Fundamentals of HR Management, 8e (Noe)
Chapter 2 Trends in Human Resource Management
1) The members of Generation X are characterized by their comfort with the latest technology,
and the need to be noticed, respected, and involved.
2) Individuals who arrive in the United States without meeting the legal requirements for
immigration or asylum are referred to as undocumented immigrants.
3) A large gap exists between the social system and the technical system in high-performance
work systems.
4) Skilled knowledge workers generally do not have job opportunities in a slow economy.
5) Successful organizations treat all their workers as knowledge workers.
6) The use of employee empowerment has shifted the recruiting focus away from general
cognitive and interpersonal skills toward technical skills.
7) Virtual teams rely on communications technology such as videoconferences, e-mail, and cell
phones to keep in touch and coordinate activities.
8) Traditional management thinking treated human resource management primarily as a means to
support a company’s strategy.
9) When two companies merge, HRM plays an important role that includes preparing employees
to resolve conflicts.
10) InTime Corp., a major watch manufacturer, purchases Antec Inc., a smaller company that
makes watch bands. Following this purchase, the watch band operations are performed by the
Antec Division of InTime Corp. This scenario is an example of an acquisition.
11) When two firms in one industry join together to hold a greater share of the industry, it
represents a consolidation.
12) Total quality management is intended to bring about a continuous process of quality
improvement.
13) Total quality management proposes that every employee in the organization receive training
in quality.
14) Early retirement programs are one of the most effective approaches to downsizing.
15) A Chicago-based company shifts its warehouses and operations to a low-rent area that is 50
miles away. This is an example of offshoring.
16) Rajat, an Indian citizen, works for an automobile company in India. Currently, he is in the
United States to work on a project at the company’s office in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In this
scenario, Rajat is regarded as an expatriate.
17) The processing and transmission of digitized human resource information is called electronic
human resource management.
18) Under the new type of psychological contract, organizations expect employees to contribute
time, effort, skills, abilities, and loyalty in return for job security and opportunities for promotion
within the organization.
19) Employees’ job security has increased as a result of the new psychological contract.
20) Parkers Appliances wants to improve the quality of and lower the costs in its service
department. A strategy being considered involves directing technicians on exactly how to
complete service calls, which should improve customer service in addition to lowering labor
costs. In addition, the technicians will work under a contract so the company doesn’t have to pay
the employer’s share of Social Security for those workers. Is this a possible strategy for Parkers
Appliances to employ?
21) The external labor market consists of
A) contract workers in the organization.
B) current employees of the organization.
C) individuals who are actively seeking employment.
D) employees who have direct contact with customers.
E) employees of the immediate competitors of the organization.
22) Which scenario exemplifies an individual in the external labor market?
A) Sarah, a contract worker, working for a certain period specified in a written contract
B) Drew, a temporary worker, being paid by a company for his services
C) Morgan, an engineering graduate, looking for a job
D) Silas, an employee, going through training
E) Jamaal, an employee, securing his financial services certification
23) Name the agency that is responsible for tracking changes in the composition of the U.S. labor
force and forecasting employment trends.
A) the National Statistics Association
B) the Occupational Outlook Bureau
C) the U.S. Census Bureau
D) the Bureau of Economic Analysis
E) the Bureau of Labor Statistics
24) Samuel Homes wants to expand rapidly by building homes in major markets throughout the
United States. Which forecast by the Bureau of Labor Statistics presents the most significant
challenge to rapid expansion?
A) whites continuing to be the largest racial group
B) more women participating in the paid labor force
C) Asian-Americans being the fastest-growing racial group
D) greater racial and ethnic diversity
E) a slowing growth rate for the U.S. civilian labor force
25) Identify the correct statement regarding the composition of the U.S. labor force during the
projected 2016–2026 period.
A) The labor force is expected to grow at a greater rate than at any other time in U.S. history.
B) The largest proportion of the labor force is expected to be in the 16- to 25-year age group.
C) The segment of the workforce nearing retirement age will hold steady.
D) Despite a small increase in the number of young workers, the overall workforce will be aging.
E) The total workforce of the United States will considerably decrease.
26) Hadley, a business researcher, believes that organizations will have to spend a lot of money
on employee health care in the future. Her colleague Owen argues that organizations will not
have to increase their spending on employee health care benefits. Which statement weakens
Owen’s argument?
A) The labor force is expected to grow at a greater rate by 2026 than at any other time in U.S.
history.
B) The largest proportion of the labor force is expected to be in the 16- to 25-year age group.
C) The fastest-growing age group is workers 16–25, who are prone to having accidents.
D) The fastest-growing share of the workforce is at least 55 years old.
E) The total cost of labor in the United States will decrease considerably in the near future.
27) In high-tech industries, such as computer software development, employers press the federal
government for immigration laws that allow for a greater supply of foreign-born workers. What
is the main reason these companies cite for that effort?
A) There is a lack of adequate technology in the United States.
B) Undocumented immigrants work harder than U.S. citizens.
C) Qualified technical workers are scarce in the United States.
D) U.S. workers do not want this physically demanding work.
E) The size of the U.S. workforce is declining.
28) Managing cultural diversity involves
A) forming different pay structures for various groups.
B) creating separate career tracks for employees with families.
C) avoiding the use of affirmative action policies.
