Analytical Aptitude Quizzes
HR seeks employee volunteers to compare two possible wellness programs. Their responses will be aggregated and analyzed to make a recommendation to senior management. How would you assess this critical analysis? Answers The sampling approach is flawed. The sample group is too small. The assessment tools the volunteers use will be unreliable. The program assessment tools cannot be validated.
The sampling approach is flawed. Rationale The problem with this approach is that employees have volunteered. This may attract participants who are not neutral about the program. A better approach would be to invite a randomly selected group of employees to participate and offer some nominal reward. Sample size would depend on the size of the workforce, which is not indicated here. Assessment tools and training in using them can improve reliability in ratings. The tools themselves can be validated by experienced HR staff.
What is the mode of the salary values $50,000, $50,000, $45,000, $70,000, and $65,000? Answers 45,000 50,000 54,000 59,000
50,000 Rationale The mode is the value that occurs most frequently in a data set. In this case, the mode is $50,000.
Refer to the following scenario for the next 4 questions. During an accident investigation, an HR manager determines that the injured employee could not read the safety data sheet (SDS). The manager reviews the company's training database and discovers that 10% to 15% of the current employees possess poor reading comprehension and cannot read the lockout/tagout (LOTO) procedures for machinery or the MSDS for hazardous chemicals. Upon further investigation, the HR manager learns that these employees regularly ask coworkers for assistance with LOTO and MSDS. Fortunately the company has not had a major catastrophic injury or death related to these areas, although a review of historic data on employee injury rates indicates a high percentage of minor injuries involving chemical burns and skin abrasions. These injuries have resulted in a higher-than-average experience modification rate that has adversely impacted the company's workers' compensation insurance premiums. The HR manager decides to develop a reading literacy program to provide coaching and tutoring to raise the reading and comprehension levels for all employees, soliciting a local educational institution to develop these reading courses. Which criteria should the HR manager use to justify the proposed reading improvement program? Answers A. Comparison of on-the-job injury rates for employees whose reading levels are below the national average to the rates for employees at or above the national average. B. Comparison of cost-per-accident rate for employees whose reading levels are below the national average to the rate for employees at or above the national average. C. Comparison of average age of employees whose reading levels are below the national average to the age of employees at or above the national average. D. Comparison of annual performance evaluation data for employees whose reading levels are below the national average to those at or above the national average. Which additional benefit could the company gain from successful implementation of the reading program? Answers A. The company could use this initiative to improve its employee brand and corporate social responsibility. B. This could result in better communication between employees and management. C. With positive reactions to the training, the company could institute additional employee improvement programs. D. It could result in greater performance output per employee and higher levels of engagement. After consideration and budget approval from the CEO and the CFO, what is the first step the HR manager should take to introduce the reading program to company employees? Answers A. Send an e-mail to all supervisors requesting that all of their employees plan to attend the company reading improvement program. B. Form a small pilot group of employees, including employees with a reading level below the national average, and test the program. C. Post an announcement in the break-room that a reading improvement program is available to any employee who cannot read. D. Send an e-mail to all employees announcing that a reading improvement program is available for any employee who cannot read. How should the HR manager evaluate the effectiveness of the program? Answers A. Ask participants if they are enjoying the program and if they are improving their reading skills. B. Ask colleagues if the employees in the program are still asking as many questions about instructions. C. Track the quarterly accident reports to see if they have decreased since the training began. D. Ask managers for their feedback as to whether their employees' morale has improved.
A. Comparison of on-the-job injury rates for employees whose reading levels are below the national average to the rates for employees at or above the national average. A. The company could use this initiative to improve its employee brand and corporate social responsibility. B. Form a small pilot group of employees, including employees with a reading level below the national average, and test the program. C. Track the quarterly accident reports to see if they have decreased since the training began.
Which approach describes the form of data gathering in which experts take turns presenting their assumptions and refining a composite answer but never meet face-to-face? Answers Delphi technique Nominal group technique Managerial estimates Trend analysis
Delphi technique Rationale In the Delphi technique, members work as a group without ever meeting. Managerial estimates and trend analysis are generally completed by individuals and presented to management. The nominal group technique requires face-to-face meetings.
