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OBJECTIVE QUESTIONS
1. Carmen is working through a process to ensure her company of the right number of
people with the right skills to meet their goals in delivering service and outputs to
their customers. Carmen is engaged in:
a) forecasting.
b) human resource planning.
c) recruiting.
d) selecting.
e) estimating labor demand.
2. If the labor supply exceeds labor demand, HR needs can best be met by:
a) succession planning.
b) training or retraining.
c) recruiting from the outside.
d) reducing pay or work hours.
e) subcontracting.
3. If the labor demand exceeds labor supply, HR needs can best be met with a
response of:
a) training or retraining.
b) work sharing.
c) inducements to quit.
d) reducing work hours and/or pay.
e) replacing quits with external hires.
4. If the labor demand is expected to match labor supply, HR needs can best be met
with a response of:
a) training or retraining employees.
b) replacing quits with external or internal hires.
c) reducing work hours and/or pay.
d) inducements to quit.
e) paying overtime to employees.
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5. A restaurant chain is forecasting its needs for managers, assistant managers and
wait staff for next year. Currently, 10 restaurants each have their own managers.
They experience a 45% manager turnover yearly. They plan to open 4 more
restaurants next year. Their projected need for managers for next year will be:
(Round your answer up to the next full position.)
a) 9.
b) 10.
c) 11.
d) 12.
e) 13.
6. This same restaurant chain is projecting its wait staff needs. Currently, they have 90
total staff at their ten restaurants. They experience 100% turnover in a year. They
will need ____ wait staff next year. (Round your answer up to the next full
position.)
a) 45
b) 60
c) 90
d) 126
e) 252
7. An accounting firm plans to open 3 new branches. They currently have 4 branches
with 4 accountants each. Each new branch will also need 4 accountants, and they
experience a yearly 30% turnover among existing accountants. Their projected
need for accountants to fill these new positions will be: (Round your answer up to
the next full position.)
a) 17.
b) 20.
c) 23.
d) 25.
e) 27.
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8. A quantitative forecast:
a) is able to project trends into the future without historical data.
b) can take any variables into consideration an HR professional might want to
consider.
c) is very helpful in a dynamic business environment.
d) is subject to a judgment error by the expert using the technique.
e) relies on previous relationships between staffing levels and other variables.
9. Qualitative forecasts:
a) are more accurate than quantitative forecasts.
b) are more flexible in their considerations than quantitative forecasts.
c) are less subject to judgment errors.
d) require use of historical data.
e) are without error if the input data is correct.
10. Which employees in a business will most likely use formal forecasting techniques?
a)Line managers.
b)Top-level managers.
c)CEOs.
d)HR personnel.
e)Middle managers.
11. In the hiring process, generating a pool of qualified candidates for a job constitutes
the _____ phase.
a) recruitment
b) selection
c) socialization
d) orientation
e) interviewing
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12. The process of making hire- or no-hire decisions describes the ____ step of the
hiring process.
a) recruitment
b) selection
c) socialization
d) testing
e) interviewing
13. You are part of a team selecting employees at Helping Hands, Inc. All applicants
will take a cognitive test and take part in a structured interview. To make the
process more efficient, you suggest that:
a) the applicants with the best cognitive test scores be hired.
b) the team establishes a cut score for the cognitive test.
c) the team eliminate the structured interview.
d) the team seek to employ nontraditional laborers.
e) none of the above
14. ______ involves familiarizing new employees with company policies and
procedures and orienting them to the company in general.
a) Recruiting
b) Selection
c) Socialization
d) Human resource planning
e) Interviewing
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17. The most important way to establish essential characteristics needed to perform a
job well is:
a) the organization’s culture.
b) the applicants knowledge of the job.
c) the job itself.
d) the SKAs required to perform the job.
e) the job analysis.
18. Determining the characteristics necessary for good job performance is often
difficult because of the:
a) changing business environment in which companies operate.
b) general lack of accurate job descriptions.
c) frequent lack of involvement of management in the job analysis process.
d) inherent difficulties of staffing decisions.
e) fact that any job changes constantly.
