Job Design and Its TechniquesWhat is Job Design:Work arrangement (or rearrangement) aimed at reducing or overcoming job dissatisfaction and employee alienation arising from repetitive and mechanistic tasks. Through job design, organizations try to raise productivity levels by offering non-monetary rewards such as greater satisfaction from a sense of personal achievement in meeting the increased challenge and responsibility of one's work. Job enlargement, job enrichment, job rotation, and job simplification are the various techniques used in a job design exercise.

Job design is the process of Work arrangement (or rearrangement) aimed at reducing or overcoming job dissatisfaction and employee alienation arising from repetitive and mechanistic tasks. Through job design, organizations try to raise productivity levels by offering non-monetary rewards such as greater satisfaction from a sense of personal achievement in meeting the increased challenge and responsibility of one's work. Job enlargement, job enrichment, job rotation, and job simplification are the various techniques used in a job design exercise. ---businessdictionary.com

Definitions: - Job design is the process ofa) Deciding the contents of the job.b) Deciding methods to carry out the job.c) Deciding the relationship which exists in the organization.Job analysis helps to develop job design and job design matches the requirements of the job with the human qualities required to do the job.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."Job analysis helps to develop job design and job design matches the requirements of the job with the human qualities required to do the job.

Job Rotation: A job design technique in which employees are moved between two or more jobs in a planned manner. The objective is to expose the employees to different experiences and wider variety of skills to enhance job satisfaction and to cross-train them. -------BusinessDictionary.comJob rotation implies systematic movement of employees from one job to the other. Job remains unchanged but employees performing them shift from one job to the other. With job rotation, an employee is given an opportunity to perform different jobs, which enriches his skills, experience and ability to perform different jobs

Advantages of job rotation 1. Avoids monopoly :- Job rotation helps to avoid monopoly of job and enable the employee to learn new things and therefore enjoy his job2. Provides an opportunity to broaden ones knowledge: - due to job rotation the person is able to learn different job in the organization this broadens his knowledge.3. Avoiding fraudulent practice: - In an organization like bank jobs rotation is undertaken to prevent employees from doing any kind of fraud i.e. if a person is handling a particular job for a very long time he will be able to find loopholes in the system and use them for his benefit and indulge ( participate ) in fraudulent practices job rotation avoids this. Disadvantages of Job Rotation 1. Frequent interruption :- Job rotation results in frequent interruption of work .A person who is doing a particular job and get it comfortable suddenly finds himself shifted to another job or department .this interrupts the work in both the departments.2. Reduces uniformity in quality :- Quality of work done by a trained worker is different from that of a new worker .when a new worker I shifted or rotated in the department, he takes time to learn the new job, makes mistakes in the process and affects the quality of the job. 3. Misunderstanding with the union member :- Sometimes job rotation may lead to misunderstanding with members of the union. The union might think that employees are being harassed and more work is being taken from them. In reality this is not the case. Job enrichment It is an attempt to motivate employees by giving them the opportunity to use the range of their abilities. It is an idea that was developed by the American psychologist Frederick Hertzberg in the 1950s. It can be contrasted to job enlargement which simply increases the number of tasks without changing the challenge. As such job enrichment has been described as 'vertical loading' of a job, while job enlargement is 'horizontal loading'. An enriched job should ideally contain: A range of tasks and challenges of varying difficulties (Physical or Mental) A complete unit of work - a meaningful task Feedback, encouragement and communicationJob Enrichment is the addition to a job of tasks that increase the amount of employee control or responsibility. It is a vertical expansion of the job as opposed to the horizontal expansion of a job, which is called job enlargement. ------About management.com

Advantages of job enrichment 1. Interesting and challenging job :- When a certain amount of power is given to employees it makes the job more challenging for them, we can say that job enrichment is a method of employee empowerment.2. Improves decision making :- Through job enrichment we can improve the decision making ability of the employee by asking him to decide 3. vation speaks of these higher order needs e.g. Ego and esteemed needs, self-actualization etc. These needs can be achieved through job enrichment.4. Reduces work load of superiors :-Job enrichment reduces the work load of senior staff. When decisions are taken by juniors the seniors work load is reduced.

