Job Depth, Range and Relationships

Job performance is defined as “a set of employee work- related behaviors designed to accomplish organizational goals” (Ivancevich, Konopaske, & Matteson 2014). When considering the different variables that tie into job performance, it is important to remember that an employee’s skills, personality, and motivation have a huge impact on the climate and productivity of the company. It is sometimes necessary for an employer to return to the drawing board to create policies and practices to fit the job design, “the process of specifying the tasks, duties, and responsibilities of a job (Ivancevich, Konopaske, & Matteson 142) and the quality of life work life needs of their employees.

The quality of work life management philosophy is the “management philosophy and practice that enhances employee dignity, introduces cultural change, and provides opportunities for growth and development” (Ivancevich, Konopaske, & Matteson 143). Job range and job depth are characteristics of job design.

As an employee of the Jackson Public School system, the job design is always outlined upon signing your employment contract. The responsibilities and duties of the job are explained in great detail. But once you get into the meat of your role, things get blurred because the job design is created on a district-wide scale, not tailored to fit the needs of the individual school or subject being taught. The job range “the number of operations that a job occupant performs to complete a task” and job depth “the amount of control that an individual has to alter or influence the job and the surrounding environment” (Ivancevich, Konopaske, & Matteson 147) is more so at the description of the direct supervisor, which is the Principal. But still, there is a risk of violating policies put in place on a broad-scale because they don’t align with individual needs and facing possibly being reprimanded.

If the job design was created by or at least had input from the direct supervisors, it would make a huge difference. Being in an environment that is always changing to fit the needs of the students, it is important to be flexible. Because many schools in the Jackson Public School district are considered by the Mississippi Department of Education to be “failing” schools, there are different tasks that have to be completed inside and outside of the classroom. These tasks have an impact on job range because your workload is basically determined by student performance on standardized tests. This in turn creates an environment that is most times unpredictable, overwhelming, unfulfilling and takes away from job depth.

In order to increase employee morale, allowing more autonomy inside the classroom would go a long way. Since the instructor is the person implementing policies and standards given out from the high-level decision makers, they have a first hand look at what is actually working and what is not. They know the students learning styles and can adjust their strategies to meet the needs of the students. The needs of the students and instructors sometimes get overshadowed by policies and procedures that don’t have any favorable results. Making employees feel that their expertise is needed and contributions are valuable go a long way in increasing job depth.

Another way to increase employee morale is through the reduction of job range. It is widely known that the more tasks a person has to perform the longer it takes to complete a job. When an employee is given a set of things that need to be accomplished, they take the necessary steps to get them done. But when there are other tasks being added to that list without advance warning it creates problems with productivity. In this work environment, everything is always done with a sense of urgency that can lead to critical errors being made. These productivity issues hurt the ones who matter the most: the students.

Job depth and job range play a huge role in motivating employees. Allowing employees to play an active role in the decision-making processes and tasks that need to be completed in order to meet the outlined goals makes them feel as if they are truly apart of the team. It makes the employee feel that they matter, and that the work that they are putting in is valued. No one wants to be in an environment where they feel as if they have no voice or their efforts are not received. Implementing policies that include employee feedback through surveys or word of mouth conversations can go a long way in keeping employee morale high.  

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