Leadership and Navigation

Cultural determinism.

"The culture made me do it." This perspective basically absolves individuals of any responsibility for their actions.

influence of culture on negotiating styles

"synergistic approach" that recognizes the differences in negotiating styles across cultures and uses those differences to craft agreements that allow both sides to win.

Cost per hire is a ratio of the total dollars an organization spends (in both external and internal costs) to the total number of hires in a specified time period. The basic formula appears below. (For "Ʃ," read "sum of.")

(Ʃ,External costs + Ʃ internal costs divided by total number of hires in a specified time period) External costs are all sources of spending outside the organization on recruiting efforts during the time period in question. Examples include third-party agency fees, advertising costs, job fair costs, and travel costs in the course of the recruiting effort. Internal costs The internal costs variable comprises all sources of internal resources and costs used for staffing efforts during the time period in question. Examples include the salary and benefits of the recruiting team and fixed costs such as physical infrastructure (for example, talent acquisition system costs). Total number of hires This variable encompasses the total number of hires made in the time period being evaluated.

A minimum, a midpoint, and a maximum for a pay range are set on the basis of market data from pay surveys. The midpoint is often considered the market rate paid to an experienced, fully performing employee.

A caution when calculating the midpoint is to be mindful of any data points that would be considered "outliers." An outlier would be a data point that significantly changes the value of the mean. To avoid data skew, many compensation professionals use percentiles and medians instead of means.

When would a return on investment (ROI) analysis be an effective metric?

A function is seeking budget to hire new staff.

Which statement exemplifies Hersey-Blanchard's situational leadership theory

A leader's style must change over time as individuals develop and require a different type of direction and leadership.

Negotiation

A process in which two or more parties work together to reach agreement on a matter. It involves distinguishing between needs and wants. Needs are essential to a leader's goals—for example, a budget to conduct a needs analysis preliminary to designing a new policy or process. Wants are attractive but not really essential. For example, it might be nice to have a 20% reserve for the needs analysis project, but a leader can meet the ultimate goal without it or with a smaller reserve.

What is a global mindset?

Ability to take an international, multidimensional perspective that is inclusive of other cultures, perspectives, and views.

Ethnocentrism and parochialism.

Adler characterizes ethnocentrism as "our way is the best way and we are really not interested in other ways of reaching a goal." Parochialism goes even further, asserting that "there is only one way to solve a problem or reach a goal."

How would Trompenaars and Hampden-Turner label culture in which individuals express their emotions freely?

Affective

What is extraterritoriality?

An extension of the power of a country's laws over its citizens outside that country's sovereign national boundaries.

True to its name, with internal recruiting an organization identifies potential candidates from within domestic or global operations. Most typically, it is accomplished through internal job postings and the use of succession planning data. Other methods are used to varying degrees.

An organization's recruitment and management software, human resource information system (HRIS), or human capital management system (HCMS) may provide competency profiles to help identify potential candidates. Employees also seek out open positions, motivated by building new skills and by leadership development.

What is a business case?

Analysis of a problem and of possible solutions

In management by objectives (MBO), the employees help set objectives for themselves, defining what they intend to achieve within a specified time period. The objectives are based on overall goals and objectives for the organization. When the employee has set goals and objectives, there is a dialog between the employee and the manager, so mutual agreement may be used to finalize the goals and objectives. In this way, the goals and objectives are not imposed upon the employee but still reflect the goals of the organization.

Assumptions that form the foundation for MBO include the following: A strategic plan is in place. A higher level of commitment and performance results from employees who plan and set their own goals. The employee will better accomplish objectives that are clearly defined. Performance objectives are measurable and specify desired results.

Performance standards are the expectations of management translated into two key elements that employees can deliver:

Behaviors. What the organization wants the employees to do. Results. What the organization wants the employees to produce or deliver. Performance standards tell employees both what they have to do and how well they have to do it. Measures of employee performance include: Quality. How well the work is performed and/or how accurate or how effective the final product is. Quantity. How much work is produced. Timeliness. How quickly, when, or by what date the work is produced. Cost-effectiveness. Dollar savings to the organization or working within a budget.

Benchmarking

Benchmarking initiatives range from informal networking and knowledge sharing to evaluate organizational pay strategies (e.g., lead, lag, or match) to formal engagements with private firms that provide current survey data sometimes in conjunction with consulting services for a fee.

Cultural intelligence

Capacity to recognize, interpret, and behaviorally adapt to multicultural situations and contexts. As with the term "global mindset," the concept of "culture" here needs to be extended to embrace other diversity dimensions—age, gender, race, religion, socioeconomic background, and even intelligence and ideology.

Job competencies

Clusters of highly interrelated attributes, including knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs), that give rise to the behaviors needed to perform a given job effectively. These competencies should be part of a competency model.

A manager notices that two employees are having a debate regarding a project's management. Although they both agree that the current way the project is being managed is incorrect, they have two completely different views as to what the solution is, and both are determined to implement their own solution. The manager recognizes that there could be value in both of the proposed solutions and suggests that a hybrid of the two could be used. What mode of conflict resolution is being used?

Collaborate

When pay ranges are based on the target market rate, compa-ratios are an indicator as to how actual wages match, lead, or lag the target market.

Compa-ratios are computed by dividing the pay rate of an employee by the midpoint of the pay range.

Strategic Alignment

Compensation and benefits systems must support organizational missions and strategies. Therefore, the first consideration in developing a compensation and benefits system is to review the organization's mission and strategy. The compensation and benefits system should be an outgrowth of the strategic business plan and the HR strategy. Smaller and newer organizations may not formally define their strategies; in this case, the HR professional may consider other indicators, such as where the organization is in its life cycle—is it downsizing or expanding, acquiring or being acquired, profitable or unprofitable? Or does the organization promote from within (organic growth) or hire from the outside (inorganic growth)?

An HR manager tells a staff member how to deliver quality customer service to internal customers. Although the staff member paraphrases the coaching advice and seems to understand it, the manager still receives negative comments from other functions who work with this staff member. How could this communication be improved?

Confirm understanding by observing actual performance

The two primary dimensions of behavioral theories of leadership are

Consideration and initiating structure

What challenge to effective cross-cultural communication is faced by an organization believes that their way is the best way and who lack interest in other ways of reaching a goal?

Cultural ethnocentrism

What is the term for the proposition that ethical behavior is determined by local culture, laws, and business practices?

Cultural relativism

Cultural relativism.

Cultural relativism holds that because cultures vary so widely and greatly, everything is relative. There are no absolutes; everything varies based on the situation and the cultural perspective.

What is the term for a set of beliefs, attitudes, values, and behaviors shared by member of a large group and passed down from one generation to the next?

Culture

If a job in a survey is similar but not identical to one in the organization, the data can be weighted or leveled for a better match.

For example, if an organization's benchmark position is at a supervisory level and it has less responsibility than the survey's manager-level benchmark, the organization may adjust the surveyed wage downward by a percentage.

Norms and values.

Less immediately obvious are a culture's shared and stated sense of acceptable behaviors—what is right and wrong. These may be a country's rules and regulations or a company's mission statement and code of conduct.

What should leaders understand about managing change?

Managing change involves employee's cognition, emotions, and behavior

What skill could most improve an HR function's ability to manage change?

Mastery of complex communication means

Assessment

During assessment, one or more HR professionals evaluate the current compensation and benefits systems and the effectiveness of those systems in helping the organization reach its goals. Employees are typically surveyed on their opinions and beliefs regarding their pay, benefits, and opportunities for growth and development. Current policies and practices are examined.

Design

During the design phase, a senior management team made up of HR and department representatives identifies and analyzes various reward strategies to determine what would apply best in their workplace. Decisions are made about what will be rewarded and what rewards will be offered to employees for those achievements. Pay rewards for achievement of goals are not the only consideration. HR strategists identify additional benefits (e.g., flexible work schedule, additional time off) or personal development opportunities (e.g., training, promotions) to reward employees who meet the established organizational goals and objectives.

Implementation

During this phase, the HR department implements the new rewards system and circulates materials that communicate the new strategy to employees. Training also commences so that department managers are able to effectively measure the achievement and employees understand what they need to accomplish to receive the rewards. Implementation efforts need to support the long-term needs of the organization to ensure a sustainable business model.

Narrative methods. The appraiser submits written narrative performance appraisals. Examples include:

Essay.The appraiser writes a short essay describing the performance of each employee during the rating period. Ordinarily, the appraiser is given several topic areas for comment. Critical incidents. A record of employee actions is kept in addition to actual ratings. Both positive and negative actions are recorded for the entire rating period. Field review. The supervisor or manager and a human resource professional cooperate in this method. HR interviews the supervisor about the performance of each employee. After the interview, HR compiles comparison ratings for each employee and then submits the ratings to the supervisor for approval or changes.

Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requires that employers classify employees as either exempt or nonexempt.

Exempt or nonexempt status determines whether an employee is entitled to overtime pay under the FLSA.

Culture affects everything in an organization, ranging from the public's perception of the organizational brand to employee job satisfaction and engagement and bottom-line profitability. Some of the many conventions for defining the characteristics that categorize a culture are shown in Figure 49.

Figure 49: Types of Organizational Cultures Type of Culture Characteristics Authoritarian Power resides with top-level management. Employees have no involvement in the decision-making or goal-setting processes. Mechanistic Tasks and responsibilities are defined clearly to the employees and shaped by formal rules and standard operating procedures. Communication processes follow the direction given by the organization. Accountability is a key factor. Participative Collaborative decision making and group problem solving are embraced. Employees actively participate in the decision-making or goal-setting processes. Learning Organizational conventions, values, practices, and processes encourage individuals—and the organization as a whole—to increase knowledge, competence, and performance. Shared and continuous learning are embraced. High-performance Talent is championed. Innovation, elevated performance, customer-centric strategies, relationships, communication, and other characteristics are driven from the bottom up.

Geographic Differential Pay Geographic differential pay is based on where an employee works. Organizations with facilities in different locations often need to tailor their compensation programs to the differences in local labor markets. For example, geographic differences may occur between different cities or regions within the U.S. and between the U.S. and other countries where the organization is located. Some reasons for differential pay by geographic region include the following.

For labor costs. Employers change their base-pay structure to reflect different wage rates or factors that impact the cost of living in different geographic areas. To attract workers to certain locations. Employers pay more to employees who accept work in remote locations or in places where the climate or quality of living is a deterrent. An offshore oil platform is an example of a work location that may require the use of a differential to attract talent. For foreign countries. Employers offer a base-pay structure plus allowances to reflect factors that affect the economics of employees who work in foreign countries. These factors may include differences in culture, education, technology, climate, and taxes. Global compensation is quite complex. It is country- and region-specific, and it is also subject to numerous compliance issues.

What would be the best advice for an HR manager presenting a complex analysis of workforce needs and recommendations to a leadership group?

Frame the information

Category rating methods. The least complex means of appraising performance, in category rating methods the appraiser marks an employee's level of performance on a designated form. Examples include:

Graphic scale. The appraiser checks the appropriate place on the scale for each task listed. A typical example is a five-point rating scale where 1 is significantly below standard, 3 is standard, and 5 is significantly above standard. Checklist. The appraiser is given a list of statements or words and checks the items on the list that describe the characteristics and performance of the employee. Forced choice. This is a variation on the checklist method. The appraiser is required to check two of four statements: one that the employee is most like and one that the employee is least like.

What type of organizational activity is most likely to succeed in the strategic planning and management process?

HR is asked to analyze current competencies against a proposed strategy.