What is the first step in evidence-based decision making (EBDM)? Answers Identifying good, and reliable sources of data Looking for logical connections among the gathered data Verifying the value of the activity to the organization Phrasing the problem in the form of a question to be answered
Phrasing the problem in the form of a question to be answered Rationale The first step in EBDM is to ask the question that will guide the subsequent search for relevant data. What problem are we trying to solve?
What data analysis tool should be used to show the relationship between employees' formal education and job performance ratings? Answers Pareto chart Pie chart Scatter diagram Trend analysis
Scatter diagram Rationale Scatter diagrams are used to show relationships between two variables-in this case, education level and performance rating.
Refer to the following scenario for the next 4 questions. An HR manager is asked by the Vice President of HR to define and implement a simulation-based assessment center that uses specially trained observers to rate each candidate's performance. The need is to assess which employees have potential for promotion into management. The VP of HR is familiar with this practice, having used the technique in a prior company, and she sees the assessment center as a best practice innovation. The VP of HR is new and comes from a large but entirely domestic organization with an aging workforce. Her new company is a global organization with eight operations located around the world. It is highly diverse in terms of ethnicity, and the average worker is probably 15 to 20 years younger than the VP of HR is used to. In researching methodologies, the HR manager stumbles onto an online assessment system that requires no trainers and raters, takes 75% less time to complete than the assessment center process, and has higher validity and reliability as an assessment technique. What should the HR manager do with the information they have uncovered? Answers A. Create a business case including cost-benefit analyses of both options. B. Forward materials about the online option to the VP of HR and let them make their own decision. C. Put it aside as an option that is not viable now but should be researched and tested further. D. Move forward with option that the HR manager deems to be the best. The VP of HR has already indicated a preference for the assessment center approach, what would be the most effective way to reopen the options for this project? Answers A. The HR manager should lobby the other VPs to convince the VP of HR to consider other options. B. The HR manager should emphasize business needs met by the online assessment option that are not provided by the traditional method. C. The HR manager should urge the VP of HR to experience the online option by completing an online assessment herself. D. The HR manager should conduct a small pilot study on their own and present company-related data rather than the manufacturer's claims. What would be the best criteria to use in deciding whether to implement either or both assessment alternatives? Answers A. Validity in predicting success and accessibility to all qualified employees. B. Opinions from a few of the HR manager's colleagues who have used the system in their company. C. Cost-effectiveness and number of employees who can be assessed in each period. D. Acceptance by users and time required for assessment.
A. Create a business case including cost-benefit analyses of both options. B. The HR manager should emphasize business needs met by the online assessment option that are not provided by the traditional method. A. Validity in predicting success and accessibility to all qualified employees.
Refer to the following scenario for the next 4 questions. An HR vice president briefly reviews the company's employee performance scores and relevant compensation increases over the past four years. The data reveals a .7 correlation between performance scores and salary increases and a significance level of less than .05. Additionally, the HR VP finds that the use of personal days increases by 30% around the annual performance review time and production falls by 5%. Over the past three years, there has been a steady decline in profits and employee morale. Employees seem less engaged, and both the voluntary and involuntary turnover rates are currently 15 percentage points over the industry average. The senior team asks HR if there is any correlation between the performance scores, decreased production, and employee engagement. As the HR VP is conducting a cursory review of the current performance management system and analyzing the data to make recommendations, the CEO asks the HR VP to increase all salaries by 4%, citing the correlation between salaries and performance as a rationale. The next week, at the weekly management team meeting, one of the senior leaders states that at her previous company the employees were 80% engaged, and she suggests using the same number as an engagement benchmark. The CEO likes this number and asks the HR VP to put a plan in place to meet this engagement number. Another senior leader suggests to the HR VP that the company should prohibit the use of personal leave before, during, and after the review period. How should the HR VP respond to the CEO's request to use a benchmark figure of 80%? Answers A. Explain that all engagement surveys and organizations are not equal and additional research is needed before launching an engagement survey and establishing a benchmark. B. Have the HR department launch an engagement survey to all employees asking for their level of engagement so that an engagement benchmark can be established. C. Agree with the CEO's assessment that it is a good benchmark since there is external evidence to support it. D. Ask the managers for their perceptions as to why they believe employee engagement is low. Which recommendation should the HR VP make after conducting the review and analysis of the current performance management system? Answers A. Do