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21. Recent studies of MBA graduates have found that the early career success of these
graduates seems to be a function of:
a) ability.
b) personality.
c) motivation.
d) motivation and ability.
e) all of the above
22. When considering who should make hiring decisions, it is important to remember:
a) that the best decisions result from letting subordinates make the choice.
b) that it is a natural extension of the HR function and they are most familiar with
the position.
c) that upper management has the most at stake; they should make the decision.
d) that line managers are most knowledgeable about the job and who must work
with the candidate.
e) never to involve the coworkers since they tend to choose people like
themselves, perpetuating the current culture.
23. For which of the following reasons should HR departments have input in staffing
decisions?
a) It is a natural extension of the HR function and they are most familiar with the
position.
b) They ensure that employment practices are legal.
c) They will have to work directly with the new employees, and a good mix of
personalities is essential to ensure cooperation within the business.
d) It is convenient to have the HR department take care of contacts and
information about applicants.
e) b and d
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25. The best recruitment source, that is, one which tends to result in attracting
employees who experience greater loyalty, tenure, and job satisfaction than other
recruiting sources, is:
a) referrals from current employees.
b) former employees.
c) college campus recruiting.
d) employment agencies.
e) advertisements.
26. If a firm is concerned about changing EEO-related balances among its employee
base, it should NOT use:
a) referrals from current employees.
b) former employees.
c) college campus recruiting.
d) employment agencies.
e) advertisements.
27. Cora’s new fabric and textiles business is looking for its first employees. She
hopes to open within the next two weeks and she needs a cheap, timely recruitment
that can reach a large pool of applicants for long-term work. Her best option is to:
a) get referrals from current employees.
b) use Internet advertising and career sites.
c) use print advertisements.
d) re-hire former employees.
e) contact a temporary help agency.
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28. One of the safest sources for employee recruits, which provides known job
candidates, is:
a) employment agencies.
b) temporary agencies.
c) college recruiting.
d) former employees.
e) referrals from current employees.
29. Spring Break is approaching and you are hoping to find a source of income during
the break, as you have been spending frivolously during the year. Your best option
is to:
a) check the Internet and Web sites for long-term jobs.
b) check the want ads.
c) visit a career fair.
d) hire out through a temporary help agency.
e) put in an application at an employment agency.
30. The main difference between employment agencies and temporary help agencies is
that:
a) employment agencies place only workers with specialized skills. Temporary
agencies are not as likely to place specialized workers.
b) those who work for employment agencies contract directly to the agency.
Those who are placed by temporary agencies work directly for a private
company.
c) those who work for employment agencies may hold several jobs at the same
time. Those who work for temporary agencies only hold one job at a time.
d) employment agencies do not receive a fee. Temporary agencies receive fees.
e) those who find jobs through temporary help agencies work directly for the
agency. Those who find jobs through employment agencies often work directly
for a company.
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32. In Japan, the most common recruiting source for new employees is:
a) employment agencies.
b) temporary agencies.
c) college recruiting.
d) former employees.
e) referrals from current employees.
33. The recruiting pool that most likely contains people who already enjoy the firm’s
product or service and may have ideas as to potential improvements the business
may institute is:
a) customers.
b) former employees.
c) temporary workers.
d) incumbent employees.
e) all of the above
34. For small businesses, ____ is one of their top three concerns.
a) orienting new employees
b) training new employees
c) using valid and reliable selection tools
d) finding qualified and motivated employees
e) EEO compliance in recruiting
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37. Which of the following is a key factor in the present U.S. labor shortage?
a) A lack of education among workers.
b) National economic expansion.
c) Fewer young people entering the workforce.
d) The rise of nontraditional labor pools.
e) b and c
38. Steve is an HR department head for a construction company. Recently, he has seen
a shortage of skilled workers due to a building boom in the city where the company
is located. He has little time to spare in finding new workers because it is uncertain
how long the boom will last. He tells you that he is going to hire nontraditional
laborers. You suggest to him that:
a) he should hire the nontraditional laborers.
b) he should remember that nontraditional laborers may not be skilled and there
may not be time to train them.
c) he offer signing bonuses to any nontraditional laborer who takes the job.
d) he advertise for nontraditional laborers on the Internet.
e) none of the above
40. A company can recruit externally or internally when filling a position. Hiring an
external candidate over an internal candidate has the advantage of:
a) lower training costs.
b) the new candidate knowing the industry and company.
c) being a less expensive recruiting process.
d) being much quicker.
e) providing significant motivation to the existing employees because they are
seeing someone new come into their department.
