HR management Ch 1-2 Quiz

In what way does the cost leadership strategy provide competitive​ advantage? A. By generating increased profits B. Through lower costs C. By creating a steady revenue stream D. Through increased creativity E. By eliminating mergers and acquisitions

B

Skill​ variety, task​ identity, and task significance are all linked to the​ ________ of work. A. ease B. meaningfullness C. existence D. duration E. absence

B

When a company selects the prospector business​ strategy, which of the following organizational structures is it likely to​ choose? A. Work specialization B. Flat C. Bureaucratic D. ​Top-down E. Flexible

B

When compared to other job​ types, the​ ________ of HR specialists has increased at a faster rate. A. vacation time B. compensation C. quit rate D. efficiency E. effectiveness

B

Which of the following environmental challenge results in a firm experiencing high pressure to become more productive and deal with very short product life​ cycles? A. Workforce diversity B. Rapid change C. Globalization D. The rise of the Internet E. Evolving work and family roles

B

Which of the following is a small number of people with complementary skills who work toward common goals for which they hold themselves mutually​ accountable? A. Core B. Team C. Coordinators D. Supervisors E. Work group

B

Which of the following theories suggests that​ employees' goals help to explain motivation and job​ performance? A. Job characteristics B. ​Goal-setting C. ​Work-adjustment D. ​Two-factor E. Human motivation

B

________ can be defined as that which​ energizes, directs, and sustains human behavior. A. Responsibility B. Motivation C. Knowledge D. Task identity E. Work adjustment theory

B

How does differentiation create competitive​ advantage? A. By fostering brand loyalty B. By maximizing shelf layout C. By reducing marketing cost D. By creating better name recognition E. By eliminating cost leadership strategies

A

It is not always possible to know beforehand whether an HR department is meeting its objectives. What is the best way an HR department can make sure it is meeting its​ objectives? A. By conducting a periodic evaluation of HR programs B. Doing customer research on preferences and opinions C. By conducting employee surveys D. By holding public forums E. By holding stockholder meetings

A

The​ ________ team consists of volunteers from a unit or department who meet one or two hours per week to discuss quality​ improvement, cost​ reduction, or improvement in the work environment. A. ​problem-solving B. bureaucratic C. ​self-managed team D. ​special-purpose E. boundaryless

A

When a company adopts a defender business​ strategy, it is likely to choose a​ _____ organizational structures because of its​ top-down approach to management. A. bureaucratic B. ​bottom-up C. flat D. flexible E. boundaryless

A

When developing​ self-managed teams, what type of skill development will allow the team members to rotate among jobs as​ necessary? A. Technical B. Problem solving C. Administrative D. Interpersonal E. Leadership

A

Which of the following describes the balance between an​ individual's work and personal​ life? A. ​Work-life balance B. Opportunity cost C. ​Cost-benefit analysis D. Job specialization E. Leisure time

A

Which of the following groups of workers has​ full-time jobs and enjoys privileges not available to contingent​ workers? A. Core workers B. College interns C. Outsourced subcontractors D. Temp workers E. Contract workers

A

Which of the following has led to the trend of reducing the size of the human resource departments within​ organizations? A. The belief that line managers should be empowered to take ownership of HR decisions B. The decrease in laws and regulations that relate to the industry of human resources C. The increased unionization of workers who previously depended on HR for support D. Higher wages and better benefits that decrease the need for HR support E. The increased in attention to HR issues from executives and other senior leadership

A

Which of the following reflects a reason why the use of HR consultants has increased in recent​ years? A. The growth and complexity of government regulations B. The increased importance of offering​ family-friendly benefits C. The increase in unionization and other​ union-related activities D. The growth of professional certification firms such as SHRM E. The increase in globalization

A

Which of the following should be the focus of an HR​ audit? A. How effectively an organization is using its human resources B. To actively engage executives in the HR process C. The ability of HR to ensure legal compliance D. How much the HR department can save an organization over the course of a year E. The level of interaction between HR and other managers in the organization

A

Which of the following should companies do to maintain the security and privacy of HRIS​ records? A. Grant permission to access only on a​ need-to-know basis B. Provide passwords and special codes to managers only C. Avoid encrypting data until all employees review their personal information D. Avoid developing guidelines for utilization of employee information so as not to limit availability E. Require employees to file requests to verify and correct personal records

A

Which of the following theories suggests that​ employees' motivation levels and job satisfaction depend on the fit between their needs and abilities and the characteristics of the job and the​ organization? A. Work adjustment B. Human motivation C. ​Goal-setting D. Job characteristics E. ​Two-factor

A

​________ are responsible for producing an entire​ product, a​ component, or an ongoing service and often include​ cross-trained employees with a complex set of skills. A. ​Self-managed teams B. Job specialists C. Focus groups D. ​Supervisor-directed teams E. Task forces

A

Among the specialized HR subfields​ (such as executive​ trainers, corporate compensation​ directors, benefit​ directors, and corporate security​ managers), average salaries are a bit more than​ ________. A. ​$185,000 B. ​$54,000 C. ​$135,000 D. ​$246,000 E. ​$32,000

C

Because effectively dealing with HR issues are at the heart of being a good​ manager, many employers now delegate many traditional HR duties to​ _____. A. Human Resource executives B. ethics committees C. line managers D. division level managers E. functional areas of the organization

C

Developing strategies that offer the firm sustained​ ________ is a key HR challenge. A. unique features B. ability to handle change C. competitive advantage D. work flow E. emergent strategies

C

Some HR jobs have had sharply rising pay. This in part is due to increasing awareness by businesses that​ high-quality HR employees in a​ well-managed HR function can be a crucial part of a firm achieving​ a(n) ________. A. sustainable profit stream B. stronger corporate culture C. sustained competitive advantage D. increased production level E. environment of equal pay

