Final Review

Question 1

There are typically 6 steps in the selection process that result in the hiring decision (which is step six). Identify and describe the five steps that lead up to the hiring decision.

Answer 1

• Selection Process:
  1. Preliminary Applicant Screening: application forms and résumés are reviewed
  candidates not meeting selection criteria are eliminated and the remaining candidates matching the job specifications are given further consideration.
  2. Selection Testing: assesses specific job-related skills, general intelligence, personality characteristics, mental abilities, interests, and preferences.
  3. The Selection Interview: Interviewer Objectives:
  assess qualifications, observe behaviour, predict future performance, communicate information about job, promote organization, determine how well applicant would fit in.
  4. Background Investigation/Reference Checking: verify accuracy of information provided includes:
  criminal record check, verification of educational qualifications, verification of previous employment, performance-related references from past supervisors, credit check may also be included.
  5. Supervisory Interview and Realistic Job Preview:
  The supervisor is best qualified to assess job knowledge/ skills, can answer job-specific questions, must feel comfortable with new hire, can assess fit with current team members.
  Realistic Job Preview (RJP): provides applicants with realistic information, both positive and negative, about the job.
  6. Hiring Decision and Candidate Notification: compile information from all techniques used, evaluate information about each candidate, immediate supervisor usually makes final hiring decision, make offer that specifies terms and conditions of employment, give candidates time to think about the offer, notify all finalists who were not selected.

Question 2

You are the director of HR at an accounting firm and are preparing to advise the hiring manager in interviewing candidates for articling positions with the firm. You’ve already identified key selection criteria for the position, which include excellent analytical skills, ability to work under pressure, and ability to interact well with clients and coworkers. Generate one situational interview question and one behavioural interview question for the positions. Be sure to explain how each of the questions is relevant to any of the selection criteria identified. Complete answers are worth 5 points for each question - 10 total.

Answer 2

• Situational interview question: Series of job-related questions that focus on how the candidate would behave in a given situation.
  “How would you handle a misunderstanding or disagreement with a coworker regarding the process of the financial statement for a client?”
• Behavioural interview question: Series of job-related questions that focus on relevant past job-related behaviours.
  “From your experience how would you describe you perform under pressure?”

Question 3

Identify and describe 5 common interview mistakes that limit the reliability or validity of the interview.

Answer 3

1. Poor planning: interviews are not planned and may be conducted without having any written questions in advance.
2. Poor knowledge of the job: Interviewers who do not know precisely what candidate is best suited for the job usually makes decisions based on incorrect stereotypes.
3. Snap judgements: Interviewers tend to jump to conclusions during the first few minutes of the interview or before.
4. Hallo Effect: A positive initial impression that distorts an interviewer’s rating of a candidate because subsequent information is judged with a positive bias.
5. Leading: Interviewers that are anxious to fill a job will help the applicants to respond correctly to their questions by asking leading questions of guiding the candidate to the expected answer.

Question 4

How would you determine if there is a need for training.

Answer 4

• Training: process of teaching employees the basic skills/competencies that they need to perform their jobs.
• Performance analysis is verifying that there is a performance deficiency and determining whether that deficiency should be rectified through training or other means.

Question 5

Outline the content you will design for 30 new employees who will start their jobs at the same time.

Answer 5

In this case an orientation is required because is a socialization between the employee and the employer. Furthermore, the employee will be given internal publications (handbooks), facility tours and staff introductions, job-related documents, expected training to be received (when and why), performance appraisal criteria.

Question 6

Identify and describe how to implement two different management development techniques.

Answer 6

• Management development: any attempt to improve current or future management performance by impacting knowledge, changing attitudes, or increasing skills.
  1. Development Job Rotation: technique that involves moving a trainee from department to department to broaden trainee’s experience and identify strong and weak points.
  2. Action Learning: technique by which management trainees are allowed to work full time, analyzing and solving problems in other departments.

Question 7

Identify and describe each of the 5 steps of the Performance Management Process.

Answer 7

• Performance Management: The process encompassing all activities related to improving employee performance, productivity, and effectiveness.
  1. Defining Performance Expectations:
  a.Task performance: direct contribution to job-related processes.
  b.Contextual performance: indirect contribution to the organization’s social responsibility values
  c.Legal considerations: correlate performance expectations to job activities.
  2. Providing Ongoing Coaching and Feedback: It is important to have open two-way communication. The employee is responsible for monitoring own performance, and asking for help, and the manager is responsible for communicating changing strategies and objectives if applicable.
  3. Performance Appraisal and Evaluation Discussion:
  Formal appraisal methods: graphic rating scale, alternation ranking, paired comparison, forced distribution, critical incident, narrative forms, behaviourally anchored rating scales (BARS), management by objectives (MBO).
  4. Determine Performance Rewards/Consequences:
  a. provide performance awards: merit pay, extra pay.
  b. important aspects used to determine the appropriate reward/consequence: achievement of goals and how the employee meets the defined standards.
  5. Career Development Discussion:
  manager and employee discuss opportunities for development based on current job requirements or future development. Business needs must be balanced with the employee’s preferences.

