Deck 15: HRM: Building a Top Quality Workforce

Question 1

Most observers object to the pay gap when top CEO pay is tied to performance.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

While many companies are ignoring the problem, the aging of baby boomers has caused some forward­thinking firms to develop policies designed to retain the best of these employees.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

The disadvantage of hiring younger workers is that they are close­minded and are not as good at multitasking as their older counterparts.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

In large companies, top management usually handles HR management in addition to its other responsibilities.

Question 5

CEO pay during 2011 was correlated to how well companies fared in the stock market.

Question 6

Many jobs disappeared entirely during the Great Recession as companies contracted out their work.

Question 7

From 2030, industries will face loss of key talent and experience through massive retirements of workers belonging to the Baby Boomer generation.

Question 8

Daryl is a human resource manager at a large corporation. In this position, his sole responsibility is to find ways to minimize his company's total expenditures on labor, including the costs involved in wages, salaries, benefits, recruitment, and training.

Question 9

In 2008 and 2009, many companies withdrew programs aimed at retaining their older workers, and this may leave some firms with a critical dearth of highly experienced workers when the economy revs back up.

Question 10

In 2011, the wage gap between chief executive's pay was approximately 30 to 40 times the average American worker's paycheck.

Question 11

Flexible schedules, training opportunities, and creative pay schedules were some of the programs adopted by major American companies to retain their younger workers before the Great Recession.

Question 12

Human resource management must operate under the constraint that the needs of other stakeholders must come before the needs of the employees.

Question 13

Companies that get the most from their people often consider their human resources their biggest investment.

Question 14

Boosting organizational effectiveness is one of the functions of the human resources management of a company.

Question 15

The United States has one of the lowest wage gaps of all developed countries.

Question 16

Human resource management is the management function focused on maximizing the effectiveness of the workforce by recruiting world­class talent, promoting career development, and determining workforce strategies to boost organizational effectiveness.

Question 17

In order to effectively develop an organization's workforce, human resource managers must work independently of other key managers within their organization.

Question 18

The goal of human resource management is to nurture an organization's human investment so that it yields the highest possible return.

Question 19

One of the advantages of hiring younger workers is that they tend to have a strong sense of loyalty and commitment to the organizations they join, which pays off in terms of lower worker turnover.

Question 20

The wage gap is bigger in the United Kingdom than in any other developed country.

Question 21

Younger workers have startlingly high expectations for their pay, their responsibilities, and their job flexibility, but little willingness to "pay dues."

Question 22

Even if a lawsuit is frivolous, and even if it's thrown out of court, it can still cost a company millions of dollars.

Question 23

Gabby works in the HR department for a well­known corporation. Though she deals with people rather than with revenue­generating products, her efforts can still impact the value of the firm to its stockholders.

Question 24

A job description defines the specific qualifications necessary to hold a particular position.

Question 25

Leading­edge firms expect every department including human resources to offer "big picture," strategic contributions that boost company value.

Question 26

To remain relevant, human resources executives must be able to raise the value of the organization's human capital.

Question 27

Middle­level managers usually demonstrate bias against worker flexibility programs, even when top management actively supports work­life balance programs.

Question 28

To gain respect from both senior management and their peers, human resources executives must make efforts to learn about their company.

Question 29

As a 54­year­old human resource manager who has gradually and patiently worked his way up the management ladder of his company, George Singleton is likely to find that the attitudes of many of his company's recently hired younger workers toward work, pay, and company loyalty are quite different from those held by most members of his generation.

Question 30

Human resource managers are generally held in very high regard by others within their organizations, because the human resources department generally attracts the best and brightest managerial talent in most companies.

Question 31

One problem faced by human resource managers is that employees in other areas of their companies often view the HR department as being either irrelevant or "the enemy."

Question 32

Hannah is interested in applying for a managerial job in her company, but she would like to know more about the nature of the position. In particular, she wonders whether it would involve much travel and whether she would have any direct interaction with the company's key customers. This type of information is likely to be included in the job description.

Question 33

One sign that senior management doesn't place much value on the human resources function in the organization is an organization chart that shows the HR department reporting to the CFO.

Question 34

While unfair treatment has been an issue for many years, recent legal changes have not made it any easier for women to sue their companies for any discrimination they face.

Question 35

Shelly Tiller is a human resource manager at a medium­sized corporation. She has noticed that managers in other departments seldom include her or the other HR managers in their planning efforts. This can likely be attributed to the fact that it is virtually impossible to quantify the financial impact HR functions have on the company's bottom line.

Question 36

Workers of all ages and both genders actively pursue more flexibility and work­life balance in their jobs.

Question 37

You can often tell if a company values the human resource function within the company based on the reporting relationship the HR manager has to the CEO or to the CFO.

Question 38

In response to the unfriendly business environment, many highly­qualified, professional women are leaving the workforce.

Question 39

Job analysis is the examination of specific tasks assigned to a position, independent of who might be holding the job at any specific time.

