Exam 2

Question 1

Job Simplification

Answer 1

is the standard work procedures and employs people in clearly defined and highly specialized tasks. (intent to increase efficiency)

Question 2

Job Rotation

Answer 2

increase task variety by periodically shifting workers among jobs involving different tasks. (increase flexibility, training)

Question 3

Job enrichment

Answer 3

the practice of enhancing job content by building motivating factors such as responsibility, achievement, recognition, and personal growth (vertical loading-increasing job depth)

Question 4

How would Fredrick Herzberg suggest we enrich jobs

Answer 4

He suggests that we should be allowed to plan, allow workers to control, maximize job freedom, increase task difficulty, provide feedback, increase performance accountability, and help workers become task experts.

Question 5

Sill Variety (5)

Answer 5

a job includes a variety of different activities and involves the use of a number of different skills and talents

Question 6

Task Identity (5)

Answer 6

a job requires completion of a ‘whole’ and identifiable piece of work, one that involves doing a job from the beginning to end with a visible outcome

Question 7

Task Significance (5)

Answer 7

a job is important and involves a meaningful contribution to the organization or society in general

Question 8

Autonomy (5)

Answer 8

job gives the employee substantial freedom, independence, and discretion in scheduling the work and determining the procedures used in carrying it out

Question 9

Job Feedback (5)

Answer 9

carrying out the work activities provides direct and clear information to the employee regarding how well the job has been done

Question 10

Growth-need Strength

Answer 10

a person desires the opportunity for self-direction, learning, and personal accomplishment at work (related to Alderfers growth needs)

Question 11

Knowledge and Skill

Answer 11

people whose capabilities fit the demands of enriched jobs are predicted to feel good about them and perform well

Question 12

Context satisfaction

Answer 12

the extent to which an employee is satisfied with aspects of the work setting such as salary levels, quality of supervision, relationships with co-workers, and working conditions. People who are more satisfied with job context are more likely than dissatisfied ones to support and do well with job enrichment.

Question 13

Sociotechnical systems

Answer 13

integrate people and technology into high-performance work settings.

Question 14

Automation

Answer 14

allows machines to do work previously accomplished by people. They are becoming ever more versatile and reliable (robots). The prices are also falling as human labor increases

Question 15

Flexible Manufacturing Systems

Answer 15

adaptive technology and integrated job designs to easily shift production among alternative products. They perform few routine assembly line tasks and instead they ensure that the operations are handled correctly and deal with the changeover from one product configuration to another.
-Electronic offices which tried to automate as many tasks as possible to free people for more challenging work (offer job enrichment possibilities)

Question 16

Compressed Work Week

Answer 16

allows a full-time job to be completed in fewer than five days

Question 17

Flexible Working hours

Answer 17

gives employees some daily choice in scheduling arrival and departure times from work

Question 18

Job Sharing

Answer 18

allows one full-time job to be avoided among two or more persons

Question 19

Telecommuting

Answer 19

work at home or in remote locations using computer and telecommunications linkages with the office

Question 20

Temporary part-time work

Answer 20

temporary work for fewer hours than the standard week

Question 21

Permanent part-time work

Answer 21

Permanent work for fewer hours than the standard week

Question 22

Advantages of Job Sharing

Answer 22

The advantage of job sharing is when they can attract talented people who would otherwise be unable to work (qualified teacher who is parents can only work half-days). This is called work sharing- when workers agree to cut back on the number of hours they work in order to protect against layoffs.

Question 23

Disadvantages of job sharing

Answer 23

find two people who will work well with each other

Question 24

Telecommuting

Answer 24

work at home or in remote locations using computer and telecommunications linkages with the office

Question 25

Flexiplace

Answer 25

working most of the time from a home office and coming into corporate offices only for special meetings

Question 26

Virtual Office

Answer 26

where the individual works literally ‘from the road’ and while traveling from place to place or from customer to customer by car or airplane

Question 27

Hoteling

Answer 27

temporary offices are reserved for these workers during the times they visit the main office

Question 28

Performance management

Answer 28

the process of managing performance measurement and the associated human resource management decisions. The steps are:

1) Identify and set clear and measure performance goals
2) Take performance measurements to monitor goal progress
3) Provide feedback and coaching on performance results
4) Use performance assessment for human resource management decisions such as promotions, transfers, terminations, pay raises, training, and career development

Question 29

Why is performance management so important?

Answer 29

Performance management underlies the logic of any performance-based pay system. It lets people know where they stand relative to objectives and standards. It facilitates decisions relating to planning for and gaining commitment to continued training and personal development of workers. If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it.

