HR Test questions

The _____ of a type of measurement indicates how free that measurement is from random error.

reliability

When using an outside training expert, a complete _____ should indicate funding for the project and the process by which the organization will determine its level of satisfaction.

request for proposal

Carol is a single mother who works full-time and attends to the needs of her two young children. Carol has opted to work from home for a short period after one of her children suffered a fractured arm while playing soccer. Even though she works from home, she often feels a lot of pressure in balancing her work and looking after her children. Which of the following is being experienced by Carol?

role conflict

In most organizations, the first step in the personnel selection process is

screening the applications to see which ones meet the basic requirements for the job.

When in situations they dislike, employees with positive core self-evaluation tend to

seek change in socially acceptable ways.

The process by which an organization attempts to identify applicants with the necessary knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics that will help the organization achieve its goals is referred to as

selection

The system in which employees have online access to information about human resource issues and go online to enroll themselves in programs and provide feedback through surveys is termed

self-service

According to the Equal Pay Act of 1963, men and women performing the same job cannot have differences in pay on the basis of _____.

sex

According to your text, a number of techniques are available for measuring HRM's effectiveness in meeting its customers' needs depending on the situation. These techniques include reviewing a set of key indicators, measuring the outcomes of _____, and measuring the economic value of HRM programs.

specific HRM activity

Which of the following helps performance management meet the goals of supporting strategy and developing employees?

specific feedback

The industrial engineering approach is most likely to emphasize _____.

streamlining jobs to make them simpler and more efficient

_____ is the process of identifying and tracking high-potential employees who will be able to fill top management positions when they become vacant.

succession planning

Which of the following is the correct statement about the HR responsibilities of supervisors?

supervisors typically have responsibilities related to all the HR functions

Which of the following is defined as a systematic, planned effort to attract, retain, develop, and motivate highly skilled employees and managers?

talent management

_____ is a training method that coordinates the performance of individuals who work together to achieve a common goal.

team training

Cody works at a machine production facility assembling small parts in a specialized division. In addition to his regular job duties, Cody works in tandem with his other coworkers to schedule work, select new team members, and carry out multiple assembly tasks. This style of work is best described as

teamwork

Select the method that promotes safety by determining which specific element of a job led to a past accident.

technic of operations review

The three things human resource management needs to define in a customer-oriented approach are

the customer groups, the customer needs, and the activities required to meet those needs.

According to the Job Characteristics Model, which of the following best describes task identity?

the degree to which a job requires completing a "whole" piece of work from beginning to end

Which of the following agencies is primarily responsible for enforcing the laws passed by Congress?

the executive branch of the government

Suppose you are a human resource executive, supporting strategy. Executives in your industry are concluding that a certain HR-related law no longer seems relevant in the Internet age. To which government branch would it be most effective to turn for addressing the need for a change in the legal environment?

the legislative branch, requesting a new law in this area

As a predictor of job dissatisfaction, nothing exceeds

the nature of the task itself.

In the context of work flow design, which of the following best describes a position?

the set of duties performed by a person

Identify the statement that accurately characterizes behavioral approaches to performance measurement.

they link the company's goals to the specific behavior required to achieve those goals

Which of the following is the objective of job enlargement?

to make jobs less repetitive and more interesting

Identify a way in which an organization can promote fairness and reduce political behavior in the appraisal system.

train managers to use the appraisal process

Which of the following consists of an organization's planned effort to help employees acquire job-related knowledge, skills, abilities, and behaviors?

training

Which of the following describes a planned effort to enable employees to learn job-related knowledge, skills, and behavior?

training

_____ requires that employees actually learn the content of the training program and that the necessary conditions are in place for employees to apply what they learned.

transfer of training

According to your text, the simplest approach to evaluating training is to

use only a posttest

In general, HR departments should be able to improve their performance through some combination of greater efficiency and greater effectiveness. In this context, greater efficiency means the HR department

uses fewer and less-costly resources to perform its functions.

The _____ of an employment test is indicated by the extent to which the test scores relate to actual job performance.

validity

Which of the following processes involves analyzing the tasks necessary for the production of a product or service?

work flow design

In the context of HR planning, implementation that ties planning and recruiting to an organization's strategy and to its efforts to develop employees becomes a complete program of

workforce utilization

Which of the following scenarios demonstrates a violation of the right of freedom of conscience in a workplace environment?

A supervisor coerces an employee to use unsafe practices to keep a project on schedule.

Which of the following statements is true about an assessment center?

At an assessment center, multiple raters or evaluators evaluate employees' performance on a number of exercises.

Identify the similarity between the natural attrition and early retirement strategies for reducing a labor surplus.

Both strategies yield slow results for an organization.

Which of the following is a permissible question for job applications and interviews?

Can you meet the requirements of the work schedule?

Which of the following statements is true about labor markets?

Competition for labor establishes the minimum an organization must pay to hire an employee for a particular job.

Which of the following statements is true of effective performance management?

It can tell top performers they are valued.

Which of the following statements is true of a progressive discipline system?

It communicates unacceptable behavior and responds to a series of offenses with increasing forcefulness.

Which of the following is a disadvantage of a pay structure that rewards employees for winning promotions?

It discourages employees from gaining valuable experience through lateral career moves.

Why is temporary employment popular with employers?

It gives employers flexibility in operations.

Which of the following is true of job enlargement?

It involves adding challenges or new responsibilities to employees' current jobs.

Identify the correct statement regarding an employee assistance program.

It is a system supervisors can use to refer their employees for professional treatment when necessary.

Which of the following is true about continuous learning?

Employees should continuously learn about their work systems to improve performance.

Which of the following best describes job sharing?

It is a work option in which two part-time employees carry out the tasks associated with a single job.

Which of the following best defines a competency?

It is an area of personal capability that enables employees to perform successfully.

Which of the following is an advantage of using results-oriented performance measurement?

It is relatively easy to link to the organization's goals.

Which of the following best describes job design?

It is the process of defining the way work will be performed and the tasks that a given job requires.

Which of the following best describes needs assessment?

It is the process of evaluating the organization, individual employees, and employees' tasks to determine what kinds of training are necessary.

Which of the following is a disadvantage of skill-based pay systems?

It may result in paying employees for skills they don't use.

Which of the following best describes offshoring?

It refers to moving operations from the country where a company is headquartered to a country where pay rates are lower but the necessary skills are available.

Which of the following statements is true about a learning organization?

It supports lifelong learning by enabling all employees to continually acquire and share knowledge.

Employees in a company's accounting department work 10 hours a day for 4 days a week, while employees in the other departments work 8 hours a day for 5 days a week. The flexible work schedule option affecting the accounting department is known as _____.

a compressed workweek

What is an HR dashboard?

a computer system used to acquire and distribute information about work schedules and job duties

Which of the following occurs when two companies join forces and become one entity?

a merger

In terms of the Job Characteristics Model, feedback refers to the extent to which _____.

a person receives clear information about performance effectiveness from the work itself

Which of the following forms of group building gives teams or work groups an actual problem, has them work on solving it and commit to an action plan, and holds them accountable for carrying out the plan?

action learning

The final step in the career management process is

action planning and follow-up

Which of the following actions by employers can result in reverse discrimination?

affirmative action

Which of the following refers to an organization's active effort to find opportunities to hire or promote people in a particular group?

affirmative action

Generally, an organization checks references

after it has determined that an applicant is a finalist for a job.

The use of independent contractors, on-call workers, temporary workers, and contract company workers, collectively constitutes

alternative work arrangements

A chemical company buying a medical equipment manufacturing company is an example of

an acquisition

According to the affirmative-action plan required by the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, which of the following refers to a comparison of the race, sex, and ethnic composition of an employer's workforce with that of the available labor supply?

applied behavior analysis

Which of the following is a work-study training method that teaches job skills through a combination of on-the-job training and classroom training?

apprenticeship

The HRM function during downsizing is to terminate the workers who

are less valuable in their performance.

The Americans with Disabilities Act protects individuals who

are severely disfigured

For what purpose do organizations typically review applicant résumés?

as a basis for deciding which candidates to investigate further

Which of the following actions during the selection process would be illegal under the equal employment opportunity laws?

asking candidates how close they are to retirement age

A work team can be empowered by

authorizing the team to make decisions traditionally made by managers.