Question 8

Identify and Describe 5 Performance Appraisal Methods:

Answer 8

1. Graphic Rating Scale: Scale that lists traits and a range of performance for each. The employee is then rated by identifying the score that best describes the level of performance for each trait.
2. Alternation Ranking Method: Ranking employees from best to worst on a particular trait.
3. Paired Comparison Method: Ranking employees by making a chart of all possible pairs of employees for each trait and indicating the better employee of the pair.
4. Forced Distribution Method: Predetermined percentages of rates are placed in various performance categories.
5. Critical Incident Method: Keeping a record of uncommonly good or undesirable examples of an employee’s work-related behaviour and reviewing the list with the employee at predetermined times.

Question 9

Identify and Describe the 5 Components of Total Rewards:

Answer 9

1. Compensation: Includes direct financial payments in the form of wages, salaries, incentives, commissions, and bonuses.
2. Benefits: Includes indirect payments in the form of financial benefits like employer-paid insurance and vacations.
3. Work-life programs: Programs that help employees do their jobs effectively like flexible scheduling, telecommunicating, child care, etc.
4. Performance and Recognition: Includes pay-for-performance and recognition programs.
5. Development and Career Opportunities: Focuses on planning for the advancement or change in responsibilities to best suit individual skills, talents, and desires. Tuition assistance, professional development, sabbaticals, coaching and mentoring opportunities, succession planning, and apprenticeships.

Question 10

How should establishing pay rate that are both externally and internally equitable go? Indicate the issues that may arise if this is not done.

Answer 10

• 3 Stages that establish pay rates that are externally and internally equitable:
  1. Job Evaluation to determine the worth of jobs within the organization (ensure internal equity) and group jobs within similar worth pay grades.
  2. Conduct a wage/salary survey of what other employees are paying for comparable jobs (ensure external equity).
  3. Combine job evaluation (internal) and salary survey (external) information to determine pay rates for the jobs in the organization.
• Employee perceptions are one of the two key conditions for effective reward programs: 1. Externally pay must compare favourably with rates in other organizations or an employer struggle to retain qualified employees. 2. Pay rates must also be equitable internally (employees should view their pay as equitable given other pay rates in the organization).

Question 11

Identify the four major compensable factors used in point method job evaluation plans and describe two sub factors that might be used for each of the four major compensable factors.

Answer 11

• Compensable Factor: Fundamental compensable element of a job, such as skill, effort, responsibility, and working conditions.
• Point method: job evaluation method in which a number of compensable facts are identified, the degree to which each of these factors is present in the job is determined, an overall point value is calculated.
• Factors: 1. Skill, 2. Effort, 3. Responsibility, 4. Working conditions.
• Sub-Factors: 1. Education & Experience/Interpersonal Skill, 2. Physical Effort/Mental Effort, 3. Supervision of others planning, 4. Physical Environment Travel.

Question 12

Discuss the issues in designing an annual bonus plan aimed at motivating the short-term performance of managers and executives.

Answer 12

• 3 basic issues should be considered when awarding short-term incentives:
  1. Eligibility: a. Key-position (job by job review to identify key jobs with impact on profitability), b. Salary-level cut-off point (employees earning over a threshold amount are eligible for consideration of incentives), c. Salary grade (assumes that all employees at a certain grade or above should be elegible for incentives).
  2. Fund-size determination: total amount of bonus that will be available.
  3. Determination of Individual Awards: typically a target bonus is set for each eligible position and adjustments are then made for greater or less targeted performance.

Question 13

Identify and discuss two different organization-wide incentive plans.

Answer 13

1. Profit Sharing Plan: A plan whereby most or all employees share in the company’s profits.
2. ESOP “Employee Share Purchase/Stock Ownership Plan”: A plan whereby a trust is established to hold shares of company stock purchased for or issued to employees on retirement, separation from service, or as otherwise prescribed by the plan.
3. Gainsharing Plan: An incentive plan that engages employees in a common effort to achieve productivity and share the gains.

Question 14

Briefly describe five government-sponsored employee benefits in Canada.

