Chapter 4 Analyzing Work and Human Resource Planning Flashcards Preview

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1
Q

job analysis

A

a systematic process used to identify and describe the important aspects of a job and the worker characteristics needed to succeed

identifies important tasks and working conditions as well as the tools and technologies used on the job

making judgments about what an employee needs to do to perform a job well given the business strategy and organizational culture

2
Q

strategic planning

A

a process for making decisions about an organization’s long-term goals and they are to be achieved

3
Q

mission

A

its basic purpose and the scope of its operations

4
Q

vision

A

identifies the company’s long-term goals regarding what the organization wants to become and accomplish and describes its image of an ideal future

5
Q

core values

A

the enduring beliefs and principles that guide its decisions and goals, including corporate social responsibility and environmental sustainability

6
Q

A company’s ______ is/are defined as the long-term goals regarding what the organization wants to become and accomplish, and describing its image of an ideal future

a. vision
b. values
c. strategy
d. mission

A

a. vision

7
Q

business strategy

A

an outline of how a business will compete in a particular market

8
Q

human resource planning

A

aligns the organization’s human resources to accomplish the organization’s strategic goals

9
Q

The four main steps of human resource planning

A
  1. strategic planning
  2. human resource planning
  3. forecasting labor demand and labor supply
  4. developing and implementing action plans as needed
10
Q

strategic planning

A

a company’s strategic vision, mission, values, and strategy influence the type, quality, and quantity of skills and employees needed

11
Q

forecasting labor demand and labor supply

A

identify labor shortages or surpluses; important to determine whether any gaps are expected to be short-term or long-term in duration

Bureau of Labor statistics

12
Q

developing and implementing action plans as needed

A

action plans should address any gaps between expected labor supply and demand; should be consistent with the firm’s talent philosophy and values

13
Q

What process relies on action plans to address expected surpluses or shortages of talent in order to accomplish the organization’s strategic goals?

a. business strategy development
b. human resource planning
c. labor supply forecasting
d. human resource management

A

b. human resource planning

14
Q

sources for forecasting labor demand

A

leading economic index consumer confidence index
exchange rate trends
interest rate forecasts

15
Q

leading economic index

A

a monthly composite economic index published by the Conference Board is intended to signal peaks and troughs in the business cycle

16
Q

consumer confidence index

A

monthly Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index telephone survey asks 1,000 randomly selected adults questions about perceptions of job security and their willingness to spend money

17
Q

exchange rate trends

A

Reflect the cost of one country’s currency in terms of another currency. By influencing the cost of raw materials, the price of the organization’s exports, and the prices of competitors’ imports, exchange rates influence product demand and subsequent demand for employees.

18
Q

interest rate forecasts

A

interest rates reflect the cost of borrowing money. Higher interest rates make money more expensive to borrow. Accordingly, interest rates influence both consumer demand for a company’s products and companies’ willingness to borrow money to fund expansion plans

19
Q

labor demand forecasting methods

A

trend analysis
ratio analysis
judgmental forecasting

20
Q

trend analysis

A

using relevant past employment patterns, including the employer’s, the industry’s, or even the nation’s, to predict a company’s future talent nees

21
Q

ratio analysis

A

assumes a relatively fixed ratio between the number of employees needed and certain business metrics; can be used to justifying new positions or demonstrating the need for downsizing;

number of employees needed to obtain productivity level

22
Q

staffing ratio

A

a mathematical method of calculating the number of employees needed by indexing headcount with a relevant business metric

of accounting assistants to the # of accountants based on a staffing ratio of 5:3 (the firm needs 5 assistants for every 3 accountants)

23
Q

judgmental forecasting

A

relies on managers’ expertise to predict a firm’s future talent needs

24
Q

top-down judgmental forecasting

A

relies on the organization’s leaders and their experience and knowledge of their industry and company to make predictions about the firm’s future talent needs

25
Q

bottom-up judgmental forecasting

A

lower-level managers’ estimates of the firm’s future talent needs; each manager’s estimate of the number and types of employees he or she will need are modified and consolidated as they move the organization’s hierarchy. Top managers review and consolidate the final results.

