SHRM-CP EXAM
23) Which of Porter's "Five Forces" is being applied in an organization that is compelled to offer a price reduction on services? a.) Substitution b.) Preference c.) Rivalry d.) Entry
A
24) An organization has to increase its hiring without increasing HR head count. How could machine learning help? a.) By reviewing applications to identify and contact promising candidates b.) By analyzing historical data on successful hires c.) By making and managing appointments for candidate interviews d.) By providing more accurate and timely progress reports on recruitment goals
A
40) Why should an organization document monitoring of the enforcement of its code of conduct? a.) Employees will not follow the code without occasional examples of discipline for infractions. b.) Lack of monitoring or inconsistent monitoring can have legal implications. c) This will support aligning the requirements of the code with the organization's stated values. d.) Ethical leadership requires fair administration of corrective discipline.
B
43) What financial document lists the revenues, expenses, and profits of an organization for a designated period of time? a.) Balance sheet b.) Income Statement c.) Financial statement d.) Accounting entries
B
50) An organizational effectiveness and development (OED) initiative focuses on several departments that are expanding or facing future challenges. What type of OED intervention is this? A. Individual B. Team C. Organizational D. Local
B
51) Over five years, an employee has been promoted from Scientist I to Scientist III and then laterally moved to the operations department as Engineer III, a position more routine than previous jobs. The employee performed well in previous positions but is clearly performing poorly in the current one. What action should the employee's manager consider? A. Relocation B. Transfer C. Suspension D. Demotion
B
52) A manager leaves an organization to follow a transferred spouse. Which recruiting practice would be readily accessible to current employees and help the employer pinpoint and identify qualified internal candidates for the open job? A. Job bidding B. Job posting C. Temporary agencies D. Interns
B
67) Management decides that training supervisors to identify and prevent bullying is not necessary, and they do not fund a program budget. What does this illustrate? A. Precedence of global standardization in the organization B. Organization's risk tolerance C. Risk avoidance management strategy D. Poor governance
B
70) What policy encourages employees to speak to management first regarding suggestions, concerns, or complaints? A. Formal steps B. Open door C. Equal opportunity D. Free speech
B
Which states the purpose of an organizational effectiveness intervention? a.) Identifying gaps between job requirements and job performance b.) Removing design, structural, or cultural obstacles to success c.) Determining present and future workforce training needs d.) Analyzing enterprise-wide operational efficiencies
B
10) Which formal employment branding tactic should HR suggest to enhance the employee value proposition at a technology services company without a corporate social responsibility program? a.) Pursue government safety and environment awards. b.) Review company materials for consistent messaging. c.) Communicate the brand through social media and community involvement. d.) Conduct labor market research to determine community perception.
C
13) HR has gathered information about the factors that may drive employee engagement in a newly acquired division. Which phase in strategic planning will HR be using as they translate the data gathered into an employee engagement strategy? a.) Formulation b.) Evaluation c.) Development d.) Implementation
C
36) The new vice president of HR is tasked with developing a total rewards strategy in her organization. How should the VP begin the process? a.) Conduct a workforce needs assessment. b.) Develop a compensation philosophy. c.) Present a business case to senior leadership. d.) Create a pay scale matrix with job grades.
B
37) Which type of organization would benefit most from broadbanding? a.) Small organizations with a minimal number of job positions b.) Large organizations that want to consolidate multiple layers of management c.) Organizations that want to maintain tighter control over salary growth d.) Organizations with specialist jobs that are rare in the market
B
35) Which is the best metric to emphasize the effectiveness of an organization's total rewards strategy? a.) Retention rate b.) Return on investment c.) Survey results d.) Turnover rate
B
26) An HR manager decides to use multi-criteria decision analysis when selecting a new recruitment firm. Based on discussions with staff, the manager sets as a priority a recruiting firm's responsiveness to the staff's questions and requests. How can the manager increase the likelihood of finding the right kind of vendor? a.) Give more weight to client references that describe customer service experiences. b.) Ask different functions to provide descriptions of "quality" job candidates. c.) Require extensive recommendations from existing clients. d.) Include response time to job openings in the service level agreement.
A
27) Which should an HR leader do after learning that some HR team members question the necessity for the project? a.) Explain the benefits of the initiative to the team. b.) Ask for other suggestions or alternatives from each member. c.) Solicit individual feedback from each team member. d.) Keep the team focused on the overall goal of the project.
