Guide to Managing Human Resources
Chapter 3: Classification
- Summary
- Guiding Principles
- How the System Works
- Compensation Unit Resources
- Other Resources
- Job Vacancy Listing Checklist
- Reclassification Request Checklist
Summary
Organizations are rarely stable. The work
changes, either through comprehensive changes in mission, scope,
or responsibilities or by evolution. In either case, the assignment
of duties and responsibilities to a position should be planned.
If new or revised duties and responsibilities are needed, the manager
should determine whether to assign
these to newly created positions or add them to existing positions.
If the answer is new positions, the manager should evaluate the possible impact on the classification of existing ones. If the new duties have the potential to increase the level or grade of a position, it is often most fair to create a new position so that current employees can compete for it.
Guiding
Principles
A complete, concise, and accurate job description
will help classify each position and will serve as the basis for
recruiting, training, and evaluating employees and as a guide for
developing performance standards.
Organization and Position Design
Position
Design
A department may wish to create and then recruit for a vacant non-
bargaining-unit and non-MSP (Management and Senior Professional) position at more than one level and fill it at the
level that best fits its business needs. The range of jobs advertised
in this way is called a "career ladder." Most typically,
a career ladder consists of a more junior level position and a more
experienced level. These levels always differ in the qualifications
required, and often by the level of independence and/or complexity
of assignments.
Career Ladder Definition:
- A vacant non-bargaining-unit and non-MSP (Management and Senior Professional) position is advertised at more than one level, to be filled at the level that best fits the department's business needs.
- A job description has been written for each level advertised.
- Applicants are informed that the job has promotion potential to the highest level advertised.
- The range of jobs advertised is called a Career Ladder.
- The Compensation Unit must initially classify the position at all levels before it can be advertised.
For more information see the Chapter 1: Employment.
Changes in duties and responsibilities can occur with a departmental reorganization or the assignment of new duties to an existing position. For these reasons, the Compensation Unit continues to review jobs that have changed significantly. For assistance, one should contact the Compensation Consultant assigned to the department.
The
Job Description
The purposes of a job description are:
- To communicate duties and responsibilities of a position to the employee
- To articulate the essential job duties for Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) purposes
- To determine the proper classification or grade level for a position
- To describe skills, knowledge, and abilities (KSAs) for recruitment
- To develop hiring specifications
- To design and restructure jobs
- To provide effective employee training and development
- To serve as a basis for performance expectations
The Job Description can take many forms; the recommended form is the Job Description Template, which presents the key information for the purposes listed above. The Job Description Template may be used for all positions on campus, including Management and Senior Profesional (MSP) and information technology (IT) positions. The one exception is for professional support positions in research laboratories, which may continue to be described on the Staff Research Associate questionnaire.
Who
Prepares a Job Description?
The classification process begins when you submit a new or substantially
revised job description with supporting information to the Compensation
Unit. Your Compensation Consultant
is available to discuss questions you may have before writing the
description.
The immediate supervisor or the employee can complete athe job description, depending on which person is more familiar with the position. If the incumbent is new to the job or the position is new, you may wish to complete the job description. If the employee completes it, you should validate it, because you are the person with authority to determine the actual duties and responsibilities of the position. After you review and sign the job description, the department head or designated business officer/administrator reviews and signs it.
Some departments, colleges, or control units have personnel managers who review the job description, compare it to positions within the department, school, or college, and provide guidance on reclassification requests; they may also have delegated authority to classify positions.
Completing
the Job Description Template
A well-written job description should be easily understood by
anyone who reads it - not only by those familiar with the position.
Some technical abbreviations, language, or documentation unique
to the unit may be quite understandable when used within the unit,
but might require further explanation for classification. When writing
a job description, always be clear, concise, and complete.
A results-oriented description explains why functions are performed and allows you to more effectively manage the objectives of the position; it also helps the Compensation Consultant evaluate the position more quickly and effectively. Remember to develop the following in the job description:
- Organization Summary: A brief description of your unit so those reviewing the position know the context within which it operates.
- Purpose of the Position: A brief description of the overall purpose of the position, telling why it exists.