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42. Tatiana is considering hiring a new line manager. She quickly analyzes the
satisfaction of the present workers in her company and determines that 1) current
employees don’t feel they have many opportunities for advancement, and 2) she has
a very small budget for recruiting. The best option for Tatiana would be to:
a) recruit internally.
b) recruit externally.
c) recruit nontraditional laborers.
d) recruit on the Internet.
e) demote a top level manager to fill the position.
43. You are in the HR department at Builders, Inc. Ashanti, a recruiter for the
company, comes to you asking whether she should recruit externally or internally
for a new middle-management position. You tell her that:
a) internal recruiting poses fewer drawbacks than external recruiting.
b) internal recruiting often causes greater cohesiveness within a given company.
c) external recruiting is less costly than internal recruiting.
d) companies that recruit internally can suffer from a lack of innovation.
e) employees recruited externally often need less time to adapt to a position than
do internally recruited employees.
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45. Written affirmative action plans are generally not required of organizations. The
one exception to this is the EEOC’s requirement that all ____ have written
affirmative action plans.
a) organizations with over 500 employees
b) businesses with federal contracts
c) government employers
d) privately-held corporations
e) publicly-held corporations
46. In human resource planning the answer to the question, “How many candidates
should we recruit?”:
a) is based on the firm's affirmative action plan.
b) comes from the yield ratio calculated in the forecast.
c) is determined by whether the firm is recruiting externally or internally.
d) is directed by EEO consideration and the size of the labor pool.
e) depends on the state of the labor pool.
47. The yield ratio at G.R.U.B. Company is 6:1. How many offers will G.R.U.B need
to make in order to fill 80 positions?
a) 160.
b) 240.
c) 480.
d) 500.
e) 540.
48. After an extensive recruiting effort, your company has contacted 225 interested
individuals. At the application deadline, you have received 75 applications. What
is your contact-to-applicant ratio?
a) 1:2.
b) 2:3.
c) 1:3.
d) 3:1.
e) 2:3.
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49. Your text offers which of the following as one of the best options for starting your
career/job search?
a) Your local library.
b) Your computer.
c) A local employment agency.
d) A local temporary help agency.
e) None of the above
50. According to your text, which mechanism determines the overall quality of a firm’s
human resources?
a) Socialization.
b) Recruiting.
c) Selection.
d) Determining a job’s characteristics.
e) “Fit” with the business’ environment.
51. The selection process can help a firm contain costs as demonstrated by the _____
per year savings the federal government enjoys via ability testing for entry-level
employees.
a) $15 million
b) $500,000
c) $15 billion
d) $1.5 billion
e) $1.5 million
52. Damen is reviewing the results of an employment test his company has been using.
It seems that the scores do not relate well to applicants’ actual job performance
once hired. This test seems subject to a:
a) reliability error.
b) validity error.
c) comparison to other candidates error.
d) quantification error.
e) content reliability error.
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53. The HR manager is discussing the amount of error present in the current selection
process. She is discussing the ___ of the selection process.
a) reliability
b) validity
c) accuracy
d) legal defensibility
e) empirical validity
54. An unsuccessful job applicant has filed suit against your company, alleging that a
test she was given does not measure performance required on the actual job. Her
suit is about the ____ of the test.
a) reliability
b) validity
c) accuracy
d) ethicality
e) disparate impact
56. According to the text, which statement shows the relationship between reliability
and validity?
a) Any test that is reliable is valid.
b) A test that is not reliable can still be valid.
c) If a test is not valid, it is not reliable.
d) All of the above
e) None of the above
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59. Tyrese has just measured Cambridge Corporation’s workforce. He is now trying to
determine whether the tests he used are valid by comparing them to performance
appraisals that supervisors have completed on the workers. He is attempting to
find:
a) the predictive validity of the tests.
b) the concurrent validity of the tests.
c) the content validity of the tests.
d) the reliability of the tests.
e) the external validity of the tests.
