Human Resources 1

high performance work system

An organization in which technology, organizational structure, people, and processes work together seamlessly to give an organization an advantage in the competitive environment.

Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)

labor department agency responsible for inspecting employers, applying safety and health standards, and levying fines for violations

technic of operations review (TOR)

method of promoting safety by determining which specific element of a job led to a past accident

alternative work arrangements

methods of staffing other than the traditional hiring of full time employees (for example, the use of independent contractors, on-call workers, temporary workers, and contract company workers)

offshoring

moving operations from the country where a company is headquartered to a country where pay rates are low but the necessary skills are available

leading indicators

objective measures that accurately predict future labor demands

referrals

people who apply for a vacancy because someone in the organization prompted them to do so

direct applicants

people who apply for a vacancy without prompting from the organization

due-process policies

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

multiple hurdle model

process of arriving at a selection decision by eliminating some candidates at each stage of the selection process

compensatory model

process of arriving at a selection decision in which a very high score on one type of assessment can make up for a low score on another

concurrent validation

research that consists of administering a test to people who currently hold a job, then comparing their scores to existing measures of job performance

predictive validation

research that uses the test scores of all applicants and looks for a relationship between the scores and future performance of the applicants who were hired

four-fifths rule

rule of thumb that finds evidence of potential discrimination if an organization's hiring rate for a minority group is less than four-fifths the hiring rate for the majority group

job hazard analysis technique

safety promotion technique that involves breaking down a job into basic elements, then rating each element for its potential for harm or injury

panel interview

selection interview in which several members of the organization meet to interview each candidate

right-to-know laws

state laws that require employers to provide employees with information about the health risks associated with exposure to substances considered hazardous

self service

system in which employees have online access to information about HR issues and go online to enroll themselves in programs and provide feedback through surveys

cognitive ability tests

tests designed to measure such mental abilities as verbal skills, quantitative skills, and reasoning abilities

aptitude tests

tests that assess how well a person can learn or acquire skills and abilities

achievement tests

tests that measure a person's existing knowledge and skills

EEO-1 report

the EEOC's Employer Information Report, which details the number of women and minorities employed in nine different job categories

development

the acquisition of skills, knowledge, and behavior that improve an employees ability to meet changes in job responsibilities and customer demands

Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP)

the agency responsible for enforcing the executive orders that cover companies doing business with the federal government

teamwork

the assignment of work to groups of employees with various skills who interact to assemble a product or provide a service

forecasting

the attempts to determine the supply of and demand for various types of human resources to predict areas within the organization where there will be labor shortages or surpluses

equal employment opportunity (EEO)

the condition in which all individuals have an equal chance for employment, regardless of their race, color, religion, sex, age, disability, or national origin

parent country

the country in which an organizations headquarters is located

reliability

the extent to which a measurement is from random error

validity

the extent to which performance on a measure (such as a test score) is related to what the measure is designed to assess (such as job performance)

utility

the extent to which something provides economic value greater than its costs

ethics

the fundamental principles of right and wrong

stakeholders

the parties with an interest in the company's success (typically, shareholders, the community, customers, and employees)

downsizing

the planned elimination of large numbers of personnel with the goal of enhancing the organization's competitiveness

human resource management

the policies, practices, and systems that influence employees' behavior, attitudes, and performance

nepotism

the practice of hiring relatives

selection

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

work flow design

the process of analyzing the tasks necessary for the production of a product or service

job postings

the process of communicating information about a job vacancy on company bulletin boards, in employee publications, on corporate intranets, and anywhere else the organization communicates with employees

job design

the process of defining how work will be performed and what tasks will be required in a given job

job analysis

the process of getting detailed information about jobs

repatriation

the process of preparing expatriates to return home from a forein assignment

performance management

the process through which managers ensure that employees' activities and outputs contribute to the organization's goals.

personnel selection

the process through which organizations make decisions about who will or will not be allowed to join the organizational

recruitment

the process through which the organization seeks applicants for potential employment

electronic human resource management (e-HRM)

the processing and transmission of digitized HR information, especially using computer networking and the Internet

position

the set of duties (job) performed by a particular person

industrial engineering

the study of jobs to find the simplest way to structure work in order to maximize efficiency

ergonomics

the study of the interface between individuals' physiology and the characteristics of the physical work environment

workforce analyitics

the use of quantitative tools and scientific methods to analyze data from human resource databases and other source to make evidence-based decisions that support business goals

cross-cultural preparation

training to prepare employees and their family members for an assignment in a foreign country

transnational HRM system

type of HRM system that makes decisions from a global perspective, includes managers from many countries, and is based on ideas contributed by people representing a variety of cultures

sexual harassment

unwelcome sexual advances as defined by the EEOC

generalizable

valid in other contexts beyond the context in which the selection method was developed

Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act)

U.S. law authorizing the federal government to establish and enforce occupational safety and health standards for all places of employment engaging in interstate commerce

transtitional matrix

a chart that lists job categories held in one period and shows the proportion of employees in each of those categories in a future period

total quality management (TQM)

a company wide effort to continuously improve the way people, systems, and machines accomplish work

workforce utilization review

a comparison of the proportion of employees in protected groups with the proportion that each group represents in the relevant labor market

reengineering

a complete review of the organization's critical work processes to make them more efficient and able to deliver higher quality.

