PHRi Mock Exam One 1

What is the primary advantage of developing a career management program?

What quality of mind suggests that an employee has a global mindset?

The team decides to hold focus groups with employees currently covered by the different policies. What would be the best way to ensure that this is a productive tactic?

What best describes job enlargement?

Which function has the most responsibility for future revenue?

An HR specialist prepares a business case to support an initiative. The case includes descriptions of the project’s goals and benefits, method, budget, and time line. What other information would have been good to include?

How should the HR leader maximize benchmark source data to establish new pay ranges?

What is the difference between succession planning and replacement planning?

What is an advantage of having job descriptions in a global environment?

If the new manager feels frustrated with the pace at which the HRD is assigning him new tasks and challenges, what approach should he take with the HRD?

A company announces that it intends to capture another 20% of market share by opening ten more stores within three years in key locations. What type of strategic communication is this?

If the employee and HR decide that a leave of absence is more appropriate, what should the HR manager do next before meeting again with the employee?

Training program objectives are used to

What converts HR metrics into decision-support tools by providing additional context?

Any changes to the HR structure or delivery model can create anxiety among employees. How should the team address employee fears?

How should the HR manager respond to the curator’s desire to talk with the employee and help in some way?

What would be the best way to develop the expertise in diversity and inclusion that the recruiting lead will need to succeed in this initiative?

How should the recruiting lead approach managing her relationship with the training specialist who appears strongly opposed to this plan?

What process initially helps an employee become familiar with a new location, a new job, and a new culture in an unfamiliar country?

How can the new manager assigned to the HRIS project support his confused team members?

When considering the employee’s request for telecommuting, what factors should HR consider?

What is the purpose of a works council?

Points, challenges, leaderboards, rules, and incentives characterize which employee engagement technology?

What is the foundation for building an employment brand?

How should the recruiting lead begin developing the communication plan required for this initiative?

What type of engagement is evident in the effort an employee puts into his or her job?

An organization received 150 applicants from an advertisement, 50 of whom were minority applicants. It interviewed 36 qualified applicants, 12 of whom were minority applicants. What is the yield ratio of qualified applicants to total applicants?

What is regulated by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)?

What is the strongest strategy for a retailer trying to manage the risk of interrupted merchandise supply?

Times of growth and prosperity benefit organizational bottom lines and encourage and promote hiring. However, they may also accentuate the need for employee retention as more employees will probably be in the job market. This is an example of which PEST factor that may influence an organization’s analysis of their total rewards?

How should the HRD manage the situation of the sudden performance decline in the well-liked and tenured manager?

The most successful talent management initiatives

Refer to the following scenario for the next 4 questions. A new CEO has just been appointed to lead an ambitious five-year expansion plan for a rapidly growing fast-food chain. So far, the recruiting lead has been successful and has received praise for finding exactly the right talent, but this was when the chain was opening just a few stores a year. With this new plan, she is concerned about having a deep enough pool of candidates to fill crucial openings in store management, food manufacturing, and logistics. She reviews the key competences required for the store manager position and conducts an environmental scan to identify possible new sources of talent. She discovers from Department of Labor statistics that about 200,000 veterans reintegrate into the civil workforce each year. Their current rate of employment is low. Their skill set, background, and availability makes them promising. The chain, while committed to diversity, has never focused on this group before. There is a diversity committee that offers unbinding advice on diversity initiatives. This group is highly diverse in terms of ethnic background, education levels, position in the organization, and age. They do not always agree with each other. The challenge may be convincing others in the HR function. In a team meeting, the recruiting lead becomes involved in a heated disagreement with a training specialist who does not believe that people with military backgrounds will be able to bring the necessary customer service skills. She remarks, “Everyone knows they like to give orders, not listen.” What would be the best way to persuade management to invest in this initiative?

To help secure the right recruiting resources, what would be an important step for HR?

A training and development department is analyzing performance reviews to determine program needs. What type of assessment is the training and development department conducting?

What is the best reason to review other organizations’ annual corporate social responsibility (CSR) or sustainability reports when first devising a sustainability strategy?

Goal setting is most effective when paired with which performance management tool?

What is an example of direct compensation?

During which stage of strategic planning do managers develop action plans and assign staff members to projects?

Given that the VP HR has already indicated a preference for the assessment center approach, what would be the most effective way to reopen the options for this project?

