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Training on SOP FOR PREPARATION OF JOB

DESCRIPTION

Feb-8-2024
Job analysis
The procedure through which you determine the
duties of positions in the organization and the
characteristics of the people to hire for them
A systematic way of determining which employees
are expected to perform a particular function or task
that must be accomplished
Job analysis is a systematic exploration of the activities within
a job.
This analysis involves compiling a detailed description of
tasks, determining the relationships of the job to technology
and to other jobs and examining the knowledge, qualifications
or employment standards, accountabilities and other
incumbent requirement.
The job analysis indicates what activities and
accountabilities the job entails; it is an accurate
recording of the activities involved.
It involves studying jobs to determine what tasks and
responsibilities they include, their relationships to other
jobs, and the conditions under which work is
performed, tools and equipment used, and the personal
capabilities required for satisfactory performance.
When Job Analysis is carried out?

1. When an organization is started

2. When changes occur which require new
methods and procedures in performing
the job e.g. introduction of new
technology
3. When a new job is created
Purpose of job analysis
1. Determining qualifications required of jobholders
2. Providing guidance in recruitment and selection:
◦ Job analysis information helps recruiters seek and find the right person
for the organization.
◦ And to hire the right person, the selection test must access the most
critical skills and abilities needed to perform a job. This information
comes from a job analysis
3. Evaluating current employees for transfer or promotion
4. Provide a basis for determining training
◦ Knowing the skills necessary for jobs is essential to building
effective training programs.
◦ Moreover, helping people to move efficiently from one career
stage to another can only be accomplished with information from
job analysis
5. Providing clues for work methods simplification and improvement
6. Setting compensation and maintaining fairness in wage
and salary administration:
◦ Compensation is usually tied to the duties and responsibilities of a job.
◦ Proper compensation demands accurate assessment of what various jobs
entails

7. Judging the merits of grievances that question

assignments and compensation
8. Establishing responsibility, accountability, and authority
9. Providing essential guidance for performance
management - in the establishment of standards of
performance and hence performance appraisal
10. Strategic planning
◦ Effective job analysis can help organizations to change,
eliminate or otherwise restructure work or work flow
process to meet the changing demands of uncertain
environments
In conclusion, it should be noted that job analysis
covers the entire domain of HRM as it would be
difficult to be effective in hiring, training, appraising ,
compensation or utilize HR without the information
derived from job analysis
Types of information collected for job
analysis
Work activities - such as cleaning, selling, operating
etc.
oThe what? How? Why? When? Of the tasks
Human behavior
◦ Sensing, communicating, deciding , writing.
◦ job demands such as lifting weights or walking long
distances
Machine,, tools, equipment and work aids. This category
includes information regarding tools used, material
processed, knowledge dealt with or applied and services
rendered
Performance standards - in terms of quantity and quality
levels of each job duty
Job context - such matters as physical working conditions, work
schedule, and the organizational and social working context – for
example the number of people with whom the employee would
normally interact
Human requirements – included information such as job related
knowledge or skills (education, training, work experience) and
required personal attributes ( aptitude, physical characteristics,
personality, interest)
Steps in job analysis
1. Examine the total organization and the fit of each job
◦ Provides a broad view of how each job fits into the total fabric
of the organization
◦ Organizational chart and process chart are used to complete this
step
2. Determine how the job analysis information will be used
◦ Encourages those involved to determine how the job analysis and
design information will be used – job description, recruitment,
training etc.
3. Select
jobs to be analyzed. These would be representative
job positions especially if there are too many jobs to be
analyzed
4. Collect data by using acceptable job analysis techniques
The techniques are used to collect data on the
characteristics of the job, the required behaviors and the
characteristic an employee needs to perform the job
Step 5: prepare job descriptions
Step 6: prepare job specification
Step 7: Use the information in step 1 – 6 purpose it
was meant to - recruitment, selection and training,
performance evaluation, compensation and benefits
etc.
Methods of data collection
There are four basic methods of data collection
which can be used separately or a combination:
◦ Observation
◦ Interview
◦ Questionnaire
◦ Job incumbent diaries or logs
observation
o Direct observation is used for jobs that require
manual, standards, and shot-job cycle activities e.g.
job of a assembly line work, a filing clerks,
o The job analysis observes a representative sample
of individuals performing the jobs
Limitations of observation method
Observation method is not appropriate where the job involves significant
mental activity such as work of a research scientist, lawyer, teacher etc.

