Assignment 2 HRM jan 2015
Question: Chapter 8 Job Design and Teamworking
Do you think Hackman and Oldham’s Job Characteristics Model is helpful for managers? Explain your answer with justifications. (15 marks)
Job Characteristics Model (JCM) superseded Herzberg’s two-factor theory when it was firsts introduced by Hackman and Oldham. The essential argument of the job characteristics model, which is similar to the argument made by Herzberg in many respects, is that if jobs are enriched, motivation and job satisfaction is enhanced (attitudinal outcomes), as well as productivity and performance (behavioural outcomes). The hypothesis of the JCM is that the five core job characteristics leads to three critical psychological states which in turn leads to improved motivation, satisfaction and performance. Also, job redesign affects performance through intrinsic motivation. Hackman and Oldham highlighted the need to address the mediating factor between job characteristics and outcomes is one’s psychological state. The three psychological states in the redesign of jobs are employees’ need to experience work meaningfulness; experience personal work responsibility; and they must have knowledge of the results of their work activities. Additionally, JCM provides valuable guidelines for managers in terms of the specific characteristics of jobs that need to be taken into account when job redesign issues are being considered. In particular, the theory suggested to managers the need for jobs to be diagnosed in terms of the extent to which they provided opportunities for task variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy and feedback (prescriptive value). Furthermore, by incorporating moderators (knowledge and skill, growth need strength and context satisfaction), the model recognised the psychology of individual differences – the fact that different people in different situations may respond differently to attempts to redesign jobs. As such, the theory represents a considerable step forward from
Do you think Hackman and Oldham’s Job Characteristics Model is helpful for managers? Explain your answer with justifications. (15 marks)
Job Characteristics Model (JCM) superseded Herzberg’s two-factor theory when it was firsts introduced by Hackman and Oldham. The essential argument of the job characteristics model, which is similar to the argument made by Herzberg in many respects, is that if jobs are enriched, motivation and job satisfaction is enhanced (attitudinal outcomes), as well as productivity and performance (behavioural outcomes). The hypothesis of the JCM is that the five core job characteristics leads to three critical psychological states which in turn leads to improved motivation, satisfaction and performance. Also, job redesign affects performance through intrinsic motivation. Hackman and Oldham highlighted the need to address the mediating factor between job characteristics and outcomes is one’s psychological state. The three psychological states in the redesign of jobs are employees’ need to experience work meaningfulness; experience personal work responsibility; and they must have knowledge of the results of their work activities. Additionally, JCM provides valuable guidelines for managers in terms of the specific characteristics of jobs that need to be taken into account when job redesign issues are being considered. In particular, the theory suggested to managers the need for jobs to be diagnosed in terms of the extent to which they provided opportunities for task variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy and feedback (prescriptive value). Furthermore, by incorporating moderators (knowledge and skill, growth need strength and context satisfaction), the model recognised the psychology of individual differences – the fact that different people in different situations may respond differently to attempts to redesign jobs. As such, the theory represents a considerable step forward from