Test Bank for HR5, (Human Resources) 5th Edition by Angelo DeNisi, Ricky Griffin by digitaldownload87

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 01_HR5 Indicate whether the statement is true or false. 1. The human relations era emerged following the Hawthorne studies. a. True b. False 2. Contemporary HR managers are increasingly regarded as second-class corporate citizens. a. True b. False 3. Outsourcing has resulted in an increase in the size of HR staffs within companies. a. True b. False 4. Scientists and lawyers are usually considered knowledge workers. a. True b. False 5. The passage of the Taft–Hartley Act made it clear that organizations had to find ways to hire, reward, and manage people effectively within the limits of the law. a. True b. False 6. Computer monitoring allows organizations to collect real-time performance data from employees on various jobs. a. True b. False 7. Unemployment rates in the United States continue to decline, and now the rate is near what is known as functional full-employment. a. True b. False 8. The view of human resource management (HRM) as part of the legal enforcement arm of an organization is largely applicable only in the United States. a. True b. False 9. The use of new technologies by an organization for manufacturing, communication, and human resource management reduces the organization's need for knowledge workers. a. True b. False 10. Scientific management helped augment the concept of assembly-line production. a. True b. False

Page 1

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 01_HR5 Indicate the answer choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. 11. Which of the following statements is true of scientific management in the 20th century? a. It was concerned exclusively with creating an ethnocentric work environment. b. It helped augment the concepts of division of labor and economies of scale. c. It was primarily based on the belief that employees would work harder if they were happy. d. It focused on maximizing job satisfaction and quality rather than efficiency and productivity. 12. The material resources of an organization include: a. the people employed to do the work of the organization. b. the sources of information of the organization. c. patents, trademarks, and copyrights. d. factories, equipment, raw materials, computers, and offices. 13. Which of the following recognizes that if an organization needs highly skilled, knowledgeable workers to carry out its strategy, then all staffing activities must be coordinated toward identifying and attracting such employees? a. The function-oriented view of human resource management b. An empirical approach to human resource management c. The scientific management approach to human resource management d. A systems-oriented view of human resource management 14. Employees who contribute to an organization by the nature of what they know and how well they can apply what they know are known as _____. a. ancillary workers b. free riders c. blue-collar workers d. knowledge workers 15. The management of Finitos, a stationery manufacturer, wanted to cut down its fixed costs to increase the profits of the company. As a result, it drastically reduced its HR staffs and hired an external agency to manage basic HR functions such as payroll and benefits. To achieve Finitos's objective, the management of the company most likely employed _____. a. crowdsourcing b. outsourcing c. foreign direct investment d. homeshoring

Page 2

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 01_HR5 16. Xbuzz, a gadget manufacturer, has developed a new gaming platform that enables users to talk to the characters in video games. When the company files a patent for the platform, it discovers that the product has already been wrongfully patented by a competing firm. The company hires a lawyer to get his expert advice on the situation and to find a way to gain rights over the product. In the given scenario, Xbuzz hires a(n) _____. a. blue-collar worker b. knowledge worker c. ancillary worker d. free rider 17. To achieve the human resource management goal of promoting individual growth and development, an organization should: a. provide pro bono services and establish charitable foundations. b. ensure that its corporate strategies enhance the citizenship role played by the organization. c. provide stress-management programs to help its employees effectively cope with anxiety. d. promote ethnocentrism in the workplace. 18. Which of the following statements is true of the HR department of small organizations? a. The HR department of small firms has specialized subunits, each with its own functions. b. Small firms usually provide extensive HR training. c. HR issues are relatively straightforward in small firms. d. Small firms usually have one full-time HR manager and a single secretary to assist the manager. 19. Envirer Inc., a small independent business, manufactures and sells recycled notebooks. Because of the small size of the company, Adam, the company’s owner, decides to assign the HR duties of the company to one person. Who among the following is most likely to handle the HR duties? a. Tim, the Business Intelligence Officer of the company b. Martha, the Chief Accountant of the company c. Jaden, the General Manager of the company d. April, the Product Manager of the company 20. Which of the following statements is true of traditional line managers? a. They are responsible for the support functions of their organization. b. They make indirect bottom-line contributions to their organization. c. They include human resource managers. d. They are directly responsible for creating goods and services. 21. TechUp Inc., a computer manufacturing firm, hires an external specialist agency to perform background checks on its new employees. By doing this, TechUp Inc. ensures quality service and saves both time and labor costs. In the given scenario, TechUp Inc. uses _____. a. crowdsourcing b. foreign direct investment c. homeshoring d. outsourcing

Page 3

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 01_HR5 22. The management of Gilbert Inc., an automobile parts manufacturer, has created a separate department to deal with the company's increasing hiring needs. This department hires skilled employees, administers basic HR activities such as pay and benefits, and ensures that all organizational activities are in compliance with government regulations. In the given scenario, the new department is most likely concerned with _____. a. operations management b. production management c. personnel management d. technology management 23. Wrapp Kitchen Inc., a restaurant chain, wants to increase worker productivity and efficiency. To achieve this, the management of the restaurant restructures the jobs of servers and chefs to maximize output and service delivery. The aim is to focus each and every employee activity toward maximizing productivity. This scenario most likely illustrates the concept of _____. a. personnel management b. outsourcing c. licensing d. scientific management 24. The management of Crimson, a cosmetics company, has entrusted its HR department with the responsibility of organizing fund-raisers to create awareness about various issues related to women and children. The management also supports volunteer activities by matching employee contributions to local charities. By engaging in these activities, the management of Crimson is fulfilling the human resource management goal of: a. complying with and meeting social obligations. b. adhering to legal guidelines. c. facilitating organizational competitiveness. d. enhancing productivity and quality. 25. Which of the following, perhaps, will be the most important challenge for HR in the coming years? a. Selection of knowledge workers b. Sexual harassment and sexual misconduct at work c. Development of personnel departments d. Effective performance appraisal and compensation systems 26. Which of the following statements is true of the Civil Rights Act of 1964? a. It banned labor unions in the United States. b. It made the processes of hiring and promoting employees within the organization far more complex. c. It promoted ethnocentrism in the workplace. d. It required that organizations provide a 60-day notice before terminating employees or closing a factory.

Page 4

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 01_HR5 27. The management of Rockslide Inc., a sports equipment manufacturing firm, hires an external agency to manage its payroll and insurance functions. It does this to ensure expert services and more efficient operations. In the given scenario, the management of Rockslide Inc. is using _____. a. crowdsourcing b. foreign direct investment c. outsourcing d. homeshoring 28. Wags is a chain of veterinary clinics. As a growing organization, the management of Wags recognizes the need to coordinate various human resource management (HRM) activities. It believes that all staffing activities should be directed at identifying and attracting skilled workers and that appraisals, compensation, and performance management should reflect the nature of its employees. In this scenario, which of the following approaches to HRM most likely explains the management's recognition of the need to coordinate HRM activities? a. A systems approach b. The scientific management approach c. The open-book management approach d. An empirical approach 29. Undertaking initiatives that help an organization assume an enhanced citizenship role most likely aligns with the human resource management goal of: a. complying with and meeting legal and social obligations. b. facilitating organizational effectiveness. c. enhancing productivity and quality. d. promoting individual growth and development. 30. Which of the following offers three core certifications: Professional in Human Resources (PHR), Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR), and Global Professional in Human Resources (GPHR)? a. The American HR Certification Association b. The HR Certification Institute c. The National Academy of Human Resources d. The Institute of Human Resource Capital Consultancy 31. Which of the following revealed that individual and group behavior played an important role in organizations and that human behavior at work was something managers really needed to understand more fully? a. The Hawthorne studies b. Maslow's hierarchy of human needs c. McGregor's Theory X framework d. The Jevons paradox 32. The basic premise of the human relations era was that: a. employees have to be intimidated to be motivated. b. individuals work best in an ethnocentric environment. c. satisfied employees work harder and are more productive. d. union activities are harmful for an organization. Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 5

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 01_HR5 33. Which of the following statements is true of contemporary human resource management (HRM)? a. HRM policies are aimed at promoting ethnocentrism in the workplace. b. HR managers are considered second-class corporate citizens. c. HR managers are solely responsible for carrying out line functions. d. HRM practices significantly affect management's ability to formulate and implement strategy in any area. 34. Douglas McGregor's Theory X and Theory Y framework grew from _____. a. the Green Revolution b. scientific management c. the human relations movement d. operations management 35. Which of the following statements is true of the HR department of large organizations? a. Relatively little HR training is provided in large organizations. b. Line managers are required to handle basic HR functions in large organizations. c. General managers handle the HR duties in large organizations. d. HR functions are likely to have specialized subunits in large organizations. 36. Which of the following statements is true of human resource management (HRM) in modern organizations? a. HRM is exclusively concerned with structuring jobs to maximize efficiency. b. HRM is responsible for promoting ethnocentrism in the workplace. c. Modern organizations outsource all HR functions. d. Line managers often make decisions about pay raises and promotions. 37. Fulfilling the psychological contract between employers and employees aligns with the human resource management goal of _____. a. adhering to legal business guidelines b. creating an ethnocentric work environment c. promoting individual growth and development d. complying with social obligations 38. Which of the following is the attempt to measure, in objective terms, the impact and effectiveness of human resource management (HRM) practices in terms of metrics such as a firm’s financial performance? a. Utility analysis b. Ethnographic analysis c. Market basket analysis d. Narrative analysis 39. Which of the following is most likely to happen as a small firm grows into a large business? a. A separate HR unit will become a necessity. b. Specialized HR subunits will be merged to form one large HR department. c. The owner or general manager of the firm will start handling HR duties. d. The firm will exempt from many legal regulations. Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 6

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 01_HR5 40. Abigail, an HR executive in a company, coordinates with the management to plan and implement a wide range of employee engagement activities for improving the mental and physical health of the employees. These activities include personality enhancement sessions, career development seminars, and annual office trips. She also works with the management to provide employees with a platform where they can share their innovative ideas. In this scenario, Abigail's initiatives fulfill the human resource management goal of: a. complying with social obligations. b. promoting individual growth and development. c. adhering to legal business guidelines. d. creating an ethnocentric work environment. 41. Which of the following terms refers to treating social outcomes and financial outcomes as complementary, rather than competing outcomes? a. Astroturfing b. Organizational citizenship behavior c. Greenwashing d. Conscious capitalism 42. Which of the following organizations created the HR Certification Institute (HRCI)? a. The Human Resources Professionals Association b. The Institute of Human Resource Capital Consultancy c. The Society for Human Resource Management d. The National Academy of Human Resources 43. The HR department of Asterix, a large organization, recommends setting up fitness centers and conducting career planning sessions to enhance the overall development of its employees. The management of the company believes that the employees should be happy and personally fulfilled on the job. In the given scenario, the recommendation of the HR department, if executed, will most likely help Asterix achieve the human resource management goal of _____. a. adhering to legal business guidelines b. complying with social obligations c. promoting ethnocentric practices in the workplace d. promoting individual growth and development 44. Which of the following is true of HR managers in the 1980s and 1990s when firms sought mergers and acquisitions to compete effectively in the global marketplace? a. HR managers helped create strategies that promoted ethnocentrism in the workplace. b. HR managers helped identify the critical human resources that the firms would need in the future. c. HR managers developed strategies that ensured that any knowledge acquired was kept confidential among top executives. d. HR managers were involved solely in scheduling working hours and disciplining problem employees.

Page 7

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 01_HR5 45. Zander, an e-commerce company, hired over 50 workers to handle customer orders. As the company grew in size, the management recognized the need to maximize the productivity and efficiency of its workers. To achieve this, all aspects of the workers' jobs were studied carefully and their jobs were structured to help them work faster. The given scenario most likely illustrates the use of _____. a. personnel management b. scientific management c. licensing d. outsourcing 46. Which of the following statements is true of contemporary HR executives? a. They are regarded as second-class corporate citizens. b. They are tasked with developing policies that promote ethnocentrism in the workplace. c. They are required to possess general management abilities that reflect conceptual, diagnostic, and analytical skills. d. They are concerned exclusively with hiring first-line employees such as blue-collar workers and unskilled labor. 47. The management of Futurics, a consultancy firm, regularly introduces various reward programs to maintain motivation and effort among its employees. The management understands the importance of providing incentives to the employees to ensure efficiency and a high level of customer service. In the given scenario, which of the following goals of human resource management is fulfilled by the aforementioned activities of the management? a. Adhering to legal business guidelines b. Enhancing productivity and quality c. Creating an ethnocentric work environment d. Complying with and meeting social obligations 48. Which of the following acts made it illegal for employers to consider factors such as gender, religion, race, skin color, or national origin when making employment-related decisions? a. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 b. The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act of 1988 c. The Labor Management Relations Act of 1947 d. The Taft–Hartley Act of 1947 49. Varo Inc., a pharmaceutical company, plans to develop a drug that would treat the diseases caused by a new strain of virus. To assist the in-house doctors in developing the drug, the company hires a scientist who has previously conducted research on the virus. The company intends to use the scientist's expertise on the subject to create a useful drug. In the given scenario, Varo Inc. has hired a(n) _____. a. blue-collar worker b. knowledge worker c. ancillary worker d. free rider

Page 8

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 01_HR5 50. To better manage its human resources, the management of Bart, a pharmaceutical company, decides to create a separate department that would be responsible for hiring skilled employees, dealing with government regulations, and managing behavioral issues. The given scenario illustrates the concept of _____. a. personnel management b. scientific management c. outsourcing d. licensing 51. Which of the following departments within an organization was usually thought of as a staff function? a. The legal department b. The operations department c. The finance department d. The marketing department 52. Which of the following supplanted scientific management as the dominant approach to management during the 1930s? a. The open-book approach to management b. Taylorism c. The human relations era d. The systems-oriented view of human resource management 53. Which of the following activities aligns with the human resource management goal of enhancing productivity and quality? a. Promoting ethnocentric practices in the workplace b. Establishing charitable foundations to deal with societal problems c. Using new and different types of rewards to help maintain employee motivation d. Undertaking corporate social responsibility initiatives 54. Which of the following is an economic measure of efficiency that summarizes and reflects the value of the outputs created by an individual, organization, industry, or economic system relative to the value of the inputs used to create them? a. Quality b. Productivity c. Reliability d. Sustainability 55. Which of the following is a necessary prerequisite for success in human resource management? a. A solid educational background b. A membership in the Society for Human Resource Management c. An inclination toward Theory X style of management d. An ethnocentric attitude

Page 9

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 01_HR5 56. Which of the following is defined as the overall set of expectations held by an employee with regard to what he or she will contribute to an organization and held by the organization with regard to what it will provide to the individual in return? a. A value proposition b. A vision statement c. A mission statement d. A psychological contract 57. Which of the following is the largest professional HR association in the field of human resource management? a. The Human Resources Professionals Association b. The Institute of Human Resource Capital Consultancy c. The Human Resources Management Association d. The Society for Human Resource Management 58. Which of the following should an organization do to achieve the human resource management goal of facilitating organizational competitiveness? a. Organizational objectives should be formulated in such a way that they deal with revenue growth and profitability. b. HR practices should focus on promoting ethnocentrism in the workplace. c. Organizations should match employee contributions to local charities. d. Management should establish charitable foundations and regularly organize fund-raisers. 59. Identify a true statement about outsourcing. a. It tends to eliminate jobs that are repetitive. b. It reduces a firm's risk of facing intellectual property theft. c. It has resulted in larger internal HR staffs. d. It helps a firm share functions that are of strategic importance. 60. The HR department of Woodworkers, a furniture manufacturing firm, takes the time and effort to identify and attract the right type of skilled employees required to manufacture premium furniture. It also trains the employees extensively so that they gain job-related knowledge. Moreover, it has established monthly reward systems so that the employees feel appreciated for their hard work. In this scenario, the activities undertaken by the HR department of Woodworkers most likely align with the human resource management goal of _____. a. adhering to legal business guidelines b. complying with social obligations c. creating an ethnocentric work environment d. enhancing productivity and quality 61. Will sexual misconduct at work pose a challenge to human resource management in the coming years?

Page 10

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 01_HR5 62. What is the Society for Human Resource Management? What are the certifications offered by the Human Resource Certification Institute?

63. How do people become HR managers?

64. Briefly explain the human resource management goal of complying with legal and social obligations.

65. Explain how human resource management operations are carried out in small organizations.

Page 11

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 01_HR5 Answer Key 1. True 2. False 3. False 4. True 5. False 6. True 7. True 8. True 9. False 10. True 11. b 12. d 13. d 14. d 15. b 16. b 17. c 18. c 19. c 20. d 21. d 22. c 23. d 24. a 25. b 26. b

Page 12

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 01_HR5 27. c 28. a 29. a 30. b 31. a 32. c 33. d 34. c 35. d 36. d 37. c 38. a 39. a 40. b 41. d 42. c 43. d 44. b 45. b 46. c 47. b 48. a 49. b 50. a 51. a 52. c 53. c 54. b Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 13

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 01_HR5 55. a 56. d 57. d 58. a 59. a 60. d 61. Answers will vary. Perhaps the challenge that will be the most important for HR in the coming years stems from the "Me Too" movement and the new spotlight on sexual harassment and sexual misconduct at work. A number of important personalities have been caught in this movement, including Matt Lauer, Kevin Spacey, and Harvey Weinstein. Women are increasingly feeling empowered to speak out against the way they are treated at work, and people are finally taking the claims seriously. Some trace the movement back to the comments of then-candidate Donald Trump about how he treated women, which led to outrage over the fact that someone of his prominence could actually say the things he said. Others, however, suggest that these issues have been long simmering, but women felt afraid to speak out about them—especially when the perpetrator was someone in power such as Harvey Weinstein. This movement has become so big that, in 2017, TIME magazine named as their "Person of the Year" the group of women who spoke out about their various episodes of sexual assault and harassment. The movement has also gained momentum as more women speaking out have emboldened yet more women to come forward with problems they have encountered, and CEOs, moguls, and entertainment icons have all toppled as a result. These stories have gone beyond the typical complaint, and many actually deal with sexual assault. But, in any case, it is usually the responsibility of the HR department to deal with complaints of this nature at work. It is clear that the incidence of such complaints will increase and also that the consequences of not dealing with the complaints will also increase in the coming years. See 1-2: Evolution of the Human Resource Function 62. Answers will vary. Many HR managers belong to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), the field's largest professional HR association. SHRM publishes professional journals that help members stay abreast of the newest developments in the field, sponsors workshops and conferences, and so forth. SHRM has created the Human Resource Certification Institute (HRCI). The HRCI is the recognized symbol of HR certification in much the same way that the accounting profession uses the certified public accountant exam and credential to designate those individuals who have formally achieved basic minimal competencies in prescribed areas. The HRCI offers three core certifications: Professional in Human Resources (PHR), Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR), and Global Professional in Human Resources (GPHR). To be eligible to take the PHR, SPHR, or GPHR exam, an HR professional must have a minimum of 2 years of professional (exempt-level) experience and pass a rigorous examination covering the body of HR knowledge as it relates to the particular certification. See 1-5: Human Resource Managers 63. Answers will vary. Career opportunities in human resource management (HRM) continue to grow and expand and are expected to continue to do so. One way to enter this profession is to get a degree in HRM (or a related field) and then seek entry-level employment as an HR manager. Alternative job options may be as the HR manager for a small firm or as an HR specialist in a larger organization. Some universities also offer specialized graduate degree programs in human resource management. Another route to HRM is through line management. More and more firms are beginning to rotate managers through the HR function as part of their own personal career-development program. Thus, people who go to work in marketing or finance may well have an opportunity at some point to sample central HRM responsibilities. See 1-5: Human Resource Managers Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 14

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 01_HR5 64. Answers will vary. A fundamental goal of the human resource management (HRM) function of an organization is to ensure that the organization is complying with and meeting its legal and social obligations. The passage of the Civil Rights Act in 1964 really made this goal salient. Subsequent court cases made it clear that organizations that violated this law and discriminated in hiring, promotion, compensation, or other HR decisions could face millions of dollars in fines and penalties. In most organizations, it is the role of the HRM department, along with the legal department, to ensure that business is conducted within the law so that financial penalties and bad press can be avoided. Beyond the strict legal parameters of compliance, more and more organizations today are assuming some degree of social obligation to the society in which they operate. This obligation goes beyond the minimum activities required to comply with legal regulations and calls for the organization to serve as a contributing citizen. Some firms support volunteer activities by employees in the local community either by granting time off or by matching employee contributions to local charities. Others provide pro bono services, and some establish charitable foundations to deal with societal problems. Whatever the choice, it often requires some work by the HRM department that goes above and beyond its usual responsibilities. See 1-3: Goals of Human Resource Management 65. Answers will vary. Responsibilities for carrying out HR functions may reside in a separate HR department, but many small organizations do not have separate HR departments and must deliver the required services in different ways. Most small organizations require line managers to handle their basic HR functions. A small independent business generally has the owner or general manager handling HR duties. Payroll and other basic administrative activities may be subcontracted to businesses in the local community that specialize in providing such services for other local organizations. Relatively little training is provided in these small organizations, and other HR issues are relatively straightforward. Very small organizations are exempt from many legal regulations. Thus, a single manager can usually handle the HR function in small firms without too much difficulty. See 1-4: The Setting for Human Resource Management

Page 15

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 02_HR5 Indicate whether the statement is true or false. 1. The Equal Pay Act of 1963 defines equality in terms of skill, responsibility, effort, and working conditions. a. True b. False 2. The Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988 exempts federal contractors and government employees from the provisions of the act. a. True b. False 3. The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) allows employers to collect any genetic information about their employees, including information about family history of disease. a. True b. False 4. The Pregnancy Discrimination Act specifies that a woman can be refused a promotion because she has had an abortion. a. True b. False 5. Disparate treatment discrimination occurs when two groups of people are treated differently in different situations based on a protected characteristic. a. True b. False 6. The PATRIOT Act prohibits the government or law enforcement agencies from collecting information about any citizen of the United States. a. True b. False 7. Both AIDS and HIV are not covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act. a. True b. False 8. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the National Labor Relations Board are the two primary regulatory agencies for enforcing employment legislation. a. True b. False 9. Customer preference can never be the basis of a bona fide occupational qualification (BFOQ). a. True b. False

Page 1

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 02_HR5 10. The Civil Rights Act of 1991 was passed as a direct amendment of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. a. True b. False Indicate the answer choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. 11. Which of the following statements is true of the Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1979? a. It was passed in part to remedy weaknesses in the Family and Medical Leave Act. b. It denies the exemptions provided to women under the Wagner Act of 1935. c. It established a commission to investigate practices that limited the access of women to the top levels of management in organizations. d. It specifies that a woman cannot be refused a job or promotion or fired simply because she has had an abortion. 12. Quid pro quo harassment typically involves: a. offering to exchange something of value for sexual favors. b. making off-color jokes and passing lewd sexual comments about a particular gender. c. decorating the workplace with inappropriate photographs to create a hostile work environment. d. making inappropriate nonverbal gestures, such as ogling and winking at female colleagues. 13. Which of the following is the result of behaviors or actions by an organization or managers within an organization that causes members of a protected class to be unfairly differentiated from others? a. Vicarious learning b. Avoidance learning c. Negative reinforcement d. Illegal discrimination 14. The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) of 1993: a. does not apply to employees who have not worked an average of 25 hours a week in the previous 12 months. b. does not apply to government employees and federal contractors. c. was passed in part to remedy weaknesses in the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938. d. was passed to ensure that employees receive at least some pension benefits at the time of retirement or even termination. 15. In the context of equal employment opportunity legislation, which of the following acts established a commission to investigate practices that limited the access of protected class members, especially women, to the top levels of management in organizations? a. The Labor Management Relations Act b. The Equal Pay Act c. The Glass Ceiling Act d. The Fair Labor Standards Act

Page 2

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 02_HR5 16. Which of the following laws allows law enforcement agencies to carry out investigations of potential terrorists without having to inform the targets of those investigations? a. The Taft-Hartley Act b. The Landrum-Griffin Act c. The WARN Act d. The PATRIOT Act 17. Which of the following oversees and enforces all regulations of the Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973? a. The National Labor Relations Board b. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission c. The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Procedures d. The Office of the Federal Register 18. Which of the following acts, which was passed in 2009, mandates emergency leave for all covered active-duty members? a. The Military Commissions Act b. The Small Necessities Leave Act c. The Uniting American Families Act d. The Supporting Military Families Act 19. The second step in the regulation process of human resource management in the United States is the: a. enforcement of regulations. b. modification of national regulations. c. creation of new regulations. d. implementation of regulations. 20. Jane and Mathew, employees at Widget Corp., apply for a promotion in the company. Despite having the same qualifications and experience, Mathew is given preference over Jane because Mathew is a male candidate. In the given scenario, it can be said that Jane is most likely a victim of _____. a. disparate impact discrimination b. retaliation c. disparate treatment discrimination d. reverse discrimination 21. Identify the act that was passed in 1935 in an effort to control and legislate collective bargaining between organizations and labor unions. a. The Taft-Hartley Act b. The Employee Free Choice Act c. The Wagner Act d. The Fair Labor Standards Act

Page 3

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 02_HR5 22. Which of the following statements is true of a bona fide occupational qualification? a. It does not justify the use of legitimate practices to treat members of different groups differently. b. It justifies discrimination against applicants on the basis of customer or client preference. c. It permits an employer to make hiring decisions on the basis of sex for business necessities. d. It cannot be used by employers to discriminate against applicants on the basis of age. 23. Which of the following is a similarity between the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Procedures (OFCCP)? a. Both jointly developed the uniform guidelines on employee-selection procedures. b. Both are the primary regulatory agencies for enforcing equal employment legislation. c. Both have the power to enforce the provisions of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970. d. Both were created by the National Labor Relations Act of 1935. 24. In the context of court decisions in the late 1990s, identify the type of discrimination whose charges typically stem from the belief by white males that they have suffered because of preferential treatment given to other groups. a. Reverse discrimination b. Pattern discrimination c. Disparate treatment d. Disparate impact 25. Which of the following statements is true of the Taft-Hartley Act? a. It was passed to reduce the use of illegal drugs in the workplace. b. It establishes a minimum hourly wage for jobs. c. It is enforced by the National Labor Relations Board. d. It was passed by Congress in 1959 to counter the Landrum-Griffin Act. 26. To issue new guidelines and opinions regarding employment practices that result from newly passed laws, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) frequently uses the _____. a. Federal Register b. United States Reports c. United States Statutes at Large d. Official Gazette 27. Which of the following is true of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974? a. It states that an employee must receive a pension after retirement. b. It was passed to protect employees' mutual fund investments post retirement. c. It covers retirement plans established or maintained by governmental entities. d. It guarantees a basic minimum benefit that employees could expect to be paid at retirement.

Page 4

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 02_HR5 28. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) defines a disability as: a. a record of having a mental or physical impairment that limits one or more major life activities. b. a problem related to obesity that limits the efficiency of people. c. a cognitive impairment that does not affect any major life activities. d. a hereditary substance-abuse problem that prevents people from being sober. 29. The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (OSHA): a. is enforced by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. b. requires employers to furnish each employee with a place of employment that is free from hazards. c. applies solely to firms regulated by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. d. prohibits employers from using urinalysis to test employees for drug use on the job. 30. In the context of regulations for federal contractors, Executive Order 11478 requires: a. written affirmative action plans from organizations with contracts lower than $50,000. b. the federal government to base all employment policies and decisions on merit and fitness. c. federal contractors that receive more than $2,500 a year from the government to engage in affirmative action for disabled individuals. d. employers with more than 50 employees to provide as many as 12 weeks of unpaid leave for employees after the birth of a child. 31. Jeffrey Inc., an animation company, asks job applicants to fill out a form requesting information about any hereditary illness or health conditions of the applicants or their family members. In this scenario, Jeffrey Inc. is violating the _____. a. Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act b. Americans with Disabilities Act c. Confidentiality of Medical Information Act d. Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act 32. Who among the following is subject to the regulations of the Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988? a. Holly, who is a fashion designer and runs her own line of garments b. Carla, who works as a senior accountant at a private law firm c. Brett, who is a truck driver and transports armaments to military bases d. Allen, who works as a bartender in a famous pub 33. The Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988: a. exempts federal contractors and government employees from its provisions. b. was passed to reduce the use of illegal drugs in the workplace. c. tests employees for both alcohol and drug use at the workplace. d. exempts firms regulated by the Department of Transportation from its provisions.

Page 5

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 02_HR5 34. A local furniture company routinely hires young applicants over older applicants because much of the work requires heavy lifting and good mobility. In this case, the company: a. needs to show that the job requirements are a business necessity. b. can be sued for illegal discrimination by a rejected applicant. c. violates the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009. d. justifies its policy based on Executive Order 11478. 35. Which of the following has the power to apply the standards of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (OSHA) and enforce its provisions? a. The Department of Justice b. The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Procedures c. The Department of Labor d. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission 36. Which of the following statements is true of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)? a. It is a division of the Department of Labor. b. It oversees and enforces the regulations of the Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973. c. It is responsible for enforcing the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. d. It establishes a minimum hourly wage for different types of jobs. 37. Which of the following statements is true of the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act of 1988? a. It is applicable even in unforeseeable circumstances such as a government-enforced shutdown. b. It requires employers with more than 50 employees to provide wages for up to 12 weeks in case of temporary closure of facilities. c. It provides for warnings about pending reductions in work hours. d. It states that a firm with at least 50 employees must provide notice at least 30 days in advance of plans to close a facility. 38. The rationale for which of the following acts was to ensure that everyone who works would receive an income sufficient to meet basic needs? a. The Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973 b. The National Labor Relations Act of 1935 c. The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 d. The Equal Pay Act of 1963 39. Which of the following statements is true of a business necessity? a. It is a practice that is important for the safe and efficient operation of a business. b. A condition such as race or sex does not affect a person's ability to perform a job and therefore can never be used as a business necessity. c. A business necessity cannot be used to claim a bona fide occupational qualification. d. It is used as the basis for establishing a prima facie case of disparate impact discrimination against an organization.

Page 6

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 02_HR5 40. Gantos Corp., an international publication house, has a policy wherein it provides 12 weeks of unpaid leave to new mothers. Moreover, the company covers the employees' medical expenses during the leave, which allows them to use first-class maternal and child-care facilities. In this scenario, the policy at Gantos Corp. complies with the _____. a. Small Necessities Leave Act of 1998 b. Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 c. Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 d. Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1979 41. Which of the following is a similarity between the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the U.S. Civil Service Commission? a. Both were created by the Equal Pay Act of 1963. b. Both developed uniform guidelines on employee-selection procedures. c. Both enforce and oversee all the regulations specific to federal agencies. d. Both have the power to enforce the provisions of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970. 42. Addison Inc., a waste management company with over 500 employees, wants to close one of its plants because of a slump in its business. The managers of the company provide notice to the employees 70 days in advance of the plan to close the facility. In this case, the company conforms to the stipulations of the _____. a. Fair Labor Standards Act b. Labor Management Relations Act c. Occupational Safety and Health Act d. Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act 43. Which of the following established, for the first time, the workweek in the United States as 40 hours per week? a. The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 b. The Labor Management Relations Act of 1947 c. The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 d. The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act of 1988 44. Which of the following statements is true of sexual orientation discrimination? a. It is not prohibited by any federal law. b. It is prohibited by the Defense of Marriage Act of 1996. c. The Fair Labor Standards Act prohibits this discrimination in both public- and private-sector jobs. d. Federal employees are not protected against this discrimination. 45. Which of the following statements is true of the Civil Rights Act of 1964? a. Its applicability is limited to state and national government agencies. b. It was passed as a way to ensure that equal opportunities would be available to everyone. c. It applies to all organizations with a minimum of 100 employees working 20 or more hours per week. d. Its enforcement is the responsibility of the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Procedures (OFCCP).

Page 7

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 02_HR5 46. Which of the following statements is true of the Civil Rights Act of 1991? a. It provides the potential payment of compensatory and punitive damages in cases of discrimination under Title VII. b. It allows federal judges rather than juries to hear cases of discrimination under Title VII. c. It gives the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Procedures the power to enforce the provisions of the Civil Rights Act of 1991. d. It shifts the burden of proof to the victims of discrimination. 47. To establish a prima facie case of discrimination based on the McDonnell-Douglas test, a job applicant should be: a. a member of an unprotected class. b. unemployed at the time of the interview. c. less than 35 years of age. d. qualified for the job for which he or she applied. 48. Which of the following is developing new guidelines that will require companies to divulge more complete and detailed information about their executive-compensation packages? a. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission b. The Securities and Exchange Commission c. The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Procedures d. The National Labor Relations Board 49. A construction company provides its employees who work at construction sites with hard hats. It also provides these employees with coveralls so that they do not come into direct contact with any harmful materials. The measures taken by the company are in compliance with the _____. a. Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act b. Taft-Hartley Act c. Landrum-Griffin Act d. Occupational Safety and Health Act 50. Employees at Border Bookstores, a chain of bookstores, recently held a strike to force their employer to negotiate a labor contract. They demanded higher wages and eight sick leaves in a year instead of the three that they were given. In this context, which of the following acts gave the employees of Border Bookstores the power to collectively bargain with the organization? a. The Norris-La Guardia Act b. The National Labor Relations Act c. The Occupational Safety and Health Act d. The Fair Labor Standards Act 51. The definition of labor market is a major issue in resolving lawsuits brought under _____. a. pattern discrimination claims b. retaliation claims c. disparate impact claims d. disparate treatment claims

Page 8

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 02_HR5 52. Which of the following mirrors the Civil Rights Act in terms of outlawing discrimination but also requires federal contractors and subcontractors with contracts greater than $50,000 to file written affirmative action plans? a. The Fair Labor Standards Act b. Executive Order 11478 c. Executive Order 11246 d. The Wagner Act 53. Which of the following statements is an argument against drug-testing programs? a. They test employees for alcohol use, which is illegal. b. They are applicable only in organizations regulated by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. c. They are not widespread despite the hard evidence addressing their effectiveness. d. They are inappropriate in cases in which there is no reasonable basis for suspected drug use. 54. Which of the following states that it is illegal for an employer to fail or refuse to hire any individual, to discharge any individual, or to discriminate in any other way against any individual with respect to any aspect of the employment relationship on the basis of that individual's race, color, religious beliefs, sex, or national origin? a. The Labor Management Relations Act of 1947 b. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 c. Title 29 of the National Labor Relations Act of 1935 d. The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 55. Which of the following states that a condition such as race, sex, or other personal characteristic legitimately affects a person's ability to perform a job and therefore can be used as a legal requirement for selection? a. The exclusionary rule b. A quid pro quo agreement c. The four-fifths rule d. A bona fide occupational qualification 56. Which of the following is a similarity between the Taft-Hartley Act and Landrum-Griffin Act? a. Both apply primarily to organizations regulated by the Department of Transportation. b. Both ensure that employees would be able to receive at least some pension benefits at the time of retirement or even termination. c. Both regulate union actions and their internal affairs in a way that puts them on an equal footing with management and organizations. d. Both are enforced by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. 57. Which of the following statements is true of the Privacy Act of 1974? a. It applies directly to federal employees only, but it has served as the impetus for several state laws. b. It prohibits employers from using urinalysis, which is the most invasive method of drug testing on the job. c. It applies solely to federal contractors and subcontractors receiving $2,500 or more as loans from the federal government. d. It allows employers to monitor the behavior of employees outside of work.

Page 9

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 02_HR5 58. Ziff Corp., an IT firm, hires candidates from a minority group despite the superior experience and qualifications of candidates from the majority group. It is evident that Ziff Corp.'s hiring policy constitutes _____. a. disparate treatment discrimination b. illegal discrimination c. reverse discrimination d. disparate impact discrimination 59. Which of the following suggests that disparate impact exists if a selection criterion results in a selection rate for a protected class that is less than 80 percent of that for the majority group? a. The McDonnell-Douglas theory b. The four-fifths rule c. A quid pro quo approach d. A bona fide occupational qualification 60. Identify the act that requires that all federal agencies, as well as federal contractors and subcontractors receiving more than $2,500 a year from the federal government, engage in affirmative action for disabled individuals. a. The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 b. The Union Relief Act of 2009 c. The Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973 d. The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 61. Describe the two types of sexual harassment identified by the courts.

62. How can an organization evaluate its compliance with legal requirements?

63. Describe a protected class as defined by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. When is a job selection criterion said to have a disparate impact on protected classes?

Page 10

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 02_HR5 64. Describe the current status of reverse-discrimination cases.

