Job Analysis: Rating Tasks and KSAOs, Study notes of Religion

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Rev. 4/

Selection

Analyst

Cohort

Job Analysis

HR Academy

The California Department of Human Resources' (CalHR) Statewide Training and Workforce Development Human Resource (HR) Academy is committed to providing job-related training to ensure that selection professionals employed by the State have the knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics to perform the essential functions of their job duties. Training classes offered by the HR Academy provide essential content and selection techniques to ensure proficiency upon course completion. All course curriculum is designed to facilitate deeper learning and retention of competencies required for the selection professional. To learn more about training, contact Training@calhr.ca.gov.

• Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………………..
• Learning Objectives……………………………………………………………………………………… - Exercise 1: Legal and Court Case Matching Exercise……………………………………
• CHAPTER 1: Job Research and Study Planning
• 1.1 How to do Archival Research………………………………………………………………………2
• ………………………………………………….... 1.2 How to Conduct Job Audits and Interviews Error! Bookmark not defined.
• 1.3 Approaches to Job Observations…………………………………………………………………..
• 1.4 Planning Logistics of the Job Analysis Study………………………………………………….…. - Exercise 2:Job Analysis Preparation…………………………………………………………..
• CHAPTER 2: Write Task Statements.. …………
• 2.1 The SME Workshop…………………………………………………………………………………
• defined. ……………………………………………………………………………..3 2.2 Task Statement Format Error! Bookmark not - Exercise 3: Office Writing Good Task Statements … …………………………………………3
• CHAPTER 3: Write KSAO Statements
• 3.1 The SME Workshop…………………………………………………………………………………
• 3.2 KSAO Statement Definition and Format………………………………………………………….
  • Exercise 4: Writing Good KSAO Statements ………………………………………………….
• CHAPTER 4: Rate and Link Tasks and KSAOs……………………………………………………..
• defined. ………………………………………………………………4 4.1 Rating Task and KSAO Statements Error! Bookmark not
  • Exercise 5a: Evaluate Job Analysis Data-Task Ratings………………………………………4
  • Exercise 5b: Evaluate Job Analysis Data-KSAO Ratings………….………………………….4
• 4.2 Linking Tasks and KSAO Statements…………………………………………………………….4
• CHAPTER 5: Documenting the Job Analysis…………………………………………………………5
• 5.1 Why Job Analysis Is Important…………………………………………………………………….5
• 5.2 What Content is Required for a Job Analysis Report……………………………………………5
• References…………………………………………………………………………………………………5
• Additional Resources…………………………………………………………..…………………………
• Glossary……………………………………………………………………………………………………
• Appendices………………………………………………………………………………………………..
• Appendix A: SPB Rule 250………………………………………………………………………………
• Appendix B: Uniform Guidelines Summary…………………………………………………………….6
• Appendix C: Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, as amended……………………………………………6
• Appendix D: Critical Incident Technique……………………………………………………………….6
• Appendix E: Survey Monkey…………………………………………………………………………….6
• Appendix F: Sample Job Analysis Survey……………………………………………………………..
• Appendix G: Best Practices for Maintaining Job Analysis Reports………………………………….
• Appendix H: Conducting Job Analysis Research Step by Step………………………………………7
• Appendix I: Sample Task Rating Results Sheet……………………………………………………….7
• Appendix J: Sample KSAO Rating Results Sheet……………………………………………………..8
• Appendix K: Sample Task and KSAO Linking Sheet…………………………………………………..8
• Course Notes………………………………………………………………………………………………

Introduction The purpose of this manual is to walk new and seasoned analysts through the Job Analysis process from start to finish. Job Analyses in the State of California are primarily used for examination purposes because they provide a legally defensible justification for the knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics (KSAOs) that an examination is designed to test for. However, they can be used for anything from examinations to recruitment, hiring, and training because the data and information gathered identify the essential functions and KSAOs of a classification. The Job Analysis process can be broken into five main steps which will be discussed in further detail later in this manual. The steps are: Diagram A. As you move through this manual, you will find each step explained in depth as well as resources, job aids, tips, and best practices that will help demystify the Job Analysis process. The steps will be covered in this manual in the order in which they would typically be done on the job. Second Step Write Task Statements Third Step Write KSAO Statements Fourth Step Rate & Link Task and KSAO Statements First Step Conduct Job Research & Study Planning Fifth Step Document Job Analysis Method and Results

Foundations of Job Analysis

What is Job Analysis?