26
Q

talent inventories

A

worksheets or databases that summarize each employee’s competencies, qualifications, and anything else that can help the company understand how the employee can contribute

IBM’s Workforce Management Initiative software

27
Q

replacement charts

A

track the potential replacements for particular positions

graphically shows current jobholders, possible successors, and each successor’s readiness to assume the job

uses talent inventories

28
Q

succession planning

A

identifies, develops, and tracks employees to enable them to eventually assume higher-level positions

helps employees reach their highest potential

29
Q

employee survey

A

monitor employees attitudes, dissatisfaction, complaints can help forecast future turnover

30
Q

Two ways the external labor market can be forecasted

A
  1. monitoring its own experiences (if the quality and quantity of the applicants is getting worse then that signals a tighter labor market)
  2. through the statistics generated by others (US Bureau of Labor Statistics)
31
Q

gap analysis

A

comparing labor supply and demand forecasts identifies the firm’s future talent needs

32
Q

action plan

A

a strategy for proactively addressing an expected talent shortage or surplus

33
Q

job design

A

modifying jobs to focus on employee talents

34
Q

scientific management

A

breaks work down into its simplest elements and then systematically improves the worker’s performance on each element

productivity is maximized when organizations are rationalized with precise sets of instructions based on time-and-motion studies

35
Q

four principles of Taylor’s scientific management

A
  1. replace rule-of-thumb work methods with methods based on scientifically studying the tasks using time-and-motion studies
  2. scientifically select, train, and develop each worker rather than leaving them to passively train themselves
  3. Managers provide detailed instructions and supervision to workers to ensure that they are following the scientifically developed methods
  4. divide work nearly equally between workers and managers. Managers should plan and workers should perform the tasks
36
Q

job characteristics model

A

the objective characteristics of the job lead to job satisfaction

perceiving that the work one is doing is important can improve motivation and performance

37
Q

5 job characteristics

A
  1. skill variety
  2. task identify
  3. task significance
  4. autonomy
  5. task feedback
38
Q

skill variety

A

the degree to which the job requires a variety of activities enabling the worker to use different skills and talents

39
Q

task identity

A

the degree to which the job requires the worker to complete a whole and identifiable piece of work

40
Q

task significance

A

the degree to which job performance is important and affects the lives or work of others

41
Q

autonomy

A

the degree to which the job gives the worker freedom, discretion, and independence in scheduling the work and determining how to do the work

42
Q

task feedback

A

the degree to which carrying out the job’s required activities results in the individuals obtaining direct and clear information about the effectiveness of his or her performance

43
Q

A good match between the needs of the person and the characteristics of the job generates 3 critical employee psychological states

A
  1. experienced meaningfulness of work
  2. experienced responsibility for work outcomes
  3. knowledge of results of work activities
44
Q

job enrichement

A

a job design approach that increases a job’s complexity to give workers greater responsibility and opportunities to feel a sense of achievement

45
Q

job enlargement

A

adding more task at the same level of responsibility and skill related to an employee’s current position

46
Q

job rotation

A

moving employees through a variety of jobs to increase their engagement and motivation

47
Q

cross-training

A

training employees in more than one job or in multiple skills to enable them to do different jobs

48
Q

What is job analysis used for?

A
  1. determining hiring requirements
  2. developing a recrutiing plan
  3. selecting job applicants for employment
  4. creating employee training plans
  5. designing compensation systems
  6. developing performance evaluation tools and tracking performance metrics
49
Q

Done properly job _______ can strategically align job requirements with the company’s business strategy and competitive advantage

a. analysis
b. enlargement
c. enrichment
d. rotation

A

a. analysis

50
Q

job description

A

a written description of the duties and the responsibilities of the job itself

primary outcome of a job analysis

51
Q

job task

A

an observable unit of work with a beginning and an end

52
Q

task statements

A

identify in specific behavioral terms the regular duties and responsibilities of a position

what the worker does, how the worker does it, and for what purpose

53
Q

person specification

A

summary of the characteristics of someone able to perform the job

should be as specific as possible

relate to core jobs duties

describe the minimum requirements essential to do the job effectively

54
Q

essential criteria

A

job holder characteristics vital to adequate job performance

55
Q

desirable criteria

A

job holder characteristics that enhance job success but are not essential to adequate job performance

56
Q

knowledge

A

organized factual or procedural information that can be used to perform a task

57
Q

skill

A

the ability to use some sort of knowledge in performing a physical task

driving a truck
depth perception

58
Q

ability

A

a stable and enduring capability to perform a variety of tasks

can be inherited, learned, or a combination of both

running ability
ability to repair small motors

59
Q

KSAO

A

knowledge, skill, ability, other characteristics

60
Q

2 most important features of job analysis methods

A
  1. It be reliable

2. valid (accurately measure what it was intended to measure)