65. Why was the Wagner Act passed? How did it result in the creation of the Taft-Hartley Act and the LandrumGriffin Act?

Page 11

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 02_HR5 Answer Key 1. True 2. False 3. False 4. False 5. False 6. False 7. False 8. False 9. True 10. True 11. d 12. a 13. d 14. a 15. c 16. d 17. c 18. d 19. a 20. c 21. c 22. c 23. b 24. a 25. c 26. a

Page 12

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 02_HR5 27. d 28. a 29. b 30. b 31. a 32. c 33. b 34. a 35. c 36. c 37. c 38. c 39. a 40. c 41. b 42. d 43. a 44. a 45. b 46. a 47. d 48. b 49. d 50. b 51. a 52. c 53. d 54. b Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 13

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 02_HR5 55. d 56. c 57. a 58. c 59. b 60. c 61. Answers will vary. The courts have ruled that there are two types of sexual harassment and have defined both types. One type of sexual harassment is quid pro quo harassment. In this case, the harasser offers to exchange something of value for sexual favors. For example, a male supervisor might tell or imply to a female subordinate that he will recommend her for promotion or provide her with a salary increase, but only if she sleeps with him. A more subtle type of sexual harassment is the creation of a hostile work environment. For example, a group of male employees who continually make off-color jokes and lewd comments and perhaps decorate the work environment with inappropriate photographs may create a hostile work environment for a female colleague to the point where she is uncomfortable working in that job setting. See 2-2: Equal Employment Opportunity 62. Answers will vary. The assurance of compliance can best be done through a three-step process. The first step is to ensure that managers clearly understand the laws that govern every aspect of human resource management (HRM). Second, managers should rely on their own legal and human resource staff to answer questions and review procedures periodically. And third, organizations may also find it useful to engage occasionally in external legal audits of their HRM procedures. This audit might involve contracting with an outside law firm to review the organization's HRM systems and practices to ensure that they comply with all appropriate laws and regulations. See 2-4: Evaluating Legal Compliance 63. Answers will vary. Although it varies from law to law, a protected class consists of all individuals who share one or more common characteristics as indicated by that law. The most common characteristics used to define protected classes include race, color, religion, gender, age, national origin, disability status, and status as a military veteran. Some laws pertain to several protected classes, while others pertain to a single protected class. Class definition generally involves first specifying the basis of distinction and then specifying which degree or category of that distinction is protected. The courts have ruled that disparate impact exists if a selection criterion (such as a test score) results in a selection rate for a protected class that is less than four-fifths (80 percent) of that for the majority group. For example, assume that an organization is considering 100 white applicants and 100 Hispanic applicants for the same job. If an employment test used to select among these applicants results in 60 white applicants (60 percent) being hired, but only 30 Hispanic applicants (30 percent) being hired, then disparate impact is likely to be ruled because Hispanics are being hired at a rate that is less than four-fifths than that of whites. At this point, the organization using the test would be required to prove that its differential selection rate of whites versus Hispanics could be justified. See 2-2: Equal Employment Opportunity

Page 14

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 02_HR5 64. Answers will vary. The current status of reverse-discrimination cases is by no means clear. Within the space of a few years, the Supreme Court: ruled against an organization giving preferential treatment to minority workers during a layoff; ruled in support of temporary preferential hiring and promotion practices as part of a settlement of a lawsuit; ruled in support of the establishment of quotas as a remedy for past discrimination; and ruled that any form of affirmative action is inherently discriminatory and could be used only as a temporary measure. It would appear that the future of affirmative action is unclear, suggesting that the courts will be leaning more toward interpretations in line with reverse discrimination in the future. See 2-2: Equal Employment Opportunity 65. Answers will vary. The National Labor Relations Act, or Wagner Act, was passed in 1935 in an effort to control and legislate collective bargaining between organizations and labor unions. Before 1935, the legal system in the United States was generally considered hostile to labor unions. The Wagner Act was passed in an effort to provide some sense of balance in the power relationship between organizations and unions. The Wagner Act describes the process through which labor unions can be formed and the requirements faced by organizations in dealing with those labor unions. The Wagner Act served to triple union membership in the United States and granted labor unions significant power in their relationships with organizations.Following a series of crippling strikes, however, the U.S. government concluded that the Wagner Act had actually shifted too much power to labor unions. As a result, businesses had been placed at a significant disadvantage. To correct this imbalance, Congress subsequently passed the Labor Management Relations Act (Taft-Hartley Act) in 1947 and the Landrum-Griffin Act in 1959. Both of these acts regulate union actions and their internal affairs in a way that puts them on an equal footing with management and organizations. See 2-3: Other Areas of Human Resource Regulation

Page 15

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 03_HR5 Indicate whether the statement is true or false. 1. In the context of the strategies that organizations use for competing in the international environment, a direct foreign investment occurs when a firm owns physical assets in another country. a. True b. False 2. In the context of the strategies that organizations adopt for competing in the international environment, the process of making products in the domestic marketplace and then selling them in other countries is called importing. a. True b. False 3. The most important index that international HR managers need to consider while hiring a workforce in a host country is hourly wage. a. True b. False 4. More than half the world’s workforce outside the United States belongs to labor unions. a. True b. False 5. Every aspect of the human resources management (HRM) process in a geocentric company must be undertaken from a domestic perspective. a. True b. False 6. In the context of the dimensions of national culture identified by Dutch scholar Geert Hofstede, uncertainty avoidance refers to the status and authority differences between a superior and a subordinate. a. True b. False 7. Future orientation is one of the four dimensions of national culture identified by Dutch scholar Geert Hofstede. a. True b. False 8. Labor unions in the United States are more concerned with social issues than they are in most other countries. a. True b. False 9. The actions of management toward labor and the actions of labor toward management are heavily restricted by law. a. True b. False

Page 1

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 03_HR5 10. Organizations using the ethnocentric staffing model have a fully functioning human resource (HR) department in each foreign subsidiary that is responsible for managing all local HR issues for lower- and upper-level employees alike. a. True b. False Indicate the answer choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. 11. Forrest & Barnes, a pharmaceutical company in the United States, builds a research and development facility in Japan. This helps the company make the best use of the efficient labor and technology available in Japan. Which of the following international business strategies does Forrest & Barnes most likely use? a. Exporting b. A joint venture c. Licensing d. Direct foreign investment 12. Sera Pharma, a pharmaceutical company, produces medicines in its home country. It recently started selling its products to foreign companies in order to expand its business and enter new markets. Which of the following international business strategies does Sera Pharma use in the given scenario? a. Exporting b. Licensing c. An acquisition strategy d. A strategic alliance 13. In the context of the four international strategies as proposed by Bartlett and Goshal, if an expatriate manager is expected to acquire, leverage, and transfer specialized knowledge with much independence, he is most likely working with a firm that uses a _____. a. regional strategy b. global strategy c. multidomestic strategy d. transnational strategy 14. Brooks & Bill is an organic chemicals and fertilizer manufacturer. It allows Fixit Chemicals, a company based in another country, to manufacture Brooks & Bill's products using the Brooks & Bill name, logo, and materials. Fixit Chemicals then sells these products in its own local market. Fixit Chemicals also pays a royalty to Brooks & Bill for every unit that it sells. Which of the following international business strategies does Brooks & Bill most likely use? a. Exporting b. Licensing c. A joint venture d. A strategic alliance

Page 2

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 03_HR5 15. Suave Inc. is an accessories and jewelry retailer based in France. The company wants to enter new markets to expand its business. As a result, it decides to sell its goods to retailers in other countries. Which of the following is an advantage that Suave Inc. is most likely to have using this approach? a. This approach will reduce the transportation costs incurred by Suave. b. This approach will allow Suave to purchase factory units in other countries. c. This approach will allow Suave to realize its full profit potential. d. This approach will involve relatively little risk for Suave. 16. Robert, an executive manager, works in a firm with a clearly-defined hierarchical structure. He prefers to strictly follow the work schedule designed by the top management and assigns tasks to his subordinates well in advance. He expects his subordinates to follow his directions without questioning them and favors a standardized and structured approach to work. In the context of Geert Hofstede's dimensions of national culture, Robert belongs to a culture that is likely to score: a. low on power distance. b. low on assertiveness. c. high on uncertainty avoidance. d. high on femininity. 17. According to the new approaches to determining the success of an expatriate's assignment, the assessment of an expatriate's success should be: a. equated with how long the expatriate stayed in the foreign location. b. tied to the strategic goals the assignment was meant to accomplish. c. equated with how early the expatriate returned from the foreign location. d. tied to how well he or she assimilated the local culture and values. 18. Philip, a French national, is hired by an international corporation based in Japan for its London office. After joining, Philip learns that two other candidates, one from the company's home office in Japan and the other from its London branch, were also considered for the same position. After a complete assessment, however, the management hired Philip because they found him better qualified for the job. In the context of the different staffing strategies used by international businesses, the company that hired Philip most likely uses the _____. a. polycentric staffing model b. geocentric staffing model c. regiocentric staffing model d. ethnocentric staffing model 19. John prefers to work alone on projects and avoids tasks that require him to work in a group with other employees in his organization. He believes in self-reliance and gives precedence to his own ideas and values over the beliefs of others. In the context of the dimensions of national culture identified by Geert Hofstede, John is likely to score high on _____. a. gender egalitarianism b. individualism c. femininity d. in-group collectivism

Page 3

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 03_HR5 20. In the context of the four international strategies proposed by Bartlett and Goshal, which of the following strategies poses the highest risk of agency problems? a. The multidomestic strategy b. The transnational strategy c. The regional strategy d. The global strategy 21. Which of the following is a disadvantage of the international business strategy of licensing? a. It subjects the original firm to high transportation expenses. b. The profits of a firm using this strategy are limited to those it receives from royalty payments. c. It allows a firm to enter a foreign market in high-risk conditions. d. The costs of licensing are quite high and must be borne solely by the original firm. 22. In the context of managing international transfers and assignments, repatriation occurs when a manager is: a. sent by his or her company on a second foreign assignment. b. brought back home from a foreign assignment. c. deported from his home country to a foreign country. d. expelled from the foreign country where he or she is sent on an assignment. 23. Which of the following companies uses a strategic alliance to compete in the international business environment? a. Manolo, a large organic farming business that partners with a chain of retail supermarkets to sell its produce b. Frentech, a large consulting organization that has several operating facilities in another country c. Mellissa, a clothing business that purchases subsidiaries in another country to expand its business d. Benedicts, a frozen food producer that permits other firms to manufacture and market its products using its logo 24. Companies that use the geocentric staffing model: a. heavily employ host-country nationals to better deal with local-market conditions. b. have a common HR unit in their parent countries to handle employment issues for all foreign subsidiaries. c. undertake every aspect of their human resource management process from an international perspective. d. primarily hire home-country nationals to fill higher-level positions in their foreign offices. 25. Which of the following statements is true of the local compensation issues that international businesses face? a. Multinational corporations must pay a hardship premium to their local employees and their families. b. Firms must pay equal compensation to their employees in different foreign locations. c. Compensation issues must be addressed at an international level for multinational corporations. d. Differences in lifestyles cause a variation in the way in which firms compensate their employees in different foreign locations.

Page 4

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 03_HR5 26. Tanya, a social activist, works closely with a local nonprofit organization (NGO) to spread awareness about the importance of education in rural areas. She is actively involved in planning and organizing programs conducted by the community. Together, they have helped enroll 500 students in public schools and have also been responsible for setting up 15 new schools. Tanya takes a lot of pride in her work and her association with the NGO. In the context of the dimensions of national culture as identified by Robert House in his GLOBE project (Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness), Tanya belongs to a culture that is likely to score: a. low on femininity. b. high on in-group collectivism. c. high on masculinity. d. low on uncertainty avoidance. 27. Feel Good Inc. is a multinational sports goods manufacturer that uses a different strategy in each of its subsidiaries and operations. Moreover, all decision-making is decentralized, which leaves the company open to the threat of opportunistic behavior. Since the expatriate managers do not rely on headquarters expertise, there is also an asymmetry in the transfer of information and specialized knowledge. In the context of the four international strategies proposed by Bartlett and Goshal, Feel Good Inc. uses a(n) _____. a. global strategy b. international strategy c. universal strategy d. multidomestic strategy 28. Who among the following individuals is most likely to receive a hardship premium? a. An intern who puts in extra hours of work on a daily basis b. A business development manager on a foreign client visit c. An expatriate manager posted in a war-torn country d. A physician volunteering to serve the poor in his locality 29. Hannah is a relationship-oriented manager at a multinational corporation. She ensures her subordinates know that she values their positive rapport with each other. She also makes it a point to reward her subordinates for improving as well as for showing excellence in their work. In the context of the dimensions of national culture identified by Robert House's GLOBE project (Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness), Hannah most likely displays high _____. a. power distance b. performance orientation c. masculinity d. individualism

Page 5

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 03_HR5 30. Axtara, an automobile manufacturer, has several factories in foreign countries. The management strongly believes in giving precedence to the values and perspectives of its home office over those of its foreign subsidiaries. As a result, the management hires workers from the home country to staff the upper-management positions in all the foreign offices of the company. In the context of the different staffing strategies used by international businesses, Axtara most likely uses the _____. a. geocentric staffing model b. regiocentric staffing model c. polycentric staffing model d. ethnocentric staffing model 31. Which of the following is a difference between labor relations in Japan and labor relations in most European nations? a. Unlike Japan, the use of a third-party mediator to solve disputes is rare in most European nations. b. Unlike most European nations, confrontation and hostility are encouraged in Japan. c. Unlike Japan, temporary work stoppages and strikes are rare in most European nations. d. Unlike most European nations, unions and management in Japan tend to work together cooperatively. 32. In the context of managing international transfers and assignments, which of the following is instruction directed at enhancing specific job-related skills and abilities and most often focuses on operating employees and technical specialists? a. Training b. Learning c. Development d. Management 33. Which of the following terms is defined as the set of values that helps an organization's members understand what it stands for, how it does things, and what it considers important? a. Culture b. Diversity c. Ethnicity d. Folkway 34. GeNext, a leading mobile software developer in Japan, agrees to develop exclusive software application programs for a new line of affordable smartphones to be launched by CelCom, a smartphone manufacturer in China. The brand reputation and pricing strategies of both of these companies are expected to bring in large volumes of smartphone sales. The profits from the sales will be divided between these two firms. In the given scenario, GeNext and CelCom have _____. a. entered into a licensing agreement b. formed a strategic alliance c. entered into an agreement for a merger d. made a direct foreign investment

Page 6

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 03_HR5 35. Which of the following dimensions of national culture identified by Robert House's GLOBE project (Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness) refers to equal opportunities for men and women in society? a. Gender egalitarianism b. Power distance c. In-group collectivism d. Humane orientation 36. Which of the following international business approaches involves cooperation between firms but may not involve sharing of ownership? a. Direct foreign investment b. Licensing c. A strategic alliance d. A joint venture 37. Which of the following companies is an example of an international business that uses the ethnocentric staffing model? a. ComCor, a computer manufacturing company that heavily uses host-country nationals at all levels of the organization in its foreign offices b. Albits, a beverage-producing company that hires parent-country nationals to staff higher-level positions and host-country nationals for entry-level positions in its foreign offices c. LifePro, an investment company that has fully-functioning human resource departments in all its foreign offices to handle HR issues for both upper- and lower-level employees d. Denkins, a software development company that undertakes all human resource management processes from an international perspective 38. Which of the following statements is true of the training of expatriate managers? a. It solely focuses on familiarizing expatriates with the language of their foreign destination. b. It involves teaching managers general skills that will be useful for both present and future jobs. c. It is typical to have a training component that deals with social manners and issues involved in social exchanges. d. It is uncommon to send expatriates for short trips to their ultimate foreign destination before their permanent move as part of the training. 39. Aimi Corporation, based in Japan, decides to open a big manufacturing and distribution center in China. It does this by acquiring operating facilities from another company in China. The management at Aimi believes that adopting this approach will provide the company with instant access to new markets. In this context, the HR function at Aimi Corporation will: a. need to extend and expand its scope and operations to provide the appropriate contributions to firm performance. b. need to be extended to include another set of employees but will not change in any other meaningful way. c. become complicated because of the disparate relationship between the staff in Aimi's home-country and the staff of the acquired company. d. need to be extended to include employees of the Chinese company involved in the acquisition. Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 7

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 03_HR5 40. Which of the following is a reason why host-country nationals are usually hired as nonmanagerial employees in international businesses? a. They demand lesser hardship premium than parent-country nationals. b. They are cheaper to employ than parent-country or third-country nationals. c. They do not require training and eliminate the training costs of organizations. d. They are not eligible for the provisions of international labor standards. 41. Which of the following statements is true of selecting expatriates for international assignments? a. People with foreign-language skills and international travel experience are attractive expatriate candidates. b. Success in foreign assignments is based more on technical skills than on cultural skills. c. More firms are increasingly hiring global managers because of their abundance in the international market. d. The first step in selecting expatriates is to employ a headhunter to identify a pool of qualified applicants. 42. Which of the following is the first step in the process of selecting an expatriate manager? a. Defining the skills necessary to carry out the foreign assignment b. Evaluating the adaptability skills of the prospective candidates c. Identifying managerial candidates with foreign-language skills d. Developing cultural orientation sessions for a pool of qualified applicants 43. In the context of Robert House’s GLOBE project (Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness), which of the following refers to the degree to which people value long-term planning and investing? a. Individualism b. In-group collectivism c. Future orientation d. Uncertainty avoidance 44. In a technology company named X-Core Inc., the managers are friendly with their team members and everyone is on a first-name basis with each other. The work environment is open, and team members are encouraged to discuss ideas with their managers. The teams often go on informal lunches with their managers, and the conversations are free and friendly. In the context of studies of national culture and its influence on behavior at work conducted by Dutch scholar Geert Hofstede, X-Core Inc. is most likely to score: a. low on individualism. b. high on masculinity. c. low on power distance. d. high on assertiveness. 45. Which of the following international business strategies has the least effect on the HR function of a firm? a. Mergers and joint partnerships b. Direct foreign investments and corporate acquisitions c. Exporting and licensing d. Joint ventures and strategic alliances

Page 8

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 03_HR5 46. In the context of selecting expatriates, which of the following is a type of recruiting firm that actively seek qualified managers and other professionals for possible placement in positions in other organizations? a. Career services centers b. Employment contractors c. Gatekeepers d. Headhunters 47. In the context of corporate international strategies, a firm using a transnational strategy: a. expects its expatriate managers to rely heavily on direction from the home office. b. has centralized decision-making, with the lowest risk of agency problems. c. can implement a knowledge contract to obtain all the information acquired by an expatriate manager. d. faces the least number of threats for opportunistic behavior and the lowest information asymmetry. 48. Jared has been working as a manager in a foreign subsidiary of Constructo Inc. for 5 years. When his assignment ends, the company starts the process of bringing Jared and his family back home. The human resource department briefs Jared on new openings and opportunities available within the company. In this scenario, Constructo Inc. is involved in Jared's _____. a. selection b. repatriation c. compensation d. training 49. Which of the following dimensions of national culture identified by Dutch scholar Geert Hofstede refers to the status and authority differences between a superior and a subordinate? a. Power distance b. Collectivism c. Assertiveness d. Uncertainty avoidance 50. If the corporate human resource function in an organization is primarily concerned with selecting and training managers for foreign assignments, developing appropriate compensation packages for those managers, and handling adjustment issues when the manager is reassigned back home, it is evident that the organization has adopted the _____. a. ethnocentric staffing model b. regiocentric staffing model c. geocentric staffing model d. polycentric staffing model

Page 9

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 03_HR5 51. Which of the following companies is an example of an international business that uses the geocentric staffing model? a. Hydracore, a web development company that hires employees from a pool of qualified candidates from across the world b. Franelli, an international convenience store chain that hires employees from its parent country to staff higher-level positions in its foreign offices c. Infinite Sports, a sports shoes manufacturing company that only hires local workers to staff its foreign subsidiaries d. Cielo Vista, a commercial airline that hires parent-country nationals to staff all positions in its foreign offices 52. Azus is an international food products company with subsidiaries in many countries. It employs host-country nationals extensively in each of its foreign locations. The corporate human resources (HR) function in Azus focuses primarily on coordinating relevant activities with their counterparts in each foreign location. Each subsidiary has its own fully functioning HR department that is responsible for managing all local HR issues for lower- and upper-level employees. In the given scenario, which of the following staffing models does Azus employ? a. Regiocentric staffing model b. Polycentric staffing model c. Ethnocentric staffing model d. Geocentric staffing model 53. Which of the following is an advantage of exporting as an international business strategy? a. It allows a firm to have its own company-owned facilities in a foreign market. b. Products exported to other countries are exempt from trade controls like tariffs and taxes. c. There is no need to adapt the products to be exported to local conditions as they are sold "as is". d. It reduces the transportation expenses incurred by a firm. 54. Florence is an expatriate manager at a multinational corporation. Her managers expect her to act independently and acquire specialized knowledge and transfer it to her subordinates. The only issue she faces is being unable to get the local employees to go along with her ideas. As a result, there is a high risk of agency problems. In the context of the four international strategies proposed by Bartlett and Goshal, Florence is working with a company that uses a(n) _____. a. transnational strategy b. international strategy c. global strategy d. regional strategy 55. In the context of economic communities, unlike the European Union (EU), the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) _____. a. has unified the human resource management practices and laws of its member nations b. has a common currency designed to eliminate exchange-rate fluctuations c. is a comprehensive and commonly cited economic community d. attempts to reduce the trade barriers that exist among Canada, the United States, and Mexico Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 10

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 03_HR5 56. Which of the following statements is true of the international business strategy of licensing? a. It allows a firm to enter a foreign market with relatively little risk. b. It provides a firm with its own company-owned facilities in a foreign country. c. It requires a huge outlay of capital. d. It does not provide market exposure to a firm. 57. Which of the following statements is true of the polycentric staffing model? a. This model makes extensive use of host-country nationals (HCNs) as employees in foreign subsidiaries. b. This model assumes that parent-country nationals (PCNs) are better equipped to deal with local market conditions. c. Organizations using this approach have one central HR department that is responsible for managing all HR issues for lower- and upper-level employees. d. This model assumes that home-office perspectives and issues take precedence over local perspectives. 58. One of the domestic issues in international human resource management is that firms have to: a. replace host-country nationals with parent-country nationals for nonmanagerial jobs as the former are more expensive to employ. b. provide a hardship premium to all local employees as part of their pay packages. c. provide equal compensation to all workers, irrespective of their place of work. d. invest additional money to bring the workforce in underdeveloped countries up to the expected performance standards. 59. Identify a form of trade control that places a limit on the number or value of goods that can be traded. a. Quotas b. Tariffs c. Embargoes d. Subsidies 60. In the context of the dimensions of national culture as identified by Robert House's GLOBE project (Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness), who among the following individuals is most likely to belong to a culture with high performance orientation? a. Frieda, who believes in offering equal job opportunities to both men and women b. Martin, who is very proud of his company and the team that he manages c. Belinda, who acknowledges the work of her best employees by rewarding them d. Carlos, who plans projects and allocates resources to them well in advance 61. List the dimensions of national culture as identified by Geert Hofstede.

Page 11

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 03_HR5 62. What are the various strategies that organizations can adopt to compete in the international environment? What are the challenges that these strategies pose for human resource managers?

63. Briefly explain some of the local training issues that a multinational company faces when it hires host-country nationals.

64. How do international businesses compensate expatriates?

65. Briefly discuss international labor relations.

Page 12

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 03_HR5 Answer Key 1. True 2. False 3. False 4. True 5. False 6. False 7. False 8. False 9. True 10. False 11. d 12. a 13. d 14. b 15. d 16. c 17. b 18. b 19. b 20. a 21. b 22. b 23. a 24. c 25. d 26. b

Page 13

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 03_HR5 27. d 28. c 29. b 30. d 31. d 32. a 33. a 34. b 35. a 36. c 37. b 38. c 39. a 40. b 41. a 42. a 43. c 44. c 45. c 46. d 47. c 48. b 49. a 50. a 51. a 52. b 53. c 54. a Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 14

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 03_HR5 55. d 56. a 57. a 58. d 59. a 60. c 61. Answers will vary. Dutch scholar Geert Hofstede conducted a study of national values and how they influence behavior at work. He identified four dimensions of national culture that he believed were important for doing business across cultures: power distance (or status and authority differences between a superior and a subordinate), individualism versus collectivism (or the extent to which persons define themselves as individuals rather than as members of groups), masculinity versus femininity (assertive, competitive, success-driven values versus quality of life, relationshiporiented values in society), and uncertainty avoidance (or preferences for structured rather than unstructured situations). Later work, especially in Asia, led Hofstede to add two more dimensions. These were: long-term orientation versus short-term orientation, which associates the connection of the past with the current and future actions/challenges. A short-term orientation indicates that traditions are honored and kept, and steadfastness is valued, while a long-term orientation indicates that adaptation and circumstantial, pragmatic problem-solving are a necessity, and indulgence versus restraint, which is essentially a measure of happiness—whether or not simple joys are fulfilled. Indulgent cultures are ones in which society allows relatively free gratification of basic human desires related to enjoying life, while restraint refers to societies that control gratification of needs and regulate it by means of strict social norms. See 3-2: Global Issues in International Human Resource Management

Page 15

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 03_HR5 62. Answers will vary. Organizations can adopt a wide variety of strategies for competing in the international environment. Each strategy poses its own unique set of challenges for HR managers. Some of the common strategies are as follows: Exporting: It is the process of making a product in the firm's domestic marketplace and then selling it in another country. If the firm functions solely as an exporter, the human resource function faces no meaningful differences in responsibilities from those in a domestic business. Licensing: Under a licensing strategy, a company grants its permission to another company in a foreign country to manufacture or market its products in the foreign country's local market. The licensing firm typically pays a royalty or licensing fee to the original firm. If a firm is involved in international business activities exclusively via licensing, no meaningful differences in the HR function exist, but HR managers need to extend their existing services and responsibilities to employees associated with the licensing activities. Direct foreign investment: A direct investment occurs when a firm headquartered in one country builds or purchases operating facilities or subsidiaries in a foreign country; that is, the firm actually owns physical assets in the other country. At this level of international business activity, the HR function changes substantially from that of a domestic firm or business using a pure exporting or licensing strategy. Employees of the firm are working in foreign locations. Depending on the nationalities reflected in the foreign workforce, the corporate HR function will need to extend and expand its scope and operations to provide the appropriate contributions to firm performance as determined by the philosophy used for staffing the foreign operations. Joint ventures or strategic alliances: Joint ventures involve two or more firms cooperating in the ownership and/or management of an operation, often on an equity basis. HR managers in companies using this strategy face a complex set of issues and challenges. The corporate human resource staff of each strategic partner needs to determine how to link and coordinate with their counterparts in both the new venture and their partner. If the new venture is operated within the context of one of the existing partner's organization structures, the HR function becomes more complicated still because of the disparate relationships among the HR staff for the new venture and its counterparts in both the partner within which it operates and the other partner. See 3-3: The Human Resource Function in International Business

63. Answers will vary. Human resource managers must understand the training and development needs of the host country's workforce to help host-country nationals perform their jobs most effectively. These needs of a local workforce depend on several factors. One, of course, is the location of the foreign market. In highly industrialized markets, organizations can usually find a cadre of capable employees who may need only a small amount of firmspecific training. But in a relatively underdeveloped area, training and development needs will be much more extensive. Training is also important if international business wants to take full advantage of locating production abroad. Many firms move production facilities to areas with low labor costs but then find that the productivity of the labor force is relatively low. Thus, they have to invest additional training and development dollars to bring the workforce up to the performance standards they expect. See 3-4: Domestic Issues in International Human Resource Management

Page 16

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 03_HR5 64. Answers will vary. To remain competitive, an organization must provide compensation packages for its managers that are comparable to those in a given market. Most international businesses need to provide expatriate managers with differential compensation to make up for differences in currency valuation, standards of living, lifestyle norms, and so on. If the foreign assignment is for a longer time period, however, compensation is usually adjusted to allow the manager to maintain her or his home-country standard of living. Occasionally, organizations might have to provide an additional salary inducement, called a hardship premium or a foreign service premium, simply to convince people to accept a foreign assignment. Many international businesses also find that they must set up a tax-equalization system for their managers on foreign assignments. This system ensures that the expatriates' after-tax income in the host country is comparable to what the after-tax income would have been in the person's home country. The other part of compensation besides salary is benefits. Most international businesses find that, in addition to salary adjustments, they must also provide benefit adjustments. Special benefits for managers on foreign assignments usually include housing, education, medical treatment, travel to the home country, and club membership. Firms also find it increasingly necessary to provide job-location assistance for the spouse of an executive being transferred abroad and to help cover the education costs for their children. International businesses may also provide expatriates with a travel allowance for trips back to the home country for personal reasons such as visiting other family members or celebrating holidays.See 3-5 Describe the issues involved in managing international transfers and assignments. 65. Answers will vary. Labor relations are the processes of dealing with employees who are organized into labor unions. Labor relations are also heavily regulated by law and the actions of management toward labor and the actions of labor toward management are heavily restricted. Different situations, however, exist in different countries throughout the world. Many countries have labor parties that seek to achieve the political goals of unions in those countries, and these parties are often quite powerful. In many countries, labor unions are much more concerned with social issues than they are in the United States, and so their political activism may extend beyond the wages and conditions of employment. Different norms or expectations exist in other countries about the relationships between unions and management. In England, labor "contracts" are not really legal contracts at all but are merely understandings that can be broken at any time by either party with no penalty. And throughout Europe, temporary work stoppages are frequently used by unions in a bid for public backing of their demands. In contrast to the situation in Europe, labor relations in Japan tend to be cordial. Unions are created and run by the businesses themselves. Because Japanese culture discourages confrontation and hostility, unions and management tend to work together cooperatively. Disputes are usually dissolved cordially and through mutual agreement, and it is rare that a third-party mediator must be consulted. Strikes are also rare in Japan. See 3-6: International Labor Relations

Page 17

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 04_HR5 Indicate whether the statement is true or false. 1. A company that adopts a stability strategy plans to expand into new products or markets and intends to manage them by adopting the strategies used for managing its current businesses. a. True b. False 2. The top management team of a firm needs to consult with the human resource management (HRM) team before deciding to pursue a growth strategy. a. True b. False 3. The top management team of a company includes the chief operating officer (COO) of the company. a. True b. False 4. Corporate strategies deal with how a firm will compete in each market where it conducts business. a. True b. False 5. If an organization uses a differentiation strategy, performance management must be focused on recognizing and rewarding performance leading to improved quality. a. True b. False 6. An agency problem occurs when there is a conflict of interest between the managers and the shareholders. a. True b. False 7. In the context of organization design, the functional design is used when an organization has implemented a strategy of unrelated diversification. a. True b. False 8. A key challenge for HR managers with firms using a retrenchment strategy is recruiting and training the large numbers of qualified employees. a. True b. False 9. A prospector strategy works best when a business operates in an environment with relatively little uncertainty and risk and high stability. a. True b. False

Page 1

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 04_HR5 10. A cost leadership strategy allows a firm to charge the highest possible prices for its products. a. True b. False Indicate the answer choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. 11. In the context of the adaptation model, which of the following strategies works best when the business environment is dynamic and growing and has considerable uncertainty and risk? a. A defender strategy b. The prospector strategy c. The analyzer strategy d. A retrenchment strategy 12. Which of the following individuals would a company that uses a defender strategy prefer to retain the most? a. Ron, a sales manager, who is one of the oldest employees of the company and is highly dedicated to his job b. Marlene, a senior accountant, who seldom adheres to company policies but is good at her work c. Tyler, a creative writer, who is very passionate about his work and prefers taking calculated artistic risks d. Lena, a receptionist, who is friendly and approachable but keeps changing jobs 13. Identify one popular approach to business strategy where a business seeks ways to become accustomed to its environment. a. Related diversification b. Retrenchment c. The identity model d. The adaptation model 14. Identify a human resource management (HRM) practice that can lead to improved firm performance. a. Continuous training b. Pay secrecy c. Pay inversion d. Job embeddedness 15. Widget Corp. is often known for its motto "Don't put all your eggs in one basket." Over the course of the past 15 years, the company has acquired a wide array of firms, which operate in different markets that are not associated with each other. In the context of corporate strategies, it is evident that Widget Corp. has adopted a(n) _____. a. related diversification strategy b. differentiation strategy c. analyzer strategy d. unrelated diversification strategy

Page 2

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 04_HR5 16. Ross Brand Inc., a multinational corporation, began its operations with three businesses in the frozen food industry. Since its inception, the company has acquired other fast-food companies. Which type of organization design would be most appropriate for Ross Brand Inc.'s strategy? a. The contemporary design b. The U-form design c. The M-form design d. The conglomerate design 17. Which of the following statements is true of the corporate strategy of an organization? a. It addresses how the organization will manage its operations. b. It should be closely tied to the human resource management practices within the organization. c. It deals with how the organization will compete in each market where it conducts business. d. It should provide guidelines about how the organization will manage its human resources. 18. Which of the following occurs when an organization finds that its current operations are not effective, and major changes, such as rightsizing, are usually needed to rectify the problem? a. A diversification strategy b. A turnaround strategy c. A growth strategy d. A stability strategy 19. The role of the board of directors in an organization is to: a. hire successful employees from competitors' firms to gain advantage in the market. b. encourage a monoculture among employees throughout the organization and create an ethnocentric internal work environment. c. hire employees based on intuition rather than using systematic selection techniques. d. monitor the actions of the top management team to ensure that stockholders' interests are protected. 20. In the context of a turnaround strategy, the role of human resource managers is to: a. help optimize the transition process for displaced workers through outplacement counseling. b. decide how to retain existing employees when the firm cannot offer salary increases or promotions. c. look for new avenues for geographic and brand expansion of the firm. d. recruit employees based on intuition rather than using systematic selection techniques. 21. Which of the following strategies is used by companies that are adding new products, product lines, or businesses to their existing core products, product lines, or businesses? a. A diversification strategy b. A differentiation strategy c. A retrenchment strategy d. A stability strategy

Page 3

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 04_HR5 22. In the context of the strategic alternatives of the adaptation model, which of the following strategies is assumed to work best when a business operates in an environment with relatively little uncertainty and risk and a high degree of stability? a. A defender strategy b. The prospector strategy c. The analyzer strategy d. A turnaround strategy 23. Sandra is the chief operating officer of a fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) company. She is responsible for the overall strategic operation of the company and for communicating the company's vision to the employees. In this case, Sandra is most likely to be part of the: a. technical team of the company. b. labor union of the company. c. top management team of the company. d. employee association of the company. 24. In the context of the adaptation model, which of the following is a similarity between an organization using the defender strategy and an organization using the focus strategy? a. Both focus on diversifying their products and services. b. Both ignore the environment in which their businesses operate. c. Both target a specific segment of the market for their products or services. d. Both work best in conditions of high uncertainty and risk. 25. When a fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) company faced bankruptcy, the company decided to encourage its employees to contribute their ideas toward organizational development and growth. The organization also asked its human resource team to assess the employees' levels of commitment toward organizational effectiveness. To improve the FMCG company's organizational performance, it is evident that the company most likely used _____. a. self-directed work teams b. attitude surveys c. job enrichment d. job embeddedness 26. The set of values that helps an organization's members understand what the organization stands for, how it accomplishes what it wants to accomplish, and what it considers important is called the organization's _____. a. profile b. purpose c. culture d. design

Page 4

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 04_HR5 27. Labor relations is the process of dealing with employees who are represented by _____. a. a task force b. the board of directors of the firm c. the government d. a union 28. In the context of the adaptation model, HR managers in firms that pursue the analyzer strategy are most likely to: a. recruit employees who like working with specific guidelines in a stable environment. b. retain stable employees who exhibit high levels of commitment and loyalty to the firm. c. recruit and retain entrepreneurial employees who are highly flexible and more dedicated to their craft or profession than to the organization itself. d. recruit and retain employees who might be moderately entrepreneurial and flexible but who will also be quite dedicated and loyal to the organization. 29. Which of the following statements is true of flat organizations? a. They are highly bureaucratic. b. They rely heavily on teamwork. c. They are more rigid than vertical organizations. d. They cannot adapt easily to changing environments. 30. Which of the following is a critical component that affects how strategies are formulated and how they are implemented? a. Performance management b. Unionization c. Staffing d. Salary structure 31. Which of the following statements best defines a stability strategy? a. It is adopted by a company that plans to stay in its current businesses and intends to manage them as they are already being managed. b. It is used by companies that are adding new products, product lines, or businesses to their existing core products, product lines, or businesses. c. It occurs when an organization finds that its current operations are not effective. d. It can be pursued externally through mergers, joint ventures, and the acquisition of other businesses. 32. When an organization adopts a turnaround strategy, its HR managers need to be involved in: a. recruiting entrepreneurial employees who are highly flexible and ambitious. b. retaining the existing employees when the firm cannot offer any advancement opportunities. c. decreasing the size of the organization's workforce. d. rotating managers across various businesses of the corporation.

Page 5

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 04_HR5 33. A company can shield itself from the adverse effects of business cycles, unexpected competition, and other economic fluctuations while operating several unique businesses in different markets by using _____. a. a retrenchment strategy b. unrelated diversification c. a differentiation strategy d. related diversification 34. Identify an organizational design that looks similar to the H-form design except that the businesses are closely related to one another. a. The functional design b. The unitary-form design c. The conglomerate design d. The divisional design 35. Which of the following tend to have many rules and formal procedures that might limit a firm's ability to formulate an ideal strategy? a. Psychological contracts b. Unionized firms c. Organizational citizenship behaviors d. Self-directed work teams 36. A cost leadership strategy is one that: a. allows a company to charge the lowest possible prices for its products. b. focuses on hiring experienced employees who may remain with the company for a long time. c. has reward systems based on quality rather than on the quantity of output. d. focuses on maximizing the overall costs as much as possible. 37. Which of the following is a difference between the functional design and the divisional design of organizations? a. The functional design is used by large corporations, whereas the divisional design is used by small and new organizations. b. The functional design looks similar to the H-form design, whereas the divisional design looks similar to the U-form design. c. In the functional design, senior management usually provides coordination across departments, whereas in the divisional design, coordination is usually decentralized down to the various operating companies. d. In the functional design, each business unit within a firm has its own human resource department, whereas in the divisional design, a firm has a single corporate-level human resource department to manage all human resource activities. 38. In the context of M-form organizations, the primary function of the corporate-level HR department is to: a. facilitate synergy across businesses. b. help the top management in constructing basic functional departments. c. motivate employees to attain organizational goals. d. gain a sustained competitive advantage over competitors.