Question 30

Examples of common output

Answer 30

performance assesses actual work results (Quantitative: 50 widgets per hour)

Question 31

Examples of activity measure

Answer 31

performance assesses work efforts or inputs. This can mean the quality of interacting with others. You may not have made quota but how much effort did you put into the project. How many presentations did you make for groups How many calls did you make to people. It’s not about the final outcome, more about how you got there

Question 32

3 comparative performance appraisal methods

Answer 32

• Ranking- comparative technique that involves rank ordering of each individual from best to worst on each performance dimension
• Paired comparisons- Comparative method whereby each person is directly compared with every other person (comparing Matt to Tom, Matt to Brett, Matt to Chelsey…)
• Forced distribution- Method of performance that uses a small number of performance categories, such as ‘very good, good, adequate, poor, very poor’ and forces a certain proportion of people into each

Question 33

Advantages of performance appraisal methods

Answer 33

• Graphic rating scale- scale that lists a variety of dimensions thought to be related to high-performance outcomes in a given job that the individual is expected to exhibit (Their ease of use, efficient use of time and other resources, and they can be applied to a wide range of jobs)
• Critical incident diary- records incidents of unusual success or failures for a given performance aspect (excellent for employee development and feedback)
• Behaviorally anchored rating scale (BARS)- describes observable job behaviors, each of which is evaluated to determine good versus bad performance (specific critical behaviors, each reflecting a different degree of performance effectiveness, detailed and complex, provides specific behavioral information that is useful for counseling and feedback, especially when combined with the quantitative scales that are useful for evaluative comparative purposes)

Question 34

Halo Error

Answer 34

one person rates another person on several different dimensions and gives similar ratings for each one (fails to discriminate against a persons strong and weak points)

Question 35

leniency error

Answer 35

Tendency to give relatively high ratings to virtually everyone

Question 36

Strictness error

Answer 36

Occurs when a rater tends to give everyone a low rating

Question 37

Central Tendency Error

Answer 37

Occurs when raters lump everyone’s performance ratings around the average, middle, category

Question 38

Recency error

Answer 38

Biased rating that develops by allowing the individual’s most recent behavior to speak for his or her overall performance on a particular dimension ( employee is always on time but shows up 1 hour late once. The manager rates his ‘promptness’ very low just because of that one time)

Question 39

Personal Bias Error

Answer 39

when a rater allows specific biases, such as racial, age, or gender, to enter into performance appraisal

Question 40

Cultutal Bias Error

Answer 40

Must be aware of cultural backgrounds that they bring with them to the task performance appraisal (cultural differences, time orientation, power distance)

Question 41

Ways to reduce rater errors

Answer 41

• Train raters to understand the evaluation process and recognize sources of measurement error
  
  • Make sure raters observe ratees on an ongoing, regular basis, and that they do not try to limit evaluations to designated evaluation periods
  • Do not have one rater rate too many people; ability to identify performance differences drops and fatigue sets in when large numbers are involved
  • Make sure performance dimensions and standards are stated clearly; avoid terms such as ‘average’ because different raters react differently to such terms

Question 42

Formal Groups

Answer 42

officially designated for specific organizational purposes. They may be permanent (department or division) or temporary (task force, project-teams, cross-functional teams) the use of cross-functional teams or task forces for special problem solving has increased.

Question 43

Informal Groups

Answer 43

Unofficial and emerge to serve special interests (Personal relationships or special interest such as friendship groups). Informal groups often help people get their jobs done, they have the potential to speed up the workflow as people assist each other in ways that formal lines of authority fail to provide, and can provide members with social satisfactions, security, and a sense of belonging.

Question 44

Stages of Group Development

Answer 44

• Forming- primary concern is the initial entry of the group, members are interested in getting to know each other and discovering what is considered acceptable behavior, defining group rules and tasks
• Storming- Period of high emotionality and tension among the group members, hostility and infighting may occur. Coalitions and cliques may form as individuals compete to impose their preferences on the group to achieve a desired status position. Begin to understand interpersonal styles
• Norming- sometimes called initial integration, the point at which the group really begins to come together as a coordinated unit. The turmoil of the storming stage gives way to balancing of forces. Holding the group together becomes an importance. A stepping stone to the next-higher level of group development.
• Performing- sometimes called total integration, marks the emergence of a mature, organized, and well-functioning group. The group is now able to deal with complex tasks and handle internal disagreements in creative ways. The structure is stable, and members are motivated by group goals and are generally satisfied.
• Adjourning- Well-integrated group that is able to disband, if required, when its work is accomplished. Must be able to convene quickly, do their jobs on a tight schedule, and then adjourn—often to reconvene later if needed. Important for many temporary groups that are increasingly common in the new workplace, including tasks forces, committees, and project teams.