Information Technology Project Lead at Telstra Corporation Limited - Case Study Example

JOB ANALYSIS REPORT COMPANY: TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED (TLS) POSITION: PROJECT LEAD EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The aim of this job analysis report is to outline 3 most appropriate job analysis techniques that can be applied in the case scenario of Information Technology Project Lead at Telstra Corporation Limited (TLS). The report is divided into 6 sections. These include introduction; analysis plan; analysis tools; reporting of the findings; conclusion and recommendations. The introduction bit covers preliminary information such as job position, the organisation, fit of the job position into the overall organisational scope and the purpose of the report which is to identify appropriate analysis techniques for developing of job description for IT Project Lead. In recommendations, the HR department should engage in wider consultation and treatment of the process an iterative one. CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY i CONTENTS ii 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1 1.1 Job Title 1 1.2 Organisation 1 1.3 Fit of the Job Position into the Larger Organisational Scope 1 1.4 Purpose of the Report 1 2.0 ANALYSIS PLAN 2 3.0 ANALYSIS TOOLS 3 4.0 REPORTING FINDINGS 5 5.0 CONCLUSION 6 6.0 RECCOMMENDATIONS 6 REFERENCES 8 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Job Title Information Technology Project Lead 1.2 Organisation Telstra Corporation Limited (TLS) is a leading multinational telecommunication enterprise based in Australia with over 100 years of experience, ranked in the top ten listed Australian organisations and a place in the Global Fortune 500. Moreover, the firm has in excess of 38, 000 employees globally meaning it has a diverse mix of individuals with array of skills (Telstra, 2014a). Substantively, it implies that to run such organisation with huge magnitude to successful heights, job analysis constitute significant roles of human resource management. 1.3 Fit of the Job Position into the Larger Organisational Scope To ensure value creation and market leadership, the firm offers services such as “fixed broadband, mobile, data and IP, network application & services (NAS), digital media and international” (Telstra, 2014b). This calls for an individual in collaboration with subordinate team who can aid in realisation of business development process for customer oriented value creation and market leadership within specified resource, time and expected quality so as to meet expectations of diverse stakeholders. Indeed, this is where information technology project lead fits in since projects are strategic engagements for attaining organisational goals and competitiveness (PMI, 2000, p.17). 1.4 Purpose of the Report The ultimate focus of this report is to critically outline 3 appropriate job analysis techniques that can be used to explicitly develop a job description for an Information Technology Project Lead. In this regard the report assesses and presents the most plausible option among the numerous techniques within the context of the job, organisational goals and position fit within the larger organisation as described in subsection 1.1, 1.2 & 1.3. 2.0 ANALYSIS PLAN This section outlines the steps that the report follows in conducting job analysis using various analysis techniques. IT Project Lead is not a new position in various organisations. However, Telstra has no known IT Project Lead who can coordinate various IT innovation projects instead they rely on the internal control mechanism and other managers, especially those in business development and research and development to be project lead thereby denying them opportunity to focus on their domains. The techniques to be utilized to take cognizance of the complex nature of the organization, time required to effectively employ the techniques, effectiveness in collecting required data and ease of use by the targeted respondents. The plan utilised in the report follows the framework developed by Marriott, Davies & Gibson (2009, p.4); Swansburg (1996, p. 277) albeit with modification and domestication. In the first instance, organizational problem/ opportunity that necessitate the need for a new job position is outlined. This is followed by determination of objective (s) to be solved by the new position. Third is to establish the requirements for this position and specifications for the required individuals in terms of skills, training and experiences. Additionally, the later lead to establishment of data requirements, probable sources for the data and appropriate tools to be utilised in collecting the data. Finally, through comparative qualitative approaches and longitudinal approaches, the requirements for the position are established. Focal area under consideration as result of interacting with IT project lead and secondary literatures so as to gain prior information points towards establishment of requirements for the job title and the requisite skills probable job holder should have attained. For a successful job analysis, the techniques should adequately inform decision makers about job requirements such as skills required in the job description and specifications of the appropriate individuals (Befort & Hattrup, 2003, p.18). Thus, under these two critical areas the analysis techniques should help uncover task performances which are core to the job and contextual performances which are necessary in navigating social world at the work place (Jawahar & Carr, 2007, p.330; Hosie & Sevastos, 2009, p.136; Bandura & Lyons, 2012, p.95). Additionally, the techniques should highlight possible appraisal approaches since this is requisite in performance management (Kennerley & Neely, 2003, p.213). The analysis plan in establishing what the requirements by analysis techniques will follow the following order. The first is to capture data what IT project lead entails and what they do/ roles. As such issues such as planning, organising stakeholders meeting, managing expectations, ensuring diligent resource utilisation, communication, supervision and liaison with other department should be captured by the analysis tools. The second how they do these said functions. 3.0 ANALYSIS TOOLS This section details proposed tools that are to be employed in conducting job analysis for the position of IT Project Lead in Telstra Company. They are organized not in order or importance, but in order of gaining systematic flow of information right from the preliminary data gained from prior existing information, personal logs and in-depth interview where detailed probing is conducted. 