The observation method requires that the job analyst be trained to

observe relevant job behaviors

He/she must also keep out of the way so that work must be performed
interviews
Can be conducted with a single job incumbent, or
with group of individuals or with a supervisor who is
knowledgeable about the job
Involves face to face talk with the job incumbents
Must be structure in such a way that answers from
different individual can be compares
Advantages of interview
Its relatively simple and quick way of collecting information including
information that might never appear in written form
A skilled interviewer can unearth important activities that occur only
occasionally, or informal contacts that wouldn’t be obvious form the
organizational chart
The interview also provide an opportunity to explain the need for and
functions of the job
The employee might also vent frustration that might otherwise go
unnoticed by management
Limitations of interview
However, it should be noted that interview guides are difficult to
standardize – different interviewers many ask different questions and the
same interviewer might unintentionally ask different questions of
different respondents
There is also possibility that the information provided by the respondents
will be unintentionally distorted by the interviewer.
Finally the cost of interviewing can be very high
Questionnaire method
This is usually the least costly method of collecting information
It is an effective way to collect a large amount of information in
a short period of time
The questionnaire includes:
◦ Specific questions about the job
◦ Job requirements
◦ Working conditions
◦ Equipment
A less structures, more open-ended approach would
be to ask job incumbents to describe their jobs in
their worn terms
This open-ended format would permit job incumbent
to use their won words and ideas to describe the job
Job incumbent dairy or log
The diary or log is a record by job incumbent of job duties.
It includes:
◦ Frequency of the duties
◦ When the duties were accomplished
This technique requires the job incumbent to keep a diary
or log
Unfortunately, most individuals are not disciplined enough
to keep such a log a diary.
If a diary if kept up to date, it can provide good information about a job
Comparison on a daily, weekly or monthly basis can be made
This permits an examination of the routineness or nonroutininess of the
job duties

A daily log is useful when attempting to analyze jobs that are difficult to
observe such as those performed by engineers, senior executives etc.
Which method to use
Any or a combination - a multi-method job analysis
approach
It is recommended a combination because each of the method has
its strengths and can elicit more of some specific information
The choice of method may also be determined by circumstances
such as the purpose of the job analysis, and time and budgetary
constraints
Job analysis produces information for writing
job descriptions ( a list of what the job entails
and job specification ( what kind of people to
hire for that job)
Job description –the principal product of a job analyses. It
represents a written summary of the job as an identifiable
organization unit
Job specification – a written explanation of the knowledge, skills,
abilities, traits and other characteristics (KSAOs) necessary for
effective performance on a given job
Job description
A job description, is a written description of what the job entails
Written statement of what the worker actually does, how he does or she does it,
and what the working conditions are
job description clarifies work functions and reporting relationships, helping
employees understand their jobs.
Job descriptions aid in maintaining a consistent salary structure.
Performance evaluations may be based on job descriptions
Information contained in a JD
Job title/job identification
Job summary
Relationships
Responsibilities and duties
Standards of performance
Environmental conditions
Job identification
Job title/job identification -Includes:
◦ Job title
◦ location of the job in terms of department, division or section.
◦ May also include immediate supervisor’s title
◦ Information regarding salary and /or pay scale
◦ grade/level of the job
Job summary
Brief one or two sentence statements describing the purpose of the
job and what outputs are expected from the incumbents
Describes general nature of the job and includes only the major
functions of the job or activities e.g. the marketing managers job is
to plan, direct and coordinate the marketing
Relationships
Shows job holders relationship with others inside and
outside the company. Includes:
◦ reporting to
◦ Supervises
◦ Works with
◦ Outside the company
Responsibilities and duties
List each of the job major responsibilities separately, and describes it in a few
sentences
Responsibilities and duties , includes:
◦ description of the job duties, responsibilities, and behavior performed on the job.
◦ Describe the social interaction associated with the work ( for example, size of the work
group, amount of dependence in the work)
◦ This section should also define the limits of the jobholders authority, including his or her
decision making authority, direct supervision of other personnel and budgetary limits.

Includes general statements like “perform other assignments as required”

purpose is to give supervisor more flexibility in assigning duties.
Standard of performance
List the standard the employee is expected to achieve under each of
the job descriptions main duties and responsibilities .g. accurately
post accounts payables, meet daily production targets etc.
Environmental conditions
Environment/conditions – description of the working
conditions of the job, the location an environment such as
hazards and noise levels
Job descriptions are important
because…….
1. Clarifies employer expectations for employee
2. Provides basis of measuring job performance
3. Provides clear description of role for job candidates
4. Provides a structure for company to understand and structure all
jobs and ensure necessary activities, duties and responsibilities
are covered by one job or another
5. Provides continuity of role parameters irrespective of manager interpretation

6. Enables pay and grading systems to be structured fairly and logically

7. Prevents arbitrary interpretation of role content and limit by employee and employer
and manager

8. Essential reference tool in issues of employee/employer dispute

9. Essential reference tool for discipline issues
10. Provides important reference points for training and development areas

11. Provides neutral and objective (as opposed to subjective or arbitrary) reference points
for appraisals, performance reviews and counselling

12. Enables formulation of skill set and behavior set requirements per role
13. Enables organization to structure and manage roles in a uniform way, thus increasing
efficiency and effectiveness of recruitment, training and development, organizational structure,
work flow and activities, customer service, etc.

