Vocab Flashcards
Any system in which employee performance is rated by managers, peers, subordinates, and (possibly)
outsiders and the employee as well.
360° appraisal
A standardized test of personal skills. Examples of ability tests include the Watson-Glaser Critical
Thinking Appraisal, which measures critical thinking skills, the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT), the
Miller Analogies Test (MAT), and the Graduate Record Examination (GRE).
Ability test
The process through which an organization hires new employees.
Acquiring talent
A type of workforce in which employees are trained to complete multiple tasks and jobs and can
effectively fill many different roles in the organization.
Adaptable Workforce
A learning platform that utilizes artificial intelligence to adapt content and activities to the trainee’s
needs.
Adaptive learning platform
Type of system maintenance that focuses on changes to the software made necessary because of changes
in the business or environment
Adaptive maintenance
This kind of HR efficiency refers to the capacity to conduct existing HRM processes accurately and on
time while minimizing costs. Centralizing certain HRM processes, for example, recruiting new
employees, offers process efficiency benefits.
Administrative process efficiency
Employment practices that are designed to have a neutral impact but have a negative impact on a
protected class of employees.
Adverse impact
The overall stylistic or innovative features of a website, such as contrasting colors, pictures, animation,
and playfulness that keep the user engaged while navigating through multiple Web pages.
Aesthetic features of a website
A written report detailing how an employer actively seeks to hire and promote individuals in protected
classes. For employers with government contracts totaling $50,000 or more, the Office of Federal
Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) requires an AAP completion.
Affirmative action plan (AAP)
The 1967 federal legislation prohibiting illegal discrimination in employment against individuals 40 years
of age and older.
Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA)
Partnerships between major HRIS vendors and small, independent vendors that allow organizations to
implement fuller (or total) solutions for companies.
Alliance programs
The 1990 federal legislation prohibiting illegal discrimination in employment against individuals with
disabilities. A disability is a physical or mental impairment substantially limiting one or more major life
activities.
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
The phase in the systems development life cycle in which an organization’s current capabilities are
documented, new needs are identified, and the scope of an HRIS is determined.
Analysis phase
Laws were enacted to prohibit unfair hiring practices that discriminate against people in protected groups,
such as women, racial/ethnic minorities, and older individuals.
Antidiscrimination laws
A module in an HRIS that supports e-recruiting and processing applicants electronically.
Applicant-tracking system (ATS)
A third-party firm that hosts and provides access to a bundle of one or more software application services
from a central location to multiple clients via the Internet. Clients pay a subscription fee, which generally
entails data management and software upgrades. ________ are often considered cost-effective for
organizations to manage their information requirements. Many learning management systems are _____
based; that is, access to applications is available through _______^.
Application service provider (ASP)
A class of computer technologies that perform tasks commonly associated with human cognitive
processing such as reasoning, intelligence, and learning from past experiences.
Artificial intelligence
Two-way communication in which transmission does not take place in real time. Examples include e-mail
or Internet discussion forums. It is useful for collaboration across different time zones.
Asynchronous communication
One-time rewards used to attract prospective employees or to persuade existing employees to remain with
the organization
Attraction or retention awards
Characteristics of an entity, for example, attributes of an employee entity may be employee ID, last name,
first name, phone number, and e-mail address.
Attributes
HR metric is assessed as total gross profit divided by the firm’s number of employees or full-time
equivalents.
Average employee contribution (AEC)
The effort to bring functionality that had previously been outsourced back in-house.
Backsourcing
An approach for expatriate compensation that has as its goal the maintenance of a home-country living
standard plus a financial inducement for accepting an international assignment.
Balance-sheet approach
A means of measuring strategic organizational performance that gives managers a chance to look at their
company from the perspectives of stakeholders, including external customers, employees, and
shareholders
Balanced scorecard
The rate and volume of data transfer, measured in bits per second.
Bandwidth
The pay received by employees for doing their jobs, not taking into account overtime or bonuses. ___________ for some workers is stated in terms of pay per hour; for others, it is stated in terms of annual pay.
Base pay
A set of guidelines helping the benefit-cost analysis (BCA) team approach a BCA that provides them with
an improved likelihood of making the best financial decision regarding an investment in an HRIS.
