Human resource Management Exam 2

Combust Con Inc. specializes in manufacturing internal combustion engines. Recently, Combust Con has decided to create a division for the flexible fuel field. During this time, Ashton, the HR manager, has been reviewing and updating job descriptions. With the knowledge that a new division of jobs will be created, what would be the appropriate course of action for Ashton to take next?

Ashton should consider preparing new job descriptions since new jobs will be created in the organization.

Ernie, a manager at a large decoration store, is expecting increased sales during the upcoming holiday season. He knows that his current workforce will not be able to meet demand, putting him at risk of a labor shortage. Which strategy would be the best option to help Ernie avoid a labor shortage?

Ernie should hire temporary employees because he can let them go once the holiday season is over. In this scenario, Ernie should hire temporary workers. This strategy can be implemented quickly, ensuring Ernie will avoid a labor shortage. This strategy also gives Ernie flexibility because it is easy to change after implementation; once the holiday season is over Ernie can let the temporary workers go.

Dylan, a vice president of human resources, recommends adding self-appraisals to the company's performance management system. The other executives wonder why, since people would certainly want to inflate scores of their own performance. Which statement best supports Dylan's idea of using self-appraisals?

Evaluating one's contributions gets employees thinking about theirperformance

In human resource planning, forecasting is an intermediary step

False

Research suggests that realistic job previews have a strong and consistent effect on employee turnover.

False

The Civil Rights Act of 1991 encourages the use of sex norming as a selection tool.

False

The HR department at Hufton Co. recently developed and employed a certain test in the selection process for managers. After observing trends within the organization, the HR department concluded that the test was not a valid selection criterion. What most likely led to the observation that the test was not valid?

Managers who performed well on the tests performed poorly in their roles

A transitional matrix is a chart that lists job categories held in one period and shows the proportion of employees in each of those job categories in a future period.

True

Downsizing can be used to reduce surplus labor because it yields fast results

True

Which HR activity is similar to analyzing a job that does not yet exist?

work redesign

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

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

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

Both strategies yield slow results for an organization. Both the natural attrition and early retirement strategies yield slow results and cause low suffering to the employees.

Derrick, a sales manager at Kappa Corp., finds that Jack, a salesman, lacks motivation to perform well in his job. In the context of finding solutions to performance problems, what is the right way to deal with this situation?

Derrick must counselJack to help him understand the factors that are affecting his motivation.

Which statement is correct regarding internal recruitment sources?

Internal recruiting minimizes the possibility of unrealistic employee expectations

Greater Grocers, an international retailer, opens a store in a town predominantly populated by a particular racial group. While recruiting employees for the store, it uses a test in the selection process that favors that same racial group. When questioned about the selection procedure, the management reasons that the customers are more comfortable with employees of their own race. In the context of the legal standards of selection, what is an accurate statement?

Greater Grocers' actions during the selection process violate the Civil Rights Act of 1991 because customer preference is not a justifiable reason for discriminatory practices. Greater Grocers' actions during the selection process violate the Civil Rights Act of 1991 because customer preference is not a justifiable reason for discriminatory practices. The Civil Rights Act of 1991 and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 place requirements on the choice of selection methods.

Which statement is true of the Occupational Information Network (O*NET)?

It uses a common language that generalizes across jobs to describe the abilities, work styles, work activities, and work context required for various occupations. The Occupational Information Network (O*NET) uses a common language that generalizes across jobs to describe the abilities, work styles, work activities, and work context required for 1,000 broadly defined occupations. Users can visit the O*NET Resource Center to review jobs' tasks, work styles and context, and requirements including skills, training, and experience.

Identify the correct statement regarding predictive validation.

It uses the test scores of all applicants and looks for a relationship between the scores and future performance.

Cameron, a supervisor at Margolia Co., needs to appraise the performance of her subordinate, Stefan. In the context of performance information, what is the least biased source of information for appraisal and why?

Managers because their success depends on the employee's productivity

Ty, the HR manager at Elrod Engines, is preparing a newly promoted employee for her role as a supervisor. In his experience, he will need to address the new supervisor's nervousness about conducting performance appraisals. What is the most likely cause of this nervousness?

Performance management supports administrative decisions that have a great impact on employees.

The structure of Hearting Hospital is strongly based on function. Which statement best describes staff positions at this hospital?

Positions are highly specialized.

Regal Inc., an investment bank, is in the final stage of its selection process for a business analyst. Donald is one of the desired candidates for the position. As part of background checks, the bank wants to look at his credit history. Which Act requires them to obtain Donald's consent before using a third party to check his credit history?

The Fair Credit Reporting Act

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.

Toy-Time is a firm that manufactures toys. Very often, employees of the firm are on leave, citing physical strain as the cause. An expert hired by the company investigates the situation and recommends investing in an ergonomics study of the work environment. In this scenario, the expert is recommending

a study of the interface between individuals' physiology and the characteristics of the physical work environment. The study of the interface between individuals' physiology and the characteristics of the physical work environment is called ergonomics. The goal of ergonomics is to minimize physical strain on the worker by structuring the physical work environment around the way the human body works.

