Human Resource Management, 14e, Global Edition (Dessler)
Chapter 9 Performance Management and Appraisal
1) Which of the following terms refers to the process of evaluating an employee’s current and/or
past performance relative to his or her performance standards?
A) employee selection
B) performance appraisal
C) employee orientation
D) organizational development
2) The primary purpose of providing employees with feedback during a performance appraisal is
to motivate employees to ________.
A) apply for managerial positions
B) remove any performance deficiencies
C) revise their performance standards
D) enroll in work-related training programs
3) Which of the following is NOT one of the recommended guidelines for setting effective
employee goals?
A) creating specific goals
B) assigning measurable goals
C) administering consequences for failure to meet goals
D) encouraging employees to participate in setting goals
4) SMART goals are best described as ________.
A) specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and timely
B) straightforward, meaningful, accessible, real, and tested
C) strategic, moderate, achievable, relevant, and timely
D) supportive, meaningful, attainable, real, and timely
5) All of the following are reasons for appraising an employee’s performance EXCEPT
________.
A) correcting any work-related deficiencies
B) creating an organizational strategy map
C) determining appropriate salary and bonuses
D) making decisions about promotions
6) In most organizations, who is primarily responsible for appraising an employee’s
performance?
A) employee’s direct supervisor
B) company appraiser
C) human resources manager
D) employee’s subordinates
7) Which of the following is most likely NOT a role played by the HR department in the
performance appraisal process?
A) conducting appraisals of employees
B) monitoring the appraisal system’s effectiveness
C) providing performance appraisal training to supervisors
D) ensuring the appraisal system’s compliance with EEO laws
8) What is the first step of any performance appraisal?
A) giving feedback
B) setting work standards
C) making plans to provide training
D) assessing the employee’s performance
9) When designing an actual appraisal method, the two basic considerations are ________.
A) when to measure and what to measure
B) what to measure and who should measure
C) what to measure and how to measure
D) when to measure and how to measure
10) Which of the following is the easiest and most popular technique for appraising employee
performance?
A) alternation ranking
B) graphic rating scale
C) forced distribution
D) constant sum rating scale
11) Which performance appraisal technique lists traits and a range of performance values for
each trait?
A) behaviorally anchored rating scale
B) graphic rating scale
C) forced distribution
D) critical incident
12) Wilson Consulting is a management consulting firm with seventy employees. As associate
vice president of marketing, Suzanne Boyle is responsible for conducting performance appraisals
of the twelve employees under her direct supervision. Suzanne plans to use a graphic rating scale
to evaluate the performance of her subordinates.
Which of the following, if true, best supports the argument that a graphic rating scale is the most
appropriate performance appraisal tool for Suzanne to use?
A) The firm wants Suzanne to evaluate her subordinates on an ongoing basis and to keep a log of
critical incidents.
B) Suzanne wants to ensure that the firm is protected from employee discrimination lawsuits, so
she has conducted a job analysis of each position.
C) Suzanne wants a quantitative rating of each employee based on competencies important to the
firm, such as problem-solving skills.
D) Employees in Suzanne’s department participated in developing their own performance
standards when they were first hired by the firm.
13) All of the following are usually measured by a graphic rating scale EXCEPT ________.
A) generic dimensions of performance
B) performance of co-workers
C) achievement of objectives
D) job-related competencies
14) Which performance appraisal tool requires supervisors to categorize employees from best to
worst on various traits?
A) graphic rating scale
B) critical incident method
C) alternation ranking method
D) electronic performance monitoring
15) The most popular method for ranking employees is the ________ method.
A) graphic ranking scale
B) alternation ranking
C) paired comparison
D) forced distribution
16) Kendra needs to rate five of her subordinates. She makes a chart of all possible pairs of
employees for each trait being evaluated. Then, she indicates the better employee of each pair
with a positive symbol on the chart. Finally, she totals the number of positive symbols for each
employee. Which method of performance appraisal has Kendra most likely used?
A) graphic ranking scale
B) alternation ranking
C) paired comparison
D) forced distribution
17) Which performance appraisal tool is being used when a supervisor places predetermined
percentages of appraisees into various performance categories?
A) behaviorally anchored rating scale
B) graphic ranking scale
C) alternation ranking
D) forced distribution
18) John, the supervisor of the manufacturing department at a computer firm, is in the process of
evaluating his staff’s performance. He has determined that 15% of the group will be identified as
high performers, 20% as above average performers, 30% as average performers, 20% as below
average performers, and 15% as poor performers. Which performance appraisal tool has John
chosen to use?
A) behaviorally anchored rating scale
B) forced distribution
C) alternation ranking
D) paired comparison
19) Which of the following measurement methods is similar to grading on a curve?
A) forced distribution
B) graphic rating scale
C) constant sums rating
D) behaviorally anchored rating scale
20) Which of the following is one of the primary complaints regarding the use of the forced
distribution method for performance appraisals?
A) difficult to implement
B) harm to employee morale
C) high costs of administration
D) time consuming to administer
21) Which performance appraisal tools require a supervisor to maintain a log of positive and
negative examples of a subordinate’s work-related behavior?
A) alternation ranking
B) paired comparison
C) critical incident
D) graphic rating
22) Which of the following is NOT useful since it does not produce relative ratings for pay raise
purpose critical incident method for performance appraisal?
