Module-3 (9 Hours)

Job Evaluation:
The Job Evaluation Process; Obtain Job KSAOs, Qualifications, Working Conditions, and
Essential Duties; Examine Compensable Factors Using the Rating / Weighting Evaluation
Method; Determine Overall Job Value; Hay Group—Pioneer in Job Evaluation; Determining
Compensation using Job Evaluation Data; Legal and Ethical Considerations for Job Evaluation;
Online Salary Survey.

Meaning of Job Evaluation

Job evaluation is a systematic way of determining the value / worth of a job with other
jobs in an organization. Job evaluation is a method for comparing jobs to provide a basis for
grading and pay structure. Job evaluation has been defined as analyzing and assessing jobs to
ascertain their relative worth reliably.
It is the analysis and assessment of jobs to ascertain their relative worth reliably using
the assessment as a basis for a balanced wage structure. Without job evaluations, the HR
department could not develop a rational approach to pay. All job evaluation systems depend
heavily on job analysis.

 Features of Job Evaluation

Job evaluation aims to produce a ranking of jobs on which a rational and acceptable pay
structure can be built.

The important features of job evaluation may be summarized as follows:

 It tries to assess jobs, not people.

 The standards of job evaluation are relative, not absolute.
 The basic information on which job evaluations are made is obtained from the job analysis.
 Job evaluations are carried out by groups, not by individuals.
 Some degree of subjectivity is always present in job evaluation.
 Job evaluation does not fix pay scales but merely provides a basis for evaluating a rational
wage structure.

 Process of Job Evaluation Program

 Gaining acceptance
 Creating a job evaluation committee
 Finding the jobs to be evaluated
 Analyzing and preparing a job description
 Selecting the method of evaluation
 Classifying jobs

Gaining acceptance
Before undertaking job evaluation, top management must explain the aims and uses of
the program to the employees and unions.
To elaborate on the program further, oral presentations could be made. Letters and
booklets could be used to classify all relevant aspects of the job evaluation program.
Creating a job evaluation committee
A single person can’t evaluate all the key jobs in an organization.
Usually, a job evaluation committee consisting of experienced employees, union
representatives, and HR experts is created to set the ball rolling.

Finding the jobs to be evaluated

Every job need not be evaluated. This may be too taxing and costly.
Certain key jobs in each department may be identified. While picking up the jobs, care
must be taken to ensure that they represent the type of work performed in that department.

Analyzing and preparing a job description

This requires the preparation of a job description and also an analysis of job needs for
successful performance.
Check out our article on the job description and how the job description explains job
duties, responsibilities, reporting relationships, working conditions, and supervisory
responsibilities.

Selecting the method of evaluation

The most important method of evaluating the jobs must be identified now, keeping the
job factors and organizational demands in mind.

Classifying jobs
The relative worth of various jobs in an organization may be found out after arranging jobs in
order of importance using criteria such as skill requirements, experience needed under which
conditions the job is performed, type of responsibilities to be shouldered, degree of supervision
needed, the amount of stress caused by the job, etc.
Weights can be assigned to each such factor. A job’s worth is determined when we add
all the weights. The points may then be converted into monetary values.

What Does KSAO Stand for?

KSAO is short for knowledge, skill, ability, and other characteristics. These four
categories can refer to what is needed to be successful in a job, and they can refer to the talents
that individuals possess. Examples of each are:

 Knowledge are things people know about, such as knowledge of drug interactions for a
pharmacist or knowledge of local building codes for a carpenter.
 Skill refers to tasks a person is able to perform, such as skill in drawing for a graphic
artist or skill in drawing blood for a nurse.
 Ability is the capacity to learn knowledge or skill, such as hand-eye coordination that is
important for skilled laborers or logical reasoning for a computer programmer.
 Other refers to characteristics of people that are not KSAs, including interests (enjoys
working with computers), personality (is outgoing) and values (holds high ethical
standards).

