Exam 11: Human Resource Management: Finding and Keeping the Best Employees

Jake accepted a management trainee position at Opelika Resorts, a real estate development company. Corporate management believes Jake has potential to move into a top management position within the organization. They have begun assigning Jake to a different department every few months so he can obtain the broad perspective needed by top managers. This company is using ______________ to develop Jake's management skills.

Pre-employment physical examinations are:

Employment tests should focus on general job skills rather than skills that are related directly to the job.

Mario and Marla are web development professionals for a popular high-tech company. Due to injuries Mario sustained while serving in the Army Reserves, upon his return the company provided him and other returning soldiers with ergonomic desks and chairs that accommodate wheel chairs and bad backs. Although Marla is hearing impaired, the company does not need to consider providing her with a headset that magnifies sound because she is the only employee out of 200 requiring this accommodation.

An advantage of a skill-based system of pay for compensating teams is that such a system is easy to apply and administer.

When Andrew administered the performance appraisals for his employees at California Canines, a producer of upscale clothing and accessories for pets, he made certain that he allowed at least one hour for each. He met with each employee in his quiet office, and gave each an opportunity to prepare a self-improvement program. His goal was to make each process a positive experience for the employee. Andrew carried out the suggestions of experts in performing effective performance appraisals.

Tri-Cities Printing wants to expand its services into new markets, but to remain competitive it needs to keep its costs low. If it is like most firms, one way Tri-Cities can save a lot of money is by reducing the time and effort it devotes to the selection of employees.

Affirmative action programs are the least controversial method of correcting job inequities created by past discrimination.

Many firms are now contracting with outside companies to administer their employee benefits plans.

Barney's company creates promotional campaigns for other businesses. He just learned that the firm lost the Lisle Account, a long-standing customer. In the short term, this will significantly reduce the need for several creative writers and web content developers the company has on staff. As he prepares to call each employee in for dismissal, Barney reviews the best way to approach this inevitable task. He decides that it is best not to tarnish the image of the company so rather than tell each that they lost an important account, he will blame the need to reduce the workforce on new technology the firm is implementing and his personal evaluation of their work. He also plans to offer a two-month severance payment, as long as each signs a no-compete agreement good for one year. In that way, he may be able to call them back if new accounts emerge. All of these strategies are considered good procedures that would surely avoid "wrongful discharge lawsuits."

Unlike a traditional performance appraisal, a 360-degree review:

CareerBuilder.com has posted a variety of sales management positions. Some require the manager to have five to ten years of experience and preferably a master's degree in a field of science. These requirements are part of the job specification.

While efforts to train and develop women and minority managers appeal to many firms on the basis of legal and moral considerations, from an economic standpoint, they are rarely cost effective.

The marketing manager at Cool Rags, Inc., was very critical of the way one of the distribution analysts was handling negotiations with a manufacturer in Malaysia. On a number of occasions, she thought the discussions could have resulted in more of a win-win situation. In order to follow correct procedures, the manager made notes on these issues and decided to wait until the performance appraisal, eight months down the road, to discuss the situation with the analysts. If Cool Rags has a formal performance appraisal process in place, this is the best approach to this situation.

Minority groups have made great strides in creating networking associations. For example, Black Enterprise Magazine sponsors networking forums.

Although the purpose of affirmative action was to "right past wrongs" against minorities, subsequent laws were passed to reverse earlier decisions that required some industries to maintain employment quotas when it came to the hiring of minorities.

Women usually find it easier than men to obtain mentors and engage in networking.

Managers at Wrise & Schein want to make sure their decisions about compensation, promotions and firings are based on sound information that meet legal requirements. One way to achieve this objective would be to:

HR manager Rob Ryan is very concerned about the high cost of labor turnover at his firm. A good way for his firm to eliminate high turnover costs is to establish a policy of hiring workers for trial periods.

Mini-Case Dee Pozitt had been the assistant HR director at Fleesum Financial Services for a bit more than a year when the company's HR director was injured in a sky-diving accident. Because of his injuries the director would be unable to work for several months. Howie Fleesum, the company's CEO, decided to name Dee the acting director of human resources. Though she had been at the firm for a shorter period of time than most other managers, he felt that her position as the director's assistant had given her insights into the company's human resource issues that the other managers lacked. He also was very impressed by the glowing performance appraisal Dee recently received from the director, her peers, and even subordinates. Before accepting the position as acting director, Dee made sure that Mr. Fleesum recognized her authority to implement some major changes in policies she and the director had been planning before his accident. The changes were intended to make the company more responsive to the needs of employees, thus improving morale and reducing worker turnover. Although Dee was sorry the director was injured, she was pleased that Mr. Fleesum had confidence in her and was willing to give her the authority to implement important new programs. The only aspect of her opportunity that worried her was the resentment and hostility she sensed from a few of the older, more experienced managers. One of the most hostile coworkers was a fellow named Mort Gage. Dee decided she had better talk to Mort and find out why he was so upset. -Dee wants to give Fleesum's employees more freedom to schedule when they begin and end their work days. Her plan still requires employees to work eight hours per day, but allows them to start as early as 7:00 a.m. or as late as 9:00 a.m., and leave as early as 4:00 p.m. or as late as 6:00 p.m. Her plan also requires all workers to be on the job between 9:00 a.m. and noon, and between 2:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. The type of plan Dee wants to implement is known as a: