Advantages and Disadvantages of the Interview Method, Job Description of Accountant - Coursework Example

Accounting Job Analysis Name: Course Professor’s name University name City, State Date of submission Job Description The job to be analyzed in this report is that of an accountant. An accountant has many duties that pertain to financial records in an organization. The accountant provides crucial financial information that involves reporting, financial auditing, accounting methods and processes and taxation. The accountant described in this context has the main duty of maximizing profitability on behalf of her organization, which is an investment company. Accountants work in many settings, including public offices but the one discussed here works for a private firm. The other duties to this organization that Ms. Chevonne Izel, our accountant, has include: Provision of financial advice Undertaking audits for the firm, where she elaborates on the financial position of the company Managing the company’s financial systems and describing a budgeting scheme for the company. The duties described above may also describe the duties of any accountant. Ms. Chevonne Izel has worked for the company for about 5 years, making her job more demanding. Job analysis In order to understand what job analysis is, we need to understand what a job is. It is a task, or collection of tasks that are to be performed daily (Jha, n.d.). So, with this knowledge, we can come up with a definition of job analysis. Three definitions are given. Job analysis can be described as the procedure of studying and collecting information that is related to processes and responsibilities of a given job. The end products of this analysis are ‘job descriptions’ and ‘job specifications’ (Jha, n.d.). It can also be described as a systematic exploration of events within a given job. It is a technique that is used to outline the duties and responsibilities of the job (Jha, n.d.). The last definition as Jha (n.d.) puts it, is the process of identifying a job’s ability requirements that are associated with it. Job analysis is very important to the organization. If done to the optimum, it can ensure productivity and an increase in turnover for the company (Huselid, 1995). According to a research by Nyasha (2013), there are several reasons as to why job analysis is important to the Human Resource branch of an organization. They are namely: 1. Performance appraisal The human resource manager is able to rate the behavior of the employee, in this case, the accountant. The manager can be able to tell if Ms. Izel is doing her work in accordance with the objectives of the company. Is she ethical in her work, for example? The manager can also appraise the outcomes of the behaviors noted above (Dwyer, 2015). 2. Safety and health This is what we call a job safety analysis. It helps in the integration of safety and health factors into a specific job. The analysis can help identify safety hazards that otherwise could not have been seen. Those participating will have increased job knowledge and communication between the workers and their managers is improved (Ccohs.ca, 2015). For example, if Ms. Izel feels that the environment in which she is working is not safe, then she can raise this to the manager. Accountants generally do not have obvious safety hazards, except maybe when their environment is threatened; for example, a leaking roof can raise a concern and may hinder the progress of the accountant during rainy times. 3. Legal consideration Job analysis ensures that the legal background of employees is verified. An organization can do this when recruiting new members. They can scrutinize them before employment and know for sure that they comply with the state laws. For example, Ms. Izel may have had ethical issues, involving fraud. Without job analysis during her recruitment, no one would know this. 4. Job analysis can make use of selection tools that measure the critical qualities of the job accurately. The manager can then make employment decisions with confidence. These selection techniques can be used to identify the most qualified candidate for a job in the company. The techniques capture the rudiments of the job that actually discriminate the best performers from marginal ones (Calhr.ca.gov, 2015). 5. Management decisions can be made quite easily using job analysis. Some of them are: In recruitment, the material used will intensify job relatedness and will give an accurate outline of the responsibilities Knowing which elements are required at the time of employment will separate qualified and non-qualified entries. The most crucial qualities of the job can be measured (Calhr.ca.gov, 2015). Data Collection There are five techniques that can be used to collect data used in job analysis. They are namely: Observation Interviews Use of questionnaires Diaries or logs Important incident reports In my job analysis, two methods were used, the observation method and the interview method. The two methods are going to be discussed, how they were used in the analysis and the highlighting of their pros and cons and which ones affected the analysis of the accounting job directly. 