According to the Job Characteristics Model, _____ refers to the job characteristic that reflects the degree to which a job allows an individual to make decisions about the way the work is carried out.

autononmy

_____ involves training sessions in which participants observe other people demonstrating the desired behavior, then have opportunities to practice the behavior themselves.

behavior modeling

The _____ performance management method requires managers to rate the frequency with which an employee has exhibited a behavior during a rating period.

behavior observation scale

In which of the following ways do modern information systems contribute most directly to the creation of a high-performance work system?

by enabling organizations to give many employees access to information

How can data analytics improve the measurement of employees' performance?

by finding patterns in an employee's behavior

How can managers improve employee satisfaction with the feedback process?

by letting employees voice their opinions and discuss performance goals during the feedback process

How can individuals acting as references for job applicants minimize the risk of being sued for defamation or misrepresentation?

by only giving information about observable, job-related behaviors

_____ training remains the most widely used method of training.

classroom

Compensation systems can help create the conditions that contribute to high performance. Consequently, organizations can increase empowerment and job satisfaction by

communicating the basis for decisions about pay.

Chang works at a leading restaurant. She is usually scared of making any mistakes at her workplace, so she is very keen on paying attention to details. She also prioritizes quality in her work. In the context of Inscape's DiSC assessment, she would most likely score high in _____.

conscientiousness

According to your text, the right of privacy is the right to

control what a person reveals about their private life.

Statistics that measure the degree to which two sets of numbers are related are known as _____.

correlation coefficients

Which of the following is a responsibility that is specifically associated with the HR function of employee relations?

creating a job design

Team training in which team members understand and practice each other's skills so that they are prepared to step in and take another member's place is referred to as

cross-training

Identify the type of diversity training provided by some organizations that involves sending employees directly into communities where they have to interact with persons from different cultures, races, and nationalities.

cultural immersion

Which of the following is the first step in performance management process?

defining performance outcomes for company division and department

Identify the traits that are found in a conscientious person.

dependable, organized, persevering, and achievement-oriented

Which HR function involves offering programs through which employees acquire knowledge, skills, and behavior that improve their ability to meet the challenges of a variety of new or existing jobs, including the client and customer demands of those jobs?

development

"Performance management serves as a basis for improving employees' knowledge and skills." This statement corresponds to which of the following purposes of performance management?

developmental purpose

People who apply for a vacancy without prompting from an organization are referred to as

direct applicants

Differing conduct toward individuals, where the differences are clearly based on the individuals' race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, or disability status is termed as _____.

disparate treatment

If people believe their rights are being violated, they have the right to a fair and impartial hearing. This reflects the basic human right to

due process

_____ formally lay out the steps an employee may take to appeal an employer's decision to terminate that employee.

due process policies

Identify the detail that can be asked in an application form to gather information about suitable candidates.

educational background

Which of the following technologies can be used to consolidate different HR functions into a single location, eliminate redundancy, and reduce administrative costs?

electronic performance support systems

Which of the following is a characteristic of current-day high-performance work systems?

employee empowerment in decision making

Which of the following refers to full involvement in one's work and commitment to one's job and company?

employee engagement

In the context of today's organizations, which of the following statements is true of employees?

employees are not easily the replaced parts of a system, they are the source of a companys success or failure

Which of the following would most likely aid in the formation of a high-performance work system?

employees' rewards and compensation that relate to the company's financial performance

Historically, if an organization and employee do not have a specific employment contract, the employer or employee may not require a specific time to end the employment relationship. This is referred to as the _____ doctrine.

employment at will

_____ states that if there is no specific employment contract saying otherwise, the employer or employee may end an employment relationship at any time, regardless of cause.

employment at will

Managing cultural diversity involves

encouraging career development for women and minorities.

Pay policies are one of the most important human resource tools for

encouraging desired employee behaviors.

Employees with negative affectivity are inclined to

experience feelings of anger, contempt, fear, and guilt.

