Deck 11: Performance Management Systems

Question 1

The more a manager uses positive motivational techniques (e.g.,recognizing and praising good performance),the more satisfied the employee is likely to be with the appraisal interview and with the manager.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Most BARS use the term job dimension to mean those broad categories of duties and responsibilities that make up a job.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Management by objectives requires that employees participate in the process of performance evaluation by helping to set objectives.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

Leniency is the tendency of a manager to rate most employees' performance near the middle of the performance scale.

Question 5

In the context of a personal improvement plan,the question "Where are we now?" is answered in the performance appraisal process.

Question 6

It is generally accepted that performance appraisals should be completed two or three times a year for most employees.

Question 7

Behaviorally anchored rating scales are designed to reduce halo,leniency,and central tendency errors.

Question 8

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act permits the use of a bona fide performance appraisal system.

Question 9

The checklist method of performance evaluation is very complicated to administer and is therefore seldom used.

Question 10

The work standards approach to performance evaluation is most frequently used for production level employees.

Question 11

The critical-incident appraisal method requires the evaluator to keep a written record of job behaviors that illustrate both satisfactory and unsatisfactory performance of the employee being rated.

Question 12

Generally,one of the responsibilities of managers in performance appraisals is to maintain a reporting system to ensure that appraisals are conducted on a timely basis.

Question 13

An understanding of job descriptions is crucial in conducting performance appraisals.

Question 14

The Civil Service Reform Act permits the use of ranking methods for federal employees.

Question 15

The halo effect occurs when a rater allows a single prominent characteristic of an employee to influence his/her judgment on each separate item in the performance appraisal.

Question 16

The only necessary condition for high level performance is ability.

Question 17

Ability refers to the amount of energy an individual uses in performing a task.

Question 18

The most common practice in the checklist method of performance appraisals requires the evaluator to rank a set of statements describing how an employee carries out the duties and responsibilities of the job.

Question 19

A major advantage of BARS includes their simplicity and ease of development.

Question 20

The focus of behaviorally anchored rating scale (BARS)and,to some extent,the graphic rating scale and checklist methods of performance appraisal is primarily on performance outcomes.

Question 21

An employee's lack of time or conflicting demands upon it,inadequate work facilities and equipment,restrictive policies that affect the job,lack of cooperation from others,type of supervision,temperature,lighting,noise,machine or equipment pacing,shifts,and even luck,are all examples of:

A)task perceptions as they relate to performance.
B)how the ability of the individual employee impacts performance.
C)the impact of appraisal systems on employee performance.
D)environmental factors as performance obstacles.

Question 22

Performance management systems present a more powerful incentive for diligent work when linked to the:

A)vendor contract negotiations.
B)unstated agenda of the hierarchy.
C)organizational reward system.
D)formal organization chart.

Question 23

Which of the following is an advantage of the BARS method of performance appraisal?

A)They are developed through the active participation of both managers and job incumbents.
B)A major advantage of BARS includes their simplicity and ease of development.
C)As they are recorded over time,the incidents provide a basis for evaluating performance and providing feedback to the employee.
D)Similar types of forms are developed for different jobs.

Question 24

Which method is more commonly reserved for appraisal of managers/professionals?

A)Management by objectives
B)Graphic rating scale
C)Critical-incident appraisal
D)Behaviorally anchored rating scale

Question 25

Which of the following is a typical responsibility of a human resources department regarding performance management?

A)Complete the forms used in appraising employees
B)Train managers in conducting performance appraisals
C)Review appraisals with employees
D)Evaluate the performance of employees

Question 26

The degree of task accomplishments that make up a job is termed:

A)performance.
B)win-win.
C)efficiency.
D)goal setting.

Question 27

Determinants of performance include all of the following EXCEPT:

A)role perception.
B)effort.
C)ability.
D)self-concept.

Question 28

Which of the following is a typical step in the MBO process?

A)Developing an operational plan indicating how objectives are to be achieved
B)Measuring objective achievement
C)Allowing the employee to implement the operational plan
D)Taking preventive action when necessary

Question 29

The _____ appraisal method requires that the evaluation describe an employee's performance in written narrative form.

A)essay
B)MBO
C)MBA
D)critical incident

Question 30

____ refers to the amount of energy (physical and/or mental)an individual uses in performing a task.

A)Ability
B)Optimization
C)Perception
D)Effort

Question 31

Which of the following employee ranking systems assumes the performance level in a group of employees will be distributed according to a bell-shaped,or "normal," curve?

A)Forced distribution
B)Free determination
C)Paired comparison
D)Alternation

Question 32

Which of the following Acts does not permit the use of ranking methods for federal employees?

A)Employee Free Choice Act
B)The Federal Labor Relations Act
C)The Civil Service Reform Act
D)The National Labor Relations Act

Question 33

Which of the following methods is also referred to as multi-rater assessment?

A)360-degree feedback
B)Essay appraisal
C)Critical-incident appraisal
D)Behaviorally anchored rating scale

Question 34

This rating method attempts to eliminate evaluator bias by making the rater rank statements that are seemingly indistinguishable or unrelated.