The process where training or educational activities occur at multiple levels in an organization is called organizational

Refer to the following scenario for the next 4 questions. An HR manager is asked by the vice president (VP) of HR to define and implement a simulation-based assessment center that uses specially trained observers to rate each candidate’s performance. The need is to assess which employees have potential for promotion into management, and the VP is familiar with this practice, having used the technique in a prior company. She sees the assessment center as a best practice innovation. The VP is new to this company. She came from a large but entirely domestic organization with an aging workforce. She is aware of the need for building a talent pipeline, and her instincts are toward merit-based promotion. Her new company is a global organization with eight operations located around the world. It is highly diverse in terms of ethnicity. The average worker is probably 15 to 20 years younger than the VP is used to. In researching methodologies, the HR manager stumbles onto an online assessment system that requires no trainers and raters, takes 25% of the time to complete that the assessment center process takes, and has higher validity and reliability as an assessment technique. What should the HR manager do with the information he has uncovered?

What theme is common to many current definitions of globalization?

How should HR manage the accommodation determination that is eventually reached with the employee?

What is the relationship between an organization’s code of conduct and its compliance program?

How has talent acquisition been affected by social media?

What balance must be struck for effective information management?

According to Goleman, what leadership attribute separates good leaders from great leaders?

A major reorganization is announced. What is most likely to happen after the initial shock?

What does an HR audit measure?

What organization is most likely to fail in its strategic planning and management?

What are three potentially successful generic strategies according to Michael Porter?

Refer to the following scenario for the next 2 questions. A human resources professional has been hired as the new HR generalist for a financial services company. The company has grown from a small community bank to a multimillion-dollar organization. The bank’s founder is still intimately involved in day-to-day operations, and he is absolutely committed to his employees. It is company practice that all employee conversations with the founder are confidential. Likewise, the founder expects the other department leaders to commit to confidentiality when communicating with their employees. The HR generalist appreciates the founder’s interest in his employees but is concerned about the effect of the tradition and expectation of confidential communication between leaders and employees. As one of his first tasks, the generalist is charged with rewriting the employee handbook. He notes that there is a confidentiality provision contained within the handbook reinforcing the founder’s practice. He also notes that there is a provision in the handbook related to a commitment to equitable pay practices, including compensation increases. How should the HR generalist address his concerns about confidentiality?

While processing payroll late one evening, the HR generalist notices that compensation decisions within one department appear to have been made inconsistently. How should he respond?

After completing a benefits needs analysis, HR begins to compare existing benefits to the needs of the organization and of the employees. This comparison is called a

What strategy gives technical workers the ability to earn as much as they would in a management position?

What assists employers in complying with federal regulations against discrimination?

An organization is in the process of updating its compensation system and has started the task of evaluating jobs and grouping those with similar duties together. What documents would be most useful for this purpose?

The most-effective survey questions

How should the team best use the HR manager’s experience with the organization?

In trying to ensure strategic alignment of their activities, what would be most beneficial to HR?

Given the sensitive nature of the issue and the recent nature of the merger, how should the HR team plan to communicate changes to the vacation policy?

What process determines the relative worth of each job in an organization?

What type of business problem is solved most appropriately by using Six Sigma tools?

What does OSHA’s General Duty Clause require?

A team member tells her colleagues that she has been approached by one of the business heads and pressured to support a solution that would leave the vacation policies of one of the merged entities intact. She asks advice about responding. What would you recommend?

HR has been asked to target and identify how to improve employee performance. This will necessitate examining current organizational competencies against those needed in the future and reconciling the differences. What process would help HR to make these determinations?

What step should the HR manager take in regard to the chief curator’s actions and statements thus far?

What is a primary goal during supply analysis?

What is the impact of cognitive barriers on risk management?

An employee life cycle describes all of the activities associated with an employee’s tenure in the organization. What is the first phase in the employee life cycle?

What HR-directed policy initiatives could best help resolve glass ceiling issues for women?

What is the key benefit of defining an organization’s values?

Most of the supervisory and management staff in a start-up company have limited interviewer training and experience. What interview technique will best mitigate this inexperience?

What would be the best criteria to use in deciding whether to use either or both assessment alternatives?

A company has experienced computer system problems from Internet viruses introduced by employees opening non work-related files. The system administrator wants HR to develop and implement a policy restricting employee use of the Internet. Would this Internet policy be a good idea?

Which level of learner participation offers the best opportunity for retention?

What type of policy clarifies performance expectations and demonstrates organizational support of performance improvement?

What is the advantage of providing employee diversity training to all managers?

In which form of budgeting is the prior year’s budget the basis for the next budget?