1. Observation method This method can be used independently or with other methods as a combination. The three methods of analysis that are based on observation are: direct observation, work method analysis that includes time and movement study and micro-motion analysis, and the critical incident method. The same method is employed, but they differ in who is doing the observation, what is being observed and how it is being observed (Antariksa, 2015). The direct observation method usually involves the manager observing the employee directly as he or she is doing her job. They are recording the observations they make as they are observing (Antariksa, 2015). This can be done by note taking or using a pre-prepared form that has categories, structured for comment. The observation entails the accomplishments of the employee, the equipment he or she uses, the description of the work environment and other issues that relate to the job. This method has some natural limitations. They cannot outline the mental part of the job, parts like decision making, planning. The reason for this is that mental processes cannot be observed. Secondly, observation methods don’t actually provide enough information on personal requirements for some jobs because this type of information is not easily observable. Job specifications cannot be adequately based since observation methods provide little information (Antariksa, 2015). The work methods analysis is a more complex version of the observation method. It is used to describe manual and recurring production jobs, like factory and assembling jobs. This method is mostly used by engineers to determine the normal rates of production, which are used to set rates for pay. As said above, the two types of work method analysis are: time and movement analysis and micro-motion analysis. Time analysis involves the manager observing a worker, recording the activities they do while using a stopwatch to take note of the time used. Micro-motion analysis uses a camera that records an employee’s activities. The films can then be analyzed where acceptable techniques of performing tasks are brought into the light. This data can be very useful in the development of training programs(Antariksa, 2015). This method was used in collecting information about the procedures an accountant takes when auditing, for example. The method was not very useful since it is limiting. Accountants cannot be only observed in order to collect data. Advantages of the observation method With the above method, the job analyst can get first hand information about the job analyzed. The method is simple to use, straightforward. The method is used to authenticate information from other sources. It is beneficial for manual and psychomotor activities (Www1.umn.edu, 2013). The method allows the job analyst to see the environment, the equipment used and how complex the job is. Disadvantages of the observation method The method is basically time consuming, as it entails the manager sitting around taking records as the employee does his or her work. The method may also influence the performance of the employee. The worker may change their normal work behavior seeing that his or her boss is seated next to them taking notes on whatever is being done. Observation can only happen to a small sample size. You cannot observe very many people at the same time. An observer should also be skilled. It is a job that requires concentration and experience. Dependability on the information observed may prove to be a problem. Lastly, as earlier mentioned, this method of analysis may not be very useful for jobs that are mostly composed of mental tasks. Thus, observing an accountant, using this method, may not yield plausible and significant results. Accountants tend to use software on computers that require concentration and mental ability, two things that cannot be easily observed. 2. Interview method According to Antariksa (2015), interviews involve dialog between analysts, or the interviewers in this case, and employees. Interviews that are one-to-one are normally called individual interviews while those conducted with groups of two or more people are simply called group interviews. Data from these interviews are normally supplemented by data from the employees’, whose jobs are being analyzed, supervisors. The conducting of interviews can be done with a small board of experts, being supervisors or employees who have worked for the organization for a long time and are familiar with the job at hand. This particular type of interview is called a technical conference. The result of a technical conference is a job description that shows an agreement of the experts’ train of thought. Interviews can either be structured, where each point of discussion is outlined or unstructured, with areas of discussion not specified. A structured interview would be better. The format ensures that all the elements of the job will be undertaken during the interview. Using the structured interview helps in the collection of data about all people that is comparable. This makes information classification simpler. This technique is mostly used in combination with the observation technique (Antariksa, 2015). The interview conducted in this particular accounting job case was an individual interview. The interview was