Job analysis and job descriptions in HR: why they matter for company growth

Job analysis and job descriptions are among the foundations human resources (HR) relies on to build a clear organisational structure. They explain the nature of each job in the company and set out its tasks, responsibilities and required qualifications, so recruitment is more accurate, appraisal is fairer, and promotion and pay policies rest on written criteria rather than guesswork.

What job analysis and job descriptions mean in HR

The concept has two linked stages:

• Job analysis: the process of gathering and studying information about each job, such as the tasks required, the skills needed, the responsibilities, the working conditions and the tools used.
• Job description: the output of the analysis, a formal document that sets out the details of the job, including the job title, its purpose, the core tasks, the required qualifications and the reporting relationships.

In other words, the analysis is the research and the description is the report that comes out of it.

Why do companies need job analysis and job descriptions?

Companies need job analysis and job descriptions for several reasons, chiefly:

• Clear tasks and responsibilities: there is less confusion and overlap between employees, and everyone knows their priorities.
• More accurate hiring: the analysis provides the data for effective job adverts and interview questions, so you reach the right candidates and put the right person in the right role.
• Targeted training: it reveals the skills gaps between what the job requires and what the jobholder has, so training is designed around those gaps.
• Fair pay: it helps set salary and incentive levels by the complexity and requirements of the job, not by negotiation alone.
• Objective appraisal and promotion: it gives written criteria for performance appraisal and promotion, and helps classify jobs by difficulty and responsibility.

Read more: HR planning: its steps and why it matters for company growth

The difference between job analysis and a job description

The difference shows in three elements:

Steps of job analysis in the HR department

Job analysis follows eight steps in order:

1. Set the purpose of the analysis: do you want to write new job descriptions, improve recruitment or build a salary scale? The purpose decides what information you collect.
2. Choose the jobs to cover: select the jobs, or representative samples of them, as needed, for example focusing on certain technical roles rather than covering everything when the purpose does not require it.
3. Form the analysis team: trained internal or external analysts who know how work is done in the company, which saves time and cost.
4. Choose data collection methods: such as interviews, questionnaires, direct observation and daily activity logs, depending on the nature of the job and the resources available. In many cases a ready-made, tested questionnaire such as the Position Analysis Questionnaire is the better choice.
5. Collect the information: on tasks, skills, working environment and tools, through interviews with employees and supervisors, questionnaires and a review of existing documents.
6. Analyse the data: draw out the core tasks, recurring patterns and required competencies, combining more than one source so nothing is missed.
7. Verify the results: the team checks the data with jobholders and their managers to make sure it reflects the actual work.
8. Write the final description: the results become an approved job description, reviewed whenever the job's tasks change.

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What is the Position Analysis Questionnaire (PAQ)?

The Position Analysis Questionnaire is a structured job analysis tool developed by Ernest McCormick, P. R. Jeanneret and Robert Mecham. According to the Buros Center for Testing at the University of Nebraska, it was built to analyse jobs in terms of work activities and work-situation variables.

Its strength is that it does not ask about tasks specific to one job, but about general elements that work has in common, such as the sources of information the employee relies on, the decisions they make, how they deal with other people, and the conditions of the working environment. That makes it suitable for comparing different jobs on one basis, which is what job classification and pay scales need. Its drawback is that it needs a trained analyst, and it can be less detailed than an interview when you are writing a specific job description.

What are the core elements of a job description?

A good job description is short and clear, and covers the following:

• The job title, department and direct reporting line.
• The purpose of the job, in one or two lines.
• The main tasks and responsibilities, in order of importance.
• The qualifications and experience required.
• Technical and personal skills.
• Working conditions and hours, such as shift work or on-site work.
• The grade or band, if the company has a grading structure.

How do job descriptions support performance appraisal?

A job description supports performance appraisal in four ways.

Providing objective appraisal criteria

It gives clear, consistent criteria for measuring performance, such as the main tasks and responsibilities, so actual performance can be compared accurately with what is expected.

Defining duties and responsibilities precisely

It sets out the daily tasks and required competencies, so management can measure directly how far the employee meets them and spot the gap between actual and required performance.

Improving communication and expectations

It creates a shared framework for the employee and management to understand expectations, so the appraisal conversation is clearer, there is less confusion about the role and feedback improves.

Supporting development and promotion

It reveals strengths and weaknesses against the job's requirements, which guides training and development and serves as a basis for promotion and bonus decisions.

See also: Performance appraisal systems: how to measure and improve employee performance

How Dawmt handles hiring and appraisal based on job descriptions

Analysing jobs and writing their descriptions is work your HR team does. What Dawmt provides is a set of modules that put the results of that work to use in recruitment, appraisal and training:

• Recruitment: a job portal, vacancy approvals, interview templates and job offers. Dawmt's AI writing assistant can fill in job requisition fields (position, employment type and justification), suggest interview questions and draft competencies and tasks, for you to review and edit before approval.
• CV parsing: Dawmt reads applicants' CVs automatically, which cuts the manual entry of their details. Comparing a candidate with the job description's requirements and choosing who to hire stays with your recruitment team.
• Performance appraisal: competency-based and goal-based appraisals, 360-degree feedback and regular appraisal cycles, so performance is measured against what the job description asks for.
• Training: training programmes, development plans and their costs, to close the gaps appraisal reveals.

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Conclusion

Job analysis and job descriptions are a basic step towards an organised workplace: the analysis shows what the job really requires, and the description turns it into a document that recruitment, appraisal, training and pay can rely on. Start with the jobs that matter most to your work, review their descriptions whenever their tasks change, and connect them to the recruitment and appraisal tools in the Dawmt HR system so your selection and appraisal criteria stay the same.

Sources

• Buros Center for Testing, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Position Analysis Questionnaire.