Chapter 01 – Strategic Human Resource Management in a Changing Environment
[QUESTION]
35. The Valley National Bank exercise demonstrated that
A) An employee’s length of service should not be considered when making employment decisions.
B) Issues such as discrimination suits should never be talked about directly with the employee
making the claim.
C) Understanding an organization’s goals, strengths and weaknesses is critical to managing human
resources in order to gain a competitive advantage.
D) Compensation issues have no impact on employee morale.
E) Career planning is the sole responsibility of the employee, managers should never interfere.
36. The __________ challenge ascertains whether management fully understands how workforce
behaviors affect strategy execution.
A) metrics
B) perspective
C) execution
D) validation
E) globalization
37. The __________ challenge ascertains if the managers have identified and collected the right
measures of success.
A) metrics
B) perspective
C) execution
D) validation
E) Globalization
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manner. This document may not be copied, scanned, duplicated, forwarded, distributed, or posted on a website, in whole or part.
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38. ______ is measured by, the level of employee satisfaction regarding working conditions,
recognition and encouragement for good work, opportunities to perform well, and commitment
to quality.
A) Validity
B) 360 degree feedback
C) Meta-analysis
D) Engagement
E) Social responsibility
39. If a company is able to offer a higher quality product at a lower price than its competition
because of a well designed employee selection process and incentive system, their
A) competitive advantage will decrease
B) customer value will increase
C) corporate sustainability will decrease
D) vulnerability to lawsuits will increase
E) financial performance will decrease
40. Which two major principles describe the extent to which a business has a competitive
advantage?
A) Strategic goals and sound measurement
B) Strategic goals and workforce
C) Quantity and quality of products/services
D) Sound measurement and uniqueness
E) Perceived customer value and uniqueness
© 2013 by McGraw-Hill Education. This is proprietary material solely for authorized instructor use. Not authorized for sale or distribution in any
manner. This document may not be copied, scanned, duplicated, forwarded, distributed, or posted on a website, in whole or part.
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41. The value chain analysis can be used to:
A) refocus the organization on its core competencies and the requirements of the customer base.
B) focus on understanding customer needs and expectations.
C) describe the extent to which a business has a competitive advantage.
D) formulate strategies that place it in a favorable position relative to other companies in the
industry.
E) understand customer needs and expectations.
42. It is necessary to use quantitative analysis to determine the ______ of HRM methodology.
This allows managers to know if a methodology is predicting something important.
A) validity,
B) efficiencies
C) scorecard
D) global reach
E) expectations
43. Graphology was not found to be a(n) _____ method to predict future employee _______,
A) valid, demographics
B) valid, success
C) formal, success
D) technological, flexibility
E) formal, demographics
44. The following is not a characteristic of a HPWP:
A) Large number of highly qualified applicants for each strategic position
B) Extensive training and development of new employees
C) Low differential in pay between high and low performers
D) Low percentage of employees covered by union contract
E) Above market compensation for key positions
© 2013 by McGraw-Hill Education. This is proprietary material solely for authorized instructor use. Not authorized for sale or distribution in any
manner. This document may not be copied, scanned, duplicated, forwarded, distributed, or posted on a website, in whole or part.
1-12
45. If an organization identifies a function that is not a core competency, they may consider
_____.
A) increasing funding to that function
B) hiring more employees to increase the efficiency of the function
C) increasing the compensation for the employees in that function
D) outsourcing that function to an outside company that specializes in that function
E) dedicating more managerial talent to that function
46. HRM is concerned with ensuring that ___________.
A) employees are happy and pampered and offered benefits above market
B) employees that are engaged and productive are retained
C) employees are given extra benefits if they are in a particular demographic group
D) technology is used in a minimal way when it comes to managing employee performance
E) increases in employee compensation is based strictly on seniority
47. Research has shown that there is_____ between HR metrics and business success metrics
such as productivity, customer satisfaction and sales.
A) a quantifiable connection
B) not a connection
C) a temporary connection
D) not a permanent linkage
E) only a negative relationship
Chapter 01 – Strategic Human Resource Management in a Changing Environment
Essay Questions
[QUESTION]
48. Describe how technology impacts HR services, including communication, access to
information, and measurement of HR activities.
Answer: Technology is revolutionizing many HRM activities. Many organizations are now using
extensive software packages to aid in recruitment and personnel management. Many HR
[QUESTION]
49. Describe the six steps necessary for an organization to develop a “workforce scorecard.”
50. List a few common activities that are part of the organizational design HRM domain.
Chapter 01 – Strategic Human Resource Management in a Changing Environment
[QUESTION]
51. Discuss how organizational commitment, job satisfaction, employee engagement and other
so–called “soft” measures are relevant to an organization’s bottom-line.
Answer: Human resource activities, practices and research typically focus on a relatively small
number of criteria or outcome measures. However, these measures can be fined-tuned on the
quality of their measurement and the extent to which they are related to customer satisfaction and
[QUESTION]
52. Describe the discrepancies between HRM practice and the recommendations from academic
research.
Chapter 01 – Strategic Human Resource Management in a Changing Environment
[QUESTION]
53. Why is measurement so important for effective HRM?
Answer: Sound measurement is a key to effective management. Good measurement, allied with
business strategies, will help organizations select and improve their HRM activities and provide
[QUESTION]
54. What are the four trends relevant to the growing importance for HRM and why have they
increased HRM’s status?
55. List three to five characteristics of High-Performance Work Practices (HPWP) and tell how
you think they are related to corporate financial performance.
56. List a 3 to 5 major Human Resources Management (HRM) responsibilities.
Chapter 01 – Strategic Human Resource Management in a Changing Environment
[QUESTION]
57. What are examples of high-performance work practices (HPWP)?