Which job-design approach expands the number of tasks at the same level of responsibility to increase scope without increasing authority?

• A. Job simplification
• B. Just-in-time
• C. Functional/structural model
• D. Job enlargement

Answer: (D)

Expanding the number of tasks at the same level of responsibility to increase scope without increasing authority is job enlargement. This approach broadens a job by adding more duties that are on the same level of decision-making and reporting, so the worker’s responsibilities grow in quantity rather than in power or autonomy. By giving a technician additional tasks like scheduling simple maintenance, data entry, and basic troubleshooting while keeping the same supervisor and decision rights, the role becomes broader without granting more authority.

This differs from job simplification, which reduces tasks to make the job simpler and more routine. It also isn’t about production systems like just-in-time, which focus on inventory and flow rather than how a single job is designed. And it isn’t about a functional/structural model, which concerns how activities are organized across departments rather than how one individual job is expanded in scope.

So the best fit is enlarging the job to include more tasks at the same level of responsibility, increasing scope without adding authority.