Page 6

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 04_HR5 39. Which of the following is the set of forces that causes people to behave in certain ways? a. Altruism b. Motivation c. Personality d. Attitude 40. Which of the following individuals would a company that uses the prospector strategy prefer to retain the most? a. Shawn, a sales manager, who makes sure that his team members never exceed the budget allotted to them b. Marla, a senior accountant, who is very loyal to the organization but is rigid in her approach to work c. Thomas, a creative writer, who is very passionate about his work and prefers taking artistic risks to meet the changing industry needs d. Maria, a receptionist, who is exceptionally good at her work but is overqualified for the job and has come to dislike it 41. In the context of human resource management, companies can establish a competitive advantage by: a. hiring the right people and training them to be effective. b. implementing a hierarchical management scheme. c. adopting a centralized approach to organizational control. d. focusing solely on their external environment. 42. In the context of the adaptation model, which of the following is a strategic alternative that is seen as a strategic failure and is not held up as a model that any firm should emulate? a. The defender b. The prospector c. The analyzer d. The reactor 43. Employees are potentially an excellent source of competitive advantage for an organization because: a. they cannot refuse to follow the commands of the top executives of the organization. b. they are difficult to copy or replace. c. they formulate the organization's purpose and mission statement. d. they cannot be hired by the competitors of the organization. 44. Which of the following statements is true of the union in an organization? a. Unionized firms tend to have fewer rules than nonunionized firms. b. Labor unions in the United States are more concerned with social issues than they are in most other countries. c. It can play an important role in formulating and implementing the human resource strategy of the organization. d. It cannot facilitate strategic changes in the organization.

Page 7

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 04_HR5 45. Which of the following terms refers to the relatively stable set of psychological attributes or traits that distinguish one person from another? a. Personality b. Attitude c. Motivation d. Reinforcement 46. In the context of the adaptation model, HR managers in organizations using a defender strategy are most likely to recruit and retain: a. employees who are highly skilled in their job irrespective of their commitment to the organization. b. stable employees who exhibit high levels of commitment and loyalty to the organization. c. entrepreneurial employees who are highly flexible and more dedicated to their craft or profession than to the organization itself. d. employees who might be moderately entrepreneurial and flexible but who will also be quite dedicated and loyal to the organization. 47. Wedding Bells, a company founded in 1910, is the market leader in the bridal gown industry in the United States. It sells bridal gowns and caters only to this niche market segment. It has never diversified its product line to other garments or any other business. It concentrates exclusively on guarding its position in the bridal gown market. In the context of business strategies, which of the following strategies does Wedding Bells follow? a. The defender strategy b. The analyzer strategy c. The prospector strategy d. The reactor strategy 48. According to the adaptation model of business strategy, which of the following strategies is most appropriate in relatively stable conditions with a moderate degree of uncertainty and risk? a. The reactor strategy b. The prospector strategy c. The analyzer strategy d. The defender strategy 49. Which of the following strategies is used when an organization tries to target a specific segment of the marketplace for its products or services? a. The prospector strategy b. The focus strategy c. The analyzer strategy d. The reactor strategy 50. The group of senior executives responsible for the overall strategic operation of a firm is called the firm's _____. a. labor union b. trusteeship council c. top management team d. human resource department Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 8

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 04_HR5 51. A company that attempts to develop an image or reputation for its product or service that sets the company apart from its competitors most likely uses a _____. a. diversification strategy b. differentiation strategy c. stability strategy d. defender strategy 52. If we examine fundamental human resource management (HRM) practices, it seems reasonable to suggest that: a. it is enough to hire a competitor's employees to gain significant competitive advantage. b. HRM teams do not play a significant role in firms using a growth strategy. c. using systematic selection techniques is better than hiring based on intuition. d. chief executive officers are the true owners of modern corporations—not the stockholders. 53. Which of the following is a human resource management (HRM) practice that can lead to improved firm performance? a. Having self-directed work teams b. Having pay secrecy and pay compression policies c. Using pay inversion to motivate employees d. Conducting informal performance appraisals 54. One form of organization design used by many small or new organizations is the _____. a. functional design b. M-form design c. H-form design d. divisional design 55. Anyx Inc., an electronics firm, manufactures home appliances as well as automobile engines. It also owns and operates an insurance firm and a software development firm. Which of the following strategies does Anyx Inc. use? a. The diversification strategy b. The turnaround strategy c. The retrenchment strategy d. The stability strategy 56. Regardless of the specific organization design, in recent years many firms have been: a. taking a hierarchical approach to organizational control. b. increasing the number of levels of management. c. increasing bureaucracy. d. moving toward becoming flat organizations.

Page 9

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 04_HR5 57. In the context of the adaptation model, which of the following is a strategic alternative that managers can select to match their organization's strategy with the basic conditions of their organization's environment? a. The defender strategy b. The focus strategy c. Retrenchment d. Unrelated diversification 58. Which of the following strategies is frequently used by organizations after a period of retrenchment? a. Related diversification b. Unrelated diversification c. A stability strategy d. A turnaround strategy 59. Which of the following statements is true of a mission statement? a. It specifies the basic reason for the existence of an organization. b. It attempts to identify the weaknesses of an organization and the threats that it is likely to face. c. It often provides subtle cues about the importance that an organization places on its human resources. d. It always signals an organization's true priorities. 60. Straps Inc. is a leading manufacturer of high-end watches. It is renowned for its reliability and quality and enjoys a monopoly in its home market. It has now adopted a differentiation strategy to expand its business into neighboring countries. Which of the following human resource strategies should Straps Inc. follow to maintain the same momentum in the new markets? a. It should exclusively focus on marketing to people from the business industry. b. It should hire workers who can provide exemplary customer service. c. It should keep the size of its workforce small to increase efficiency. d. It should hire employees on short-term contracts. 61. Describe the factors that affect human resource (HR) strategy formulation.

62. Briefly explain the impact of an organization's culture on the formulation of its human resource strategies.

Page 10

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 04_HR5 63. Briefly explain the influence of an organization's purpose and mission on its human resource practices.

64. How would an organization conduct an evaluation of its human resource (HR) function?

65. Compare related and unrelated diversification.

Page 11

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 04_HR5 Answer Key 1. False 2. True 3. True 4. False 5. True 6. True 7. False 8. False 9. False 10. False 11. b 12. a 13. d 14. a 15. d 16. c 17. b 18. b 19. d 20. a 21. a 22. a 23. c 24. c 25. b 26. c

Page 12

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 04_HR5 27. d 28. d 29. b 30. b 31. a 32. c 33. b 34. d 35. b 36. a 37. c 38. a 39. b 40. c 41. a 42. d 43. b 44. c 45. a 46. b 47. a 48. c 49. b 50. c 51. b 52. c 53. a 54. a Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 13

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 04_HR5 55. a 56. d 57. a 58. c 59. c 60. b 61. Answers will vary. When attempting to formulate the HR strategy as well as its three basic components, human resource managers must also account for other key parts of the organization.These components are important because they affect both how strategies are formulated and how they are implemented. Three critical components are organization design, the corporate culture, and unionization. Organization design refers to the framework of jobs, positions, groups of positions, and reporting relationships among positions that are used to construct an organization. Regardless of the specific design, in recent years many firms have been moving toward becoming flat organizations. Flatter organizations are believed to be more flexible and more easily adaptable to changing conditions. The HR function in these organizations is likely to be diffused so that operating managers take on more of the responsibility for HR activities, with a somewhat smaller human resource staff providing basic services and playing more of a consultative role.The culture of the organization also affects how it formulates and implements its human resource strategy. An organization's culture refers to the set of values that helps its members understand what the organization stands for, how it does things, and what it considers important.Other important aspects of the workforce that affect the development and implementation of strategy in the HRM function are unionization and collective bargaining. Labor relations is the process of dealing with employees who are represented by an employee association, usually called a union. Union membership in the United States has been declining gradually for the last few decades, but it remains an important force in many industries. See 4-3: Human Resource Strategy Formulation 62. Answers will vary. The culture of an organization affects how it formulates and implements its human resource strategy. An organization's culture refers to the set of values that helps its members understand what the organization stands for, how it does things, and what it considers important. Culture is a complex and amorphous concept that defies objective measurement or evaluation. Nevertheless, it is the foundation of an organization's internal environment and thus plays a major role in shaping managerial behavior and is a strong element in how the organization manages its human resources. Human resource managers may find that, depending on the circumstances, corporate culture may either facilitate or impede their work. If the firm has a strong and wellunderstood culture that seems attractive to people, then recruiting qualified applicants is often easier. Finally, managing culture is important for the success of corporate mergers and acquisitions. The ability to integrate two cultures—in fact, to form a new unique corporate culture and identity for the merged organization—is critical for the overall success of any merger or acquisition and is the role of the human resource management area. See 4-3: Human Resource Strategy Formulation

Page 14

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 04_HR5 63. Answers will vary. An organization's purpose and mission are among the most fundamental contextual forces that define the strategic context of human resource management. An organization's purpose is its basic reason for existence. The purpose of a business is to earn profit for its owners, the purpose of a university is to discover and disseminate new knowledge, and the purpose of a museum is to preserve artifacts and historical relics. An organization's mission is how its managers have decided to fulfill its purpose. A mission statement specifies how the organization intends to manage itself so that it can pursue the fulfillment of its purpose most effectively. A mission statement attempts to specify the unique characteristics and strengths of an organization and identifies the scope of the business's operations in particular products and markets. Mission statements often provide subtle cues about the importance that the organization places on its human resources. Although mission statements make a public commitment to some course of action (such as valuing human resources), we must recognize that, in some cases, the language of a mission statement is intended to placate a group of stakeholders, such as employees, rather than to signal an organization's true priorities. See 4-1: The Competitive Environment for Human Resource Management 64. Answers will vary. Evaluating the effectiveness of the HR function has become an important trend in recent years. Many organizations are now subcontracting or outsourcing some of their human resource management (HRM) functions to external vendors. Whether or not to outsource a function depends on the actual cost of keeping the function in-house. At the same time, many organizations are coming to view effective HRM as a source of competitive advantage, so they are focusing on its potential benefits and examining the costs and benefits to see which ones actually contribute to competitive advantage and which should be outsourced. In any event, line managers may even be allowed to decide between the corporation's HR department or an outsider vendor when they need HRM help. In addition to the evaluation of specific human resource functions, there has been a recent trend toward evaluating entire systems of HR activities. Instead of determining if any one HRM practice can produce value, this approach examines the relationship between "bundles" of practices and the overall performance of the organization in terms of factors such as profitability, stock price, and productivity. Although the specific practices that have been investigated differ somewhat from study to study, and despite issues raised about the measurement of effectiveness, the evidence seems to show that organizations that adopt more enlightened HRM practices actually do better than other organizations. See 4-5: Evaluating the Human Resource Function in Organizations 65. Answers will vary. A corporation that uses the diversification strategy usually makes the decision to own and operate several different businesses. The various businesses owned by a corporation are usually related to one another in some way, a strategy called related diversification. The basic underlying assumption for using this strategy is that the corporation can achieve synergy among the various businesses it owns. This type of organization often adopts a policy of rotating managers across the various businesses so that they develop an overall managerial perspective on the whole firm. The related aspects of the businesses presumably make such cross-business transfers easier. Because the markets for each business are similar, the firm can develop relatively uniform procedures for selection, compensation, training, and so forth. Sometimes, however, an organization decides to expand into products or markets that are unrelated to its current products and markets. This approach is called unrelated diversification. A firm that pursues this strategy attempts to operate several unique businesses in different, unrelated markets. The basic logic behind unrelated diversification is that a company can shield itself from the adverse effects of business cycles, unexpected competition, and other economic fluctuations. Because each unrelated business is likely to have its own unique hiring, compensation, and training needs—as dictated by its own competitive environment—these functions will likely be customized and decentralized for each business. See 4-2 Corporate, Business, and Functional Strategies

Page 15

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 05_HR5 Indicate whether the statement is true or false. 1. In the context of data analytics and big data, generally, analytics is often used to describe how information is communicated. a. True b. False 2. If an organization anticipates retrenchment, then it will most likely need to hire additional human resources in the future. a. True b. False 3. Individuals can differentiate themselves by making human capital investments, just as a firm can differentiate itself by paying higher wages. a. True b. False 4. A narrative job analysis is the most common form of job analysis used in the U.S. military. a. True b. False 5. The first step in the job-analysis process is determining methods for obtaining information. a. True b. False 6. In the past, data analytics was at times referred to as "data mining." a. True b. False 7. The average age of the U.S. workforce is gradually decreasing. a. True b. False 8. The differences in salaries and wage rates are partly caused by different levels of competitiveness for talent in the market. a. True b. False 9. An organization that implements a reduction strategy will provide training programs to upgrade the skills of current employees to make them more valuable to the organization. a. True b. False

Page 1

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 05_HR5 10. The local unemployment rate is more closely linked to the national unemployment rate than to an individual's choices. a. True b. False Indicate the answer choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. 11. Which of the following is a similarity between functional job analysis and the Position Analysis Questionnaire? a. The items that make up both of these methods are organized into 10 sections. b. Both instruments are relatively simple and easy to use. c. The dimensions measured by both of these methods are believed to underlie all jobs. d. Both provide information on 187 separate job-related items. 12. In the context of job-analysis techniques, which of the following is a disadvantage of the Position Analysis Questionnaire (PAQ)? a. Unlike functional job analysis, its dimensions are believed to underlie selected jobs. b. It is less useful for higher-level managerial jobs compared with other jobs. c. Unlike the Management Position Description Questionnaire, it consists of less than 100 items. d. It is typically individualistic, making it difficult to compare the tasks on one job with the tasks on another. 13. Wayth, a mobile manufacturing company, experienced losses in its domestic operations. As a result, it closed two of its underperforming facilities and downsized its workforce. The management also offered early retirement benefits to its low-performing employees to make them resign voluntarily. In the given scenario, Wayth used a _____. a. stability strategy b. reduction strategy c. diversification strategy d. growth strategy 14. Which of the following is a standardized job-analysis instrument whose focus is on managerial jobs, and the analysis is done in terms of 13 essential components of all administrative jobs? a. The Position Analysis Questionnaire b. The Management Position Description Questionnaire c. The Fleishman job-analysis system d. The critical incidents approach 15. Which of the following statements is true of the Position Analysis Questionnaire (PAQ)? a. It is the most common form of job analysis used in the U.S. military. b. It is a standardized job-analysis instrument consisting of 197 items. c. It represents the first attempt to develop a single instrument that can describe all jobs in common terms. d. It is relatively complex, and an employee must have the reading level of a college graduate to be able to complete it.

Page 2

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 05_HR5 16. Genysys, a technology services provider, has been experiencing losses in some of its regional offices for the past few months. As a result, it closes some of its offices and downsizes its workforce. It also offers early retirement packages to its senior employees so that they may consider retiring earlier than they would have done otherwise. In the given scenario, Genysys is using a _____. a. growth strategy b. stability strategy c. reduction strategy d. diversification strategy 17. Seventh Heaven, a mattress manufacturer and distributor, is a large profitable organization. It has decided to stay in its current business. The firm has a normal rate of attrition, and it takes steps to retain its existing employees. The company provides the employees with training programs and additional benefits, such as flexible work timings, to make sure they are satisfied with their jobs. In the given scenario, Seventh Heaven is most likely using a _____. a. diversification strategy b. reduction strategy c. stability strategy d. growth strategy 18. In the context of job-analysis techniques, the Fleishman job-analysis system: a. relies on the taxonomy of abilities that presumably represents all the dimensions relevant to work. b. is the most common approach to job analysis. c. does not require a great deal of training for someone to complete. d. focuses on the critical behaviors that differentiate effective performers from ineffective performers. 19. Which of the following statements is true in the context of the use of data analytics and big data in human resource management (HRM)? a. The use of big data in human resource management is risk-free. b. Data analytics does not have implications for decision-making in the human resource area. c. Data analytics has been more popular in areas such as marketing, rather than in human resource management. d. The application of big data in human resource management is limited to the analysis of transactional data in large volumes. 20. Which of the following is a drawback of the task-analysis inventory? a. The information generated by this method is very vague and imprecise. b. It is difficult to make comparisons across job families using a single task inventory. c. The task-analysis inventory is complex and relatively difficult to use. d. Training needs cannot be established using this method.

Page 3

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 05_HR5 21. Which of the following is an individual presumed to be highly knowledgeable about a particular job and who provides data for job analysis? a. A free rider b. An ancillary worker c. A blue-collar worker d. A subject matter expert 22. Which of the following statements is true of the Fleishman job-analysis system? a. It is the most standardized job-analysis instrument available and consists of 194 items. b. It relies on a panel of subject matter experts to indicate how important an ability is for a job. c. It requires little or no training. d. It is the most common form of job analysis used in the U.S. military. 23. Jenna is part of the human resource department of her company. She gathers a panel of subject matter experts (SMEs) to perform a job analysis. She asks the SMEs to analyze the jobs in the company based on a taxonomy of 52 abilities that represent all the dimensions of the jobs. The SMEs are required to indicate the importance of various abilities for each job. In the context of job-analysis techniques, the given scenario illustrates the use of the _____. a. Fleishman job-analysis system b. Position Analysis Questionnaire c. functional job-analysis technique d. critical incidents approach 24. Klebo and Philly is a growing pharmaceutical company. As part of its expansion process, the company must hire many new employees. It hires job analysts to list the knowledge, skills, and abilities that all future employees must have to perform the jobs that will emerge as a result of the expansion plan. In the given scenario, the job analysts hired by Klebo and Philly will most likely create a _____. a. job description b. job specification c. job role d. job title 25. Freego, an automobile manufacturing firm, wants to understand the processes by which the jobs within the firm can be performed more effectively. It hence asks its engineers and technicians with expert knowledge to prepare text descriptions of all the jobs in the company. The quality and length of these descriptions vary according to each manager's writing skills. In the given scenario, Freego is using _____. a. the Fleishman job-analysis system b. a narrative job analysis c. the task-analysis inventory d. a functional job analysis

Page 4

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 05_HR5 26. Which of the following is a complicated process because it is often critical that exactly the right type of person is selected for a top position, the development costs to groom this person are very high, and the actual decision may severely impact the future of the firm? a. Executive succession b. Retrenchment c. Utility analysis d. Open-book management 27. A company that implements a stability strategy is most likely to: a. downsize its workforce through terminations and layoffs. b. offer early retirement offers and packages to its employees. c. increase the value of the existing employees through additional training. d. intensify recruitment efforts and design attractive salary packages. 28. Which of the following statements is true of the task-analysis inventory? a. The information generated by this method is often detailed and useful for setting training needs. b. The task-analysis inventory is complex and relatively difficult to use. c. It is easy to make comparisons across job families using this method. d. Jobs are described in terms of the level of involvement with people, data, and things. 29. The management of Jadex, a cell phone manufacturer, decides to manufacture tablet computers. However, before beginning the production, the management wants to analyze the jobs that will have to be performed and the tasks involved in each of these jobs. It wants to use a simple and relatively inexpensive technique for this. Furthermore, it does not want to spend too much on training an analyst to analyze the jobs. Which of the following job-analysis techniques will best suit Jadex's requirements? a. The Fleishman job-analysis system b. The narrative job-analysis technique c. The task-analysis inventory d. The Position Analysis Questionnaire 30. A company that implements a growth strategy is most likely to: a. reduce its recruiting efforts. b. downsize its workforce. c. roll out early retirement offers and packages. d. hire employees readily without additional work. 31. Which of the following statements is true of a stability strategy? a. It mostly involves terminations and layoffs. b. It shields an organization from the need to augment its labor force. c. It may be the easiest for a human resource manager to implement. d. It may indicate growing sales, increasing demand, and expanding operations for an organization.

Page 5

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 05_HR5 32. In the context of job-analysis techniques, which of the following statements is true of a narrative job analysis? a. It requires narratives to have a constant length irrespective of the type of the job. b. The narratives in a job analysis are typically individualistic, making it difficult to compare the tasks of one job with another. c. It defines abilities as enduring attributes of individuals that account for differences in performance. d. The quality of the information presented by the narratives in a job analysis is independent of the writing skills of the job analyst. 33. Which of the following statements is true of human capital investments? a. They do not include on-the-job training. b. They affect a firm's location strategies. c. They do not influence individuals' decisions to enter the labor market. d. They lead to a decrease in the wages of individuals. 34. In the Position Analysis Questionnaire (PAQ), the section on information inputs: a. includes the physical activities, tools, and devices used by a worker to perform his or her job. b. includes where and how a worker gets data needed to perform his or her job. c. includes the relationships with other people that are required in performing a job. d. represents the reasoning and information-processing activities involved in performing a job. 35. Which of the following statements is true of the critical incidents approach? a. It represents the first attempt to develop a single instrument that can describe all jobs in common terms. b. It proposes that all jobs be described in terms of the level of involvement with people, data, and things. c. It is a standardized job-analysis instrument consisting of 194 items. d. It is most widely used in connection with the development of appraisal instruments. 36. Which of the following job-analysis techniques most likely focuses on the important behaviors that distinguish effective from ineffective performers? a. The critical incidents approach b. The Position Analysis Questionnaire c. The Fleishman job-analysis system d. The task-analysis inventory method 37. Meeraze Inc., a management consulting firm, plans to increase its profits by expanding its services to target new customers. It wants to hire more employees to maintain the quality of its services and hence launches an intense recruitment drive. It also collaborates with colleges to tap potential employees. In the given scenario, Meeraze Inc. is most likely using a _____. a. growth strategy b. stability strategy c. reduction strategy d. retrenchment strategy

Page 6

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 05_HR5 38. Which of the following is the process of forecasting the supply and demand for the workforce within an organization and developing action plans for aligning the two? a. Benchmarking b. Open-book management c. Utility analysis d. Human resource planning 39. Which of the following focuses more on the individual who will perform the job than on the tasks, duties, and responsibilities that the particular job entails? a. Job enrichment b. Job enlargement c. A job specification d. A job description 40. Which of the following companies is implementing a growth strategy? a. Gilligan, a cosmetic products manufacturing firm that offers additional benefits to employees who choose to retire early b. Bennigan, a chain of supermarkets that plans to reduce its recruiting efforts c. Marcus, Gold, & Partners, an accounting firm that has a normal rate of attrition but does not hire more people to replace the employees who leave d. Exgenn, a technology services provider that conducts training programs in colleges to find future employees 41. Green Acres is a large real estate firm that operates in several states. The top-level employees of the firm are required to let the management know 2 years in advance if they are preparing to step down from their positions. This is done so that the management can find, hire, and train a suitable candidate to take up the vacant position. The firm wants to bring in as much order as possible to its planning processes for future promotions. Which of the following concepts does the given scenario illustrate? a. Utility analysis b. Homesourcing c. Open-book management d. Executive succession 42. Which of the following statements is true of the task-analysis inventory method of job analysis? a. It is the most common form of job analysis used in the U.S. military. b. It defines abilities as enduring attributes of individuals that account for differences in performance. c. Unlike the narrative job-analysis method, the task-analysis inventory method is rarely used in municipal and county governments. d. Unlike the Fleishman job-analysis system, the task-analysis inventory method does not rely on a panel of subject matter experts.

Page 7

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 05_HR5 43. In the context of job-analysis techniques, which of the following refers to a family of job-analysis methods, each with unique characteristics, and each focusing on analyzing all the work performed in the focal job? a. A narrative job analysis b. The task-analysis inventory c. A functional job analysis d. The critical incidents approach 44. An advantage of the Position Analysis Questionnaire (PAQ) is that: a. it provides information on 197 job-related items. b. it is extremely useful for high-level managerial jobs and for describing white-collar jobs. c. a considerable database of information exists that attests to its validity and reliability. d. the PAQ instrument is relatively simple and easy to use. 45. Swanz, a cosmetics manufacturer, plans to stay in the cosmetics business and become the market leader in the cosmetics industry. However, the company is facing natural attrition and hence directs the human resource department (HR) to develop ways to reduce the turnover rate. The department decides to provide training to the company's current employees to increase their skills so that they become more valuable to the organization. In the given scenario, the HR department most likely wants to implement a _____. a. growth strategy b. stability strategy c. reduction strategy d. retrenchment strategy 46. Which of the following statements is true of a narrative job analysis? a. It is inexpensive as compared with other job-analysis techniques. b. It is the least commonly used approach to job analysis. c. It requires job analysts to undergo extensive training. d. It focuses on the critical behaviors that distinguish effective from ineffective performers. 47. The vice president of Oreon Inc., an international chain of hotels, announces that he will retire from his post after 2 years. Following this, the top management of Oreon Inc. makes use of its employee database and elects the current general manager of operations as the next vice president. The manager is then given regular training and is groomed to make his transition to the senior position seamless. The given scenario illustrates the concept of _____. a. homesourcing b. utility analysis c. executive succession d. open-book management 48. Which of the following statements is true of job specifications? a. They may include general educational requirements. b. They focus more on jobs than on the individuals required to perform those jobs. c. They provide some indication of the relative importance of specific tasks in the effective conduct of jobs. d. They may specify major job elements. Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 8

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 05_HR5 49. Lu Chen, a line manager, is asked to perform a job analysis of the new jobs that have emerged as part of her company's expansion process. She decides to pick the most common approach to job analysis and prepares text descriptions of all the new jobs. She writes detailed descriptions of the jobs and the effort involved in completing them. In the given scenario, Lu Chen is using _____. a. a narrative job analysis b. the Fleishman job-analysis system c. the task-analysis inventory d. functional job analysis 50. A company's strategy is an important source of information for making human resource decisions because: a. it provides a comprehensive picture of labor force trends and issues. b. it determines whether employee turnover should be reduced or encouraged. c. it generates an accurate description of the tasks performed in the company. d. it helps the company comply with laws and government regulations. 51. Hernandez, a clothing retail firm, maintains a database that contains all necessary work-related details of its employees. The information includes each employee's date of hire, job history, education, and performance and compensation history. The database allows the management to forecast the labor demands within the firm. In the given scenario, Hernandez is most likely using a _____. a. human resource information system b. transaction processing system c. process control system d. professional employer organizer 52. Which of the following statements is true of market wage rates? a. They remain the same across various regions in a country. b. They change according to the demand for and supply of labor. c. They have decreased over the past 5 years. d. They are solely influenced by the local unemployment rate. 53. Which of the following statements is true of the functional job-analysis technique? a. It provides information on 187 separate job-related items, allowing a rich picture of what happens on a job. b. It focuses on the critical behaviors that distinguish effective from ineffective performers. c. It emphasizes that all jobs can be described in terms of the level of involvement with people, data, and things. d. It is the most common form of job analysis used in the U.S. military. 54. Which of the following lists the tasks, duties, and responsibilities that a particular job entails? a. A job description b. A job specification c. Job enlargement d. Job enrichment

Page 9

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 05_HR5 55. Which of the following is a computerized job classification system that contains continually updated information regarding the knowledge, skills, and abilities required for virtually every job in the U.S. economy? a. The task-analysis inventory system b. The Occupational Information Network c. The Fleishman job-analysis system d. The Society for Human Resource Management 56. The first step in the job-analysis process of an organization involves determining: a. who is responsible for collecting data. b. the precise information needs of the organization. c. the methods for obtaining the information that the organization requires. d. the subject matter experts within the organization. 57. Which of the following statements is true of the Management Position Description Questionnaire (MPDQ)? a. It is the most popular standardized job-analysis instrument available for managerial positions. b. It is the first attempt to develop a single instrument that can describe all jobs in common terms. c. It is a standardized job-analysis instrument consisting of 250 items. d. It is used to classify managerial positions and estimate reasonable compensation for them. 58. Groups of jobs that have task and KSA (knowledge, skills, and abilities) requirements that are quite similar are known as _____. a. job descriptions b. job specifications c. job evaluations d. job families 59. Which of the following statements is true of efficiency wages? a. They lead to a decrease in the average market wage rate. b. They are offered to attract the best employees. c. They are higher for jobs with low demand. d. They result in an increase in employee turnover. 60. In the context of the six sections of the Position Analysis Questionnaire (PAQ), which of the following represent the reasoning, decision-making, planning, and information-processing activities involved in performing a job? a. Job contexts b. Information inputs c. Mental processes d. Special codes

Page 10

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 05_HR5 61. Explain the legal issues involved in job analysis.

62. Explain the concept of knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) in relation to job families.

63. What are the implications of a reduction strategy for an organization?

64. What are human resource information systems? How do they help in the human resource planning process?

65. Explain market wage rates as a source of information for forecasting the supply of human resources.

Page 11

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 05_HR5 Answer Key 1. False 2. False 3. True 4. False 5. False 6. True 7. False 8. True 9. False 10. False 11. c 12. b 13. b 14. b 15. d 16. c 17. c 18. a 19. c 20. b 21. d 22. b 23. a 24. b 25. b 26. a

Page 12

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 05_HR5 27. c 28. a 29. b 30. d 31. c 32. b 33. b 34. b 35. d 36. a 37. a 38. d 39. c 40. d 41. d 42. a 43. b 44. c 45. b 46. a 47. c 48. a 49. a 50. b 51. a 52. b 53. c 54. a Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 13

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 05_HR5 55. b 56. b 57. d 58. d 59. b 60. c 61. Answers will vary. Job analysis is a critical building block for much of the human resource management process, and numerous legal issues have been raised with regard to job analysis. Federal guidelines on selection include discussion of the appropriate ways to conduct job analysis and the statement that any attempt to establish the job relatedness of a selection instrument must begin with a careful analysis of the jobs in question.The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) and its recent modification (the Americans with Disabilities Amendment Act of 2009) raise additional legal issues associated with job analysis. The ADA states that an employer must offer a reasonable accommodation to any employee who has a disability and who can perform the "essential functions" of the job. Basically, essential functions are those that take up a significant part of the employee's time, are performed regularly, and have consequences for other parts of the job. Organizations need to rely on careful job analysis to determine exactly what those essential functions are and thus determine if the employee is entitled to an accommodation under the law. Several issues regarding the accuracy of job-analysis information have potential legal implications. The most troubling of these issues relates to potential gender discrimination in job analysis. Evidence suggests that jobs occupied primarily by male incumbents are more likely to be rated as more complex and of a higher level than similar jobs occupied primarily by female incumbents. See 5-5: The Job-Analysis Process 62. Answers will vary. Knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) are the fundamental requirements necessary to perform a job. Whereas the focus of job analysis is typically an individual job, in many organizations, the tasks and responsibilities of some jobs may be similar to those of other jobs. Likewise, the KSA requirements may be similar for a set of jobs. As a result, for planning purposes, organizations often try to form job families—groups of jobs that have task and KSA requirements that are quite similar. These job families can be quite useful in several ways. First, if the jobs within a job family have similar KSA requirements, then it might be possible to train employees so that they can apply what they have learned to the entire family of jobs, making them much more flexible resources for the organization. In addition, this training for job families rather than for specific jobs can help employees remain useful to the organization even if their current jobs become obsolete.Well-conceived job families can also be used to help organizations in career planning. The jobs within a family represent jobs that have similar patterns of requirements. If they occur at different levels within an organization, then those jobs can represent a typical career path for an employee. Finally, job families can be used in selection decisions. For instance, after an organization establishes the selection requirements for one job within a family, managers may be able to use this information to predict requirements in other jobs within the family. See 5-4: Job Analysis as a Source of Information

Page 14

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 05_HR5 63. Answers will vary. Sometimes, an organization may find itself facing reductions. Perhaps an organization is experiencing cutbacks. Sometimes, these reductions can be handled through normal attrition processes. A popular alternative to terminations and layoffs, especially for managers, is early retirement. The idea is to make offers to employees to enhance their retirement benefits so that people might consider retiring at an earlier age than they would have done otherwise. Of course, this process involves costs to the organization. The organization may be forced to pay additional benefits to those employees above and beyond what they would have ordinarily expected to pay. It is also possible that the organization might lose people that it would have preferred to keep; that is, its highest-performing employees may be those who opt for early retirement. In fact, they may see early retirement as an opportunity for increasing their income by taking retirement benefits from their current employer but using their high-performance credentials to gain new employment with another organization. On the other hand, lower-performing employees are less likely to have this option and thus may be more likely to remain with the current organization. See 5-2: Strategy as a Source of Information 64. Answers will vary. An important first step in human resource planning is forecasting the future supply of human resources—predicting the availability of current or potential employees with the skills, abilities, and motivation to perform jobs that the organization expects to have available. Several mechanisms can help managers forecast the supply of human resources in regard to current employees. By looking internally at its own records, the organization is likely to be able to draw on considerable historical data about its own abilities to hire and retain employees. In addition, the organization can glean information about the extent to which people leave their jobs voluntarily or involuntarily. An increasingly important element in this part of the human resource planning process for most organizations is the effective use of the organization's human resource information system. A human resource information system is an integrated and increasingly automated system for maintaining a database regarding the employees in an organization. A properly developed human resource information system should have details on each and every employee regarding date of hire, job history within the organization, education, performance ratings, compensation history, training and development profile, and various special skills and abilities. See 5-1: Human Resource Planning as a Source of Information 65. Answers will vary. A factor that will influence decisions about joining the labor force is the market wage rate. Most people are aware that wages are generally higher in some places. The differences in salaries and wage rates partly result from differences in the cost of living, but they also are caused by different levels of competitiveness for talent in the market. An individual is more likely to decide to enter the labor force when the higher relative wage rate is available to him or her. Limited mobility makes it difficult for individuals to find the optimal wage rate for their skills, but some movement is possible. Thus, it is important to understand some determinants of local wage rates.The simplest explanation relies on supply and demand. Given a certain level of demand for employees, the average wage paid will be higher if the supply is lower. Likewise, if the supply remains the same, the wage rate will go up as the demand increases. Some firms try to attract the best employees they can. These organizations seek to be "the employer of choice" in their market and will pay more than the going market rate to attract the best employees. These "efficiency wages" are believed to be justified by the fact that the best employees are assumed to be more productive and that the higher wages will bind the employee more tightly to the firm, thus reducing turnover. Although local wage rates can affect an individual's decision to enter the labor market, efficiency wages can influence which firm the individual decides to join. See 5-3: Economic Conditions as a Source of Information

Page 15

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 06_HR5 Indicate whether the statement is true or false. 1. In the context of downsizing, employees with survivor syndrome feel extremely proud of keeping their jobs, and their morale and commitment to the organization increase dramatically. a. True b. False 2. Distributive justice is insignificant in determining an employee's reactions to pay decisions. a. True b. False 3. Ethics and law always coincide precisely. a. True b. False 4. Employee leasing involves an organization paying a fee to a company that provides a pool of employees to the organization on a temporary basis. a. True b. False 5. A large contingent workforce is the most desirable alternative to recruitment. a. True b. False 6. As part of a progressive disciplinary program, a verbal warning given to an employee becomes part of the employee's permanent record. a. True b. False 7. Employees involved in mergers and acquisitions must retain their existing self-identity instead of developing a new one. a. True b. False 8. The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act requires that employers give at least 60 days' notice for a mass layoff. a. True b. False 9. Providing employees with overtime opportunities is especially beneficial when the increased need for human resources is short term. a. True b. False

Page 1

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 06_HR5 10. Interactional justice refers to perceptions that the process used to determine the outcomes that an employee faces was fair. a. True b. False Indicate the answer choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. 11. In the context of layoffs, which of the following refers to the quality of the interpersonal treatment people receive when a decision is implemented? a. Distributive justice b. Procedural justice c. Interactional justice d. Restorative justice 12. In the context of dealing with increased demand for workers, which of the following involves an organization paying a fee to a company that provides a pool of workers who are available on a temporary basis? a. Rightsizing b. An internship c. Employee leasing d. A part-time contract 13. In the context of a progressive disciplinary program of an organization, which of the following is a temporary layoff, usually with pay, when there is an ongoing investigation? a. Termination b. Suspension c. Disbanding d. Rightsizing 14. Which of the following statements is true of employing part-time workers in an organization? a. Part-time workers are available round the clock and on all days to provide technical support. b. Part-time workers increase the labor costs of the organization. c. Part-time workers are routinely expected to work less than 20 hours a week. d. Part-time workers provide considerable scheduling flexibility to the organization. 15. An advantage of retaining highly performing employees is that: a. it helps in fostering normative commitment in the workplace. b. it helps in increasing job embeddedness at the workplace. c. it helps in reducing functional turnover. d. it helps in avoiding the expenses involved in replacing them.

