Deck 5: People Alignment

Question 1

can be described as the process of "getting the right people on the bus" and "the wrong people off the bus."

A) Removal and replacement
B) Person-organization
C) People alignment
D) Transport scheduling
E) none of the above

Answer 1

C

Question 2

In order to ensure that top management supports strategic renewal:

A) it is always necessary to hire new executive leadership from the outside.
B) existing managers should remain in the job, do well, with large pay increases.
C) a succession plan process with no required follow-up should be in place.
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Answer 2

E

Question 3

Which of the following is correct about the strengths of behavioral simulation?

A) can focus on specific behaviors
B) valid supplement to other screening mechanisms
C) validity increases when multiple interviewers score results
D) focus on actual rather than recounted behaviors
E) both B and C

Answer 3

D

Question 4

uses performance feedback gathered from peers, subordinates, supervisors, and customers.

A) Formal performance appraisal
B) Informal performance appraisal
C) 360-degree performance appraisal
D) Self-appraisal
E) none of the above

Question 5

is the failure of newly learned behaviors to transfer to on-the-job experiences.

A) Transfer dysfunction
B) Training failure
C) Training fade-out
D) Performance gap
E) none of the above

Question 6

To be part of a change effort, training programs need to contain two components:

A) knowledge and skill development.
B) content and methods.
C) strategic focus and reinforcement.
D) support and skills training.
E) none of the above

Question 7

Patagonia's statement that "it's easier to teach dirt bags to do business than it is to teach businessmen to be dirt bags" reflects what approach to employee selection?

A) behavioral simulation
B) person-organization fit
C) wilderness training
D) competency assessment

Question 8

Feedback is a key opportunity for developing new skills, but it should:

A) move employees towards new behaviors.
B) effectively reinforce existing patterns.
C) be offered in a training setting only.
D) be a part of the formal appraisal process.
E) none of the above

Question 9

Person-task fit refers to:

A) when the organization has specific tasks that need to be done, it hires individuals with the requisite skills.
B) human resource specialists' work in a structured way to define the key knowledge, skills and abilities required in the performance of core organizational tasks.
C) individuals are sought, and often tested, to determine their competency levels to perform specific tasks.
D) all of the above
E) both A and B

Question 10

a formal process in which top executives regularly review all managers at or above a certain hierarchical level, looking at both performance and potential, and devise developmental plans for their most promising individuals.

A) Performance appraisal
B) People alignment
C) Job rotation
D) Succession planning
E) none of the above

Question 11

Which statement is correct in regards to developing required competencies through a "buy" approach?

A) injects the organization with new employees who possess the desired set of competencies
B) implies developing the needed new set of competencies and behaviors in current employees
C) assumes that employees are both capable of and motivated to acquire and utilize new skills and engage in new behaviors
D) Both A and B
E) Both B and C

Question 12

Person-organization fit looks:

A) at the current diversity of the organization.
B) beyond specific jobs to the desired future state of the organization.
C) at ways to better match organizational culture to employee desires.
D) both A and B
E) both B and C

Question 13

A selection tool that uses role plays and behavior demonstrations is called a:

A) paper and pencil test.
B) stress interview.
C) team selection.
D) behavioral simulation.
E) none of the above

Question 14

involves assuring that the skills and behaviors of employees within the organization will enable the effective implementation of the organization's strategy

A) Business dynamics
B) Human development planning
C) People alignment
D) Job development
E) none of the above

Question 15

Training fade-out is reduced by which of the following factors?

A) supervisory support
B) peer support
C) work conditions
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 16

is a formal, regularly scheduled mechanism designed to provide employees with performance feedback.

A) Informal feedback
B) Performance enhancement training
C) On-the-job development
D) Performance appraisal
E) Group enhancement

Question 17

A test is self-administered and quantifiable, used in selection.

A) behaviorally anchored
B) simulation
C) standardized
D) valid reflection
E) none of the above

Question 18

In developing required competencies, leaders can select a " " or " " approach.

A) make; buy
B) performance; skills
C) performance; make
D) skills; buy
E) none of the above

Question 19

training programs focus on behaviors and typically include role‐playing and feedback.

A) Team
B) Experiential
C) On-the-job
D) Succession
E) Just-in-time

Question 20

Which of the following is correct about the strengths of paper-and-pencil tests?

A) easy to administer and score
B) inexpensive to use on large scales
C) simple to compare
D) valid job success predictors when used in combination with other mechanisms
E) all of the above

Question 21

The statement of "delayering, increased span of control, matrix, or horizontal structures-all of these work to develop generalists far earlier in their careers and place a greater premium on interpersonal competencies" refers to which practices for developing executives capable of adaptation and leading change?

A) structural and design changes
B) explicit international movement
C) career mazes
D) slower velocity to allow greater learning
E) none of the above

Question 22

"Buying" involves injecting the organization with new employees who possess the desired set of competencies.

Question 23

Evaluating employees is important because:

A) it provides an assessment of human assets in the firm.
B) it identifies the gap between current and future skill needs.
C) it identifies poor performers and potential leaders.
D) it targets required T&D efforts.
E) all of the above

Question 24

In order to develop required human resource competencies, organizational leaders need to align the selection, training, development, and removal of employees with the behavioral requirements of the desired change.

Question 25

The statement of "explicit lateral movements replace rapid upward functional mobility with a far broader set of experiences" refers to which practices for developing executives capable of adaptation and leading change?

A) structural and design changes
B) explicit international movement
C) career mazes
D) slower velocity to allow greater learning
E) none of the above

Question 26

The biggest advantages of formal appraisal are validity and accuracy.

Question 27

When using removal and replacement as implementation tools in support of strategic renewal and change, perceived fairness will be enhanced by a sequence of actions that has already included .

A) a shared diagnosis that has surfaced the relationship between past behavioral patterns and current performance shortcomings.
B) a redesign process that has identified new patterns of behavior required for sustained outstanding performance.
C) training and development that have been offered to employees as a way of gaining and demonstrating required new behaviors.
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 28

The desired goal of the performance feedback process is alignment between the future needs of the organization and the desires and motivations of employees.

Question 29

Dealing with recounted rather than actual behaviors is a weakness of which technique for person-organization fit screening?

A) behavioral simulation
B) paper-and-pencil test
C) behaviorally anchored interviews
D) human interaction test
E) communication skill test

Question 30

Training can, under the right circumstances, help employees gain new behavioral competencies.

Question 31

Questions such as, "Give me an example of a work-related problem that you had to deal with" or "talk about a recent group experience you had at work and the role that you played" are examples of which type of interviews?

A) behavioral simulations
B) paper-and-pencil tests
C) behaviorally anchored interviews
D) human interaction tests
E) communication skill tests

Question 32

In succession planning, focusing on fast track managers is a good approach because:

A) fast trackers are known to have skills associated with future performance
B) fast trackers have passed all of the written and behavioral tests
C) fast trackers are committed to staying with the company who invests in them
D) fast trackers come from the outside so they have fresh ideas
E) none of the above

Question 33

deals with individuals who cannot or will not develop new competencies and behaviors.

A) Removal and replacement
B) Career change
C) Training
D) Behavioral replacement
E) none of the above

Question 34

Training can help convey to employees how their competitive environment is changing and why their own behaviors need to be altered.

Question 35

is a process in which top executives regularly review all managers at or above a certain hierarchical level, looking at both performance and potential, and devise developmental plans for their most promising individuals.

A) Task planning
B) Job planning
C) Policy planning
D) Process planning
E) None of the above

Question 36

Engagement, explanation and expectation clarity are 3 factors that contribute to:

A) removal and replacement.
B) fair process.
C) effective employee selection.
D) mutual engagement.
E) succession planning

Question 37

refers to an awareness of the forces demanding strategic renewal and change and the options available to the organization in response to those forces.

A) Knowledge component
B) Skill development
C) Management development
D) Behavioral development
E) none of the above

Question 38

Self-appraisal and data from multiple sources can increase the of performance feedback

A) validity; reliability
B) cost; timeliness
C) validity; effectiveness
D) timeliness; effectiveness

Question 39

A "making" approach to human resource development implies developing the needed new set of competencies and behaviors in current employees. It assumes that employees are both capable of and motivated to acquire and utilize new skills and engage in new behaviors.

Question 40

is a widely shared perception that decisions are being made on the basis of valid criteria.

A) Engagement
B) Fair process
C) Managerial manipulation
D) Sequential approach

Question 41

Unless removal and replacement decisions are viewed by employees as being fair in process, valid in content, and appropriate in sequence, the decisions can undermine commitment to change implementation.

Question 42

The second component of the change effort and training programs is a knowledge component: an awareness of the forces demanding strategic renewal and change and the options available to the organization in response to those forces.

Question 43

On-the-job experience is less useful than behavioral and cognitive training in developing new skills among executives.

Question 44

As much as you are committed to developing your existing employees, several key people have left the organization because they did not agree with the changes and some others had to be let go because of serious performance challenges. The best way to ensure that the removal part of the process goes well is:

A) handle it as quickly as possible and behind closed doors - that way no one gets hurt.
B) involve people in the decision, explain the criteria and the reasoning, and offer due process.
C) give the decision to the company lawyers - they know best how to deal with these matters.
D) avoid removal altogether - the strategic change will take care of everything.

Question 45

New behaviors acquired during experiential training will fade out unless the work environment to which participants return supports new behaviors and participants understand and accept the fact that outstanding performance will require those behaviors.

Question 46

Workforce reductions and employee layoffs may be effective in improving short- term performance but will not by themselves produce the human resource competencies required to support strategic renewal and sustain outstanding performance.

Question 47

In planning replacement for these employees, you decide on which of the following strategies?

A) The company has a tried-and-true system in place for employee selection - don't break what has been working well in the past.
B) Each of these jobs has an extensive job description and your supervisors have been trained in behavioral interviewing and administering some good tests that match the person to the job.
C) In light of the strategic change process, it is essential that you select people who can see the new strategy - you try to pick people who can work well in teams and know the importance of customer service.
D) You select people based on education and experience.

Question 48

When an organization is attempting to implement change, there is an urgent need to attract employees whose behavior exemplifies the desired future state.

Question 49

In order to enhance the validity and accuracy of appraisal and feedback, you implement:

A) 360-degree feedback.
B) standardized assessment.
C) behavioral simulations.
D) removal and replacement.

Question 50

Perceptions of fairness can also be impacted by the degree to which an organization provides employees with due process and appeal mechanisms.

Question 51

Approximately 90% of Fortune 500 companies use some form of 360-degree feedback.

Question 52

When supervisors seek to clone themselves, the effect is damaging for the employees, not for the organization.

Question 53

In behaviorally anchored interviews, applicants are asked to demonstrate job behaviors.

Question 54

Training and development is a key component of your strategic change process. Because your budget is limited, you want to cut one or more of the following training components. Which one would you cut?

A) skill development training, focusing on teamwork and customer service
B) skill development training, focusing on planning and budgeting
C) knowledge component, dealing with strategic renewal and adaptation
D) training in new behavior support for supervisors and peers

Question 55

Companies cannot manage the careers of executives in order to create a continuous stream of leaders from inside the organization capable of implementing change.