Evaluation

How do you know if the organization's total rewards strategy is effective? The answer to this question lies in how well the system achieves its goals—cost-effectiveness, affordability, compliance with laws and statutory regulations, compatibility with mission and strategy, match with the organizational culture, appropriateness for the workforce, and equity. Figure 92 summarizes some of the key questions that HR managers must answer to determine if their organization's total rewards strategy is effective. (Note that several of the factors covered in the figure—for example, equity and fit with organizational culture—are discussed in more detail later.)

The focus of strategic planning is on goals and how they will be achieved. What is the focus of strategic management?

How leaders act in alignment with those goals.

Cultural Alignment

In International Human Resource Management, Dennis Briscoe, Randall Schuler, and Ibraiz Tarique describe how national and organizational cultures influence perceptions with respect to rewards: National and organizational cultures influence how people perceive the value of the various rewards available in the compensation system. For example, the culture may be performance-driven (and pay for performance is a well-established norm) or it may be entitlement-oriented (with longevity of service rewarded). In some cultures people are more willing to accept risk in their compensation while in others people are quite risk-averse. In addition, the level of uncertainty avoidance in a culture may determine the amount of fixed versus variable pay that people will accept.

Mind mapping and affinity diagramming

Mind mapping begins the discussion with core ideas. The group members add related ideas and indicate logical connections, eventually grouping similar ideas. This can be done on paper or a whiteboard or with sticky notes. Affinity diagramming is a way of sorting a large amount of data that has already been collected. The group categorizes and subcategorizes data until relationships are clearly drawn.

There are three basic approaches to tying base pay to peoples' qualifications.

In a knowledge-based system, pay is based on the level of knowledge the employee has in a field. This approach is dominant for compensating learned professions such as scientists or teachers, although staff professionals may also be paid this way. Skill-based systems base pay on the number of different skills an employee is qualified to perform. Employees increase their pay by acquiring new skills, even if they do not use the skills in their current assignment. This type of system is most commonly used in a production environment. Competency-based systems set pay at the level at which an employee can operate in defined competencies (e.g., directing or training others). This type of system is commonly found when rewarding professional groups of employees.

Descriptive statistics

Is the process of sorting data in different ways to provide a more accurate and in-depth understanding of what the data is showing. Descriptive statistics enables analytical statistics, the process of inferring the meanings behind data descriptions—for example, why something is occurring now or what is likely to occur in the future. Data measurement tools are used in descriptive statistics to understand the distribution patterns and characteristics of the data set.

A manager is asked by a senior manager to select an employee who has been mentored by the senior manager. This employee was not the manager's first choice for the job. What would be the most useful question for the manager to ask in sorting out the ethical implications of this action?

Is this fair to everyone involved?

What is an advantage of the nominal group technique in conducting research?

It involves research participants in prioritizing data

What is the key benefit of developing consistent, long-term goals?

It reduces resources wasted on nonstrategic activities.

Competencies are clusters of highly interrelated attributes, including knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs), that give rise to the behaviors needed to perform a given job effectively. A set of competencies defining the requirements for effective performance in a specific job, profession, or organization is collectively referred to as a competency model.

Job competencies are usually developed over time and represent the compilation of multiple abilities and traits and knowledge required for success. Competencies are personal to the employee and are something the employee can take from project to project, from one position to another, and even from employer to employer.

Job specifications describe the minimum qualifications necessary to perform a job. A job specification should reflect what is necessary for satisfactory performance, not what the ideal candidate should have. Specifications must be written to ensure compliance with all local laws (including nondiscrimination policies).

Job specifications are a logical outgrowth of job descriptions, and they are frequently included in a separate section of the same document. Examples of job specifications include experience, education, training, licenses and certification (if required), mental abilities and physical skills, and level or organizational responsibilities.

An organization's employee value proposition (EVP) is the foundation of employment branding. The EVP must be aligned with the organizational strategic plan, vision, mission, and values and create an image that attracts people. Further, it must provide an accurate picture of employment for employees and candidates. Any inconsistencies in the work environment can erode the credibility of a branding strategy. An EVP must also be congruent with the organization's external brand.

Just as organizations select people whom they want to hire, talented people pick the organizations they want to work for. An EVP answers the two-part question: "Why would a talented person want to start working for an organization and why would they want to continue to work for the organization?" An EVP creates a magnet to the organization's employment brand.

Geert Hofstede, a pioneer in intercultural business communication

Notes that culture is only part of an individual's makeup. It shares space with and can be affected by: The individual's personality, which is a product of inheritance and experience. Human nature, which is universal—such as feelings of joy or loss. Hofstede's metaphor of culture as the "software of the mind"—mental programs that predispose us to patterns of thinking, feeling, and acting.

External surveys

Organizations have different options available if they choose an external pay survey. Professional member groups such as the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), as well as consulting firms (such as Hays and Aon Hewitt), conduct surveys of wage/job data for a wide range of professions, industries, and geographical areas. External surveys may draw on extensive databases of incumbents and industry benchmarks and can provide real-time insights into total compensation levels, practices, and emerging trends. If an organization uses externally published data, it must be sure that it knows how the data was generated and when. Depending on the type of external survey, the organization may have limited participation and input.

job description is a written description of a job and its essential functions and requirements, including tasks, knowledge, skills, abilities, responsibilities, and reporting structure. Typically, a job description is relatively brief; it may be a print or online document.

Organizations in different countries may use different names for a job description, such as "role profile," "role description," or "position description." Regardless of the terminology, a job description describes the most important features of a job and communicates that information in a standard format. This ensures that employees throughout the organization have a consistent understanding of the job.

Recruitment is the process of encouraging candidates to apply for job openings. Attracting the appropriate quantity of applicants is necessary but not sufficient. The quality of applicants is the critical factor in recruitment.