Page 2

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 06_HR5 16. Which of the following is a difference between suspension and termination? a. Suspension is part of a progressive disciplinary program, whereas termination is not part of a progressive disciplinary program. b. Suspension lasts for a day or for a few weeks, whereas termination marks the end of the employment relationship. c. Suspension is the first step in most progressive disciplinary programs, whereas termination is the last step in most progressive disciplinary programs. d. Suspension invariably leads to legal problems for an employer, whereas termination rarely leads to legal problems for an employer. 17. Which of the following refers to the fact that some people stay on their jobs, even when they decide they are unhappy and should leave? a. Job embeddedness b. Normative commitment c. Affective commitment d. Job enrichment 18. Beth, a new assistant manager at one of the branches of Scroll Bank, is unhappy with her job because she was not told during her job interview that she would be responsible for answering phone calls. Moreover, she claims that many of the workplace facilities mentioned during her interview are not really present. As a result, she is resigning from her job. Which of the following employee retention strategies should Scroll Bank use to avoid similar situations in the future? a. Employee assistance programs b. Realistic job previews c. Stock options d. Cafeteria-style benefits plans 19. In the context of the dimensions of procedural justice, which of the following is the perception that the rules used to make a decision conform to personal or prevailing standards of morality? a. Consistency b. Representativeness c. Voice d. Ethicality 20. Which of the following is a difference between leased employees and part-time employees? a. Unlike leased employees, part-time employees are usually covered by benefits from the organization. b. Unlike part-time employees, leased employees provide considerable scheduling flexibility to the organization that hires them. c. Unlike leased employees, part-time employees reduce the labor costs of an organization. d. Unlike part-time employees, leased employees are regularly expected to work less than 40 hours a week.

Page 3

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 06_HR5 21. Wisnet Corp. recently replaced its accounting software with another accounting application provided by a software development firm. The software development firm provides lifelong services for the new software, so Wisnet Corp. has laid off those employees whose job profile had been limited to providing technical support for the old software. In the given scenario, Wisnet Corp. engaged in _____. a. involuntary turnover b. a progressive disciplinary plan c. employee leasing d. a job enrichment program 22. Voluntary turnover occurs when: a. employees choose to leave the organization for a variety of reasons. b. a facility is closed and all of its workers are put out of work. c. an underperforming employee is laid off. d. managers choose to leave job vacancies unfilled. 23. Which of the following is a major cause for involuntary turnover in an organization? a. Lack of job complexity b. Poor performance of an individual c. High job embeddedness d. Poor rapport between co-workers 24. Ramon was employed by a software company to work in the print media section of its public relations department. The management of the company recently laid off the entire print media section, including Ramon, to cut costs. However, Ramon was not angry about the company's decision because he believed the decision of the company was objective and unbiased as all the employees in the print section were terminated. This scenario illustrates _____. a. interactional justice b. procedural justice c. informational justice d. restorative justice 25. Which of the following refers to hours worked above the normal 40-hour workweek, for which there is usually a pay premium? a. Voluntary turnover b. Overtime c. Expatriation d. Functional turnover

Page 4

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 06_HR5 26. John, an executive at a top investment firm, often gets into heated arguments with his boss over their differing views on how to best execute projects. They also come into conflict with each other because of their different working styles. In this scenario, John is most likely to be dissatisfied with his job because of: a. his affective commitment to the firm. b. the challenging nature of his job. c. his relationship with his supervisor. d. job enrichment. 27. Which of the following refers to the system of rules and procedures for how and when punishment is administered and how severe the punishment should be? a. Procedural justice b. Distributive justice c. Discipline d. Ethicality 28. Identify a true statement about mergers and acquisitions. a. In most cases, mergers and acquisitions result in a shortage of employees. b. Mergers and acquisition threaten the self-identity of the employees involved. c. The employees of the acquiring firm are seen as allies by the employees of the acquired firm. d. Employees involved in mergers and acquisitions should retain their self-identity. 29. Antony, a content analyst, is dissatisfied with the salary his current organization pays him. Although he finds other jobs with better compensation packages, he does not take up any of them. This is because taking up a new job would require him to move to a new neighborhood, which would mean that he would have to move away from his friends. The given scenario exemplifies _____. a. functional turnover b. affective commitment c. job embeddedness d. organizational alienation 30. Which of the following is often used with new employees as a means of socializing them in their new job roles and is effective in reducing turnover? a. A stock-option plan b. Job enrichment c. A realistic job preview d. Internal equity 31. Cinergy Inc., a Midwestern gas and electric utility company, needs to reduce its workforce over the next 2 years. The company is offering employees who leave the firm before the age of 65 a bonus equivalent to 2 weeks' pay for every year of employment with Cinergy Inc. In the given scenario, Cinergy Inc. is: a. increasing job embeddedness. b. encouraging voluntary early retirement. c. providing stock options to employees. d. implementing an involuntary turnover strategy. Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 5

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 06_HR5 32. Exceptions to the employment-at-will doctrine are inapplicable when: a. an individual is terminated because of union activity. b. an employee is an objectively documented poor performer. c. an employee is discharged for refusing to commit a crime. d. an individual has an implied contract guaranteeing employment. 33. The key to successful termination of an employee is _____. a. public-policy exception b. realistic job previews c. documentation d. verbal warnings 34. Which of the following increases the likelihood of a merger or acquisition being successful? a. The HR manager should serve as the center of communications across the merging organizations. b. The HR manager must disseminate information in a limited and "need-to-know" manner. c. The HR manager should become the final arbiter of which mergers or acquisitions should be pursued. d. The HR manager must not be closely involved in the merging process of organizations. 35. Which of the following statements is true of stock options? a. Employees who are given stock options are legally bound to sign a noncompete clause. b. The stock-option price for employees is higher than the selling price of the stock when the option is issued. c. They give employees the right to purchase a certain number of shares of stock at a given price. d. They give employees the opportunity to be part of the company's inventory management. 36. Which of the following indicators can be used to assess the success or failure of a merger or acquisition? a. Research-and-development expenditures b. HR policies of the newly formed organization c. Ethics and values of the newly formed organization d. Previous acquisitions of the acquiring firm 37. Which of the following factors is most likely a reason for the failure of a merger or acquisition? a. The size of the workforce of the acquiring firm was bigger than that of the acquired firm. b. The new business was too far from the areas of expertise of the acquiring firm. c. The accounting systems of both firms were different. d. The parent firm incurred high levels of research-and-development expenditure. 38. Identify a critical dimension of procedural justice that refers to the perception that a person applying the rules to a decision had no vested interest in the outcome of the decision. a. Consistency b. Free from bias c. Voice d. Information accuracy

Page 6

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 06_HR5 39. In the context of a study of the effects of downsizing conducted in the 1990s, the firms where changes in employment from 1980 to 1994 fell between plus and minus 5 percent were called _____. a. stable employers b. employment downsizers c. asset downsizers d. asset stabilizers 40. An organization engages in job enrichment by making employees' work more challenging and by granting them more autonomy. These most likely reduce: a. the organizational citizenship behaviors of the employees. b. the affective commitment of the employees toward the organization. c. the turnover rates of the company. d. the contextual performance of the employees. 41. According to a study of the effects of rightsizing conducted in the 1990s, the firms where the decline in employment was less than 5 percent from 1980 to 1994, but the decline in plant and assets during the same period was at least 5 percent greater than the decline in employment were called _____. a. stable employers b. employment downsizers c. asset downsizers d. combination upsizers 42. Which of the following is the degree to which an employee identifies with a firm and is willing to exert effort on behalf of the firm? a. Organizational commitment b. Representativeness c. Contextual performance d. Job embeddedness 43. Which of the following statements is true of the job descriptive index? a. It is the most commonly used method to assess procedural justice. b. It has a single overall measure of job satisfaction. c. It assesses satisfaction with specific job aspects such as pay, the work itself, and supervision. d. It assesses the contextual performance of employees. 44. Which of the following can be used by an organization when it is possible to plan systematically for a gradual decrease in the workforce? a. Contingent workers b. Early retirements c. Involuntary terminations d. Employee leasing

Page 7

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 06_HR5 45. Which of the following statements is true of the contingent workforce of an organization? a. It refers to the employees who feel guilty over keeping their jobs when others are laid off as part of the rightsizing process of an organization. b. It includes employees who work more than 50 hours a week. c. It includes all part-time employees who are employed by an organization to fill in for permanent employees during peak demand. d. It refers to the permanent employees of an organization. 46. In the context of downsizing, which of the following describes employees who feel guilty over keeping their jobs when others lost their jobs? a. The glass ceiling illusion b. Protagonist syndrome c. Survivor syndrome d. The victim mentality 47. Adelint Inc., a retail store chain, had been incurring high costs and hence downsized its workforce to increase its profits. However, the company's business grew over the next 6 months, and it had to recruit many new employees. The company hence ended up incurring the usual high infrastructure costs as well as the cost of recruiting the new employees. Instead of downsizing its workforce, Adelint Inc. could have _____ a. rightsized its workforce. b. outsourced its work. c. invested in plant and machinery. d. reduced its fixed assets. 48. Saint Mary City Hospital is facing a severe shortage of nurses in some of its departments. Many nurses quit their jobs recently as they were asked to do tasks that were not included in their job profile. The administration is now hiring new nursing staff. Which of the following would be the most effective in retaining the new nurses that are hired? a. Conducting realistic job previews b. Reducing job enrichment c. Increasing the normative commitment of the nurses d. Increasing job embeddedness 49. Which of the following is a dimension of interactional justice that refers to the extent to which the decision maker of a layoff decision provides details about the rules used to make the decision and how they were applied? a. Interpersonal justice b. Informational justice c. Procedural justice d. Distributive justice

Page 8

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 06_HR5 50. A progressive disciplinary plan is an organizational disciplinary program where: a. the primary goal is to terminate employees. b. employees are given incentives to engage in desired behavior. c. verbal warnings are directly followed by employee suspension. d. the severity of punishment increases across the seriousness of the problem. 51. Which of the following statements is true of mergers and acquisitions? a. When employees perceive threats to their self-identity, they let go of the identity for job stability. b. In order to succeed, organizations must help each employee retain his or her original self-identity. c. Organizations must integrate the two firms into one and create a new self-identity for all employees. d. Organizations want to encourage the "us versus them" mentality between merging employees. 52. Organizational citizenship behaviors include employee behaviors: a. that are formally required as part of an employee's job. b. that are beneficial to the organization. c. that are recognized by the job descriptive index. d. that increase job embeddedness. 53. In the context of the different models of the turnover process, which of the following is an event that can be either positive or negative but is so profound that it causes an employee to think about the organization, the job, and how he or she fits with both? a. A shock b. A realistic job preview c. Organizational alienation d. Functional turnover 54. In the context of the employment-at-will doctrine, an employee who is discharged can sue for wrongful termination if: a. the termination is because of union activity. b. the employee has a civil right to his or her job. c. the employee is terminated for having an ethnocentric attitude. d. the termination comes as part of a progressive disciplinary program. 55. Which of the following is most likely to be an effective retention strategy for a high-tech software company to retain executive engineers for an extended period of time? a. Regularly administering job satisfaction surveys b. Increasing job embeddedness c. Giving stock options that cannot be exercised for the first 5 years of employment d. Reducing the job requirements to make jobs simpler and easier

Page 9

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 06_HR5 56. Which of the following is a job-related factor that may lead to job dissatisfaction? a. Job complexity b. Ties in the community c. Individual genetic predisposition being satisfied or dissatisfied d. Affective commitment to a job 57. Identify a correct statement about mergers and acquisitions. a. The failure or success of mergers and acquisitions is assessed by looking at employee turnover. b. Successful mergers and acquisitions result in lower research-and-development expenditure. c. Aspects of human resource management are not relevant to the success or failure of mergers and acquisitions. d. The failure or success of mergers and acquisitions can be assessed by looking at stock prices. 58. In the context of progressive discipline, which of the following refers to following unacceptable behavior with some type of negative consequences? a. Extinction b. Procedural justice c. Punishment d. Interpersonal justice 59. Voice, a critical dimension of procedural justice, refers to the perception that: a. the rules used to make a decision were applied the same way to everyone involved. b. the person applying the rules to make a decision had no vested interest in the outcome of the decision. c. the rules used to make a decision conform to prevailing standards of ethics and morality. d. the person affected by a decision had some control over the outcome in the decision. 60. Which of the following exceptions to the employment-at-will doctrine protects whistle-blowers? a. The Taft–Hartley Act exception b. The due process exception c. Public-policy exception d. Breach-of-good-faith exception 61. Describe some of the models of the turnover process.

62. Briefly explain the three types of justice that influence an employee's reaction to layoff.

Page 10

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 06_HR5 63. How do retention strategies address the causes of job dissatisfaction?

64. Briefly explain the steps in a typical progressive disciplinary program.

65. Explain the role of effective human resource management (HRM) during mergers and acquisitions.

Page 11

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 06_HR5 Answer Key 1. False 2. False 3. False 4. True 5. False 6. False 7. False 8. True 9. True 10. False 11. c 12. c 13. b 14. d 15. d 16. b 17. a 18. b 19. d 20. c 21. a 22. a 23. b 24. b 25. b 26. c

Page 12

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 06_HR5 27. c 28. b 29. c 30. c 31. b 32. b 33. c 34. a 35. c 36. a 37. b 38. b 39. a 40. c 41. c 42. a 43. c 44. b 45. c 46. c 47. d 48. a 49. b 50. d 51. c 52. b 53. a 54. a Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 13

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 06_HR5 55. c 56. a 57. d 58. c 59. d 60. c 61. Answers will vary. Several models of the turnover process emphasize the role of dissatisfaction in an employee's decision to look for alternatives, and it is seen as a necessary (but not sufficient) first step in the decision to quit. A basic model of the turnover process begins with factors leading to job dissatisfaction. Job dissatisfaction causes the employee to begin thinking about quitting, which leads to a search for alternatives. Only if those alternatives look better does the employee decide that he or she will quit, a decision first manifested by an intention to quit. Other models have proposed similar mechanisms but have also suggested that job dissatisfaction must reach a critical level before anything happens and, at that point, it may be too late to do anything. In other words, this approach suggests that increasing job dissatisfaction does little to change the employee's intentions to leave. Those levels of job dissatisfaction finally reach a critical level, however, and the intention to leave becomes so strong that the employee is almost guaranteed to leave. See 6-4: Managing Voluntary Turnover 62. Answers will vary. A critical determinant of an employee's reaction to being laid off is his or her perceptions of the justice involved in the layoff process. Three types of justice—distributive, procedural, and interactional—seem to be related to reactions to layoffs. Distributive justice refers to perceptions that the outcomes a person faces are fair when compared to the outcomes faced by others. This type of justice is often important in determining an employee's reactions to pay decisions, for example. Most experts believe that these perceptions are based on both the actual outcomes faced (e.g., how much I am paid, whether or not I lose my job) and the perceptions of what others have contributed. Procedural justice refers to perceptions that the process used to determine the outcomes was fair. Thus, an employee who loses his or her job may be less angry if everyone in a department also lost their jobs or if layoffs were based on objective and accepted criteria. It is also clear, however, that an employee (or any other observer) will judge a process to be fair when it leads to an outcome that is favorable. Interactional justice refers to the quality of the interpersonal treatment people receive when a decision is implemented. Thus, employees losing their jobs will feel that the decision was more just if it is communicated to them in a considerate, respectful, and polite manner. See 6-2: Rightsizing the Organizations

Page 14

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 06_HR5 63. Answers will vary. The three causes of job dissatisfaction are the nature of the work itself, pay and benefits, and relationships with supervisors and coworkers. Several retention strategies can be used to address the issue of decreased job satisfaction, thereby managing voluntary turnover. Job enrichment has been consistently linked with higher levels of job satisfaction. By making employees' work more challenging and meaningful and by granting them more autonomy and more opportunity to use their skills, the work itself becomes both motivating and satisfying (and more satisfied employees are also more productive). This in turn reduces turnover rates.Realistic job previews (RJPs) are also effective in reducing turnover. They provide accurate and realistic information to the job applicant and help ensure that the people on the job are those most likely to be satisfied and thus remain. In addition, when new employees are made aware of potential sources of dissatisfaction before encountering them, the employees can prepare themselves (psychologically or even physically) so that, when they encounter the problem, they are ready to deal with it. In fact, when employees learn that they can cope with various problems on the job by preparing for them beforehand, this knowledge alone can be a source of job satisfaction and promote retention.Another retention strategy involves issuing stock options to new employees at all levels of the organization (these options have typically been given to executives only). Stock options are rights, given to employees, to purchase a certain number of shares of stock at a given price. Thus, there is a real incentive for the employee to remain with the firm. See 6-4: Managing Voluntary Turnover 64. Answers will vary. A progressive disciplinary program typically has the following four steps: 1. Typically, the first step in a progressive disciplinary program is a verbal warning, or a caution conveyed to the employee orally rather than in writing. The supervisor or manager should keep a written record of the fact that a verbal warning was given to document the fact that all required steps were taken in dealing with an employee. 2. Written warnings are more formal and are the second step in the process. Here the supervisor gives the warning to the employee in writing and provides a copy to the HR department. As a result, a written warning becomes part of the employee's permanent record. 3. Suspension, or a temporary layoff, is the next step in the process. The suspension could last a day or a few weeks; it may be with or without pay. At each step, the supervisor should discuss the performance problems with the employee and seek ways for the employee to improve. 4. If all else fails, the final step in the process is termination. At this point, the organization faces potential legal problems as well as potentially violent reactions by the employee. This final step should be taken only after serious consideration and the decision that the employee cannot be salvaged. See 6-3: Managing Terminations and Retention 65. Answers will vary. It is becoming increasingly clear that the successful management of human resources during the merger and acquisition process is quite important for the overall success of the project. Employees involved in mergers and acquisitions must abandon one self-identity and then develop a new one: an employee of the acquiring firm or an employee of the new, merged firm. However, research shows that this would lead to intergroup conflict. HR managers must, therefore, move to integrate the two firms into one and create a new self-identity for all employees: employees of the newly merged firm. In other words, for a merger or acquisition to be successful, all the employees should identify with the new firm and therefore work with one another and cooperate to help make the new firm the best it can be—especially because it is even more rewarding to be associated with a really successful firm.Another critical role the HR manager can play during this process is to serve as the center of communications. There is a great deal of uncertainty for everyone during a merger or acquisition, and the HR manager can work to communicate openly, honestly, and frequently with the employees. In addition, it is important to build employee identification with the new corporate identity. This can be accomplished with simple measures such as distributing shorts or caps with the new corporate logo, or it might involve orientation sessions in which all of the reasons and details of the merger or acquisition are explained. Through programs such as these, the HR manager can be an important player in the merger and acquisition process and thus can add value to the organization in yet another way. See 6-5: Managing Human Resources during Mergers and Acquisitions

Page 15

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 07_HR5 Indicate whether the statement is true or false. 1. Job posting is an external recruiting mechanism. a. True b. False 2. Apprenticeships involve a combination of on-the-job training and classroom instruction. a. True b. False 3. Research shows that unstructured interviews are much better predictors of subsequent job performance than structured interviews. a. True b. False 4. The fit criterion of selection involves hiring a person with the best qualifications. a. True b. False 5. Organizational development (OD) assumes that people rarely have an inclination toward being accepted by other members of the organization. a. True b. False 6. Banding allows an organization to select an applicant from some underrepresented group in the organization while still ensuring high performance standards. a. True b. False 7. In the context of employment tests, integrity tests attempt to assess an applicant's moral character and honesty. a. True b. False 8. In the context of selection techniques used by organizations, individuals participating in an assessment center are likely to be current managers who are being considered for promotion to higher levels. a. True b. False 9. Development involves teaching operational employees job-specific knowledge and skills. a. True b. False 10. Public employment agencies became a formal part of the recruiting process with the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1991. a. True b. False Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 1

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 07_HR5 Indicate the answer choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. 11. Unlike public employment agencies, private employment agencies: a. help unemployed individuals avail state aid. b. charge a fee for their services. c. are less likely to serve the white-collar labor market. d. are financed by and work closely with the U.S. Employment Service. 12. Rosario, a police officer, applies for the position of a deputy in the police department of her city. In the interview round, she is asked to pick up marbles using forceps and place them perfectly on little grooves. Which of the following types of employment tests is Rosario taking in the given scenario? a. A psychomotor ability test b. A personality test c. A cognitive ability test d. An integrity test 13. Glebson Security, a security services agency in North Carolina, adds another process to its traditional interview round to make its selection procedure more stringent. In this new process, shortlisted candidates are individually sent into a room in which a trained clinician shows them an ambiguous inkblot as a stimulus and asks them what they see in it. This process helps the firm measure the personality traits of prospective employees. In this scenario, Glebson Security is using _____. a. the logistic regression technique b. a self-report inventory c. an in-basket exercise d. the projective technique 14. In the context of external recruiting, an individual working for an executive search firm is also known as a _____. a. mentor b. headhunter c. curator d. gatekeeper 15. Which of the following is true of psychomotor ability tests? a. They measure the reasoning and problem-solving skills of individuals. b. They measure the manual dexterity of individuals. c. They are designed to measure a wide spectrum of the personality traits of individuals. d. They focus on predicting the future performance of individuals.

Page 2

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 07_HR5 16. In the context of the evaluation of training programs, the best way to ensure that changes have occurred because of training and not just the passage of time is to: a. use work simulation techniques to assess employees. b. train employees for only some job-related tasks, but not for others. c. have a control group of employees who work on the same job, but do not receive training. d. train employees at regular intervals. 17. In the context of designing a training and development program for an organization, which of the following is the next step after deciding between in-house versus outsourced training? a. Assessing the company's philosophy regarding employee training b. Conducting a needs analysis c. Determining the capabilities of the existing workforce d. Deciding upon the specific techniques to be used in the program 18. An attempt to determine the extent to which a selection system provides real benefit to an organization is known as _____. a. a realistic job preview b. utility analysis c. a self-report inventory d. banding 19. Which of the following is a disadvantage of internal recruiting? a. It is time-consuming as new employees need to be familiarized with the policies of the company. b. It can result in stagnation and stifle creativity. c. It decreases motivation among current employees. d. It is expensive to implement because of the advertising that must be undertaken. 20. Alister, a finance graduate, interviewed for the position of executive financial analyst at an investment firm. He had a one-on-one interview with the head of the finance department. During his interview, Alister was asked by the interviewer to imagine a scenario in which a subordinate and a supervisor, both working on the same project, have a conflict on both personal and professional levels. He was then asked to describe his approach to solving this problem effectively. In this case, Alister attended a: a. behavioral interview. b. situational interview. c. presentation interview. d. panel interview.

Page 3

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 07_HR5 21. Genoa Public School invited applications for a teaching position. The school wants to increase the diversity of its staff, which mostly comprised Asian-American women. After the completion of the selection tests and interviews, the school found that the top two scorers were both Asian-American women. However, it decided to hire an African-American woman, who was the third top scorer and as qualified as the top two. In this scenario, the school most likely made its selection decision through _____. a. banding b. an in-basket exercise c. onboarding d. utility analysis 22. Rochelle, the head of the content team at Artsy Inc., was asked by her manager to nominate candidates from her team for a promotion to the position of editor. Rochelle carefully considered all potential candidates in her team and submitted the names of the two most promising employees to the manager. The manager later chose one of the two employees. In this scenario, Rochelle's manager used _____. a. word-of-mouth communication for recruiting b. job posting for recruiting c. a supervisory recommendation for recruiting d. a headhunter for recruiting 23. In the context of popular selection techniques in employment decisions, which of the following provides a quick and inexpensive mechanism for gathering several kinds of objective information about an individual that can be easily verified? a. In-basket exercises b. Self-report inventories c. Utility analyses d. Application blanks 24. Identify a recruiting approach that enables an organization to combine the elements of both internal and external methods of recruiting. a. Headhunting b. An internship c. An apprenticeship d. Job posting 25. In which of the following organizational development (OD) techniques does an OD advisor observe managers in the organization to develop an understanding of their communication patterns, decision-making and leadership processes, and methods of cooperation and conflict resolution? a. Process consultation b. Vestibule training c. Third-party peacemaking d. Survey feedback

Page 4

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 07_HR5 26. The process of designing a training and development program should begin with: a. the selection of the specific training techniques that are to be used in the program. b. a needs analysis where HR managers determine the organization's true needs related to training. c. the decision of whether to conduct training in-house or through outsourcing. d. a preparatory session for HR instructors to ensure the success of the program. 27. Which of the following is a difference between internal recruiting and external recruiting? a. External recruiting is more expensive than internal recruiting because of the advertising and other search processes that must be undertaken. b. Unlike external recruiting, internal recruiting has the advantage of bringing in new ideas, new perspectives, and new ways of doing things. c. External recruiting is more likely to sustain a firm's knowledge and culture than internal recruiting. d. Unlike external recruiting, internal recruiting avoids the ripple effect. 28. Benevolence, a charity organization, wants to hire welfare officers who will interact with representatives of the public. Apart from the right qualifications and experience, the candidate must be cooperative and altruistic to be able to perform the job well. Which of the big five personality traits is Benevolence seeking? a. Openness to experience b. Extraversion c. Agreeableness d. Conscientiousness 29. Alan, a content analyst, frequently attends seminars at his workplace. At one such seminar, a new content development position in Alan's department was announced. The management asked employees to refer friends or family members that they thought were suitable for the position. Alan referred Sam, a cousin with previous experience in content creation. After various selection processes, Sam was hired. In this scenario, which of the following recruiting methods did Alan's organization use? a. Digital recruiting b. Job posting c. Headhunting d. Word-of-mouth recruiting 30. Which of the following is a disadvantage of external recruiting? a. It fosters stagnation in an organization. b. It can decrease the motivation of existing employees. c. It causes a ripple effect in an organization. d. It can stifle new ideas and perspectives. 31. Which of the following is one of the three specific organizational goals that are important to the recruiting process? a. Keeping the pool of qualified applicants at a manageable size b. Ensuring the organizational culture is oriented to suit the culture of employees c. Downsizing redundant positions to accommodate new hires d. Running background checks on the personal information of employees Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 5

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 07_HR5 32. Which of the following is an effective technique for ensuring that job seekers understand the actual nature of the jobs available to them? a. A validity test b. A psychomotor ability test c. A utility analysis d. A realistic job preview 33. In the context of designing a training and development program for an organization, which of the following is the next step after conducting a needs analysis? a. Deciding between in-house versus outsourced training b. Measuring the organizational commitment of employees c. Determining the capabilities of the existing workforce d. Assessing the company's philosophy regarding employee training 34. In the context of employee training and development, which of the following is the most common method of implementing a work-based program? a. Vestibule training b. Classroom instruction c. On-the-job training d. Computer-assisted instruction 35. Mateo, a head chef in a popular restaurant in Los Angeles, recently conducted interviews to hire a pastry chef. He was really impressed with Farooq, one of the interviewees, as Farooq shared his passion for trance music. Despite the fact that many other candidates were better qualified for the position than Farooq, Mateo hired Farooq. Which of the following errors did Mateo most likely make? a. The nonrelevancy error b. The similarity error c. The first-impression error d. The contrast error 36. In the context of popular selection techniques, which of the following is an approach to selecting managers based on measuring and evaluating their ability to perform critical work behaviors? a. Utility analysis b. An assessment center c. A recommendation letter d. The projective technique 37. Which of the following is a form of temporary employee who can help respond to work demands in the short term? a. An intern b. An applicant c. A mentor d. A headhunter

Page 6

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 07_HR5 38. In the context of training and development, _____ involves a work-simulation situation in which a job is performed under a condition that closely simulates the real work environment. a. an instructional-based program b. utility analysis c. vestibule training d. an apprenticeship 39. After conducting interviews with several bad candidates, Althea, a manager at Langrover Inc., interviewed a candidate who was better than the others in terms of skills and experience. Despite not meeting all the necessary qualifications, the candidate was hired by Althea. Which of the following errors did Althea most likely make? a. The nonrelevancy error b. The similarity error c. The first-impression error d. The contrast error 40. Which of the following is a common method for external recruiting? a. Reliance on self-report inventories b. Reliance on realistic job previews c. Reliance on employment agencies d. Reliance on supervisory recommendations 41. In the context of employment in organizations, identify a true statement about selection. a. Selection measures a wide spectrum of personality traits that are relatively unchanging in a person and is useful for predicting job performance. b. Selection gives prospective applicants an honest and candid assessment of the kinds of opportunities that the organization can potentially make available to them. c. Selection is publicizing the vacancies in an organization through various media such as the company intranet, newsletters, bulletin boards, and/or internal memos. d. Selection is concerned with identifying the best candidate for a job from a pool of qualified applicants developed during the recruiting process. 42. Judd is a human resource manager at an information technology firm. He is asked by his supervisor to develop a pool of qualified applicants for the position of senior content analyst. His employer will then conduct tests and interviews to select the best candidate. In this scenario, Judd is involved in the process of _____. a. recruiting b. onboarding c. planning d. scheduling 43. Which of the following statements is true of on-the-job training? a. It can help an organization achieve a return on the labor cost of an employee almost immediately. b. It can increase direct training costs for an organization. c. It involves a combination of vestibule training and classroom instruction. d. It mandates the hiring of dedicated trainers. Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 7

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 07_HR5 44. Jacob applied for the position of correspondent at The News Curator, a news agency in New Orleans. At the beginning of his interview at The News Curator, Jacob had a few awkward minutes until he eventually regained his confidence. This led the interviewer to make a negative judgment about Jacob even though Jacob later performed well. The news agency did not hire him as it felt that he was not skilled enough for the job. Jacob then joined another news agency as a correspondent and won the best crime beat reporter award within a year. Which of the following selection errors did The News Curator most likely make? a. The similarity error b. The first-impression error c. The contrast error d. The false positive error 45. Which of the following statements is true of internal recruiting? a. It causes dissatisfaction among existing employees regarding opportunities for advancement. b. It brings in new ideas, new perspectives, and new ways of doing things. c. It is expensive and time-consuming because of the search processes that must be undertaken. d. It is a method used by organizations to fill higher-level openings with current employees. 46. Cosmogena, a cosmetics start-up, wants to hire five female marketing executives. For these openings, the management prefers candidates who are outgoing, sociable, and upbeat. Which of the big five personality traits is Cosmogena seeking? a. Openness to experience b. Extraversion c. Agreeableness d. Conscientiousness 47. In the context of employment decisions that organizations make, which of the following is the second step in the selection process? a. Gathering information about the members of the pool of qualified recruits b. Evaluating the qualifications of each applicant from among the recruiting pool c. Making the actual decision about which candidate should be offered employment d. Collecting the impressions of current managers about the applicants' likelihood of success 48. Barbara, a product manager at an organic soap manufacturing company, is supposed to interview a candidate for a new job opening in her department. The candidate arrives late to the interview, and therefore Barbara assumes that he will be tardy and uninterested in his job as well. Despite the fact that the candidate meets all the job requirements, Barbara rejects the candidate. Which of the following interview errors has Barbara most likely made? a. The first-impression error b. The nonrelevancy error c. The similarity error d. The contrast error

Page 8

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 07_HR5 49. Which of the following statements is true of training? a. It focuses on improving problem-solving and decision-making skills rather than on operational skills. b. It is solely aimed at helping top-level managers improve their efficiency. c. It is considered a finance management function in most organizations. d. It usually involves teaching technical employees how to do their jobs more effectively and efficiently. 50. Janice, a third-year undergraduate student, joins a publication house as a temporary employee for a period of 2 months to gain work experience. At the end of this period, based on her work, she is offered a permanent position in the organization. Considering that Janice is still a student, she is offered a contract that would be effective upon graduation. Janice confirms to the publication house that she will take up the permanent position as soon as she graduates. The given scenario is an example of _____. a. an apprenticeship b. vestibule training c. outbound training d. an internship 51. Which of the following statements is true of external recruiting? a. It is a way of bringing in new perspectives and ideas into an organization. b. It increases motivation among the existing employees of an organization. c. It employs the method of job posting for filling vacant job positions. d. It leads to stagnation in terms of creativity and spontaneity in an organization. 52. Brandton Corp., a private company with a rigid, hierarchical organizational structure, is looking to fill the position of senior supervisor. Francesca is among the top five applicants being considered for the post. Francesca does not have the expertise necessary for the position, but she comes across as a person who abides by rules and thrives under supervision and directions. This matches the organization's requirements. As a result, Francesca is hired. In the context of basic selection criteria, Brandton Corp. most likely hires Francesca on the basis of _____. a. fit b. skill c. knowledge d. education 53. In the context of popular selection techniques, which of the following is used by an organization for assessing a person's past experiences and work history? a. Recommendation letters b. Employee declaration certificates c. No objection certificates d. Appraisal forms

Page 9

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 07_HR5 54. Which of the following statements is true of an executive search firm? a. It specializes in finding applicants for high-level positions. b. It helps unemployed individuals avail state aid. c. It is more likely to serve the blue-collar labor market. d. It is the least expensive method of external recruiting. 55. Which of the following refers to the process of looking within the organization for existing qualified employees who might be promoted to higher-level positions? a. Homesourcing b. Internal recruiting c. Word-of-mouth recruiting d. Onboarding 56. In the context of basic selection criteria, the amount of time an individual may have spent working in either a general capacity or a particular field of study is called _____. a. competency b. experience c. education d. knowledge 57. Which of the following statements is true of an unstructured interview? a. The questions asked are specific to the applicant's education and work experience. b. The interviewer works from a list of standard questions that are presented to every candidate. c. It involves relatively little advance preparation on the part of the interviewer. d. It measures traits, or tendencies to act, that are relatively unchanging in a person. 58. Which of the following statements is true of development? a. It focuses on teaching employees job-related skills. b. It is considered a finance management function in most organizations. c. It helps in predicting a person's ability to perform a job effectively. d. It is aimed at helping managers better understand and solve problems. 59. Scott, a senior manager at Morrison Tech Inc., routinely interviews candidates for his marketing team. He tends to be unduly influenced by candidates who happen to share his passion for soccer. He is biased toward such candidates and selects them to fill the job vacancies. Which of the following interview errors does Scott most likely make? a. The similarity error b. The first-impression error c. The contrast error d. The false negative error

Page 10

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 07_HR5 60. In the context of making hiring decisions, the best way an organization can avoid legal issues is by: a. not asking for a person's age, gender, or marital status in the employment application. b. making sure that a selection decision is based on organizational fit. c. selecting a candidate with an authorized recommendation letter. d. not making a selection decision based on a candidate's personality and values. 61. Briefly discuss internal recruiting and the advantages and disadvantages associated with it.

62. Explain the various types of employment tests and their uses.

63. Briefly explain the different organizational development techniques that are employed by organizations to increase overall performance.

