Workplace design
| Workplace design |
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Workplace and job design is the definition of employee responsibility for the work carried out by him. Job descriptions are essential components of any organization. They are determined by: the area of freedom of action and the area of freedom of decision. Job design is part of a wider set of actions, which defines process of organizing.
Design approach
There are several different approaches to the job design. They can be divided into two groups: job specialization and alternatives to specialization.
Specialization
Job specialization is the extent to which the general operation of the organization will be divided into smaller components. This is a limitation of the scope of freedom of action and freedom of decision and control. Specialization applies to both operational and managerial positions. The most important benefits of specialization are:
- improved performance of actions
- elimination of counter-productive time associated with switching between different actions,
- possibility to use more specialized work tools,
- reduction in the cost of training new employees.
Beside the advantages flowing from the implementation of the specialization, there are also some disadvantages of this solution, which include:
- alienation,
- work-related fatigue,
- dissatisfaction with work,
- dispersion and difficulty with coordination.
References
- Feyen, R., Liu, Y., Chaffin, D., Jimmerson, G., & Joseph, B. (2000). Computer-aided ergonomics: a case study of incorporating ergonomics analyses into workplace design. Applied Ergonomics, 31(3), 291-300.
