Job Analysis 101: Essential Steps to Define and Evaluate Roles

Job analysis is a process that supports a wide range of HR activities, from recruitment and selection to training and performance management. By systematically examining the essential tasks, responsibilities, and qualifications associated with a job, organizations can ensure that their workforce is aligned with their strategic goals.

This toolkit will guide you through the key concepts, methods, and outcomes of job analysis, offering practical insights into how this process can enhance the effectiveness of your HR practices.

What is a Job Analysis?

Job analysis is the process of studying a job to determine which activities and responsibilities it includes, its relative importance to other jobs, the qualifications necessary for performance of the job and the conditions under which the work is performed. An important concept in job analysis is that the job, not the person doing the job, is assessed.

Job analysis is typically performed by HR professionals, as they have the expertise to systematically gather and evaluate job-related data. However, it is often beneficial to involve multiple stakeholders in the process. Managers, who understand the strategic needs of the organization, and job incumbents, who have first-hand experience of the job, can provide valuable insights. In some cases, external consultants may be brought in to ensure an objective analysis or when specialized expertise is required.

Although human resources may collect some job analysis data from incumbents, the focus remains on the job itself. This analysis plays a crucial role in aligning HR practices with organizational goals, such as recruitment, training and performance management.

Job Analysis vs. Job Evaluation

Job analysis and job evaluation are often confused, but they serve distinct purposes within an organization.

• Job Analysis: This process involves studying a job to determine its essential tasks, responsibilities and qualifications. The focus is on understanding the job itself, regardless of who is performing it, and ensuring that the job is well-defined within the organizational structure.
• Job Evaluation: This process compares a job to other jobs within the organization to determine its relative value or worth. The purpose of job evaluation is to establish a fair and equitable pay structure by assessing the job’s complexity, required skills and its importance to the company.

While job analysis provides the foundational data about what a job entails, job evaluation uses that data to rank or value jobs within a compensation framework. Essentially, job analysis is about defining what a job is, while performing a job evaluation is about determining how much that job should be compensated relative to others.

Why is Job Analysis Important?

Job analysis is crucial for ensuring that HR practices are aligned with organizational goals. It provides the foundation for many key HR functions, such as recruitment, training, performance management, and compensation.

By thoroughly understanding the essential tasks and responsibilities of a job, organizations can make informed decisions that improve employee performance, enhance job satisfaction, and maintain legal compliance. Furthermore, job analysis helps ensure that the right individuals are selected for the right roles, contributing to overall organizational efficiency and effectiveness.

What Is an Example of Job Analysis?

A company might conduct a job analysis for a customer service representative role to identify key tasks such as handling customer inquiries, processing orders, and providing technical support. The analysis might reveal that effective performance in this role requires strong communication skills, familiarity with customer relationship management (CRM) software, and the ability to multitask efficiently.

What Are the Steps in a Job Analysis?

Conducting a job analysis typically involves the following steps:

1. Identify the Purpose of the Job Analysis: Determine why the job analysis is being conducted—whether for recruitment, training, performance management, or another HR function.
2. Select the Jobs to Be Analyzed: Choose which jobs within the organization will undergo analysis. This could be a single job, a group of related jobs, or all jobs within a specific department.
3. Gather Information: Collect data about the job through various methods such as interviews, questionnaires, observations, and work diaries. Involve multiple stakeholders, including HR professionals, managers, and job incumbents, to ensure comprehensive data collection.
4. Analyze the Information: Review and organize the data to identify the essential tasks, responsibilities, and qualifications for the job. Look for patterns and common themes that define the job’s core functions.
5. Document the Job Analysis: Create detailed job descriptions and specifications based on the analyzed data. This documentation should clearly outline the duties, responsibilities, required skills, and qualifications for the job.
6. Review and Update: Periodically review and update the job analysis to ensure it remains relevant and accurate, especially when organizational needs or job roles change.

How to Collect Job Analysis Information

Job analysis involves collecting information on characteristics that differentiate jobs. The following factors help make distinctions between jobs:

• Knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs) needed.
• Work activities and behaviors.
• Interactions with others (internal and external).
• Performance standards.
• Financial budgeting and impact.
• Machines and equipment used.
• Working conditions.
• Supervision provided and received.

If an employer has not already done so, grouping jobs with related functions is helpful in the job analysis process by identifying the job family, job duties and tasks of related work. For example:

• Job family: Grouping of related jobs with broadly similar content.
• Job: Group of tasks, duties and responsibilities an individual performs that make up his or her total work assignment.
• Task: A specific statement of what a person does, with similar tasks grouped into a task dimension (i.e., a classification system).
  