What is the best basis for developing an organizational effectiveness and development (OED) program?

Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, which occupation is considered non-exempt?

What are the three key reasons for approaching diversity and inclusion as a comprehensive, organization-wide strategic initiative?

What would be the best approach to achieve group consensus on the recommendation the team will make?

Which situation violates the Employee Retirement Income Security Act standards for pension funds?

How should the new manager respond to the pressure to give preference to the job candidate who has ties to the HRD?

An organization has some managers who have too many employees reporting to them, hindering efficiency and resulting in conflicting goals. Which type of organizational effectiveness and development strategy will address this problem?

What is the correct term for the right of an individual worker to unite with other workers to promote desired employment conditions as a group?

Refer to the following scenario for the next 6 questions. A 24-year-old employee has medical conditions of bipolar disorder and AD/HD. A little over a year ago, he relocated from a small town to a major city to work as an assistant curator at a museum. As assistant curator, he is responsible for exhibition planning and execution and for meeting with potential donors. He informed the chief curator of his medical conditions prior to accepting the position and stated that he could perform the essential functions of the position and would not need any accommodations. According to the chief curator, his overall job performance has been excellent and he is a great asset to the museum. The employee is beginning to have increased anxiety, though, about his job and about living in a large city. He is also tired much of the time due to his medication and his need to catch the 5:30 a.m. train into the city. He does not have any friends within the workplace, generally keeping to himself. He tells the HR manager that he wants to work from home three to four days per week as an accommodation for his medical conditions. The HR manager asks if a leave of absence might be a better solution at this time, and the employee says he will think about this. The HR manager also learns that, with the chief curator’s knowledge and permission, the employee has had a fair number of absences and has worked from home with increasing frequency. The chief curator thinks the main problem is adjustment to the intense urban environment, and he wishes that he could reach out in some way and help the employee adjust. During her conversations with the employee and the chief curator, the HR manager notes that the museum has never received documentation from a health-care professional about the employee’s medical conditions. The HR manager also sees that the museum’s policies relative to disability issues and leaves of absence have not been updated since 2007. What should the HR manager do about museum’s somewhat dated policies?

What is most critical to the effectiveness of performance management systems?

Which of the following is a primary advantage of the balanced scorecard?

What is the primary focus of organizational development?

Refer to the following scenario for the next 6 questions. After the merger of two business entities, the new vice president (VP) of HR holds a staff meeting and tells the group that the organization now has six active vacation policies. This was identified during due diligence, but the leaders determined that it did not affect the ultimate decision to merge and that the matter should be addressed post-merger. That time has come, and the HR VP would like the benefits managers to develop a plan with recommendations. Each policy has slightly different criteria and provisions. As a result of post-merger restructuring, it is possible for all six policies to be in effect in a single department or location. Harmonizing the policies will invariably benefit some employees and hurt others. Should the organization try to harmonize the policies from the merged entities or let them continue to coexist? The VP HR adds another complication. The leadership of the two entities has been merged “on paper,” but there is still a lot of struggling behind the scenes to establish or increase power and influence. The VP of HR would like it if the team could avoid making this issue an opportunity for a proxy power struggle. What should the HR managers do first?

Third-party contractors are best used for what types of activities?

Refer to the following scenario for the next 4 questions. A division of a company lacks a compensation structure for hourly and salaried employees. This presents problems in establishing initial pay rates for new hires, poses a risk of pay inequity within job titles between employees at each location, calls into question whether the division’s pay rates are competitive, and likely results in retention issues. The division recognizes that it requires a compensation structure for review of existing employees’ pay rates, including competitiveness, and also for new-hire employees’ starting rates of pay. For a number of years, the division has relied upon general managers or the president to determine initial pay rates for new hires as well as promotion rates. They base the promotional pay rates on factors such as how many hours the employees work and the number of days of absence. No pay ranges exist. On occasion, an HR representative from another division has offered general advice on pay practices; however, they have their own divisional HR responsibilities. After suffering over a number of years from no pay ranges or HR expertise, the divisional president chooses to bring in a contract HR leader to research, design, and implement an appropriate pay structure for all positions. Why should the division president be concerned about having a competitive and equitable compensation structure?

What type of learning activities would appeal most to an auditory learner?

What is the most important reason to complete a risk assessment?

What does the term “business intelligence” mean?

What is a characteristic of alternative dispute resolution (ADR)?

What is the relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability?