A
28) An HR function has recently acquired a business intelligence (BI) system with online analytical processing capabilities. What is one danger that the leader of the function should be alert to? a.) Analytical projects with no strategic benefit b.) Increased need for monitoring of software maintenance c.) More time spent considering data from different angles d.) More problematic relationship with IT support
A
30) Which type of needs analysis should a training director undertake to identify gaps between actual and desired transactional output in a customer service call center? a.) Task b.) Individual c.) Department d.) Organization
A
38) An organization conducts a pay survey and finds that some of its key employees are underpaid. Which approach best supports the desire to raise the pay for these employees while balancing a concern of adding to their salary burden? a.) Awarding compensation for results versus time in position b.) Implementing annual increases to offset changes in purchasing power c.) Adjusting pay in fixed increases that are linked to performance d.) Providing a percentage increase based on individual compa-ratios
A
45) An organization conducts a pay survey and finds that some of its key employees are underpaid. They want to raise the pay for these employees but are concerned about adding to their salary burden. Which of the following is their BEST option? A. Incentive pay B. Step-rate adjustments linked to performance C. Market-based increases D. Cost-of-living adjustments
A
49) Based on the upstream/downstream metaphor for resolving the standardization/localization dilemma, which of the following activities is more likely to be driven at the global, rather than local, level? A. Goal setting B. Appraisal methods C. Employee reward/incentive programs D. Compensation and benefits
A
5) Why should an organization consider a high-performance culture and strategically invest in practices to keep high performers motivated and focused? a.) Turnover can negatively impact organizational productivity, innovation, and relationships. b.) It becomes problematic to find successors in critical roles and positions if an employee exits. c.) Succession planning and career development activities are made easier in this type of culture. d.) High performers have different needs and expectations than the mainstream workforce.
A
54) Which leader behavior illustrates the concept of social intelligence? A. Checking the group continually for visible signs of reactions B. Behaving the same way in meetings with senior management and staff C. Being honest and candid, even if it may offend some in the group D. Recognizing which individuals in the organization hold more influence
A
55) What is the best way to handle the confusion regarding changes to the compensation model? A. Create a presentation that can be used by HR managers across the organization to communicate changes in compensation and bonuses. B. Encourage senior leadership to make a public effort to promote the new compensation model. C. Meet with managers at all regional offices to develop a strategy to announce the new compensation model. D. Send a comprehensive e-mail to the staff about the new compensation model.
A
56) What is the primary advantage of a balanced scorecard approach to measuring organizational performance? A. It allows organizations to assess intangibles. B. It takes less time and effort to gather critical data. C. It does not require a financial perspective. D. It requires the involvement of the entire organization.
A
60) A scientist is hired to perform research at a pharmaceutical company. Which of the following is the MOST critical to include in the employment contract? A. Protections for trade secrets and confidential information B. Benefits provided by the company and date of eligibility C. Severance provisions for involuntary resignation D. Noncompete requirements
A
63) What should a human resource professional do to prepare global assignees for their international assignments? A. Discuss country-specific risks. B. Train expatriates to avoid potential personal security issues and how to deal with issues if they do occur. C. Encourage expatriates to keep up with current events, particularly those that relate to political and social unrest, so that they become immediately aware of increased risk to their personal security. D. Remind expatriates to register with the appropriate embassy in the host country. Deemphasize personal security issues to minimize anxiety about the assignment.
A
64) Which factor has the greatest impact on maintaining peak performance? A. Challenging assignments B. Training opportunities C. Cultural obstacles D. Risk management
A
66) Dissatisfaction among clerical staff is high, as measured by turnover and mistake rates. Exit interviews indicate boredom as a primary reason for leaving. What strategy would be MOST successful in addressing this problem? A. Expanding the tasks to be performed B. Increasing the complexity of the job C. Transferring employees to other departments D. Increasing the number of people performing the job
A
68) What document is a formal statement describing a company's principles and the business practices that support those principles? A. Code of conduct B. Mission statement C. Strategic plan D. Employee handbook
A
69) What is the best way to address a high volume of annual staffing fluctuations and the need to onboard new employees quickly? A. Seasonal workers B. Temp-to-hire programs C. Flextime scheduling D. Job sharing
A
8) An organization in the United States is having trouble staffing its international department successfully, and this is causing revenue growth to fall below expectations. The HR VP wants to look into bringing in an expatriate from a country containing a key market that the organization wants to focus on to drive growth. What must the organization do before hiring an expatriate for the role? a.) Prove that all local employees cannot perform the key duties and responsibilities required by the job description. b.) Hire a translation firm to translate the job description into the language of the target market in order to attract applicants. c.) Engage in a compensation study to ensure that the salary range for the position is globally competitive. d.) Hire a recruiting firm with global reach and a record of successful candidate sourcing from the target market.