Answer 14

1. Employment Insurance (EI): Program that provides income benefits if a person is unable to work through no fault of his or her own.
2. Pay on termination of employment: amount of payment varies according to jurisdiction and circumstances: pay in lieu of reasonable notice,
   severance pay (Ontario and federal jurisdiction only), pay for mass layoffs (some jurisdictions).
3. Leaves of absence: Unpaid time off, employer must guarantee same or similar job when employee returns (maternity/parental leave, parental/adoption leave, bereavement leave, compassionate care leave).
4. Canada/Quebec Pension Plan (CPP/QPP): Programs that provide basic level of security on retirement based on individual contributions made (retirement income, survivor or death benefits, disability benefits).
5. Workers’ compensation: income and medical benefits to victims of work-related accidents or illnesses, regardless of fault. Funded collectively by employers administered by jurisdictional workers’ compensation boards.
6. Vacations and holidays: a. Vacation minimum amount of paid vacation must be provided to employees, b. minimum 5 days, maximum 9.
7. Paid breaks: Uninterrupted break within a work day.

Question 15

Describe Flexible Benefits and 2 advantages and disadvantages.

Answer 15

• Flexible Benefits Programs: Individualized benefit plans to accommodate employee needs and preferences.
• Advantages:
  1. Employees choose packages that best satisfy their unique needs.
  2. Help firms meet changing needs of a changing workforce.
• Disadvantages:
  1. Employees make bad choices and find themselves not covered for predictable emergencies.
  2. Administrative burdens and expenses increase.

Question 16

What are four ideas to help the organization control health care costs?

Answer 16

1. Flexible Benefits.
2. Reduced Workplace Accidents and Injuries.
3. Reduced Compensation Claims.
4. Reduced Benefits Costs.

Question 17

Identify and Describe five employee services including at least two from personal services and two job related services.

Answer 17

• Personal Services:
  1. Counselling Services: Financial counselling, family con selling, career counselling, job placement counselling, pre-retirement counselling, legal counselling, etc.
  2. Employee Assistance Plan (EAP): Company-sponsored program to help employees cope with personal problems that are interfering with or have the potential to interfere with their job performance, as well as issues affecting their well-being of the well-being of their families.
• Job-Related Services:
  1. Subsidized Childcare: Offered to assist in balancing work and life responsibilities. The evidence regarding the actual effects of employer-sponsored childcare on employee absenteeism, turnover, productivity, recruitment, and job satisfaction is positive, particularly with respect to reducing obstacles to coming to work and improving workers’ attitudes.
  2. Eldercare: Programs designed to assist employees who must help elderly parents or relatives who are not fully able to care for themselves, up to and including palliative care of the dying. Eldercare benefits include flexible hours, support groups, counselling, free pagers, and adult day care programs.
  3. Subsidized Employee Transportation: An employer can negotiate with transit system to provide free-year-round transportation to its employees. Also facilitate employee carpooling.

Question 18

List and describe three basic rights of employees under the joint responsibility model of occupational health and safety and describe the employer’s “due diligence” requirement.

Answer 18

• Rights of Employees under the joint responsibility model:
  1. Right to know about workplace safety hazards.
  2. Right to participate in the occupational health and safety process.
  3. Right to refuse unsafe work if they have “reasonable cause” to believe the work is dangerous.
• Employers “due diligence”: Employers in all jurisdictions are responsible for taking every reasonable precaution to ensure the health and safety of their workers.

Question 19

Briefly discuss the three basic causes of accidents in the workplace.

Answer 19

1. Chance Occurrences: Contribute to accidents but are more or less beyond manager’s control.
2. Unsafe Conditions:
   a. equipment, procedures, storage, illumination, ventilation.
   b. job itself, work schedule, psychological climate.
3. Unsafe Acts of the part of Employees: carrying/lifting, operating speed, avoiding safety devices/equipment, horseplay, quarrelling, etc.

Question 20

Discuss what a manager should focus on to prevent workplace accidents.

Answer 20

1. Reduce Unsafe Conditions: job design, remove physical hazards ensure safety precautions are taken.
2. Reduce Unsafe Acts:
   selection testing, top-management commitment, training and education, positive reinforcement.
3. Controlling Workers’ 
Compensation Costs:
   a. Before the Accident: accident prevention measures.
   b. After the Accident: provide first aid and ensure medical attention, show interest in the injured worker, document/file accident reports, encourage speedy return to work.

Question 21

Identify and briefly describe three foundations of a fair and just discipline process.

Answer 21

1. Rules and regulations: clear expectations of acceptable behaviour.
2. Progressive Discipline: warning, suspension, termination.
3. Appeals Process: allow employee to present case.