nothing, since correlation does not imply causation. Recommend leaving the performance management system the way it is. B. Suggest a complete review of the performance management system due to perceived central tendency errors. C. Wait six months and then review the performance management system again to see if the data remains consistent. D. Eliminate the current performance appraisal process, since there is no correlation between performance scores and salary increases. How should the HR VP respond to the request to prohibit personal leave near the performance review time? Answers A. Agree that production is important and suggest an additional approval level to use leave before or after the review. B. Since production is important to the bottom line, agree and implement this as a policy. C. Agree, since the data indicates that eliminating personal days will solve the company's problem. D. Inform the leader that current turnover and production decreases are likely a systemic issue from low engagement and recommend not decreasing personal days. How should the HR VP respond to the CEO's request to increase all salaries by 4%? Answers A. Agree, since the data reveals causation. B. Agree with the CEO to implement salary increases, since it is believed that employee engagement and salary increases are correlated with performance. C. Inform the CEO that while increasing salaries may have a short-term impact on employee performance, the HR VP cannot guarantee longer performance improvements with a salary increase. D. Agree with the CEO in regard to the strong correlation; however, since the data does not reveal causation, more research and discussion would be needed prior to increasing everybody's salary.
A. Explain that all engagement surveys and organizations are not equal and additional research is needed before launching an engagement survey and establishing a benchmark. B. Suggest a complete review of the performance management system due to perceived central tendency errors. D. Inform the leader that current turnover and production decreases are likely a systemic issue from low engagement and recommend not decreasing personal days. D. Agree with the CEO in regard to the strong correlation; however, since the data does not reveal causation, more research and discussion would be needed prior to increasing everybody's salary.
Scenario A restaurant chain located in multiple regions with thousands of employees makes a policy change in its payment procedures. The new policy requires servers at sit-down restaurants to take table orders from patrons and collect payment before the meal is brought to the table instead of after the food is served and consumed. A few months after implementation, several customers file complaints of unfair treatment, alleging that servers are being selective and not all guests are asked to pay for their meal immediately after the order is placed. An investigation by the VP of HR reveals that indeed not all employees are following the new protocol, resulting in different service experiences. The VP of HR identifies a critical, immediate need for training to mitigate risk related to any future allegations of unfair treatment of guests. The company's president is in agreement with the idea. However, she will support only a limited financial contribution for the training. The VP of HR shares the purpose of the training, the time line, and key deliverables during an HR team meeting. The team expresses concerns about the nonnegotiable, short time frame, the total number of employees to be trained, and the impact on other initiatives in progress. Which metrics should the VP of HR share to demonstrate the impact of the training on company goals? Answers A. Number of complaints received B. Completed checklists and questionnaires C. Pre- and post-test scores D. Performance tests
A. Number of complaints received
Refer to the following scenario for the next 3 questions. A newly hired HR director of a small nonprofit organization notices that the organization is lacking a comprehensive compensation philosophy and salary rate structure. New hires routinely receive higher pay than more-senior employees. The organization does not have a performance management process, and not all employees receive yearly salary increases. The CEO is concerned that the organization will lose quality staff without a strategic focus on its employees, and she tasks the HR director with designing and implementing a performance management model for the organization. What should the HR director do to ensure that the organization's job descriptions are accurate? Answers A. Perform a job analysis to identify the activities, tasks, and responsibilities of each position in the organization. B. Review current job descriptions to identify missing and inaccurate information. C. Conduct focus groups with employees to discuss how the job descriptions align with their work. D. Benchmark the organization's job descriptions against the job descriptions used by similar organizations. An employee submits a complaint to the HR director stating that he has not received a pay raise in two years because of a physical disability. How should the HR director respond to the complaint? Answers A. Analyze salary increase history for all employees in that department. B. Obtain market-based pay information for comparable nonprofit positions to confirm if the salary is similar. C. Ask the employee if the manager is aware of the disability. D. Request that the employee document past accomplishments. The CEO decides to implement 360-degree performance assessments for the upcoming year. What should the HR director do to ensure buy-in for this effort? Answers A. Arrange training sessions for managers and employees. B. Host an organization-wide meeting for employees to ask questions about the assessments. C. Conduct simulations where managers and employees practice giving and receiving feedback. D. E-mail the performance assessment criteria to all employees so they understand how they will be evaluated.