A
9) In a job posting, which element describes the applicant's necessary experience, education, training, licenses, and certifications? a.) Job specifications b.) Job competencies c.) Job guidelines d.) Job descriptions
A
1) The HR department is creating a program to help managers successfully manage, develop, and evaluate employees. Which components must be part of this performance management program? a.) Performance evaluation and pay for performance b.) Position description review and performance planning c.) Self-evaluation and peer review d.) Conflict management and negotiation
B
11) When should an organization communicate its strategy to employees? a.) When important external stakeholders have demanded changes in the organization's strategy b.) When a new employee joins the organization or existing employees change their positions c.) After every reorganization, so employees can see how their roles are aligned to the strategy d.) After a change in the external environment requires a revision in strategy
B
12) How can HR best support the development of the organizational strategy? a.) By facilitating the organization's strategy development process b.) By consulting with function leaders to understand unit-level goals c.) By routinely communicating the HR strategy to all business units d.) By using its broad perspective to define the organization's mission
B
15) What type of law is based on written codes such as laws, rules, or regulations? a.) Extraterritorial law b.) Civil law c.) Common law d.) Religious law
B
19) The CEO of a financial firm asks HR to benchmark the organization's turnover. In a well-known publication, the HR manager identifies a turnover benchmark from the education industry. When evaluating the validity of the data, which key concept should the HR manager consider? a.) The reputation of the author or researcher for the publication b.) Whether data about trends in one industry will apply to all industries c.) The number of years included in the benchmark study d.) Whether the data cited can be found online in multiple sources
B
20) What is a business case? a.) Market research into acceptability of a new service or product b.) Analysis of a problem and possible solutions c.) Cost-benefit analysis of a business concept d.) Scenario-based test of a business plan
B
21) What is the best response an HR director might give to staff members seeking his support for a new policy on flexible time? a.) Include the idea in the next employee survey. b.) Show me data on how this would benefit us. c.) Create a small pilot study to test the idea. d.) Are our competitors offering similar flexibility policies?
B
25) What method allows individuals to access the online resources and data they need to process data and perform tasks? a.) Online analytical processing b.) HR portal c.) HRIS d.) Self-service kiosk
B
14) An organization is struggling to create and implement a strategic management plan. While multiple divisions have been involved in the creation of the plan from the start, factionalism has lead to infighting over how major portions of the plan will benefit certain divisions. What should HR ensure is being done during the planning process to correct this situation and ensure that the plan is successfully created and implemented? a.) Control the conversation to avoid strategic drift. b.) Focus on core competencies when creating the plan. c.) Ensure that the efforts of all divisions are properly aligned. d.) Avoid taking shortcuts in analyzing how options benefit various divisions.
C
2) Which employee engagement practice considers the full employee life cycle? a.) Work/life balance program b.) Professional development program c.) Employee assistance program d.) Employee alumni network
C
3) What is a valuable insight that can be gained from studying the sender-receiver communication model (the basic communication model)? a.) If the receiver objects to the sender's message, the sender needs to explain it again in a new way. b.) Natural communication flow requires thinking of how to respond as the other person is speaking. c.) People's perspectives have a strong impact on how messages are understood. d.) Communication breakdowns almost always occur on the receiver's end.
C
32) An organization has been analyzing annual employee surveys to understand how to better retain workers given career development trends showing that more and more employees expect to change careers multiple times. Which would be the best program to incentivize employees interested in future career changes to stay with the organization for a longer period of time? a.) Apprenticeships b.) Job enrichment c.) Job rotation d.) Dual career ladders
C
33) Which statement describes the 70-20-10 rule of leadership development? a.) 70% of managers will not obtain leadership skills despite leadership training, 20% can be trained and can acquire leadership skills , and 10% have innate leadership skills. b.) 70% of leadership skills are learned through hardship, 20% through leadership training, and 10% through emotional intelligence. c.) Managers must be engaged in challenging assignments 70% of the time, developmental relationships 20% of the time, and coursework and training 10% of the time. d.) 70% of the workforce is doing the entirety of the work, 20% is performing at a substandard level, and 10% need to be removed from employment annually.