BCA guidelines
A process used in management,
and particularly in human resource management, to evaluate various aspects of the HR function, both
activities and programs, usually within a firm’s own market sector.
(also known as best-practice _________ or process __________)
Benchmarking
The financial analysis of the benefits and costs of implementing a new or upgraded system. Important
calculations include the break-even point, net present value, return on investment, and the benefit-cost
ratio.
Benefit-cost analysis (BCA)
A measurement that expresses the benefits of an HR project (e.g., implementation of an HRIS) as the
numerator and the costs as the denominator; thus, values greater than 1 indicate a favorable ratio.
Benefit-cost ratio (BCR)
The size, or magnitude, of the benefits to be gained by implementing an HRIS.
Benefit magnitude
An approach to acquiring HRIS capabilities in which the company will pick the best application to
support each functional area of HR. Thus, the technology architecture combines the best-fit products from
multiple vendors.
Best of breed (BOB)
This is an approach to strategic HRM in which the organization adopts the practices that work most
effectively for it rather than adopting industrywide best practices.
“Best-fit” approach to strategic HRM
A model of the conditions necessary for the most successful learning outcomes
Best-fit learning event model
This is an approach to strategic HRM used by researchers in which organizations adopt industryrecognized best practices and use them in their organization.
“Best-practice” approach to strategic HRM
A collection of very large and complex data, created by transaction processing systems, which are mined
for hidden patterns of relationships regarding customers or employees.
Big data
As the term implies, it “blends” various approaches to learning and could incorporate, for instance, faceto-face, formal, informal, and online learning methods.
Blended learning
An encrypted, distributed digital ledger of public records that is maintained across several computers
linked in a peer-to-peer network.
Blockchain
A taxonomy of learning named after Benjamin Bloom that classifies levels of learning based upon the
complexity and specificity of the training.
Bloom’s taxonomy
Workplace use of employee-owned technology devices such as smartphones and tablets.
Bring your own device (BYOD)
A broad category of business applications focused on helping organizations and HR collect, store, and
analyze data. BI applications include tools such as decision-support systems, query and reporting,
statistical analysis, and data mining.
Business intelligence (BI)
A form of artificial intelligence that uses software algorithms to implement decisions with little human
intervention.
Business process automation
The analysis and redesign of work flow to improve an organization’s efficiency and effectiveness.
Business process reengineering
An HRM strategy that focuses on organizing jobs and processes based on elaborate rules with a clear
hierarchy.
Bureaucratic HRM Strategy
The early phase in the development of human resource management where HR was primarily involved in
clerical record keeping of employees.
“Caretaker” functions
A person responsible for leading an organizational change or someone who is influential and can
communicate and motivate others to accept a change by informal means
Change agent (also known as change leader)
A formula developed by David Gleicher that helps an organization assess its degree of readiness for
change.
Change equation formula
A structured approach to changing the mindset and perceptions of individuals.
Change management
A computer program that simulates conversations with humans.
Chatbot
The delivery of software functionality over the Internet in which HRIS functionality is delivered to
companies via the Web. For the company, there is no hardware and software to install. It is a specific type
of software as a service.
Cloud computing
A form of artificial intelligence in which the software retrieves and shares knowledge from a knowledge
base with employees, applicants, or retirees through natural and human-like social interaction.
Cognitive engagement
A form of artificial intelligence that utilizes algorithms and machine learning to interpret vast amounts of
data, looking for hidden patterns not previously identified by decision makers in organizations.
Cognitive insights
Software and hardware, such as groupware (electronic meeting software), instant messaging, e-mail, and
so on, that help groups (and trainees) communicate, interact, make decisions, and learn more effectively.
Collaborative technologies
Prewritten or developed software or hardware products that already exist for purchase.
Commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) software
A set of skills common to higher-performing and more talented employees.
Common attributes of talented individuals
A software program that inserts a copy of itself into another program and causes harm to a computer by
altering data, erasing files, or other damage.
Computer virus
Selection tests or batteries that are administered on a computer or over the Internet.
Computerized assessments
The use of tools within the software to adapt the look, feel, and functionality of software without writing
any additional code.
Configuration
A federal statute governing health care. It is most well known as the statue that provided opportunities for
employees to maintain insurance even if a qualifying event would cause them to lose the companysponsored insurance.
Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reduction Act (COBRA)
The degree to which the website hosts relevant information that the user deems valuable and informative
in nature
Content information
The highest-level data flow diagram that contains the least amount of detail. It is used to represent the
system, its boundaries, and the external entities that interact with the system.
Context-level diagram
A combination of some set of knowledge, skills, and abilities. Many industrial psychologists equate
competencies with traits.
Core competency
Long-term talent management strategies also need to be linked to corporate
Corporate brand management
An organization’s collective values, beliefs, experiences, and norms that shape the behavior of the group
and the individuals within it.
Corporate culture
In performance management, information fed back to an employee pointing out the discrepancy between
observed performance and a performance standard. The purpose is to solve any performance problem and
increase performance level.
Corrective feedback
Type of system maintenance that focuses on fixing errors in the software.
Corrective maintenance
Identification of mechanisms that can be used to protect data.
Countermeasures
This term refers to an attribute of an expatriate. It could include language ability, cultural empathy,
adaptability, and a positive attitude toward the assignment in the specific country being considered
Cross-cultural suitability
A shared set of beliefs, customs, practices, and behaviors within a country.
Cultural environment of countries
A specific belief, attitude, or behavior that is defined as right or wrong, correct or incorrect, within a
given culture in a country. ___________ are part of the cultural environment of a country.
Cultural norm
The shared beliefs, customs, social patterns, and values of a people, region, race, or religious group.
Culture
The feeling of uneasiness and discomfort experienced when going from one culture to another, as well as
the adjustment that occurs in a relatively short time when moving from one country to another.
Culture shock
The modification of a software product to match specific organizational processes or needs.
Customization
Politically motivated use of technology to do severe harm or disruption in society.
Cyber-terrorism
A type of interface for reporting HR data that uses a visual, or graphical, representation of key HR data
for view by managers
Dashboards
The extent to which the value stored for an object is correct.
Data accuracy
DFD component that represents the flow of data within the system. An arrow
indicates the direction of flow, and the name of the flow indicates the type of data.
Data flow
Graphical tool that represents the flow of data through a system and the various processes that manipulate
or change the data.
Data flow diagram (DFD)
The process of transferring employee data between storage types and computer systems or software
applications.
Data migration
The sophisticated statistical analysis of large datasets to identify recurring relationships and patterns. For
example, __________ an employee database might reveal that most employees reside within a group of
particular ZIP codes.
Data mining
A view of an HRIS that focuses on an analysis of what data the organization captures and uses and on the
definitions and relationships of the data while ignoring how or where the data are used by the
organization.
Data perspective
A DFD component that represents the temporary or permanent storage of data within the system. A ________ is represented by an open-ended rectangle in the data flow diagram.
Data store
A technique that attempts to make a computer, network, or service unavailable for legitimate users, often
by flooding it with external communication requests.
Denial-of-service (DoS)
The phase in the systems development life cycle in which the detailed specifications for the final system
are laid out and final vendor evaluation and selection occurs.
Design phase
Ensuring that data are kept confidential, have not been manipulated, and are available to those who are
authorized to access it.
Desired information goals
The process of preparing employees to become leaders.
Developing leaders
A network typology in which each device has the potential to be connected to any other device on the
network without human intervention
Device mesh
Benefits accruing from an information system that can be measured objectively in dollars.
Direct benefits
Costs associated with the implementation of a system that can be measured objectively in dollars
Direct costs
These costs include the actual money spent on selecting and training, relocation costs for the expatriate
(and family), and the salary of the expatriate.
Direct costs of expatriate failure
The electronic transfer (or deposit) of a payment directly into an employee’s bank account instead of
issuing a paper check.
Direct deposits
An approach to estimating indirect benefits of a new HRIS in which the analyst estimates the value of any
indirect benefits of the HRIS.
Direct estimation
The direct report is the employee whose job performance is being evaluated. At the broadest level, this
definition of the performance would include any employee who fills the job position, that is, it describes
the job performance expectations for any position in the organization.
Direct report
The outsourcing of only discrete, or selected, HR functions to third-party providers.
Discrete HRO
Employees who have grievances against an employer and who believe that these grievances cannot be
resolved.
Disgruntled employees
The delivery of training over the Web; see also e-learning
Distance learning
The extent to which the applicant pool contains a variety of applicants from different ethnic/racial
backgrounds, ages, and gender.