14. Enables factual view (as opposed to instinctual) to be taken by employees and managers in
career progression and succession planning
Job specification
This evolves form the JD
It is a statement of employees characteristics and qualification required for
satisfactory performance of defined duties and tasks comprising a specific job
or function.
It addresses the question “what personal traits and experience are needed to
perform the job effectively”
the JS is specifically useful in offering guidance for recruitment and selection e.g.
the job for HR manager would require a university degree, six year of experience in HRM
Components of a Job Specification
Personal characteristics such as education, job experience, age, sex, and extra
co-curricular activities.
Physical characteristics such as height, weight, chest, vision, hearing, health,
voice poise, and hand and foot coordination, (for specific positions only).
Mental characteristics such as general intelligence, memory, judgment,
foresight, ability to concentrate, etc.
Social and psychological characteristics such as emotional ability, flexibility,
manners, drive, conversational ability, interpersonal ability, attitude, values,
creativity etc.
Various contents of a job specification
can be prescribed in three terms:
◦ Essential qualities which a person must possess;
◦ Desirable qualities which a person may possess; and
◦ Contra-indicators which are likely to become a handicap to
successful job performance.
USMI SOP For preparation of Job
Description
OBJECTIVE
To record facts about the job duties & responsibilities
contents which include the job title, reporting relationships
upward and downward, the overall purpose of the job.
 For the Organization

An effective means of defining each individual's tasks

Bases on which to review performance
Bases for a job specification
Bases for establishing and updating job grades
Bases for conduct in training (Training needs assessment)
Bases for job evaluation
For the Employee

To know what is expected from him/her

An opportunities to take part on setting his/her tasks and standards

An opportunity to discuss and resolve problems outside his own

control
SCOPE
This SOP is applicable to each departments of the company
in preparation of job description.
RESPONSIBILITY
All department managers
ACCOUNTIBILITY
General Manger
HRMD (process owner)
Definition
Job description is an organized, factual statement of
tasks, duties and responsibilities of a specific job. And
it describes the job not the employee.
PROCEDURE
◦ PRECAUTIONS
◦ In Preparing Job description

◦ One should know what job description and Specification mean and its
value to the organization and the individual.
◦ One should know the style of writing of the job description
◦ List the primary job duties and then give examples of the types of activities
under each duty. Using giving examples of the types of activities to be done
allows you to develop a flexible job description that encourages employee
to ‘work outside the box’ and within reason, discourages “that’s not my
job”.
◦ PRECAUTIONS…
◦ Write a job description to a particular employee (job
holder) by participating him/her
Job description describes the job not the job holder
(employee).
Issue the job description part to the employee for the
proper assignment & evaluate.
PROCEDURE….
When preparing a job description in general it should consist.
◦ General purpose of the job
◦ Detail of duties, responsibilities and authorities
◦ Job specification
◦ The effort required in the performance of the work
◦ The working condition
PROCEDURE….
Department Manager, Division Head or Supervisor should
prepare job description for the new /revised post title
Identify between three and eight primary duties for the
position
List the primary duties in order of importance
Begin each statement with an action verb
PROCEDURE….
Use the present tense of verbs
Use gender neutral language such as s/he
Use generic language
Where appropriate use qualifiers to clarify the task – where,
when, why or how often
Avoid words that are open to interpretation – for example instead of “handle
incoming mail” use “sort and distribute incoming mail”
List the primary job responsibilities that the jobholder into in order of
importance. Moreover, it shall start with the phrase “Responsible to”
List the legitimate authorities that secured by the company to jobholder relating
her/his job position. Moreover, it shall start with the phrase “Authorized to”
If the job is mentally, physically & visually demanding, this should be stated in
the job description.
Efforts required shall be categorized in to three. The extents of
effort required shall be indicated as high, moderate and normal.
If the job requires a person to work in special working conditions
this should be stated in the job description. The exposure to
different types health hazards resulting from nature of the job,
location or a potential to occurrence of accidents and
precautions to be taken shall be indicated
After preparing the job description the supervisor or Manager
should sent to HRM for revision to insure whether or not
prepared according to the procedure
HRM sent the prepared job description after necessary review
to concerned Department
Concerned Department after necessary revision which is given by
HRM sent to General Manager for Approval
HRM, after approval by General Manger, issues the job description to
the selected employee and for personal file.
HRM file the new/revised job description in the personal file of the
employee