Deck 5: Individualorganization Relations and Retention

Question 1

A(n) _____ refers to the unwritten expectations that both employees and employers have about the nature of their work relationships.

A) employment contract
B) psychological contract
C) non-compete agreement
D) effort-performance linkage

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Which of the following is considered to be a motivator by the motivator/hygiene theory?

A) Company policy
B) Administration
C) Advancement
D) Salary

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Which of the following is considered to be a hygiene factor by the motivator/hygiene theory?

A) Achievement
B) Recognition
C) Responsibility
D) Salary

Answer 3

D

Question 4

_____ is a goal-directed drive, and is defined as the desire within a person causing that person to act.

A) Attention
B) Motivation
C) Calibre
D) Aptitude

Question 5

Which of the following is considered to be an outcome by the equity theory?

A) Age
B) Prestige
C) Experience
D) Productivity

Question 6

According to Maslow's need theory, the highest human need is the need for:

A) self-esteem.
B) safety.
C) self-actualization.
D) love.

Question 7

According to Maslow, once a person has fulfilled his or her safety needs, he would immediately proceed to fulfill his:

A) physiological needs.
B) belonging needs.
C) actualization needs.
D) esteem needs.

Question 8

Which of the following is considered to be a motivator by the motivator/hygiene theory?

A) Interpersonal relationships
B) Recognition
C) Working conditions
D) Supervision

Question 9

Which of the following is a tangible item in a psychological contract?

A) Loyalty
B) Nondiscriminatory treatment
C) Job security
D) Wages

Question 10

Which of the following is an intangible item in a psychological contract?

A) Salary
B) Benefits
C) Attendance
D) Loyalty

Question 11

Which of the following is used by employers to address the issue of job satisfaction among employees?

A) The halo affect
B) The Hawthorne effect
C) A whistle-blower survey
D) An attitude survey

Question 12

Which of the following is considered to be an input by the equity theory?

A) Educational level
B) Pay
C) Awards
D) Recognition

Question 13

At Lumina Corporation, benefits for employees include an employer-sponsored insurance coverage. The medical expenses of employees are covered entirely by the company in case of any accidents. In this case, which of the following needs in Maslow's hierarchy is the management in Lumina Corporation trying to fulfill?

A) Physiological needs
B) Safety and security needs
C) Actualization needs
D) Belonging and love needs

Question 14

Frederick Herzberg proposed the:

A) need theory.
B) expectancy theory.
C) equity theory.
D) motivation/hygiene theory.

Question 15

According to Herzberg's motivation/hygiene theory _____ is a hygiene factor.

A) Advancement
B) Recognition
C) Responsibility
D) Working condition

Question 16

Which of the following needs of employees do motivators, described by the two-factor theory, primarily try to fulfill?

A) Physiological needs
B) Belonging needs
C) Safety needs
D) Esteem needs

Question 17

_____ is defined as the perceived fairness of what a person does compared with what the person receives.

A) Equity
B) Motivation
C) Need
D) Expectation

Question 18

Which of the following is an intangible item in a psychological contract?

A) Wages
B) Benefits
C) Attendance
D) Fair treatment

Question 19

Which of the following theorists developed the need theory?

A) Frederick Herzberg
B) Lyman Porter
C) Abraham Maslow
D) Carl Jung

Question 20

According to Maslow's need theory, which of the following needs will a person strive to fulfill first?

A) Physiological needs
B) Safety and security needs
C) Actualization needs
D) Belonging and love needs

Question 21

Arden Insurance's claims processing facility has been a major employer in the town of Arbor for over 20 years, drawing mainly on workers with minimal skills and education. A large telemarketing firm is about to set up its business at Arden and it is planning to employ low-skilled workers. Which of the following statements is true in this case?

A) As Arden and the marketing firm belong to different industries, the impact on Arden's workforce will be minimal since workers rarely switch between industries.
B) The trained workforce will not leave even if the telemarketing firm offers higher pay than Arden.
C) If Arden cannot offer higher wages, it needs to make sure that its current employees are satisfied with the intangible aspects of their jobs in order to retain them.
D) Workers in small towns tend to be loyal to their employers and hence, Arden's current employees are likely to stay with Arden.

Question 22

CLASS, a newly-opened real estate agency, has twenty employees on its payroll. In June 2012, Jane and Selin, each took three days of leave of absence from work. What was the absenteeism rate of the company in June 2012?

A) 3
B) 6
C) 1
D) 2

Question 23

Jane quit Cover Corp. without completing a high-priority project that she was handling. Due to her unavailability, the four remaining members of her team had to work overtime and they demanded adequate compensation to justify their extra hours of work. In this case, the amount subsequently paid to them best exemplifies:

A) separation costs.
B) vacancy costs.
C) replacement costs.
D) training costs.

Question 24

Which of the following is a replacement cost that is caused by turnover in a company?