California Code of Regulations (CCR) section 79 defines a Job Analysis as: “The process of systematically identifying the essential tasks and functions performed in a classification and identifying the competencies that are required to perform those essential tasks and functions.” Simply put, a Job Analysis is a specific structured way of collecting data related to the fundamental aspects of a job or classification like the knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics (KSAOs) required to successfully perform a job or the most important or representative tasks and duties of a classification. This information is then used to develop examinations, develop training courses and programs, and identify characteristics that potential applicants should demonstrate in an interview, among other uses. That is why a good Job Analysis is important, especially for examination purposes. It would be impossible to develop an examination for a Special Investigator classification without knowing exactly what a person in that classification actually does, and what KSAOs are required to do the job. Similarly, it would be difficult to design safety training for a Warehouse Worker at the Department of General Services without detailed knowledge of the job’s primary functions and common tasks. With that said, it is important to understand how a Job Analysis identifies the essential aspects of a job and what specifically a Job Analysis is designed to analyze. In order to do that, it is important to understand the levels of work also called the hierarchy of work activities (Brannick, 2007). Below are the typical levels of a field of work in order from largest to smallest:  Branch of work. An example of a branch could be the Human Resources (HR) branch, which refers to all jobs related to HR.  Group. A group of work could be all selection related jobs.  Series. A series breaks the job group into smaller categories like journey-level analyst, first line supervisor, chief, and so on.  Job. A job means similar work done by different people like an Examination Analyst.  Position. This is a specific job held by one person (e.g., Nick an Examination Analyst at CalHR).  Duty. A duty is a collection of tasks directed at general job goals. An Examination Analyst, for example, may have several duties related to developing an examination and each duty requires him to perform a series of tasks to complete it. Many of the best job analyses examine approximately 5-12 duties for the typical job (Brannick, 2007). This is generally the level at which State job analyses start.

 Task. A task is a collection of specific activities that must be performed to meet some job objective like facilitating a Subject Matter Expert (SME) meeting. A well-done Job Analysis will often contain between 30 – 100 tasks depending on the job.  Activity. An activity is a cluster of job elements. For example, in order to facilitate a SME meeting, an analyst would need to complete activities like contact prospective SMEs, schedule the meeting, reserve a meeting room, etc.  Element. An element may not be an obvious physical action but still contributes to an activity. Which level your Job Analysis studies depends on the purpose of the Job Analysis. As mentioned above, job analyses for State purposes typically explore classifications at the duty or task level. For example, if you are conducting a Job Analysis for examination development purposes, then it should focus on the tasks associated with a job. On the contrary, your Job Analysis should focus on the duty level of a job if you are planning to use it for creating a more global document like a new classification specification. Table A Examples of levels/units of analysis in a Job Analysis (Brannick, 2007) Term Example Branch Group Series Job Position Duty Task Activity Element

HR

Law enforcement Sworn law enforcement officers Police Officer Jane Doe, Police Officer, South District Traffic enforcement Issue tickets to law violators Pull motorist over Switch on siren and lights

Job Analysis – the foundation of HR function

While the majority of job analyses done for State service will be used for examination and hiring purposes, there are many other areas in which the data could be used.

1. Job classification. Job classification is the process of clustering jobs into families of similar jobs. Job Analysis data (often at the task or duty level) are used to identify, compare, and then group like-jobs into classifications (e.g., Staff Services Analyst). Typically, rules of thumb are agreed upon prior to conducting classification studies to

analyst of what a person might do and/or how he might do it. Imagine how an Office Technician who works in a department where the position is viewed as an essential part of daily operations may approach her job, versus one who works in a department that views the same position as unnecessary.

2. Licensing and other mandated requirements. This data is good for anyone involved in recruitment and hiring because it limits the pool of potential applicants based on the licensing or other requirements. It also helps for analysts who develop examinations for such positions which measure applicants’ training and experience or qualifications. Essentially, this data can help the analyst draw conclusions about what an applicant or incumbent should know in order to successfully perform in a particular job.
3. Professional standards. This data is also good for measuring what a applicant or incumbent should know or be able to do in order to successfully perform on the job. However, unlike licensing or mandated requirements, professional standards are more like best practices. They may not be required for a particular position, but they may demonstrate a higher degree or level of proficiency in a field. Most professional standards come from recognized organizations and groups considered leaders in a field or area of study like the Project Management Institute. Many also require members to adhere to or follow certain standards to remain in good standing with the organization. If a majority of incumbents of a position are also members of a particular organization, an analyst can assume that they are at least aware of the best practices in a field, and likely use them to successfully perform in their jobs.
4. Job context. This data is critical for analysts involved in the selection process. In fact, most if not all of your job analyses will contain this data, particularly for those classifications that are used throughout a region or the State as a whole. This information is very helpful for projects like classification specification revisions. Job context data provides more information about the setting or conditions in which a job is performed. This information is sometimes posted on job bulletins under the “Working Conditions” section. It is important to know whether a job is performed in extreme or dangerous conditions, indoors or outdoors, regular or variable shifts, etc. For departments like CalTrans or California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, where a person works can affect how they work and what they do. An example of this might be the difference between a CalTrans Equipment Operator in San Diego County and one in Lassen County. The equipment that is used in an area that receives heavy snowfall might be very different from equipment used in an area where the weather is typically hot and sunny.
5. Work performance indicators. This type of data usually helps to show what is considered successful or satisfactory job performance and what is not. It may be useful for analysts who are also involved in training as well as analysts involved in various