- Classification Factors:
- Independence/Supervision Received: Check the box that best describes the kind of supervision given to the position and expand upon how the position is supervised as necessary. Tell from whom and in what form the assignments are received, and what kinds of instruction and directions are given. For example, what work is performed independently and what work is routed to you for review?
- Scope and Impact: Describe the organizational scope of the position. What part of the campus is affected by the position’s work—department? College? Control unit? What is the primary constituency? What are the consequences of the position’s actions on the group?
- Problem-solving and Decision-making: Describe the kinds of problems to be resolved and the planning that is required of the position. Identify the authority and/or responsibility to make decisions, develop and revise procedures, make official commitments, etc. Indicate to whom recommendations are made and for whom analyses are performed and reports are prepared.
- Major Functions: Identify the major functions and duties (those that require at least 10% of time over a specific time period such as annually, monthly, weekly). Use specific action verbs to describe duties; for example, "open, post and distribute mail," not "handle mail." Avoid vague terms like "assist in", "arrange for", or "administer," which do not describe job duties.
- Indicate essential duties: Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), functions considered essential should be shown with an asterisk (*). A job function is considered essential if:
- Performance of the function is the reason for the job existing.
- A limited number of employees are capable of performing the function.
- The function is highly specialized, requiring unique expertise or abilities.
- Supervision Exercised: If supervisory responsibilities are assigned, explain the employee's role; for example: interview and select employees; train; plan, schedule, and assign work; evaluate performance; and take disciplinary action. Be precise and specific in identifying all supervisory tasks.
- Knowledge, Skills, Abilities, and Other Requirements: Describe the kind of knowledge required (of University procedures, policies or of a professional field, or other specialized body of knowledge), the specialized skills and abilities as well as other requirements such as licenses, certifications.
- Addendum: Information Technology Positions: Complete the Addendum for IT Positions for Programmer/Analyst, Computing Resource Manager and other information technology (IT) titles. Describe the key required technical knowledge and skills and the technical environment of the position.
- Signatures: The job description should be signed by the employee, supervisor and manager and a copy kept in the departmental files. The signatures certify to the accuracy of the assigned duties and responsibilities. If a supervisor wishes to note any exceptions to the job description, they should be appended to the description with a copy to the employee. This page should be the last place of the job description.
Note: See the section on the Physical, Environmental, and Mental Demands (PEM) Form in this chapter for more details.
Questions
to Ask Yourself
After you have completed the job description template,
review it and ask yourself these questions:
- Is it logically organized to describe all the duties and responsibilities?
- Does it avoid using vague terms? Is it clear and current?
- Is it specific in explaining what is done and why? Are good examples used to illustrate complex and abstract issues?
- Is it concise? Are major duties addressed, rather than giving a detailed list of tasks?
- Does it include only material describing the position? Are personal references to the incumbent avoided?
- Are essential duties (as determined by the ADA) indicated with asterisks?
- Does the description provide a valuable introduction for a new employee in the position?
Completing
the Classification Request Form
The supervisor should attach the completed Job Description
Template to the Classification Request Form and address the following:
- Significant changes to the position since last review: Identify specific areas of change. This section is extremely valuable for the Compensation Consultant's review. The more information you provide on relevant changes, the more easily the Compensation Consultant can make an informed decision. If you have a copy of the duties previously performed, attach it to the description.
- Recommendations: Your reasons for recommending a reclassification and/or title change should be noted in the cover letter.
Preparing
an Organization Chart
Submit a current
organization chart with each classification/reclassification request.
A formal printed organization chart is not required, but it should
be sufficiently detailed to reflect departmental structure and the
position's relationship in the current organization.
Physical,
Environmental, and Mental Demands Form (PEM)
This form helps a department determine the demands of a position
and recognize any accommodations that may be necessary under the
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). A copy of the PEM form should
be attached to the Job Description in the employee's personnel file.
For Requisitions, document any outstanding PEMs or any PEMs unusual for the classification. The PEM forms are available from Campus Supply, in Human Resources and on-line at http://hrweb.berkeley.edu/forms/pem.pdf.
The Classification/Reclassification Process
Reasons
for Classification Review
When developing your reasons for the classification review, ask
yourself whether the duties and level of responsibility have changed
significantly.