C
34) Which tool uses in-basket tests, role plays, and psychological inventories to asses the abilities of a company's leadership team? a.) Leader career battery b.) Work samples c.) Assessment centers d.) Situation judgment tests
C
4) An organization has an issue with rapid turnover in new hires. Exit interviews indicate that the exiting employees feel that they did not properly understand the position's requirements or organizational culture and rapidly became disengaged shortly after being hired. Which action should the organization's HR VP take to address the turnover rate? a.) Change the type of interview the organization uses to select applicants in an effort to find those that are a better cultural fit for the organization. b.) Create a financial incentive program that offers bonuses to new employees based on time served by the employee, heavily weighted toward milestones in the first year of employment. c.) Implement a talent acquisition process that provides better information to applicants during the application and interview process, including information on job descriptions and organizational values. d.) Implement a job rotation program in an effort to cross-train current employees, promoting multiple career paths for employees and reducing the need to look outside the organization to fill open positions.
C
42) What company is using a corporate strategy of differentiation? a.) A company sells in volume and offers discounts to its best customers. b.) The finished product is sold at a lower price than that of the competition. c.) A company develops a product that is uniquely easy to use and charges a premium price. d.) A company orders large quantities of parts to get the greatest discount.
C
44) Chain of command refers to the: a.) extent to which policies and procedures govern the rules of the organization. b.) number of individuals who report to a supervisor. c.) line of authority within an organization. d.) balance between standardization and localization.
C
47) What solution should the HR consultant suggest to improve training for new hires? A. Provide operations training on equipment to improve skills. B. Keep the same orientation program, but assign a mentor for a new hire's first two weeks on the job. C. Evaluate and enhance the company's orientation and onboarding program. D. Offer a management training program.
C
53) An organization has been growing, adding offices and allowing broad decision-making powers to local managers. According to Greiner, what type of organizational change will soon be needed? A. Determination of what employees need to succeed in their current jobs B. New emphasis on delegation skills among leaders C. Standardization of organizational policies D. Empowerment of individual employee initiative and creativity
C
58) An HR manager is planning to outsource the creation of the employee newsletter, which has long been created by several HR staff with input from departments. What possible negative outcome should the manager consider? A. Increased cost of outsourcing B. Loss of control over strategic activity C. Staff motivation and attitude D. Loss of control over project schedule
C
59) An organization has implemented a recruitment and hiring program to increase the diversity of its workforce, but the retention rate for new hires is low. What step would offer the most help in correcting this problem? A. Message from the CEO to all employees about the reason for pursuing diversity B. Reexamination of the organization's recruitment strategy and channels C. Implementation of employee resource groups D. Review and revision of the employee value proposition
C
62) Legal system in which each case is considered in terms of how it relates to legal decisions that have already been made; evolves through judicial decisions over time. A. Extraterritorial law B. Civil law C. Common law D. Religious law
C
65) Which of the following activities would be most useful in an organizational intervention to reshape culture? A. Analyzing workforce demographic data B. Observing job performance C. Identifying recognized heroes D. Benchmarking competitors
C
7) An organization's yield ratio for offers rejected compared to offers extended for qualified applicants increased from 50% in year 1 to 75% in year 2. What recommendation should HR make to improve the selection results for an organization in a growth mode? a.) Meet with managers to understand what they believe to be the issues and discuss their concerns. b.) Double the recruiting budget, with an emphasis on increasing applicant flow. c.) Review the employee value proposition along with newly hired attrition data and recent exit interview surveys. d.) Discuss the organization's strategic plan with executives to consider acquisitions as a way to grow qualified staff.