Knowledge
Knowledge refers to factual and procedural information possessed by the candidate or
employee, usually acquired through formal education, self-study, and/or experience in the
field. This part of KSAO is all about actual knowledge and not formal degrees or certificates –
while these can, in many cases, prove the person’s understanding of a given field, often they’re
a separate requirement.
Examples:
 Understanding project management methodologies
 Chemistry knowledge
 History knowledge
‍
Skills
Skills are the fundamental capabilities the person needs to do the job, and they can be taught
and trained. While knowledge is theoretical, skills are practical – you usually acquire them once
you put the knowledge to actual use. For example, you can’t exactly become a driver or a
programmer by reading a book.
Two are two main categories of skills: hard and soft. The former relates to technical expertise
and psychomotor activities. The latter comprises critical thinking, problem solving, research,
communication, and leadership skills.
Examples of hard skills:
 Programming
 Using specific software
 Driving
Examples of core skills:
 Communicating
 Speaking on conferences
‍
Abilities
The “A” is KSAO stands for abilities, which are sometimes called “special skills”. So, how do they
differ from the “normal” skills?
The difference can be subtle, especially in the case of soft skills. The easiest way to think about
this is to see abilities as something more innate, inherent to the person. For example, you can
teach someone communication skills, but their level of empathy mostly depends on their
character and possibly upbringing.
Another difference between skills and inborn abilities is that improving the latter is more
challenging and sometimes impossible. You can train to become more agile or active, but the
harsh truth is that not everyone has the attributes necessary to become a professional athlete.
Sometimes innate characteristics are necessary for a specific position. In other cases, they
serve as a ceiling for the person’s potential growth.
Examples:
 Empathy
 Singing voice
 Physical fitness
 Physical attractiveness
‍
Other characteristics
Other characteristics are traits that don’t fit any of the categories above. These can include
values, aspects of character, but also formal courses, certificates, degrees, etc.
Separating knowledge from formal degrees and other such requirements might initially seem
strange, but it’s pretty logical. In the case of some fields and job positions, actual knowledge is
all that’s needed. However, sometimes candidates must also prove their formal training or
education. For example, when hiring a medical doctor, you need someone with a degree
demonstrating their skills and knowledge. Self-study won’t cut it when the person will handle
people’s health and lives.
Examples:
 A doctorate in chemistry
 Patience
 Being a good team player

 Hay Group—Pioneer in Job Evaluation

The Hay Job Evaluation Methodology is a proprietary methodology. You would need
permission from the owner of this tool to use it. I document it here for human resource
practitioners who for various reasons wanted to know how it works (education purposes).
General Principles about Job Evaluation
The general principles of job evaluation are:
1. It is the job and not the job holder that is being evaluated.
2. The job is evaluated at a job standard of fully acceptable performance.
3. The job is evaluated as it is now, not what it was and not what it will be or what it
should be.
4. The job is evaluated with no considerations of its present pay, grade, how it is rank
compared with other jobs. All these factors are ignored in the job evaluation.

Legal and Ethical Considerations for Job Evaluation

It is imperative that ethical issues are considered during the formulation of the evaluation plan.
Ethical considerations during evaluation include:
 Informed consent
 Voluntary participation
 Do no harm
 Confidentiality
 Anonymity
 Only assess relevant components.
Informed consent
Informed consent means that the person participating in the evaluation is fully informed about
the evaluation being conducted. Participants need to be made aware of the purpose of the
project, who or what group is funding it, how the findings will be used, if there are any
potential adverse impacts of their participation and who will have access to the findings. The
main purpose of informed consent is that the participant is able to make an informed decision
as to whether they will participate in the evaluation or not. Additional information should also
be provided in the event that the participant becomes distressed in any way during their
participation.

Voluntary participation
Voluntary participation means that people participate in the evaluation free from coercion.
Participants are free to withdraw their participation at any time without negatively impacting
on their involvement in future services or the current program 2 and relationships with any of
the researchers or research bodies involved. It can be challenging to encourage high risk youth
to become engaged in a program and it is therefore difficult when participants choose not to
continue in a program. It is the right of participants to leave a program of this nature at any
time, therefore no pressure should be placed on those who choose not to continue.
Explanations are also not required.

Do no harm
Harm can be both physical and/or psychological and therefore can be in the form of: stress,
pain, anxiety, diminishing self-esteem or an invasion of privacy. 2 It is imperative that the
evaluation process does not in any way harm (unintended or otherwise) participants.

Confidentiality
Confidentiality means that any identifying information is not made available to, or accessed by
anyone but the program coordinator.2 Confidentiality also ensures such identifying information
is excluded from any reports or published documents. Given that there are often small
numbers in peer based programs, it is very important to consider how reports are worded to
ensure that there is no opportunity for people to be identified even though names are not used.

Performance appraisal results will be as fair, accurate and supported by all evidence

Salary Surveys
Salary survey is a tool speciality for remuneration specialists and managers to define a fair &
competitive salary for the employees of a company.
Salary Surveys are tools used to determine the median or average compensation paid to
employees in one or more jobs. Compensation data, collected from several employers, is
analyzed to develop an understanding of the amount of compensation paid. Surveys may focus
on one or more job titles, geographic regions, employer size, and or industries. Salary surveys
may be conducted by employer associations (e.g., SHRM), survey vendors, or by individual
employers.
Survey data is often time sensitive and may become out-of-date quickly. Because of the time
sensitive information, surveys are often identified by by the year or quarter in which the data
was collected.

The purpose of salary surveys provide a means for comparison of salaries at the company

Types of data gathered in a salary survey

Salary Surveys are analyses of compensation data. This data may include quantifyable aspects
of compensation such as:
1. Base salaries
2. Increase percentages or amounts
3. Merit Increases
4. Salary Ranges
5. Starting Salary
6. Incentives/Bonuses
7. Allowances and Benefits
8. Working Hours