Ch 1: The Strategic Role of Human Resources Management

Question 1

what is an organization?

Answer 1

a group of people with formally assigned roles who work together to achieve the organization’s goals

Question 2

what do managers do?

Answer 2

• accomplishes the organization’s goals by managing the efforts of the organization’s people
• perform management process of planning, organizing, staffing, leading, and controlling

Question 3

describe human resources management (HRM)

Answer 3

management of people in organizations to drive successful organizational performance and achievement of organization’s strategic goals

Question 4

what is human resource management responsible for?

Answer 4

• finding and hiring the best individuals available
• developing their talent
• creating a productive work environment
• continually building and monitoring the human assets

Question 5

what is a stretegic plan?

Answer 5

how the company will match internal strengths and weaknesses with external opportunities and threats to maintain a competitive position

Question 6

what is a strategy?

Answer 6

course of action a company pursues to achieve its strategic aims

Question 7

what is stretegic management?

Answer 7

the process of identifyinf and exectuting the strategic plan

Question 8

what is human capital?

Answer 8

the knowledge, education, training, skills, and expertise of an organization’s workforce

Question 9

what does knowledge-based economy require?

Answer 9

acquisition and development of superior human capital for profitability and success

Question 10

what does high performance HR practices have?

Answer 10

a positive relationship with productivity and financial performance

Question 11

what are some mistakes managers don’t want to make?

Answer 11

• hire the wrong person for the job
• experience high turnover
• have employees work below performance expectations
• waste time with useless interviews
• face discrimination lawsuits
• pay unfair salaries relative to peers in the organization
• allow lack of training to undermine effectiveness
• commit any unfair labour practices

Question 12

what were set up by the 1900s?

Answer 12

“hiring offices”, training programs, and factory schools

Question 13

what expanded the role of HR in the 1930s?

Answer 13

union laws

Question 14

what made employers more reliant of personnel management in the 1970s and 1980s?

Answer 14

equity-oriented laws

Question 15

what made gaining competitive edge through engaged employees increasingly important in the 1980s?

Answer 15

globalization

Question 16

what resulted in outsourcing many operational HR activities in the 1980s and 1990s?

Answer 16

technological advances

Question 17

what are the roles of the senior manager?

Answer 17

• highlight core job requirements found in non-HR roles
• evidence that HR skills permeate throughout the organization
• all managers need basics of HR management skills

Question 18

what does the new HR manager do?

Answer 18

• defends HR plans in measurable terms
• understands strategic planning, marketing, production, and finance
• implements organizational changes
• drives employee engagement
• redesigns organizational structures and work processes
• serves as subject-matter expert or in-house consultants
• needs to have broad-based business knowledge and skills

Question 19

what are other HR configurations in use today?

Answer 19

• transactional HR teams
• embedded HR teams
• relationship managers
• centres of expertise

Question 20

what is the purpose of evidence-based HRM?

Answer 20

• make decisions based on data, facts, analytics, scientific rigour, critical evaluation, and research
  
  • using the best-available evidence in making decisions
• make the value and impact of human capital and HRM practices
  
  • use metrics to measure activities and results
  • provide critical information that can be linked to organizational outcomes such as productivity, market share, and profits

Question 21

what are strategy maps?

Answer 21

summarizes how each depertment’s performance contributes to achieving the company’s overall strategic goals

Question 22

what is the purpose of a balanced scorecard?

Answer 22

• translates the organization’s strategy into a comprehensive set of performance measures
• financial measures tell the results of actions already taken
• operational measures drive future performance
• balance long-term and shorter, actions related to financial results, customers, business processes, and human capital management

Question 23

what is a digital dashboard?

Answer 23

presents managers with desktop graphs and charts, showing a computerized picture of how the company is doing

Question 24

what are characteristics of a profession?

Answer 24

• common body of knowledge
• benchmarked performance standards
• representative professional association
• external perception as a professional
• code of ethics
• required training credentials
• ongoing skills development
• maintenance of professional competence

Question 25

what is the purpose of certifications?

Answer 25

* indicates that professional standards have been met * professional HR designation in Canada is changing

Question 26

what are some ethical issues in canadian organizations today?

Answer 26

* security of **information** * employee and client **privacy** * environmental issues * governance * **conflict** of interest

Question 27

what leads to failure of ethics programs?

Answer 27

* lack of **leadership** * inadequate **training**

Question 28

what are some positive outcomes of ethics programs?

Answer 28

* increased confidence among stakeholders * greater client, customer and employee loyalty * decreased vulnerability to crime * reduced losses to internal theft * increased public trust

Question 29

what is social responsibility?

Answer 29

balancing organizational commitments to investors, employees, customers, other businesses, and the communities. in which the firm operates

Question 30

what are some external environmental influences on HRM?

Answer 30

* economic conditions * labour market issues * technology * government * globalization * environment

Question 31

describe economic conditions

Answer 31

* affect supply and demand * employment levels fluctuate with economy * productivity improvement is essential for long-term success * ratio of outputs to inputs * decline of the primary, secondary sectors and growth tertiary (service) sectors * primary: agriculture, miners, etc, * secondary: service sectors

Question 32

what are ways that Canada has increased workforce diversity?

Answer 32

* Canada's workforce is one of the most diverse in **the world** * includes **demographic factors, values, and cultural norms** * in Canada, there are 4 protected employee groups: * **visible and ethnic minorities** * **women** * **indigenous** * **persons with disabilities**

Question 33

what is the major reson for rejecting entry-level candidates?

Answer 33

**poor reading and writing** skills

Question 34

what are non-standard or contingent workers?

Answer 34

* workers who do not have regular full-time employment status * used by companies to provide flexible, on-demand labour * part-time * fixed-term * temporary * home workers * standby workers * self-employed

Question 35

what are driving transfer of functionality from HR professionals to automation?

Answer 35

digital technologies

Question 36

what are some examples of digital technologies used from HR professionals and why do they use them?

Answer 36

* mobile applications- **monitor employee location** * gaming- **used in training applications** * cloud computing- **provide real-time feedback** * data analytics- **applied to problem solving** * talent analytics- **analyze traits of ideal candidates**

Question 37

how does technology affect the nature of jobs?

Answer 37

* dispersed workforce * work anywhere * line between work and family time is blurred * concerns about **data control, accuracy, right to privacy, and ethics** * monitoring of **email, voicemail, phone conversations, computer use** * video surveillance of employee bahviour

Question 38

what are the internal environmental influences of HR?

Answer 38

* organizational culture * organizational climate * management practices

Question 39

describe organizational culture

Answer 39

* **core values, beliefs, and assumptions** that are shared by members of an organization * conveyed through mission statement, stories, symbols, and ceremonies * communicates what the organization believes in and stands for * provides a sense of direction and expected behavior * creates a sense of **identity and consistency** * fosters **employee loyalty and commitment**

Question 40

describe organizational climate

Answer 40

* atmosphere or “internal weather”, and its impact on employee motivation, job satisfaction, and loyalty

Question 41

describe management practices

Answer 41

* **flat structures, cross-functional teams**, improved communication * **empowerment** provides workers with the skills and authority to make decisions