Enhancing Organizational Efficiency: An Overview of Work Design and Job Analysis for Managers

1. Work Design and Job Analysis:An overview for Managers July 2009

2. Introduction • Workforce planning is, in the broadest sense, the activity required to map the human resources required to achieve an organisation’s strategy. • Work design deals with the way work is organised and managed including structures and grouping of functions. • Job analysis is the process of describing what work needs to be done and includes specific responsibilities and working relationships. • The manager is responsible for designing structure and jobs but it is also advisable that staff also are involved in designing jobs. • When designing a new structure affected staff must be consulted prior to changes being made

3. Why undertake work design activity? • Organisational change delivers many opportunities to look carefully at how work is structured in the context of: • How the work contributes to the achievement of the University objectives and plans • Work process improvement activity • The opportunities emerging from new technologies • CSU sustainability agenda • Current and future resourcing/budgets

4. What does it achieve? • Well designed work aims to strike a balance between: • Functional effectiveness ie: does the work design increase productivity and enhance efficiency. • Human values ie: does the work design maintain or enhance job satisfaction and health and safety. • In this way work is viewed more of a group function based on what works for overall performance, rather than a series of static individual jobs and task descriptions.

5. When are jobs analysed? • When vacancies occur – this provides an opportunity to learn from the outgoing person about what was good and bad about the job and what could be changed. • When creating a new position - this provides an opportunity to review the changing needs of the workplace • When introducing workplace change such as technology or new processes that will impact on the way work is currently done. • When designing a new structure to deliver services.

6. Well designed jobs provide Task Identity Whole and identifiable pieces of work with clear objectives and a visible outcome Task significance Work fits the purpose of the organisation Skill variety Requires a range of skills and talents; provides challenge Autonomy Substantial discretion and decision making (within set boundaries) Feedback Work provides direct and clear information about effectiveness and performance Working environment Opportunity to interact with others; minimisation of environmental risks

7. 10 Principles of well designed jobs………. • All jobs have clearly defined activities, responsibilities and accountabilities which contribute to the overall objectives of the organisation • Issues to be considered: • What functions/activities are to be undertaken? Why are they needed? • How do these contribute to the overall objectives of the organisation? • How do the activities relate to the workforce plan? • Is the job being designed around existing staff rather than the organisation’s needs?

8. Well designed jobs………. • Are located correctly within the organisation • Issues to be considered: • Relationship mapping – what interactions are required between organisational units, across functions and between roles? • Do roles overlap? Is there role clarity? • How can the grouping of tasks provide a cost-efficient process? • Are there specialised or rare skills that are best grouped together?

9. Well designed jobs………. • 3 Allow for a degree of discretion and decision making by the employee • Issues to be considered: • Are the responsibilities, accountabilities and delegations allocated optimally? • Is it possible for tasks to provide a coherent whole as well as variety for the individual employee? • Where do decisions get made? Is work checked unnecessarily? (Ideally, the duties of a job should be identified before the supervisory / managerial structure is developed) • Is the job responsible for managing or doing – if both, is this feasible?

10. Well designed jobs………. • 4 Do not include unnecessarily complex tasks or tasks that do not contribute to the achievement of the organisations objectives • Issues to be considered: • Why is the task being done? • Can some workflows be eliminated, simplified or streamlined? • Make the best use of the available technology • Issues to be considered: • Are there efficiencies and/or job satisfaction that could be gained through technological solutions?

11. Well designed jobs………. • 7 Have workload that can be successfully completed within working hours. • Are physically and socially integrated with other jobs and staff. • Are free of discriminatory or stereotypical assumptions. • 10 Are physically safe.

12. Human Resources can work with managers to: • Design work and jobs which suit the purpose of the workplace. • Consider a range of different ways of working • Identify any organisational restraints that may need to be addressed to move forward • Advise on the range of activities associated with workplace change including: • staff consultation • change management plans • writing statements of duties • identifying appropriate classifications • recruitment, translation of staff into new structures etc.