Organizations may recruit applicants through many methods and channels. The most productive sources of qualified applicants vary across environments and may change rapidly due to a number of factors (e.g., organizational or country culture, advancements in technology, local business and economic conditions, and government programs that promote training and employment programs). Lessons learned have proven that any attempt to sustain a one-size-fits-all recruiting approach is doomed.

Market-Based Increases

Organizations may use market-based salary increases to be competitive in attracting new talent or to keep key employees. Market-based salary increases are usually added to base pay and may also be called equity increases.

Internal surveys

Organizations that have available resources and expertise may choose to develop their own internal survey to allow for more control over the survey technique and data analysis. The advantage of an internal survey is having the ability to shape the design, administration, data analysis, and reporting as needed by the organization. The disadvantages include the following: Competitors may not be willing to cooperate and to share their pay structures. Matching the positions may be difficult.

The typical method of measuring employees' adherence to performance standards and providing feedback is the performance appraisal. This process measures the degree to which an employee accomplishes work requirements.

Performance appraisals accomplish three purposes: Provide feedback and counseling Help in allocating rewards and opportunities Help in determining employees' aspirations and planning developmental needs Administered on an individual or group basis, effective performance appraisals can: Improve productivity through constructive feedback. Identify training and developmental needs. Communicate expectations. Foster commitment and mutual understanding.

Assert (or force) Conflict tactic

The leader imposes a solution. One side wins and the other loses—hence the term "win/lose" conflict resolution. Useful in a crisis because it resolves the issue quickly; also when authority is being challenged or when the impact on future relations with the group is minimal.

Accommodate (or smooth) Conflict tactic

The leader restores good relations by emphasizing agreement and downplaying disagreement. Useful when there is little time to be lost and movement forward is needed.

Avoid Conflict tactic

The leader withdraws from the situation or accepts it, leaving the conflict to be resolved by others or remain unresolved. Useful when the conflict will resolve soon without any direct intervention or when the conflict or relationship is not worth the time investment.

Hofstede originally defined four dimensions and added two later (the last two items in the list): Power distance describes the way in which power is distributed in a culture and how an unequal distribution is perceived by the culture's less powerful members. In a high power distance culture, class may be inherited at birth and will closely define an individual's rights and opportunities. Social position is not challenged. Low power distance cultures minimize the importance of class differentiation. Individualism/collectivism describes contrasting visions of how members of a society relate to each other. In individual cultures, clans and family are less important than individual achievement. In a collectivist culture, one's membership in a group is more important than one's individual identity. The group can provide security, protection, and access to opportunity. Uncertainty avoidance describes how members of a culture feel about uncertainty and lack of clarity. Cultures that avoid uncertainty tend to be more rigid about rules and uncomfortable with change (which always implies risk). Masculine/feminine cultural distinctions describe the extent to which a culture embodies specific traditional gender images: A masculine culture will be oriented toward competition and achievement, while a feminine culture is empathetic, nurturing, and collaborative. In masculine cultures, gender roles tend to be more distinct and rigid; in feminine cultures, there is greater sharing of roles between the sexes. Long-term/short-term may also be referred to as normative/pragmatic. The dimension refers to the way the culture sees the effect of the past on the future. A long-term or normative culture tends to use traditions as a guide and values loyalty to those values and ideas. A short-term culture is more pragmatic; it believes that its actions today can shape its future. Indulgence/restraint refers to how the gratification of desires is viewed. An indulgent culture believes in fun and pleasure, while a restrained society controls its desires according to social norms.

Power distance describes the way in which power is distributed in a culture and how an unequal distribution is perceived by the culture's less powerful members. In a high power distance culture, class may be inherited at birth and will closely define an individual's rights and opportunities. Social position is not challenged. Low power distance cultures minimize the importance of class differentiation. Individualism/collectivism describes contrasting visions of how members of a society relate to each other. In individual cultures, clans and family are less important than individual achievement. In a collectivist culture, one's membership in a group is more important than one's individual identity. The group can provide security, protection, and access to opportunity. Uncertainty avoidance describes how members of a culture feel about uncertainty and lack of clarity. Cultures that avoid uncertainty tend to be more rigid about rules and uncomfortable with change (which always implies risk). Masculine/feminine cultural distinctions describe the extent to which a culture embodies specific traditional gender images: A masculine culture will be oriented toward competition and achievement, while a feminine culture is empathetic, nurturing, and collaborative. In masculine cultures, gender roles tend to be more distinct and rigid; in feminine cultures, there is greater sharing of roles between the sexes. Long-term/short-term may also be referred to as normative/pragmatic. The dimension refers to the way the culture sees the effect of the past on the future. A long-term or normative culture tends to use traditions as a guide and values loyalty to those values and ideas. A short-term culture is more pragmatic; it believes that its actions today can shape its future. Indulgence/restraint refers to how the gratification of desires is viewed. An indulgent culture believes in fun and pleasure, while a restrained society controls its desires according to social norms.

six phases to the principled negotiation process

Preparation. The negotiator should identify critical needs, wants that could be concessions, and possible demands from the other side. Relationship building. Trust is built with the exchange of personal information that reveals character. Information exchange. Positions and needs are explained by both sides. Persuasion. Negotiators seek mutually beneficial options rather than trying to win the other side to their own position. Concessions. Both sides find wants that are not essential to agreement. Agreement. Agreements may be legal instruments or verbally expressed understandings.

Which form of negotiation is most consistent with the leadership characteristics found to be effective in global setting?

Principled

A manager wants to explain to an ambitious employee that she will not be receiving a promotion and why she did not get the job. What would be the best form of communication to use in this case?

Private, face-to-face conversation

Quartiles and percentiles describe dispersion across a group of ranked data.

Quartiles divide a data set into quarters. A percentile indicates the proportion of the dataset at a certain percentage. For example, a value in the 90th percentile is greater than 90% of the values in the dataset.