60. Sebastian is concerned about his most recent hires at Anderson Brothers Company.
He believed that by basing his selection on job-knowledge tests administered
during the interview, he would have few problems with inept hires and would find
the best employee for each position. He has found though, that the eight employees
who were hired during the last hiring period each have had complaints about lack
of competence and job knowledge. This indicates that the:
a) concurrent validity of the tests is poor.
b) reliability of the tests is poor.
c) internal validity of the tests is poor.
d) external validity of the tests is poor.
e) predictive validity of the tests is poor.
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61. A manager has a number of selection tools at his/her disposal. A commonly used
tool that generally has a POOR relation to actual job performance is:
a) application forms.
b) ability tests.
c) letters of recommendation.
d) personality tests.
e) honesty tests.
63. Harry wants to assess an applicant’s ability to learn, adapt, and use quantitative
tools. The best selection tool for assessing this would be:
a) a personality test.
b) the application form.
c) the psychological test.
d) a cognitive ability test.
e) an assessment center.
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65. Kareem wants to test applicants for their willingness to work hard and their ethics
about stealing from their employers. His best choice of selection tool would be
a(n):
a) psychological test.
b) personality test.
c) honesty test.
d) structured interview.
e) unstructured interview.
66. Which of the following is important for an employer to remember when reading
letters of recommendation of job applicants?
a) The more positive a letter is, the better.
b) A poor letter of recommendation should be ignored.
c) The content of the letter is more important than the positivity of the letter.
d) Letters of recommendation are highly related to job performance.
e) A letter of recommendation is just a formality.
68. A very common selection tool that has poor reliability and low validity is:
a) testing.
b) the application form.
c) the interview.
d) letters of recommendation.
e) the assessment center.
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70. Questions used to discover how job candidates would respond to given work
situations are called:
a) unstructured questions.
b) worker requirement questions.
c) job knowledge questions.
d) structure questions.
e) situational questions.
72. Despite the criticisms of unstructured interviews, your text suggests they do have a
significant advantage over structured interviews in:
a) predicting the “fit” of a candidate to the organization.
b) making the hiring decision a team process.
c) that they have higher content validity than other types of interviews.
d) that they lend themselves well to “stress interviewing” techniques.
e) that they accurately predict actual job performance.
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73. Which of the following is an inappropriate question to ask during a job interview?
a) “Have you ever been convicted of a crime?”
b) “Do you understand that this company has a no-smoking policy?”
c) “What is the origin of your name? It is very distinctive.”
d) “Are you willing to take a physical exam as a condition of your employment?”
e) “Have you ever applied for a job with our company before and been turned
down?”
74. You are considering three candidates for a manager’s job. Each candidate’s
experience and education are quite similar. You want to know how each candidate
will perform, given certain tasks or situations. Your best selection tool for
predicting this is:
a) a structured interview.
b) an assessment center.
c) personality testing.
d) psychological testing.
e) an unstructured interview.
76. Preemployment drug testing produces about ____ positive (for the use of drugs)
results.
a) 10%
b) 12%
c) 4.5%
d) 36%
e) 8.7%
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77. A study conducted by the U.S. Postal Service regarding drug testing:
a) showed that drug testing is a valid predictor of job performance.
b) showed that drug testing does not correlate with on-the-job performance.
c) revealed that most job candidates can “beat” a drug test.
d) has been struck down by the Supreme Court.
e) revealed that they saved about $4 million a year in lost productivity.
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79. A manager wants to combine selection tools to help him make a decision. He wants
to make a preliminary selection after administering each instrument. He is using
a(n) ___ strategy.
a) illegal
b) clinical
c) statistical
d) graphological
e) multiple hurdle
80. An employer’s best defense against liability in a negligent hiring lawsuit is to use
which of the following selection tools?
a) Handwriting analysis.
b) Structured interview.
c) Honesty test.
d) Personality test.
e) Reference checks.
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81. Many former employers are reluctant to give references for fear of liability if the
reference keeps the former employee from getting a job. The courts have held that
employers have a “qualified privilege” if the employer:
a) only discusses EEO-related information.
b) has personally observed the behavior he describes.
c) has selection test information to support the reference.
d) only gives information to an inquirer who has a job-related need to know.
e) qualifies the information as “his/her opinion” and not necessarily factual.