3.1 Prior Existing Information This entails looking at the past on earlier job’s specifications to ensure continuity and consistency. This engagement seeks to profile information from the existing secondary material on the functions, qualifications, skills and contribution of project leads to value creation and market leadership of an organisation. For instance, the review should look for themes as advertised such as the expected role and responsibilities of the title holder and minimum entry requirements. Secondly, it offers integral bases for informing HR department whether they should proceed with the whole process/ job title, abolish it or re-design it based on the information derived from it since it depicts what IT project lead does and their contribution. If found that their positions are not in tandem with organisational aspirations then a review is important and that is why the report proposes it as the initial integral avenue of job analysis. Important sources include publications by professional organisation for project managers, O’Net and ASCO online. 3.2 Personal Log/ Diary The information acquired from this platform is integral in affirming the preliminary knowledge on the daily task performances so to inform the HR department on an average day what IT project lead does. The diary/ the log should be presented in a raw form so that the analysts can draw as much information as possible out of it. For instance, if a diary for the whole year from three project leads in another organisation can be accessed, this is integral in building a vivid picture on the averages of engagements what they do and how they do it such as how often, say in a week do they meet stakeholders, how often do they conduct appraisal, how often do they review meeting of deliverables and so on. 3.3 Interviews This is a tool that should be used to seek elaboration, cross check and substantiate fact from first hand sources. This tool should be used to access data from subject matter experts such as the incumbent job holders, immediate supervisors and professional associations on what the prospective in this profession do and how they do it. Moreover, in a collaborative manner, especially if addressed to the supervisors and professional bodies, the tool yields important information on knowledge, skills, abilities (personal specifications) and the appropriate individuals in terms of qualifications and experiences who should hold the said position. The beauty of the tool is not only limited to these, but also to the fact that it can be modified for expert group discussion where points that could have not been deliberated at individual levels are exposed. Indeed, the same tool can be used to solicit for new ideas in the profession and other challenges that newly recruited individuals should be to address. This is equally the integral tool for developing interview criteria and weighting point for the interviewees since respondents can precisely tell the researching panel about the most critical skills as compared to the others in searching for the suitable candidate. For instance, the respondents can propose how to value employee skills within the set parameters and how the same can aligned in relation to performance management. 4.0 REPORTING FINDINGS The reporting format should be addressed in a two pronged approach. The first is the roles/ task performance of IT project lead manager. The second should address the requisite expectations/ qualifications, skills and responsibilities that prospective employee should have. To arrive at such kind of list, all the information derived from the three techniques should be listed in a tabular manner by letting them fall within the two domains as appropriate as possible. This is to be conducted by team of HR experts and individuals with a professional background in the said job position. The next encounter is to rank them in terms of frequencies and felt weight. This will allow for establishment of the list to be advertised and the workload of the position and so reward formulation. Therefore, all data collected can be presented in a qualitative manner through frequency table; means/ averages, percentages represented as graphs or pie charts; mode and median. 5.0 CONCLUSION The aim of the report was to outline the analysis techniques to be used in establishing the job requirements for IT project lead in Telstra Company. The report identifies three important techniques that are integral in determining job requirements specific for this scenario. The three tools are critical in identifying what and how. This then informs formulation of roles, responsibilities and weighting criteria during interview. The three techniques identified in order of creating systematic information are review of secondary materials, diary analysis and interview. 6.0 RECCOMMENDATIONS Since this is the first engagement in relation to the said position in Telstra, HR department and business development department should conduct extensive consultation so as to avoid unnecessary pitfalls. Secondly, the process should be iterative and not a unidirectional process. It is requisite to engage professionals in the discipline especially those from ICT and project management especially those in practice and with current dynamics. REFERENCES Bandura, R. P. & Lyons, P. R. (2012). Helping managers stimulate employee voluntary, helpful behaviour. Industrial and Commercial Training, 44(2), 94-102. Befort, N., & Hattrup, K. (2003). Valuing task and contextual performance: experience, job roles, and ratings of the importance of job behaviours. Applied HRM Research, 8(1), 17- 32. Hosie, P. J. & Sevastos, P. (2009). Does the “happy-productive worker” thesis apply to managers? International Journal of Workplace, 2(2), 131-160. Jawahar, I. M. & Carr, D. (2007). Conscientiousness and contextual performance: the compensatory effects of perceived organisational support and leader-member exchange. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 22(4), 330-349. Kennerley, M. & Neely, A. (2003). Measuring performance in a changing business environment. International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 23 (2), 213-229. Marriott, J., Davies, N., & Gibson, L. (2009). Teaching, learning and assessing statistical problem solving. Journal of Statistics Education, 17(1), 1-3. PMI (2000). A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute. Telstra (2014a). Career Paths. Retrieved on 19 February 2014 from: http://careers.telstra.com/Career-Paths. Telstra (2014b). Business & Enterprises. Retrieved on 19 February 2014 from: http://www.telstra.com.au/business-enterprise/. Read More