Comparative methods. The appraiser directly compares the performance of each employee with that of the others. Examples include:

Ranking.The appraiser lists all employees from highest to lowest. If there are 20 employees, the appraiser ranks them in order from 1 to 20—best to poorest in performance. Paired-comparison. Each of the employees is paired with every other employee and compared, one at a time, using the same scale for performance. This method provides more information about individual employees than ranking. Forced distribution. Employees are rated and placed at different percentage points along a bell-shaped curve.

Ratio Analysis

Ratio analysis compares the relative size of two variables and yields a percentage. Net profit margin, for example, is a ratio that compares net revenue with costs. Many commonly used HR metrics are ratios, such as the turnover rate (comparing the number of terminations or resignations in a time period with the average number of employees in that period).

The International Labor Organization describes reasonable accommodation as necessary, appropriate modifications or adjustments that do not impose a disproportionate or undue burden on the employer.

Reasonable accommodation aims to ensure that persons with disabilities can participate in the workplace equally with others. Adaptations or other forms of support may be tailor-made for an individual, according to the individual's specific impairments and the job requirements. Reasonable accommodation might also go beyond physical adaptations and include modifying the job application process, assigning a job coach, or modifying work schedules or the circumstances under which the job is performed to enable a qualified individual with a disability to be considered for the job and perform its essential functions.

Regression Analysis

Regression analysis refers to a statistical method used to determine whether a relationship exists between variables and the strength of the relationship. Data points can be plotted on a diagram called a scattergram. The shape of the line formed by the data suggests if there is a likely correlation, whether that correlation is positive or negative, and how strong or weak the correlation is. Analyses can use multiple variables.

Root-Cause Analysis

Root-cause analysis starts with a result and then works backward. Each cause is queried to identify a preceding cause—conditions or actions that might have led to this effect. This questioning may proceed backward in rounds until the fundamental or root cause is identified—the point at which no further causes can be identified. This method is sometimes referred to as the "five whys method," which was developed as part of the Toyota Industries quality initiatives.

Culture

Set of beliefs, attitudes, values, and perspectives on how the world works. Culture is invisible and can be handed down from one generation to the next.

Time-Based Differential Pay

Some employees receive time-based differential pay, or a different rate of pay based on when they work. Keep in mind that any overtime premium must be applied to the differential pay. Shift pay. Some employees receive extra pay when they work less-desirable hours, such as a second or third shift. Shift pay may be a flat amount per hour or a percentage of the base pay. Emergency-shift pay. Certain types of industries pay emergency-shift pay when employees work in response to an emergency. Premium pay. Some employers pay premium pay (extra pay), or overtime at a higher rate, for working any of the following: Holidays or vacation days or weekends For the sixth or seventh day of straight time After eight hours in a day On-call or call-back pay. In some organizations employees earn pay when they are on call, even if they are not called in to work (on-call pay). Employees may also earn extra pay when they are called back for an extra shift in the same workday (call-back pay). Reporting pay. With reporting pay, employees are paid for reporting to work as scheduled even if upon arrival no work is available. Travel pay. Hourly employees receive travel pay for time spent traveling to work assignments, even if the travel time is outside of working hours. Overtime pay. In various countries the minimum amount to be paid for overtime is dictated by legislation.

Lump-Sum Increases (LSIs)

Some organizations use a lump-sum increase (LSI), or performance bonus, method to reward employees. An LSI is a one-time payment of all or part of a yearly pay increase. An employee's base wage rate is typically not adjusted by this increase.

Since wage rates typically will vary by location, an organization should factor for geography any national salary survey data for the local or regional recruiting area to approximate local wage rates.

Some salary surveys do not provide data for a specific geographic area.

The United States Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) makes the classification as to full-time, part-time, temporary, and seasonal employment important for benefits purposes.

Statutes mandating benefits usually have a threshold number of hours worked to define an employee as full- or part-time under the statute and therefore eligible or ineligible for benefits.

What practice illustrates transparency?

Supporting promotion decisions with specific examples

Another special appraisal method is the behaviorally anchored rating scale (BARS). The BARS method was designed to overcome the problems of category rating by describing examples of desirable and undesirable behavior.

The BARS method offers several advantages, including: More accurate gauge of performance. Clearer standards of performance. Feedback. Independent dimensions. The BARS method works best in situations where many employees are performing the same tasks. This method requires extensive time and energy to develop and maintain. Additionally, different BARS must be developed to measure employee performance for different jobs. For example, in a restaurant business, managers, cooks, wait staff, and cleaners would each need their own BARS. Developing BARS typically requires an organization to: Generate critical incidents. Develop performance dimensions. Scale the incidents. Develop the final instrument. In order to select the best appraisal method for an organization, the advantages and disadvantages of each method should be weighed.

What important action takes place at the end of Lewin's change management model?

The change is made a lasting part of the organization's policies or processes.

Essential functions

The essential functions are the primary job duties that a qualified individual must be able to perform, either with or without reasonable accommodation. A function may be considered essential because it is required in a job or because it is highly specialized.

Collaborate (or confront) Conflict tactic

The leader and those in conflict accept the fact that they disagree and look for a "third way," a new solution to the problem of the conflict. Since both sides contribute to the solution, this may be seen as "win/win" conflict resolution. Useful when the stakes are high, relationships are important, and time allows.

Compromise Conflict tactic

The leader asks those in conflict to bargain—altering positions on different issues until a mutually acceptable solution is defined. The solution relies on concessions. For this reason, it is often referred to as "lose/lose" conflict resolution. Useful for complex issues, when both sides are determined to win, and when time doesn't allow for true problem solving.

Sourcing is the precursor to actual recruitment. It generates a pool of qualified applicants, identifying individuals (both active and passive job seekers) who may be potential employment suspects or referral points for other suspects.