82. One of your employees, a member of a protected class, loses his temper and
assaults and injures a customer. The customer is also a member of a protected class.
During the investigation, the police discover that the employee has a long history of
such behavior and served jail time for assault and battery. As the employer:
a) you cannot be held responsible because the employee was a member of a
protected class.
b) your employee’s behavior has made you liable for the injuries under the Civil
Rights Act of 1991.
c) you will be subject to establishing an affirmative action plan as a consequence
of this incidence.
d) you are probably liable for negligent hiring.
e) you are liable for injuries under Executive Order 11246.
CASE QUESTIONS
Case 5.1
About a year ago, Pedro’s Printing was looking for a new managing editor of a specialty
line of magazines. The previous editor retired after 25 years on the job. The editors and
the HRM department debated about the key requirements for a new managing editor.
Some felt it was knowledge of the business, others thought it was interpersonal skills to
get along with the staff. A few others believed it was the ability to attract writing talent
and subscribers. Finally, it was decided that HRM would screen candidates and the
editors would interview finalists with HRM, but that the HRM director would make the
final choice to avoid competition among the editors.
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This time, they want to find someone who wants the job and has the right skill and
personality mix. They want someone who can start quickly and doesn’t need to be trained
into the company. The ability to innovate is not critical, just the ability to work hard. Due
to the expense of the fiasco, money for recruiting is now tight. They also want to be
certain they don’t make the same mistake a second time.
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83. Refer to Case 5.1. The first challenge that HR faced in recruiting this new editor
was:
a) agreeing about important job characteristics.
b) attracting an adequate pool of qualified applicants.
c) forecasting the labor pool from which to draw applicants.
d) deciding who would make the selection decision.
e) deciding what recruiting source to use.
84. Refer to Case 5.1. Given the problems that the new managing editor had:
a) HR should have administered a personality test as part of the selection process.
b) line personnel should have made the final decision, not HR.
c) they should have recruited from a college campus, rather than using
advertisements.
d) it is apparent that HR did not correctly identify appropriate job characteristics.
e) they should have recruited through referrals rather than advertisements.
85. Refer to Case 5.1. Based on the new managing editor’s performance, it is clear that
both HRM and the publisher failed to properly:
a) assess his abilities.
b) test his cognitive skills.
c) assess his general knowledge of the publishing business.
d) assess his motivation for doing the job they wanted done.
e) determine his knowledge of the editing job.
86. Refer to Case 5.1. Which of the following would probably be a better source for
applicants during the second search?
a) Advertising again.
b) An employment agency.
c) College recruiting.
d) Customer referrals.
e) Former employees.
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87. Refer to Case 5.1. The best selection tool for helping Pedro’s Printing to identify
the “fit” between applicants and the firm, as well as job skill and knowledge, would
have been:
a) ability testing.
b) personality testing.
c) unstructured interviews.
d) handwriting analysis.
e) an assessment center.
Case 5.2
You are the HRM director for a large company. Your MIS managers have just requested
that you identify 10 candidates for newly created computer programming jobs. These are
entry-level jobs in MIS that require a college degree. Expansion plans in production have
also created a number of new entry-level jobs, as well as two new first-line supervisor
jobs.
Your company is doing well. Production has implemented a very successful TQM
program. You have a reputation for innovation and quality. Money is tight due to
aggressive expansion and marketing efforts. You have a diverse, well-balanced
workforce. The president prefers to reward performance through promotion from within.
However, if an employee chooses to leave the company, he or she is not eligible for
rehire.
An upper-level management position is open due to a retirement. Money is still tight, the
company is doing well and “if it ain’t broke, don't fix it” is the president’s mentality. This
is a key position, and the longer it remains open, the more likely it is that the company
will begin to lose market share. There are a number of excellent candidates for this job.
“Fit” with the organization is probably one of the top criteria for the selection. The
president wants both peers and subordinates to be involved in the process, though he will
make the final decision. He wants your advice as to the best selection tool. He wants to
narrow the field quickly and work with the data as he goes along, rather than get all the
information on each candidate first.
88. Refer to Case 5.2. The best recruiting source of candidates for the newly created
computer programming jobs would be:
a) college recruiting.
b) customers.
c) employment agencies.
d) temporary help agencies.
e) former employees.
