...HIGH-INVOLVEMENT WORK DESIGN AND JOB SATISFACTION ROBERT D. MOHR and CINDY ZOGHI Job satisfaction has important economic effects. Low job satisfaction is associated with higher rates of quitting and higher rates of absenteeism; high job satisfaction correlates with improved job performance and organizational citizenship behaviour. Dissatisfaction therefore may result in higher labour costs and lower productivity. This article studies the relationship between job satisfaction and high-involvement. The huge no. of observation (25000) has allowed the authors to draw general insights about the relationship. Also authors could check additional variables which may be indicator of dissatisfaction and thus allowed the authors to test how broad a range of satisfaction measures can be linked to high-involvement work practises. Finally, because they used a data set that includes information from both employers and employees and follows both groups over time, they can control for a number of specific sources of bias, and look for evidence on the direction of causality. Background of research: A large body of literature on socio-technical systems, total quality management, and high-performance work systems argues that jobs with a high degree of employee involvement might increase satisfaction. The existing literature also recognizes, however, that even if a positive association between the characteristics of work and the evaluative judgment that individuals make about their jobs exists...
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...Does work place design increase individual job performance and well-being? Morgan A. Niehus Florida Institution of Technology Does work place design increase individual job performance and well-being? Abstract Today more than ever there is more pressure on manager’s to hire and retain top talented people to stay competitive in their respective markets. Quality people have choices in where they work. People will choose a place of employment where they can work hard, be immersed in the latest technology, socialize with a diverse group of people, have pride in their work and share ideas to improve themselves and to improve performance, and have fun doing it. The work design is an integral part in achieving this holy grail of work environments. My objective is to take a look at three individual studies that look at different elements of work design such as employee environmental controls, work place innovation and well-being. I will then summarize my conclusion with a recommend course of research to further prove that providing a well thought out work place design will promote a work place environment that leads to increase job satisfaction, productivity, group unity, collaboration and performance. First let’s define work design. Wikipedia defines work design as the application of Socio-Technical Systems principles and techniques to humanization of work. In other words the goal of work design is to improve job satisfaction, job performance, and work quality, while...
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...relationships among jobs and groups of jobs. The primary purpose of organization structure is to influence the behaviour of individuals and groups to achieve effective performance.” Gibson, Ivancevich, Donnelly and Konopaske (2009:418). Organisational structure and job design are key determinants of employee job performance and satisfaction. The degree to which the employee fits into the designed job and structure will determine the quality of performance and job satisfaction of that employee. The small life insurance company has a functional organisation structure that is associated with high human cost, boring, insignificant and monotonous jobs. This type of structure has resulted in job dissatisfaction, high turnover and absenteeism. The researchers start the analysis of the case by studying the critical relationship between job performance, job design and organisational design, and contrast the views of Gibson et al. (2009), Colquitt et al. (2008), van Dyk (2005) and Autry (1996) amongst other authors. The analysis reveals that congruency between job design and organisational design ensures desirable job performance by matching the right employees with the right jobs. Quality of work life and job enrichment play a major role in employees’ job satisfaction and this makes them perform at their optimum best. The researchers go on to identify problems that the insurance company and employees face and observe the following: high turnover, absenteeism, repetitive job functions, high...
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...Human resource management Human resource management- Importance Recruitment and Training This is one of the major responsibilities of the human resource team. The HR managers come up with plans and strategies for hiring the right kind of people. They design the criteria which is best suited for a specific job description. Their other tasks related to recruitment include formulating the obligations of an employee and the scope of tasks assigned to him or her. Performance Appraisals HRM encourages the people working in an organisation, to work according to their potential and gives them suggestions that can help them to bring about improvement in it. The team communicates with the staff individually from time to time and provides all the necessary information regarding their performances and also defines their respective roles. Maintaining Work Atmosphere This is a vital aspect of HRM because the performance of an individual in an organisation is largely driven by the work atmosphere or work culture that prevails at the workplace. A good working condition is one of the benefits that the employees can expect from an efficient human resource team. Managing Disputes In an organisation, there are several issues on which disputes may arise between the employees and the employers. You can say conflicts are almost inevitable. In such a scenario, it is the human resource department which acts as a consultant and mediator to sort out those issues in an effective manner...