61
Q

5 Job Analysis Methods

A
  1. critical incidents technique
  2. job elements method
  3. structured interview
  4. task inventory approach
  5. structured questionnaire
62
Q

critical incidents technique

A

job experts describe episodes of good, average, and poor performance

a story about someone’s either extremely effective or ineffective work behavior

advantages

  • provides examples or particularly effective or ineffective job behaviors
  • incidents are actual on the job behaviors and can often be crated into interview questions

disadvantage

  • narrative data can be hard to use
  • fair amount of time and resource are necessary to gather enough incidents
63
Q

job elements methods

A

a group of job experts list and rate the important worker characteristics that influence success in the job, including knowledge, skills, abilities, and personal characteristics

primarily used with industrial occupations and lesser skilled jobs

advantages

  • job experts feel more ownership because they are involved in every stage
  • efficient
  • results in well-organized documentation of both the job and the worker

disadvantage
- can be difficult to communicate the methodology

64
Q

structured interview technique

A

job experts supply information about the job and workers that distinguishes superior performance

advantages
- requires minimal time and resources

disadvantages
- a job analysis professional is needed to reduce interviewer bias

  • interview data can be difficult to analyze
65
Q

task inventory approach

A

job experts generate a list of 50 to 200 tasks that are then grouped in categories reflecting major work functions

advantages

  • objective
  • results in reliable description of job

disadvantages

  • may not identify important but infrequently displayed characteristics
  • does not identify the characteristics that distinguish superior workers
66
Q

structured questionnaires

A

written questionnaires that assess information about worker inputs, work output , job context, and job characteristics

advantages

  • fast and relatively cheap
  • can be used for almost any position
  • standardized so different jobs can be compared
  • produces quantitative estimates of a job’s mental, perceptual, psychomotor, personality, and physical ability requirements

disadvantages

  • may require a high reading level
  • predetermined questions may miss unique aspects of the job or work context
67
Q

structured job analysis questionnaire

A

a list of pre-identified questions designed to analyze a job

68
Q

position analysis questionnaire (PAQ)

A

a copyrighted, standardized structured questionnaire designed to be used for just about any job

assesses information input, mental processes, work output, job context, and other job characteristics associated with position

69
Q

competency modeling

A

a job analysis method that identifies the worker competencies characteristic of high performance

70
Q

competencies

A

broadly defined worker characteristics that underlie successful performance or behavior on the job.

71
Q

job rewards analysis

A

analyzes a job’s nonmonetary intrinsic rewards derived from the work itself and its extrinsic rewards with monetary value

72
Q

intrinsic rewards

A

rewards that are nonmonetary and derived from the work itself

73
Q

extrinsic rewards

A

rewards with monetary value

74
Q

total rewards

A

combination of intrinsic and extrinsic rewards

75
Q

organizational design

A

the process of selecting and managing aspects of organizational structure to facilitate organizational goal accomplishment

76
Q

organizational structure

A

the organization’s formal system of task, power, and reporting relationships

aligning the organizational structure with the organizational needs generates greater efficiencies and less conflict

77
Q

organizational chart

A

a chart that illustrates the chain of command and reporting relationships in your company

a job’s location in the organizational chart does not reflect its importance to the company

78
Q

policy

A

the guiding principle that the employer develops to set direction

79
Q

procedure

A

the explanation of how, or the sequence of steps, to apply company guidelines to accomplish a task

80
Q

rule

A

a statement of what employees may or may no do

81
Q

formalization

A

to what extent are the organizational rules, procedures, and communications written down

82
Q

centralization

A

to what degree are power and decision-making authority concentrated at higher levels of the organization rather than distributed?

83
Q

division of labor

A

do employees specialize or generalize

84
Q

span of control

A

how many people report directly to an individual

85
Q

hierarchy

A

how much formal authority do some employees have over others

86
Q

workflow analysis

A

investigates how work moves through an organization

focuses on incremental change

87
Q

workflow

A

describes how work is organized to meet the organization’s goals

88
Q

business process reengineering

A

a more radical rethinking and redesigning of workflow and business processes to achieve large improvements in speed, service, cost or quality

starts with a clean slate

89
Q

Whether employees specialize or generalize is called _______.

a. formalizations
b. span of control
c. divisions of labor
d. centralization

A

c. division of labor

90
Q

protocol

A

the official set of rules related to behaviors

91
Q

The following is and example of a ________: Employees who are using emergency personal time must call and talk to their supervisor as soon as possible, but not later than sixty minutes after the start of their shift. If the supervisor is unavailable, employees may leave a message for the supervisor with a phone number where they can be reached.

a. procedure
b. process
c. policy
d. protocol

A

a. procedure