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89. Refer to Case 5.2. The first-line supervisor jobs would best be filled by:
a) current employees.
b) advertisements.
c) referrals from current employees.
d) employment agencies.
e) college recruiting.
90. Refer to Case 5.2. To fill the new production jobs, your best source would be:
a) advertisements.
b) customers.
c) college recruiting.
d) former employees.
e) referrals from current employees.
91. Refer to Case 5.2. Given the culture of your company and your president’s view of
the business, what is your best choice for filling the upper management job?
a) An external candidate.
b) An employment agency.
c) An internal candidate.
d) Leave the position vacant for this year.
e) College recruiting.
92. Refer to Case 5.2. What is your best choice of selection tool to assess your number
one criterion?
a) Personality test.
b) Unstructured interview.
c) Cognitive ability testing.
d) An assessment center.
e) Reference checking.
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Case 5.3
You are a middle manager looking for a first-line supervisor. Your selection criteria in
priority order are: 1) the ability to learn and adapt to a changing job, 2) willingness to
perform the job assigned under its current conditions, 3) strong verbal and quantitative
skills. 4) Cost of the selection process is a concern especially since you want to look at a
broad range of candidates.
Your company has about 500 employees and is a federal contractor. There is a racial
imbalance among the management team, which favors white males. There is no evidence
of discrimination, nor has there ever been a complaint. Your hourly employees are about
50% female and 35% minority. You have actively sought to provide access to disabled
employees. Two years ago, you had an incident in which one employee became violent
and injured several other employees. As a result, your company was held liable. You
want to avoid repeating this experience.
93. Refer to Case 5.3. The best way to combine predictors used in the selection process
would be a:
a) statistical strategy.
b) clinical strategy.
c) multiple hurdle strategy.
d) generic strategy.
e) differentiated strategy.
94. Refer to Case 5.3. The best selection tool for assessing your number one criterion
is:
a) structured interviews.
b) psychological testing.
c) cognitive ability testing.
d) reference checking.
e) an assessment center.
95. Refer to Case 5.3. To meet your second criterion, your best selection tool would be:
a) structured interviews.
b) psychological testing.
c) cognitive ability testing.
d) reference checking.
e) an assessment center.
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96. Refer to Case 5.3. Given the nature of your company, the most relevant piece of
federal regulation to your selection process would be:
a) the Age Discrimination in Employment Act.
b) the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
c) the ADA.
d) the Civil Rights Act of 1991.
e) Executive Order #11246.
97. Refer to Case 5.3. What steps could you take to avoid liability for negligent hiring
in the future?
a) Institute a policy of harassment and sexual harassment.
b) Use structured interviewing.
c) Administer personality tests to screen for violent personalities.
d) Develop clear hiring and termination policies that include background checks.
e) Tap employees’ phone conversations to listen for threatening behavior.
Case 5.4
You are a middle manager in a prestigious paper company. Christmas is coming which
means a considerable increase in demand for a wrapping paper that your company has
just designed. With this in view, labor seems short for printing. There was a similar labor
shortage last Christmas, and you are planning to use data gathered at that time to
determine how much more labor you will need in printing positions this year. Your
company also wants to gather a pool of job applicants for paper designers. There has
been a lack of new ideas lately and “group think” is becoming a concern.
98. Refer to Case 5.4. There will be little time to train new workers to print the paper.
What would be a reasonable alternative?
a) Hiring temporary workers.
b) Paying overtime to incumbent toy assemblers.
c) Reducing the number of hours worked by incumbent toy assemblers.
d) Introducing a work sharing program.
e) None of the above
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99. Refer to Case 5.4. What kind of forecasting technique are you using to decide upon
how many printers to hire?
a) A qualitative technique.
b) A multi-hurdle technique.
c) A quantitative technique.
d) A structured technique.
e) A simplified technique.
100. Refer Case 5.4. In order to find new paper designers who would be able to meet
your company’s needs, your best option would be to:
a) get referrals from current employees.
b) re-hire former employees.
c) give the incumbent toy designers more training.
d) recruit externally.
e) recruit internally.