A. Perform a job analysis to identify the activities, tasks, and responsibilities of each position in the organization. A. Analyze salary increase history for all employees in that department. A. Arrange training sessions for managers and employees.
Refer to the following scenario for the next 4 questions. A company has four full-time sales employees who receive a base salary, a 10% commission on new sales to existing clients, and a 30% commission on new sales to new clients. One sales employee has an existing, established territory. The clients were established prior to the salesperson's employment, and sales to these clients are strong and consistent, providing an excellent income for the employee. This employee makes no effort for new sales due to satisfaction with the current income level. The other three sales employees are in new territories and work hard to make sales. Their income levels are lower than that of the first sales employee. Management believes that the current sales compensation structure is unfair and that the first sales employee is overpaid in comparison to the others. Additionally, the current structure does not provide any incentive for the first sales employee to obtain new clients. Management has requested the HR director to reduce the first sales employee's compensation to be consistent with that of the other three sales employees. Which action should the HR director take regarding the compensation structure? Answers A. Explain to management that changing the current system can impact morale and employees might leave. B. Conduct a round-table interview with the sales employees to ask their opinion about the current system. C. Compare the current structure to the organizational strategy to evaluate alignment. D. Conduct an assessment of the current compensation system to determine if it meets the needs of employees. Which action should the HR director take to make sure that the sales compensation structure is internally and externally equitable? Answers A. Use valid external wage information and the organization's strategy to develop a structure that compensates employees for performance. B. Contact other organizations in the same geographic region and ask about their salary structure for sales employees. C. Purchase three external wage surveys and ask management and the employees to decide what is equitable. D. Use external wage information to recommend a commission-only compensation structure that is aligned with industry standards. Which action should the HR director take if management is interested in exploring other compensation systems? Answers A. Hire a compensation consultant to design a number of different systems for management to choose from. B. Analyze, evaluate, and price the jobs to compare how various compensation systems align with the organization's strategy. C. Explain the difference between a salary structure and a commission structure and recommend that the structure be changed to commission-only. D. Contact an outside vendor that specializes in compensation structures and have someone speak to management about the various systems. Management recommends that the first sales employee be paid a straight salary, since the employee is not generating new sales from new clients. What action should the HR director take to address this recommendation? Answers A. Conduct a meeting with the sales team to invite their input into management's recommendation. B. Agree with management's recommendation and change the employee to a straight salary. C. Explain how their recommendation might make the employee feel singled out and disengaged. D. Share an analysis of the benefits of a commission structure aligned with business goals in comparison with their recommendation.
C. Compare the current structure to the organizational strategy to evaluate alignment. A. Use valid external wage information and the organization's strategy to develop a structure that compensates employees for performance. B. Analyze, evaluate, and price the jobs to compare how various compensation systems align with the organization's strategy. D. Share an analysis of the benefits of a commission structure aligned with business goals in comparison with their recommendation.
How do HR analytics differ from HR metrics? Answers HR analytics provide context to data. HR metrics interpret captured data. HR metrics correlate multiple data. HR analytics record linear data.
HR analytics provide context to data. Rationale Analytics convert a metric into a decision support tool by adding context. HR measures collect and tabulate data. HR objectives and strategies stem from analytics.
An analyst predicts a total number of voluntary and involuntary separations over the next year and gives the report a statistical rating of P50. What does this mean? Answers Half of the forecasts will be above the reported number and half will be below. The simulation was repeated 50 times to test its accuracy. The analyst is not very confident in the number's accuracy. The sample size was half of the total workforce size at the time of analysis.
Half of the forecasts will be above the reported number and half will be below. Rationale P50 indicates that an estimate lies in the middle of a range: half are higher and half lower.
