HR Management Exam 2

Career Planning Workshop

A career planning workshop is a planned learning event in which participants are expected to be actively involved, completing career planning exercises and inventories and participating in career skills practice sessions.

Avoid the Middle

Avoid the Middle—the central tendency issue refers to a tendency to rate all employees as being about average, or in the middle. Such restrictions make evaluations less useful for promotion, salary, and counseling purposes.

Construct Validity

Construct validity is a test that is construct valid and is one that demonstrates that a selection procedure measures a construct and that construct is important for successful job performance

Content Validity

Content validity is a test that is content valid and is one in which the test contains a fair sample of the tasks and skills actually needed for the job in question.

Criterion validity

Criterion validity is a type of validity based on showing that scores on the test (predictors) are related to job performance (criterion).

Critical Incident Method

Critical Incident Method entails keeping an anecdotal record of good or undesirable examples of an employee's work-related behavior and reviewing it with the employee at predetermined times. Compiling incidents all year helps reduce supervisors' tendencies to focus unduly on just the last few weeks when appraising subordinates' performance.

Dismissal

Dismissal is the involuntary termination of an employee's employment with the firm.

4 Questions of an Employers Strategic Plan

Diversify? Integrate Vertically? Expand Geographically? What basis do we compete?

Don't be lenient or Strict

Don't be lenient or strict—some supervisors rate all their employees consistently high or low. One solution is to insist on ranking subordinates because that forces the supervisor to distinguish between high and low performance.

Employee Referrals

Employee referrals are an essential recruitment option. Employers will post openings and requests for referrals on its websites. A referral's big advantage is that it tends to generate more applicants, more hires, and a higher yield ratio.

How to Improve Online Recruiting Effectiveness

Employers can easily improve their online recruiting results. For example, most firms place employment information one click away from their home pages. Applicants can submit their resumes online at almost all Fortune 500 firms' websites.

Outside Sourcing of Candidates

Employment Agencies Temp Workers Referrals and Walk Ins College Recruiting

Forced Distribution Method

Forced Distribution Method involves the manager placing predetermined percentages of subordinates in performance categories (similar to a grade "curve"). An estimated 60% of Fortune 500 firms use some form of ranking. The advantages are that it 1) prevents supervisors from rating most employees "satisfactory" or "high," and 2) makes top and bottom performers stand out.

How to conduct an effective Interview

How to conduct an interview involves several steps. Step 1: Design the Interview. It's preferred to have structured questions prepared. Step 2: Review the Candidate's Background. Candidates interviewed should be studied prior to the interviews. Step 3: Establish Rapport. Establishing rapport can help candidates open up about experiences and the two-way exchange will be more productive. Step 4: Ask Questions. Follow the structured interview, but also know that when other questions arise, they may be asked in the interview. Step 5: Close the Interview. Leave time for questions and answers between candidate and interviewer. Step 6: Review the Interview. After the candidate leaves the interview, review your notes and make additional notes if needed while the interview is fresh on the mind.

Job Postings

Job postings are the most typical way to source internal candidates. Job posting is publicizing an open job to employees (often by literally posting it on bulletin boards) and listing its attributes, like qualifications, supervisor, working schedule, and pay rate.

Job Withdrawal

Job withdrawal refers to actions intended to place physical or psychological distance between employees and their work environments. Poor attendance and voluntary turnover are two ways employees withdraw. Other examples include employees spending time gossiping with colleagues, taking many informal breaks, and simply not doing parts of the job. Job withdrawal process tends to be incremental, and evolving from daydreaming to absences to quitting.

Lifelong Leaning Accounts

Lifelong learning accounts are provided by many employers and include accounts in which employees and employers contribute to career-related education and development that they desire.

Turnover

Turnover is the rate at which employees leave a firm—it varies widely. Depending on the industry, the turnover numbers can be large (about half employees a year in the hotel and food services industry) to very small (12% for the education industry). However this turnover number includes "voluntary turnover" and not "involuntary turnover." Involuntary turnover involves termination for performance failures, for example.

Paired Comparison Method

Paired Comparison Method is when every subordinate to be rated is paired with and compared to every other subordinate on each trait. The number of times an employee is rated better is added up.

Paper and Pencil and Honesty Tests

Paper-and-pencil honesty tests are widely used. They measure attitudes regarding tolerance of others who steal, for example. There is some concern with these tests as they produce a high percentage of false positives and are susceptible to coaching. However, studies tend to support these tests' validity.

Qualification Skills Inventories

Qualification skills inventories may reveal employees who have potential for further training, or who have the right background for the open job. Examining personnel records is also another way to source candidates.