D) reducing cultural diversity by selective hiring.
E) encouraging career development for women and minorities.
29) Given the increasing use of computers to do routine tasks, which skill is most likely to be
actively sought by U.S. employers today?
A) physical strength
B) mastery of a particular piece of machinery
C) interpersonal skills
D) ability to perform routine tasks
E) ability to work with a tool
30) Which term refers to organizations that have the best possible fit between their social system
and their technical system?
A) workforce analysis systems
B) holistic management systems
C) supply chain systems
D) high-performance work systems
E) total quality management systems
31) Baker Corp., a financial services company, specializes in customers’ preferences and cost-
efficient processes. They also encourage self-managing teams that make all decisions regarding
business development and the sale of services to their customers. The firm ensures that there is a
good fit between its work system and its people. This scenario implies that Baker has a
A) workforce analysis system.
B) high-performance work system.
C) supply chain system.
D) total quality management system.
E) holistic management system.
32) How has the requirement for creating high-performance work systems changed?
A) There is a drive toward low-cost strategy in the labor market.
B) Employees prefer implementation of a 40-hour workweek.
C) Competitors are looking for ways to standardize prices in their respective industries.
D) Employers are looking for ways to tap people’s creativity and interpersonal skills.
E) Customers are demanding standardized products over customized products.
33) What is a characteristic of current-day high-performance work systems?
A) mismatches in technical system and social system
B) employee empowerment in decision making
C) increase in individual assignments
D) centralized decision making
E) reduced reliance on knowledge workers
34) The growth in e-commerce and the information economy has led to an increase in the
demand for employees in
A) technical jobs.
B) mining and resource extraction.
C) agriculture.
D) service occupations.
E) manufacturing.
35) Which statement is correct regarding skilled knowledge workers?
A) They do not have considerable autonomy to make decisions.
B) They are most likely to experience a lack of opportunities in a slow economy.
C) They are not easily replaced because they own the knowledge that the company requires to
produce its products.
D) They are not expected to be technically efficient and are only involved in direct interactions
with customers.
E) They do not have a lot of job opportunities because employers can simply order these
employees to perform tasks.
36) Sean works at Rowen Corp., an environmentally conscious apparel manufacturing company.
He primarily focuses on the tastes and needs of the firm’s customers. He achieves this by
managing a team that regularly interacts with customers through various promotional activities
and events. He also provides insights on how to produce eco-friendly outfits through his
specialized knowledge of cost-efficient manufacturing processes. This implies that Sean
A) is an HR professional.
B) encourages centralized decision making.
C) is a knowledge worker.
D) encourages a narrow business focus.
E) belongs to the external labor market.
37) Which statement is true of employee empowerment?
A) Proper training must be provided only to supervisors so that they can exert their wider
authority.
B) Managers should ensure that employees are not linked to resources outside the organization,
such as customers.
C) Employee empowerment shifts the recruiting focus away from cognitive and interpersonal
skills toward general technical skills.
D) Employee empowerment prevents holding employees accountable for the products and
services they developed.
E) Jobs must be designed to give employees the necessary latitude for making a variety of
decisions.
38) Fred is the project manager. He encourages his team members to have brainstorming
sessions before initiating a project to determine the best method to deliver positive results. He
provides his team members with complete authority to execute all production tasks
independently. This scenario indicates that Fred promotes
A) centralized decision making.
B) risk aversion.
C) downsizing.
D) outsourcing.
E) employee empowerment.
39) Dino Inc., a marketing firm, has employees who work in different cities in different time
zones around the country. They coordinate their work efficiently with the help of technology,
such as videoconferencing, mobile phones, and e-mail, for the production of marketing activities.
Which statement is true of Dino Inc.?
A) It has a vertical organizational structure.
B) It does not hold employees accountable for products and services.
C) It encourages virtual teams.
D) It encourages centralized decision making.
E) It has self-employed individuals with multiple clients.
40) Sky Meadows Health Care Systems set up a program that encourages employees to share
their ideas for patient satisfaction and cost savings. After a year of collecting these ideas, the HR
department conducted an employee survey and learned that its employees did not feel very
empowered. What else should Sky Meadows do to improve the sense of empowerment?
A) Hold employees accountable for their results.
B) Train employees to use information resources.
C) Show that management is listening to the ideas and implementing the valuable ones.
D) Train managers to link employees to resources within and outside the organization.
E) Encourage employees to interact with staff throughout the organization.
41) What is necessary for the success of employee empowerment?
A) The jobs must be designed in such a manner that the managers have complete control over
business processes.
B) Employees must be properly trained to exert their wider authority and use information
resources such as the Internet.
C) Pay and other rewards should reflect employees’ loyalty to the organization and not their
authority.
D) Employers should provide feedback only when employees resign and are about to leave the
organization.
E) Employers should create jobs that minimize the need for the employees to come up with
innovative ideas and solutions.
42) How has the use of employee empowerment affected the recruitment process in the United
States.?
A) It has enhanced the need for people with working knowledge of operating different kinds of
machinery.
B) It has substantially increased employment opportunities for workers with less education.
C) It has shifted the focus away from technical skills to general cognitive and interpersonal
skills.
D) It has significantly reduced recruitment costs by using low-cost strategies, though it hinders
innovation.
E) It has made the recruitment process less time-consuming.