The sourcing process involves internal and external advertising. Organizations typically use a variety of techniques for sourcing, such as internal postings, employee referrals, the organization's website, social media, online or offline communities (interest groups), professional associations, and more. Sourcing incorporates branding, especially when trying to attract the already employed passive talent.

Four drivers of engagement appear to be consistent among employees around the world:

The work itself, including opportunities for development Confidence and trust in leadership Recognition and rewards Organizational communication that is delivered in a timely and orderly way

Basic assumptions.

These are the culture's core beliefs about how the world is and ought to be. They may be unspoken, and members may not even be consciously aware of them. Even cultures with similar norms and values may have significantly different basic assumptions. Terms such as "success," "freedom," or "doing good" may carry very different meanings for each culture, and failure to perceive such differences is often at the root of cross-cultural miscommunication and conflicts.

Frequency distributions are used to sort data into groups according to some factor, such as years of employment.

This allows analysts to understand the distribution of the data they are working with—whether the data is focused in a normal pattern around a central value or is more broadly or narrowly dispersed over the data range. Frequency tables help locate peaks within the data range.

Cognitive, including thinking, learning, and strategizing.

This involves developing a knowledge of cultural differences and similarities and being able to use that knowledge to determine how best to handle a cross-cultural situation.

Standard deviation represents the distance of any data point from the center of a distribution when data is distributed in a "normal" or expected pattern.

This is often shown as a bell curve. In a normal distribution (as in Figure 52), 68% of data lies within one standard deviation (expressed often as SD or the Greek letter sigma [σ]), 95% of data lies within two SDs, and 99% lies within three SDs.

Behavioral, including an individual's range of possible actions and responses to intercultural encounters.

This quality enables one to be flexible and adapt in multicultural contexts.

Motivational, including effectiveness, confidence, persistence, value congruence, and the level of attraction toward a new culture.

This quality enables one to genuinely enjoy cultural differences rather than feeling threatened or intimidated by them.

Nominal group technique (NGT)

This technique proceeds through rounds in which participants each suggest ideas. The rounds continue until no further ideas are proposed. Then the group discusses the items, eliminates redundancies and items considered irrelevant, and agrees on the importance of the remaining items. NGT can be practiced with idea generation by individuals, subgroups, or the entire group. Similarly the initial sorting of ideas can be done in subgroups before returning to the main group to reach consensus.

Delphi technique.

This technique progressively collects information from a group on a preselected issue. The first respondent proposes information, the next respondent adds something different, and so on, until a list can be compiled. The respondents are anonymous. In the second round, the researcher circulates the list and asks each respondent in turn to refine previous ideas, to comment on each idea's strengths and weaknesses for addressing the issue, and to identify new ideas. This technique is designed to facilitate group involvement, problem solving, and individual thinking while avoiding "group think," where participants can be influenced by what others say.

A firm manufactures glass used in commercial building projects. Their advantage lies in the variety of their offerings and technologies they use. However, other firms can take business from them by offering similar products with different technologies. Which of Porter's "Five Forces" does this illustrate?

Threat of Substitution

Which motivation theory appeals to an employee's need for achievement?

Three needs theory

In a SHRM Foundation report, Elaine Pulakos recommends the following actions to evaluate performance management systems:

Track completion of training among the system users. Track completion of performance management activities. Secure periodic manager review of performance standards used in ratings to ensure continued validity. Secure senior management review of alignment of the system with the organization's strategic goals. Periodically align performance appraisal results with promotions and pay increases to confirm that there is a positive relationship. Solicit feedback from users. Many of these activities will be easier if the performance management system and required training are integrated into the HR information system.

Compensation Ratio Relationship of current salaries to the midpoints of the salary ranges

Tracking individual salaries in comparison to the pay range midpoint allows managers to consider if employees are being paid appropriately on the basis of their skills, experience, and performance.

Total Organization Compensation Expense All costs associated with employment, including salaries, overtime, benefits, and bonuses

Tracking total compensation as a percentage of total costs helps an organization manage the costs associated with human capital, including evaluating the use of fixed versus variable compensation.

A leader of a function tries to influence her staff's satisfaction and productivity by being friendly and asking questions about their non-work lives. What type of power is she using?

referent

Employee engagement is a broader concept than employee satisfaction, commitment, and morale. It is an outcome-driven concept—certain employee and employer/workforce characteristics can lead to employee behaviors that positively influence individual- and business-level performance.

Trait engagement describes the inherent personality-based elements that make an individual predisposed to being engaged—a natural curiosity, a desire to be involved, an interest in problem solving. These traits may figure into recruiting and hiring efforts. State engagement is influenced by workplace conditions or practices (e.g., task variety, opportunities to participate in work decisions) that can be improved through organizational interventions directly under management's control. Behavioral engagement is evident in the effort employees put into their jobs, which leads to greater value, creating higher performance than from their less-engaged counterparts. It can occur when both trait and state engagement are present.

Which of the four branches of emotional intelligence is described as the ability to capitalize on feelings to promote and inform decision making, problem solving, and other cognitive activities?

Using emotion to facilitate thought

How are the concepts of value and the value chain related to strategy?

Value chain analysis identifies areas critical to strategic success

Variance Analysis

Variances analysis identifies the degree of difference between planned and actual performance. The term is usually applied to analysis against objective baselines, such as schedules and budget. Once identified, different analytical tools, such as those described below, can be applied to understand the variance.

Trend Analysis

While a variance report provides a picture of one point in time, a trend analysis examines data from different points in time to determine if a variance is an isolated event or if it is part of a longer trend. By establishing the direction and degree of change over time, the trend analysis can also be used to forecast future conditions, such as the ability of an initiative to meet its objectives. Both trend analysis and forecasting can be performed within software applications. Trend analyses are important tools in discovering recurring peaks or troughs in an activity. For example, HR can use trend analysis to identify the most appropriate times to conduct campus job fairs by tracking the results from events held at different times over multiple years.