A) Cost of training materials
B) Employee referral fees
C) Overtime paid to existing employees
D) Time spent in an exit interview

Question 25

Which of the following exemplifies voluntary turnover?

A) Jake a student intern at CL Corp. leaves the organization after his internship period is over.
B) Paul, an employee of NML Corp. for five years, was fired owing to noncompliance with company policies.
C) Karen is asked to resign by her manager due to her deteriorating performance.
D) Gerald gets passed over for promotion twice despite being good at his job, and hence he decides to leave the organization.

Question 26

Which of the following statements is true about turnover?

A) It is illegal for an employer to continue to hire new employees while laying off other employees.
B) When key individuals leave the firm, the turnover is often functional because they no longer act as a brake on the introduction of new technology and new work processes.
C) The turnover of poor performers is considered functional.
D) Organizations have little control over involuntary turnover.

Question 27

The number of absences per 100 employees each day is known as the:

A) inactivity rate.
B) incidence rate.
C) severity rate.
D) compensation rate.

Question 28

Which of the following cases exemplifies involuntary turnover?

A) Jane worked hard on a project for four months, but when the project got shelved, she felt demotivated and quit the company.
B) Lisa loved her job, but quit when she noticed that a lot of employees were being laid off.
C) Mary announced her retirement a day after her 40th birthday.
D) Pauline was asked to leave the company due to poor performance on a project that incurred huge losses for her firm.

Question 29

In which of the following cases is an employer applying the principles of positive reinforcement to curb absenteeism.

A) He is conducting a company-wide session on the leave policy of the company.
B) He is issuing a written warning to an employee for taking a lot of uninformed leaves of absence.
C) He is giving cash to employees for meeting attendance standards.
D) He is offering supportive guidance and personal counseling for employees who do not meet the attendance standards of the company.

Question 30

Carlos, the HR director of a large paper manufacturing company, is studying the financial costs of turnover of plant personnel at all levels. The easily calculable costs are sobering, but Carlos is also concerned about the hidden costs of turnover that generally include:

A) missed project deadlines.
B) co-worker coaching and salaries.
C) the cost of pre-employment medical tests.
D) the overtime paid to employees covering the separated employees' jobs.

Question 31

WesternBioLabs Inc. is in the process of laying off 10% of its shipping and receiving employees. At the same time, it is hiring new hourly staff for night shifts. Which of the following terms best describes this process?

A) Churn
B) Licensing
C) Takeover
D) Franchising

Question 32

Which of the following is a direct cost of absenteeism?

A) Replacement for absent worker
B) Lower productivity
C) Replacement training
D) Slower work pace

Question 33

Churn refers to the practice of hiring:

A) new employees while laying off others.
B) only those employees who have more than five years of prior experience in a similar industry.
C) through realistic job previews.
D) employees on a short-term contract basis.

Question 34

Lumina Corporation began operations in 2011 with 4900 employees. During the first half of that year, the company did not see any attrition. Profits were high, and the training and orientation programs were efficient. New hiring continued at a healthy pace and by mid-year, the employee strength of the company was 5000. However, in the second half of that year, 200 employees were laid off, and no new hiring took place. The turnover rate at Lumina Corporation in 2011 was _____.

A) 50%
B) 25%
C) 4%
D) 2%

Question 35

At Piaffe Products 15 employees had quit and an additional 10 were fired for poor performance in the year during 2010. The mid-year employee count was 50 for that year. Piaffe's turnover rate for the year 2010 was _____.

A) 10%
B) 20%
C) 30%
D) 50%

Question 36

Mark was terminated by his company because of his poor client relations skills that resulted in a major client leaving the firm for a competitor. This is an example of:

A) involuntary turnover.
B) positive turnover.
C) uncontrollable turnover.
D) dysfunctional turnover.

Question 37

Alice, an efficient waitress at a moderately-priced family restaurant, consistently gets the lowest tips from customers. She announces that she is quitting to take another job at a newly-opened casino. This best exemplifies a(n) _____ turnover.

A) functional
B) controllable
C) involuntary
D) positive

Question 38

The average time lost per absent employee during a specified period of time is known as the:

A) inactivity rate.
B) incidence rate.
C) severity rate.
D) compensation rate.

Question 39

Luminia Inc. has about five absences per 100 employees each day. Every day, it loses about 13% of its time due to absenteeism. The average percent of time lost per absent employee in the company is 34% every month. In this case, the inactivity rate of the company is _____.

A) 5%
B) 13%
C) 34%
D) 20%

Question 40

A software firm plans to reduce the number of talented designers in its workforce who leave their jobs. In this case, the firm seeks to focus on _____ turnover among the designers.

A) uncontrollable
B) positive
C) functional
D) voluntary

Question 41

According to the equity theory, the outcomes described in equity theory are always tangible.

Question 42

According to the two-factor theory, addressing hygiene factors in an organization ensures that employees are motivated to work harder.

Question 43

According to the two-factor theory, interpersonal relationships are considered to be motivators.

