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Productivity improvement can be a hard concept to grasp,
especially when you are attempting to develop a training
program that is competency-based in nature towards this very
goal. This is because it is a bit difficult to determine which
particular aspects should be implemented in the program. Aside
from that, there is also the issue of how to implement these
aspects into the program. Thus, a structured approach is very
much needed to develop such an efficient program. One such way
of dealing with this is by conducting task analysis.
What exactly is the process of task analysis all about? How
does it work? This is simple, really. The typical 8-hour job
comes with certain tasks and responsibilities that the employee
would have to carry out. By performing a systematic breakdown
of these tasks, you would then come up with the significant
elements that are needed in carrying out these tasks. With this
breakdown, it would then be easier for you to pinpoint which
areas are the strong ones for that certain employee, as well as
the areas where the employee needs significant improvement. In
performing task analysis, you would have to remember to include
a detailed description of the mental and manual activities that
would have to be undertaken to fulfill that certain task. This
way, you can see for yourself what is required of the employee
to finish that task.
Aside from providing such task descriptions, you should also
care to include task and element durations, task allocation,
task frequency, task complexity, required clothing and
equipment, environmental conditions, and other aspects that are
involved in the completion of the given task at hand. The
bottom line is, everything that encompasses the completion of
the task should be included, no matter how small or tasking
these may be.
There are actually a lot of benefits that you can enjoy when
you perform task analysis. First of all, you can then define
the instructional objectives and goals of each of the tasks.
This way, the completion of each task would be guided more
accordingly. Secondly, it is quite inevitable to find a task
having sub-tasks, which can make the whole task all the more
complicated to carry out. But when these sub-tasks are
intricately detailed out, the chances of the whole task being
successfully completed would be bettered.
Thirdly, it would be a whole lot easier for you to specify just
what type of knowledge is needed for that particular task. This
actually helps in characterizing the task at hand. Do you need
to use declarative knowledge here? Or would it be better to use
structural? How about if you go with the procedural type of
knowledge? Knowing this can be of utmost benefit to you and the
rest of the company when it comes to productivity
improvement.
Lastly, with task analysis, you will definitely understand each
position in your company better because you now know the tasks
that come with these positions. You can then prioritize these
tasks according to significance and importance, and you can
then proceed to sequencing them accordingly. This way, the work
flow of everyone in the company would be better carried out.
Productivity improvement can then be the next logical step when
all factors of such a productive environment are fostered.
Sam Miller
8 Mar. 2008
Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Sam_Miller
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