Job Design, Hiring, Training, and Performance Appraisal

Job design is influenced by a range of factors .A well designed job will ensure that it is more satisfying and productive. If the job performance fails, then it is important for it to be redesigned based on feedback. The following factors influence job design differently; characteristics of task, ergonomics and work flow (Max De Pree, 2001). Characteristics of Task: Job design involves the assembly of various tasks into a group of jobs. A person may do one key task which mainly consists of various inter-related functions or elements. On the other side, tasks functions may be divided between a team which is working very closely together. In very compound job, employees may carry out a range of related tasks or these tasks may be allocated to a group of employees divided between them.

Work Flow: The flow of work in a company or organization is firmly affected by the nature of service or product. The service or product basically propose on the balance and sequence between jobs, if the work is to be carried out effectively.

Ergonomics: Ergonomics mainly involves designing and shaping jobs so as to fit individual characteristics and physical abilities in order to facilitate effective job performance. Ergonomics assist employees to design jobs in a manner that their job abilities and demands are properly balanced.

Some of the factors that influence hiring decisions that supervisors or managers take into account are educational background and experience. In most companies and organization work experience has become a prerequisite to any employment. According to employers, the level of work experience is one of the most significant aspects in a resume.  Proper work experience is a strong indication of an applicant's ability to perform in a given area. On the other side, it is necessary that any work experience or familiarity you have be in line with what the employer is searching for.

Education background of a job applicant is vital factor that managers greatly put into consideration before offering employment. Despite the interview type, a strong education ground is essential. For example if an individual does not have a college education, there are a lot of companies that will not consider one, in spite of the attained worked experience.

Many studies have been carried out on training effectiveness and impact of training on job satisfaction. In general training assist employees to acquire new information or skills and modify their attitudes.  Consequently training can help employees in solving their problems at the place of work and develop interpersonal skill for better relation with others in the organization. An aspect that has greatly influenced training is the motivation factor. Training benefits are exceedingly linked to training motivation. Motivation in training is of great importance because motivated trainee is likely to receive training in a more effective manner compared to those who are not motivated. Employers should ensure their employees are motivated before, during and after training. There are basically two types of motivations factors that influence employees training: intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation (Max De Pree, (2001). The basic difference between extrinsic and intrinsic motivation is that extrinsic motivation generally refers to doing something that lead to a discrete outcome while intrinsic motivation refers to doing something that is intrinsically interesting.

Performance appraisal

According to Max De Pree (2001) performance appraisal is a mechanism of obtaining, examining and recording feedback and information on the performance and achievement of an employee in an organization. Performance appraisal is a very vital tool in supervising employees. It is a communication device that provides room for supervisors and managers to set goals and targets with and assess their performance. On carrying out performance appraisal managers or supervisors must take into account some of very important factors.  At the first place the manager must establish the important activities that contribute to the general success of an organization. These are some of the main activities that need to be taken into consideration if the performance appraisal has to be pertinent to both the organization and the employees. For instance when coming up with a performance appraisal for a sales man, the primarily goal is to bring in a new business.

The second factor is the quantifiable metrics. Once a supervisor has identified the key activity to evaluate, he must come up with a way to make them quantifiable. Quantifiable metrics great help the employee to be able to track down his/her own performance at different times and improve on the weak points. For example if the target of a sales man is to collect a thousand dollars for one year in a new business then it will be very easy to determine how many more businesses he need to bring into account in order to meet the target.

Another factor that influences the performance appraisal is the incentives attached. For any effective performance appraisal there must be an incentive attached to it. For example if one of the employees gets an excellent performance appraisal his/her counterpart gets an average one, but they each get same bonus and promotion, then there will be less inducement for the excellent employee.