Question 44

Employee productivity is a tangible aspect of psychological contracts.

Question 45

Older employees tend to have lower job satisfaction than younger employees.

Question 46

One of the determinant of employees' willingness to exert effort is the degree to which they value the rewards offered by an organization.

Question 47

Employers can address job satisfaction by regularly surveying employees.

Question 48

According to Maslow's need theory, an employee strives to satisfy his or her higher order needs first.

Question 49

According to Maslow's need theory, motivation is a goal-directed drive, and it seldom occurs in a void.

Question 50

If the compensation for a job is within _____ of the market rate, it is considered to be competitive pay.

A) 10% to 15%
B) 5% to 20%
C) 5% to 8%
D) 8% to 10%

Question 51

It is important to focus more on getting employees in their first year to stay because:

A) those who stay for a year are more likely to extend their employment.
B) first-year employees are the most productive in an organization.
C) first-year employees are more knowledgeable than older employees.
D) first-year employees are more committed to organizational goals than older employees.

Question 52

Which of the following is the first step in the process of managing retention?

A) Measurement and assessment
B) Management intervention
C) Evaluation and follow up
D) Tracking of intervention results

Question 53

In the current year, many talented teachers have submitted their resignation notices in Sunnydale High School. The president of the school management board is in a fix at this attrition even when the school pays competitive wages to its teachers. In this case, which of the following is the best recommendation for the president to follow?

A) Money is the main reason people stay in a job, so the school needs to consider how to raise salaries even higher.
B) When pay is competitive, other job factors have more impact on turnover and need to be considered and improved.
C) In service sector jobs, people are motivated more by the psychological aspects of the work than by tangible rewards.
D) Teachers usually leave their jobs due to involuntary turnover, so pay is not a big factor in their retention.

Question 54

The performance-reward linkage described in the expectancy theory of motivation refers to employees' beliefs that working harder will lead to better performance.

Question 55

Psychological contracts between employers and employees are similar across cultures.

Question 56

_____ is defined as the percentage of employees at the beginning of a period who remain at the end.

A) Retention rate
B) Turnover rate
C) Absenteeism ratio
D) Productivity rate

Question 57

How does an exit interview help in employee retention efforts?

A) By providing managers and supervisors with information for improving company efforts to reduce employee turnover.
B) By providing managers and supervisors with information to increase involuntary turnover
C) By providing managers and supervisors with information to control involuntary turnover
D) By providing managers and supervisors with information to increase the incidence rate of the company

Question 58

In a(n) _____ interview, individuals are asked to identify their reasons for leaving an organization.

A) situational
B) feedback
C) appraisal
D) exit

Question 59

A financial services firm conducted an attitude survey. It was found that although employees were generally satisfied with their pay, they were dissatisfied with the organization's management style, promotion practices, and training programs. To manage these concerns, it is recommended that the director of HR:

A) work toward finding the employees who had given the negative feedback and increase their salaries.
B) announce the positive results of the survey, while beginning to work in private on solutions to the problems revealed in the survey.
C) hold group meetings with employees to convey the positive and negative survey results and get suggestions for improvements.
D) communicate the positive survey results, and argue against the negative results.

Question 60

_____ is an intangible reward for performance.

A) Promotion to a new position
B) Verbal praise from one's supervisor
C) A performance bonus
D) An opportunity for training

Question 61

Churn tends to have a negative impact on the remaining employees in an organization.

Question 62

A major reason for categorizing an employee's departure as functional rather than dysfunctional is his/her performance level.

Question 63

What are the three major factors that affect individual performance in organizations?

Question 64

Work rule violation is the most common reason for voluntary turnover.

Question 65

Hiring has little to do with retention.

Question 66

To increase employee satisfaction, the performance management systems and performance appraisal processes in organizations must be designed so they are linked to compensation increases.

Question 67

Functional turnover usually proves to be positive for organizations.

Question 68

Higher unemployment rates usually mean more dissatisfied employees in the workforce.

Question 69

Severity rate is defined as the percentage of time lost to absenteeism.

Question 70

Developing skills in employees increases the likelihood that the employees would quit an organization.

Question 71

Vacancy costs incurred by a company during turnover primarily include supervisory time, pay rates to prevent separations, and exit interview time.

Question 72

Insufficient pay is one of the reasons that lead to employee turnover.

Question 73

In situations where the financial impact of turnover is insignificant, a company needs to pay greater attention to reducing force loss.

Question 74

Customer dissatisfaction is a direct cost of absenteeism.

Question 75

Decreased customer service is a hidden cost of turnover.

Question 76

The reasons key people choose to stay with an employer are always the opposite of those that compel others to quit.

Question 77

Employees who stay for a year are more likely to extend their employment and have greater retention beyond the first year.

Question 78

It is common for turnover to be high among newer employees during their first year.

Question 79

Paid orientation time is a training cost involved in turnover.

Question 80

A no-fault policy in organizations allows employees to manage their own attendance.