Ratio Analysis

Ratio analysis is a forecasting technique for determining future staff needs by using ratios between, for example, sales volume and number of employees needed. Ratio analysis assumes that things like productivity remain about the same. If sales productivity were to rise or fall, the ratio of sales to salespeople would change.

How to Handle a Defensive Subordinate

Recognize that defense behavior is normal Never attack a person's defenses Postpone action Recognize your own limitations

Reliability Test

Reliability is the characteristic that refers to the consistency of scores obtained by the same person when retested with the identical or equivalent tests. If the test is given twice, will you get the same result.

Scatter Plot

Scatter plot is a graphical method used to help identify the relationship between two variables. In forecasts of business activity (like sales), you should also be able to estimate your personnel needs.

Walk Ins

Walk-ins are direct applications made at your office and are a big source of applicants. Many employers will give every walk-in a brief interview, even if only to get information on the applicant in case a position should open in the future.

Task Analysis

Task Analysis is a detailed study of a job to identify the specific skills required. Some managers supplement the job description and specification with a task analysis record form. This form consolidates information regarding required tasks and skills.

Avoid Halo Effect Ratings

The halo effect rating means that the rating you give a subordinate on one trait (such as "gets along with others") influences the way you rate the person on other traits. Note that the halo effect can be either way—all negative ratings or all positive ratings.

Polygraph Test

The polygraph test uses a machine that measures physiological changes such as increased perspiration. The assumption is that such changes reflect changes in the emotional stress that accompanies lying.

The Strategic Training Needs Analysis

The training needs analysis may address the employer's strategic/longer-term training needs and/or its current training needs. The Strategic Training Needs Analysis identifies the training employees will need to fill these new future jobs.

Forecasting Personnel Needs

Trend Analysis Ratio Analysis Scatter Plot

Trend Analysis

Trend Analysis is the study of a firm's past employment needs over a period of years to predict future needs. Trend analysis provides an initial rough estimate of future staffing needs.

3 Step Performance Appraisal Cycle

1) establishing goals and performance standards, 2) appraising the employee's performance 3) feedback and to take corrective action (coach and counsel employee or other steps as required).

Employment Agencies

1) public agencies operated by federal, state, or local governments; 2) agencies associated with nonprofit organizations; and 3) privately owned agencies. Agencies are useful and go beyond just filling jobs. Agencies may also provide counselors that will visit an employer's work site, review the employer's job requirements, and even assist the employer in writing job descriptions

ADDIE Five-Step Training Process

1. Analyze the training need 2. Design the overall training program 3. Develop the course 4. Implement training by targeting employee groups using methods 5. Evaluate the course's effectiveness

Management by Objectives Method

1. Set the organization's goals 2. Set department goals 3. Discuss departmental goals 4. Define expected results 5. Conduct performance reviews 6. Provide feedback

How to Set Effective Goals

1.Assign specific goals. Performance improves when goals are set. 2.Assign measurable goals. Putting goals into quantitative terms with target dates is desirable. 3.Assign challenging but doable goals. Goals should be challenging but not unrealistic. 4.Encourage participation. Both subordinates and managers should be engaged in collaboration processes.

How to Prevent Negligent Hiring

1.Carefully scrutinize all possible applicants that are being considered for hire. Look carefully at those applicants with unexplained employment gaps. 2.Get the applicants' written authorization for reference checks and background checks. 3.Save all records and information that is obtained about the applicant. 4.Reject applicants who make false statements of material facts or who have conviction records for offenses directly related and important to the job in question. 5.Take immediate disciplinary action if a problem arises.

Employee Orientation

1.Make the new employee feel welcome 2.Make sure the new employee has the basic information 3.Help the new employee understand the organization in a broad sense 4.Start socializing the person into the firm's culture and ways of doing things

Different Forms of Training

1.On-the-Job training means training a person to learn a job while working on it. 2.The most familiar on-the-job training is the coaching or understudy method. Other types include job rotation, special assignments, or peer training. 3.Apprenticeship training is a structured process by which people become skilled workers through a combination of classroom instruction and on-the-job training. We'll look at some example apprenticeships on the next slide. 4.Informal learning involves employees that facilitate their own informal learning. The Association for Training and Development ATD, estimates that as much as 80% of what employees learn on the job they learn through informal means, including performing their jobs while interacting every day with their colleagues.

Alternation Ranking Method

Alternation Ranking Method involves ranking employees from best to worst on a trait or traits. With this method, the supervisor specifies the employee who is highest on the trait being measured and also the one who is lowest. This is done until all the employees are rated.

Applicant Tracking Systems

Applicant tracking systems are online systems that help employers attract, gather, screen, compile, and manage applicants. Other services such as requisitions management, applicant data collection, and reporting are also used by companies. Many companies use third party companies to handle such services.