A technical service job family, for example, could be identified as follows:

• Job family: Technical Service.
• Job: Technical service representative.
• Task: Provides technical support to customers by telephone.

Common Job Analysis Methods

Determining which tasks employees perform is not easy. The most effective technique when collecting information for a job analysis is to obtain information through direct observation as well as from the most qualified incumbent(s) via questionnaires or interviews. The following describes the most common job analysis methods:

• Open-ended questionnaire: Job incumbents and/or managers fill out a job analysis questionnaire about the KSAs necessary for the job. HR compiles the answers and publishes a composite statement of job requirements. This method produces reasonable job requirements with input from employees and managers and helps analyze many jobs with limited resources.
• Highly structured questionnaire: These questionnaires allow only specific responses aimed at determining the frequency with which specific tasks are performed, their relative importance and the skills required. The structured questionnaire is helpful to define a job objectively, which also enables analysis with computer models.
• Interview: In a face-to-face interview, the interviewer obtains the necessary information from the employee about the KSAs needed to perform the job. The interviewer uses predetermined questions, with additional follow-up questions based on the employee's response. This method works well for professional jobs.
• Observation: Employees are directly observed performing job tasks, and observations are translated into the necessary KSAs for the job. Observation provides a realistic view of the job's daily tasks and activities and works best for short-cycle production jobs.
• Work diary or log: A work diary or log is a record maintained by the employee and includes the frequency and timing of tasks. The employee keeps logs over a period of days or weeks. HR analyzes the logs, identifies patterns and translates them into duties and responsibilities. This method provides an enormous amount of data, but much of it is difficult to interpret, may not be job-related and is difficult to keep up-to-date.
• Behavioral event interview: Behavioral event interviewing, a competency-based job analysis, differs from the traditional job analysis, which focuses solely on the evaluation of tasks, duties and responsibilities. In behavioral event interviewing:
  • A team of senior managers identifies future performance areas critical to the organization's business and strategic plans.
  • HR assembles panels composed of individuals who are knowledgeable about the organization's jobs (i.e., subject matter experts). These groups may be employees, managers, supervisors, trainers and others.
  • A facilitator interviews panel members to obtain examples of job behaviors and actual occurrences on the jobs.
  • The facilitator develops detailed descriptions of each identified competency, including descriptive phrases for clarity.
  • HR rates the competencies, and panel members identify KSAs required to meet them.
  • HR identifies performance standards for each job. The organization must develop and implement selection, screening, training and compensation instruments, or processes that focus on competencies.

  What Are the Outcomes of Job Analysis?

  The outcomes of a job analysis are critical for the effective management of an organization’s workforce. These outcomes include:

  • Accurate Job Descriptions: Job analysis provides detailed information that forms the basis of job descriptions, outlining the tasks, responsibilities, and qualifications required for each position.
  • Informed Recruitment and Selection: By identifying the necessary skills and qualifications for a job, job analysis ensures that recruitment and selection processes are targeted and effective.
  • Effective Performance Management: Job analysis establishes clear performance standards, which are essential for evaluating employee performance and providing constructive feedback.
  • Targeted Training and Development: The insights gained from job analysis help organizations design training programs that address the specific needs of their employees, improving overall job performance.
  • Fair Compensation Decisions: Job analysis aids in the determination of equitable compensation by comparing job responsibilities and qualifications across roles within the organization.
  • Improved Workforce Planning: By understanding the skills and tasks associated with each job, organizations can plan for future workforce needs more effectively.
  • Career and Succession Planning: Job analysis clarifies job roles and career paths, which supports effective succession planning and career development initiatives.
  • Health, Safety, and Security: Job analysis contributes to identifying potential safety risks and ensuring compliance with health and safety regulations.
  • Employee/Labor Relations: Clear job definitions help maintain positive labor relations and support effective negotiation strategies.
  • Risk Management: Job analysis helps in identifying operational risks and designing jobs to mitigate those risks.

  Additional Resources

  O*Net, the Occupational Information Network, is a comprehensive database containing information on hundreds of standardized and occupation-specific descriptors sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration.

  Employers may use this source to develop job descriptions and define job-specific success factors and for other purposes related to training, recruiting and selection. O*Net also provides extensive links to additional workplace resources. It is a timesaving resource for job analysis and for others writing job descriptions and specifications.