Chapter 7 Job Design Essay

Chapter 7: Design of Work Systems
Answers to Discussion and Review Questions
1. Job design is concerned with specifying the contents and methods of jobs. It is important because it has a significant impact on the efficiency and productivity of workers.
2. From the standpoint of management, having workers with specialized skills can substantially lower the total cost of a product and also requires less training. The disadvantages for management include the following: a) Workers may be somewhat inflexible in terms of the functions they can perform. b) They are more likely to have less motivation, and higher absenteeism. From the standpoint of workers, the advantages include clearer job responsibility and requirements that are easier to understand. The disadvantage for the workers is that the specialized tasks can become monotonous and boring, causing a lack of fulfillment.
3. Job enlargement involves assigning a larger portion of a task to a worker (i.e., horizontal loading). Job enrichment involves an increase in the level of responsibility for planning and coordinating tasks (i.e., vertical loading).
4. Both job enlargement and job enrichment are intended to motivate workers and improve morale by making work more interesting and challenging to workers, and helping them to feel they have an important part in the work system.
5. It is a pay system used by organizations to reward workers who undergo training that increases their skills. It is a portion of a worker’s pay that is based on the knowledge and skill the worker possesses. Knowledge-based pay has three dimensions: Horizontal skills reflect the variety of tasks the worker is capable of performing; Vertical skills reflect management tasks the worker is capable of; and Depth skills reflect quality and productivity results.
6. a. Self-directed work teams or self-managed teams are designed to achieve a higher level of teamwork and employee involvement. They are typically empowered to make changes in the work processes under their control since they are closer to the process and have more knowledge of the day to day operations than management.
b. Potential Benefits
1. fewer managers
2. better quality
3. greater productivity
4. higher levels of employee satisfaction
7. Specialization is advantageous in the sense that it allows one to focus concentration on a narrow aspect of work, and presumably develop an in-depth knowledge of that area. The disadvantage of that approach is that these specialists may lack an understanding and appreciation for other aspects of the work system due to lack of involvement. Rotation among different managerial jobs would tend to remedy this, although perhaps lessen the ability to develop in-depth knowledge. (Personally, I feel the benefits of rotation outweigh the disadvantages. In fact, the greater awareness due to rotation may give later specialization more meaning.)
8. Motion-study principles are guidelines for designing motion-efficient work procedures (see list on page 368). They are classified according to principles that apply to the human body, principles that apply to the work place, and principles that apply to tools and equipment.
9. The need for methods analysis can come from changes in tools and equipment, changes in product or service design, the introduction of new products, changes in methods or procedures, and from changes in government regulations or contractual agreements. Methods analysis involves studying a job with the objective of improving the way it is done. To the extent that this leads to increases in output and/or decreases in input, productivity will be increased. If the focus is too narrow, the result may be an improvement in efficiency more than productivity (which is usually a more global concept).
10. Flow process charts and man-machine charts are useful in reviewing and analyzing operations in terms of sequence and work flow. They provide a visual model of the work.
11. A time standard reflects the

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