Cultural stereotypes.

While certain words are used to describe cultural value dimensions and characteristics, these words should not be judgmental or contain negative connotations.

Job description

Written description of a job and its essential functions and requirements, including tasks, knowledge, skills, abilities, responsibilities, and reporting structure.

Job specifications

Written statement of the minimum qualifications necessary to perform a job.

Reliability

reflects the ability of a data-gathering instrument or tool, such as a survey or a rater's observation or a physical measurement, to provide results that are consistent.

For each pay grade

an organization creates a pay range that sets the upper and lower limits of compensation for employees whose jobs fit within that particular grade.

Red-circle rates

are employee pay rates above the range maximum.

benefits

are tangible payments or services provided to broad groups of employees to cover issues such as retirement, private health coverage, sick pay/disability schemes, life insurance, and paid time off. Benefits programs are designed to reward continued employment, promote loyalty, and enable employees to live healthier, less worrisome lives.

Pay grades

are used to group jobs that have approximately the same relative worth in an organization. All jobs within a particular grade are paid the same rate or within the same pay range.

What cultural layer is exemplified by the pasta dishes that are unique to Italy?

artifacts and produces

Common law

based on legal precedent: Each case is considered in terms of how it relates to judicial decisions that have already been made. Common law evolves through judicial decisions over time. Some common laws have been codified, as in the Uniform Commercial Code in the United States, which is applied to commercial transactions.

Religious law

based on religious beliefs and conventions: a mixture of written codes and interpretations by religious scholars. Most world religions have their own bodies of laws and legal processes. For example, there are Sharia (Islam), canon law (Christianity), the Halakha (Judaism), and others.

An HR manager wants to detect a correlation between possession of a certain type of degree and job performance ratings. What type of analysis would help?

regression analysis

Task conflict

can sometimes lead to discovering better ways to do things—more efficient approaches that save time and resources or more innovative approaches that produce better results.

Which system of law is the most prevalent in the world?

civil law

What are the three main types of world legal systems?

civil, common, religious

Remuneration surveys

collect information on prevailing market compensation and benefits practices, including starting wage rates, base pay, pay ranges, other statutory and market cash payments (e.g., overtime pay and shift differentials), variable compensation (e.g., short- and long-term incentive plans), and time off (vacation and holiday practices).

Broadbanding (salary bands)

combines two or more salary grades to create larger ranges and give people wide latitude to move within their job without outgrowing the pay scale. Broadbanding has been successfully implemented in large, hierarchical organizations that have attempted to flatten their structure and remove levels of management. For example, organizations that had eight levels of management could eliminate four levels, widen the salary ranges of the remaining four levels, and simply slot each manager into one of those ranges.

Which world legal system is based primarily on legal precedent?

common law

Quantitative data

consists of objective measurements that can be verified and used in statistical analysis—for example, the number of employees in an organization, the number of female employees in the organization, or the average number of hires each quarter.

Due process

critical component of the rule of law, is the concept that laws are enforced only through accepted, codified procedures, thereby avoiding unfair or arbitrary action by a country's government and restraining that government—or branches of government or individual officials—from abusing their power over citizens and entities doing business there.

Pay compression, or salary compression,

describes situations where there is only a small difference in pay between employees regardless of their experience, skills, level, or seniority.

Job evaluation (also called job valuation)

determines the value and price of a job in order to place and compare it within an organization as well as attract and retain employees in a competitive environment. It is a key component of an organization's remuneration program. Job evaluation supports the need for the total rewards strategy to further the organization's strategic objectives.

What is the term for the concept that laws are to be enforced only through accepted, codified procedures?

due process

In single-rate pay or flat-rate pay systems

each incumbent of a job has the same rate of pay, regardless of performance or seniority. This flat rate is often set to correspond to target market survey data relating to the job.

person-based pay

employee characteristics, rather than how the job is performed, determine pay. In such systems, two employees may perform similar tasks, but the person with superior knowledge or skill mastery receives more pay.

How would Hofsteade label a culture that is nurturing, empathetic, and oriented toward quality of life and that strives for consensus?

high feminine

Strategic management

includes the actions that leaders take to move their organizations toward the goals set in strategic planning and to create value for all stakeholders.

Qualitative data

involves a subjective evaluation of actions, feelings, or behaviors. Measurements can be made by a third-party observer (e.g., an audit of HR's compliance with compensation laws that rates performance as excellent, acceptable, or poor).

Job ranking

involves establishing a hierarchy of jobs from lowest to highest based on each job's overall value to the organization. Ranking evaluates the whole job, rather than parts of it, and compares one job to another.

point-factor system

is a form of quantitative evaluation. It is the most commonly used method of job evaluation. The compensable factors chosen for the evaluation must reflect the nature of the job being evaluated. For example, hazards and working environment would be pertinent factors in a manufacturing setting but not as relevant in most office jobs.

In the United States, a bona fide occupational qualification (BFOQ)

is a legitimate job criterion that employers can legally and permissibly use to hire a foreigner (e.g., bring an expatriate into a country for a job). Employers who use the BFOQ defense must prove that all or substantially all local employees cannot perform the key duties and responsibilities required by the job position.

cost-of-living adjustment (COLA)

is a pay adjustment given to all eligible employees without regard to organizational profitability, employee productivity, or other performance factors. The purpose of a cost-of-living increase is to protect the employees' purchasing power against rising inflation. These increases are typically an equal hourly increase or a percentage of the employee's current pay. COLA payments are sometimes paid as a lump sum, either quarterly or at some other specified time.

compensation philosophy

is a short (but broad) statement documenting the organization's guiding principles and core values about employee compensation. Ideally, development of the compensation philosophy should precede development of the total rewards strategy, because the philosophy essentially serves as a mission statement that informs the organization's compensation strategies.

