Human Resource Knowledge

Job specification

It is a written statement of qualifications, traits, physical and mental characteristics that an individual must possess to perform the job duties and discharge responsibilities effectively.

Job Specification Information

The first step in the program of job specification is to prepare a list of all jobs in the company and where they are located. The second step is to secure and write up information about each of the jobs in a company. Usually, this information includes:

1.Physical specifications
2.Mental specifications,
3.Emotional and social specifications
4.Behavioral specifications

Physical Specifications: Physical specifications include the physical qualifications or physical capacities which vary from job to job. Physical qualifications or capacities include physical features like height, weight, chest, vision, hearing, ability, to lift weight, ability to carry weight, health, age, capacity to use or operate machines, tools, equipment etc.

Mental Specifications: Mental specifications include ability to perform, arithmetical calculation, to interpret data, information blue prints, to read electrical circuits, ability to plan, reading abilities, scientific abilities, judgment, ability to concentrate, ability to handle variable factors, general intelligence, memory etc.

Emotional and Social Specifications: Emotional and social specifications are more important for the post of managers, supervisors, foremen etc. They include emotional stability, flexibility, and social adaptability in human relationship, personal appearance including dress, posture, poise, features and voice required by the job.

Behavioral Specifications: Behavioral specifications play an important role in selecting the candidates for higher level jobs in the organizational hierarchy. This specification seeks to describe the acts of managers rather than the traits that cause the acts. These specifications include judgments, research, creativity, teaching, ability, maturity (capable of accepting responsibility) trial of conciliation, self-reliance (self-starter sticks to own decisions), dominance (giving orders in a personal way) etc.

Employee Specifications

Job specifications information must be converted into employee specification information in order to know what king of person is needed to fill a job. Employee specification is like a brand name which spells that the candidate with a particular employee specification generally possesses the qualities specified under job specification, for example, the employee with the educational qualification of MBA generally knows the concepts, managerial skills like decision-making, inter-personal, leadership etc. However, the validity of this assumption can be tested through selection procedure. Employee specification is useful to find out the suitability of particular class of candidates to a particular job. Thus, employee specification is useful to find out prospective employees (target group) whereas job specification is useful to select the right candidate for a job. Employee specification information includes the following

1.Job Grade: Middle Management
2.Job Title: Credit Manager
3.Physical and Health: Normal health, able to visit factories, fields—able to walk extensively.
4.Energy Level and Temperature: High ability to adjust to increasing temperature
5.Appearance, Dress: Neat—suitable to traveling
6.Mental Abilities: Alertness, ability to read and perceive accurately.
7.Special Abilities: Flexibility, adaptability.
8.Special knowledge or Skills: Must know local language skills of conciliation, appreciation.
9.Skill in Operating Special Equipment: Driving two wheelers and light vehicles
10.Degree of Personal Traits.
11.Maturity: Must be capable of accepting responsibility to recover.
12.Self Reliance: Stick to own appraising decisions.
13.Dominance: Must dominate the field officers and branch managers.
14.Creativeness: Creative thinking in developing new schemes of advances and recovery.
15.Particular Skills: Calculating, analytical, interpretation, appraising etc.
16.Others.

• Age
• Sex
• Educational Qualifications
• Experience
• Physical specifications: Height, weight etc
• Social background
• Family background
• Extra-curricular activities
• Hobbies

Some items of employee specification information are target for criticism. It is criticized that the privacy of the employee may be affected if the information like social background and family background is asked and taken into consideration to judge whether a candidate possess certain traits, behavioral specifications and social specifications. However, the organization may adapt the counseling technique to solicit such information rather than using application blank. And the organizations should give the benefit of doubt to the candidate in judging the behavioral and social specifications basing on sex, family and social background of the candidate. However, job analysis once applied is of great use of performing various functions of HRM.

Labels: HRM

posted by Paresh @ 10:25 AM