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...“A job analysis is the process of getting detailed information about jobs” (Noe, Hollenbeck, Gerhart, & Wright, 2014). The job analysis breaks down the skills, knowledge and abilities necessary to perform a position. All positions begin with a job analysis, it is the drawing board for what the position requires. When it comes to a Customer Service Representative position a human resources manager must make sure to perform a detail assessment of what are the job duties, what skills are needed, what is the work flow, and how many employees are need for the position. There are many approaches that a human resources manager can take to conduct a job analysis of the customer service representative position. Three approaches that are important in conducting a job analysis are job-oriented, worker-oriented, and skill-oriented. “Job-oriented focuses on the work activities” (University of Oklahoma, 2014). This list the activities that are required for the job which will be listed within the job description. “The job description is a list of the task, duties and responsibilities that a job entails” (Noe, Hollenbeck, Gerhart, & Wright, 2014). The major pro of this approach is that it gives a clear understanding of what the job entails. It tells exactly what the duties of the job are and helps to outline other components of the job including compensation, training, benefits, etc. The major con of this that it only gives what the duties are for a position but it does not tell whether...
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...4.2ORGANIZATION-LEVEL DIAGNOSIS The organization level of analysis is the broadest systems perspective typically taken in diagnostic activities. Figure 4.1 Organisational level analysis The Figure proposes that an organization's transformation processes, or design components, represent the way the organization positions and organizes itself within an environment (inputs) to achieve specific outputs. The combination of design component elements is called a "strategic orientation." 4.2.1 Organization Environments and Inputs At the organization level of analysis, the external environment is the key input. Different types and dimensions of environment influence organisational responses to external forces. 4.2.1.1 Environmental Types There are two classes of environments: the general environment and the task environment. 4.2.1.1.1 General environment It consists of all external forces and elements that can influence an organization and affect its effectiveness. The environment can be described in terms of the amount of uncertainty present in social, technological, economic, ecological, and political/regulatory forces. Each of these forces can affect the organization in both direct and indirect ways. The general environment also can affect organizations indirectly by virtue of the linkages between external agents. 4.2.1.1.2 Task environment Michael Porter defines an organization's task environment by five forces: supplier power, buyer power, threats of substitutes, threats...
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...JOB DESIGN Job design is the process of deciding the content of the job in terms of duties and responsibilities, skills, attributes and knowledge. It is the process which integrates work content (task, functions and relationship), the reward (external and internal) and the qualification required (skill, knowledge and ability) for each job in a way that meet the needs of employees and the organization. Job design involves systematic attempts to organize tasks, duties and responsibilities into a unit of work to achieve certain objectives. Job design integrates the work content and qualifications required for each job that meets the needs of employee and the organization. Job design makes the job highly specialized and well designed jobs are important in attracting and retaining a motivated work force. According to Michael Armstrong, "Job Design is the process of deciding on the contents of a job in terms of its duties and responsibilities, on the methods to be used in carrying out the job, in terms of techniques, systems and procedures, and on the relationships that should exist between the job holder and his superior subordinates and colleagues." OBJECTIVES OF JOB DESIGN A job is a long term assignment of tasks by means of which a person is able to contribute to the effectiveness of an organization. A firm depends on its employees for success. Anything that affects the employee’s job performance should therefore be of interest to management. The main objectives that...
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...Job design (also referred to as work design or task design) is the specification of contents, methods and relationship of jobs in order to satisfy technological and organizational requirements as well as the social and personal requirements of the job holder.[1] Its principles are geared towards how the nature of a person's job affects their attitudes and behavior at work, particularly relating to characteristics such as skill variety and autonomy.[2] The aim of a job design is to improve job satisfaction, to improve through-put, to improve quality and to reduce employee problems (e.g., grievances, absenteeism). Job design follows job analysis i.e. it is the next step after job analysis. It aims at outlining and organising tasks, duties and responsibilities into a single unit of work for the achievement of certain objectives. It also outlines the methods and relationships that are essential for the success of a certain job. In simpler terms it refers to the what, how much, how many and the order of the tasks for a job/s. Job design essentially involves integrating job responsibilities or content and certain qualifications that are required to perform the same. It outlines the job responsibilities very clearly and also helps in attracting the right candidates to the right job. Further it also makes the job look interesting and specialised. Benefits of Job Design The following are the benefits of a good job design: 1. Employee Input: A good job design enables a good job...
