more than two hours a day.
4. Working with the back, neck, or wrists bent more than two hours a day.
5. Using large vibrating equipment such as chainsaws or jackhammers more
than 30 minutes a day.
Designing Jobs that Meet Mental Capabilities and Limitations: Just as the
human body has capabilities and limitations, addressed by ergonomics, the mind,
too, have capabilities and limitations. Besides hiring people with certain mental
skills, organizations can design jobs so that they can be accurately and safely
performed given the way the brain processes information. Generally, this means
reducing the information � processing requirements of a job. Research has
found that challenging jobs tend to fatigue and dissatisfy workers when they feel
little control over their situations, lack social support, and feel motivated mainly
to avoid errors. In contrast, they may enjoy the challenges of a difficult job where
they have some control and social support, especially if they enjoy learning and
are unafraid of making mistakes.

Workflow analysis

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Workflow analysis