C215 - Chapter 11

Question 1

1. What is work system design?
2. What are the 3 components ?

Answer 1

1. Work system design is part of operations strategy, Organizing work so it’s efficient and worker-friendly

• It’s about planning how people, machines, and the workplace should be arranged so that the job is done safely, efficiently, and comfortably.

2. Components: job design, work measurement, and worker compensation.

Question 2

Work System Design 1 : job design

Answer 2

contents of the job, including work activities of an individual or group in support of the organization’s objectives.

Question 3

What are the three factors in designing a job?

Answer 3

1. Technical Feasibility: The job must be physically and mentally doable.
2. Economic Feasibility: The cost of the job should be less than the value it adds.
3. Behavioral Feasibility: Degree to which the job is intrinsically satisfying to the employee.

Question 4

When should a company consider using machine versus people to do a job?

Answer 4

• Use machines :precision, repetition, safety, and high volume.
• Use humans for flexibility, judgment, and variety, creative thinking, personal interactions, complex operations with multiple variables

Question 5

What 3 options can a company use for reducing worker boredom?

Answer 5

1. Job enlargement: A horizontal expansion of the job through increasing the scope of the work assigned.
2. Job enrichment: A vertical expansion of the job through increased worker responsibility.
3. Job rotation: Workers shift to different jobs to increase understanding of the total process.

Question 6

What is methods analysis?

Answer 6

analysis of process for doing a particular job.

• It’s a way to study how a job or task is done and then find a better, easier, faster, or safer way to do it.

Question 7

What are the 7 steps involved in methods analysis?

Answer 7

1. Identify the operation to be analyzed.
2. Gather all relevant information about the operation (tools, materials, and procedures)
3. Talk with employees who use the operation or have used similar operations for suggestions. They may have suggestions for improvement
4. Chart the operation (break it down in steps)
5. Evaluate each step (does it add value, costs, can it be better)
6. Revise the the operation as needed/ develop better operation
7. Put the revised or new operation into effect, and then follow up

Question 8

Work System Design 2 : Work Measurement

2 - What is Standard Time ?

Answer 8

1. Way of determining how long it should take to do a job, involves standard time.
   - figuring out the fair time a job should take
2. Time a trained worker should take to complete a task at a normal/steady pace, accounting for breaks/fatigue

• Standard time = normal work time + allowances = the fair, expected time for a job.

Question 9

Setting Standard Times 1 : Time Study

• 7 Steps

Answer 9

1. Time study: A technique for developing a standard time based on actual observations of the operator.
   • Step 1: Choose the job for the time study.
   • Step 2: Tell the worker whose job you will be studying.
   • Step 3: Break down the job into small, measurable steps.
   • Step 4: Calculate the number of cycles you must observe.
   • Step 5: Time each element, record the times, and rate the worker’s performance.
   • Step 6: Compute normal time (NT = (MOT)(PRF)(F)).
   • Step 7: Compute the standard time (ST = (NT)(AF)).

Question 10

What is performance rating factor (PRF) ?

Answer 10

A subjective estimate of a worker’s pace relative to a normal work pace.

Question 11

What is frequency of occurrence (F)?

Answer 11

How often the work element must be done each cycle.

Question 12

What is normal time (NT)?

Answer 12

time it should take a worker to do a task at a standard (normal) pace, without adding allowances

NT = observed time x performance rating

Question 13

What is allowance factor (AF)?

Answer 13

The amount of time the analyst allows for personal time, fatigue, and unavoidable delays.

Question 14

Setting Standard Times 2 : elemental time data

Answer 14

Standards based on previously completed time studies, stored in an organization’s database.

Question 15

Setting Standard Times 3: predetermined time data

Answer 15

Published database of elemental time data used for establishing standard times.

Question 16

Setting Standard Times 4 : Work Sampling

Answer 16

A technique for estimating the proportion of time a worker spends on a particular activity

• taking random observations over a period of time

In short: Work sampling = measuring how time is used through random observations.

Question 17

4 Uses of Standard Time

Answer 17

1. Costing & Efficienc
2. Tracking employee performance/ capacity
3. Planning & scheduling
4. Fairness

Question 18

Work System Design 3 : Worker Compensation

Answer 18

How employees are paid and rewarded for the work they do in a fair and motivating way.

•	Tied to work measurement → if we know the standard time for a job, we can set fair wages.

Question 19

Worker Compensation : 3 approaches

Answer 19

1. Time-Based: pay based on hours worked
2. Output-Based: pay based on units completed
3. Group Incentive Plans: reward if company achieves performance objectives
   • companies who use group incentive plans outperform companies who don’t
   • individual incentive plans lowers teamwork, increases short-term focus