Why managers are dejobbing their companies

Human Resources Management

Exam: Human Resources Management

Questions 1 to 40: Select the best answer to each question. Note that a question and its answers may be split across a page break, so be sure that you have seen the entire question and all the answers before choosing an answer.

1. The processing and transmission of digitized HR information, especially using computer networking and the Internet, is known as

A. human resource information system implementation.

B. electronic human resource management.

C. e-business.

D. reengineering.

2. Which of the following is a correct statement about dejobbing?

A. Dejobbing involves the use of task-based organization structures.

B. Dejobbing involves emphasizing on detailed job descriptions which will be applicable year after year.

C. Dejobbing involves the downsizing or elimination of jobs.

D. Dejobbing involves viewing organizations as a field of work to be done.

3. Which of the following is a correct statement about the Americans with Disabilities Act?

A. The Americans with Disabilities Act requires employers to have a minimum of 15 percent of the workforce to be people with disabilities.

B. The Americans with Disabilities Act covers disabilites such as obesity and drug abuse.

C. The Americans with Disabilities Act requires employers to take steps to accommodate people with disability so that they can

perform their duties without difficulty.

D. The Americans with Disabilities Act covers people who took mitigating measures that allow them to perform major life activities with no difficulty.

4. People's right to freedom of speech is the right to

A. criticize an organization's ethics if they do it in good conscience.

B. be treated only as they knowingly and willingly consent to be treated.

C. do as they wish in their private life.

D. refuse to do something that's environmentally unsafe.

5. Which of the following decisions does not come under HRM?

A. How to evaluate employee performance

B. Whom to hire

C. How to achieve sales targets

D. What training to offer

6. Which of the following refers to an employer's obligation to do something to enable an otherwise qualified person to perform a job?

A. General-duty clause

B. Reverse discrimination

C. Reasonable accommodation

D. Utilization analysis

7. Which of the following approaches would be most appropriate when gathering information for jobs that are repetitive and involve physical activity?

A. A manager imagines what a well-done job would look like.

B. A job analyst visits the workplace and videotapes an employee performing the job.

C. A job analyst questions the peers about a particular job.

D. A job analyst visits the workplace and asks employees to show what the job entails.

8. Which of the following occupations is projected to add the most jobs before 2016?

A. Janitors

B. Registered nurses

C. Office clerks

D. Postsecondary teachers

9. Which of the following managerial functions is often assumed by work teams?

A. Controlling finances allocated for the project

B. Making strategy-related decisions such as areas to diversify in

C. Performing inspection and quality-control activities

D. Conducting performance reviews

10. The largest number of immigrants to the U.S. workforce are from

A. Europe.

B. Asia.

C. North America.

D. Africa.

11. Managers and economists traditionally have seen HRM as a(n)

A. necessary expense.

B. essential component of a high-performance work system.

C. asset.

D. source of value to their organization.

12. One of the most common grievances that employees at Craines Tech have is that they don't get performance feedback. That is, they don't get proper information as to how they've performed and where

they need to improve, and the performance goals are vague and not measurable. Which HR function does Craines Tech need to improve?

A. Employee relations

B. Training and development

C. Performance management

D. Recruitment and selection

13. Which of the following is a true statement about Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964?

A. The act is enforced by the U.S. Department of Labor.

B. The act applies to organizations with 15 employees or more.

C. The act prohibits employers from discriminating against workers due to their age.

D. The act protects employers from employee threats.

14. Which of the following refers to the KSAOs that an individual must have to perform the job?

A. Job descriptions

B. Job analysis

C. Dictionary of Occupational Titles

D. Job specifications

15. Which of the following terms describes the best possible fit between a company's social system and its technical system?

A. High-performance work system

B. Outsourcing

C. Total quality management

D. Self-service system

16. Which of the following is a true statement about the composition of the U.S. labor force during the next decade?

A. In spite of the growing number of young workers, the overall workforce will be aging.

B. For the first time ever, the number of workers under 40 years of age will exceed the number of workers 40 years of age or older.

C. The largest proportion of the labor force is expected to be in the 16- to 25-year age group.

D. The labor force is expected to grow at a greater rate than at any other time in U.S. history.

17. Which of the following cases would most likely be filed under the theory of disparate impact?

A. White applicants with high test scores are rejected due to an affirmative-action plan.

B. Black applicants are being disproportionately rejected relative to whites by a paper-and-pencil test.

C. A black employee is fired for testifying in a discrimination suit filed against an employer.

D. A white applicant is told he won't be hired because the employer doesn't like whites.

18. Why do complaints of age discrimination grow when the economy is slow?

A. Companies try to provide more opportunities to younger workers.

B. Companies are forced to retain their best talent during times of recession.

C. Companies try to save labor costs by laying off older workers.

D. Older employees provide a tremendous pool of potential.

19. Which of the following responsibilities is associated with the HR function of support for strategy?

A. Human resource discipline

B. Human resource relocation and outplacement services

C. Human resource planning and forecasting

D. Orientation

20. Which of the following recommendations for job descriptions is not desirable?

A. Provide job descriptions to all newly hired employees.

B. Use the same format for all job descriptions within the organization.

C. Omit the phrase "and other duties as requested" from all job descriptions.

D. Use the annual performance appraisal process as an opportunity to update job descriptions.

21. According to the Training 2007 Industry Report, which training task was outsourced the most?

A. Instruction

B. Learner support

C. Custom content

D. Need analysis

22. Which of the following options for avoiding an expected labor shortage has the benefit of being a relatively fast solution with high revocability?

A. Overtime

B. New external hires

C. Turnover

D. Retrained transfer

23. Which of the following correctly describes a learning management system?

A. A process for determining the appropriateness of training by evaluating the characteristics of the organization

B. The process of evaluating the organization, individual employees, and employees' tasks to determine what kinds of training, if

any, are necessary

C. A computer application that automates the administration, development, and delivery of training programs

D. A process of systematically developing training to meet specified needs

24. The long-term success of diversity training is characterized by

A. making sure that HRM practices meet standards of equal employment opportunity laws.

B. unstructured programs.

C. the number of minority or disabled employees on staff within the organization.

D. training that's tied to business objectives, such as understanding customers.

25. Should a former employer give a glowing statement about a candidate and the new employer later learn of misconduct on the part of the employee during his or her previous employment, the new employer may sue the former for

A. lack of validity.

B. misrepresentation.

C. defamation.

D. negligent omission.

26. Benefits of establishing objectives for a training program include three of the following. Which is not a benefit of establishing objectives for a training program?

A. Establishing objectives provides a basis for measuring the success of the program.

B. Objectives help HR professionals identify the situational constraints within the organization.

C. Employees learn best when they know what the training is supposed to accomplish.

D. The training program will be more focused and more likely to succeed.

27. Which of the following is found in a typical behavior-modeling session?

A. Presentation of the key behaviors, videotape of a model performing the key behavior, role-plays, and a planning session

B. Presentation of key behaviors, videotape of a model performing the key behavior, participation in a case study group, and planning session

C. Lecture, videotape of a model performing the key behavior, on-the-job coaching, and practice opportunities

D. Videotape of a model performing the key behavior, planning session, coaching realistic game, and practice opportunities

28. To increase the readability of training materials, one should

A. add checklists and illustrations to clarify the text.

B. combine two or more sentences into one long sentence

C. replace concrete words with abstract words.

D. combine two or more paragraphs into one long paragraph.

29. Which of the following is not among the best ways for companies to establish a stronger recruiting presence on a campus?

A. Participate in university job fairs.

B. Select campuses within a 150-mile radius of the company's headquarters to ensure students are familiar with the company and its products or services.

C. Establish college internship programs.

D. Select a limited number of campuses on which to recruit, and return to them on a yearly basis with new job openings.

30. Predictive validation is better than concurrent validation because

A. job applicants' performance on the tests is influenced by their firsthand experience with the job.

B. it's more time-consuming and difficult.

C. the research administers tests to people who currently hold the job.

D. the group is more likely to include people who perform poorly on the test.

31. Which of the following is a false statement about using simulations as a training technique?

A. Simulations are inexpensive to develop and maintain due to virtual-reality technologies.

B. Simulators need to have identical elements to those found in the work environment.

C. Simulations allow trainees to see the effects of their decisions in an artificial, risk-free environment.

D. Simulations are used to teach production and process skills as well as management and interpersonal skills.

32. Which of the following is a correct statement about executive search firms?

A. Executive search firms work almost exclusively with high-level, unemployed executives.

B. Executive search firms typically require the person being placed to make the initial contact with the prospective employer

directly.

C. Executive search firms almost exclusively find new jobs for people who are already employed.

D. Executive search firms aren't subject to the requirements of Title VII.

33. The first step in the human resource planning process is

A. program implementation.

B. program evaluation.

C. forecasting.

D. goal setting.

34. _______ identifies the tasks, knowledge, skills, and behaviors that training should emphasize.

A. Organizational analysis

B. Task analysis

C. Training-method analysis

D. Person analysis

35. In personnel forecasting, an effective HR professional tries to

A. predict the number and types of legal challenges the company is likely to face within the year.

B. develop HR policies and practices in response to anticipated moves by major competitors.

C. determine the supply of and demand for various types of human resources.

D. anticipate trends within the HR field which are most likely to affect the success of current company operations.

36. Which of the following personnel policies is not relevant to recruitment?

A. Lead-the-market pay strategies

B. Internal versus external recruiting

C. Administrative procedures

D. Image advertising

37. Employers should ensure that their drug-testing programs conform to three of the following guidelines.Which is not a guideline to which employers should ensure their drug-testing programs conform?

A. The testing should be routinely administered to all technical and managerial functions across the organization.

B. The employer should use drug testing for jobs that involve safety hazards.

C. The employer should send the reports of the results to applicants along with information on how to appeal and retest.

D. The testing should be conducted in an environment that isn't intrusive and allows for strict confidentiality of results.

38. Three of the following statements about the effects of downsizing are true. Which one is false?

A. Downsizing efforts guarantee an increase in organization competitiveness.

B. Employees who survive downsizing often become narrow-minded and risk-averse.

C. Short-term cost savings often turn negative in the long term.

D. Downsizing efforts eliminate people who turn out to be irreplaceable assets.

39. The steps required to properly execute a workforce utilization review are

A. identical to the steps in the generic human resource planning process.

B. essentially the same as those involved in job analysis.

C. essentially the same as those involved in the strategic planning process.

D. tremendously varied from organization to organization.

40. The degree to which the information provided by selection methods enhances the effectiveness of

selecting personnel in organizations refers to the selection method's

A. utility.

B. reliability.

C. generalizability.

D. validity.