101. Refer to Case 5.4. You wish to tap into international markets to find your new paper
designers. Which would be the most cost-effective and efficient recruiting
strategy?
a) A multiple hurdle strategy.
b) A clinical strategy.
c) Using Internet advertising and career sites.
d) Using employment agencies.
e) Initiate college recruiting.
102. Refer to Case 5.4. After several months, you have offered seven paper design jobs
to qualified candidates. Several of the candidates live in foreign countries and do
not believe that the job makes it worth their while to move. Some are mothers who
are concerned about childcare. In order to make the job more attractive, you:
a) initiate a job satisfaction program.
b) offer English classes to workers who choose to immigrate.
c) offer subsidized day care for employees.
d) pay moving expenses for employees (and their families) who take the job and
immigrate.
e) c and d
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TRUE/FALSE QUESTIONS
103. The labor supply for an organization is how many workers are available with the
required skills to meet company needs.
104. Labor demand is the number of employees who are seeking employment.
105. A firm that terminates employees during a laborer surplus suffers no consequences
under federal law.
106. Quantitative forecasting techniques are especially useful for new organizations that
lack historical staffing information.
107. To forecast labor demand and supply, a firm must have historical staffing data.
108. Qualitative forecasting techniques permit the firms to incorporate any factors or
conditions the forecaster wishes to consider.
110. Effective recruiting requires HR to determine the characteristics for effective job
performance and then measure applicants against that criteria.
111. The hiring process begins with deciding who should make selection decisions.
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112. Cut scores can be used to make final decisions regarding employee selection.
113. The HR department should take sole responsibility to recruit, select, and socialize
new employees.
114. Richard has a very high motivation to perform a job well but is somewhat inept.
He should be hired because his motivation may help to offset his ability.
115. Former employees are generally a poor choice for re-hiring due to resentment that
they may hold against the employer.
116. The present job market for graduating college students is at one of the best peaks
ever.
118. The appropriateness of recruiting sources can be evaluated by the type of job to be
filled, the state of the economy, or the cost of using the source.
119. Workers who make up nontraditional labor pools often lack the experience,
education, and social experience typically found in traditional labor pools.
120. The best way to recruit protected-class job applicants is to target those individuals
with a recruiting message designed for them.
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121. Selection tools should be reliable and valid. By reliable, we mean that the tool
measures consistently across time and evaluators. By valid, we mean that scores
from the tools correspond to actual job performance.
122. Letters of recommendation are among the best predictors of future job
performance.
123. Personality tests, while valid and reliable, are not generally accepted as legally
defensible in the selection process.
125. Unstructured interviews are more effective than structured interviews at screening
out unsuitable job candidates.
126. John is subjectively evaluating all applicant information prior to making a hiring
decision. He is using a clinical approach in the selection process.
127. The best legal defense of a selection process is its reliability measure.
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129. The availability of workers with the required skills to meet the firm’s labor demand
is referred to as _______.
130. _______ is how many workers the organization will need in the future.
131. _______ is the process an organization uses to ensure that it has the right amount
and the right kind of people to deliver a particular level of output or services in the
future.
132. The process of generating a pool of qualified candidates for a particular job is called
_______.
133. _______ is the process of making a “hire” or “no-hire” decision regarding each
applicant for a job.
134. The process of orienting new employees to the organization, or the unit in which
they will be working, is referred to as _______.
135. _______ is consistency of measurement, usually across time but also across judges.
136. The extent to which the technique measures the intended knowledge, skill, or ability
is known as _______.
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137. A job interview based on a thorough job analysis, applying job-related questions
with predetermined answers consistently across all interviews for a job is called
a(n) _______.
138. A(n) _______ is a set of simulated tasks or exercises that candidates are asked to
perform.
ESSAY QUESTIONS
139. Describe the human resource planning process, defining key terms, and describing
the three potential scenarios a firm may face.
Answer:
Summary of suggested answer –
• Human resource planning is the process used to ensure the right amount and
kinds of employees to deliver a specified level of service.
• Labor demand is how many workers are needed in the future.
• Labor supply is the number of workers, internal and external, available.
There are three possibilities regarding available labor. Labor demand may exceed
supply.
Supply may exceed demand. Demand and supply may match. The situation
determines the most effective response.
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140. Explain the role of forecasting in human resource planning, the choices of
forecasting techniques a planner has, and why he/she would choose one technique
over another.