Refer to the following scenario for the next 6 questions. An HR department consists of 18 employees, with three managers directly working under an HR director (HRD). The three managers, one of whom is new to the group, present and face certain challenges to maintaining a positive and productive workplace. Two managers complain to the HRD that the newly hired manager does not delegate responsibilities, which hurts the team’s productivity and challenges the productivity of the entire department. The same two managers are putting pressure on the new manager to give a certain job applicant, the daughter of a close friend of the HRD, an advantage in the hiring process. The new manager, once trained, wants more autonomy. He has been appointed the project leader for the new HRIS implementation and is responsible for allocating team member tasks and responsibilities. The team does not seem to be completing their tasks properly and within the stated amount of time, severely jeopardizing the delivery of the project. Many on the team have hinted they are unsure of what they are supposed to be doing and how they contribute to the overall success of the project. One of the tenured managers has shown a significant and rather sudden drop in performance. From the HRD’s perspective, this manager has started to come in late and seems very frustrated with her work. Her behavior is impacting the atmosphere in the office as she is a well-liked manager and has been working for the company for the past six years. She blames the decline in her unit’s output on the new manager, but it may have more to do with personal issues. How should the HRD handle the complaints from the more-tenured managers about the new manager’s delegation style?

What type of engagement describes the inherent personality-based elements that predispose an individual to being engaged?

Refer to the following scenario for the next 4 questions. A highly matrixed, decentralized international company has six business units in various locations. Although there’s a corporate human resources team with all HR functions represented, each business unit also has its own HR department and functions. All of them operate in a polycentric fashion; only the vice presidents of HR, who report to the senior vice president of HR, interact on a periodic basis. A downturn in the economy has impacted the company and has led corporate HR to explore the possibility of using a new centralized service model to combine one or more of the HR functions into corporate. Other reasons for this include reduction in HR practitioners/cost savings, improved consistency, and elevated expertise. An HR manager who has been with one business unit for the last six years has joined a team pulled together by corporate HR to design and implement an appropriate servicing model. He is the only one from outside of the corporate function participating on the team. For the past month they have been looking at the pros and cons of different HR structures and are discussing a shared services approach. How should the HR manager and the team start the process to determine the appropriate HR servicing model?

A major disadvantage of time-based pay systems is that they

How should the HR leader approach analyzing internal equity among the employee population, within each job title, as part of the wage structure project?

What do judgmental forecasting, trend and ratio analysis projections, and turnover analysis help predict?

What is a benefit associated with informal organizational elements?

What type of employee relationship tactics would be considered “sustainable employee relations”?

What is likely to be of the most concern to the chief information officer or IT director?

A consulting company recently changed its vacation and leave policies and wants to know how employees feel about the changes. Its 500 employees are located in 40 locations throughout the U.S. and western Europe. What survey method is likely to yield the highest response rate and best data?

Refer to the following scenario for the next 4 questions. In a midsummer strategy session, a company determines that they will close their West Coast manufacturing unit and move the entire manufacturing effort to the East Coast business head office. To bring the East Coast office fully online, 90 positions will have to be filled. The work is going to migrate to the East Coast over a 90-day period that will begin September 1. HR has been asked for advice and support. What would be a strong starting point for HR to begin to support this business initiative?

When is a narrow span of control the best option?

When managers begin with a blank slate and must justify their expenditures, what budgeting method is being used?

What is the basis for international law?

As part of the selection process, a candidate is asked to handle a situation dealing with typical job-related challenges. This is an example of what type of selection tool?

What is the most important consideration when forming focus groups?

Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, which statement is true?

What are the three pillars that form the foundation of an effective corporate social responsibility (CSR) strategy?

What is the best definition of moral hazard?

What recommendation would you make to a new HR practitioner concerning investigation of workplace complaints?

How can an organization determine recruiting effectiveness?

How should the team go about gaining buy-in for their recommendations?

In this situation what ethical considerations should be uppermost in crafting a talent assessment tool?

If the team decides to recommend a harmonized policy, what would be the best way to approach the problem?

What is an example of a demographic factor examined during an environmental scan?

If you were the well-liked, tenured manager, how would you manage your own performance issue and your unit’s decline in output?

How should the HR leader address the information uncovered in relation to promotional pay practices?

Which part of a SWOT analysis reflects the external environment?

In planning and implementation processes, what is one of the key ethical concerns for HR?

Younger Millennial and Generation X workers typically have different expectations of how to acquire and develop skills. They expect training and support to be readily and rapidly accessible and consider learning and development a continuous process. This is called