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CHAPTER 6
Job Design
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Objective of Human Resource Strategy
To manage labor and design jobs so people
are effectively and efficiently utilized

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Human Resource Strategy
1. People should be effectively utilized
within the constraints of other
operations management decisions
2. People should have a reasonable quality
of work life in an atmosphere of mutual
commitment and trust
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Constraints on Human Resource Strategy
Product strategy
- Skills needed
- Talents needed
- Materials used
- Safety


Location
strategy
- Climate
- Temperature
- Noise
- Light
- Air quality
Schedule
- Time of day
- Time of year
(seasonal)
- Stability of schedules
Individual differences
- Strength and fatigue
- Information processing
and response
Layout strategy
- Fixed position
- Process
- Assembly line
- Work cell
- Product
Process strategy
- Technology
- Machinery and
equipment used
- Safety
Human
Resource
Strategy
Who
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Labor Planning
a) Follow demand exactly
Matches direct labor costs to
production
Incurs costs in hiring and
termination, unemployment
insurance, and premium wages
Labor is treated as a variable cost
1. Employment Stability Policies
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b) Hold employment constant
Maintains trained workforce
Minimizes hiring, termination, and
unemployment costs
Employees may be underutilized
during slack periods
Labor is treated as a fixed cost
Cont.Employment Stability Policies
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2) Work Schedules
Standard work schedule
Five eight-hour days
Flex-time
Allows employees, within limits, to determine
their own schedules
Flexible work week
Fewer but longer days
Part-time
Fewer, possibly irregular, hours
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3) Job Classification and
Work Rules
Specify who can do what
Specify when they can do it
Specify under what conditions
they can do it
Often result of union contracts
Restricts flexibility in assignments
and consequently efficiency of
production
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Job Design
Specifying the tasks that make up
a job for an individual or group
Involves determining
- What is to be done (i.e., responses)
- How it is to be done (i.e., tools etc.)
- Why it is to be done (i.e., purpose)
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Components of Job Design
1) Job specialization
2) Job expansion
3) Psychological components
4) Self-directed teams
5) Motivation and incentive systems
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1) Job Specialization
The division of labor into unique tasks
First suggested by Adam Smith in 1776
1. Development of dexterity
2. Less loss of time
3. Development of specialized tools
Later Charles Babbage (1832) added
another consideration
1. Wages exactly fit the required skill required
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2) Job Expansion
Process of adding more variety to jobs
Intended to reduce boredom associated
with labor specialization
Methods
- Job enlargement
- Job enrichment
- Job rotation
- Employee empowerment
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3) Psychological Components of Job
Design
Human resource strategy requires
consideration of the psychological
components of job design
Individuals have values, attitudes,
and emotions that affect job results
- Example: Work is a social experience
that affects belonging needs
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Hawthorne Studies
They studied light levels, but discovered
productivity improvement was independent
from lighting levels
Introduced psychology into the workplace
The workplace social system and distinct
roles played by individuals may be more
important than physical factors
Individual differences may be dominant in job
expectation and contribution
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Hackman and Oldham have incorporated
much of that work into 5 desirable
characteristics of job design
Jobs should include the following
characteristics:
a) Skill variety
b) Job identity
c) Job significance
d) Autonomy
e) feedback
Core Job Characteristics
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4) Self-Directed Teams
Group of empowered individuals working
together for a common goal
May be organized for short-term or
long-term objectives
Reasons for effectiveness
- Provide employee empowerment
- Provide core job characteristics
- Meet psychological needs (e.g., belonging)
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Ensure those who have legitimate
contributions are on the team
Provide management support
Ensure the necessary training
Endorse clear objectives and goals
Financial and non-financial rewards
Supervisors must release control
To maximize effectiveness,
managers should:
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Benefits of Teams and
Expanded Job Designs
Improved quality of work life
Improved job satisfaction
Increased motivation
Allows employees to accept more
responsibility
Improved productivity and quality
Reduced turnover and absenteeism
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Higher capital cost
Many individuals prefer simple jobs
Higher wages are required since the worker must
utilize a higher level of skill
A smaller labor pool exists of persons able and willing
to perform enriched or enlarged jobs
Increased accident rates may occur
Higher training costs
ContLimitations to Job expansion
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5) Motivation and Incentive
Systems
Bonuses - cash or stock options
Profit-sharing - profits for distribution to
employees
Gain sharing - rewards for improvements
Incentive plans - typically based on
production rates
Knowledge-based systems - reward for
knowledge or skills
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Ergonomics and the Work
Environment
Ergonomics is the study of the
interface between man and
machine
Often called
human factors
Operator input
to machines
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Ergonomics and Work Methods
Feedback to operators
The work
environment
Illumination
Noise
Temperature
Humidity
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WORK MEASUREMENT
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What is Work Measurement?
Determining the amount of worker time
required to generate one unit of output
Provides labor standards
Target amount of time required to perform a
job under normal working conditions
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Uses of Labor Standards
Costing labor content of products
Planning staffing needs
Cost & time estimates for bids
Planning production
Wage-incentive plans
Employee efficiency
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Sources of Labor Standards
Historical experience
Time studies
Predetermined time standards (MTM)
Work sampling
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Sources of Labor Standards
1. Historical experience
The data used to establish standard time is taken from past
data or historical data from similar job
How many labors hours were required o do a task the last
time it was performed
Relatively easy, convenient, and inexpensive
Data is not objective and may be inaccurate
Not recommended
2. Predetermined time standards
Involves dividing manual work into small basic elements
that already have established times
To estimate the time for a particular task, the time factors
for each basic elements are added together
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Cont
3. Work sampling
Estimate the percent of time that a worker spends
on a various tasks.
Random observations are used to record the
activity that a worker is performing
The results are used to determine how employees
allocate their time among various activities
Knowledge of this allocation may lead to staffing
changes, reassignment of duties, estimates of
activity cost and setting of delay allowances for
labor standards.
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The Five Step
Work Sampling Procedure
1. Take a preliminary sample to obtain an
estimate of the parameter value
2. Compute the sample size required
3. Prepare a schedule for observing the
worker at appropriate times
4. Observe and record worker activities; rate
worker performance
5. Determine how workers spend their time
(usually as a percent)
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Work Sampling
Determining the sample size
n =
z
2
p(1 - p)
h
2

where n = required sample size
z = standard normal deviate for
desired confidence level
p = estimated value of sample
proportion
h = acceptable error level in percent
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Cont
4. Time studies
Labor standards are based on observing
worker doing task
- Involves timing a sample of a workers
performance and using it to set a standard
Disadvantages
- Requires a trained & experienced analyst
- Standard cannot be set before task is performed

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The Eight Steps to Conducting a
Time Study
1. Define the task to be studied
2. Divide the task into precise elements
3. Decide how many times to measure the
task
4. Time and record element times and
rating of performance
Adz/UiTMK/Chapter 6
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Cont
5. Compute average observed time
(element times adjusted for unusual influences)

Average
observed
time
Sum of the times recorded to
perform each element
Number of observations
=
6. Determine performance rating and
normal time
Normal time = x
Average
observed
time
Performance
rating factor
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Cont.
7. Add the normal times for each
element to develop the total normal
time for the task
8. Compute the standard time
Standard time =
Total normal time
1 - Allowance factor
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Allowances
Personal time allowance - 4% - 7% of total
time - use of restroom, water fountain, etc.
Delay allowance - based upon actual
delays that occur
Fatigue allowance - to compensate for
physical or mental strain, noise level,
tediousness, heat and humidity,
assumption of an abnormal position, etc.
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Cont.
Allowances is included in the calculation of
standard time because we cannot expect
workers to work non-stop without any break
Allowances help workers to improve
performance or at least continue to perform
according to standard
Formula:
Allowance factor = Non-work time
Total time
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Example :
The basic time to assemble the bicycle
frame is 1.33 min
Allowances : personal time 40 min
unavoidable delay 15 min
Area clean up 17 min
Find the standard time to assemble the
bicycle frame
(assume 8 hour workday)
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Exercise 1
The time study of work operation at Red
Lobster restaurant yielded an average
observed time of 4.0 minutes. The analyst
rated the observed worker at 85%. The firms
uses a 13% allowance factor. Red Lobster
wants to compute the normal time and
standard time for this operation.
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Exercise 2
A work operations consisting of three
elements has been subjected to a stopwatch
time study. The recorded observations are
shown in the following table. By union
contract, the allowance time for the operation
is personal time 5%, delay 5% and fatigue
10%. Determine the standard time for the
work operation.
Cont
Observations (minutes)
Job
element
1 2 3 4 5 6
Performance
rating
A 0.1 0.3 0.2 8.9 0.2 0.1 90%
B 0.8 0.6 0.8 0.5 3.2 0.7 110%
C 0.5 0.5 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.5 80%
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Time Studies - Sample Size
2
|
.
|

\
|
=
x h
zs
n , size Sample
h = accuracy level desired as percent of job element,
expressed as a decimal (5% = 0.05)
z = number of standard deviations required for the
desired level of confidence
s = standard deviation of the initial sample
x = mean of the initial sample
( )
1
2

=

n
x
i
x
s : Note
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Considerations in Determining
Sample Size
How accurate do you want to be?
What level of confidence do you want your
measurements to have?
How much variation exists within the job
elements?
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Determine Sample Size
Required sample size = n =
2
zs
hx
where h = accuracy level (acceptable error)
desired in percent of the job element
expressed as a decimal
z = number of standard deviations required
for the desired level of confidence
s = standard deviation of the initial sample
x = mean of the initial sample
n = required sample size
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Common z values
Desired Confidence
Level (%)
Z Value
90.11 1.65
95.00 1.96
95.45 2.00
99.11 2.58
99.73 3.00
99.0
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END OF CHAPTER 6

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