A(n) _____ is a training method in which participants learn concepts and then apply them by simulating the behaviors involved and analyzing the activity, connecting it with real-life situations.

experiential program

A telework arrangement is easiest to implement for manufacturing workers.

false

The step in the career management process in which employees receive information about their skills and knowledge and where these assets fit into the organization's plans is called

feedback

Which of the following is the first step in the human resource planning process?

forecasting

According to the philosopher Immanuel Kant, the right of employees to know the nature of the job they are being hired to do and the obligation of a company not to deceive them in this respect is mainly reflective of the basic right of

freedom of conscience

Which of the following is a component of a basic career management system?

goal setting

What is the name of the rating error that leads employees to believe that no aspect of their performance needs improvement?

halo error

Which of the following are the most widespread methods for eliminating labor shortages?

hiring temporary workers and outsourcing work

Which of the following describes the employees of an organization in terms of their training, experience, judgment, intelligence, relationships, and insight?

human capital

The external labor market consists of

individuals who are actively seeking employment.

Behavior modeling is especially useful for improving

interpersonal skills

Lydia, a supervisor, is meeting with an employee whose performance has deteriorated since the previous year. The employee used to do the same work well, so Lydia believes the problem is not likely to be related to ability. Which of the following responses would be most likely to help in this situation?

investigating whether the employee feels she has been treated fairly

Bella, an employee at Lavender Holdings, was suspended for two weeks for drug use. Six months later, she was fired from the job because her productivity did not show any improvement even after undergoing treatment for drug use. Which of the following is the form of discharge experienced by Bella?

involuntary turnover

Which of the following refers to the process of getting detailed information about jobs?

job analysis

A list of the tasks, duties, and responsibilities that a job entails is called a _____.

job description

Identify the method that breaks down jobs into basic elements to rate them for their potential for harm or injury.

job hazard analysis technique

A typing test for an administrative assistant's job is an example of a(n) _____ test.

job performance

The process of communicating information about a job vacancy on company bulletin boards, in employee publications, on corporate intranets, and anywhere else an organization communicates with employees is referred to as

job posting

In the context of forecasting the demand for labor, using trend analysis, inventory levels, changes in technology, and actions of competitors are examples of _____.

leading indicators

Which of the following is the most common reason why U.S. organizations hire employees in foreign countries?

low cost of labor in foreign countries

Job rotation involves

moving an employee through a series of job assignments in one or more functional areas of the company.

Which of the following exemplifies one of the most creative developments in human resource information systems technology?

HR dashboard

Which of the following is TRUE of ethics in human resource management?

HR managers must view employees as having basic rights

The Age Discrimination in Employment Act protects only those workers who are over the age of _____.

40

Which of the following statements is true about key jobs?

A job with a higher evaluation score than a particular key job would receive higher pay than that key job.

Job design aimed at empowerment

Includes access to resources

Which of the following is the correct statement regarding internal recruitment sources?

Internal recruiting minimizes the possibility of unrealistic employee expectations.

Identify the benefit of relying on internal recruitment sources.

Internal sources are generally cheaper and faster than other means.

Jade is giving feedback to an employee who hopes to move into a supervisory role someday. Which statement represents the most effective kind of feedback?

Last week, when we had a problem, your comments shifted the team from complaining to problem solving.

Hannah Barboza Inc., a publishing company, administered the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) assessment to its editorial team and learned that some individuals are drawn toward gathering the facts and details needed for decision making, while others focus more on noticing relations among the facts. Some of the employees enjoy learning this about themselves, but the human resource specialist who administered the assessment cautions them not to use the results to limit their understanding of what they can do. Which of the following statements best explains the need for caution in applying the results of this assessment?

MBTI scores are not necessarily valid and reliable.

Which of the following is true about medical examinations of job candidates?

Medical examinations are conducted after a candidate has been given a job offer.

Which of the following statements is true about the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)?

Nonexempt employees are covered by FLSA and include most hourly workers.

Which of the following is the most comprehensive U.S. law regarding worker safety?

OSHA

Which of the following statements is true about a product market?

Organizations in a product market are competing to serve the same customers.

Which of the following statements is true about job-based pay structures?

Organizations may avoid change because it requires repeating the time-consuming process of creating job descriptions and related paperwork.

Which of the following statements is true of the FLSA requirements for overtime pay?

Overtime must be paid whether or not the employer specifically asked or expected the employee to work the extra hours.

Choose the correct statement about personal dispositions.

People with a positive core self-evaluation tend to experience job satisfaction.

Which of the following is a drawback of a comparable-worth policy?

Raising pay for some jobs places the employer at a disadvantage relative to employers that pay the market rate.

Which of the following is true of self-managing work teams?