Answer:
Summary of suggested answer - There are two groups of forecasting techniques,
quantitative and qualitative. Quantitative techniques project past history into the
future. They offer more precision and accuracy than qualitative techniques but they
require historical data. The relationships that affected past performance may not
exist in the present or future. Also, quantitative techniques are most appropriate for
large firms in relatively stable work environments. Qualitative techniques rely on
expert subjective judgment. They may include any factor or condition that
researchers feel may affect the labor pool. The subjective nature of these techniques
results in less accurate estimates. (The nature of this question and answer may be
expanded if you’ve had students study the material in Appendix B, where the
various techniques and their advantages and disadvantages are outlined.)
141. Recruiters have a variety of sources they can use in employee searches. Enumerate
six potential recruitment sources, explaining the nature of each and why you would
use each.
Answer:
Summary of suggested answer – Students’ responses as to why you would use each
will vary. But their six choices should come from the following eight:
• current employees
strength – employees see opportunities for promotion
weakness – automatically creates another job opening to fill
• referrals
strength – Referrals tend to stay with a company longer and display greater
loyalty and job satisfaction than employees recruited by other means.
weakness – may decrease diversity as employees tend to refer people who are
demographically similar to themselves.
• former employees
strength – they already have experience with the business and tend to be safe
hires.
weakness – they may harbor some resentment against the business if their
employment was involuntarily terminated.
• advertisements
strength – can be used for local and distant searches and can reach large pools
of potential applicants.
• employment agencies
strength – often find candidates who are not looking for a new job and whose
current employer is pleased with their performance
weakness – a fee is owed to the agency
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• temporary workers
strength – can find temporary help in a time of need
• college recruiting
strength – a large pool of educated potential applicants
• customers
strength – customers are generally pleased with the organization’s performance
and service and may have insight into how the organization could be improved.
142. Explain the differences between reliability and validity regarding testing. Explain
the relationship between the two.
Answer:
Summary of suggested answer-
Reliability refers to the consistency of measurement, usually across time, but also
across judges. It is a measure of how much error there may be in a test. One
example is the job interview- different interviewers may judge the same candidate
differently, etc.
• Validity is the extent to which scores on a test accurately determine the test-
taker’s abilities and performance.
A test that is not valid does not test what it is supposed to test, or does not do it
accurately. A test may be reliable and yet not be valid, but a test that is not reliable
is not valid.
143. The selection process may involve a significant amount of testing. Describe the
various tests HR professionals have to choose from, why they use each, and the
importance of the validity and reliability of the tests used.
Answer:
Summary of suggested answer –
• Ability tests measure cognitive and physical ability to perform the actual job.
Work sample tests are the most common and most valid.
• Personality tests measure traits and are rarely used in selection anymore due to
questions of validity and reliability.
• Psychological testing measures job applicants’ work ethic, ability to deal with
challenges and other job-related factors. They are extensively used by large
companies.
• Drug testing is a preemployment test and is used to eliminate problem
employees before they begin work.
• Honesty tests are controversial.
• Paper and pencil tests have replaced polygraph tests, which were virtually
eliminated by the Employee Polygraph Protection Act in 1988.
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Reliability is the consistency of measurement across time and users. Validity is the
extent to which the tests measure job performance. Validity is the key for legal
defensibility.
144. Interviews are an important selection tool. Discuss the traditional interview and the
structured interview being sure to include the advantages and disadvantages of
each.
Answer:
Summary of suggested answer – Traditionally, interviews have been the most
common selection tool. Often interviewers, however, disagree among themselves
on a candidate. They make decisions in the first few minutes of the interview, and
the experience varies widely from interviewee to interviewee. These problems led
to the development of the structured interview which uses situational questions--to
assess responses to specific incidences, job-knowledge questions--to assess basic
knowledge, and worker-requirement questions--to assess candidates’ willingness to
perform under given circumstances. Structured interviews are quite valid and have
been used successfully. However, many companies stay with the traditional
unstructured interview because it seems to work better at screening out unsuitable
job applicants. Regardless of type, the questions asked must be legal. (This
question and answer can be expanded regarding questioning by referencing page
165 for guidelines as to what kinds of questions shouldn’t be asked.)
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