C
71) HR is responsible for an on-site day-care center. It uses a third-party expert to assess safety and implements recommended changes to the facility and its hiring and training practices. Which critical step in risk management is missing from this process? a.) Obtaining insurance to effectively transfer risk b.) Identifying and calculating threats and vulnerabilities c.) Regular checking of site and monitoring of practices d.) Designing and monitoring a prevention program
C
72) A top performer routinely arrives late to work. When questioned, rather than providing an explanation, she just says that she'll take a shorter lunch hour. Because of her performance, her manager allows this behavior to continue. Which risk does the manager take by failing to apply policy consistently? a.) While there is potential risk to employee morale, it is outweighed by this employee's superior performance. b.) It may put pressure on other managers to offer flexibility on certain rules based on performance. c.) It may provide grounds for a legal finding of unjust dismissal by people who are fired for tardiness. d.) It may inspire flexibility or liberties in other aspects of work besides start times and end times.
C
16) How is the Delphi technique used to perform a judgmental forecast? a.) The preselected group meets one time for discussion; then each member makes an independent forecast. b.) Each preselected group member makes an independent forecast, and then the group meets to come to agreement. c.) Preselected individuals meet and come to consensus through a controlled discussion process. d.) The preselected group does not meet, and each person makes and submits an independent forecast.
D
17) An HR director is reporting on the organization's average turnover rate relative to industry turnover rates. The director reviews three surveys. Two are below the organization's turnover rate, and the third is well above the organization's turnover rate. Which step should the HR director take to complete this report accurately? a.) Keep looking until the data points on the three studies match. b.) Average the three studies to get an industry average. c.) Explain that there is no industry average turnover rate. d.) Check the methodology of each study.
D
18) A new CEO has asked the HR team to complete an engagement survey to assess the organization's culture. The CEO requests that tenured employees must participate. What type of bias does this present? a.) Performance b.) Selection c.) Response d.) Sampling
D
22) An organization has moved to larger facilities and doubled its workforce. However, it still experiences problems with back orders, which results in customer dissatisfaction. What phase of the organization/product life cycle is the organization probably in? a.) Introduction b.) Decline c.) Maturity d.) Growth
D
29) An organization implements an onboarding program to reduce voluntary turnover rates that are significantly higher than benchmarked averages. Which is the best metric HR should use to assess the strategic success of the new onboarding program? a.) Questionnaire results on job satisfaction b.) Focus group results about satisfaction with orientation c.) Information gathered from exit interviews d.) Information on the performance of new hires
D
31) At an employee development meeting, a retail employee discusses her desire to pursue a law degree. The company supports her by offering more flexible scheduling. She resigns at a follow-up review, saying that she wants to pursue her degree full-time. What does this example depict? a.) Career management b.) Coaching c.) Mentoring d.) Career planning
D
39) An employee informs his supervisor that he feels unmotivated and is unsure of his accomplishments. The supervisor consults with the HR manager, who recommends increasing the employee's motivation by providing him with specific objectives so he can assess his achievement. What motivational theory is the HR manager recommending? a.) Theory X b.) Needs theory c.) Expectancy theory d.) Goal-setting theory
D
41) What is the key challenge in balancing stakeholder needs in a global organization? a.) Weighing short- and long-term goals b.) Managing expectations of external stakeholders c.) Solving ethical dilemmas between groups d.) Understanding cultural expectations of stakeholders
D
46) What should the HR consultant do to determine the true cause of the turnover as soon as possible? A. Continue discussions with the CFO. B. Privately speak to the family that owns the company. C. Talk with the executive staff. D. Further analyze exit interview information.
D
48) Which of the following is a compensable factor? A. Benefits B. Seniority C. Exempt status D. Skills
D
57) A retail chain's business model requires the handling of cash and credit/debit cards by a large number of cashiers who do not typically stay for long with the employer. What action reflects the appropriate priority for this risk? A. Build possible losses into profit margins. B. Monitor losses and credit issues quarterly. C. Raise cashier salaries. D. Implement immediate technical controls.
D
6) HR discovers that newer employees are four times less likely to participate in the ancillary benefit programs compared to employees who have been with the company for at least five years. Which action should the HR director take to help increase awareness of the programs? a.) Implement a formal onboarding program. b.) Mention the programs in the next departmental meeting. c.) Implement an informal onboarding program. d.) Implement an orientation program.
D
61) What benefit is served by analyzing an organization's value chain? A. Identification of functions that do not contribute to revenue B. Development of key performance indicators and objectives C. Streamlining of inefficient business processes D. Appreciation of relationships between contributors to value
D