Brianna, a supervisor in a shoe store, observes Charles, an employee, becoming anxious and defensive when a customer complains about some shoes. The customer reacts to Charles' behavior by raising her voice and demanding to talk to a manager. When should Brianna give Charles performance feedback related to his handling of customer complaints?

as soon as she isfinished talking with the complaining customer

Which action during the selection process would be illegal under the equal employment opportunity laws?

asking candidates how close they are to retirement age

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.

autonomy

The ________ performance management method requires managers to rate thefrequency with which an employee has exhibited a behavior during a rating period

behavioral observationscale

The management of D&D Group wants to begin electronically monitoring the computer work of the employees who process claims filed by customers. Eden, the company's human resource executive, expects that employees will resist the monitoring, because they will feel robbed of their human dignity. How could the human resource department best address this concern?

by applying the data to employee development programs that can help employees advance in their careers

Tests designed to measure such mental abilities as verbal skills, quantitative skills, and reasoning ability are referred to as ________ tests.

cognitive ability

Kevin, the CEO of MedImpact Inc., finds that the company needs to eliminate a labor surplus to avoid financial difficulties. To deal with this problem, he chooses a strategy that gives him fast results. However, the amount of suffering caused to employees is high. Kevin is most likely using the ________ strategy to reduce the labor surplus

downsizing In this scenario, Kevin is most likely using the downsizing strategy to deal with the company's labor surplus. Downsizing delivers fast results to reduce labor surplus. However, the amount of suffering caused to employees is high in this strategy

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. Leading indicators are objective measures that accurately predict future labor demand. They might include measures of the economy (such as sales or inventory levels), actions of competitors, changes in technology, and trends in the composition of the workforce and overall population.

Bernard, the CEO of RTT Co., believes the goals of the company must be divided into smaller departmental and individual goals. The accomplishment of these smaller goals will allow employees at all levels to contribute to accomplishment of the bigger goals of the company. In the context of measuring performance results, Bernard's belief can be best justified using

management byobjectives.

If a former employer gives a glowing statement about a candidate and the new employer later learns of misconduct on the part of the employee during his or her previous employment, the new employer can sue for?

misrepresentation. If a person who is a reference for a job applicant gives a glowing statement about a candidate, and the new employer later learns of misdeeds such as sexual misconduct or workplace violence, the new employer might sue the former employer for misrepresentation.

Which test is a legal means to test the integrity of job applicants and generally involves asking applicants directly about their attitudes toward theft and their own experiences with theft?

paper-and-pencil honesty test Paper-and-pencil honesty (or integrity) tests ask applicants directly about their attitudes toward theft and their own experiences with theft. These were developed in response to the passage of the Polygraph Act in 1998 that banned the use of polygraphs for screening job candidates

Kate is the HR manager of Gunther Corp., a software company located in Chicago. She wants to establish the validity of a test designed for computer technicians using a predictive validation strategy. Accordingly, Kate must administer the test to

people applying for computer technician jobs in Gunther Corp

In which use of information technology is the technology reducing mental demands and the likelihood of errors?

software that creates a graph of daily production levels for a supervisor Changes in technology sometimes reduce job demands and errors, but in some cases, technology has made the problem worse. Some employees try to juggle information from several sources at once. In these cases, the sources are distracting the employees from their primary task. They may convey important information, but they also break the employee's train of thought, reducing performance and increasing the likelihood of errors. Organizations probably can't design interruption-free jobs, but employers can design jobs that empower workers to manage their time. In this question, email, text, and instant messages are the kinds of interruptions described. In contrast, the software provides an easy way for the supervisor to interpret progress toward production goals.

April, a production manager at Alton Corp., needs to evaluate the performance of her employees. She asks her subordinate, Tiff, to carry out this job. Tiff uses a rating scale, which ranges from 1 to 10, to rate 50 employees. She gives a score of 3 to 39 employees. In doing so, Tiff commits a ________ error.

strictness

Jeremiah, a vice president of human resources, wants to ensure that his company's performance management process is effective, so he sets up an annual review of the process. What should that review measure?

whether measures of individual performance support the department's and company's objectives

Tech Surge applies research into physics and biochemistry to create advanced surgical instruments and implants. Its research department attracts some of the most talented professionals in these disciplines, each with a passion for his or her specialty. Next year, the position of vice president of research will be vacant, so the executive team is working with the HR department to define selection criteria for a new vice president. Given the company's structure, which quality will be important for the new vice president to possess?

the ability to align researchers' work with the company's strategy Managing a functional department requires skill in managing conflicts and aligning employees' efforts with higher-level goals, because these employees tend to identify heavily with their department or profession.

The employees at Web Light, a website design company, have been struggling to provide quality services to clients. An investigation reveals that employees feel dissatisfied and mentally fatigued due to the challenging nature of their jobs. Selena, the

using software that helps with tracking progress