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The use of teams is ubiquitous in organizations, yet teams are not always effective. Much work has been conducted to understand those factors that facilitate effective team training. While much has been learned, there is no escaping the fact that team training is a complex, resource intensive endeavor. Recent advancements in the area of intelligent tutoring may provide a way forward as one method by which to reduce some of the ongoing resource requirements involved in team training. The current chapter relies on the science of team training to describe a tool, team task analysis, that should be considered in building ITSs that move beyond the training of individual tasks to those which are team-based. In that vein, an overview of team task analysis is provided, how it differs from individual task analysis, and what it may contribute to the design of ITS for teams. In doing so, we put forth five considerations that are somewhat unique as compared with traditional task analysis as well as some corresponding guidance from the literature in light of these considerations. It is our hope that this information will not only be useful to those building team-based ITSs, but spur future thought.

Universal Public Purchasing Certification Council (UPPCC) is an independent nonprofit entity formed to govern and administer the Certified Public Purchasing Officers (CPPO) and Certified Professional Public Buyers (CPPB) certification programs. Periodically, UPPCC performs a job analysis study to ensure that the certification exams are aligned with the skills, knowledge, and abilities needed for successful job performance in public procurement. This article provides a brief summary of the 2007 job analysis study.

Job analysis is the common basis for designing a training course or programme, preparing performance tests, writing position (job) descriptions, identifying performance appraisal criteria, and job restructuring. Its other applications in human resource development include career counselling and wage and salary administration. Job analysis answers the questions of what tasks, performed in what manner, make up a job. Outputs of this analytical study include: (a) a list of the job tasks; (b) details of how each task is performed; (c) statements describing the responsibility, job knowledge, mental application, and dexterity, as well as accuracy required; and (d) a list of the equipment, materials, and supplies used to perform the job. Various techniques for conducting a job analysis have been used. Each has its advantages and disadvantages. As a result, different techniques or combinations of techniques are appropriate to different situations. The combined on‐site observation and individual interview techniques are recommended for industrial, trade, craft, clerical, and technical jobs because they generate the most thorough and probably the most valid information. A job analysis schedule is used to report the job information obtained through observations and individual interviews. The schedule provides a framework of 12 items in which to arrange and describe important job analysis information. These 12 items are organised into four sections. Section one consists of items one through four. These items identify the job within the establishment in which it occurs. The second section presents item five, the work performed. It provides a thorough and complete description of the tasks of the job. The Work Performed section describes what the job incumbent does, how it is done, and why it is done. Section three presents items six through nine. These are the requirements placed on the job incumbent for successful performance. It is a detailed interpretation of the basic minimum (a) responsibility, (b) job knowledge, (c) mental application, and (d) dexterity and accuracy required of the job incumbent. The fourth section includes three items which provide background information on the job. These items are: (a) equipment, materials and supplies; (b) definitions of terms; and (c) general comments. Appendix A is a glossary of terms associated with job analysis. It is provided to facilitate more exacting communication. A job analysis schedule for a complex and a relatively simple job are included in Appendices B and C. These examples illustrate how important job analysis information is arranged and described. Appendix D provides a list of action verbs which are helpful when describing the manipulative tasks of a job.

This research investigates the study of service operations and information technology (IT) in order to observe the interaction between these two constructs. Phase I utilizes a Delphi study, involving 31 participants from 11 organizations, to provide initial specification of a service typology based on task requirements. Phase II of the research is a multiple case study that further refines the construct specifications and analyzes the dynamics of the interaction between components of the service task and IT. Results of the Delphi and case analysis suggest that differentiation within the service task construct occurs along an expertise‐based continuum that incorporates four primary task requirements. These requirements include knowledge‐base, level of standardization and two databased elements, data configuration and data interpretation. The case analyses further indicate the presence of three primary levels of task requirements – transaction processing, request fulfillment and problem resolution. Early results from the task‐IT interaction analysis suggest that the task‐IT relationship affects critical operations factors such as process innovation, IT diffusion rates, achievement of informational and operational advantage, performance measurement and elements of service quality.

This paper aims to identify the occupational profiles of a logistics and a supply chain (SC) controller, both promising SC professions, examining the required competences and tasks undertaken while taking into account current trends in supply chain management and its wider dimensions.