areas of selection. It can identify areas of opportunity for training, what level of performance is considered minimally competent for examination purposes, or what should be included in a hiring assessment.

6. Personal job demands. This data type is closely related to job context data. It focuses on the effects of the work conditions on the person doing the job. This data may be helpful to analysts who need to know how demanding or physically taxing a job is, like for a classification specification revision, recruitment, examination, or hiring assessment purposes. Information gathered might include the physical (i.e. lifting or carrying heavy objects), psychological (i.e. maintaining composure in high-stress situations), or social (i.e. highly visible or political public-facing position) effects or demands that a job may have on an incumbent. For analysts who deal with Peace Officer, Correctional Officer, or firefighter classifications (among others), this data may help to develop more realistic or relevant Work Sample and Performance Tests.
7. Work activities. Work activities are the tasks that an incumbent performs as part of the job. This data is usually included in any civil service Job Analysis. The data can be used to update classification specifications, develop examinations and hiring assessments, performance measurements, and for other HR and selection functions. It provides a detailed explanation of what incumbents of a job actually do on a regular basis.
8. Worker characteristics. Worker characteristics are essentially the KSAOs that incumbents must have in order to successfully perform on the job. Like work activities, this data is also important for developing examinations because KSAOs that are linked to job performance can be tested for.
9. Critical incidents. Critical incidents can be good or bad stories or situations that have happened to incumbents of a job. This data might reveal other tasks and KSAOs that are related to the job but did not come out in other areas of a Job Analysis or preliminary Job Analysis research. They represent the best and worst case scenarios of worker performance or working conditions. Think of the forklift driver who destroyed an entire warehouse by backing into a shelf and causing a domino effect of disaster, or the Personnel Technician who prevented a fire by quickly recognizing a problem with and shutting down a malfunctioning piece of office equipment. Each of these data types may be useful in various areas of selection and HR. Knowing exactly what you are collecting data for, and how the data is intended to be used will help you decide what data types to collect during your Job Analysis. Without a clear purpose, a Job Analysis may not collect what you or your program needs. In most cases, analysts are told by their program or supervisor what the purpose of the Job Analysis is (i.e. to develop an examination,

specifications, older job analyses, performance appraisal information, accident reports, etc. are often great sources of information. Formal reviews of O*Net are also excellent ways to gain an initial understanding of the job tasks and related KSAOs required to do the job. Technical reports, books, training materials, manuals, and checklists are all excellent sources of job information. The source for this kind of data would be written or online documents, and the World Wide Web.

5. Doing the work. A less common method of data collection is doing the work, which involves the analyst actually performing the work under study. The approach is typically limited to simpler jobs where errors in performance are not critical. For example, an analyst should probably not attempt to perform heart surgery (unless of course, he or she moonlights as a surgeon). Often, analysts use a combination of data collection methods rather than just one. Multiple methods allow for more data to be collected from a larger population. This is particularly true when dealing with classifications that are spread out, used throughout the State, or in areas that require difficult travel. It also provides an opportunity to capture data that a single collection method may not have gathered, and reduces the impact of the limitations of each collection method used. Usually analysts use a combination of research, questionnaires, and interviews and SME workshops to gather the data that they need. The methods that you choose are up to you and your department or program’s needs and resources. Representative Sampling In addition to determining the data collection method, it is also important to identify from whom you will collect the data. This goes beyond the general collection of incumbents in the classification that will be studied. The “who” refers more to the representative sample of the classification that should be included in the study. A representative sample is a cross-section of a population that accurately represents all of the diverse groups within the population. Diversity in this case goes beyond race and gender identity. Other categories to consider are age, years in a classification or tenure, education level, work schedule, work shift, and region. It may also be important to identify whether or not there are variations in the role of incumbents in a particular classification. This representative sample is essential to capturing the range of experiences, tasks, and other nuances of the job that you are analyzing. The goal of the representative sample is to make sure that analysts get input from as many of the different people doing the job as possible, to have a more accurate Job Analysis and more reliable data. Analysts are not limited to these categories when trying to determine what a representative sample is for the classification that they intend to study. If there are any other demographic categories that may affect the way an incumbent experiences his or her position, those should also be considered. Each category can also be broken down into more specific categories if necessary. For example, “level of education” could be broken down further than degree type.