human resource information system (HRIS)

a computer system used to acquire, store, manipulate, analyze, retrieve, and distribute information related to an organizations human resources.

disparate impact

a condition in which employment practices are seeming natural yet disproportionately exclude a protected group from employment opportunities

host country

a country (other than the parent country) in which an organization operates a facility

third country

a country that is neither the parent country nor the host country of an employer

psychological contract

a description of what an employee expects to contribute in an employment relationship and what the employer will provide the employee in exchange for those contributions

job description

a list of tasks, duties, and responsibilities (TDRs) that a particular job entails

job specification

a list of the knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics (KSAOs) that an individual must have to perform a particular job

criterion-related validity

a measure of validity based on showing a substantial correlation between test scores and job performance scores

global organization

an organization that chooses to locate a facility based on the ability to effectively, efficiently, and flexibly produce a product or service, using cultural differences as an advantage

international organization

an organization that sets up one or a few facilities in one or a few foreign countries

sustainability

an organization's ability to profit without depleting its resources, including employees, natural resources, and the support of the surrounding community

affirmative action

an organizations active effort to find opportunities to hire or promote people in a particular group

human capital

an organizations employees, described in terms of their training, experience, judgement, intelligence, relationships, and insights. advantage in the competitive environment

training

an organizations planned efforts to help employees acquire job-related knowledge, skills, abilities, and behaviors, with the goal of applying these on the job

internal work force

an organizations workers (its employees and the people who have contracts to work at the organizations)

recruiting

any activity carried on by the organization with the primary purpose of identifying and attracting potential employees

realistic job preview

background information about a job's positive and negative qualities

job enlargement

broadening the types of tasks performed in a job

evidence based HR

collecting and using data to show that human resources have a positive influence on the company's bottom line and the stakeholders

construct validity

consistency between a high score on a test and high level of a construct such as intelligence or leadership ability, as well as between mastery of this construct and successful performance of the job

content validity

consistency between the test items or problems and the kinds of situation or problems that occur on the job

trend analysis

constructing and applying statistical models that predict labor demand for the next year, given relatively objective statistics from the previous year

outsourcing

contracting with another organization (vendor, third-party provider, or consultant) to provide services

disparate treatment

differing treatment for individuals, where the differences are based on the individuals' race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age or disability status

culture shock

disillusionment and discomfort that occur during the process of adjusting to a new culture

expatriates

employees assigned to work in another country

knowledge workers

employees whose main contributions is specialized knowledge, such as knowledge of customers, a process, or a profession.

employment at will

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

job enrichment

empowering workers by adding more decision-making authority to jobs

job extension

enlarging jobs by combing several relatively simple jobs to form a job with a wider range of tasks

job rotation

enlarging jobs by moving employees among several different jobs

material safety data sheets (MSDSs)

forms on which chemical manufacturers and importers identify the hazards of their chemicals

employee empowerment

giving employees responsibility and authority to make decisions regarding all aspects of product development or customer service

uniform guidelines on employee selection procedures

guidelines issued by the EEOC and other agencies to identify how an organization should develop and administer its system for selecting employees so as not to violate antidiscrimination laws

human resource planning

identifying the numbers and types of employees the organization will require in order to meet its objectives

external labor market

individuals who are actively seeking employement

Fleishman Job Analysis System

job analysis technique that asks subject-matter experts to evaluate a job in terms of the abilities required to perform the job

bone fide occupational qualification (BOFQ)

a necessary (not merely preferred) qualification for performing a job

disability

a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more life activity, a record of having such an impairment, or being regarded as having such an impairment

yield ratio

a ratio that expresses the percentage of applicants who successfully move from one stage of the recruitment and selection process to the next

flextime

a scheduling policy in which full-time employees may choose starting and ending times within guidelines specified by the organization

nondirective interview

a selection interview in which the interviewer has great discretion in choosing questions to ask each candidate

structured interview

a selection interview that consists of a predetermined set of questions for the interviewer to ask

core competency

a set of knowledges and skills that make the organization superior to competitors and create value for customers

job

a set of related duties

Position Analysis Questionnaire (PAQ)

a standard job analysis questionnaire containing 194 questions about work behaviors, work conditions, and job characteristics that apply to a wide variety of jobs

behavior description interview (BDI)

a structured interview in which the interviewer asks the candidate to describe how he or she handled a type of situation in the past

situational interview

a structured interview in which the interviewer describes a situation likely to arise on the job, then asks the candidate what he or she would do in that situaiton

talent management

a systematic, planned effort to attract, retain, develop, and motivate highly skilled managers and employees

assessment center

a wide variety of specific selection programs that use multiple selection methods to rate applicants or job incumbents on their management potential

job sharing

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

equal employment opportunity commission (EEOC)

agency of the department of justice charged with enforcing Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and other antidiscrimination laws

competence

an area of personal capability that enables employees to perform their work successfully

reasonable accommodation

an employers obligation to do something to enable an otherwise qualified person to perform a job

multinational company

an organization that builds facilities in a number of different countries in an effort to minimize production and distribution costs