structured. Research had been done before the interview and the ways outlined for a successful interview were: Conducting a simple research on the accounting job. This will make the interview more specific and more relevant to the job. The questions that the accountant will be asked should be prepared in advance. This method will ensure that irrelevant questions are omitted. Flexibility. If the analyst asks a pre-developed query, for example, the candidate might not provide enough information. A follow up should be the next step. One should not just jump to the next question. The interview should neither be too short nor too long. A good interview will contain about 4 to 6 questions and cover 30 minutes (Brooks, 2013). Focus should be on the interview during the interview. Candidates should be allowed to ask questions after the interview, not during the interview. A good method would be to use more than one interviewer. It increases the reliability of the process. This was not done in this accounting case. There was a shortage of personnel. Notes should be taken so as to ensure the process is specific. The following questions were covered in the interview, as per research done (Job Analysis, n.d.). a. What does the accounting job entail? What tasks are performed on a daily basis? b. How are these activities conducted? What are the physical, observational and mental activities that are related to accounting (Job Analysis, n.d.)? c. What is the purpose of accounting? What is the end result? d. Who does an accountant come into contact with when performing the job? What is the reason for this contact? What are the activities that are done during this contact? How long does this contact last and how often is it? e. What tools or equipment does an accountant use? What is their purpose? f. What knowledge, skills and abilities are required for the accounting job? g. Are there policies and procedures that an accountant is supposed to follow? Are there guidelines in this line of work? h. What technique does the supervisor use to assign your work? How does the supervisor review the work done? i. Where do the issues you work on come from? What happens to them after you finish? j. Does your job apply to the organization only or does it entail other clients? Advantages and Disadvantages of the Interview Method The method is the most used for identifying a job’s tasks and responsibilities (Job Analysis, n.d.). Its main advantage is that it is simple to use. It also is quick in the collection of information, including one that has never appeared in any written form. An interviewer with skills can actually reveal important activities that appear only on occasions or casual contacts that wouldn’t be apparent from the organization chart. The interview provides a chance to explain the necessity for and purposes of job analysis. The employee can also vent his or her disappointment that might not be noticed by management. Distortion of data is the major problem here and the reasons are either due to falsification or just simple misunderstanding. Job analysis is normally done when management wants to change a pay rate. The employees may view this as an evaluation that may have an effect on their pay. So some may exaggerate duties (Job Analysis, n.d.). The interview method used on the accounting job was effective as it ran alongside the observation method. This gave out information on the job description and specifications. References (2015) (1st ed.). CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES. Retrieved from https://www.calhr.ca.gov/Documents/tvc-job-analysis-manual.pdf Antariksa, Y. (2015). Best website on HRM - Excellent HR Tools and HR Presentation Slides - HR ppt - Human Resource Management. Explorehr.org. Retrieved 13 March 2015, from http://www.explorehr.org/articles/HR_Planning/Job_Analysis.html Brooks, C. (2013). 7 Tips For Conducting an Effective Job Interview. BusinessNewsDaily.com. Retrieved 13 March 2015, from http://www.businessnewsdaily.com/5212-job-interviews-techniques.html Ccohs.ca,. (2015). Job Safety Analysis : OSH Answers. Retrieved 13 March 2015, from http://www.ccohs.ca/oshanswers/hsprograms/job-haz.html Dwyer, D. (2015). Job Analysis-Based Performance Appraisal. Presentation, Society for Human Resource Management. Hr.wa.gov,. (2015). Frequently Asked Questions. Retrieved 13 March 2015, from http://hr.wa.gov/recruitment/AssessmentandSelection/Pages/FrequentlyAskedQuestions.aspx HUSELID, M. (1995). THE IMPACT OF HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PRACTICES ON TURNOVER, PRODUCTIVITY, AND CORPORATE FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE. Academy Of Management Journal, 38(3), 635-672. doi:10.2307/256741 Jha, R. Human Resource Management (1st ed.). Retrieved from http://www.elitepdf.com Job Analysis (1st ed.). Redmond. Retrieved from http://www.erieri.com/pdf/job_analysis_PartI_whitepaper.pdf Nyasha, M. (2013). Importance of Establishing a Job Analysis Exercise in an Organisation:. Australian Journal Of Business And Management Research, 2(11), 35-42. Www1.umn.edu,. (2013). Advantages and Disadvantages of Job Analysis Methods. Retrieved 13 March 2015, from http://www1.umn.edu/ohr/pay/classification/jobanalysis/advantages/ Read More