If an analyst believes it may impact how incumbents perform their jobs, he/she may also choose to look at degree subject areas, not just degree types (i.e. Bachelors in Chemistry or PhD. in Industrial and Organizational Psychology). In most departments, employee demographic data can be found within the department itself. This information can be useful for identifying the different groups represented in a department, which will help determine what a representative sample might look like. Once the representative sample is pinpointed, data collection can be targeted to make sure that each member in the sample provides input. Departments may assign SMEs for a Job Analysis that do not represent the range of individuals in a classification. However, a representative sample can still be polled through a survey or questionnaire. That is one reason why using multiple data collection methods is preferred when conducting a Job Analysis. You may not be able to observe, interview, or do the jobs of a representative sample of incumbents. You can, however, provide questionnaires and surveys to hundreds of incumbents, and capture more of the diverse experiences within a classification. Building Block 4: What unit of analysis is required? After identifying and collecting the necessary data, it is time to analyze and summarize the data. Building Block 4 is where the plan for that is developed. In some cases, the raw data gathered is useable as is. On the other hand, there is usually some work that needs to be done in order to turn the raw data into something that can be used for the Job Analysis being conducted. This is where you will decide how the raw data will be analyzed, summarized, and reported. Below are a few considerations based on some common civil service data types.

1. Duties. In order to develop a job evaluation or classification specification, an analyst needs precise Statements to summarize the work in question. Often the analyst has collected a variety of information throughout the study, and the data must be edited and summarized into higher level Statements. An example of a higher level Statement might be “Preparing and managing project plans” or “conducting training needs analysis”. The Statements are short, but they suggest that there are many more detailed task Statements and activities.
2. Tasks. Job analyses conducted within California State service frequently use task level data to capture the nature of the work being studied. It is important to consider what level of analysis should be used before the Job Analysis project begins. This is appropriate because most State service job analyses serve a personnel selection purpose. Task-level detail is the best for making selection decisions because the task Statements can often be translated directly into examination items. For example, a task Statement like “edits technical documents for publication using APA style grammar and standard Microsoft software applications” are easily translated into a Training and Experience (T&E) examination item (“How many years’ experience do you have editing

They were in fact acting discriminatorily and knowingly excluding minorities, because minority populations were less likely to meet the arbitrary requirements. A landmark case of this was Griggs v. Duke Power Company. Duke Power Company required a high school diploma and a written test for an entry-level supervisory position knowing that African Americans were less likely to have a high school diploma. This requirement effectively kept African Americans and other minorities from being able to compete for the entry-level supervisory position. The argument was that the company believed that the requirement would improve the quality of the workforce, but there was no evidence of job relatedness offered. Ultimately, the Supreme Court ruled that Duke Power Company had acted in a discriminatory manner, because it was unable to prove that having a high school diploma was necessary for satisfactory job performance. Without proof that there was a relationship between job performance and a high school diploma, it was impossible to argue that an applicant without a diploma would be unable to satisfactorily perform the necessary tasks and duties of the job. From this case came the understanding that all requirements for employment and selection purposes must be job related. This ruling implied the importance of a Job Analysis for selection procedures, because job relatedness can only be proven through an in- depth analysis of a job. A similar landmark case, Albemarle Paper Company v. Moody , ended with a very similar conclusion. The difference in this case was that the Supreme Court ruling actually pointed to the company’s lack of a Job Analysis to support their selection process. Essentially, what was implied from Griggs v. Duke Power Company was made very clear in Albemarle Paper Company v. Moody. Based on this ruling and the Griggs ruling, it is now believed that Job Analysis must be done to support an organization’s selection process and make the process legally defensible. If not, the organization may face significant trouble if a legal challenge is brought against them. Other court cases have confirmed the previously stated assumptions about using a Job Analysis to support selection processes (see Table B for other cases and consequences as a result of unsupported selection procedures). In fact, after a review of 26 Federal cases Thompson (1982) noted:

1. Job Analysis is required and must be performed for the job for which the selection instrument is utilized.
2. Results and methods of the Job Analysis should be thoroughly documented.
3. Job data should be collected by trained analysts from a variety of current sources.
4. The sample size of the SMEs should be large enough to be representative of the jobs for which the selection test will be used.
5. Tasks and duties should be included in the analysis.
6. The most important tasks should be the focus of the selection tool.
7. KSAOs should be specified, especially if a content validation approach is used.

