Chapter 29 the Practice of reward Management 373 The basic methodology is to break down jobs into factors. These are the elements in a job such as the level of responsibility, knowledge and skill or decision making that represent the demands made by the job on job holders. For job evaluation purposes it is assumed that each of the factors will contribute to the value of the job and is an aspect of all the jobs to be evaluated, but to different degrees. Each factor is divided into a hierarchy of levels, typically five or six. Definitions of these levels are produced to provide guidance on deciding the degree to which the factor applies in the job to be evaluated. A maximum points score is allocated to each factor. The scores available may vary between different factors in accordance with beliefs about their rela- tive significance. This is termed `explicit weighting'. If the number of levels varies between factors this means that they are implicitly weighted because the range of scores available will be greater in the factors with more levels. The total score for a factor is divided between the levels to produce the numerical factor scale. The complete scheme consists of the factor and level definitions and the scoring system (the total score available for each factor and distributed to the factor levels). This comprises the `factor plan'. Jobs are `scored' (ie allocated points) under each factor heading on the basis of the level of the factor in the job. This is done by comparing the features of the job with regard to that factor with the factor level definitions to find out which definition pro- vides the best fit. The separate factor scores are then added together to give a total score, which indicates the relative value of each job and can be used to place the jobs in rank order or allocate them into grades in a graded pay structure that have been defined in terms of job evaluation points. of a sufficiently large sample of benchmark jobs, ie representative jobs that provide a valid basis for comparisons. This can happen in big organizations when it is believed that it is not necessary to go through the whole process of point-factor evalu- ation for every job, especially where `generic' roles are concerned. It takes much less time than using a point-factor scheme and the results can be just as accurate. A toolkit for designing an analytical job evalu- ation scheme is provided in Chapter 68. Non-analytical job evaluation Non-analytical job evaluation schemes enable whole jobs to be compared in order to place them in a grade or a rank order ­ they are not analysed by reference to their elements or factors. They can operate on a job to job basis in which a job is compared with another job to decide whether it should be valued more, less, or the same (ranking and `internal benchmarking' processes). Alternatively, they may function on a job to grade basis in which judgements are made by comparing a whole job with a defined hierarchy of job grades (job classifi- cation) ­ this involves matching a job description to a grade description. Non-analytical schemes are simple to introduce and operate but provide no defined standards of judgement. Differences between jobs are not measured and they do not provide a defence in an equal pay case. base pay management The management of base pay uses the information from market pricing and job evaluation to design and operate grade and pay structures that cater for job-based pay and allow scope for pay to progress within the structure through person-based pay. Analytical job matching Like point-factor job evaluation, analytical job match- ing is based on the analysis of a number of defined factors. Profiles of roles to be evaluated that have been analysed and described in terms of job evaluation factors are compared with grade, band or level pro- files that have been analysed and described in terms of the same job evaluation factors. The role profiles are then `matched' with the range of grade or level pro- files to establish the best fit and thus grade the job. Analytical matching can be used to grade jobs or place them in levels following the initial evaluation Grade and pay structures Grade and pay structures provide the framework for base pay management as a means of implement- ing an organization's pay policies. They enable the organization to determine where jobs should be placed in a hierarchy, define pay levels and the scope for pay progression, and provide the basis upon