Normally, descriptions are not submitted for review unless they have changed substantially and significantly since the last review. If you are uncertain, you can discuss the changes with your Compensation Consultant. You may also want to review the job specifications available by request and on the web at http://hrweb.berkeley.edu/hrpay.htm.
Note: See Job Evaluation section below for an explanation of job specifications.
Sometimes a reclassification request is motivated by the desire to reward a top performer. When an employee exceeds performance standards, you may feel pressure to show appreciation through reclassification. Such efforts are more appropriately recognized through the merit program. In special circumstances, an equity increase might be appropriate.
Note: See the Compensation chapter for an explanation of merit and equity increases.
It is extremely important to request a job review only when appropriate and to thoroughly prepare your request, including determining whether budget dollars are available to fund a salary increase resulting from the reclassification, if approved. Ill-conceived reclassification requests that are denied can be de-motivating and can become a source of conflict when the employee feels that the supervisor did not fully support the reclassification request.
A reclassification is normally effective on the first of the month following receipt of the request in Human Resources (for example, a reclassification request received in June, if approved, would take effect on July 1).
Job
Evaluation
When reviewing a position for classification, the Compensation Consultant
carefully studies the job description and other related materials
such as the organization charts submitted for review. Such documents
highlight important information related to changes in the position.
The Consultant considers how a position has changed (additional duties, supervision exercised and received, and other critical components of the position) and compares the position to the published classification standards for the job series and to similar positions at Berkeley.
In some cases, the Consultant will consult with campus experts in the field to obtain their perspective and assessment of the position. Decisions regarding the classification of positions in the MSP program are made by the Vice Chancellors.
A job series or job family is a group of jobs with similar functions that require similar specialized knowledge and skills. Examples of job series include the clerical/administrative series, student affairs officer series, and the programmer analyst series.
The job classification guidelines identify the different levels of work within a series. Some job classification guidelines have been developed specifically for the Berkeley campus, while others are used across the entire UC system. For example, within the clerical/administrative series, three levels of (_) Assistant (I, II, and III) are identified and defined. Employees can review the specifications in the Office of Human Resources or on the Human Resources website at http:hrweb.berkeley.edu/hrpay.htm.
Compensation Consultants consider these important factors when classifying a position:
- Nature or type of work performed
- Level of responsibility
- Impact of position on the unit, department, or campus
- Reporting relationships
- Scope of duties
- Complexity of work
- Creativity/innovation
- Supervision received
- Supervision exercised
- Knowledge and skills required to perform the duties
Other factors cannot be considered in classifying a position:
- Performance of the incumbent
- Longevity of the incumbent in position
- Qualifications of the incumbent that are not required by the position
- Personality
- Financial needs
Based on the review and comparisons, the Compensation Consultant determines the appropriate title. The Consultant may call you during the course of the review to discuss the findings. You will receive written confirmation of the decision, usually through email.
Appeals
and Reviews
Check the relevant
personnel policy or contract for guidelines on formally appealing
or reviewing a classification decision.
- Consulting with departments on reorganizations and position design, including determining more appropriate and cost effective structuring of jobs to meet unit needs.
- Consulting on salary setting and salary increase criteria.
- Designing and implementing effective classification methodologies for the campus.
- Classifying and reclassifying positions in the various personnel programs.
- Providing information on how to write job descriptions.
- Consulting on how changes in duties may affect a job.
- Providing campus liaison with the Office of the President on major classification and compensation issues.
- Classification Standards/Concepts available in Human Resources and on the web at http://hrweb.berkeley.edu/hrpay.htm
- Clerical/Administrative Matrix, Programmer/Analyst Matrix, and Student Affairs Officer Matrix, available on the web http://hrweb.berkeley.edu/hrpay.htm
- How to Write a Job Description - class presented by the Classification/Compensation Unit and coordinated through the Employee Relations Unit in Human Resources; to enroll, use the on-line enrollment system at http://hrweb.berkeley.edu/ice/home/.
- How to Write a Job Description and Request a Classification Review (available in each campus department or from the Office of Human Resources). The job description template, with instructions, is on the web at http://hrweb.berkeley.edu/forms/jobdesctemplate.doc.