Job analysis

is a systematic study of jobs to determine what activities (tasks) and responsibilities they include, the personal qualifications necessary for performance of the jobs, and the conditions under which the work is performed. It results in a written statement of the tasks performed in the job and the necessary qualifications of the job incumbent—education level, experience, training, skills, and so forth.

A strategy

is essentially a plan of action for accomplishing an organization's long-range goals to create value. The strategy details separate activities (tactics or initiatives) that must be coordinated over time. The strategy must look both inward, toward the strengths and vulnerabilities of the organization, and outward, toward possible external influences, opportunities, and obstacles. Growth is not a strategy but the result of a successfully designed and implemented strategy.

general pay increase

is given to all employees (or sometimes a class of employees such as office or production workers) based on local competitive market requirements. This type of increase is awarded regardless of employee performance. The pay increase is not linked to the cost of living and will depend on the employer's ability to pay for compensation increases.

Validity

is the ability of an instrument to measure what it is intended to measure. Validation answers two questions: What does the instrument measure? How well does the instrument measure it?

The arithmetic average, or mean

is the average score or value. It is typically calculated in one of two ways: unweighted (or raw) and weighted.

The median, or 50th percentile,

is the middle value in a range of values. The median is the preferred measure of central tendency when the distribution in a dataset is skewed—when it contains a few excessively high or low values. It is also used in frequency distributions, which are described below.

The mode

is the most frequently occurring value in a set of data.

Strategic planning

is the process of setting goals and designing a path toward a competitive position. The strategic plan helps create alignment of efforts and provides a layer of control.

The unweighted mean, or raw average

is the sum of all the values in the sample divided by the number of values. This is useful when all the values are relatively close together and when they represent volume, as opposed to numerical order or numerical preference.

Incentive pay

is used to motivate employees to perform at a higher level by paying for performance that exceeds base-pay expectations. Incentive compensation programs stem from the theory that rewards drive behavior. Although sales-based commissions are perhaps the most well-known example of incentive compensation, the arrangement is common at every organizational level—from the lowest to the highest organizational levels.

The weighted mean, or weighted average

is used when some data in the dataset have more significance or effect than other data. In the salary example, there are two challenges in relying on an unweighted average for a better picture of salaries across the organization.

What is the term for the right of a legal body to exert authority over a given geographical territory, subject matter, or persons or institutions?

jurisdiction

In the contingency theory of leadership, what is the term for the degree of confidence, trust, and respect that followers have in their leader?

leader-member relations

Which trait is not desirable in a leader in any culture?

loner

paired-comparison method

may be used in which each job is compared with every other job being evaluated. The job with the largest number of "greater than" rankings is the highest-ranked job, and so on. A matrix is used to compare all possible pairs of jobs.

job classification

method writes descriptions for each class of jobs. Individual jobs are then put into the grade that best matches their class description, based on the judgment of the evaluator. There are a few disadvantages to this nonquantitative method:

aged

movement in market rates is used to adjust outdated data. For example, assume that pay movement or pay increases are averaging 3% a year. If we use a salary data point from a source with an effective date of one year ago, we would increase that number by 3% to account for the movement of salaries through time.

What is the process where two or more parties work together to reach an agreement on a matter?

negotiation

productivity-based pay system

pay is determined by the employee's output.

Green-circle

rates are the opposite of red-circle rates—an employee's pay is below the minimum of the range.

Interpersonal conflicts

sometimes be disguised as task conflicts. Because the real issues are not being resolved, the conflict may linger and distract teams from important work. Interpersonal conflicts require that at least one of the parties in the conflict has emotional intelligence and skill in negotiating. Or they require the intervention of a leader who can impose ground rules for behavior and refocus the team on the task.

Civil law

system based on written codes approved by legislative bodies. In some instances, governments implement regulations to enforce laws. The civil law concept is probably the most prevalent form of law in the world. It is found throughout Europe and in much of Asia, Africa, and Latin America.

With a straight piece-rate system

the employee receives a base wage rate and is awarded additional compensation for the amount of output produced. Example: An employee earns minimum wage plus 10¢ per item produced.

With a differential piece-rate system

the employee receives one piece rate up to the standard and then a higher rate once the standard has been exceeded. Example: An employee may be paid $8/hour plus 10¢ for each item up to 200, 11¢ for each item from 201 to 500, and 15¢ for each item over 500. If the employee worked a 40-hour week and made 1,000 items, the base pay would be $448.

time-based step-rate pay system

the employee's pay rate is based on longevity in the job. Pay increases occur on a pre-determined schedule.

performance-based pay system

the individual employee's performance on the job is the basis for the amount and timing of pay increases. A performance-based pay system is commonly called merit pay or pay for performance

principled negotiation

the negotiators aim for mutual gain, applying a process developed by Roger Fisher and William Ury called interest-based relational negotiating or integrative bargaining. Fisher and Ury emphasize the need to focus on the problem instead of personal differences and on mutually beneficial outcomes rather than hard positions.

job-content-based job evaluation

the relative worth and the pay structure of different jobs are based on an assessment of their content (e.g., responsibilities and requirements) and their relationship to other jobs within the organization. More simplistic internal job evaluation approaches address how jobs are broken down into and assessed by their different elements or factors (decision-making relationships).

market-based job evaluation

the relative worth and the pay structure of different jobs are based on their market value or the going rate in the marketplace. For this reason, the method is sometimes simply referred to as "market pricing." Job content or internal job relationships may also be taken into account, but these are typically secondary considerations.

Seniority

the time spent in an organization—is sometimes the basis for pay adjustments. Organizations may agree to one of these two conditions when seniority is used: Employees may need to be employed for a certain period of time before they are eligible for pay increases. Employees may receive pay increases automatically after a set time in the job.

In analyzing salary survey data, which measure could be used to evaluate the number of incumbents and salary?

weighted average