Job Element Method -- Knowledge, Skills, Abilities (KSA), and physical characteristics are identified in "brainstorming" sessions. Subject matter experts identify KSA's and physical characteristics required for performance of the job. Once these elements have been identified, each is rated as follows:
b) How important is this element in picking out the superior employee? This can be used to develop desirable qualifications as well as to identify KSA's by which to rank candidates.
c) Is it practical to use this element in the selection plan?
* Strengths: The clarity of procedures that emphasize past achievements rather than credentials and experience.
* Weakness: The sole reliance on subject matter experts' opinions in generating elements.
Task Analysis -- A list of task statements is developed through interviews with subject matter experts, observations, questionnaires, and/or work logs or diaries. Each task statement includes the following information:
Once the task statements are developed, the subject matter experts evaluate them with respect to:
Functional Job Analysis -- Consists of the use of three systems: Department of Labor System, Sidney Fine's Functional Job Analysis, and Job Information Matrix System. All three systems contain elaborate definitions and examples of each item in the worker functions. This method is based on the theory that all job situations call for some involvement on the part of the worker with data, people and things. Positions are analyzed according to these elements. These central elements are defined as follows:
Data: Information, knowledge, and concepts, related to data, people and things.
People: Interactions with human beings
Things: Inanimate objects as distinguished from human beings, substance or materials; machines, tools, equipments and products.
* Strengths: This is the most established system of job analysis that is comprehensive, simple to use and expandable.
* Weakness: Its weakness is the crudeness of some of its scales as well as the rating activity.
Position Analysis Questionnaire -- Task lists are put together from position descriptions, or other sources and distributed to subject matter experts to review for accuracy and completeness. The subject matter experts then rate each task statement on:
The key to the PAQ is that the job analysis is gathered through a written questionnaire rather than through face-to-face interaction.
Critical Incident Technique -- An approach to developing worker specifications from firsthand, behavioral data job by job. The starting point is the gathering of critical incidents, which are translated into behaviors and then into KSA's. Critical incidents are defined as:
The Five Procedural Steps of the Critical Incidents Technique:
* Strength: The incidents themselves reflect actual occurrences of on-the-job behavior, which presents the realities underlying critical KSA's.
* Weakness: There is a danger that essential employee behaviors may be excluded by the participant.