The study used a content analysis based on job advertisements for the position of logistics controller and SC controller. The collected material allowed the construction of an occupational competence mix model in the style of Cheetham and Chivers for the logistics and SC controller, and the identification of the level of competence of both professions, using the model proposed by Czapla. In addition, the analysis of the data was supplemented by use of the Anova test and a radar chart.

The SC and logistics controllers have a high degree of similarity in both the meta and core competences areas. Similarities also occur in the case of the analysed groups of tasks undertaken by these professions. Tasks in the areas of “definition” and “maintaining” prevail. The SC controller and the logistics controller are considered “engaged inspirers” because they have reached this level of professional competence. Both these professions can ensure an effective, sustainable and transparent SC through direct cooperation with the SC manager and/or logistics manager.

This study uses a content analysis based on job advertisements addressed to the German market. These job advertisements are standardized, and therefore, provide only a general outline of the competences and tasks of the SC and logistics controllers.

The study provides information to practitioners by identifying the competences and tasks assigned to the SC and logistics controllers that are needed to improve the efficiency and transparency of the SC and its management. The research is an incentive for people involved in education to adapt changes in curricula in the business (accounting, controlling and logistics) and engineering (related to logistics) fields of study by creating courses based on SC controlling or/and logistics controlling.

The study shows the current, necessary changes for SC professionals (e.g. the appointment of a SC controller and/or logistics controller) resulting from changes in business and the challenges for SC management (e.g. transparency and sustainability).

The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationships among time pressure (TP), task complexity (TC), and audit effectiveness (AE). It is motivated by the conflicting results reported in prior TP studies.

The research hypotheses are developed using McGrath's interactional model of the Yerkes‐Dodson Law. Data are collected using a two‐treatment field experiment involving 63 public accountants.

The results show a negative, interactional relationship among TP, TC, and AE.

The first limitation concerns the non‐random procedure used to recruit public accounting firms and auditors. Second, there is the less than perfect operationalization of the TC construct.

First, the findings suggest that public accounting firms may need to resist the urge to reduce the time allowed for performing compliance tests, and provide training to improve the detection rate for all type of compliance deviations. Second, the fact that the rate of change in AE, in response to changes in TP, is different for the two audit tasks studied, suggests that it may not be appropriate for audit planners to assume a uniform TP effect across the various tasks involved in an audit. This insight has implication for the trade‐offs between the lower direct audit costs associated with tighter time budgets, and possible increases in audit risk associated with lower AE.

Two unique aspects of this paper are the operationalization of TP as a continuous random variable and the use of z‐scores to standardize the AE measure.

The purpose of this paper is to present issues and challenges of scheduled maintenance task development within the maintenance review board (MRB) process, and to find potential areas of improvement in the application of the MSG‐3 methodology for aircraft systems.

The issues and challenges as well as potential areas of improvement have been identified through a constructive review that consists of two parts. The first part is a benchmarking between the Maintenance Steering Group (MSG‐3) methodology and other established and documented versions of reliability‐centred maintenance (RCM). This benchmarking focuses on the MSG‐3 methodology and compares it with some RCM standards to identify differences and thereby find ways to facilitate the application of MSG‐3. The second part includes a discussion about methodologies and tools that can support different steps of the MSG‐3 methodology within the framework of the MRB process.

The MSG‐3 methodology is closely related to the RCM methodology, in which the anticipated consequences of failure are considered for risk evaluation. However, MSG‐3 considers neither environmental effects of failures nor operational consequences of hidden failures. Furthermore, in MSG‐3, the operational check (failure‐finding inspection) is given priority before all other tasks, whereas in RCM it is considered as a default action, where there is no other applicable and effective option. While RCM allows cost‐effectiveness analysis for all failures that have no safety consequences, MSG‐3 just allows it for failures with economic consequences. A maintenance program that is established through the MRB process fulfils the requirements of continuous airworthiness, but there is no foundation to claim that it is the optimal or the most effective program from an operator's point‐of‐view. The major challenge when striving to achieve a more effective maintenance program within the MRB process is to acquire supporting methodologies and tools for adequate risk analysis, for optimal interval assignments, and for selection of the most effective maintenance task.

The paper presents a critical review of existing aircraft scheduled maintenance program development methodologies, and demonstrates the differences between MSG‐3 and other RCM methodologies.