Job Analysis

A method by which a job—one of several positions that share similar responsibilities—is decomposed into behavioral components such as the duties, tasks, and activities required for a particular job or class of jobs. It is also used to identify observable knowledge and skills, as well as verifiable abilities and other characteristics (KSAOs) needed to perform a job. KSAOs identified through a job analysis are independent from the personal characteristics of an incumbent. That is, job analysis focuses on the job rather than on those who do or will perform a job. In addition to KSAOs, job analyses produce information on task difficulty, task criticality, time spent on job tasks, task essentiality, importance of tasks, and essential functions of a job. The results of job analyses are used to improve (a) organizations' personnel recruiting and selection procedures by ensuring that such procedures are practical, efficient, and ethical; (b) job effectiveness by optimizing individual and team organizational placements and structures; (c) performance appraisal and promotion systems by offering information about specific performance criteria on which equitable reward systems can be based; and (d) safety and health by identifying job contexts or tasks that are less likely to lead to accident or injury. Job analyses are simultaneously descriptive, in that they provide information about how a job is done; prescriptive, in that they provide information about how a job should be done; and predictive, in that they provide information about how a job will be done. Occasionally, the results of job analyses are used to identify educational, training, or professional development needs for a particular job or job class within an organization. Job analysis typically uses subject matter experts, including incumbents and supervisors of the job being analyzed— who should have considerable knowledge and expertise about the job—as the primary sources of job information. The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Information Network (O∗NET) is often used to accentuate, supplement, or validate the results of job analyses conducted within an organization, or as a source of information for identifying demonstrable KSAOs. Organizations are required by law to base their recruiting, hiring, and promotion procedures on the essential tasks and requirements of the job. Therefore, a credible job analysis can help define the essential tasks and requirements of a job to ensure that staffing procedures are legally defensible. However, a job analysis alone does not provide protection against legal challenges, but it is an essential component in designing personnel systems that can withstand legal disputes. No statute mandates job analysis in the United States, but several laws such as Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures and the Americans with Disabilities Act require information derived from systematic job studies.