Purpose of Applications

Application forms are forms used by employers to compile information regarding an applicant's identity and educational, military, and work history. Applications can provide information that allows judgments on substantive matters such as education and experience. Conclusions about work stability can also be seen in information that the application provides. Additionally, applications may predict which candidates will succeed on the job. Past behavior is a predictor of future behavior and much can be gleaned from application information.

Behaviorally Anchored Rating Scales

Behaviorally Anchored Rating Scales (BARS) is an appraisal method that combines the benefits of critical incidents and quantitative ratings by anchoring a quantified scale with specific narrative examples of good and poor performance expressed as specific behaviors. The various performance levels for 10 (high) to 1 (low), are anchored with specific behavioral examples.

Career Coaches

Career coaches generally help employees create five-year plans showing where their careers with the firm may lead. The employer and employee base the development plan on the employee's needs

Internal Sources of Candidates

Internal sources of candidates is what many companies will first utilize. Filling open positions with inside candidates has several advantages. First, there is no substitute for already knowing the candidate's strengths and weaknesses. Morale and engagement may rise if employees see their colleagues promoted for loyalty and competence.

Management Development

Management development is important for several reasons. For one thing, promotion from within is a major source of management talent, and virtually all promoted managers require some development to prepare them for their new jobs. Furthermore, management development facilitates organizational continuity, by preparing employees and current managers to smoothly assume higher level positions. Management development programs should reflect the firm's strategic plans. Some management development programs are companywide and involve all or most new managers. Other development programs aim to fill specific top positions, such as a CEO.

Talent Retention

Managers should understand that retaining employees is a talent management issue and that the best retention strategies are multifunctional. Adequate training, career development programs, effective selection systems, and equitable pay all play a big role in retention.

Neglegent Hiring

Negligent hiring involves hiring workers with criminal records or other such problems without proper safeguards. Hiring the wrong workers is bad business, puts employees at risk, and can cost thousands if not millions for an organization. Thus, it is important to hire the right people.

Performance Analysis

Performance analysis is verifying that there is a performance deficiency and determining whether that deficiency should be corrected through training or through some other means (such as transferring the employee). Performance analysis begins with comparing the person's actual performance to what it should be.

How to Conduct the Appraisal Interview

Talk in terms of objective work data Don't get personal Encourage the person to talk Don't tiptoe around

Designing the Training Program

Setting Learning Objectives Creating a Motivating Learning Environment

Staffing Needs

Staffing needs reflect demand for its products or services, adjusted for changes the firm plans to make in its strategic goals and for changes in its turnover rate and productivity

Successional Planning

Succession planning is the ongoing process of systematically identifying, assessing, and developing organizational leadership to enhance performance. Succession planning requires assessing these candidates and selecting those who will actually fill the key positions.

Termination-At-Will

Termination at will is the idea, based in law, that the employment relationship can be terminated at will by either the employer or the employee for any reason.

Termination-At-Will with Exceptions

Termination-at-Will Exceptions have three main protections against wrongful discharge: 1.Statutory exceptions include federal and state equal employment and workplace laws that prohibit certain dismissals. 2.The common law exception. The courts create these exceptions based on precedents. For example, courts have held that employee handbooks promising termination only "for just cause" may create an exception to the at-will rule. 3,Under the public policy exception, courts have held a discharge to be wrongful when it was against a well-established public policy

9 Box Grid

The 9-Box Grid is one tool to assess candidates. It shows potential from low to medium to high on the vertical axis, and performance from low to medium to high across the bottom—a total of nine possible boxes.

Current Training Needs Analysis

The Current Training Needs Analysis is more complex, because you must also ascertain whether training is the solution. Deciding whether to train current and new employees is important in meeting organizational goals.

The Layoff Process

The Layoff process should start with senior management first making strategic decisions about the timing and size of the layoff. Supervisors assess their subordinates, rating their nonunion employees. Supervisors then inform subordinates about their layoff choices.

WARN Act

The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN) requires employers of 100 or more employees to give a 60 days' notice before closing a facility or starting a layoff of 50 or more people.

5 Basic Grounds for Dismissal

Unsatisfactory performance Misconduct Lack of qualification for the job Changed requirements of the job Insubordination

Talent Management

Using competency models is a graphical model that consolidates in one diagram a precise overview of the competencies (the knowledge, skills, and behaviors) someone would need to do a job well. Instructional design is designing, creating, and developing formal learning solutions to meet organizational needs; analyzing and selecting the most appropriate strategy, methodologies, and technologies to maximize the learning experience or impact

Validity Test

Validity tells whether the test is measuring what one thinks it's supposed to be measuring. Test validity is the accuracy with which the test, interview, and so on measures what it purports to measure or fulfills the function it was designed to fill.