Question 40

Job specifications define the jobholder's responsibilities.

Question 41

Most companies now do a very careful and thorough job of checking references and backgrounds before they hire new employees.

Question 42

"If you realized that a co­worker was cheating on his expense report, how would you handle the situation?" is an example of a structured interview question.

Question 43

Roy Stewart wants to be an electrician but knows that before he can be hired as a fully qualified electrician, he must assist an experienced electrician for a period of two years before gaining full credentials to work in the field. This type of arrangement is an example of an apprenticeship program.

Question 44

In the United States, apprenticeships are fairly common in trades such as plumbing and bricklaying.

Question 45

Vestibule training is a type of off­the­job training that involves working with "real" equipment very similar to the equipment the worker will use on the job.

Question 46

The U.S. Census Bureau points out that a college degree typically doubles earning power.

Question 47

Skills testing, personality testing, drug testing, and physical exams are the main categories of employment testing instituted by a large number of companies.

Question 48

Cultural differences can affect a candidate's interview performance.

Question 49

A key drawback of computer­based training is that it takes a lot of discipline to complete an online program, and some people learn better through direct human interaction.

Question 50

On­the­job training is usually an effective first stage in the training of workers hired to perform complex and challenging jobs.

Question 51

Internal recruitment is the process of seeking employees within the firm to fill open positions.

Question 52

Firms that have seasonal business patterns are less likely to hire contingent workers than firms that have relatively stable employment patterns.

Question 53

Contingent workers are employees who specialize in certain areas of a particular job.

Question 54

A performance appraisal is a formal feedback process that requires managers to give their subordinates feedback on a one­to­one basis. Managers typically compare the subordinates' actual results to expected results.

Question 55

Management development helps current and potential executives develop the skills they need to move into leadership positions.

Question 56

In a structured interview process, interviewers should gear their specific questions toward behaviors and experiences that are key for the new position.

Question 57

Janice was hired to work on an assembly line at a manufacturing company. However, her supervisor has told her that before she works independently on the assembly line, she will have to complete some vestibule training. This means that she will be assigned to work under the direct supervision of a more experienced worker on the factory floor until that worker is convinced she can work effectively on her own.

Question 58

A firm that wants to tap new ideas and fresh perspectives is likely to find an internal recruitment approach to be the best way to fill positions.

Question 59

On­the­job training requires employees to simply begin their jobs and to learn as they go.

Question 60

Among the initial screening mechanisms, the written application is primarily a tool to reject unqualified candidates, rather than to actually choose qualified candidates.

Question 61

Two­thirds of employers feel telecommuting employees are far less productive than their office­bound colleagues because they spend too much time surfing the Internet.

Question 62

The law that prevents discrimination based on race, religion, color, sex, or national origin is the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Question 63

The EEOC regulates and enforces the acceptable behaviors organizations must demonstrate while hiring employees.

Question 64

Salary is the pay an employee receives over a fixed period, most often weekly or monthly. Most professional, administrative, and managerial jobs pay salaries.

Question 65

The bottom­line goal of most employment legislation is to protect employees from unfair treatment by employers.

Question 66

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 applies only to employers with fewer than 15 workers.

Question 67

"Extensive scheduling" is the term used for a version of flextime scheduling that allows employees to work a full­time number of hours in fewer days than the standard workweek.

Question 68

Ramona and Katie both work for the Julian Corporation and perform similar jobs. They earn the same wage, and the firm provides them with the same dollar value of benefits. But Ramona (who has young children) has opted to spend most of her benefit dollars on childcare, while Katie uses hers to pay for tuition at a local community college. The fact that the firm offers these options suggests that it provides a cafeteria­style benefits program.

Question 69

Andrea just graduated from college and is about to enter the workforce. Andrea should have no problem getting a job since employment levels have returned to pre­recession levels.

Question 70

Because of the increased costs associated with telecommuting, less than 50 percent of companies embrace the idea.

Question 71

TRhige hEtsE AOcCt owfa 1s 9e6s4ta. blished to enforce the provisions of Title VII of the Civil

Question 72

Telecommuting is working remotely and connecting to the office via phone lines, fax machines, and broadband networks.

Question 73

Benefits are noncash compensation, including programs such as health insurance, vacation, and childcare.

Question 74

The Family and Medical Leave Act is widely considered to be the most influential piece of employment legislation enacted during the 21st century.

Question 75

Flextime is a scheduling option that allows workers to choose when they start and finish their workday, as long as they complete the required number of hours.

Question 76

Wages refers to both pay and benefits.

Question 77

Cafeteria­style benefit programs are an approach to employee benefits that give each employee a set dollar amount that the employee must spend on company benefits. Employees can choose how to allocate the money among various possible benefits offered by the firm.

Question 78

Employers should always document sound business reasons for termination and share those reasons with the employee.

Question 79

The Fair Labor Standards Act prohibits discrimination in hiring, firing, or compensation based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.

Question 80

Compensation of workers includes the combination of pay and benefits that employees receive in exchange for their work.