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...Organizational Design Article Student Name Institutional Affiliation Introduction Organizational design refers to the art and science of optimizing an organizational structure to support business, cultural, or strategic goals (Burton, 2011). It examines culture, strategies, processes, and structure to achieve the set goals. This paper will give the summary of the article Not what it was and not what it will be: The future of job design research, which will examine the future of organizational design. Article summary This article gives a summary of the future directions of theory and research regarding the organizational design. The authors of this article have focused on the social aspects of modern workplaces, the changing contexts of work performance, the increased teamwork as compared to individual task completion, and the processes that employees involve in the creation of their own jobs. According to Oldham & Hackman (2010), organizational design started long time ago, and this is apparent from Adam Smith’s essay on division of labor. Oldham & Hackman (2010) consider that Smith’s thoughts on design and manufacturing led to the scientific management philosophy. Most workers including industrial engineers adopted this philosophy to increase control and efficiency in the workplace. The primary idea was to design work systems with highly simplified work and standardized operations. This created a hindrance to employee job satisfaction, which discouraged...
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...theoretical model of relations between job design (eg: completeness, demand of responsibility, demand of cooperation, cognitive demand, and learning opportunities) and the reflexivity and learning process within natural group works in industry. The methodology used in this research are based on the detailed task analyses and questionnaires from 40 work groups at the shop-floor level in manufacturing industry in Sweden. From this research, it is found that in a group work, reflexivity and learning processes is strongly affected by job design and work routines. The four dimensions on job design which are completeness, demand of cooperation, cognitive demand and learning opportunities has positively related with reflexivity and learning process. Job design also correlates with social routines and social routines with work routines. 1.0 INTRODUCTION Sweden is a country where the group forms of working in industry is well established and has a strong tendency to emerge in order to reorganize into conventional line-production. The researchers before concluded that work in partly autonomous groups in industry leads to an increase in productivity but this does not convince managers that the investment in group-work is worthwhile. Learning in groups, and related effects such as innovation and work development requires group processes characterized by reflexivity and learning. 2.0 REVIEW OF LITERATURES 2.1 Effects of Group Work in Industry Job design, interdependence, group composition...
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...CHAPTER 15 Job Design LEARNING OBJECTIVES When you have finished studying this chapter, you should be able to: 1. Describe and contrast the common approaches to job design. 2. Discuss the linkages between job design and technology. 3. Explain the job characteristics enrichment model and its relationship to work motivation. 4. Describe the sociotechnical systems model and its relationship to organizational effectiveness. Preview Case: Texas Nameplate Company COMMON JOB DESIGN APPROACHES Comparative Framework Job Rotation Job Engineering Job Enlargement Competency: Managing Change—Westinghouse Air Brake Job Enrichment Sociotechnical Systems Ergonomics Competency: Managing Diversity—Benteler Automotive Corporation JOB DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY Role of Workflow Uncertainty Role of Task Uncertainty Combined Effects of Workflow and Task Uncertainty Role of Task Interdependence Competency: Managing Communication— David Berdish Fosters Dialogue Interrelationships among Job Design and Technology Concepts JOB CHARACTERISTICS ENRICHMENT MODEL Framework Job Characteristics Individual Differences Job Diagnosis Implementation Approaches Job Characteristics and Technology Social Information Processing SOCIOTECHNICAL SYSTEMS MODEL Competency: Managing Across Cultures—Job Design in the Malaysian Nursing Context Social Systems Technological Systems Moderators Core Concepts Implementation Issues Competency: Managing Teams—Consolidated Diesel’s Engine Plant CHAPTER SUMMARY Key Terms and...
