Behavioral Science in Management, Case Study Example

Job specialization can have its advantages; this will allow the increase of efficiency in the workplace (Gellerman, 1974). This is because the confidence that someone who is skilled and fit for the job is doing the work which is required to be able to fulfill the overall organization’s goals and objectives. Having a job specialization saves the company time by allocating work to a specific individual; that worker is fixed on the certain job which he or she is fit for. There is an overall accuracy in the production of work by the individual since there is confidence that the individual had undergone the right training to suit the job at hand; every worker who has a particular job at hand will be utilizing his or her skills in their tasks (Gellerman, 1974). There will also be a reduction in costs in terms of production and productivity, this is because one person will be handling the necessary tasks in his or her field, and there is no need to repeat the same job with different people who may only know how to complete half of the task or project. However, this might create independence within the workers, and this can be seen in workers reducing to themselves and not working as a team (Gellerman, 1974). This creates a form of monopoly in the work, where the worker may see their job as repetitive and boring. This may limit the freedom of choice in an individual seeking work, and thus create unemployment.

This is the same as assembly lines seen in mass production during the earlier days when products such as automobiles were manufactured. This type of work was monotonous and seen as factory work. Job specializations were limited, and when a factory would close down, it would be difficult for workers to find jobs which specifically met their qualifications or job specializations (Gellerman, 1974). For example, if an individual was working in a factory which made dolls, and his or her specialization was gluing the arms and legs of the doll, when that factory closes, he or she will need to look for a similar factory with the same position open. Switching jobs or changing professions would be difficult given the limited experiences an individual may have; this comes as a problem in job specialization. Also, factory workers who have very specific job descriptions also have the tendency to get bored with their work as it becomes too routine and unchanging.

This can be used in a classroom setting, where an overall goal or objective is set for the students. The goal or objective for the classroom is to designate certain roles for students. These roles should match each students’ personality types, and can be as a form of a job specialization. Students must familiarize themselves with their roles and when performing certain tasks in the classroom, each student must stick to his or her own role. Students cannot take on other peoples roles, however they should know how to work together in order to achieve the overall objective of a certain project. Difficulties or problems will arise when students keep to themselves and generally do not work together if they are busy completing their own tasks. Also, students might be seen complaining when they believe that someone’s role or task is not as hard as theirs. These are common problems which may be also seen in job specializations. However this is a step towards the development of group work, where individuals play certain roles and each member is only assigned to a specific task where he or she “specializes” in. The goal of the task can be obtained if the individuals all worked together, yet only perform tasks or jobs relating to their role in the group.

References

Gellerman, S.W. (1974).Behavioral Science in Management. Harmondsworth, England: Penguin Books.