64. Discuss the use of an assessment center as a selection technique in organizations.

65. Discuss the different criteria used in a selection decision.

Page 11

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 07_HR5 Answer Key 1. False 2. True 3. False 4. False 5. False 6. True 7. True 8. True 9. False 10. False 11. b 12. a 13. d 14. b 15. b 16. c 17. d 18. b 19. b 20. b 21. a 22. c 23. d 24. b 25. a 26. b

Page 12

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 07_HR5 27. a 28. c 29. d 30. b 31. a 32. d 33. a 34. c 35. b 36. b 37. a 38. c 39. d 40. c 41. d 42. a 43. a 44. b 45. d 46. b 47. b 48. a 49. d 50. d 51. a 52. a 53. a 54. a Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 13

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 07_HR5 55. b 56. b 57. c 58. d 59. a 60. a 61. Answers will vary. Internal recruiting is the process of looking inside the organization for existing qualified employees who might be promoted to higher-level positions. This situation may not seem particularly useful for increasing the size of the workforce, but internal recruiting can play a role even in growth strategies. If an organization can fill higherlevel openings with current employees who are ready to move up, it will have to fill lower-level positions from the outside later. These lower-level positions would presumably be easier and less costly to fill. Internal recruiting has several advantages. Perhaps the most important of these advantages is employees can see that there is really an opportunity for advancement when a firm relies on internal recruiting. This is likely to serve as a major source of motivation for those employees to perform their jobs as best they can. Employees recruited internally also bring the advantage of familiarity with the company—its heritage, culture, policies and procedures, strategies, and ways of doing business, making transitions to new positions easier. There are also disadvantages when internal recruiting is the only type a firm uses. This can result in stagnation and stifle creativity. It is unlikely that new ideas will be proposed for how to deal with challenges if everyone in the firm has only been familiar with one way of doing things. Also, internal recruiting creates a ripple effect in the organization. Every time a person is promoted, a new opening must be filled, and a relatively few promotions can sometimes result in a large-scale set of transfers and movements from position to position within the organization. See 7-1: Recruiting Employees

Page 14

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 07_HR5 62. Answers will vary. A popular selection technique used by many organizations is an employment test, or a device for measuring the characteristics of an individual. These characteristics may include personality, intelligence, or aptitude. Although employment tests are generally traditional question-and-answer exercises that applicants complete on paper or online, the courts consider any device used to make an employment decision, including interviews, to be a test. Different types of employment tests are commonly used. Cognitive ability tests: These tests measure mental skills. The applicant is not required to do anything physical, only to demonstrate some type of knowledge. Intelligence is an extremely important cognitive ability. General intelligence, or "g", refers to reasoning or problem-solving skills, but it is typically measured in terms of the information one learns in school. The Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) is a test of general intelligence. Scores on these tests can be expressed in terms of intelligence quotient (IQ). Psychomotor ability tests: These measure physical abilities such as strength, eye–hand coordination, and manual dexterity. These abilities can be practiced and perfected, and they are usually measured by some type of performance test. Psychomotor tests are popular because they apparently measure what is important for performance on the job. Personality tests: These measure traits, or tendencies to act, that are relatively unchanging in a person. Some tests are designed to measure a wide spectrum of personality traits or dimensions. Measures of the big five personality dimensions have become extremely popular in recent years and seem useful for predicting who will do well on jobs. Integrity tests: These tests attempt to assess an applicant's moral character and honesty. Most of these tests are fairly straightforward and include questions such as "Do you think most people would cheat if they thought they could get away with it?" and "Have you ever taken anything that didn't belong to you at work?" See 7-3: Popular Selection Techniques 63. Answers will vary. Organizational development (OD) is a system-wide effort, managed from the top of the organization, to increase the organization's overall performance through planned interventions. Different OD techniques are widely used. Survey feedback: Survey feedback involves having employees respond to questionnaires about attitudes and perceptions of leadership styles and then sharing the results of the survey with everyone involved, including managers and supervisors. The purpose is to change the behavior of managers or supervisors by making them aware of how everyone perceives them. Following the feedback are usually workshops designed to help managers evaluate the feedback and suggest constructive changes. Third-party peacemaking: When OD is undertaken to solve a specific problem, such as interpersonal conflict, techniques such as third-party peacemaking might be used. Here a neutral third party, often an OD consultant from outside the organization, hears both sides in a conflict. He or she then helps the parties develop satisfactory solutions or compromises so that everyone can win. Process consultation: In process consultation, the OD consultant observes managers in the organization to develop an understanding of their communication patterns, decision-making and leadership processes, and methods of cooperation and conflict resolution. The consultant then provides feedback and recommendations to the managers about how to improve these procedures. See 7-5: Training and Development

Page 15

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 07_HR5 64. Answers will vary. A selection technique that is used widely, but only for the selection of managers, is the assessment center. An assessment center is not a physical location but is instead an approach to selecting managers based on measuring and evaluating their ability to perform critical work behaviors. Individuals participating in an assessment center are likely to be either current managers who are being considered for promotion to higher levels or in a pool of external recruits such as upcoming college graduates whom the firm is considering hiring for management positions. The individuals to be assessed are brought together in a single place such as the company's training headquarters or perhaps a conference facility at a hotel. While there, they undergo a series of tests, exercises, and feedback sessions. A normal assessment-center schedule lasts 2–3 days and involves 10–15 individuals at any one time. During the assessment center, these individuals may undergo experiential exercises; group decision-making tasks; case analyses; individual employment tests, such as personality inventories and so forth; role-playing exercises; and other methods for assessing their potential skills and abilities. At the conclusion of the assessment center, each evaluator provides an indepth evaluation of each attendee and makes an overall evaluation about the person's suitability for promotion. See 73: Popular Selection Techniques 65. Answers will vary. Several possible criteria can be used in a selection decision, and these often differ in terms of how objectively they can be assessed. Education and experience: These are criteria that are relatively straightforward to assess. In a selection context, education refers to the formal classroom training an individual has received in public or private school and in a college, university, or technical school. Some jobs require high school diplomas; others require advanced degrees. Experience refers to the amount of time the individual may have spent working in either a general capacity or a particular field. Experience is presumably an indicator of an individual's familiarity with work and his or her ability to work, and it is a surrogate measure of a person's competencies as an employee. Skills and abilities: The assessment of skills and abilities is rather mixed in terms of objectivity. It is relatively straightforward to assess someone's typing ability objectively. But as organizations move toward teamwork and team-based operating systems, many of them are also putting more emphasis on hiring individuals with the skills necessary to function effectively in a group situation. These skills are much more subjective and therefore more difficult to assess accurately. Personal characteristics: Some personal characteristics, which are believed to reflect an applicant's personality, are also difficult to assess objectively. More recently, however, a great deal of attention has been paid to assessing applicants in terms of the big five personality traits. These traits—neuroticism, extraversion, openness to experience, agreeableness, and conscientiousness—tend to be more behavioral than cognitive or emotional and so can be assessed in a fairly objective manner. Hiring for fit: A rather unique and interesting criterion for selection is referred to as "fit." When a firm decides to hire someone on the basis of fit, it hires that person not because he or she is the most qualified for a specific job, but because she or he is a good fit for the larger organization. Organizational fit is likely to be based on values and personality. See 7-2: The Selection Process

Page 16

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 08_HR5 Indicate whether the statement is true or false. 1. In July of 2015, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ruled that existing federal laws regarding sex discrimination should exclude lesbian, gay, and bisexual employees. a. True b. False 2. The average age of U.S. workers is gradually decreasing. a. True b. False 3. Language training is sometimes part of diversity training. a. True b. False 4. The resource acquisition argument for diversity suggests that organizations that learn to cope with diversity will generally have higher levels of productivity and lower levels of turnover and absenteeism. a. True b. False 5. Growing birthrates among the post–baby boom generations, which account for larger percentages of new entrants into the labor force, have changed the average age of U.S. workers. a. True b. False 6. The glass ceiling refers to the obstacles faced by people with disabilities at the workplace. a. True b. False 7. The major policy through which a company can reflect its stance on diversity is its mission statement. a. True b. False 8. Understanding fundamental cultural differences increases one's tolerance in a diverse workforce. a. True b. False 9. Within the United States, the percentage of whites in the workforce has increased in the past 20 years. a. True b. False 10. Many prison inmates work at paid jobs. a. True b. False

Page 1

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 08_HR5 Indicate the answer choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. 11. In the context of human resource management and social issues, which of the following jobs traditionally included manufacturing automobile license plates, repairing roads, or doing the laundry for other state institutions, but that situation has been changing? a. The job of knowledge workers b. The job of prison inmates c. The job of expatriates d. The job of white-collar workers 12. Which of the following is a characteristic of a multicultural organization? a. It promotes ethnocentrism in the workplace. b. It bases gaps in organizational identification on cultural identity groups. c. It achieves full integration of its informal networks. d. It achieves partial structural integration. 13. Which of the following is one label that has been frequently used to describe a dedication to build organizations that are accountable, responsible, transparent, and ecologically sustainable? a. Individual resource management b. Corporate social responsibility c. Vertical integration d. Organizational competitiveness 14. When every group represented in a company strives to understand every other group better, the company is said to be characterized by _____. a. pluralism b. full structural integration c. ethnocentrism d. xenophobia 15. An organization can promote diversity by: a. ensuring that diversity exists in its key committees and executive teams. b. attracting diverse work groups by inducing high levels of job embeddedness in the workplace. c. encouraging ethnocentrism in the workplace. d. adopting a hierarchical approach to controlling diversity. 16. Charles, a manager in a multinational company, leads a team of 10 people from various countries. Although he does not like certain behaviors exhibited by his team members, he accepts them as fundamental cultural differences between himself and them. Therefore, Charles is dealing with the diversity of his team by using _____. a. pluralism b. holism c. empathy d. tolerance Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 2

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 08_HR5 17. Which of the following organizations is most likely hiring a knowledge worker? a. A pharmaceutical manufacturing firm that is looking for a receptionist b. A bank that is looking for customer service personnel c. A lifestyle magazine that is looking for a reporter d. A software firm that is looking for an engineer to develop a new product 18. Which of the following is a reason for the increased workforce diversity in organizations? a. Legislation that has forced organizations to hire more broadly b. The privatization movement c. Legislation that mandates organizations to adopt ethnocentric practices d. The increased need for job embeddedness 19. Which of the following arguments for diversity suggests that organizations with diverse workforces will generally be more innovative than will less diverse organizations? a. The systems flexibility argument b. The resource acquisition argument c. The marketing argument d. The creativity argument 20. Who among the following individuals is facing the problem of the glass ceiling? a. Meryl, who refuses a promotion to a top management position because she is planning to start a family and does not want extra responsibilities at work b. Anna, who is not given a promotion as she is not technically qualified to manage the work and responsibilities that she would have had to handle if promoted c. Jamal, who is denied a job by several companies despite being qualified because of his physical disability that resulted from an accident d. Sean, who feels uncomfortable in his new workplace as he finds it difficult to appreciate and adjust to the new culture 21. Which of the following organizations most likely trades in knowledge? a. A consulting firm that sells its expertise in dealing with management problems b. An automobile manufacturing company that produces custom-made cars c. A food manufacturing firm that manufactures health products d. A bookstore that gives free bookmarks with every purchase 22. The problem-solving argument for diversity suggests that more diverse organizations will be more competitive because they tend to: a. promote ethnocentric practices. b. have a larger pool of unique information. c. have lower rates of employee turnover and absenteeism. d. become known among women and minorities as good places to work.

Page 3

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 08_HR5 23. The goods produced by prison inmates at a low cost can compete openly with goods produced by _____. a. manufacturing companies b. knowledge workers c. trading companies d. unskilled workers 24. In the context of the arguments that have been proposed on how diversity contributes to competitiveness, the cost argument suggests that organizations that learn to cope with diversity will: a. generally have higher levels of productivity and lower levels of turnover and absenteeism. b. become known among women and minorities as good places to work. c. be able to understand different market segments better than will less diverse organizations. d. generally be more creative and innovative than will less diverse organizations. 25. Diversity training is specifically designed to: a. enable members of an organization to function better in a diverse workplace. b. help an organization learn and adopt ethnocentric practices. c. ensure that employees give preferential treatment to colleagues belonging to protected classes. d. ensure that employees embrace the concept of xenocentrism. 26. Which of the following is a factor that contributes to the gradual increase in the average age of U.S. workers? a. Continuous aging of the baby boom generation b. Increasing birthrates among the post–baby boom generations c. Low legal limits for mandatory retirement d. Low levels of insurance coverage for older workers 27. Employees who add value to a firm simply because of what they know are called _____. a. knowledge workers b. free riders c. expatriates d. blue-collar workers 28. The knowledge workers of an organization: a. identify more strongly with their organization than they do with their profession. b. often believe they have the right to work autonomously. c. require little or no specialized training. d. include blue-collar workers. 29. In the context of the actions that individuals can take to deal with diversity, empathy most likely means: a. understanding that differences exist among people. b. tolerating the behavior of others without having to accept it. c. treating people fairly and equitably. d. understanding the perspectives of others.

Page 4

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 08_HR5 30. Identify an organization that has achieved high levels of diversity, can capitalize fully on the advantages of the diversity, and has few diversity-related problems. a. A xenophobic organization b. An ethnocentric organization c. A chronocentric organization d. A multicultural organization 31. A multicultural organization is one that: a. adopts a hierarchical approach to organizational control. b. experiences high levels of job embeddedness. c. achieves full structural integration. d. promotes ethnocentrism in the workplace. 32. The glass ceiling is best described as a _____. a. gender-related problem b. race-specific issue c. program in diversity training d. process in knowledge management 33. The Eduardo Institute, an institute opened by former businesswomen, provides vocational training to underprivileged women. The institute also helps them find jobs, thereby making them financially independent. The management of the school focuses on dealing with social problems rather than on making profits. In the given scenario, the Eduardo Institute is engaged in _____. a. bureaucratic management b. greenwashing c. astroturfing d. social entrepreneurship 34. Which of the following refers to the cultural composition of a group or organization? a. Ethnocentricity b. Xenocentrism c. Ethnicity d. Pluralism 35. Sabrina had to take a 9-year-long career break after she gave birth to twins. She knows that it will take longer for her to get promoted if she were to return to her previous job. Therefore, she decides to open a bakery instead. The given scenario illustrates the concept of _____. a. the glass cliff b. the glass ceiling c. ethnocentrism d. pluralism

Page 5

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 08_HR5 36. Offering foreign language courses to employees in a multicultural organization is an example of _____. a. ethnocentric training b. vicarious learning c. knowledge management d. diversity training 37. Which of the following statements is true of the ethnic composition of the workforce in the United States? a. The percentage of whites has gradually increased in the past 15 years. b. The percentage of Hispanics has increased in the past 20 years. c. The percentage of African Americans has gradually decreased in the past 15 years. d. The percentage of Asian Americans has decreased in the past 20 years. 38. Which of the following statements is true of equitable treatment of employees? a. It requires managers to ensure equality through identical treatment of employees. b. It is possible only in a multicultural organization. c. It gives everyone an equal opportunity to contribute to and advance within an organization. d. It promotes ethnocentrism in the work environment. 39. In the context of dimensions of diversity, which of the following suggests that disabilities that are more disfiguring are perceived more negatively? a. The origin dimension of a disability b. The nature dimension of a disability c. The duration aspect of a disability d. The aesthetic aspect of a disability 40. Elmer Inc., a software company, has a diverse workforce. Its employees work hard to meet their goals, and therefore, the management of the company has formed several extracurricular groups to help the employees relax. Everyone is free to join any or all of these groups, irrespective of their age, gender, or ethnicity. In the given scenario, which of the following statements is most likely true of Elmer Inc.? a. It has an ethnocentric work environment. b. It has achieved full integration of its informal networks. c. It has a hierarchical approach to organizational control. d. It has high levels of job embeddedness. 41. Which of the following statements is true of affirmative action? a. The sole component of an affirmative action program is job embeddedness. b. It promotes ethnocentrism among employees. c. It is similar to diversity management in all aspects. d. Courts have made it clear that affirmative action may not be the best way to accomplish the goal of greater diversity.

Page 6

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 08_HR5 42. In the context of the competitive advantage of diversity, which of the following arguments suggests that organizations that manage diversity effectively are in a better position to attract the right talent from minority groups? a. The systems flexibility argument b. The resource acquisition argument c. The cost argument d. The marketing argument 43. In the context of organizational learning, which of the following statements is true of individual learning? a. It is a sufficient condition for organizational learning to occur. b. It does not affect organizational learning in the long run. c. It is not a cognitive process but mostly depends on social processes and sharing of information. d. It is a necessary condition for organizational learning to occur. 44. To manage a diverse organization effectively, managers should first: a. acknowledge the differences among people. b. implement ethnocentric staffing strategies. c. assign organizational roles based on group identity. d. increase job embeddedness within the organization. 45. Which of the following statements is true of the strategies for dealing with diversity? a. A person's offensive behavior should be pointed out in a friendly, low-key manner. b. Tolerance should include accepting and enjoying the behavior of others. c. Adopting a hierarchical approach to organizational control is the key to effective diversity management. d. Understanding individual differences involves accommodating all types of behaviors. 46. Which of the following statements is true of a multicultural organization? a. It achieves partial structural integration. b. It promotes ethnocentrism in the workplace. c. It bases gaps in organizational identification on cultural identity groups. d. It is characterized by an absence of prejudice and discrimination. 47. Who among the following is a knowledge worker? a. An assembly-line worker who assembles products in a factory b. A businessman who owns a group of educational institutions c. An engineer who develops software applications for a phone company d. A shareholder of a firm that is involved in knowledge processing operations 48. The contemporary perspective on workforce diversity is that: a. affirmative action is the best way to achieve the goal of greater diversity. b. diversity seldom becomes a source of conflict in organizations. c. it is difficult to achieve high levels of productivity in organizations that have a diverse workforce. d. it is appropriate to acknowledge differences among people as long as people are treated fairly. Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 7

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 08_HR5 49. Which of the following statements is true of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)? a. It requires employers to provide all the accommodations requested by employees with disabilities, even if these accommodations cause undue hardship. b. It specifies different criteria for dealing with disabilities in men and women. c. It focuses solely on those disabilities that are permanent in nature. d. It presents a challenge to managers who try to balance treating everyone the same with treating everyone equitably. 50. Every time Adrian Inc., a popular fashion magazine based in the United States, launches an edition in a new country, the members of the main editorial team in its headquarters learn the native language of the new country so that they can interact well with the team in the other country. The company also offers language training to its foreign employees on assignments in the United States. In the given scenario, which of the following training is Adrian Inc. most likely offering to its employees? a. Discipline training b. Behavioral modification training c. Knowledge management training d. Diversity training 51. Which of the following statements is true of knowledge workers? a. They prefer working under an authoritative leader over working autonomously. b. They require little or no specialized training. c. They are usually experts in some abstract information base. d. They include blue-collar workers. 52. Which of the following is one of the four individual approaches to dealing with workforce diversity? a. Job embeddedness b. Ethnocentrism c. Continuous supervision d. Tolerance 53. Which of the following is a reason for the existence of the glass ceiling in organizations? a. Some women choose to suspend or slow their career progression to have children. b. There are no laws prohibiting discrimination against women. c. Women make up less than 30 percent of all managers, resulting in females occupying even fewer top management positions. d. Women are not as competent as men in managerial positions. 54. A factor that has contributed to diversity in organizations is: a. the privatization movement. b. the recruitment and promotion of the most talented people available, regardless of gender. c. the increased need for job embeddedness. d. the set of laws that mandate organizations to adopt ethnocentric practices.

Page 8

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 08_HR5 55. The process by which a company understands past mistakes and adapts to its environment is called _____. a. organizational pluralism b. organizational learning c. organizational engineering d. organizational synergy 56. Which of the following places a heavy emphasis on recognizing and appreciating differences among people at work and attempting to provide accommodations for those differences to the extent that is feasible and possible? a. Conscious capitalism b. Diversity management c. Organizational architecture d. Social entrepreneurship 57. A factor that accounts for the increased workforce diversity in organizations is: a. the privatization movement. b. the increased need for job embeddedness. c. changing demographics in the labor force. d. legal actions that have forced organizations to adopt ethnocentric practices. 58. In the context of an organization, which of the following is the collective, institutional record of past events? a. Organizational pluralism b. Organizational expertise c. Organizational memory d. Organizational synergy 59. A reason for the existence of the glass ceiling in organizations is that: a. some male managers are still reluctant to promote female managers. b. there are no laws prohibiting discrimination against women. c. women are not interested in reaching management positions. d. women are not as competent as men in managerial positions. 60. Which of the following is a difference between individual learning and organizational learning? a. The individual learning process is cognitive, whereas organizational learning depends more on social processes. b. Unlike organizational learning, individual learning depends on sharing of information. c. Individual learning involves a shared vision, whereas organizational learning involves the different goals of employees. d. Unlike organizational learning, individual learning involves the acquisition of new knowledge.

Page 9

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 08_HR5 61. Briefly explain the factors that have led to increased workforce diversity.

62. In the context of Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, discuss identical treatment versus equitable treatment with an example.

63. Discuss the characteristics of a multicultural organization.

64. Briefly explain the six arguments used to describe the contribution of diversity to competitiveness.

65. Briefly explain the concept of organizational learning.

Page 10

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 08_HR5 Answer Key 1. False 2. False 3. True 4. False 5. False 6. False 7. True 8. True 9. False 10. True 11. b 12. c 13. b 14. a 15. a 16. d 17. d 18. a 19. d 20. a 21. a 22. b 23. d 24. a 25. a 26. a

Page 11

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 08_HR5 27. a 28. b 29. d 30. d 31. c 32. a 33. d 34. c 35. b 36. d 37. b 38. c 39. d 40. b 41. d 42. b 43. d 44. a 45. a 46. d 47. c 48. d 49. d 50. d 51. c 52. d 53. a 54. b Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 12

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 08_HR5 55. b 56. b 57. c 58. c 59. a 60. a 61. Answers will vary. Organizations today are becoming increasingly diverse along many different dimensions. Several different factors have accounted for these trends and changes. Changing demographics in the labor force is one such factor. As more women and minorities have entered the labor force over the past few decades, for example, the available pool of talent from which organizations hire employees has changed in both size and composition. A related factor that has contributed to diversity has been the increased awareness by organizations that they can improve the overall quality of their workforce by hiring and promoting the most talented people available regardless of gender, race, or any other characteristics. Another reason for the increase in diversity has been legislation and legal actions that have forced organizations to hire more broadly. Over the past several decades, various laws have outlawed discrimination against women, African Americans, and other minorities. A final contributing factor to increased diversity in organizations has been the globalization movement. Organizations that have opened offices and related facilities in other countries have had to learn to deal with different customs, social norms, and mores. Strategic alliances and foreign ownership have also contributed because managers today are more likely to have job assignments in other countries or to work with foreign managers within their own countries. As employees and managers move from assignment to assignment across national boundaries, organizations and their subsidiaries within each country become more diverse. See 8-1: The Nature of Workforce Diversity 62. Answers will vary. In the years immediately after Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act was passed, many HR managers operated under the assumption that they were required by law to treat everyone equally. In reality, that assumption is neither the intent of the law nor even truly possible. The real essence not only of Title VII but also of the more contemporary perspective on workforce diversity is that it is appropriate to acknowledge differences among people as long as people are treated fairly. For example, a typical company in the United States routinely gives days off to employees for basic Christian holidays such as Christmas. But people who have different religious beliefs may not acknowledge the sanctity of these religious holidays and instead have different sets of days that they associate with strong religious beliefs. Thus, an employer who provides Christian holidays off should also be sensitive to the need to provide important religious holidays off for various employees of different beliefs and faiths. See 8-1: The Nature of Workforce Diversity

Page 13

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 08_HR5 63. Answers will vary. Multicultural organizations are those in which diversity and the appreciation of all cultures is simply the way business is done. Some of the characteristics of these organizations are as follows: Multicultural organizations are characterized by pluralism. Every group represented within an organization has the potential to influence the organization's culture and its fundamental norms. Multicultural organizations achieve full structural integration. Full structural integration suggests that the diversity within an organization is a complete and accurate reflection of the organization's external labor market. Multicultural organizations achieve full integration of their informal networks. This characteristic suggests that no barriers to entry and participation in any organizational activity exist. Multicultural organizations are characterized by an absence of prejudice and discrimination. People are valued, accepted, and rewarded purely on the basis of their skills and what they contribute to the organization. In multicultural organizations, no gap in organizational identification is based on a cultural identity group. People recognize that males and females are equally likely to be managers and secretaries. Multicultural organizations experience low levels of intergroup conflict. People within the organization fully understand, empathize with, have tolerance for, and openly communicate with everyone else. See 8-4: Managing Diversity in Organizations 64. Answers will vary. Many organizations are finding that diversity can be a source of competitive advantage in the marketplace. In general, six arguments have been proposed for how diversity contributes to competitiveness. These six arguments are as follows: The cost argument suggests that organizations that learn to cope with diversity will generally have higher levels of productivity and lower levels of turnover and absenteeism. The resource acquisition argument for diversity suggests that organizations that manage diversity effectively will become known among women and minorities as good places to work. These organizations will thus be in a better position to attract qualified employees from among these groups. The marketing argument suggests that organizations with diverse workforces will be able to understand different market segments better than will less diverse organizations. The creativity argument for diversity suggests that organizations with diverse workforces will generally be more creative and innovative than will less diverse organizations. The problem-solving argument is related to the creativity argument. Diversity carries with it an increased pool of information. In almost any organization, there is some information that everyone has, and other information is unique to each individual. In an organization with little diversity, the larger pool of information is common, and the smaller pool is unique. But in a more diverse organization, the unique information is larger. Thus, if more information can be brought to bear on a problem, there is a higher probability that better solutions will be identified. The systems flexibility argument for diversity suggests that organizations must become more flexible as a way of managing a diverse workforce. As a direct consequence, the overall organizational system will also become more flexible. See 8-3: The Impact of Diversity on Organizations 65. Answers will vary. Organizational learning refers to the process by which an organization "learns" from past mistakes and adapts to its environment. Over time, rules and procedures change based on experience, but this change is still based on individual learning; that is, individuals learn how to adapt, change, and then interact with one another so that the new information gained can be shared and distributed throughout the organization. As a result, a shared vision and interpretation of the information is developed, and the change permeates the entire organization. At this point, the organization can be said to have "learned" how to be more effective. See 8-5: Managing Knowledge Workers Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 14

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 09_HR5 Indicate whether the statement is true or false. 1. The most commonly used method of job evaluation is the point system. a. True b. False 2. Pay compression is least likely to develop when the market rate for starting salaries increases at a rate faster than an organization can raise pay for individuals who are already on the payroll. a. True b. False 3. In the context of nonmandated employee benefits, contributions to private pension plans come solely from the employer. a. True b. False 4. From 2027, in the United States, individuals will not be able to retire with full benefits of the Social Security program until they reach age 70. a. True b. False 5. External equity in compensation refers to comparisons made by employees to other employees performing similar jobs within the same organization. a. True b. False 6. Employee assistance plans are designed to help employees who require urgent medical support for family members in case of accidents. a. True b. False 7. Bonuses are typically a function of the performance of the organization and are less dependent on the perceived performance of the executive. a. True b. False 8. Workers' compensation is a nonmandated employee benefit. a. True b. False 9. The Social Security system is aimed at providing a minimum subsistence amount to individuals who are between jobs. a. True b. False

Page 1

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 09_HR5 10. The basic aim of the Affordable Care Act was to lower the number of uninsured employees. a. True b. False 11. In the context of mandated employee benefits, the government pays the cost of workers' compensation insurance. a. True b. False Indicate the answer choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. 12. Which of the following statements is true of the Fair Labor Standards Act? a. It makes vesting rights operational after 6 years of service at the most. b. It provides protection for the funding underlying pension plans. c. It allows an employee to carry a portion of his or her benefits to another job. d. It includes provisions for the minimum wage and overtime. 13. Which of the following statements is true of employee assistance plans? a. They focus on keeping employees from becoming sick rather than simply paying expenses when they do become sick. b. They are typically voluntary, and referrals are confidential. c. They provide assistance to employees in learning new skills and material. d. They are made available only to members of top management or to certain especially valuable professionals within the firm. 14. Which of the following statements is true of cafeteria-style benefits plans offered by organizations? a. Cafeteria-style benefits are funded jointly by the employer and the government. b. They typically take the form of referrals for employees with a disabled parent or one who needs constant care. c. Some evidence suggests that these programs can lead to increased satisfaction and reduced turnover. d. They are benefits targeted at different stages in an employee's life. 15. Barry & Finch, a law firm in Connecticut, performs job evaluation by organizing different sets of jobs in the firm into clusters called grades. The job evaluator then writes definitions and descriptions of each grade, which serves as a tool for deciding the compensation for each job. Which of the following job-evaluation methods is Barry & Finch using in the given scenario? a. The classification system b. The market-basket analysis method c. The factor-comparison method d. The point system

Page 2

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 09_HR5 16. In the context of nonmandated benefits, which of the following are targeted at different stages of an employee's existence? a. Wellness programs b. Defined contribution plans c. Life-cycle benefits d. Employee assistance plans 17. Which of the following statements is true of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) of 1974? a. It prevents organizations from establishing private pension plans. b. It specifies which employees are covered by overtime provisions and which are exempt. c. It allows an employee to carry a portion of his or her benefits to another job. d. It makes vesting rights operational after 4 years of service at the most. 18. Adopting an open pay system in an organization: a. gives rise to jealousy and resentment among employees. b. motivates low performers to work harder for better compensation. c. causes pay compression in the long run. d. causes high employee turnover. 19. Which of the following is a disadvantage of the classification system for job evaluation? a. It assumes that a constant and inflexible relationship exists between job factors and their value to an organization. b. It is difficult to construct. c. It provides rigid standards for compensation and cannot accommodate changes in the value of various individual jobs in an organization. d. It is difficult to communicate to employees. 20. Which of the following statements is true of the classification system as a job-evaluation method? a. It can easily accommodate changes in the value of various individual jobs in an organization. b. It is difficult to construct. c. It assumes that a flexible relationship exists between job factors and their value to an organization. d. It is difficult to communicate to employees. 21. Which of the following is a problem of the Social Security system? a. Social Security benefits do not directly depend on the withholdings assessed against the employee who is retiring. b. Individuals can avail full Social Security benefits as early as at the age of 55, which puts undue pressure on a firm's resources. c. The state often lacks a sufficient amount of funds needed to cover all retirees. d. It provides limited income to those retirees who do not have other sources of income, that is, no part-time work or pension plans.

Page 3

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 09_HR5 22. Which of the following is a difference between salaries and wages? a. Performance is the basis for wages, whereas time is the basis for salaries. b. Wages are paid to permanent employees, whereas salaries are paid to temporary employees. c. Wages are paid to managerial employees within a firm, whereas salaries are paid to operational and lowerlevel employees within a firm. d. Waged employees are eligible for the overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act, whereas salaried employees are not. 23. Which of the following is a form of a mandated benefit? a. Paid time off b. Workers' compensation c. A wellness program d. A perquisite 24. The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) of 1974: a. prevents organizations from establishing private pension plans. b. provides protection for the funding underlying pension plans. c. includes provisions for minimum wages and child labor. d. makes vesting rights operational after 3 years of service at the most. 25. Which of the following is the first step in the factor-comparison method for job evaluation in an organization? a. The job factors to be used are selected and defined. b. Benchmark or key jobs in the organization are identified. c. A job-comparison chart is developed to display benchmark jobs. d. All jobs in the organization are grouped into grades. 26. Identify a true statement regarding the skill-based pay approach. a. It involves compensating employees for learning specific material. b. It inhibits an organization’s flexibility in scheduling tasks to employees. c. It allows an organization to rotate employees through different jobs. d. It tends to incur significant costs to an organization. 27. Which of the following are designed to assist employees who have chronic problems with alcohol or drugs or who have serious domestic problems? a. Employee assistance plans b. Cafeteria-style benefits plans c. Outbound training programs d. Early retirement programs

Page 4

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 09_HR5 28. Which of the following is an issue related to executive compensation? a. Little or no relationship seems to exist between the performance of an organization and the compensation paid to its senior executives. b. Most senior executives are exempt from the perquisites provided by an organization to its employees. c. Executive compensation in the United States is far lower than that paid to senior executives in other countries. d. Executive compensation only involves incentive pay, which is based on the years of service in an organization and commission from the clients brought to it. 29. Identify a true statement regarding the efficiency wage theory. a. Organizations that spend more money on employee benefits experience high employee turnover. b. Organizations unwilling to spend on benefits successfully convince employees to work harder than before. c. Organizations willing to spend more money on total compensation attract better-qualified people. d. Organizations do not see any impact of social, cultural, and political forces on their benefits programs. 30. Brad, a manager at a new investment firm, is performing job evaluation. He selects 12 benchmark jobs in the firm and then ranks each of these jobs against compensable job factors such as physical effort, responsibility, skill, and nature of the working conditions. This ranking is based on job descriptions created during job analysis. Later, the management meets as a group and develops a consensus on the assigned values for each job. In the given scenario, which of the following systems or methods is Brad most likely using for job evaluation? a. The point system b. The classification system c. The factor-comparison method d. The market-basket analysis method 31. Which of the following is a life-cycle benefit offered by employers? a. Helping employees cope with chronic drug and alcohol problems b. Providing company-paid day-care facilities to employees c. Offering overseas assignment opportunities to employees d. Helping employees deal with domestic abuse problems 32. The third step in the factor-comparison method for job evaluation is: a. selecting and defining the comparison factors to be used. b. identifying benchmark or key jobs in an organization. c. developing a job-comparison chart to display the benchmark jobs in an organization. d. ranking the benchmark jobs in an organization on each compensable job factor. 33. Which of the following statements is true of life-cycle benefits? a. They can be availed only at the end of an employee's service with an organization. b. They refer to fitness workshops that help employees stay healthy. c. They include child-care and elder-care benefits. d. They are benefits that an employee's family receives after the employee's death.

Page 5

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 09_HR5 34. Which of the following statements is true of a maturity curve? a. It is used to identify benchmarks or key jobs in an organization. b. It is used to express the relationship between pay and job responsibilities. c. It is used when information on compensation paid to employees by other employers in a particular geographic area or occupational group is collected. d. It is used when the annual increase in pay varies based on the actual number of years of service a person has accumulated. 35. In the context of employment law, which of the following are guaranteed rights to receive pension benefits? a. Human rights b. Union rights c. Vesting rights d. Access rights 36. In the context of compensation, which of the following statements is true of internal equity? a. It occurs when lower-level employees in a firm receive the same incentives as the top executives. b. Overpaying individuals for the value of their contributions can effectively solve internal equity issues. c. Problems with internal equity can result in conflict, feelings of mistrust, and low morale. d. Much of the information concerning internal equity comes from a pay survey. 37. Which of the following is a disadvantage of using an above-market compensation strategy? a. It encourages voluntary turnover among employees. b. A firm using this strategy incurs high labor costs. c. It hinders a culture of elitism and competitive superiority. d. Employees in firms using this strategy experience external inequity. 38. Donald, the CEO of a multinational organization, is given a reward by the organization in the form of a contract that allows him to purchase 5 percent shares of the company anytime in the future at a predetermined price. Three years later, Donald purchases those shares at half their market price. Additionally, he becomes more motivated to work toward increasing the performance of the organization. In this scenario, Donald is given a _____. a. cafeteria-style benefits plan b. stock-option plan c. employee assistance plan d. life-cycle benefit 39. Identify a true statement regarding benefits programs. a. Organizations that do not spend much on employee benefits save money in the long run. b. Employees are more likely to be satisfied with firms that provide better benefits. c. Organizations unwilling to spend on benefits successfully convince employees to work harder. d. Employees are attracted to firms that ask employees to bear the costs of benefits.

Page 6

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 09_HR5 40. In the context of compensations, perquisites are: a. mandated family health-care benefits. b. usually made available only to members of top management. c. benefits targeted at different stages in an employee's life. d. paid for solely by the government. 41. Which of the following refers to the extent to which the compensation of any individual in an organization is formally made available to other individuals? a. Wage and salary administration b. Pay secrecy c. Pay inversion d. Pay compression 42. Which of the following statements is true of pay surveys? a. Individual employees should not have access to the data collected from these surveys. b. They are the most commonly used source of information for internal equity. c. Large firms design their own pay surveys to get the exact data they need. d. The jobs that are the focus of these surveys should be niche jobs. 43. An HR manager at a cosmetics company invites the new employees to a meeting to discuss company policies and to explain the benefits plan used by the company. As part of this benefits plan, he gives each employee a list of benefits and asks him or her to choose the benefits that he or she really wants. The company aims to increase employee satisfaction by using this benefits plan. Which of the following benefits plans is the cosmetics company using in the given scenario? a. A defined contribution plan b. An employee assistance plan c. A cafeteria-style benefits plan d. A defined benefits plan 44. In the context of nonmandated benefits, which of the following is an extra benefit that may or may not have any direct financial value but is considered an important reward by employees? a. Social Security benefit b. A perquisite c. A bursary d. Workers' compensation 45. The actual funding for Social Security benefits comes from the _____. a. incomes of legal children of retired employees b. withholdings of current employees c. last employers of retired employees d. contingency fund of the government

Page 7

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 09_HR5 46. Grenstall Inc., a software development firm, has adopted a new job-evaluation system in which managers are asked to objectively quantify the value of eight to ten compensable factors of each job in the organization. These compensable factors are based on their importance to that particular job and may include skill, physical effort, mental effort, and responsibility so forth. In this system, jobs are compared against a standard of key ratings. Which of the following job-evaluation systems is Grenstall Inc. most likely using in the given scenario? a. The market-basket analysis method b. The classification system c. The factor-comparison method d. The point system 47. Brenda, the chief technical officer of a telecommunications company, is a member of the Golden Scion Country Club, one of the most exclusive country clubs in the United States. Having a membership in such country clubs is usually expensive. It is, however, free of cost for Brenda as it is paid for by her company. In the given scenario, which of the following options best describes the membership given to Brenda by her company? a. A remittance b. A perquisite c. A life-cycle benefit d. A hardship premium 48. Which of the following is established to give senior managers of a company the option to buy the company shares in the future at a predetermined, fixed price? a. The Social Security system b. A stock-option plan c. An employee assistance plan d. A life-cycle benefit 49. Which of the following is a job-evaluation technique that requires managers to quantify, in objective terms, the value of the various elements of specific jobs? a. The market-basket analysis method b. The classification system c. The factor-comparison method d. The point system 50. Which of the following is true of an organization's pay-for-knowledge approach? a. It most likely involves the hourly workers of an organization. b. It refers to an inexpensive method of improving employees' skills. c. It aligns perfectly with an organization's traditional incentive systems. d. It rewards employees for mastering information that relates to global issues. 51. Which of the following is true of workers' compensation? a. It is aimed at helping people who have chronic problems with alcohol or drugs. b. The exact premium paid for workers' compensation insurance is a function of each employee's salary. c. Employers pay the cost of workers' compensation insurance. d. It is provided to people who are between jobs. Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 8

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 09_HR5 52. Jennifer, an account manager in an automobile company, has work experience of 6 years and has become one of the best employees of the company in the 2 years since joining. However, she resigns from her job when she finds out that most of the new employees with only 2 or 3 years of experience in the company are paid the same salary as hers. In the given scenario, Jennifer most likely resigns because of _____. a. pay compression b. wage elasticity c. pay inversion d. external inequity 53. In an organization, which of the following functions of compensation serves to indicate to employees what is important to focus on by paying for certain kinds of activities or behaviors? a. Workload reduction b. Equity c. Market benchmarking d. Signaling 54. A leading placement consultancy firm gathered and presented information about the average compensation for attorneys to its clients. This information included data on the compensation paid by other law firms in a specific geographic region. The firm used this information to inform its clients about the companies that have the most external equity. Which of the following methods has the placement consultancy firm most likely used to gather information about compensation rates at different firms? a. Job evaluation b. A pay survey c. A maturity curve d. The point system 55. Unlike pay-for-knowledge plans, skill-based pay plans: a. are more likely to be associated with hourly workers. b. reward employees for learning new material. c. reduce the flexibility of scheduling for management. d. have the potential to clash with more traditional incentive systems. 56. In the context of cafeteria-style benefits plans, which of the following refers to the fact that the employee most likely to select a benefit is also most likely to use the benefit, which tends to drive up benefit costs? a. The Peltzman effect b. Blowback c. The cobra effect d. Adverse selection

Page 9

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 09_HR5 57. Tessy, a senior accountant at a private bank in Massachusetts, retired at the age of 62. Upon retirement, she received a benefit amount from the bank. This benefit amount equaled the total sum of money she had added to her pension plan each year plus the amount that the bank added to it every year. In this scenario, the sum of money that Tessy received post retirement comes from the _____. a. Workers' Compensation Insurance Program b. defined contribution plan c. cafeteria-style benefits plan d. Social Security program 58. Organizations that practice pay secrecy: a. encourage greater camaraderie and teamwork among employees. b. experience pay inversion in the long run. c. believe an individual’s pay is not for public knowledge. d. motivate low performers to work harder for better compensation. 59. Which of the following is the second step in the factor-comparison method for job evaluation in an organization? a. The comparison factors to be used are selected and defined. b. Benchmark or key jobs in the organization are identified. c. A job-comparison chart is developed to display benchmark jobs. d. The benchmark jobs in the organization are grouped into grades. 60. Which of the following occurs when individuals with substantially different levels of experience, performance abilities, or both in an organization are paid wages or salaries that are relatively equal? a. Pay compression b. Wage elasticity c. Pay inversion d. External inequity 61. In the context of compensation, which of the following statements is true of external inequity? a. It occurs when lower-level employees in a firm receive fewer incentives than the top executives. b. Overpaying individuals for the value of their contributions can effectively solve external equity issues. c. Problems with external equity may result in dissatisfied and unhappy workers. d. The most commonly used source of information concerning external equity is job evaluation. 62. What are private pension plans? Briefly explain the two types of private pension plans.

Page 10

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 09_HR5 63. Differentiate between pay for knowledge and skill-based pay with examples.

64. Briefly explain pay secrecy, pay compression, and pay inversion in the context of wage and salary administration.

65. Briefly explain the steps involved in the classification system for job evaluation.

66. Discuss the various determinants of a firm's compensation strategy.

Page 11

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 09_HR5 Answer Key 1. True 2. False 3. False 4. False 5. False 6. False 7. True 8. False 9. False 10. True 11. False 12. d 13. b 14. c 15. a 16. c 17. c 18. b 19. a 20. a 21. a 22. d 23. b 24. b 25. a 26. c

Page 12

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 09_HR5 27. a 28. a 29. c 30. c 31. b 32. d 33. c 34. d 35. c 36. c 37. b 38. b 39. b 40. b 41. b 42. c 43. c 44. b 45. b 46. d 47. b 48. b 49. d 50. d 51. c 52. a 53. d 54. b Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 13

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 09_HR5 55. a 56. d 57. b 58. c 59. b 60. a 61. c 62. Answers will vary. Private pension plans are prearranged plans that are administered by the organization that provides income to the employee at her or his retirement. Contributions to the retirement plan may come from either the employer or the employee, but in most cases they are supported by contributions from both parties.There are two basic types of private pension plans: defined benefits plans and defined contribution plans. Under defined benefits plans, the size of the benefit is precisely known and is usually based on a simple formula using input such as years of service and salary. This type of plan is often favored by unions and is closely monitored under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974. Under defined contribution plans, the size of the benefit depends on how much money is contributed to the plan. This money can be contributed by either the employer alone (noncontributory plans) or the employer and the employee (contributory plans). See 9-6: Nonmandated Benefits 63. Answers will vary. Pay for knowledge involves compensating employees (usually managerial, service, or professional employees) for learning specific material. This approach might include paying programmers for learning a new programming language or rewarding managers who master a new manufacturing system. These systems can also be designed to pay for learning supervisory skills or for developing more in-depth knowledge about a topic relevant to the organization. Pay-for-knowledge systems reward employees for mastering material that allows them to be more useful to the organization in the future and are based on mastering new technology or mastering information that relates to global issues. These systems tend to be fairly expensive to start because the organization needs to develop methods for testing whether the employee has mastered the information in question, but once in place, the costs are usually not excessive. These plans also have the potential to clash with more traditional incentive systems because employees might choose to perfect and apply knowledge they already have rather than learn new material. Skill-based pay operates in much the same way as a pay-for-knowledge system, but these plans are more likely to be associated with hourly workers. Instead of rewarding employees who master new material, employees are rewarded for acquiring new skills. Under such a plan, for example, an administrative assistant would be paid for learning how to use spreadsheets. The skills involved can be either for the same job (or in the same job family) or relevant for other jobs in the organization. This approach affords management a great deal of flexibility in scheduling, and it benefits employees because they can rotate through different jobs (providing some variety) and acquire skills that may increase their market value if they choose to seek another job. See 9-2: Determining What to Pay

Page 14

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 09_HR5 64. Answers will vary. Once wages and salaries have been determined, the resulting compensation system must be administered on an ongoing basis. Most organizations call this process wage and salary administration or compensation administration. Certain issues related to compensation must also be addressed as part of this administration process. Two of the most important factors involve pay secrecy and pay compression. Pay secrecy refers to the extent to which the compensation of any individual in an organization is secret or the extent to which it is formally made available to other individuals. Advocates of pay secrecy maintain that what an individual is paid is his or her own business and not for public knowledge. They also argue that if pay levels are made known to everybody else, then jealousy or resentment may result. Some organizations, however, adopt a more open pay system in which everyone knows what everyone else makes. The logic is that this promotes equity and motivation. Another problem that some organizations must confront occasionally during wage and salary administration is pay compression. Pay compression occurs when individuals with substantially different levels of experience or performance abilities are being paid wages or salaries that are relatively equal. Pay compression is most likely to develop when the market rate for starting salaries increases at a rate faster than an organization can raise pay for individuals who are already on the payroll. As a result, an employee with experience may find himself or herself not making much more than an entrylevel employee. In some cases, the external market can change so rapidly that new employees are actually paid more than experienced employees; this is known as pay inversion. See 9-3: Wage and Salary Administration 65. Answers will vary. An organization that uses a classification system for job evaluation attempts to group sets of jobs together into classifications, often called grades. After classifying is done, each set of jobs is then ranked at a level of importance to the organization. Importance, in turn, may be defined in terms of relative difficulty, sophistication, or required skills and abilities necessary to perform that job. The third step is to determine how many categories or classifications to use for grouping jobs. The most common number of grades is anywhere from 8 to 10, although some organizations use the system with as few as 4 grades and some with as many as 18. Once the grades have been determined, the job evaluator must write definitions and descriptions of each job class. These definitions and descriptions serve as the standard around which the compensation system is built. Once the classes of jobs are defined and described, jobs that are being evaluated can be compared with the definitions and descriptions and placed into the appropriate classification. See 9-2: Determining What to Pay 66. Answers will vary. Several different factors contribute to the compensation strategy that a firm develops. One general set of factors has to do with the overall strategy of the organization itself. A clear and carefully developed relationship should exist between a firm's corporate and business strategies and its human resource strategy. This connection, in turn, should also tie into the firm's compensation strategy. In addition to these general strategic considerations, several other specific factors determine an organization's compensation strategy. One obvious factor is simply the organization's ability to pay. An organization with a healthy cash flow or substantial cash reserves is more likely to be able to pay above-market wages and salaries. On the other hand, if the organization suffers from a cash flow crunch, has few cash reserves, and is operating on a tight budget, it may be necessary to adopt a below-market wage strategy. Another determinant is the overall ability of the organization to attract and retain employees. For example, if the organization is located in an attractive area, has several noncompensation amenities, and provides a comfortable, pleasant, and secure work environment, it might be able to pay somewhat lower wages. Union influences are another important determinant of an organization's compensation strategy. If an organization competes in an environment that is heavily unionized, then the strength and bargaining capabilities of the union influence what the organization pays its employees. See 9-1: Developing a Compensation Strategy

Page 15

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 10_HR5 Indicate whether the statement is true or false. 1. In the context of rating errors, a contrast error occurs when a manager assigns relatively high or lenient ratings to all employees. a. True b. False 2. The establishment stage is the first stage of a typical career. a. True b. False 3. A central tendency error occurs when one positive performance characteristic causes a manager to rate all other aspects of performance positively. a. True b. False 4. An individual's supervisor is the least likely person to rate the individual in his or her performance appraisal. a. True b. False 5. A 360-degree appraisal uses performance information collected from people on two sides of a manager, above and below. a. True b. False 6. In an organization, career management is independent of the performance management process. a. True b. False 7. Contextual performance refers to tasks that an employee is expected to perform as part of his or her job responsibilities. a. True b. False 8. A critical incident is an example of particularly good or bad employee performance. a. True b. False 9. Performance appraisals that show evidence of disparate impact must be validated the same as any selection technique. a. True b. False

Page 1

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 10_HR5 10. In the context of performance rating methods, the specific dimensions measured by graphic rating scales are not typically based on job analysis. a. True b. False Indicate the answer choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. 11. In the context of the traditional model of career stages, individuals are likely to view work as less important and find other sources for fulfilling their personal needs and goals in the _____. a. maintenance stage b. disengagement stage c. establishment stage d. exploration stage 12. Which of the following statements is true of effective career planning? a. It results in a stronger and more effective workforce for a firm. b. The chief operating officer of a firm usually represents the firm in the career-planning process. c. Career planning helps to predict with absolute certainty the level of talent or interest an individual will have in the future. d. The final step in effective career planning is individual assessment. 13. Which of the following is a step in career planning where an organization integrates its performance-management system with its career-management system? a. Individual assessment b. Career counseling c. Organizational specification of career paths d. Communication 14. Which of the following is developed from critical incidents and uses a substantial number of critical incidents to define specifically all the measures necessary for effective performance? a. A behavioral observation scale b. A Likert scale c. A graphic rating scale d. A semantic differential scale 15. Which of the following is an approach that attempts to emphasize for managers the fact that performance is multidimensional in nature and to teach those managers about the actual content of various performance dimensions? a. Onboarding b. Frame of reference training c. The critical incident method d. The forced-distribution method

Page 2

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 10_HR5 16. Mathew is always late to office. Mathew's manager does not like Mathew's tardiness. Therefore, during a performance review, Mathew's manager gives him low ratings even though his work was impeccable during the performance-review period. In this scenario, Matthew's manager is making a _____. a. severity error b. halo error c. horns error d. central tendency error 17. Which of the following involves interaction between an individual employee or manager in an organization and either a line manager or an HR manager in that organization? a. A pay survey b. An individual assessment c. Internal discourse d. Career counseling 18. Which of the following is an advantage of a behaviorally anchored rating scale (BARS) system? a. It dramatically increases reliability by providing specific behavioral examples to reflect effective and less effective behaviors. b. It can be developed quickly and easily. c. It allows managers to rate the frequency with which individual employees have exhibited specific behaviors during the rating period. d. It is cheap to develop. 19. Natasha, a 29-year-old software developer at Widget Corp., has become a valuable member of her team over the past 5 years. She is acknowledged by the company as someone who should be valued and retained. In the context of traditional career stages, it is evident that Natasha is in the _____. a. exploration stage b. establishment stage c. maintenance stage d. disengagement stage 20. Which of the following factors could impact a supervisor's motivation, rather than ability, to provide a meaningful performance appraisal? a. Inadequate job knowledge b. Favoritism toward specific workers c. Inadequate opportunity to observe employee performance d. Changing technology, which impacts the supervisor's understanding of an employee's job tasks 21. Which of the following statements is true of rating performance based on outcomes? a. This method emphasizes the subjective measures of performance. b. It focuses on highlighting only the positive aspects of employee performance. c. It is based on the assumption that similar traits underlie effective performance for all jobs. d. Feedback is relatively straightforward and easy to interpret.

Page 3

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 10_HR5 22. Which of the following refers to the set of experiences and activities that people engage in related to their job and livelihood over the course of their working life? a. Acculturation b. Contextual performance c. Organizational citizenship behavior d. Career 23. In the management-by-objectives (MBO) system of performance appraisal, an individual's degree of goal attainment: a. is the same as the degree of accomplishment of the organization's goals. b. becomes the individual's performance appraisal. c. rarely forms the basis for the individual's performance evaluation. d. is qualitative and subjective. 24. Which of the following is a difference between the establishment and the maintenance stages of a traditional career? a. The establishment stage consists of individuals aged between late teens and late twenties, whereas the maintenance stage consists of individuals aged between late sixties and early seventies. b. In the establishment stage, individuals begin to create a relevant role for themselves in a firm, whereas in the maintenance stage, individuals reach a level in the firm that optimizes their talents. c. In the establishment stage, individuals gradually lose interest in their work, whereas in the maintenance stage, individuals find that the coursework of their field is of interest to them. d. The establishment stage is the first stage of a traditional career, whereas the maintenance stage is the last stage of a traditional career. 25. Performance information is gathered from people on all sides of a manager, above, beside, below, and so forth in _____. a. the downward feedback method b. a peer assessment c. the negotiated performance appraisal method d. a 360-degree appraisal 26. Which of the following is a traditional career stage that involves identifying interests and opportunities? a. Exploration b. Establishment c. Maintenance d. Disengagement 27. Which of the following rating errors occurs when a manager assigns relatively high performance ratings to all employees? a. A severity error b. A leniency error c. A horns error d. A halo error Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 4

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 10_HR5 28. Which of the following is most likely an example of a special career-counseling program? a. A conference organized by an investment firm about new banking solutions and the resulting career opportunities for its executives b. A session conducted by a firm for the benefit of its employees who belong to minority groups to integrate them into the daily activities of the firm c. A workshop conducted by a software development firm to update all its employees on the latest developments in the field of information technology d. A one-on-one interaction between an employee and his supervisor to discuss the employee's performance in the last fiscal quarter 29. Which of the following statements is true of performance management? a. It prevents employees from reaching the disengagement stage of their careers. b. It aims to promote ethnocentric behavior in the workplace. c. It is the ultimate goal of performance-appraisal activities. d. It is a more specific process than performance appraisal. 30. It is not always clear that errors in performance appraisals are really errors, except for _____. a. horns errors b. distributional errors c. halo errors d. contrast errors 31. Which of the following is one of the ultimate goals of career management? a. Having employees enjoy productive and satisfying work careers b. Preventing employees from reaching the disengagement stage of their careers c. Preventing the use of ranking techniques for performance appraisal d. Creating special career-counseling programs for certain categories of employees 32. Which of the following is a similarity between leniency and central tendency? a. Both are contrast errors in performance appraisals. b. Both are types of distributional errors in performance appraisals. c. Both occur when people are compared against one another instead of against an objective standard. d. Both are behaviors that are never stated as formal requirements of a job. 33. Most companies with a reputation to be great places to work: a. prevent employees from reaching the disengagement stage of their careers. b. encourage voluntary retirements. c. have formal career-planning systems for their managers. d. use the forced-distribution method for appraising performance.

Page 5

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 10_HR5 34. Which of the following is a disadvantage of ranking methods for performance appraisals? a. They provide no information about the difference between the persons ranked first and second. b. They are complex and difficult to implement. c. They do not result in a normal distribution of performance ratings. d. They require raters to keep a log to record critical incidents that reflect good and bad performance on the part of individual employees. 35. Xavier, a sales manager, set extremely high daily sales targets for his subordinates. As none of his subordinates were able to meet those targets, he gave poor ratings to all subordinates. Which of the following errors did Xavier make? a. A severity error b. A halo error c. A horns error d. A leniency error 36. In the context of performance-appraisal methods, one of the major criticisms that had been leveled against graphic rating scales is that they were especially prone to a series of _____. a. contrast errors b. halo errors c. distributional errors d. horns errors 37. Several firms have claimed to have dropped performance appraisals completely and focused entirely on performance management. Much of this reaction stems from the use of _____. a. the forced-distribution method b. the Likert scale c. a goal-based system d. a management-by-objectives system 38. Leroy, a senior manager, has been preoccupied with relocating the marketing division of Clifford Inc. to its new office. As a result, he is unable to monitor the work of his subordinates during this period. Therefore, he decides to give high ratings to all his subordinates in their performance appraisals, irrespective of their actual performance. In the given scenario, Leroy is most likely to commit a _____. a. severity error b. leniency error c. horns error d. halo error 39. Which of the following rating errors occurs when a manager gives low ratings to all employees by holding them to an unreasonably high standard? a. A severity error b. A halo error c. A horns error d. A leniency error Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 6

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 10_HR5 40. Which of the following is a similarity between a behaviorally anchored rating scale (BARS) and a behavioral observation scale (BOS)? a. Both are cheap to develop. b. Both involve grouping employees into predefined frequencies of performance ratings. c. Both are developed from critical incidents. d. Both allow managers to rate the frequency with which each employee has exhibited effective and ineffective behaviors during the rating period. 41. Which of the following is a difference between a halo error and a horns error? a. A halo error is the opposite of a distributional error, whereas a horns error is the opposite of a contrast error. b. A halo error occurs when all aspects of an employee's performance are rated positively, whereas a horns error occurs when all aspects of an employee's performance are downgraded. c. A halo error is a performance selection error, whereas a horns error is a performance rating error. d. A halo error occurs when people are compared against one another instead of against an objective standard, whereas a horns error occurs when a rater tends to use only one part of a rating scale. 42. Chin, a regional manager at a marketing firm, must formally evaluate his immediate subordinates every year. He does so by using a management-by-objectives system. In the given scenario, Chin is most likely involved in _____. a. outbound training b. job evaluations c. performance appraisals d. organizational socialization 43. Performance appraisals cannot accomplish their goals if: a. managers and employees do not use the same set of standards to rate performance. b. there are no false negative or false positive errors in the selection process. c. the immediate supervisors of employees play the largest role in the employees' appraisal process. d. appraisals are conducted for less than 30 employees at a time. 44. Katy, a manager, is evaluating her team members by rating them from best to worst. This rating is based on their overall performance. Which of the following performance-appraisal methods is Katy using in the given scenario? a. The simple ranking method b. The factor comparison method c. The critical incident method d. The forced-distribution method 45. In the context of performance appraisals, which of the following occurs when the rater tends to use only one part of a rating scale? a. A distributional error b. A contrast error c. A halo error d. A horns error Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 7

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 10_HR5 46. The following item appears in an employee evaluation form of an organization: How does the employee react when faced with challenging tasks? 1 = Gets nervous and asks the supervisor for help 2 = Looks into the problem and asks peers for solutions 3 = Makes a list of possible solutions and shows them to the supervisor 4 = Comes up with innovative solutions on his or her own and fixes the problem within time Which of the following methods of performance appraisal is the organization using? a. The management-by-objectives system b. The paired-comparison method c. A Likert scale d. A behaviorally anchored rating scale 47. Which of the following statements is true of the forced-distribution method of performance appraisals? a. It requires managers to maintain a log or diary of effective and ineffective employee behaviors. b. It takes away the power of organizations to control how much money is spent on merit pay. c. It results in a normal distribution of performance ratings. d. It involves comparing each individual employee with every other individual employee. 48. Individuals are more likely to retire when: a. they reach the establishment stage of their careers. b. they face gender and racial discrimination at work. c. their work is part-time. d. their spouses have retired. 49. Which of the following is the first step in effective career planning? a. Communication b. Individual assessment c. Career counseling d. Performance management 50. Which of the following statements defines a performance appraisal? a. It is the general set of activities carried out by an organization to improve employee performance. b. It is the set of experiences and activities that people engage in related to their job and livelihood over the course of their working life. c. It is the specific and formal evaluation of an employee to determine the degree to which the employee is performing his or her job effectively. d. It is a phase of career planning in which individuals carefully analyze what they perceive to be their own abilities, competencies, skills, and goals.

Page 8

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 10_HR5 51. In the context of the methods for appraising performance, which of the following consists of a statement or question about some aspect of an individual's job performance? a. The forced-distribution method b. A graphic rating scale c. The critical incident method d. A side-by-side matrix scale 52. Which of the following stages of the traditional career model involves creating a meaningful and relevant role in an organization? a. The maintenance stage b. The disengagement stage c. The establishment stage d. The exploration stage 53. The performance-appraisal process at Lorenzo Inc. requires managers to evaluate organizational citizenship behaviors, such as helping coworkers get their work done, integrating new employees into the team, and rewarding the employees accordingly. In the given scenario, the managers are: a. rating contextual performance. b. using a management-by-objectives system for appraising performance. c. rating task behaviors. d. using a goal-based system for appraising performance. 54. Which of the following methods of performance appraisal involves contrasting each individual employee with every other individual employee, two at a time? a. The paired-comparison method b. The factor comparison method c. The critical incident method d. The forced-distribution method 55. Organizational citizenship behaviors are behaviors associated with _____. a. career planning b. job embeddedness c. career counseling d. contextual performance 56. Which of the following statements is true of the goals set under the management-by-objectives (MBO) system of performance appraisal? a. They are qualitative and difficult to measure. b. They are almost always written down. c. They are subjective in nature. d. They are the same as the objectives of the organization.

Page 9

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 10_HR5 57. The goal of performance management is: a. to formally evaluate the performance of employees. b. to help employees learn and adopt ethnocentric skills relevant to their job. c. to prevent employees from reaching the disengagement stage of their careers. d. to improve employee performance. 58. One relatively new innovation in performance-appraisal methods is the use of _____. a. career counseling b. the graphic rating scales c. computer monitoring d. the forced-distribution methods 59. Which of the following statements is true of the maintenance stage of a traditional career? a. The highest growth in the performance of an individual occurs during this stage. b. The performance of an individual starts being considered relevant by his or her organization during this stage. c. It involves creating a meaningful and relevant role in an organization. d. It involves an individual gradually beginning to pull away from his or her work in an organization. 60. Which of the following is a difference between a behavioral observation scale (BOS) and a behaviorally anchored rating scale (BARS)? a. A BARS does not allow managers to rate the frequency with which an individual employee has exhibited each effective and ineffective behavior during the rating period, whereas a BOS does. b. A BARS uses substantially more effective and ineffective behaviors than a BOS to define specifically all the measures necessary for effective performance. c. A BARS takes more time and can be more expensive to develop than a BOS. d. A BARS is developed from critical incidents, whereas a BOS is not. 61. Briefly explain the factors that affect an employee's decision to retire.

62. Contrast formal and informal career-counseling programs.

Page 10

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 10_HR5 63. Briefly explain the legal issues in performance appraisal.

64. Describe the steps involved in a typical career-planning system.

65. Describe the management-by-objectives method of performance appraisal.

Page 11

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 10_HR5 Answer Key 1. False 2. False 3. False 4. False 5. False 6. False 7. False 8. True 9. True 10. True 11. b 12. a 13. d 14. a 15. b 16. c 17. d 18. a 19. b 20. b 21. d 22. d 23. b 24. b 25. d 26. a

Page 12

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 10_HR5 27. b 28. b 29. c 30. d 31. a 32. b 33. c 34. a 35. a 36. c 37. a 38. b 39. a 40. c 41. b 42. c 43. a 44. a 45. a 46. d 47. c 48. d 49. b 50. c 51. b 52. c 53. a 54. a Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 13

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 10_HR5 55. d 56. b 57. d 58. c 59. a 60. a 61. Answers will vary. There is almost no relationship between age and job performance—in fact, some studies have found a curvilinear relationship between age and performance with performance highest when workers are youngest and older. In any event, eventually, older workers must confront the decision to retire. In truth, the decision to retire is not as simple as it once was. Many factors are related to the decision to retire (or begin the retirement process). For example, individuals are more likely to retire when they have the financial resources needed to maintain their preretirement lifestyles, and they are more likely to retire when their health makes continuing to work excessively burdensome. Individuals are also more likely to retire when their spouses have retired. In addition, several factors are related to adjustment after retirement. Individuals who have structured leisure activities and those who do volunteer work tend to adjust better to retirement. But one of the most important factors related to adjustment is one's health. Individuals who avoid serious health problems adjust better, partly because they can engage in volunteer work and leisure activities. See 10-5: The Nature of Careers 62. Answers will vary. Career-counseling programs are important to an organization interested in career development for its employees. Such programs usually address a wide variety of career-related issues and are readily accessible to people in the organization. Some programs are formal; others are considerably informal. Formal career-counseling programs usually take the form of workshops, conferences, and career-development centers. In some cases, the organization establishes general-purpose career-counseling programs that are available to all employees. They may also create special programs targeted for certain categories of employees. Among the more popular special programs are counseling programs for fast-track managers, women managers, and minority managers. These special programs serve various purposes in addition to addressing the specific needs of certain categories of employees. They also help integrate those employees into the mainstream of the overall organization, and they create important networking opportunities for these individuals. Organizations also have informal counseling programs. Much of this counseling takes the form of one-on-one interactions between an employee and his or her supervisor and typically occurs during the performance-appraisal period. For example, when supervisors appraise and evaluate the performance of a subordinate and then provide performance feedback to that individual, part of the conversation also deals with issues such as promotion prospects, skill development, and so forth. Sometimes employees may simply drop by the HR department for advice on career-related questions and issues. When dropins are common, it is important that the HR department fulfill its center of expertise role and provide useful and accurate information. See 10-7: CareerDevelopment Issues and Challenges

Page 14

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 10_HR5 63. Answers will vary. When performance appraisals are used as the basis for HR decisions (as in the case of merit pay or promotion decisions), they are considered the same as any other test under the law. This designation includes decisions about layoffs based on performance. Therefore, appraisals that show evidence of disparate impact must be validated the same as any selection technique. Performance-appraisal decisions are known to suffer from various types of biases and problems. Ratings based on traits tend to have ambiguous standards, so they are probably more prone to these biases. Therefore, it is critical that organizations can demonstrate that the ratings provided are in areas that are job related, that raters can observe the behaviors they are rating, and that raters received some training to help them do a better job with rating performance. If an appraisal system is used for providing feedback only, however, it is not subject to these same legal requirements. See 10-4: Other Issues in Performance Appraisal 64. Answers will vary. In general, most career-planning systems involve the following steps: 1. In the individual assessment phase, individuals need to analyze carefully what they perceive to be their own abilities, competencies, skills, and goals. Many organizations provide employees with forms or questionnaires to help them develop this information. 2. At the same time, HR managers should be developing a potential career path an employee may take up the corporate ladder. Shell’s career-path model, for example, is available to managers on the firm’s corporate intranet. 3. Communication is also an important part of this process. For example, an organization may know the paths that are most likely to be followed from one position to another and be able to gauge the probability or likelihood that a specific individual will follow this path or a prescribed path for a promotion to another position. But if this information is not communicated to the individual employee, then it is of little or no value to anyone. At the same time, the organization must also integrate its performance-management system with its career-management system. A person should not expect to progress automatically from one job to another along a certain path but instead recognize that this movement will be determined in part by his or her performance effectiveness. 4. The final step in effective career planning is career counseling. As the term suggests, career counseling involves interaction between an individual employee or manager in an organization and either a line manager or an HR manager. This counseling session typically involves frank and open dialogue with the goal of making sure that the individual’s assessment and the organization’s assessment of the individual’s role and prospects in the organization are congruent. See 10-5: The Nature of Careers 65. Answers will vary. A popular method of appraising performance that focuses on outcomes is a goal-based or management-by-objectives (MBO) system. Management by objectives is the most popular term used for this approach, although many companies develop their own label to describe the system used in their organization. In an MBO system, a subordinate meets with his or her manager, and together they set goals for the subordinate for a coming period of time, often 1 year. These goals are usually quantifiable, objective, and almost always written down. During the year, the manager and the subordinate meet periodically to review the subordinate's performance relative to attaining the goals. At the end of the year, a more formal meeting is scheduled. During that meeting, the actual degree of goal attainment is assessed. The degree of goal attainment then becomes the individual's performance appraisal. If an individual has attained all the goals that he or she set for himself or herself, then employee performance is deemed to be very good. On the other hand, if not all goals were accomplished and the individual is directly responsible for that performance deficiency, then his or her performance is judged to be less than adequate or acceptable. See 10-3: Methods for Appraising Performance

Page 15

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 11_HR5 Indicate whether the statement is true or false. 1. Strikebreakers are temporary workers brought in as replacements for striking employees. a. True b. False 2. A wildcat strike is an illegal form of labor action. a. True b. False 3. For a union to be decertified, it is mandatory that the union must have served as the official bargaining agent for the employees for at least 3 years. a. True b. False 4. Contingent workers are a way for organizations to manage their demand for labor. a. True b. False 5. A negative settlement zone in the negotiation process refers to the zone of overlap between an organization's and its union's demands in the bargaining zone. a. True b. False 6. Collective bargaining is a term that technically and properly is applied only in settings where employees are nonunionized. a. True b. False 7. An impasse refers to a situation in which all parties involved in a negotiation reach an agreement. a. True b. False 8. To request a union certification election, at least 50 percent of the eligible workers within the bargaining unit should sign authorization cards. a. True b. False 9. Organized labor in the 21st century supports the employment of contingent workers by organizations. a. True b. False 10. A boycott occurs when employers refuse to give their company's products free of cost to union members. a. True b. False

Page 1

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 11_HR5 Indicate the answer choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. 11. In the United States, which of the following consisted mostly of unskilled workers and advocated extreme violence as a means of settling labor disputes? a. The Knights of Labor b. The Congress of Industrial Organizations c. The American Federation of Labor d. The Industrial Workers of the World 12. Juan, the president of the labor union of a company, speaks to the management of the company about a requirement for an extra worker to assist in the delivery process. He suggests hiring his cousin, who has prior experience in the field, for the job. The management, however, finds out that there is no requirement for another worker in the unit and that Juan made up the reason solely to get a job for his cousin. In the given scenario, Juan has most likely violated the _____. a. Taft-Hartley Act b. Sherman Antitrust Act c. Landrum-Griffin Act d. Wagner Act 13. In the context of negotiations, which of the following statements describes mediation? a. The party that does not bargain in good faith may get everything it wants in an arbitrator's decision but may just as easily lose everything. b. A neutral third party listens to and reviews the information presented by both parties and makes an informed recommendation to both parties. c. Negotiating parties agree in advance that they will accept the recommendations made by an independent third-party arbitrator. d. It is uncommon for labor contracts in organizations to require mandatory mediation when there is an impasse. 14. During labor negotiations, the management of a company reaches the point where it states that it will give a maximum of a 6-percent pay increase to all the employees of the company and not more. Despite threats of further agitation, the management sticks to its decision. In the given scenario, the management has reached its _____. a. break-even point b. resistance point c. target point d. arbitration point 15. Which of the following occurs in the first step of the unionization process? a. The National Labor Relations Board conducts an election via secret ballot. b. Employees show some interest in joining a union. c. Employees sign authorization cards giving consent to the formation of a union. d. The National Labor Relations Board defines the bargaining unit.

Page 2

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 11_HR5 16. Identify a true statement about the negotiation process. a. A party makes a final offer exactly at the resistance point of the other party. b. A party makes a final offer exactly at the break-even point of the other party. c. A party makes a final offer exactly at the target point of the other party. d. A party makes a final offer exactly at the arbitration point of the other party. 17. Which of the following statements is true of union decertification? a. A union can be decertified only if it is being pressured by the government to do so. b. A decertification election is conducted when 30 percent of the eligible employees in the bargaining unit sign the decertification cards. c. For decertification to occur, a closed-shop agreement must have existed between the union and the employer. d. Once a union has been decertified, a new election cannot be requested for certification for at least 2 years. 18. A company can minimize unionization by: a. making the union president its official spokesperson. b. creating formal grievance systems for all its workers. c. petitioning the National Labor Relations Board to exempt it from the possibility of unionization. d. not hiring women workers and workers from ethnic minorities who are more likely to join unions. 19. The employees of a manufacturing company are scheduled to have contract negotiations with their employer. While preparing for the negotiations, the employees and the employer decide the parameters of the bargaining session. They agree that wages, benefits, and working hours will be discussed during the session. In the given scenario, the employees and the employer will be discussing _____. a. permissive items b. mandatory items c. obligatory items d. intellectual items 20. If the union membership votes to reject the labor contract after an agreement has been reached between the union and management, then: a. the parties must return to the bargaining table. b. the party that can show reasonable cause has the final say. c. the union loses its bargaining power. d. the parties must directly seek government intervention. 21. In the context of unionization, which of the following refers to a specifically defined group of employees who are eligible for representation by the union? a. A worker thread b. The bargaining unit c. A contingent workforce d. The labor council

Page 3

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 11_HR5 22. Which of the following occurs in the final step of the unionization process? a. The eligible workers within the bargaining unit sign authorization cards requesting a certification election. b. The National Labor Relations Board sends one or more representatives to the facility to conduct an election. c. The National Labor Relations Board defines the group of employees who are eligible to be represented by the union. d. The union organizers establish a meeting site and recruit members from the labor force in the bargaining unit to join the union. 23. Prior to collective bargaining for a new labor contract, both the management and the union members of a shoe factory decide that it is important that they discuss the issue of the employment of contingent workers in the organization. Both parties thereby include it as a negotiable point for the bargaining session that, if agreed upon, will be entered into the new contract. This point of negotiation falls under the category of _____. a. permissive items b. mandatory items c. prohibited items d. intellectual items 24. Which of the following statements is true of the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO)? a. It emerged from a dissenting faction of the Knights of Labor. b. It merged with the Industrial Workers of the World in 1995. c. It classified workers according to their crafts. d. It organized the steel, mining, and meatpacking industries. 25. In the context of the process of unionization, which of the following is the next step after the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) defines the bargaining unit? a. Union organizers petition the workers to conduct an election among themselves. b. Union organizers elect officers, establish a meeting site, and begin to recruit members from the labor force in the bargaining unit to join the union. c. Union organizers generate interest in unionization among workers. d. Union organizers strive to get 30 percent of the eligible workers within the bargaining unit to sign authorization cards requesting a certification election. 26. In the 1920s, Barc Corporation, a coal manufacturing company, refused to negotiate its wage policy with its employees. It also refused to bargain with the elected union members. In the given scenario, Barc Corporation violated the: a. Wagner Act. b. Sherman Antitrust Act. c. Rowlatt Act. d. Publicity Act.

Page 4

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 11_HR5 27. Which of the following acts outlawed closed-shop agreements? a. The Taft-Hartley Act b. The Wagner Act c. The Landrum-Griffin Act d. The Sherman Antitrust Act 28. The primary reason for companies to export jobs to other countries is to: a. attract talent from other countries. b. cut down on overall costs. c. increase their global presence. d. create external equity. 29. Which of the following is a condition that must be met for the decertification of a union? a. The union must have served as the official bargaining agent for the employees for at least 3 years. b. A closed-shop agreement must have existed between the union and the employer. c. No labor contract must currently be in force. d. The union must have at least hundred members. 30. Which of the following statements is true of a positive settlement zone? a. It refers to an organization achieving the desired results in a negotiation without giving in to the employees' demands. b. It refers to an overlap between an organization's and its union's demands and expectations in the bargaining zone. c. It refers to a situation where both the management of an organization and its employees agree to have a third-party intervention. d. It refers to a phase in the negotiation process that prohibits the use of mediation or arbitration in case of a disagreement. 31. In the process of unionization, after union organizers get 30 percent of the eligible workers within the bargaining unit to sign authorization cards, they must: a. generate interest in unionization among employees. b. formulate a closed-shop agreement between management and the union. c. elect the president and the shop steward of the proposed union. d. petition the National Labor Relations Board to conduct an election. 32. Which of the following can be included in collective bargaining only if both parties agree? a. Permissive items b. Mandatory items c. Obligatory items d. Intellectual items

Page 5

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 11_HR5 33. The American Federation of Labor (AF of L) grew rapidly in the early 20th century because: a. workers preferred the businesslike approach of the AF of L. b. it focused on organizing employees by industry rather than by skills. c. workers preferred the radical nature of the AF of L. d. it focused on legislative and political activities. 34. The basic purpose of which of the following acts was to curtail and limit union practices? a. The Taft-Hartley Act b. The Wagner Act c. The Rowlatt Act d. The Sherman Antitrust Act 35. Which of the following reasons led to the merger of the American Federation of Labor (AF of L) and the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO)? a. Their common focus on the legislative and political activities that affected workers b. Their common strategy of organizing employees by industry rather than by skills c. The common fight of the two groups against the radical nature of the Industrial Workers of the World d. The series of strikes after World War II that led to public resentment and demands for union reform 36. Which of the following statements is true of U.S. labor unions in the 21st century? a. Unions in the United States have become more involved in social issues such as the use of prison labor. b. New electronic technology has proved to be a catastrophe for the U.S. labor movement. c. Unions have become less concerned with major political developments in the United States. d. Union membership in the United States has steadily increased over the past decades, peaking in the 21st century. 37. The union president of Grenthall is asked to step down from his position as the management discovered that he was a convicted felon. In the given scenario, which of the following acts is the management implementing? a. The Taft-Hartley Act b. The Sherman Antitrust Act c. The Landrum-Griffin Act d. The Wagner Act 38. The union members of Clarence Corporation, a packaged food manufacturing firm, stage a protest as their demand for higher wages was not met by the management of the firm. During the protest, the union members frequently march to the entrance to the firm holding signs that explain the reason for the protest. They do this in an attempt to intimidate the management. This scenario most likely exemplifies _____. a. picketing b. featherbedding c. a boycott d. a slowdown

Page 6

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 11_HR5 39. The second step in the unionization process is: a. getting 30 percent of the workers eligible to be represented by the union to sign authorization cards. b. asking the National Labor Relations Board to conduct a secret ballot election. c. asking the National Labor Relations Board to define the bargaining unit. d. instituting grievance procedures for resolving disputes between management and the union. 40. Which of the following statements is true of the Wagner Act? a. It requires unions to file annual financial statements with the Department of Labor. b. It prohibits employers from engaging in certain unfair labor practices. c. It requires that national labor unions elect new leaders at least once every 5 years. d. It prohibits convicted felons from holding national union office. 41. The Landrum-Griffin Act requires: a. employers to not reveal information about their finances to unions. b. unions to file annual financial statements with the Department of Labor. c. national labor unions to elect a new leader every year. d. prison laborers to submit identification documents before starting work. 42. Identify a true statement about decertification of unions. a. A union can become decertified while an existing labor contract is in force. b. The National Labor Relations Board conducts a decertification election if 20 percent of the eligible employees in an organization's bargaining unit sign the decertification cards. c. The union being decertified must have served as the official bargaining agent for the employees for at least 1 year. d. After a union has been decertified, a new election can be requested within 1 year. 43. Which of the following strategies is used by team owners to minimize union strength in professional sports? a. Final-offer arbitration b. A slowdown c. A lockout d. Mediation 44. Which of the following statements is true of the American Federation of Labor (AF of L)? a. It resorted to extreme violence as a means of settling labor disputes. b. It merged with the Knights of Labor in 1995 to consolidate the strengths of both organizations. c. It focused on the legislative and political activities that affected workers. d. It served as an umbrella organization, with members joining individual unions affiliated with it.

Page 7

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 11_HR5 45. When there is a difference of opinion between an employee who is a union member and his or her supervisor, the employee should initially take his or her complaint to _____. a. an assembly line manager b. the chief management officer c. an arbitrator d. the shop steward 46. In the unionization process, the number of representatives that the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) sends to a company to conduct an election is based on the: a. type of labor contract proposed to be signed. b. staffing strategy employed by the company. c. financial strength of the company. d. size of the bargaining unit. 47. The negotiations between the management and the union members of a telecommunications company have been going on for four months. However, both parties have been unable to agree on a contract. They now feel that reaching an agreement is not imminent. In this case, the management and the union members have reached: a. their target point. b. their resistance point. c. a lockout. d. an impasse. 48. Which of the following is a reason for the steady decline in union membership in the United States? a. A continued predominance of white males in blue-collar jobs b. Bankruptcy declarations by many major corporations c. Aggressive antiunionization strategies undertaken by businesses d. The constant nature and composition of the U.S. workforce 49. Traditionally, union members have been predominantly: a. black males in blue-collar jobs. b. white males in blue-collar jobs. c. Asian women in white-collar jobs. d. Hispanic women in white-collar jobs. 50. Identify a true statement about strikes. a. Labor unions have large cash reserves in place before beginning a strike, in order to pay the striking workers. b. Strikebreakers minimize the loss to a business that might otherwise occur during a labor strike. c. Strikes can prove expensive to both an organization’s management and the labor union. d. An organization’s strike losses are usually low because of stockpiled inventory.

Page 8

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 11_HR5 51. Which of the following statements is true of the Taft-Hartley Act? a. It prohibited employers from hiring nonunion members. b. It repealed the right-to-work laws. c. It established procedures and listed tactics that employees could use to conduct strikes. d. It was established as a response to public outcries against the strikes following World War II. 52. Which of the following is a factor that has led to a decline in union membership in recent times? a. The changes in legislation that make unionization illegal in most sectors b. The inclusion of more women and ethnic minorities in the workforce composition c. The fraudulent activities carried out by most union presidents in organizations d. The removal of grievance systems for workers by firms to prevent them from joining unions 53. Which of the following statements reflects a current trend in union–management relations in the United States? a. Unions recognize that they do not have as much power as they once held. b. Basic issues such as wages and benefits no longer figure in union–management negotiations. c. Labor unions have negligible power over management in the steel industry. d. The relation between labor unions and management has become adversarial. 54. Which of the following occurs when workers suddenly go on strike, without the authorization of the strikers' union and while a binding labor agreement is still in effect? a. A wildcat strike b. A slowdown strike c. A work-in strike d. A partial strike 55. In the context of the parameters for collective bargaining, which of the following statements is true of mandatory items? a. If either negotiating party expresses a desire to negotiate one or more mandatory items, then the other party must agree. b. Mandatory items include the union having veto power over the promotion of certain managers to higherlevel positions. c. Almost anything is negotiable under mandatory items if both the negotiating parties agree to discuss it. d. Mandatory items include a clause in the labor contract specifying that the employee union promises not to strike. 56. The American Federation of Labor (AF of L) focused on _____. a. legislative and political activities b. better employment contracts c. controlling the supply of skilled labor d. organizing employees by industry

Page 9

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 11_HR5 57. Which of the following is a similarity between the Knights of Labor and the American Federation of Labor? a. Both organized employees by industry, regardless of their skills or occupation. b. Both were composed of various craft unions. c. Both focused on the legislative and political activities that affected workers. d. Both served as umbrella organizations, with members joining individual unions affiliated with them. 58. In the context of resolving impasses, which of the following statements is true of a lockout? a. It occurs when employees call in sick in large numbers. b. The practice is closely regulated by the government. c. The practice is the foremost among illegal union actions. d. It occurs when employees walk off their jobs and refuse to work. 59. Which of the following is a difference between the Knights of Labor and the American Federation of Labor? a. Unlike the American Federation of Labor, the Knights of Labor organized employees by industry. b. Unlike the American Federation of Labor, the Knights of Labor was composed of various craft unions. c. Unlike the Knights of Labor, the American Federation of Labor focused on legislative and political activities. d. Unlike the Knights of Labor, the American Federation of Labor served as an umbrella organization. 60. Which of the following acts requires that national labor unions elect new leaders at least once every 5 years? a. The Taft-Hartley Act b. The Wagner Act c. The Landrum-Griffin Act d. The Sherman Antitrust Act 61. Briefly describe the steps that must be followed if employees are to form and join a labor union.

62. Explain the actions that management and labor unions can take to prepare for collective bargaining.

63. Trace the early history of labor unions in the United States, and mention their significant contributions.

Page 10

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 11_HR5 64. Explain the challenges that the Internet presents for U.S. labor unions.

65. Explain the stand of labor unions in the United States on issues such as employment of prison labor and contingent workers.

Page 11

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 11_HR5 Answer Key 1. True 2. True 3. False 4. True 5. False 6. False 7. False 8. False 9. False 10. False 11. d 12. a 13. b 14. b 15. b 16. a 17. b 18. b 19. b 20. a 21. b 22. d 23. a 24. d 25. d 26. a

Page 12

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 11_HR5 27. a 28. b 29. c 30. b 31. d 32. a 33. a 34. a 35. d 36. a 37. c 38. a 39. c 40. b 41. b 42. c 43. c 44. d 45. d 46. d 47. d 48. c 49. b 50. c 51. d 52. b 53. a 54. a Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 13

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 11_HR5 55. a 56. b 57. b 58. b 59. d 60. c 61. Answers will vary. Several prescribed steps must be followed if employees are to form and join a labor union. These steps are as follows: First, employees must have some interest in joining a union. In some cases, this interest may arise from current employees who are dissatisfied with some aspects of the employment relationship. In other instances, existing labor unions may send professional union organizers to nonunionized plants or facilities to generate interest in unionization. If interest in forming a union exists, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is asked to define the bargaining unit, or the specifically defined group of employees who will be eligible for representation by the union. Once the bargaining unit has been defined, organizers must then strive to get 30 percent of the eligible workers within the bargaining unit to sign authorization cards requesting a certification election. If organizers cannot get 30 percent of the workers to sign authorization cards, then the process ends. If the required number of signatures is obtained, the organizers petition the NLRB to conduct an election. The NLRB sends one or more representatives, depending on the size of the bargaining unit, to the facility and conducts an election. The election is always conducted via secret ballot. If a simple majority of those voting approve union certification, then the union becomes the official bargaining agent of the eligible employees. But if a majority fails to approve certification, the process ends. If the union becomes certified, then its organizers create a set of rules and regulations that govern the conduct of the union. They also elect officers, establish a meeting site, and begin to recruit members from the labor force in the bargaining unit to join the union. See 11-3: The Unionization Process 62. Answers will vary. The goal of the collective-bargaining process is to produce agreement on a binding labor contract that will define various dimensions of the employment relationship for a specified period of time. Thus, it is incumbent on both management and union leaders to be adequately prepared for a bargaining and negotiation period because the outcome of a labor negotiation will have long-term effects on both parties. Management can take several actions to prepare for collective bargaining. For example, a firm can look closely at its own financial health to work out a realistic picture of what it can and cannot offer in terms of wages and salaries for its employees. Management can also conduct a comparative analysis to see what kinds of labor contracts and agreements exist in similar companies and what this particular labor union has been requesting—and settling for—in the past.A union can and should undertake several actions to be effectively prepared for collective bargaining. It too should examine the financial health of the company through sources such as public financial records. Like management, the union can also determine what kinds of labor agreements have been reached in other parts of the country and can determine what kinds of contracts other divisions of the company or other businesses owned by the same corporation have negotiated recently. See 11-4: The Collective-Bargaining Process

Page 14

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 11_HR5 63. Answers will vary. The earliest unions in the United States emerged during the Revolutionary War. These associations were called craft unions, meaning that each such union limited itself to representing groups of workers who performed common and specific skilled jobs. Many of the earliest unions were only local and active in a single place. But in 1834, the first national unions in the United States began to emerge.The first major union to have a significant effect in the United States was the Noble and Holy Order of the Knights of Labor, or more commonly, the Knights of Labor, which was founded in 1869. The Knights originally represented crafts and sought to improve the lot of its members. In addition to improving wages, the Knights of Labor sought to replace capitalism with worker cooperatives. The union enjoyed incredible growth for several years, growing from 52,000 members in 1883 to 700,000 members in 1886. But internal strife about goals and disagreement over what should replace the capitalist model all led to the eventual demise of the Knights. Founded in 1886 by Samuel Gompers, the American Federation of Labor (AF of L) was also composed of various craft unions, but unlike the Knights of Labor, the AF of L avoided legislative and political activities and focused instead on improved working conditions and better employment contracts. Also unlike the Knights of Labor, the AF of L served as an umbrella organization, with members joining individual unions affiliated with the AF of L, as opposed to joining the AF of L itself. While the AF of L focused exclusively on the "business" of unions, several more radical and violent union movements developed after the demise of the Knights of Labor. During the 1930s, a new kind of unionization began to emerge that focused on industrial unionization. Rather than organizing workers across companies or across industries based on their craft, this new type of union activity focused on organizing employees by industry, regardless of their craft, skills, or occupation. In the late 1930s, John L. Lewis of the United Mine Workers led a dissenting faction of the AF of L to form a new labor organization called the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO). The CIO was the first major representative of this new approach to unionization. In the years following World War II, union memberships in the AF of L and the CIO, as well as other unions, gradually increased. However, a series of bitter strikes during that same era led to public resentment and calls for union reform. Congress intervened to curtail the power of unions, and the AF of L and the CIO began to contemplate a merger to consolidate their strength. Eventually, in 1955, the AFL-CIO was formed with a total membership of around 15 million employees. See 11-1: The Role of Labor Unions in Organizations 64. Answers will vary. The Internet presents many interesting challenges for U.S. labor unions. The most obvious one stems from the fact that computers and new technology often mean that work can be done by fewer employees. Companies have been trying to move more production sites to foreign countries where labor costs are lower and U.S. unions have no input. Thus, unions would lose members. At the same time, the introduction of technology is also reducing the number of workers and the number of union members. Changes in technology have also posed a much different set of challenges for unions and for the management of firms with unionized employees. For example, many firms who fear unionization efforts have no-solicitation rules at work. These rules simply mean that no employee can solicit other employees on company time for any cause except United Way campaigns; that is, under such rules, employees cannot sell candy for a high school band, raffle tickets for a new car, or even tickets for a church dinner. An important aspect of these rules is that they also outlaw any attempts by union organizers to solicit employees to sign cards appointing the union as sole bargaining agent. Organizations are usually vigilant about no-solicitation rules because they stop union-organizing efforts at work. The Internet presents a challenge to these no-solicitation rules. Monitoring solicitation on the Internet is much more difficult, and some of this solicitation may even come from outside the firm. See 11-7: Labor Unions in the 21st Century

Page 15

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 11_HR5 65. Answers will vary. The U.S. labor movement and its advocates argue that the U.S. prison system needs reform to provide more rights to prison laborers and to ensure that prison labor does not take away civilian population jobs, which in the long run can lead to increased crime. Unions have become more involved in social issues such as the use of prison labor. Traditionally, prison inmates literally worked on chain gangs or worked sewing clothes or doing laundry. However, today inmates perform a range of jobs in the community, including working as firefighters in Oregon and California. Some states do not actually pay inmates, while Oregon's fire crews makes more than $4.00 an hour. Of course, firefighters on the outside make considerably more than $4.00 an hour, so relying on convict labor saves states a great deal of money, but it also means there are fewer jobs for noninmates (who might be union members), which can also cause problems for a community. U.S. unions have also taken a stand on the topic of contingent workers. Clearly, organized labor has a vested interest in opposing the reliance on these groups of potential replacement laborers. Although the representatives of the unions focus on the social implications of these practices, and probably are concerned about these social costs, clearly labor unions have more to lose in these cases than do others. Nonetheless, U.S. labor unions have been able to form coalitions with other community groups who oppose the use of prison labor or are concerned about exporting jobs overseas, and they have become very vocal in this movement. As a result, labor unions have gained a great deal of credibility as guardians of middle-class jobs. See 11-7: Labor Unions in the 21st Century

Page 16

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 12_HR5 Indicate whether the statement is true or false. 1. An employer can be fined $12,934 per violation for willful or repeated major violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA). a. True b. False 2. Overload, a task demand stressor, is invariably quantitative. a. True b. False 3. A general feeling of exhaustion that develops when an individual simultaneously experiences too much pressure and too few sources of satisfaction is called turnover. a. True b. False 4. The physical layout of office space has been found to influence attitudes and behaviors of employees. a. True b. False 5. A high degree of hardiness increases the experienced stress associated with stressful events. a. True b. False 6. Compressed work schedules are the most ideal work schedules for construction jobs because studies have found that accidents are less likely to happen during compressed workweeks. a. True b. False 7. Ambiguity and conflict are interpersonal demands of a job that can cause stress. a. True b. False 8. People who smoke tend to smoke more when they experience stress. a. True b. False 9. Employers must report all accidents and illnesses that result in death in the workplace immediately and directly to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). a. True b. False 10. In the context of the factors that influence how one experiences stress, the Type B personality is characterized as being highly focused on work and highly competitive. a. True b. False Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 1

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 12_HR5 Indicate the answer choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. 11. In the context of the causes of stress at work, which of the following is a physical demand stressor? a. Group pressure b. Job security c. Temperature d. Overload 12. Which of the following is an important ingredient in controlling accidents at work? a. Employee training b. Job embeddedness c. Disability insurance d. Ethnocentrism 13. Jason, the facilities manager at an automobile manufacturing company, realizes that the number of accidents at the assembly unit has not reduced even after training the workers. Which of the following strategies should he adopt to effectively reduce the number of accidents? a. Reporting every accident to the Department of Labor b. Reducing automation in the assembly unit c. Shutting down the safety engineering department d. Providing safety incentives to the workers 14. Which of the following statements defines health hazards? a. They refer to the stressors associated with the specific job a person performs. b. They refer to the elements of the work environment that more slowly and systematically, and perhaps cumulatively, result in damage to an employee's health. c. They are a set of expected behaviors associated with a position in a group or organization. d. They are a set of general feelings of exhaustion that develop when a healthy individual experiences too much pressure and too few sources of satisfaction. 15. In the context of the differences in how one experiences stress, which of the following is characterized as being less aggressive and more easygoing? a. The Type A personality b. The Type B personality c. Machiavellianism d. Dysfunctional behavior 16. In the context of the differences in how one experiences stress, which of the following is characterized as being highly competitive with few interests outside of work? a. The Type A personality b. The Type B personality c. Hardiness d. Dysfunctional behavior

Page 2

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 12_HR5 17. Which of the following is a disadvantage of an employee-fitness program? a. It costs more than stress-management programs. b. It does not reduce stress, thereby discouraging employees from being productive. c. It involves supervision, which is a major source of overload. d. It cannot be customized to suit an employee's needs. 18. In the context of the causes of stress at work, group pressures, leadership style, and conflicting personalities are categorized as _____. a. task demands b. physical demands c. role demands d. interpersonal demands 19. In the context of the causes of stress at work, which of the following is a physical demand stressor? a. Leadership style b. Security c. Ambiguity d. Office design 20. Which of the following statements best defines the safety climate of an organization? a. It is an organizational climate that promotes safe behaviors without any rewards or punishments. b. It is an organizational climate that exclusively emphasizes accidents rather than safe behaviors. c. It is the degree to which the actual physical work environment is safe. d. It is the perception of the importance and priority an organization gives to safety. 21. In the context of workplace security, which of the following is designed to make sure that an employee can afford the medical services he or she may require? a. An employee-development plan b. An employee assistance program c. Unemployment insurance d. Health insurance 22. Which of the following statements is true of people who work in rotational shifts? a. They are less likely to have ulcers than other workers. b. They can never establish a new biological rhythm for sleep. c. Their bodies easily find equilibrium. d. They manage their work environment more effectively than other workers.

Page 3

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 12_HR5 23. A minor explosion occurs at the chemical processing plant of Clement Inc. In order to study the situation and make recommendations for improvements in the plant design to avoid such accidents in future, the company sends a team of experts from its headquarters. These experts analyze the reasons for the accident, identify potential hazards, and suggest measures that the firm can take to protect its employees. In the given scenario, the experts sent to the chemical processing plant are known as _____. a. safety engineers b. inspection officers c. gatekeepers d. headhunters 24. One important approach to controlling accidents at work is to design more security into the workplace through a process called _____. a. hardiness b. stress management c. safety engineering d. burnout 25. Which of the following statements is true of the safety standards created by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)? a. They are published and disseminated to employers across the United States. b. They are enforced by the Department of Health. c. They focus solely on reducing accidents at the workplace. d. They are revised every 5 years by OSHA inspectors. 26. Which of the following is a direct result of overload? a. Higher rates of hiring in organizations b. More managers going to their office on weekends to get their jobs done c. Increase in affective commitment of employees to their organization d. Decrease in ethnocentrism in the workplace 27. Which of the following poses a workplace hazard that may cause accidents? a. Bright lighting at the workplace b. Horizontal layout of office space c. Loose clothing of employees d. Elevators in the office building 28. Which of the following statements is true of turnover as an organizational consequence of stress? a. It occurs when an employee feigns a legitimate cause as an excuse to stay home for a day. b. It adds to the costs of an organization, especially when replacing productive workers. c. It occurs when people relocate to a different branch of the same company. d. It is a result of increased job embeddedness.

Page 4

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 12_HR5 29. Which of the following refers to an individual difference that allows some individuals to experience less stress when dealing with stressful events and that makes them more effective in dealing with the stress they do experience? a. Disenchantment b. Sacralization c. Hardiness d. Apathy 30. Which of the following statements is true of the differences in how employees experience stress? a. Type B personalities experience more stress than Type A personalities. b. Men are more likely to be absent from work because of stress-related problems than women. c. Type A personalities are more easygoing than Type B personalities. d. Women are more likely to experience stress at work than men. 31. An employee of Speedz Corp., a car manufacturing company, dies on the job because of equipment malfunction. However, management does not report the incident to the concerned authorities. In this scenario, Speedz Corp. has violated the _____. a. National Labor Relations Act b. Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act c. Occupational Safety and Health Act d. Fair Labor Standards Act 32. An organization can try to make its workplace safer by: a. involving the Occupational Safety and Health Administration in the creation of all safety precautions. b. focusing solely on the number of accidents. c. focusing on safe behaviors at the workplace. d. hiring employees who do not belong to any minority group. 33. In the context of personality characteristics, which of the following statements is true of hardiness? a. A high degree of hardiness increases the experienced stress associated with stressful events. b. Hardy personalities are more effective in dealing with the stress they do experience. c. Individuals with a Type A personality are high on hardiness. d. Individuals with a Type B personality are low on hardiness. 34. Courtessy Corp., a leading law firm, has appointed a counselor to help junior lawyers with time management. The counselor would help them schedule their court appearances, set the time required to work on each case, and supervise the lawyers. This firm aims to reduce the stress that lawyers face in managing their time. In the given scenario, Courtessy Corp. has most likely adopted a(n) _____. a. institutional program b. collateral stress program c. employee-fitness program d. career counseling program

Page 5

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 12_HR5 35. Diane, a copy typist at a leading newspaper, is considered the best worker in her team. Because of her high typing speed, her team leader increases daily targets for all typists. Her teammates want her to reduce her typing speed so that the team leader does not increase targets any further. Diane, who likes to be efficient and quick in her work, is most likely to be stressed because of her _____. a. physical demands b. role demands c. interpersonal demands d. task demands 36. In the context of wellness programs in organizations, which of the following programs for managing stress include properly designed jobs and work schedules? a. Enrichment programs b. Collateral stress programs c. Institutional programs d. Employee assistance programs 37. In the context of stress, the opposite of overload is undesirable because it results in _____. a. tension b. anxiety c. boredom d. distress 38. In the context of the causes of stress at work, which of the following is a task demand that can cause stress? a. Leadership style b. Group pressure c. Ambiguity d. Security 39. In his job as a flight attendant, Kim is required to help people with their baggage, push food carts, and respond to customer requests. He needs to be efficient in his work to ensure that he retains his job as his company is in the process of downsizing. In the context of causes of stresses at work, the given scenario illustrates Kim's _____. a. task demands b. role demands c. interpersonal demands d. physical demands 40. In the context of the consequences of stress at work, which of the following is a general feeling of exhaustion that develops when an individual simultaneously experiences too much pressure and too few sources of satisfaction? a. Burnout b. Turnover c. Absenteeism d. Hardiness

Page 6

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 12_HR5 41. The HR manager of Carl Investments, a share broking firm, has decided to arrange regular yoga classes for the employees of the firm. He has made this decision because many employees have recently complained of poor health due to workload. In the given scenario, the HR manager of Carl Investments is using a(n) _____. a. institutional program b. collateral stress program c. defined benefit plan d. defined contribution plan 42. Which of the following statements is true of the influence of the physical work environment on individuals? a. The use of music in the workplace has no significant effect on employee attitudes and performance. b. Employees who work on rotating shifts are better able to establish a new biological rhythm than those who do not. c. Studies suggest that changes in the level of illumination have the strongest effect on the attitudes of employees. d. Employees who perceive their work environment as dark are generally less satisfied with their jobs. 43. If a person experiences psychological consequences of stress, he or she is most likely to: a. suffer from frequent headaches. b. take up smoking as a means to relieve stress. c. sleep too much or not sleep enough. d. have skin conditions such as acne. 44. Which of the following acts was passed in 1970 and is the most comprehensive law regarding worker safety? a. The Health and Safety at Work Act b. The Occupational Safety and Health Act c. The Industrial Safety and Health Act d. The Workplace Safety and Health Act 45. Which of the following statements is true of turnover in an organization? a. It is likely to be caused by a poor person–job fit. b. It is an organizational stressor. c. It occurs when people relocate to a different branch of the same company. d. It is a result of increased job embeddedness. 46. Which of the following is a set of expected behaviors associated with a position in a group or organization? a. A role b. Ethnocentrism c. Job embeddedness d. A task

Page 7

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 12_HR5 47. Who among the following individuals is most likely to be susceptible to occupational health hazards? a. Rosario, who has to climb a set of metal steps to enter her office b. Sally, who works in a manufacturing company where equipment is arranged in a random manner c. Robert, who has a congested workstation d. Edwin, who works for a company that manufactures pesticides 48. In the context of stresses at work, which of the following statements is true of task demands? a. They are stressors associated with the specific job a person performs. b. They are stressors that relate to the physical aspects of the work environment. c. They are stressors that mostly result from role ambiguity at work. d. They are stressors associated with conflicting personalities at work. 49. Which of the following statements is true of information technology being a cause of stress at work? a. It results in information overload. b. It decreases organizational flexibility in sharing information. c. It adversely impacts coordination among employees. d. It reduces communication among people. 50. Iron Crafters Inc., a hardware manufacturing company, has employed experts to carefully analyze its operating unit, to identify potential health hazards to employees, and to find solutions to reduce the effects of such hazards. In this scenario, the approach followed by Iron Crafters Inc. to improve the security of the workplace is called _____. a. hardiness b. safety engineering c. an institutional program d. a collateral stress program 51. Which of the following is a difference between physical demands and role demands as organizational stressors? a. Physical demands exist against a background of general life stress, whereas role demands do not. b. Physical demand stressors include overload and security, whereas role demand stressors include group pressures and leadership style. c. Physical demands have only organizational consequences, whereas role demands have only individual consequences. d. Physical demands relate to the job setting, whereas role demands result from ambiguity or conflict that people experience in groups. 52. Who among the following has a relatively low-stress job? a. A firefighter b. A dietician c. A military general d. A commercial airline pilot

Page 8

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 12_HR5 53. Which of the following industries had the most fatalities due to violence at the workplace in 2014? a. The business services industry b. The construction industry c. The manufacturing industry d. The retail trade industry 54. In the context of common workplace hazards, which of the following refers to a shield or other piece of equipment that keeps body parts from contacting moving machine parts such as gears and conveyor belts? a. Shearing b. Milling c. Tooling d. Guarding 55. Many experts believe that the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) is not effective because: a. its standards are too comprehensive. b. its standards lack clarity. c. it releases highly specific standards that are seldom applicable to all industries. d. it brings in a completely new set of standards for all industries each year. 56. Which of the following programs are organizational programs created specifically to help employees deal with tension and anxiety? a. Enrichment programs b. Collateral stress programs c. Institutional programs d. Employee assistance programs 57. Which of the following statements is true of dysfunctional behavior in an organization? a. It is caused by the Type B personality of employees. b. It results in direct financial costs for the organization. c. It includes actions performed by employees who suffer from clinical depression. d. It is a result of the affective commitment of employees toward the organization. 58. In the context of personality types, which of the following statements is true of Type A personalities and Type B personalities? a. Type B personalities are more aggressive than Type A personalities. b. Type B personalities are more competitive than Type A personalities. c. Type B personalities are more patient than Type A personalities. d. Type B personalities are more focused on their work than Type A personalities.

Page 9

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 12_HR5 59. Which of the following is an agency within the Department of Health that conducts research to help establish appropriate safety and health criteria? a. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health b. The Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission c. The Health Maintenance Organization d. The Pan American Health Organization 60. Which of the following is a person's adaptive response to a stimulus that places excessive psychological or physical demands on him or her? a. Exhaustion b. Conflict c. Stress d. Turnover 61. Explain why the physical environment is considered to have the strongest effect on employee attitudes.

62. Explain how hours of work can affect employee safety, health, and well-being.

63. Explain why the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) of 1970 is the most comprehensive law regarding worker safety.

64. Briefly explain the three sets of consequences that can result from stress at work.

65. What precautions should an organization take to create a safer work environment?

Page 10

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 12_HR5

Page 11

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 12_HR5 Answer Key 1. True 2. False 3. False 4. True 5. False 6. False 7. False 8. True 9. True 10. False 11. c 12. a 13. d 14. b 15. b 16. a 17. a 18. d 19. d 20. d 21. d 22. b 23. a 24. c 25. a 26. b

Page 12

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 12_HR5 27. c 28. b 29. c 30. d 31. c 32. c 33. b 34. a 35. c 36. c 37. c 38. d 39. a 40. a 41. b 42. d 43. c 44. b 45. a 46. a 47. d 48. a 49. a 50. b 51. d 52. b 53. d 54. d Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 13

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 12_HR5 55. a 56. b 57. b 58. c 59. a 60. c 61. Answers will vary. Many aspects of the physical work environment may affect an employee's attitudes and behavior. Considerable evidence shows that extremes of temperature (in either direction) can affect both attitudes and decisionmaking on the job. It has even been suggested that ambient temperature helps explain national differences in stress on the job. Research has also shown that different tasks require different levels of optimal lighting and that employees who perceive their work environments as dark are generally less satisfied with their jobs. Other aspects of the physical work environment that have received attention over the years include the use of music in the workplace. These studies, many of them going back more than 50 years, have indicated that almost any type of background music can improve employee attitudes and performance on the job. A recent study found that the use of personal stereos on the job improved both attitudes and performance, especially on relatively simple jobs. The physical layout of office space and the use of dividers and cubicles also have been found to influence attitudes and behavior at work. Although many of these studies found that changes in the physical environment affect performance, the physical environment seems to have the strongest effect on attitudes. Even when light, temperature, or office layout did not influence performance, these factors were associated with differences in how employees felt about their jobs and where they worked. See 12-2: The Physical Environment 62. Answers will vary. The hours worked and how they are distributed can affect employee safety and well-being. For example, 4 days on, 3 days off a week may be attractive to some people, but not to others. This work schedule can create problems, too. For example, one study found that young males were much more receptive to compressed workweeks than were any other group. Preferences aside, studies of compressed work schedules have also found that construction accidents are more likely to occur later in the day (which would be 10 hours long) because of fatigue on construction jobs, and generally mixed results were found for productivity in jobs with compressed work schedules.In many industries, the problems of shift work present another challenge to managing the work environment effectively. All human beings are subject to circadian rhythms, which tell our bodies when to eat and sleep. When employees work a night shift, their bodies must adapt to sleeping during the day and staying awake at night. Although this change is disruptive, the body adapts and learns to switch day and night. But employees who must work on rotating shifts are never able to establish a new rhythm. As a result, they are more likely to have ulcers than other employees because their bodies struggle to find equilibrium. Nonetheless, other research has indicated that some workers, especially older, more experienced employees, may actually like the variety and can cope with the changes in biological rhythms. See 12-2: The Physical Environment

Page 14

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 12_HR5 63. Answers will vary. OSHA authorized the U.S. government to create and enforce various standards regarding occupational safety and health. The responsibility for enforcing the provisions of OSHA was assigned to the Department of Labor. This enforcement group today is called the Occupational Safety and Health Administration but still operates within the Department of Labor. Through research and analysis of workplace statistics, OSHA has created various safety standards. These standards are defined as "practices, means, operations, or processes, reasonably necessary to provide safe . . . employment." The various standards that OSHA creates are regularly published and disseminated to employers across the country. Organizations are responsible for keeping current on OSHA standards, which can be difficult because of the length and volume of the various sets of regulations and standards. Each year, new standards, revisions of old standards, or extensions or reinterpretations of various existing standards are published by OSHA in volumes that total hundreds of pages in length. See 12-1: Employee Safety and Health 64. Answers will vary. Three sets of consequences that can result from stress are individual consequences, organizational consequences, and burnout. Individual consequences: These include behavioral, psychological, and medical consequences of stress. Behavioral consequences of stress are responses that may harm the person under stress or others. One such behavior is smoking. Psychological consequences of stress relate to an individual's mental health and wellbeing. When people experience too much stress at work, they may become depressed or find themselves sleeping too much or not enough. The medical consequences of stress affect a person's physical well-being. Heart disease and stroke, among other illnesses, have been linked to stress. Organizational consequences: One clear organizational consequence of too much stress is a decline in performance. For operating workers, such a decline can translate into poor-quality work or a drop in productivity. For managers, it can mean faulty decision-making or disruptions in working relationships as people become irritable and hard to get along with. Another direct organizational consequence of employee stress relates to attitudes. Job satisfaction, morale, and organizational commitment can all suffer, along with motivation to perform at high levels. Burnout: Burnout has clear implications for both employees and organizations. This is a general feeling of exhaustion that develops when an individual simultaneously experiences too much pressure and too few sources of satisfaction. See 12-3: Stress and Stress Management at Work

Page 15

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 12_HR5 65. Answers will vary. Regardless of whether OSHA is involved or not, an organization can take several precautions in its effort to create a safer work environment, especially regarding accidents at work. One important approach is to design more safety into the workplace through a process called safety engineering. Safety engineers are experts who carefully study the workplace, try to identify and isolate particularly dangerous situations, and recommend solutions for dealing with those situations. In addition, organizations can sometimes help control workplace accidents by providing protective clothing and safety devices to employees. In addition, employee training is an important ingredient in controlling accidents at work. Employees should be taught the safest work procedures that the organization can identify, and they should be taught to follow safe work procedures and report unsafe conditions to managers. Finally, providing safety incentives and behavior modification training to employees has also been found effective in reducing the number of accidents on the job. An organization can try to make the workplace safer in one of two ways. First, it can emphasize a reduction in the number of accidents or in the number of workdays lost to accidents. You may have seen a construction site or facility that has a sign indicating the number of days, weeks, or months since someone missed work because of an accident. Accidents and lost workdays can be counted and so can easily be used to justify whatever measures the organization takes. Second, the organization also can focus on safe behaviors—that is, making the workplace safer—rather than on accidents themselves. An example of an emphasis on safe behavior is providing training and rewards for people who engage in safe behaviors (e.g., wearing their hard hats), with the assumption that this behavior will lead to a decrease in the number of accidents. Although safe behavior is a step removed from reduced numbers of accidents, increasing safe behaviors is clearly a necessary step in reducing accidents. Both approaches can work, but they operate in much different ways. See 12-1: Employee Safety and Health

Page 16

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 13_HR5 Indicate whether the statement is true or false. 1. It is critical that an organization maintain a climate of openness and make an employee feel comfortable to suggest even a "useless" idea. a. True b. False 2. In the context of reinforcement theory, the term "outcome" refers to the behavior that we exhibit in reaction to a stimulus. a. True b. False 3. Partial reinforcement cannot be applied to punishment. a. True b. False 4. In expectancy theory, instrumentality is a person's perception of the probability that an increase in effort will result in an increase in performance. a. True b. False 5. Intrinsic motivation is a factor that has been linked to creativity at work. a. True b. False 6. Agents are more likely than principals to take risks when they make decisions. a. True b. False 7. Intrinsic motivation requires an external agent to administer a reward that is separate from the actual task or job being performed. a. True b. False 8. Agency theory provides HR managers with a useful framework for trying to deal with conflicts of interest so that everyone works toward the common organizational goals. a. True b. False 9. Extrinsic motivation is the motivation to do work because it is interesting, engaging, or possibly challenging rather than because someone is rewarding us to do the work. a. True b. False

Page 1

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 13_HR5 10. The direction in which a person will exert efforts is unrelated to motivation. a. True b. False Indicate the answer choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. 11. In the context of reinforcement theory, schedules in which the amount of time that must pass before a reward is given can change from one reward period to another are termed: a. fixed interval schedules. b. variable interval schedules. c. fixed ratio schedules. d. variable ratio schedules. 12. Which of the following factors is associated with high levels of intrinsic motivation at work? a. A sense of self-determination b. Fear of punishment c. A promotion d. Monetary reinforcement 13. Punishment and positive reinforcement work best when: a. intrinsic motivation is used. b. extinction is used. c. there is a strong link between behavior and consequences. d. a behavior is followed by no consequences. 14. In reinforcement theory, identify the schedule in which the number of times a behavior must occur before it is rewarded remains constant over time. a. Fixed interval schedules b. Variable interval schedules c. Fixed ratio schedules d. Variable ratio schedules 15. Process theories of motivation _____. a. focus on how people become motivated and what they are motivated to do b. focus on what motivates a person c. explain all aspects of motivation d. suggest that methods such as reinforcement and punishment cannot be used to motivate people 16. In the context of agency theory, identify a true statement about agents. a. They always behave in ways that are consistent with the goals of the owners. b. They have less information about the day-to-day business than do principals. c. They are less likely than principals to focus on a short time horizon. d. They are less likely than principals to take risks when they make decisions.

Page 2

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 13_HR5 17. Identify a true statement about motivation. a. Motivation at work is a critical determinant of what will occur on the job. b. Most theories of motivation are concerned primarily with intrinsic motivation. c. Intrinsic motivation increases when extrinsic rewards are introduced. d. Any level of performance on any task is solely a function of motivation. 18. The process of generating new and useful ideas concerning new products, services, manufacturing methods, and administrative processes is characterized as _____. a. valence b. dissonance c. instrumentality d. creativity 19. Don, a sales clerk, believes that if he satisfies his customers' needs based on the policies covered in his company's sales training seminar, his incentives would increase. In the context of VIE theory, Don's belief illustrates _____. a. dissonance b. valence c. autonomy d. instrumentality 20. In the context of reinforcement theory, which of the following statements is true of fixed ratio schedules? a. They result in the lowest productivity. b. They are the least resistant to extinction. c. They produce less consistent levels of behavior than do variable ratio schedules. d. They result in lower levels of behavior than do fixed interval schedules. 21. In the context of reinforcement theory, who among the following writers has his or her work behavior reinforced using a fixed interval schedule? a. Walda, who is paid $100 every week irrespective of the number of articles she writes b. Zaiba, who is paid $30 for every five articles she writes c. Ben, for whom the duration between each payment varies depending on the project d. Ravi, for whom the number of articles to be completed in order to receive a payment varies depending on the project 22. In the context of reinforcement theory, which of the following statements is true of variable ratio schedules? a. They involve the shortest amount of learning time. b. They are the least resistant to extinction. c. They result in the highest productivity. d. They result in the lowest levels of behavior.

Page 3

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 13_HR5 23. In the context of Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs, which of the following best describes an individual's self-actualization need? a. The need for food or water b. The need to have a safe and secure environment c. The need to reach one's personal potential d. The need to have a positive view of oneself 24. Which of the following statements is true of motivation? a. It excludes the direction in which a person's effort will be exerted. b. A single proven model of motivation is guaranteed to work in all situations for all people. c. It represents the forces operating on a person to exert effort in a specific direction. d. High levels of motivation can fully compensate for lower levels of ability in people. 25. Which of the following options refers to a person's perception of the probability that an increase in effort will result in an increase in performance? a. Valence b. Instrumentality c. Expectancy d. Dissonance 26. Identify a true statement about motivation and needs. a. Money has the potential to satisfy all the needs proposed by Maslow and Alderfer. b. Motivation at work is a small determinant of what will occur on the job. c. Need-based theories adequately explain human motivation and its causes. d. Most people fulfill their self-actualization needs by earning vast amounts of money. 27. In the context of reinforcement theory, identify the type of schedules in which the number of times a behavior must occur before it is rewarded changes over time. a. Fixed interval schedules b. Variable interval schedules c. Fixed ratio schedules d. Variable ratio schedules 28. Which of the following statements is true in the context of ERG theory? a. Clayton Alderfer suggested that people always march neatly up a hierarchy. b. ERG theory suggests that everyone is motivated by the same set of requirements at any one time. c. Clayton Alderfer allowed for multiple levels of needs being prepotent. d. ERG theory is concerned with how a person becomes motivated to perform in a certain way.

Page 4

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 13_HR5 29. In Maslow's theory, identify the specific needs that are capable of motivating behavior at any given point in time. a. Comparative needs b. Prepotent needs c. Normative needs d. Anticipated needs 30. Ania is a management executive in a large technology corporation. Her ambition is to accept more challenges in her work and prove herself valuable to the organization. She wants to achieve the top management position within a span of 5 years. According to Maslow's hierarchy of needs theory, which need does Ania display? a. Belongingness need b. Self-actualization need c. Physiological need d. Security need 31. Which of the following options reinforces behavior as a function of how many times it occurs? a. Fixed interval schedule b. Variable interval schedule c. Continuous schedule d. Ratio schedule 32. In the context of goal theory, which of the following is required for goals to be effective? a. Employees must not be involved in the goal-setting process. b. Employees must accept goals as their own. c. Goals should not be difficult and specific. d. Goals should be impossible in nature. 33. In the context of reinforcement theory, which of the following statements is true of ratio schedules? a. They are less resistant to extinction than continuous schedules. b. They result in higher levels of behavior than do interval schedules. c. They result in lesser productivity than do interval schedules. d. They involve a shorter amount of learning time than continuous schedules. 34. In the context of agency theory, which of the following is a difference between agents and principals? a. Agents are the owners of a business, whereas principals are the managers of a business. b. Agents take risks when they make decisions, whereas principals do not take risks. c. Agents are less likely than principals to focus on a short time horizon. d. Agents often have more information about the day-to-day business than do principals.

Page 5

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 13_HR5 35. In the context of need-based theories of motivation, which of the following theories identifies motivators and hygiene factors as two sets of conditions at work that can satisfy needs? a. Social learning theory b. Expectancy theory c. Dual factor theory d. Equity theory 36. Which of the following statements is true of equity theory? a. It is a need-based theory of motivation. b. It suggests that everyone calculates the ratio of inputs to outcomes. c. It focuses on what motivates a person, rather than on how that motivation occurs. d. It suggests that everyone shares equally in any outcomes regardless of their contributions. 37. In the context of equity theory, an employee would be said to perceive underpayment inequity if his or her input– outcome ratio: a. is less favorable than that of a comparison person. b. exceeds his or her expectation. c. is equal to that of a comparison person. d. meets his or her expectation. 38. Identify a true statement about expectancy theory. a. It is a need-based theory of motivation. b. It is a simple theory from a cognitive perspective. c. It deals with the actual relationships between the components in the model. d. It is used to estimate the force operating on an employee to increase her or his effort. 39. Thomas, a kindergarten teacher, ignores his students' bad conduct and rewards them when they are obedient. As a result, they always listen to him and do as he says. In this scenario, Thomas is using a(n) _____. a. intrinsic motivation technique b. systematic desensitization technique c. free association technique d. behavior modification technique 40. When underpayment inequity is perceived, an employee will most likely: a. reduce his or her inputs. b. decrease his or her outcomes. c. feel that any effort will be fairly rewarded. d. exert effort at work.

Page 6

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 13_HR5 41. In the context of VIE theory, which of the following components refers to how attractive or unattractive an outcome is for a person? a. expectancy b. instrumentality c. valence d. dissonance 42. While watching television, Jason comes across an advertisement on a new soft drink brand. This advertisement reminds him that he is thirsty and wants to buy a beverage. In the context of reinforcement theory, the advertisement serves as a(n) _____. a. orienting reflex b. stimulus c. heuristic d. cognitive map 43. Which of the following statements is true in the context of goal theory? a. Goal theory suggests that all goals are created equal. b. Difficult goals are preferable to easy goals. c. Goal theory suggests that employees are most motivated by vague and unspecific goals. d. Impossible goals are the most effective in motivating employees. 44. In the context of Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs, who among the following individuals exhibits security needs? a. Denver, who cherishes having meaningful interactions and healthy relationships with his co-workers b. Ali, who expects his organization to provide him a pension plan to help him after his retirement c. Tara, who expects her organization to provide her with basic amenities such as potable drinking water d. Samantha, who wants to maintain a positive view of herself by improving her performance 45. Imagine a scenario where a man is stranded on a desert island. He first finds a source of potable water and some fruits to eat. Only after his thirst and hunger are satisfied does he set about building a shelter for the night. Once the man has met his physiological and security needs, he will set about searching for other people on the island. Which of the following needs of the man stranded on a desert island does this scenario illustrate? a. Self-actualization needs b. Intrinsic motivation c. Creative behavior d. Prepotent needs 46. Which of the following process theories, usually associated with B. F. Skinner, proposes that all behavior is a function of its consequences? a. Reinforcement theory b. ERG theory c. VIE theory d. Dual factor theory

Page 7

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 13_HR5 47. In the context of need-based theories of motivation, which of the following theories involves two levels of needs and allows for a person to regress from a higher-level need to a lower-level need? a. VIE theory b. ERG theory c. Equity theory d. Reinforcement theory 48. Identify a true statement about goal theory. a. It posits that employees are most motivated by vague and unspecific goals. b. It posits that impossible goals are the most effective in motivating employees. c. It suggests that easy goals are preferable to difficult goals. d. It suggests that not all goals are created equal. 49. Which of the following theories is derived from the fact that, in most modern organizations, the individuals who own a firm do not actually run it on a daily basis? a. VIE theory b. Expectancy theory c. ERG theory d. Agency theory 50. The assembly-line workers of Autowon Inc. petitioned the top management to provide basic amenities such as access to potable water and a clean working environment. In the context of Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs, this scenario illustrates the workers' _____. a. physiological needs b. security needs c. social needs d. esteem needs 51. Which of the following statements is an important aspect of Clayton Alderfer's ERG theory? a. In ERG theory, Abraham Maslow’s three categories of needs are expanded into five categories of needs. b. According to ERG theory, people always march neatly up the hierarchy of needs. c. According to ERG theory, only one level of need is capable of motivating behavior at any given time. d. In ERG theory, Clayton Alderfer allowed for multiple levels of needs being prepotent. 52. Equity theory is useful to human resource managers because it: a. relies on intrinsic motivation rather than on extrinsic motivation. b. ensures that everyone shares equally in any outcomes regardless of their contributions. c. makes it clear that any rewards associated with effort or performance will be evaluated. d. focuses on what motivates a person, rather than on how that motivation occurs.

Page 8

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 13_HR5 53. In the context of reinforcement theory, identify the type of schedules in which the amount of time that must pass before a reward is given is constant over time. a. fixed interval schedules b. variable interval schedules c. fixed ratio schedules d. variable ratio schedules 54. In the context of agency theory, agents are more likely than principals to focus on: a. a long time horizon because they always work for a firm in the long run. b. a long time horizon because they have less information about the day-to-day business than do principals. c. a short time horizon because it is usually easier to affect firm performance in the short run. d. a short time horizon because it is easy for principals to monitor all the decisions made by the agents. 55. Berta, the manager of an automobile showroom, announces a new scheme wherein the company offers an allexpenses paid trip to the salesperson who sells the most number of cars in the next quarter. This inspires Berta's subordinates to work harder and improve their performance. In this scenario, Berta uses a(n) _____. a. intrinsic motivation technique b. counterconditioning technique c. countertransference technique d. positive reinforcement technique 56. In Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs, identify the needs that include a safe environment and that are satisfied by things such as insurance or a pension. a. Physiological needs b. Security needs c. Esteem needs d. Social needs 57. In the context of goal theory, who among the following managers is likely to motivate his or her employees the best? a. Pedro, who sets difficult and specific goals b. Samuel, who sets easy goals c. Ali, who sets vague and unspecific goals d. Shiv, who sets impossible goals 58. In Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs, which of the following options include the need to have a positive view of oneself? a. Physiological needs b. Security needs c. Social needs d. Esteem needs

Page 9

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 13_HR5 59. Which of the following statements is true of dual factor theory? a. It focuses on how a person becomes motivated to perform in a certain way. b. It is a process theory of motivation that has been empirically supported by many research studies across time. c. The research on dual factor theory provides concrete empirical support for the model. d. The motivator side of dual factor theory provides the basis for much of the work that has been done in the area of job enrichment. 60. Which of the following statements is true of expectancy theory? a. It is a need-based theory of motivation. b. It is a simple theory from a cognitive perspective. c. It deals with the actual relationships between the components in the model. d. It is concerned with three components and the links among them. 61. Explain creative behavior.

62. Explain expectancy theory.

63. In the context of reinforcement theory, differentiate between interval schedules and ratio schedules.

64. What is reinforcement theory?

65. Explain Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs.

Page 10

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 13_HR5 Answer Key 1. True 2. False 3. False 4. False 5. True 6. False 7. False 8. True 9. False 10. False 11. b 12. a 13. c 14. c 15. a 16. d 17. a 18. d 19. d 20. c 21. a 22. c 23. c 24. c 25. c 26. a

Page 11

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 13_HR5 27. d 28. c 29. b 30. b 31. d 32. b 33. b 34. d 35. c 36. b 37. a 38. d 39. d 40. a 41. c 42. b 43. b 44. b 45. d 46. a 47. b 48. d 49. d 50. a 51. d 52. c 53. a 54. c Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 12

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 13_HR5 55. d 56. b 57. a 58. d 59. d 60. d 61. Answers will vary. Creativity has been suggested as one of the outcomes of intrinsic motivation. The most commonly used definition of creative behavior at work involves doing things that are innovative and provide some value for the organization. In general, experts characterize creativity as the process of generating new and useful ideas concerning new products, services, manufacturing methods, and administrative processes. Given this broad definition, almost any employee at almost any job could be creative at work. In line with this broader view, a great deal of attention has been focused on how to motivate employees to be more creative at work. A factor that has been linked to creativity at work is intrinsic motivation; that is, if we can design jobs to be more challenging and interesting, it is more likely that employees will engage in creative behaviors at work. See 13-4: Related Theories and Perspectives on Motivation 62. Answers will vary. Expectancy theory, sometimes referred to as VIE theory, is a fairly complex theory from a cognitive perspective because it casts an employee in the role of decision maker. It developed from early work in psychology, as well as basic economic theory, which assumes that people work to maximize their personal (positive) outcomes. Expectancy theory is concerned with three components and the links among them. The components are termed "effort," "performance," and "outcomes." The links among these three are more central to the theory. The first link is between effort and performance, and it is sometimes referred to as the "expectancy" term. Specifically, the effort-to-performance expectancy is a person's perception of the probability that an increase in effort will result in an increase in performance. The second link is between performance and outcomes and is sometimes referred to as the "instrumentality" term. Specifically, the performance-to-outcomes expectancy (instrumentality) is the person's perception of the probability that improved performance will lead to certain outcomes. The final piece of the model is not really a link between two other components but an extra component. Valence refers to how attractive or unattractive an outcome looks to a person. See 13-3: Process Theories of Motivation 63. Answers will vary. Although rewards and punishment are most effective when they are administered following every behavior (also referred to as continuous reinforcement), they can still work if they are administered at some times but not others—that is, by partial reinforcement. Specifically, the rewards are administered on some schedule that dictates when the reward is and is not administered. Interval schedules reinforce behavior as a function of the passage of time. A schedule in which someone is rewarded every 10 minutes as long as they exhibit a desired behavior is an interval schedule. A ratio schedule reinforces behavior as a function of how many times it occurs. For example, rewarding someone every fifth time a desired behavior occurs would be an example of a ratio schedule. But in addition, the ratio or the interval can either be fixed or variable; the number of times the behavior must be displayed or the amount of time that must pass before a reward is given can be constant over time or it can change. See 13-3: Process Theories of Motivation

Page 13

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 13_HR5 64. Answers will vary. Reinforcement theory is probably the most basic process theory. Reinforcement theory, usually associated with B. F. Skinner, proposes that all behavior is a function of its consequences. The model has three components: stimulus, response, and outcomes. The stimulus is something in the environment that cues us about a behavior. A bulletin board might advertise a soft drink brand, and this stimulus might remind us we are thirsty and want to buy the beverage. The response is the behavior that we exhibit in reaction to the stimulus. In this case, it might involve going into a store and buying the soft drink. The outcomes refer to the consequences that follow the response. So once we put a dollar in the machine, several things might happen: The machine might reject the dollar and send it back out, the machine might take the dollar and deposit a soft drink, or the machine might take the dollar and keep it without depositing the beverage. Reinforcement theory suggests that the response a person makes to the stimulus is a function of what he or she expects will happen. See 13-3: Process Theories of Motivation 65. Answers will vary. Probably the best known of the need-based theories, the hierarchy of needs model proposed by Abraham Maslow specifies five levels of needs that are capable of motivating behavior: physiological, security, social, esteem, and self-actualization. The lowest level of needs, labeled physiological needs, includes such things as the need for food or water. The next level of needs, security needs, includes anything involving a safe and secure environment. This is followed by social needs, which include the need to have meaningful interactions and relationships with others. Next come esteem needs, which include the need to have a positive view of oneself, and finally self-actualization needs, or the need to reach one's personal potential. According to the model, only one level of need is capable of motivating behavior at any given time. This level of need is said to be prepotent. Thus, if we are truly starving (rather than just in need of a snack), we will not worry about shelter or other people until we get something to eat. See 13-2: Motivation and Needs

Page 14

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 14_HR5 Indicate whether the statement is true or false. 1. The Planning Tool for Resource Integration, Synchronization and Management (PRISM) program prevents the National Security Agency (NSA) from collecting information that can help the agency track foreign agents. a. True b. False 2. Performance feedback should focus exclusively on effective performance. a. True b. False 3. In the context of HR systems in Muslim societies, sharia does not allow stoning to death as a punishment for fornication and adultery. a. True b. False 4. In the context of incentive plans, a stock option plan is typically offered to all the employees of a firm rather than just the executives. a. True b. False 5. In the United States, most faith-based businesses incorporate Christian beliefs into their day-to-day management practices. a. True b. False 6. Job rotation involves increasing the number of tasks that a worker performs in a particular job. a. True b. False 7. Individual incentive systems are most likely to be used in cases where performance can only be assessed subjectively. a. True b. False 8. Values based on the Qur'an are the most important part of Muslim human resource management systems. a. True b. False 9. Employee training should emphasize vigilance for Internet scams, as well as simple security measures such as locking all devices and keeping passwords secret. a. True b. False

Page 1

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 14_HR5 10. The Planning Tool for Resource Integration, Synchronization and Management (PRISM) program does not allow the National Security Agency to access information about American citizens under any circumstance. a. True b. False Indicate the answer choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. 11. Rodrigo, the owner of a hardware store, pays incentives to the members of his sales team based on their ability to sell products to industrial buyers. Each salesperson receives 20 percent of the amount earned from his or her total sales. In this scenario, which of the following incentive systems is Rodrigo most likely using to reward his employees? a. Gainsharing b. Profit sharing c. A piece-rate reward plan d. A sales commission 12. Which of the following is a team- and group-based incentive system that is designed to split the cost savings from productivity improvements with employees? a. Gainsharing b. Profit sharing c. A fixed incentive system d. A sales commission 13. Romero Inc. manufactures paper products. One set of workers at Romero Inc. has the full-time job of sorting scrap as it enters the manufacturing facility. The quality of sorting is regularly monitored by checking the quality of the paper products, and necessary instructions are given to the scrap sorters. The scrap sorters are also provided with information regarding the quality of their work. In the context of the core dimensions of the job characteristics approach, Romero Inc. stresses on _____. a. skill variety b. task identity c. autonomy d. feedback 14. Which of the following is a group-based incentive system? a. A knowledge-based pay plan b. A skill-based pay plan c. A stock-purchase plan d. A piece-rate incentive plan 15. In the context of work teams, if work is designed to be done by teams, then _____. a. there is less likelihood of shirking b. it becomes easy to motivate employees who exert exceptional effort c. all rewards must be based on team performance d. it becomes easy to reward individuals in true teamwork settings Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 2

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 14_HR5 16. Which of the following is an arrangement in which a group is given responsibility for designing the work system to be used in performing an interrelated set of jobs? a. Groupshift b. Groupthink c. A home work program d. A work team 17. Maria, a senior accountant in an insurance company, has a 2-year-old son who needs her frequent attention. In order to spend more time with him, she takes her office work home with her and completes it on her personal computer. She only returns to office for important meetings or to collect more work. In this scenario, which of the following alternative work arrangements is Maria using? a. A compressed workweek b. A flexible work hour plan c. An electronic cottage d. A self-directed work team 18. Which of the following statements is true of stock-based incentive programs? a. They are more typically used with hourly employees rather than with executive employees. b. They result in a line-of-sight problem among employees. c. They are individual incentive programs. d. They have special problems because employees' incentives are tied to the price of their organization's stock. 19. Home work programs include arrangements that are often referred to as _____. a. housing industries b. chartered businesses c. cottage industries d. regulatory businesses 20. Which of the following is awarded to employees on the basis of the relative value of their contributions to their organization? a. A stock option b. Merit pay c. Base pay d. A sales commission 21. The arrangements in which an employee works the required number of hours, typically 40, but does so in fewer than 5 days are called _____. a. flexible work hour plans b. part-time work programs c. freelancing work programs d. compressed workweeks

Page 3

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 14_HR5 22. In the context of evaluating performance-enhancement programs, which of the following is an explicit financial indicator? a. Return on investment b. General labor cost c. Turnover rate d. Accident rate 23. A job with high skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy, and feedback most likely leads to high _____. a. turnover b. motivation c. ethnocentrism d. xenophobia 24. Identify a true statement about the productivity measurement and evaluation system (ProMES). a. It incorporates ideas from goal setting to feedback and includes incentives for improvement. b. It posits that the relationship between performance and attaining outcomes is irrelevant in productivity measurement and evaluation. c. It focuses exclusively on individual-level performance. d. It relies on intrinsic rewards to motivate employees. 25. In the context of evaluating performance-enhancement programs, which of the following is a human resource indicator? a. Stock price b. Return on investment c. General labor cost d. Market share 26. In the context of alternative work schedules, which of the following are plans in which employees usually must work 40 hours per week and, typically, 5 days a week in the office but in which they have control over the starting and ending times for work on each day? a. Flexible work hour plans b. Compressed workweeks c. Home work programs d. Part-time work plans 27. Which of the following statements is true of firm-level performance? a. It determines a firm's stock price. b. There is strong evidence to support the idea that improved individual-level performance translates into improved firm-level performance. c. It is exclusively used to indicate the chances of a firm's short-term survival. d. The most basic level of performance in any firm is that of the firm itself, and this is the level that most people find easiest to conceptualize.

Page 4

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 14_HR5 28. Which of the following statements is true of performance-based rewards? a. The most general form of a merit-pay plan is to reward the individual performance of employees on a realtime basis. b. Performance appraisal has the most meaning to employees if it is subsequently connected with a reward such as a salary increase. c. Incentive compensation systems are among the most recent forms of performance-based rewards. d. Incentive compensation systems work best in situations that involve ambiguous performance indicators. 29. Who among the following managers is most likely to be effective at providing performance feedback? a. Meena, who focuses exclusively on the negative aspects of the performance of her subordinates b. Daniel, who focuses on providing developmental feedback targeted at his subordinates' behavior c. Emily, who focuses exclusively on the effective performance of her employees d. Farhan, who focuses on each employee's character rather than on the employee's work quality 30. The management of Jeremynt Inc., a public relations firm, gives each of its teams the responsibility of increasing their productivity through measures developed by the team members and approved by the respective team managers. The company then measures the team-level productivity, and the cost savings resulting from the improvements in productivity are split among its employees. In this scenario, Jeremynt Inc. is most likely using a group incentive system called _____. a. profit sharing b. a fixed incentive plan c. a sales commission d. gainsharing 31. Which of the following statements is true of enhancing organizational performance? a. Performance appraisal and performance management interventions have been proven to improve firmlevel performance drastically. b. The most basic level of performance is at the team level. c. Performance in any organization exists at multiple levels. d. There is strong evidence to support the idea that improving individual-level performance will directly lead to improvements in firm-level performance. 32. The typical form of the employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) involves a company: a. offering restricted stock plans to all its employees, with the aim of retaining these employees rather than rewarding their individual performance. b. taking out a loan, which is then used to buy a portion of the company's stock in the open market, with the purpose of gradually giving employees a major stake in the ownership of the company. c. offering shares of stock to its employees only if they remain with the company for a specified period of time. d. providing its employees with an option to buy its stock in the future at a predetermined fixed price.

Page 5

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 14_HR5 33. Which of the following statements is true of the productivity measurement and evaluation system (ProMES)? a. It is based on a model of motivation similar to expectancy theory. b. It is exclusively aimed at improving individual-level productivity. c. It relies on intrinsic rewards, such as job satisfaction, employee contentment, and a sense of meaningfulness, to motivate employees. d. It posits that the relationship between performance and attaining outcomes is irrelevant in productivity measurement and evaluation. 34. Which of the following is an alternative to job specialization that takes into account the work system and employee preferences? a. The job enlargement approach b. Job shadowing c. The job characteristics approach d. Employee outsourcing 35. Which of the following was developed to increase the total number of tasks workers perform based on the assumption that doing the same basic task over and over is the primary cause of worker dissatisfaction? a. Job enlargement b. Job rotation c. Job shadowing d. Employee offshoring 36. In the context of performance-based rewards, the most general form of a merit-pay plan is to: a. contribute some portion of the company's profits to a profit-sharing pool. b. share the cost savings from productivity improvements with employees. c. provide annual salary increases to employees based on the relative value of their contributions to their organization. d. reward the individual performance of employees on a real-time basis rather than by increasing their base salary at the end of a fiscal year. 37. Which of the following statements is true of the stock-purchase plans offered by a company? a. It is offered only to the senior managers and the top executives of the company. b. It is used more as a performance incentive than as a retention tool. c. It is an individual incentive system. d. It is applicable to employees only if they remain with the company for a specified period of time. 38. Under which of the following plans does an organization pay an employee a certain amount of money for every unit he or she produces? a. A piece-rate incentive plan b. The merit-pay plan c. The Scanlon plan d. A gainsharing plan

Page 6

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 14_HR5 39. In almost every organization offering flexible work hour plans, the time of the day during which every employee must be at work is called _____. a. down time b. core time c. flextime d. overtime 40. The employees of Starknoah Inc. are required to work 40 hours per week and, typically, 5 days a week. However, the employees have the flexibility to choose their starting and ending times for work each day. The only constraint in this arrangement is that all the employees are required to be at work from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. In this scenario, which of the following alternative work arrangements is Starknoah Inc. using? a. Telecommuting b. Freelancing c. Flexible work hour plans d. Part-time work plans 41. Identify a true statement about performance feedback. a. It should be provided annually rather than on a daily or weekly basis. b. It should follow a nondevelopmental approach. c. It should involve one-way communication, with the manager as the initiator. d. It should focus on both effective and ineffective performance. 42. Which of the following is a difference between the job characteristics approach and job specialization? a. Job specialization considers task identity and task significance as core dimensions of job design, whereas the job characteristics approach does not. b. The job characteristics approach takes into account the work system and employee preferences, whereas job specialization does not. c. The job characteristics approach has been proven to increase turnover, whereas job specialization has been proven to decrease turnover. d. Job specialization has been proven to increase work quality, whereas the job characteristics approach has been proven to decrease work quality. 43. Compensation plans that formally base at least some meaningful portion of compensation on the relative value of an employee's contributions to the organization are called _____. a. fixed incentive plans b. merit-pay plans c. stock-option plans d. stock-purchase plans 44. Which of the following statements is true of skill- and knowledge-based pay systems? a. They reward employees for increased performance. b. They reward employees for increasing their capacity to perform well in the future. c. They are based on an organization's present needs. d. They are traditional group incentive systems that focus on short-term goals. Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 7

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 14_HR5 45. Which of the following is the most basic form of incentive compensation? a. Merit pay b. A sales commission c. Profit sharing d. A stock-option plan 46. Identify a true statement about compressed workweeks. a. They require employees to work at least 5 days a week. b. They exempt employees from working the required number of hours a week. c. They may affect some social aspects of a job. d. They are related to decreased accidents in all settings. 47. In the context of the job characteristics approach, feedback is the: a. degree to which a worker is selected for the same job repeatedly. b. perceived importance of a task. c. extent to which a worker knows how well a job is being performed. d. extent to which a worker does a complete or identifiable portion of a total job. 48. Which of the following is an alternative work site arrangement in which employees may do almost all of their work at home and may receive assignments electronically? a. A flexible work hour plan b. Flextime c. A compressed workweek d. Telecommuting 49. Mechateron Inc., a product manufacturing company, pays its employees $1 for every 10 fiberglass pipes they weld. In this scenario, which of the following performance-based reward systems is Mechateron Inc. most likely using? a. A fixed incentive system b. A piece-rate system c. Profit sharing d. Gainsharing 50. Which of the following statements is true of Muslim HRM systems? a. They are based on the Qur'an and therefore allow favoritism and nepotism in all aspects of decisionmaking. b. They are completely different from HR systems in Western companies in terms of the employee values they promote. c. They consider employee layoffs and downsizing as the first resort to maintaining business survival. d. They give importance to maintaining due process when dealing with employee grievances.

Page 8

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 14_HR5 51. James, an employee at a hospital, has different duties for each day of the week. On Mondays, he reviews and files patient charts. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, he collects lab specimens from patients. On Wednesdays, he enters lab results into the computer database. On Fridays, he is in charge of paperwork. This scenario most likely exemplifies a motivational approach to redesign of work called _____. a. onboarding b. employee offshoring c. job outsourcing d. job rotation 52. Identify a true statement about faith-based businesses. a. They tend to be publicly owned. b. They offer benefit packages that extend coverage to same-sex partners of their employees. c. They provide meagre compensation to their employees. d. They tend to be closed on Sunday. 53. In the context of cybersecurity, which of the following statements is true of Planning Tool for Resource Integration, Synchronization and Management (PRISM)? a. It can intentionally access information about American citizens. b. It can access information about American citizens when information is collected incidentally as part of a sweep of information about a foreign operative. c. It helps the secretary of homeland security facilitate national efforts to protect sensitive information from cyberthreats. d. It is a tool used to ensure good cyberhygiene in terms of computer-usage policies. 54. Heter and Co., a multinational firm, invited groups of employees to suggest strategies for reducing cost. The firm implemented one of the strategies suggested by a group and made huge gains. If the firm uses the Scanlon plan to distribute the gains, the firm is most likely to: a. distribute the majority of the total gain to its executives. b. distribute about one-third of the total cost savings among its employees. c. distribute the cost savings to the entire organization. d. distribute the total gain equally and exclusively among all the members of the group that came up with the strategy. 55. Which of the following is a difference between gainsharing and profit-sharing incentive systems? a. Gainsharing is a group incentive system, whereas profit sharing is an individual incentive system. b. Gainsharing involves distributing savings among all the employees in a company, whereas profit sharing involves distributing savings among the members of a specific team. c. Gainsharing involves sharing cost savings from productivity improvements with employees, whereas profit sharing involves distributing a portion of a company's gains to all employees. d. Gainsharing is independent of a team's performance, whereas profit sharing is specific to the contributions of a work group.

Page 9

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 14_HR5 56. Unlike stock-option plans, stock-purchase plans: a. are typically offered to the executives of a firm. b. are typically offered to all the employees of a firm. c. lack effectiveness as they are useful only so long as the price of the stock is rising. d. do not require employees to remain with a company for a specified period of time to be entitled to the stock. 57. Which of the following is an advantage of faith-based businesses? a. They tend to provide reasonable compensation and benefits packages for their employees. b. They have high sales because they are open 7 days a week. c. They offer benefit packages that extend coverage to the same-sex partners of their employees. d. They tend to be publicly owned and have high business growth. 58. Goal theory suggests that: a. goals should be qualifiable rather than quantifiable. b. impossible goals are the most effective in motivating employees. c. employees are most motivated by vague and undefined goals. d. employees will exert the greatest effort when they have specific, difficult goals to work toward. 59. Which of the following arrangements allows organizations to use the services of individuals who may not be able to work at a given site? a. A compressed workweek b. Telecommuting c. Job shadowing d. A flexible work hour plan 60. Which of the following is a critical component of a behavior-modification plan? a. Providing employees with easy and unspecific goals b. Making sure that desirable conduct is never punished and that undesirable conduct is never rewarded c. Making sure that behavior is never reinforced using the continuous schedule of reinforcement d. Ensuring that punishment is not used to eliminate undesirable behavior 61. Explain the significance of performance feedback in performance management.

62. Explain privacy and cybersecurity in the 21st century.

Page 10

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 14_HR5 63. Explain the concept of alternative work sites.

64. Briefly explain the HR systems in Muslim countries.

65. What is the productivity measurement and evaluation system (ProMES)?

Page 11

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 14_HR5 Answer Key 1. False 2. False 3. False 4. False 5. True 6. False 7. False 8. True 9. True 10. False 11. d 12. a 13. d 14. c 15. c 16. d 17. c 18. d 19. c 20. b 21. d 22. a 23. b 24. a 25. c 26. a

Page 12

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 14_HR5 27. a 28. b 29. b 30. d 31. c 32. b 33. a 34. c 35. a 36. c 37. d 38. a 39. b 40. c 41. d 42. b 43. b 44. b 45. a 46. c 47. c 48. d 49. b 50. d 51. d 52. d 53. b 54. c Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero.

Page 13

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 14_HR5 55. c 56. b 57. a 58. d 59. b 60. b 61. Answers will vary. Performance feedback plays an important role in both behavior modification and goal setting, and it is also seen as a useful tool in its own right for performance management. But many managers do a poor job in this area, in part because they do not understand how to provide feedback properly and in part because they do not enjoy it. Almost by definition, performance appraisal in many organizations tends to focus on negatives; as a result, managers may have a tendency to avoid giving feedback because they know an employee who hears negative feedback may be angry, hurt, discouraged, or argumentative. But clearly, if employees are not told about their shortcomings, they have no reason to try to improve and have no guidance concerning how to improve. Therefore, it is critical that a rater provide feedback, so he or she must understand how it might be done more effectively. See 14-4: Performance Management and Feedback 62. Answers will vary. In today's workplace, every desktop computer, laptop, or handheld device is vulnerable to attack. Intruders hacking into a computer system, malware, lost laptops, and insider threats all combine to present serious challenges to companies. In addition, apps for cell phones may also open the door to new types of threats to security and privacy. Further, as myriad social and technological platforms become increasingly blended and blurred, more and more avenues for both mild and vicious acts seem to arise. In addition to these internal and external threats to security and privacy, the government itself poses a threat, especially in view of its relationship with many top social media companies. PRISM (Planning Tool for Resource Integration, Synchronization and Management) is a program used by the National Security Agency (NSA). PRISM has been described as a data tool designed to collect and process foreign intelligence that passes through American servers. The program cannot intentionally access information about American citizens, but it can access information about them when information is collected "incidentally" as part of a sweep of information about a foreign operative. Perhaps the most frightening aspect of the PRISM program is that it has been carried out with the apparent cooperation of Microsoft, Yahoo!, Google, Facebook, Paltalk, AOL, Skype, YouTube, and Apple (but not Twitter), and it allows the NSA to collect information from e-mails, video chats, photographs, documents, and connection logs that helps the agency track foreign agents. These companies have denied giving the NSA direct access to their servers, and this appears to be the case. It does also seem, however, that these companies collaborated with the government in developing more efficient methods to share personal data of foreign users in direct response to lawful government requests. Furthermore, requested information was sent to a special, secure server to which the NSA has access and so can obtain that information. Given the informationgathering capacity of organizations such as the NSA, we must all realize that assumptions we have made in the past about what is private and what is public are no longer valid. See 14-6: HR in the Headlines

Page 14

Name:

Class:

Date:

Chap 14_HR5 63. Answers will vary. In addition to employees working on alternative schedules, employees performing their work at a location other than the place of business, most likely at home, is a growing trend. Home work and telecommuting are two popular variations on this theme. Home work programs include arrangements that are often referred to as cottage industries. In the earliest days of the Industrial Revolution, before many factories were built, employees would take parts back home to their cottages, manufacture them, and then return them to a central point where they could be assembled. Similar types of cottage industries still exist for the manufacturing of small and not very complex items. It is more common, however, to operate in what can be called an electronic cottage. Employees take office work home with them and complete it on home computers. They can then return to the office to collect more work. Telecommuting is simply the logical extension of the electronic cottage. Under this arrangement, employees may do almost all of their work at home and may even receive assignments electronically. This arrangement provides employees with the ultimate in flexibility because they can choose the hours they work and even the location. A growing body of evidence suggests that this arrangement increases job satisfaction and even productivity, and it also allows organizations to use the services of individuals who may not be able to work at a given site. See 14-2: Alternative Work Arrangements 64. Answers will vary. In general, HR systems in Muslim countries tend to be value-based and draw heavily upon The Holy Qur'an (or Koran). In addition, HR systems in Muslim countries rely (to a greater or lesser extent) upon sharia, which is the entire body of Muslim law. Sharia draws upon the Qur'an, and other sources as well. Sharia is not a codified set of laws but, instead, depends upon the opinions of qualified Islamic legal scholars (these opinions are known as fatwas). It should be noted that sharia laws forbid the charging of interest, specify the punishment for a number of crimes specifically mentioned in the Qur'an or in the writings of Mohammed, allow men to become divorced at will by just saying it aloud, and specify the dietary restrictions known as halal (very similar to the Jewish laws of kosher). But values based on the Qur'an itself are the most important part of Muslim HRM systems. In fact, Ali et al. identified several implications of the Ten Islamic Commandments for HRM. Most of these were related to issues of fairness and justice because the Qur'an calls for honesty and justice in trade, as well as the equitable distribution of wealth in society. It has also been suggested that HR systems could be based on core Muslim values of piety, morality, and quality (defined as performance excellence). These values, then, result in an HR system where, in hiring, priority should be given to qualified individuals: One can disagree with a supervisor, but it must be done politely; employee layoffs and downsizing should be considered only as the last resort to maintain business survival; it is important to maintain due process when dealing with employee grievances; performance should be the main criteria for evaluation and the basis for compensation; and management should avoid favoritism and nepotism in all aspects of decisionmaking. See 14-6: HR in the Headlines 65. Answers will vary. The ProMES incorporates ideas from goal setting to feedback, and it includes incentives for improvement. More important, it includes a method for tying performance at the individual and group levels to organizational productivity. Specifically, team members work with outside experts to literally map the relationship between a given outcome and productivity. The other important part of the ProMES process involves the various "connections" among the components. The procedure is based on a model of motivation that is similar to the expectancy model. Thus, these connections are concerned with the relationship between effort and performance and between performance and attaining outcomes, as well as the link between obtaining outcomes and satisfying needs. The model and the technique are also based on the assumption that individuals and groups have a pool of resources (and effort) that they can assign to different activities, and the technique is designed to help them understand which activities they should focus on to increase firm productivity. The system has been widely adopted (especially in Europe) and has been quite successful, and it is one of the few performance-enhancement techniques that focuses on performance above the level of the individual. See 14-4: Performance Management and Feedback

Page 15