The Uniform Guidelines , originally established by the Equal Employment opportunity Commission (EEOC), the Office of Federal Contract Compliance (OFCC), the Civil Service Commission (U.S. Office of Personnel Management), and the Department of Justice between 1966 and 1978, reinforces the importance of a good Job Analysis. One of the key principles is that selection examinations must be valid measures of job related competence. On the surface, this does not seem directly linked to a Job Analysis. However, the Uniform Guidelines specifically States: “Any validity study should be based upon a review of information about the job for which the selection procedure is to be used. The review should include a Job Analysis”. In other words, a Job Analysis is required in order to support examination validity. Examination validity is what proves that an examination measures what it was designed to measure. This can be established through either criterion validity measures or content related validity measures. The most common for State purposes is content related validity which requires a Job Analysis to identify the tasks and KSAOs that are required for satisfactory job performance. They should therefore be tested. Table B: Monetary consequence of unsubstantiated hiring practices Employer Award Basis of Discrimination Shony’s Restaurants $132 million Race Seattle City Light $1.4 million Race Vacation Sales Associates $7.7 million Age and gender C.H. Robinson Worldwide $15 million Gender Stanford University $545,000 Gender (1 person) Federal Express $50 million Race

The Job Analysis Process Overview

Job Analysis approaches fall into two categories: 1) work-oriented in which the analyst focuses on the job tasks, tools, and work contexts and other areas in order to identify and describe the work being done; and 2) worker-oriented in which the analyst focuses on the KSAOs that describe what one would need to successfully perform the job. The State uses a combination of the two – work- and worker oriented approaches – for job analyses. In the California civil service context, this hybrid approach provides all of the data needed to support personnel selection decision. CalHR’s Job Analysis process is broken down into five main steps. Other models break the Job Analysis process down into smaller and more specific steps (e.g. the WRIPAC method has 11 steps). Regardless of model, all identify the important tasks and KSAOs related to successful performance in the job being studied. For the CalHR model, each step summarized below will be covered in depth in the corresponding chapters of this manual in the order in which they would typically be performed. Job Research & Study Planning - the goal of this step is to use online and written tools to understand as much as possible about the job. Tools used include O*Net, existing classification specifications, old Job Analysis, textbooks, and research articles. If there are still questions about the job after researching archival material, job observations, and SME interviews can be used. The goal of this step is to create a draft list of task and KSAO Statements. During this step the analyst should plan the logistics of the study. Significant considerations include the demographics of the classification, SME identification, and careful planning of other logistical considerations, like how many incumbent responses to the Job Analysis survey are required. Write Task Statements – here the task Statements from the Job Research phase are edited into the proper format and organized into domains. A SME workshop is organized so SMEs can rate the tasks and add any task(s) that may be missing. Write KSAO Statements – this step’s goal is essentially the same as the Task Statement step, except it is applied to KSAO Statements. One uniqueness of the KSAO development process is that it is an inferential process and not a function of direct observation. For example, a task associated with a job may be: “Types 60 words per minute on a computer to produce general office correspondence using standard word processing software”. Based on this task, the analyst uses logic to infer that this task will require certain employee skills like “skill to use a computer”, and “skill to type 60 words per minute” and “knowledge of office correspondence formats”. Often tasks and KSAOs are reviewed in the same SME workshop. Rate/Link Tasks and KSAOs – once tasks and KSAO Statements are finalized, they must be rated by SMEs to determine their frequency of occurrence and importance (tasks), and whether they are required when hired, important for job performance, and whether possessing

more of a KSAO will lead to improved job performance. Rated tasks and KSAOs are then linked to show which KSAOs are needed to perform the various tasks. Documentation – The Job Analysis report is created documenting the Job Analysis process and methodology.

Summary

This Introduction provides a definition of a Job Analysis as a method of collecting purpose- specific job data, and explains the foundational steps (building blocks) required to prepare for a Job Analysis. The four building blocks involve identifying what data should be collected, the methods for collecting the data, the sources that the data will be collected from, and the method that will be used to analyze and report the data after the Job Analysis is complete. The legal requirements and support for conducting a Job Analysis are also laid out and explored, to provide the context in which a Job Analysis became the preferred method of data collection. The five-step CalHR Job Analysis process is introduced and summarized at the end of this introductory section.