C

The basic standards a job applicant must have achieved to be considered for the job are called​ _________. A. job experience B. job summary C. minimum qualifications D. identification information E. job specifications

C

The​ ________ team relies on interactive computer technologies such as the​ Internet, groupware, and​ computer-based videoconferencing to work together despite being separated by physical distance. A. ​supervisor-directed B. ​special-purpose C. virtual D. traditional E. ​problem-solving

C

What is the role of HR in terms of conducting employee​ evaluations? A. To help eliminate the need for performance evaluations B. To conduct the evaluations for managers C. To provide support to managers who conduct the evaluations D. To determine the amount of pay increases based on performance criteria E. To provide employee data on employee performance for managers

C

Which demographic is currently the​ fastest-growing segment of the​ workforce? A. Single women B. Those who begin a second career after retirement C. Women with children under the age of 6 D. ​College-educated men E. Men over the age of 50

C

________ is the process of organizing work into the tasks required to perform a specific job. A. Job specialization B. Job role C. Job design D. Job analysis E. Career development

C

________ workers are not likely to receive health​ insurance, retirement, or vacation benefits from the company that uses their services. A. Unskilled B. Service industry C. Temporary D. Core E. International

C

​________ are systems used to​ collect, record,​ store, analyze, and retrieve data concerning an​ organization's human resources. A. HR analytics B. Applicant tracking programs C. Human resource information systems D. Benefits application programs E. Employee assistance programs

C

A business will use​ ________ to help it better use its people to accomplish its mission and gain an edge against competitors. A. worldwide cultural norms B. a strategic goal C. industrial metamorphosis D. human resource strategy E. ethics

D

Because the number of​ _____________ is increasing every​ year, more companies are introducing​ "family-friendly" programs to create competitive advantage in the labor market. A. urban workers B. working women and minorities C. telecommuters D. ​dual-career families E. ​single-income families

D

Before implementing a new HR​ program, which of the following should be determined by asking if top management understands how the proposed programs are intended to affect the​ firm's strategic​ objectives? A. Who will put the HR programs in​ motion? B. Is top management visibly and emphatically committed to the proposed​ programs? C. Are the HR programs effective tools for implementing HR​ strategies? D. How will HR programs be​ communicated? E. Do the HR programs meet resource​ constraints?

D

By analyzing the people side of​ productivity, rather than depending solely on technical solutions to​ problems, businesses foster an effective partnership between​ ________ A. employees and shareholders B. employees and first line managers C. business and shareholders D. HR and managers E. managers and executives

D

In​ 2019, experienced HR directors earned approximately​ ________ a year on average. A. ​$89,000 B. ​$34,000 C. ​$52,000 D. ​$107,000 E. ​$67,000

D

Which of the following assumes that work can be broken down into​ simple, repetitive tasks that maximize​ efficiency? A. Job specialization B. Job performance C. Job enlargement D. Work simplification E. Job analysis

D

Which of the following theories states that employees will be more motivated to work and more satisfied with their jobs to the extent that jobs contain certain core conditions that allow employees to experience psychological states that are related to beneficial work​ outcomes? A. Human motivation B. ​Goal-setting C. ​Two-factor D. Job characteristics E. Work adjustment

D

​________ refers to the formal or informal relationships between people in an organization. A. Diversity B. Work specialization C. Work force D. Organizational structure E. Work flow

D

Corporations adopting​ a(n) ________ business strategy engage in aggressive acquisitions of new​ businesses, without regard for whether the acquisitions fit with existing businesses in the corporation. A. defender B. cost leader C. comprehensive D. differentiation E. evolutionary

E

There is significant debate related to the impact of certain HR practices. What issue is such debate most directly focused​ on? A. Corporate ethics B. Turnover rates C. Stock earnings D. Pay E. Firm performance

E

Which of the following do managers use to examine how work creates or adds value to the ongoing business​ processes? A. Core job characteristics B. Business process reengineering C. Quality control analysis D. Job enrichment E. ​Work-flow analysis

E

Which of the following does NOT represent core a job​ characteristic? A. Task significance B. Autonomy C. Skill variety D. Task identity E. Knowledge of results

E

Which of the following is defined as a process where organizations formulate HR strategies and establish programs or tactics to implement those​ strategies? A. HR auditing B. Competitive advantage C. Vision statement D. Management E. Strategic human resource planning

E

Which of the following is the goal of conducting an HR​ audit? A. To ascertain whether the turnover rate exceptionally low or high B. To determine if the firm is complying with government regulations C. To analyze why good people quit the company D. To recognize how well the company is managing employee diversity E. To determine how effectively a firm is using their human resources

E

Which of the following uses mathematical models to aid staffing decisions by predicting which job candidate is likely to be the best performing​ worker? A. Succession planning analytics B. Predictive analytics C. Applicant tracking software D. Skills inventory systems E. HR analytics

E

Which term expresses the belief that workers are a valuable—and sometimes irreplaceable—organizational ​resource? A. Global alliances B. Organizational culture C. Leadership D. Workforce diversity E. Human resources

E

Why is proactive activity in business preferable to reactive​ activity? A. Being reactive requires the participation of all line managers. B. Being proactive means responding to problems after the​ fact, whereas being reactive represents looking ahead and developing a vision. C. Being reactive means decisions are specifically tailored for​ service-sector businesses. D. Being proactive allows for the explicit communication of​ long-range goals. E. Being proactive means looking ahead and developing a​ vision, rather than responding to problems as they come up.

E

________ is the way work is organized to meet the​ organization's production or service goals. A. Organizational culture B. Teamwork C. Organizational structure D. Organizational behavior E. Work flow

E