Question 22

Identify and briefly discuss the 5 main reasons why employees quit.

Answer 22

1. Suboptimal hiring practices.
2. Difficult managerial style.
3. Lack of recognition.
4. Lack of competitive compensation systems.
5. Toxic workplace environments.

Question 23

Identify the three conditions that should be present when a layoff occurs.

Answer 23

1. No work available for the employee.
2. Management expects the no-work situation to be temporary and probably short term.
3. Management intends to recall the employees when work is again available.

Question 24

In times when there is a work shortage, what alternatives to layoff are available for employers to consider? In your answer, indicate why an employer might consider alternatives to layoff and identify and describe three alternatives.

Answer 24

Employers recognize the enormous investments that organizations have in recruiting, screening, and training employees. So instead of layoffs they are using the following alternatives:

1. Voluntary pay reduction: all employees agree reductions in pay to keep everyone working.
2. Use of vacation time: Employers arrange to have all or most employees accumulate their vacation time and to concentrate their vacation during slow periods.
3. Contingent workers: Employees hired with the understanding that their work is temporary and they may be laid off at any time.
4. Work sharing:Program available through Service Canada, allows employers to reduce their workweek by one to three days, and employees can claim employment insurance for the time not worked.

Question 25

Identify and briefly describe the five steps of the Labour Relations Process.

Answer 25

• Step 1: Desire for Collective Representation:
  a. Dissonance-based reasons: unpleasant work environment, low pay.
  b. Utility-based reasons: cost/benefit analysis.
  c. Political/ideological reasons: desire to work for collective versus individual purposes.
• Step 2: Union Organization Campaign:
  a. Employee/union contact.
  b. Initial organizational meeting.
  c. Formation of an in-house organizing committee.
  d. The organizing campaign.
  e. The outcome.
• Step 3: Union Recognition:
  Ways to obtain recognition:
  a. Voluntary recognition by employer.
  b. Regular certification by LRB.
  c. Pre-hearing votes.
• Step 4: Collective Bargaining:
  Formal collective agreement is established and parties must bargain in good faith.
  Three steps:
  a. Preparation for bargaining.
  b. Face-to-face negotiations.
  c. Obtaining approval for proposed contract.
• Step 5: Contract Administration:
  Major sources of disagreement:
  a. Seniority: length of service in the bargaining unit
  b. Discipline: different interpretations of just cause,
  must be handled in accordance with the collective agreement, ensure carefully documented evidence.
  c. Grievance: allegation of a contract violation, filed by individual, the union, or management.
  Rights dispute: grievance relating to interpretation of the collective agreement.
  Rights arbitration: process of resolving a rights dispute.

Question 26

Discuss in detail any two aspects of the impact of unionization on HRM.

Answer 26

1. When an organization is unionized the HR department is typically expanded by the addition of an LR specialist or section.
2. In a unionized setting, management has less freedom to make unilateral decisions. Supervisors are required to produce more written records since documentation is critical at grievance and arbitration hearings.

Question 27

Provide an outline of the entire Grievance/Arbitration process.

Answer 27

Step 1: Employee prepares written grievance with aid of union steward; grievance presented to employee’s supervisor for decision.
Step 2: Grievance is discussed by HRM professional or labour relations specialist, griever, and union steward.
Step 3: Senior Management, senior labour relations specialist, and top union officials discuss grievance.
Step 4: Grievance is submitted to arbitration; arbitrator hears evidence and renders decision.

Question 28

Describe four strategies to assist in building an effective and more positive labour-management relationship.

Answer 28

1. Open Door Policy: When managers involved in labour-management relationship welcome employees into their offices to discuss any problems or concerns, and when employees feel comfortable doing so, many issues can be resolved informally.
2. Extending the Courtesy of Prior Consultation: Although not every management decision requires union approval, if any actions that might affect union members are discussed with the union executive first, the likelihood of grievances is greatly reduced.
3. Demonstrate concern for employee well-being: by doing this mutual trust and respect are established. This involves fair treatment and communication going further the requirements of collective agreement.
4. Form joint committees, joint training programs: this can lead to innovative/creative solutions and better relationships. Also, ensures that supervisors and union stewards are familiar with terms/conditions specified and they understand the negotiating teams.
5. Meet regularly: whether required by collective agreement or voluntary, regularly scheduled union-management communication can result in more effective communication and the resolution of problems/concerns before they become formal grievance issues.
6. Use third-party assistance: is beneficial to bring a consultant/representative to identify common goals and objectives and ways which trust and communication can be strengthened.

Question 29

BONUS QUESTION:

Answer 29

What are the pros and cons of social media in the workplace?