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What is Job Family Modeling?

• A Foundation for Integrated Human Resources Management

Posted by: Mansour Baker

What is Job Family Modeling?

​Job family modeling is a tool that can serve as the foundation for many Human Resource processes and systems, including an approach integrating people and jobs.

​A job family describes several different roles which are engaged in similar work. A job family model considers how many levels of that type of work there are and describes them in a way which clearly differentiates the levels.

An integrated approach to talent management, rewards and performance management

• A clear and rigorous description of how work changes at each career level in an organization
• Robust management and individual contributor career paths, customized to an organization
• The foundation for performance and talent management, as well as your reward programs

At the foundation of a job family model is an effective description of levels of work.

• Identify a family of work
• Clarify what differentiates one level from the next, and how many levels there are:
  • Individual Contributor
  • Management
• Provide a description of the nature of work at each level

Exhibit 1

A Foundation for Integrated Human Resources Management

​Integrating with other HR programs

Career Paths and Career Development

The Job Family Model describes the work along logical career paths.

To provide a complete and comprehensive career development plan, the following are also required:

• Competencies and skills associated with each job family and level
• Development resources employees can use to become more prepared for career advancement.
• Assessment tools, for manager and/or employee

New Approach to Total Reward Management

Job family models can represent an important first step in the development of a new compensation structure for an organization. In this case the job family model may serve as the format to document job content in the organization. Rather than writing new job descriptions or collecting job questionnaires, the job family models are developed and jobs in the organization are mapped to the model.

The jobs then need to be priced against the marketplace to develop appropriately competitive salary ranges.

​This also provides the organization with the opportunity to customize their compensation package by job family and/or job type.

Performance Management and Promotions

Job family models provide the basis for a new or enhanced performance management process:

• The job family models contain information on the most typical performance measures for the roles.
• The competencies associated with the role profiles can be incorporated into the performance management process.
• The job family models readily lend themselves to supporting the promotion process. They identify the criteria that differentiate one level from the next and can be used as a tool to support the management decision making process on promotions.

Employee Communications

Job family model(s) can become the basis for communicating several aspects of the organization’s human resource programs to employees.

​It can explain the basis for the grade structure, describing to employees the meaning of each grade in a language they are familiar with.

​It can describe the salary structure as well, providing a meaningful description of the grades.

​It can provide them with a basis for career paths and promotions, showing the employee how the role at the next level in their job family differs from their role.

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