A)Forced-choice rating
B)Graphic rating scale
C)360-degree feedback
D)Critical-incident appraisal

Question 35

Environmental factors should be viewed as:

A)direct determinants of performance.
B)modifying effects of effort,ability,and direction.
C)the sole responsibility of employees,not their managers.
D)mere excuses to shortcomings in performance.

Question 36

In the checklist appraisal method,the rater indicates judgments using:

A)identical listings for every job category.
B)paragraphs to describe relevant situations.
C)yes-or-no responses.
D)selection of agreement on a five-point scale.

Question 37

Jim,an operating manager at a financial services firm,is conducting a performance appraisal of the employees in his department,ranking them from the most to the least valuable.He lists the names of the employees to be rated on the left side of a sheet of paper.Then he chooses the most valuable employee on the list,crosses that name off the left-hand list,and puts it at the top of the column on the right-hand side of the paper.Next,he selects and crosses off the name of the least valuable employee from the left-hand column and moves it to the bottom of the right-hand column.Jim repeats this process for all of the names on the left-hand side of the paper.The resulting list of names in the right-hand column gives a ranking of the employees from most to least valuable.Identify the ranking method Jim is using.

A)Paired comparison ranking
B)Forced distribution
C)Alternation ranking
D)Central tendency distribution

Question 38

The process of evaluating and communicating to an employee how he/she is performing on the job is referred to as:

A)job evaluation.
B)performance communication.
C)performance appraisal.
D)management by objectives.

Question 39

Which of the following is a major weakness of the graphic rating scale method?

A)The evaluator is generally not aware of the weights associated with each question.
B)The rater is required to jot down incidents regularly,which can be burdensome and time-consuming.
C)This method may lead to friction between the manager and employees when the employees believe the manager is keeping a "book" on them.
D)Evaluators are unlikely to interpret written descriptions in the same manner due to differences in background,experience,and personality.

Question 40

Personal characteristics used in performing a job are called:

A)effort.
B)ability.
C)needs.
D)efficiencies.

Question 41

Which of the following is an error that occurs in performance appraisals when a manager's ratings are grouped at the positive end instead of being spread throughout the performance scale?

A)Leniency
B)Central tendency
C)Halo effect
D)Recency

Question 42

The _____ approach to performance appraisal is most frequently used for production employees and is basically a form of goal setting for these employees.

A)MBO
B)MBA
C)essay appraisal
D)work standards

Question 43

Describe the behaviorally anchored rating scales (BARS).

Question 44

Describe the forced distribution method of performance appraisal.

Question 45

Thomas had been consistently meeting all his deadlines and performance standards over the past year,except for the last six weeks,when he was struggling with health issues.Thomas's manager turned in a poor performance appraisal based on his performance over the last month.Which of the following errors in performance appraisals does this case reflect?

A)Leniency
B)Central tendency
C)Halo effect
D)Recency

Question 46

Explain the performance appraisal process and the uses of performance appraisal data.

Question 47

One of the more promising approaches to overcoming performance appraisal errors is to:

A)improve appraisers' rating skills.
B)focus more on the particular instruments and less on overall performance.
C)raise the tolerance level for errors.
D)use a single,uniform method of appraisal.

Question 48

List ten environmental factors that may act as performance obstacles.

Question 49

Describe ways of overcoming errors in performance appraisals.

Question 50

Which of the following is a suggestion for making performance appraisal systems more legally acceptable?

A)Derive the content of the appraisal system from job analyses.
B)Emphasize personal traits rather than work behaviours.
C)Ensure that the results of appraisals are not divulged to employees.
D)Ensuring that personnel decisions are separated from performance appraisals.

Question 51

Describe potential errors in performance appraisals.

Question 52

_____ is the inclination of a manager to rate most employees' performance near the middle of the performance scale.

A)Leniency error
B)Central tendency error
C)Recency
D)Halo effect

Question 53

Which of the following is an error that occurs in performance appraisals when a rater allows a single prominent characteristic of an employee to influence his or her judgment on each separate item in the performance appraisal?

A)Leniency
B)Central tendency
C)Halo effect
D)Recency

Question 54

What are some determinants of performance?

Question 55

Which of the following is most important in performing and conducting an evaluation of job performance?

A)The employee's personality
B)Concentrating on employee weaknesses
C)Knowing the job description of the employee
D)The manager must be subjective and specific

Question 56

Describe the essay performance appraisal.

Question 57

In the work standards approach to performance appraisal,standards usually reflect:

A)highly subjective factors.
B)the benchmark of highest achievers in the job category.
C)adaptations to office and service job types.
D)average output of a typical employee.

Question 58

Describe management by objectives (MBO).

Question 59

Which of the following is an advantage of the work standards approach to performance review?

A)It is based on highly objective factors.
B)It is best suited for evaluating managers and professionals.
C)It is based primarily on managerial judgment of individual employee performance.
D)It sets the benchmark against the standards of the highest performers.