Bauer, Human Resource Management
SAGE Publishing, 2020
Lecture Notes
Chapter 5: The Analysis and Design of Work
Learning Objectives
5.2. Demonstrate the use of different ways of collecting job analysis information.
5.3. Differentiate between job analysis and competency modeling and evaluate the advantages
of each approach.
Chapter Summary
This chapter aims to describe the science and best practices regarding how to analyze jobs and work
processes and the importance of understanding how employee experience their jobs. The chapter
begins with an overview explaining job analysis and the critical role it plays in HR functions. Then,
methods of collecting job analysis data are discussed, including logistical issues in job analysis. More
Annotated Chapter Outline
I. The Analysis of Work and Its Critical Role in HR Practice: strategic goals must be translated
down the organizational hierarchy into specific work processes
A. Job analysis: analysis of work and the employee characteristics needed to perform the
work successfully
i. Essential HR function that forms the basis for all other HR functions
B. Technical Terms Used in Job Analysis and Competency Modeling
i. Tasks: elements of a job analysis that are typically used to describe the job itself
Bauer, Human Resource Management
SAGE Publishing, 2020
vi. Job: group of related duties within an organization
C. What Are the Purposes of Job Analysis?
i. Establishes the minimum qualifications the job requires
ii. Used for recruitment in understanding the human requirements of a job prior to
developing recruitment strategies and materials
a. Job evaluation
D. Seeing the Big Picture: Work Flow Analysis
i. Work flow analysis: broad, organization-level focus on work
II. Collecting Job Analysis Data: a number of methods may be used
A. Interviewing SMEs
i. Most common method
ii. Conducted individually or in small groups
B. Observation of people doing the work
F. Preparing SMEs for Job Analysis
III. Specific Job Analysis Methods and Approaches: each specific method produces a slightly
different job analysis product
A. Task-KSAO Analysis
i. Job analysis approach focused on carefully defining the tasks that make up the
job, as well as the KSAOs needed to do those tasks
Bauer, Human Resource Management
SAGE Publishing, 2020
a. Criticality survey: larger groups of SMEs rate each task and KSAO in
terms of how critical or essential it is
iv. Demonstrate that KSAOs are linked to critical tasks
a. Linkage survey: a sample of SMEs are asked to indicate how important a
KSAO is to a job task
B. Critical Incidents Technique
i. Asks SMEs to describe critical job situations that they frequently encounter on
the job and then to generate examples of good and poor responses to these
critical incidents
C. Position Analysis Questionnaire
i. General job analysis survey
D. Occupational Information Network (O*NET)
E. Competency Modeling
i. Usually broad enough to describe a range of jobs within an organization across
multiple levels
IV. Designing Jobs to Enhance Motivation, Attitudes, Well-Being, and Performance: it is
important to consider how jobs can be designed to better fit with human needs
A. Job enlargement: addition of more responsibilities to a job so that it is less boring and
more motivating for workers
Bauer, Human Resource Management
SAGE Publishing, 2020
a. Proposed that enhancing the characteristics of the job leads to
improved psychological states, which leads to improved individual and
organization outcomes
iv. Job Demands-Control Model (JDC): emphasizes that employees experience
stress when there are high job demands and little control over their job
vi. Early 21th century, Morgeson and Humphrey’s model of job design
a. 18 types of job characteristics falling into four broad categories
vii. How Effective Are Job Design Considerations for Predicting Employee Outcomes?
a. Summarized meta-analysis research of 259 studies over 200,000
workers supports pay off
V. Flexible Work Arrangements: organizations can help workers with balancing work and life
needs by offering flexible work arrangements
A. Flextime: workers can choose from a number of work schedules
B. Telecommuting: remote work where an employee works a substantial amount of time
away from the office
i. Generally favorable work and life outcomes
C. Contingent Employees
i. Workers hired for a limited, fixed term
ii. Disadvantages: