Deck 1: HRM and Competitive Advantage

Question 1

As the director of HR, you are in a meeting with your corporate officers discussing the firm's deliberate use of human resources to gain a competitive edge against your competitors in the marketplace. You are discussing:

A)your HR strategy for the company.
B)the general business environment in which your company must operate.
C)the tactics you plan to use in reaching corporate objectives.
D)the individual issues that are involved in creating your HR plan.
E)the legal environment in which your company operates.

Answer 1

the general business environment in which your company must operate.

Question 2

An example of an individual challenge that HRM faces is:

A)ethical dilemmas and social responsibility.
B)competitive position.
C)downsizing'simpact on employees.
D)workforce diversity.
E)evolving family and work roles.

Answer 2

ethical dilemmas and social responsibility.

Question 3

HRM faces a number of environmental challenges, including:

A)increasing organizational labor costs.
B)decentralization of decision making.
C)marketplace globalization.
D)the need to empower company employees.
E)self-managed work teams.

Answer 3

marketplace globalization.

Question 4

Due to the increasing work pace and burnout in the United States, more workers are facing higher degrees of stress. According to your text, some companies have chosen to:

A)provide employees with coaching/stress management courses.
B)resort to continual-hiring practices to replace workers.
C)encourage employees to take longer breaks during the work day.
D)do more work from home, in a family environment.
E)inform potential employees of this challenge during the interviewing process.

Question 5

Which of the following is NOT true of the Internet Revolution as it relates to HRM?

A)U.S. corporate spending on Internet technology is increasing.
B)Companies now must pay particular attention to legal issues concerning information passed over the Internet.
C)The percentage of firms using the Internet reached 80% in 2000.
D)Cross-cultural understanding is not as important, for the Internet is its own community with its own culture.
E)It is a major factor in helping employees find employers and vice-versa through job finding sites.

Question 6

RCA is working on a corporate identity that smoothes over cultural differences in order to increase cooperation within the firm. RCA is addressing the HRM challenge of:

A)globalization.
B)rapid change.
C)legislation.
D)competitive environment.
E)matching the individual to the job.

Question 7

Kori and Joe are discussing their firm's HRM strategies for dealing with a sexual harassment suit. Their discussion exemplifies the HRM environmental challenge stemming from:

A)globalization.
B)workforce diversity.
C)legislation.
D)organizational culture.
E)matching people to the organization.

Question 8

In today's labor market, companies that do not strive to be family-friendly are:

A)in violation of Federal EEO legislation.
B)wasting significant talent by losing women who cannot sacrifice their family lives for a career.
C)experiencing increasing nepotism at the top of their organizationalstructures.
D)less likely to suffer from key skillshortages.
E)demonstrating significant inflexibility in their staffing practices.

Question 9

The need for skilled employees in the United States:

A)has intensified in the service sector, which has produced more jobs than manufacturing.
B)has intensified in manufacturing, as the turnaround in the "rust belt" has resulted in a 20% decease in jobs.
C)has decreased as the number of service, technical, and managerial jobs requiring a college education has declined.
D)is easing as both private and government training programs' funding has resulted in a highly trained workforce.
E)has decreased due to increased immigration of highly educated information workers.

Question 10

The fastest growing occupations in the United States:

A)require a college degree for most entry-level positions.
B)typically provide on-the-job training for new employees.
C)are in technical fields.
D)require two years of college training.
E)are related to the federal government.

Question 11

The most important organizational issue that affects an organization's competitive advantage is:

A)its ability to control costs.
B)the expatriation of foreign managers.
C)the development of joint ventures and collaborations with foreign firms.
D)its use of technology.
E)its organizational structure.

Question 12

The Imitation Products is considering how to specialize their product in order to create a niche for themselves and how much they should spend to improve the product while considering the cash flow increase that may come from product specialization. Imitation is discussing their:

A)decentralization strategies.
B)Total Quality Management (TQM).
C)competitive position.
D)human resource strategy.
E)organizational restructuring.

Question 13

The three elements of a company's competitive position include which of the following?

A)Its downsizing strategies.
B)Its ethical code of conduct and position on social responsibility.
C)Its creation of distinctive capabilities.
D)Self-managing work teams.
E)Coping with its external environment.

Question 14

Transferring responsibility and decision-making authority from central office staff to the people closest to the situation that demands attention is an example of:

A)decentralization.
B)corporate restructuring.
C)the effect of the evolving nature of work roles.
D)downsizing.
E)outsourcing.

Question 15

One potential pitfall of decentralizing a firm is:

A)the inflexibility that decentralizing a firm causes.
B)the few opportunities it leaves for employees to move up the company hierarchy.
C)more layers of management will need to be created, thereby slowing flow of communication between authorities and local managers.
D)a decrease in clear communication between the firm authority and local employees may lead to insecurity and a lack of focus within the firm.
E)dissatisfaction among employees who want more responsibility and decision-making authority.

Question 16

The current trend to downsize results in:

A)higher commitment levels among employees as they try to perform in such a way as to prevent being laid off.
B)an increased poor performance stigma for those laid off.
C)significantly decreased HRM costs due to outplacement and unemployment claims.
D)increased social problemsfor local governments and companies to deal with.
E)increased diversity among the workforce and those firms dealing with layoffs.

Question 17

Organizational restructuring over the past two decades has led to:

A)hybrid organizations with diverse histories and workforces.
B)fewer job opportunities for women and minorities.
C)more managers and fewer laborers as automation eliminates lower-level jobs.
D)more megacorporations with multiple layers of management.
E)greater entrepreneurship.

Question 18

Tammy has a small jam-and-jelly business and has joined up with Hillside Farm to produce "Hillside Farm Preserves." This type of partnership is called:

A)co-laboring.
B)a joint venture.
C)cooperative marketing.
D)a business cooperative.
E)downsizing.

Question 19

In 2000, mergers and acquisitions will have reached a new peak of:

A)$100 billion.
B)$150 billion.
C)$1 trillion.
D)$1.5 trillion.
E)$2 trillion.

Question 20

Small businesses have grown over the last decade. This growth may be attributed to a number of factors, including:

A)minorities breaking the glass ceiling.
B)the increase in "intrapreneurship" in large corporations.
C)large corporations becoming less attractive places to work, due to layoffs and fewer management opportunities.
D)the growth and development of organizational cultures because of extensive restructuring in American corporations.
E)the globalization of the marketplace.