Disadvantages of job enrichment 1. Job enrichment is based on the assumptions that workers have complete knowledge to take decisions and they have the right attitude. In reality this might not be the case due to which there can be problems in working.2. Job enrichment has negative implications ie. Along with usual work decision making work is also given to the employees and not many may be comfortable with this.3. Superiors may feel that power is being taken away from them and given to the juniors. This might lead to ego problems.4. This method will only work in certain situations. Some jobs already give a lot of freedom and responsibility; this method will not work for such jobs. 5. Some people are internally dissatisfied with the organization. For such people no amount of job enrichment can solve the problem.

Job Enlargement Job Enlargement, a job design technique in which the number of tasks associated with a job is increased (and appropriate training provided) to add greater variety to activities, thus reducing monotony.Job enlargement is considered a horizontal restructuring method in that the job is enlarged by adding related tasks. Job enlargement may also result in greater workforce flexibility.Job Enlargement is the horizontal expansion of a job. It involves the addition of tasks at the same level of skill and responsibility. It is done to keep workers from getting bored. It is different than job enrichment. Examples: Small companies may not have as many opportunities for promotions, so they try to motivate employees through job enlargement.

Advantages of job enlargement Variety of skills :- Job enlargement helps the organization to improve and increase the skills of the employee due to organization as well as the individual benefit. Improves earning capacity :- Due to job enlargement the person learns many new activities. When such people apply foe jobs to other companies they can bargain for more salary. Wide range of activities :- Job enlargement provides wide range of activities for employees. Since a single employee handles multiple activities the company can try and reduce the number of employees. This reduces the salary bill for the company.

Disadvantages of job enlargement Increases work burden :- Job enlargement increases the work of the employee and not every company provides incentives and extra salary for extra work. Therefore the efforts of the individual may remain unrecognized. Increasing frustration of the employee :- In many cases employees end up being frustrated because increased activities do not result in increased salaries. Problem with union members :- Many union members may misunderstand job enlargement as exploitation of worker and may take objection to it.Factors affecting Job designJob design also gives information about the qualifications required for doing the job and the reward (financial and non-financial benefits) for doing the job. Job design is mostly done for managers jobs. While designing the job, the needs of the organization and the needs of the individual manager must be balanced. There are various factors which affect job design in the company. They can be explained with the help of diagram.

I] Organizational factors :-Organizational factors to refer to factors inside the organization which affect job design they are:a) Task characteristics :-Task characteristics refer to features of the job that is depending on the type of job and the duties involved in it the organization will decide, how the job design must be done. Incase the company is not in a position to appoint many people; a single job may have many duties and vice versa.b) The process or flow of work in the organization :-There is a certain order in which jobs are performed in the company. Incase the company wishes it could combine similar job and give it to one person this can be done if all the jobs come one after the other in a sequence.c) Ergonomics :-Ergonomics refers to matching the job with physical ability and characteristics of the individual and in providing an office environment which will help the person to complete the jobs faster and in a comfortable manner.d) Work practices :-Every organization has different work practices. Although the job may be the same the method of doing the job differs from company to company. This is called work practice and it affects job design.

II] Environmental factors :-Environmental factors which affect job design are as follows:a) Employee availability and ability :-Certain countries face the problem of lack of skilled labour. They are not able to get employees with specific education levels for jobs and have to depend on other countries due to this job design gets affected.b) Social and cultural expectations :-The social and cultural conditions of every country is different so when an MNC appoints an Indian it has to take into account like festivals, auspicious time, inauspicious time, etc. to suit the Indian conditions. This applies to every country and therefore job design will change accordingly.

III Behavioral factors :-Job design is affected by behavioral factors also. These factors are:a) Feedback :-Job design is normally prepared on the basis of job analysis and job analysis requires employee feedback based on this employee feedback all other activities take place. Many employees are however not interested in providing a true feedback because of fear and insecurity. This in turn affects job deign.b) Autonomy :-Every worker desires a certain level of freedom to his job effectively. This is called autonomy. Thus when we prepare a job design we must see to it that certain amount of autonomy is provided to the worker so that he carries his job effectively.c) Variety :-When the same job is repeated again and again it leads to burden and monotony. This leads to lack of interest and carelessness on the job. Therefore, while preparing job design certain amount of variety must be provided to keep the person interested in the job.Employee Turnover: positive & Negative impact: i. Positive Effects of TurnoverEmployee turnover typically has a negative connotation, mainly due to the potentially high costs associated with replacing a departed worker. However, about 25 percent of turnover can actually be considered desirable, according to Ere.com. There are several instances where the positives of a worker leaving can outweigh the negatives.Addition by SubtractionIf employee turnover means losing an individual who is a "bad actor," the impact can be beneficial to your company. In smaller work environments, even one individual who constantly complains, gossips or doesn't pull his weight can have a negative effect on company morale. For the remaining workers, the departure of an employee with a negative attitude can seem like a breath of fresh air. For the business owner, it means no longer having to deal with the headaches that employee caused.Gaining Fresh IdeasEmployee turnover can also be positive if it means replacing a veteran employee stuck in her ways with an individual who brings something new. A long-term employee who was simply going through the motions or had been biding her time until retirement may have contributed little to the progress of the business. Replacing her with "new blood" may also give you access to a mind filled with new ideas and an innovative way of thinking.Avoiding Painful DecisionsIf your business has been struggling for some time, you may be contemplating taking the unenviable action of letting someone go. A perceptive employee may see the handwriting on the wall and seek employment elsewhere before you need to make a final decision. If the individual was paid well but didn't necessarily make a contribution worthy of his salary, you also have the option of replacing him with a new hire at a lower salary to reduce costs.Improving DiversityIf you are looking to improve your companys diversity, a departure can pave the way to make changes. If you have a predominantly male workforce, consider hiring a female worker. You can also bring in an individual of a different ethnicity or nationality. Depending on the personalities and tolerance level of your current workforce, you may have to first provide some diversity training to make the transition as smooth as possible for all parties.

ii. Negative Effects of TurnoverWhile losing employees that are poor performers or negative influences on workplace morale can have positive effects, unplanned and frequent employee turnover is generally regarded as bad for business. High turnover rates typically mean companies are doing a poor job selecting the right employees, failing to provide a motivating work environment or losing out to employers that offer better pay and benefits.Decreased PerformanceOne of the simplest but highly impacting negative effects of turnover is decreased performance in the workplace. In their December 2007 Harvard Business School article "Managing the Impact of Employee Turnover on Performance: The Role of Process Conformance," Zeynep Ton and Robert S. Huckman cite a 48-month study conducted in a large United States retail chain that revealed that both profit margin and customer service were adversely affected by turnover. Less experienced workers are less likely to sell higher value solutions and deliver optimized service.Unfulfilled Daily FunctionsMany of the negative effects of turnover relate to performance quality, but the "Encyclopedia of Business" points out companies with higher turnover may struggle to complete all necessary or important daily functions. For instance, if it takes 10 workers to a complete a given work task or function in a day, and only seven workers are currently employed in that area, the company has to figure out how to deal with the unfulfilled daily work requirement.CostsHigh costs are one of the more discussed negatives of high turnover. Every time an employee leaves and is replaced, there are costs associated with the process of losing the first employee and hiring and training the new one. The Rain Maker Group indicates that it can cost about one-half of an unskilled worker's salary to replace a lost employee. Replacing a technically skilled employee or a high level manager can cost as much as three to five times the annual salary. Training costs are commonly discussed, but many people forget costs to complete exit interviews, market new openings and complete necessary background, reference and drug checks.Lower Knowledge BaseIn organizations with high turnover, constant change in employee ranks means average years of experience and background of employees are low. This means employees are generally less familiar with work tasks they complete and working effectively with customers. The "Business Link" website indicates that the more valuable the positions being turned over are to the company, the more impact the turnover will have on current and future performance.