A) providing examples of excellent work performance
B) comparing and ranking employees within a group
C) reflecting performance throughout the appraisal period
D) compiling examples of ineffective work performance
23) Wilson Consulting is a management consulting firm with 70 employees. As associate vice
president of marketing, Suzanne Boyle is responsible for conducting performance appraisals of
the 12 employees under her direct supervision. Suzanne plans to use the critical incident method
to evaluate the performance of her subordinates.
Which of the following, if true, most likely undermines the argument that the critical incident
method is the most appropriate performance appraisal tool for Suzanne to use?
A) Employee performance standards are closely aligned with Wilson Consulting’s long-term
strategic plans.
B) Suzanne will be conducting performance appraisals in conjunction with the HR manager to
ensure EEO compliance.
C) Wilson Consulting will be allowing employees to rate themselves as part of its organizational
development strategy.
D) Due to economic difficulties, the firm will be laying off the two lowest performing employees
in Suzanne’s department.
24) Which appraisal method combines the benefits of narrative critical incidents and quantified
scales by assigning scale points with specific examples of good or poor performance?
A) behaviorally anchored rating scale
B) constant sums rating scale
C) alternation ranking
D) forced distribution
25) Which of the following best describes a behaviorally anchored rating scale?
A) chart of paired subordinates ranked in order of performance
B) combination of narrative critical incidents and quantified performance scales
C) diary of positive and negative examples of a subordinate’s work performance
D) list of subordinates from highest to lowest based on specific performance traits
26) The first step in developing a behaviorally anchored rating scale is to ________.
A) develop performance dimensions
B) generate critical incidents
C) compare subordinates
D) scale incidents
27) Stacey is using a behaviorally anchored rating scale as a performance appraisal tool. She has
already asked employees and supervisors to describe critical incidents of effective and
ineffective job performance. What should Stacey most likely do next?
A) create a final appraisal instrument
B) develop performance dimensions
C) reallocate the incidents
D) rate the incidents
28) Wilson Consulting is a management consulting firm with 70 employees. As associate vice
president of marketing, Suzanne Boyle is responsible for conducting performance appraisals of
the 12 employees under her direct supervision. Suzanne plans to use the behaviorally anchored
rating scale (BARS) to evaluate the performance of her subordinates.
Which of the following, if true, supports the argument that BARS is the most appropriate
performance appraisal tool for Suzanne to use?
A) Suzanne wants to provide her subordinates with specific examples of their good and poor job
performance during the appraisal interview.
B) Suzanne encourages her subordinates to review and make comments about their appraisal
during a formal appeals process.
C) Wilson Consulting recently installed an electronic performance monitoring system to help
supervisors conduct appraisals.
D) Suzanne provides her subordinates with upward feedback as a way to illustrate the ratings she
assigns to each employee.
29) What is the primary goal of using mixed standard scales?
A) improving validity
B) reducing rating errors
C) clarifying performance standards
D) illustrating feedback for subordinates
30) Which of the following terms refers to setting specific measurable goals with each employee
and then periodically reviewing the progress made?
A) behaviorally anchored rating scale
B) management by objective
C) mixed standard scales
D) forced distribution
31) All of the following are benefits of using computerized or Web-based performance appraisal
systems EXCEPT ________.
A) merging examples with performance ratings
B) helping managers maintain computerized notes
C) combining different performance appraisal tools
D) enabling managers to monitor employees’ computers
32) Which of the following enables supervisors to oversee the amount of computerized data an
employee is processing each day?
A) computerized performance appraisal system
B) online management assessment center
C) digitized high-performance work center
D) electronic performance monitoring system
33) Nick supervises a team of data entry specialists. Lately, productivity has been down, and
Nick believes his subordinates are not working as efficiently as possible. Which of the following
tools would provide Nick with daily information about each employee’s rate, accuracy, and time
spent entering data?
A) digital dashboard device
B) electronic performance monitoring system
C) Web-based management oversight device
D) electronic performance support system
34) Graphic rating scales are subject to all of the following problems EXCEPT ________.
A) unclear standards
B) halo effects
C) complexity
D) leniency
35) Which of the following terms refers to an appraisal that is too open to interpretation?
A) unclear standards
B) halo effects
C) leniency
D) biased
36) Which of the following is the best way for a supervisor to correct a performance appraisal
problem caused by unclear standards?
A) focusing on performance instead of personality traits
B) using graphic rating scales to rank employees
C) using descriptive phrases to illustrate traits
D) allowing employees to rate themselves first
37) Which of the following is a performance appraisal problem that occurs when a supervisor’s
rating of a subordinate on one trait biases the rating of that person on other traits?
A) recency effect
B) halo effect
C) central tendency
D) stereotyping
38) Jason is a conscientious employee, but he is viewed by most of his co-workers as unfriendly.
Jason’s supervisor rates him low on the traits “gets along well with others” and “quality of work.”
Which of the following problems has most likely affected Jason’s performance appraisal?
A) central tendency
B) leniency
C) halo effect
D) recency effect
39) A supervisor who frequently rates all employees as average on performance appraisals most
likely has a problem known as ________.
A) halo effect
B) stereotyping
C) central tendency
D) leniency
40) The best way to reduce the problem of central tendency in performance appraisals is to
________.
A) rank employees
B) use graphic rating scales
C) limit the number of appraisals
D) appraise personal characteristics
41) Which performance appraisal problem is associated with supervisors giving all of their
subordinates consistently high ratings?
A) central tendency
B) leniency
C) strictness
D) halo effect