Team members usually share work assignments.

Under the FLSA, which of the following statements is true of child labor?

The FLSA's restrictions on the use of child labor apply to children younger than 18.

According to the hot-stove rule, which of the following qualities makes discipline more effective?

The consequences for breaking a rule are immediate.

What is a disadvantage of using résumés as a source of information about job applicants?

The content of the résumé is controlled by the applicant.

Which of the following is a drawback of setting pay rates based strictly on a pay policy line?

The estimated pay for a job may not reflect conditions in the labor market.

Which of the following statements is true of equal employment opportunity laws?

The goal of these laws is for employers to provide equal pay for equal work.

Which of the following is true of the relationship between training and development?

The goal of training is preparation for the current job, while the goal of development is preparation for future job opportunities.

Eli, a human resource manager, tells managers in his organization that following the system of progressive discipline requires written documentation at every step of the process. In which of the following situations could this be optional?

The manager reminds an employee that a minor first-time offense is against policy.

Which of the following statements is true about pay ranges?

The market rate or the pay policy line generally serves as the midpoint of a range for the job.

How can an organization protect itself against discrimination and unjust dismissal lawsuits?

The requirements for job success should be clearly communicated to employees.

Identify a disadvantage of using temporary and contract workers.

These workers tend to be less committed to an organization.

What attitude do employees typically express toward performance feedback?

They appreciate regular feedback, because they want to know if they are on track.

Which of the following statements is true of compensable factors?

They are the characteristics of a job that a firm values and chooses to pay for.

Which of the following is a way in which organizations can promote job satisfaction?

They can make jobs more interesting.

Which of the following is true of companies that use a "lead-the-market" pay strategy?

They pay more than the current market wages for a job.

Which of the following is a disadvantage of broad bands?

They reduce the opportunities for promoting employees.

Which of the following statements is true of selection decisions?

They should be based on which candidate best meets the requirements of the position.

Which of the following statements is true of high-performance work systems?

To develop a high-performance work system, organizations need to determine what kinds of people fit their needs and then locate, train, and motivate those special people.

Which of the following is a permissible question to ask in job applications and interviews?

Will you need any reasonable accommodation for this hiring process?

Which of the following is a condition that contributes to high performance?

Work design gives employees the opportunity to utilize a variety of skills.

Themost important source of recruits for entry-level professional and managerial vacancies is

on-campus interviewing

The Workers' Adjustment Retraining and Notification Act requires that

organizations with more than 100 employees give 60 days' notice before any closing or layoff that will affect at least 50 full-time employees.

Which of the following forms of training prepares employees to perform their jobs effectively, learn about the organization, and establish work relationships?

orientation

Johanna, a professional counselor, was recently asked to talk to an ex-employee of Highlanders Corp., a manufacturing company, about his performance issues. Johanna talked to this ex-employee about his grief and fear, as well as some strategies for finding a new job. Which of the following roles is Johanna performing?

outplacement counselor

The practice of having another company provide services is known as

outsourcing

Trotta Inc., a manufacturer of widgets, has entered into a contract with a third party to perform services related to processing orders, managing inventory levels, and shipping products to customers. The company is engaged in

outsourcing

Which of the following is defined as the process of ensuring employees' activities and outputs match an organization's goals?

performance management

In terms of job dissatisfaction, an employee who calls in sick or arrives to work late is engaging in

physical job withdrawal

Walters & Williams, a consulting firm, equips all of its employees with laptop computers, which they use at their desks and carry to client meetings. What ergonomic challenge may result from employees using these devices throughout the day?

physical strain to wrists from improper positioning for typing

Which of the following HR functions includes preparing and distributing employee handbooks that detail company policies?

planning and administering pay and benefits

Organizations under pressure to cut labor costs may respond by

postponing hiring decisions

In the context of human resource planning, the primary goal of forecasting is to

predict labor shortages or surpluses in specific areas of an organization.

In the context of managing human resources, the process of _____ creates a buffer between planning and the actual selection of new employees.

recruiting

Identify the process through which an organization seeks applicants for potential employment.

recruitment

_____ influence the kinds of job applicants an organization reaches.

recruitment sources

When an organization undertakes a complete review of its critical work processes to make them more efficient in an effort to deliver higher quality, it is engaging in

reengineering