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...Assignment 1 1 Job Analysis and Job Design Introduction Human Resource Management (HRM) systems consist of two major components: job analysis and job design. They have widely-differing contributions on building HRM systems attributed to the change of organizational strategy. This regards to job descriptions, specifications, and different approaches to redesigning the organizational HR systems. The implications of a boundary-less organization are examined that all context of the boundary organization is interdependent in communications, recruitment, selection, compensation and training (Fombrun et al. 1984). It also examines how environment, strategy, and organization are correlated to each other regarding to the conceptual framework for both job analysis and design of work. It initially becomes the most significant element to organizational strategy as to maximize organizational performance. This essay discuss how job analysis and design of work contribute in terms of building a more sophisticated human resource management (HRM) systems, regarding to both positive and negative outcomes from different approaches. It also illustrates the contributions of changeable job analysis in a regular basis as to fulfill the rapid-changing demand of working environment, in addition to a well-developed job redesign approach to support organizational strategy. Job Analysis and Competencies Job analysis could be categorized into job descriptions and job specifications, which ...
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...Kacmar Florida State University Gary C. McMahan University of Texas at Arlington Karen Jansen Texas A&M University Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.ilr.cornell.edu/cahrswp Part of the Technology and Innovation Commons Thank you for downloading an article from DigitalCommons@ILR. Support this valuable resource today! This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Center for Advanced Human Resource Studies (CAHRS) at DigitalCommons@ILR. It has been accepted for inclusion in CAHRS Working Paper Series by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@ILR. For more information, please contact hlmdigital@cornell.edu. Impact of Information Technology on Employee Attitudes: A Longitudinal Field Study Abstract This longitudinal study examined the impact of an information technology system on the job and employee attitudes in a parts distribution center for a Fortune 500 company. Data were collected prior to, during, and following the implementation of an automated information technology system. Results of both the within subjects (N=24) and between subjects (N=58) analyses indicated that the automated technology reduced motivational and increased mechanistic aspects of the job as well as reduced employee attitudes. Keywords study, information, technology, job, employee, attitude, subject, work, automate Disciplines Technology and Innovation Comments Suggested Citation Wright, P. M., Kacmar, K. M., McMahan, G. C. & Jansen, K. (1997). Impact...
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...this assignment is to explain why companies use job specialization approach to job design and to use the Job Characteristics model to describe how specialised jobs can be modified to eliminate the boredom and low job satisfaction associated with them. This essay will define, analyse and put forward methodologies that will aid in remedying the issues related to job specialisation. * Body/Background 1) Define Job Specialisation. Include quotes and provide examples of Job Specialisation. Describe the advantages and disadvantage of Job Specialisation. 2) Define Job Design. Define the aspect related to Job Design. Include quotes. 3) Define Job Characteristics Model. Describe its elements of the Job Characteristics Model. Describe the effect of each element. 4) Describe how jobs can be modified to eliminate boredom and low job satisfaction. Use quotes and define solutions to the problem. Refer to solutions put forward by the journals. * Conclusion In conclusion it can be seen that the essay has met all goal and objectives that was set out for it at the outset. Job Specialisation, Job Design and the Job Characteristics Model have been defined in detail and the advantages and disadvantages along with the various elements of each have been identified and put forth. It has also been shown that through the use of the above mentioned methods the boredom and low job satisfaction associated with Job Specialisation can be remedied thereby meeting all...
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...Topic Four: Work Organisation: Job Analysis and Design * Universal approach to HRM - The ‘best practice’ approach to HRM assumes that there are certain practices that are best for any firm seeking a competitive advantage * Despite technology determining job quality to a large extent, it is designed by humans and thus subject to political choice * Two crucial concepts that contribute to job quality are skill and autonomy * Employee involvement, empowerment, commitment and participation are important aspects of job quality * Workplace politics is a large determinant of organisation of jobs, and thus job quality, rather than technology and ‘scientific and politically neutral management’ * Recently there has been a resurgence in the interest in job quality, due to changes in the nature of jobs and fragmentation of the labour market * Some changes in the labour market that have occurred due to this interest in job quality includes; * Expansion of jobs * Dissolution of boundaries * Chris Warhurst argues that it is not possible to form a universally accepted list of job quality indicators * Employee capability is a key consideration in the design of work, as job design can exclude capability of develop it 1. What is the ‘mechanistic’ approach to work design? In your answer refer to Taylorism, scientific management and Fordism. * Humans produce what their means of subsistence by specialising and trading with each other and through...
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