Diversity of the applicant pool
A federal U.S. law that significantly strengthened the regulation of financial institutions and markets.
Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010
The practice of human resources in organizations that only operate in one company
Domestic HRM
An individual’s perception regarding the usability of a system.
Ease of use
System feasibility assessment tool that focuses on the financial and economic benefits and costs that a
new system would bring to the organization.
Economic feasibility
An organization’s strategy for deploying technology and infusing HR processes with that technology; will
link to the broader HRM and organizational strategy.
eHRM strategy
A type of training in which trainees are often geographically distributed, communication and interaction
occur via technology, and the training is provided in online repositories. Individuals can access the
material via computers, kiosks, mobile devices, or other technology.
E-learning
The implementation and delivery of HR functionality enabled by an HRIS that supports employees and
their people-related decisions.
Electronic human resource management (eHRM)
A centralized repository of a company’s electronic data, specifically designed to facilitate reporting and
analysis for decision making.
Employee data warehouse
The extent to which an employee is emotionally connected and committed to an organization.
Employee engagement
Amount of time and effort an employee puts into the analysis, design, and implementation of a new
HRIS.
Employee participation and involvement
A federal U.S. law that established fiduciary standards governing private industry pension plans
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA)
A structural approach to HR administration through HR portals that provides a means for employees to
access their personal information and HR services and information
Employee self-service (ESS)
A report required to be filed annually with the EEO that lists employee data categorized by job category,
race/ethnicity, and gender.
Employer Information Report EEO-1
An organization’s well-known values or distinctive image and culture (think Southwest Airlines or
Apple). A company often sets itself apart from competitors by means of its employment brand.
Employment brand
A set of integrated applications, or modules, that carry out the most common business functions,
including human resources, general ledger, accounts payable, accounts receivable, order management,
inventory control, and customer relationship management. ERP modules are integrated primarily through
a common set of definitions and a common database.
Enterprise resource planning (ERP) software
An external person, department, or agent that interacts with the system through receiving or sending data.
An ________ is represented as a square on the DFD (data flow diagram).
Entity (data flow diagram)
An object or thing of significance to an organization that has multiple characteristics of interest to the
organization. For example, employees, dependents, managers, and health insurance plans are examples of
___________ in the human resources context.
Entity (database)
The condition in which all individuals have an equal chance for employment, regardless of their race,
color, religion, sex, age, disability, or national origin, as established in federal legislation and the U.S.
Constitution and its amendments (13 and 14).
Equal employment opportunity (EEO)
A work motivation theory based on the perceived fairness of the employee–employer exchange.
Equity Theory
An economic and political union of a number of European countries
European Union (EU)
The phase in needs analysis in which the data gathered are reviewed and assessed to create a clear picture
of the current and desired states.
Evaluation
Not subject to the provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act. See nonexempt workers.
Exempt workers
A parent-country national employee assigned to a subsidiary of a multinational enterprise in another
country.
Expatriate
The return of expatriates prior to the completion of their overseas assignments.
Expatriate failure
A software specification (e.g., standard) in e-learning that allows learning content and learning systems to
share data.
Experience Application Programming Interface (xAPI)
The phase during needs analysis in which the analyst gathers detailed data about current HR processes.
Exploration
A markup language or set of rules for encoding an electronic document.
eXtensible Markup Language (XML)
The supply of potential labor (e.g., potential employees) available to the organization outside of the
organization.
External labor market
The 1938 federal legislation that established a minimum wage for hourly workers, set the rate of pay for
overtime work beyond the defined workweek of 40 hours, prohibited oppressive child labor by restricting
hours of work for children below 16 years, and listed hazardous occupations too dangerous for children.
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)
The federal legislation that requires organizations with 50 or more employees to provide up to 12 weeks
of unpaid leave after childbirth or adoption, to care for a seriously ill family member, or for an
employee’s own serious illness.
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)
A federal payroll tax that funds Medicare and Social Security.
Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA)
The degree to which a selection test accurately simulates a real business situation.
Fidelity
A device or set of devices that will permit or deny all computer traffic between computers with different
security requirements based on a set of rules.
Firewall
Employee benefit plans that allow the employee to choose the benefits they want from a set of benefits
provided by an employer.
Flexible benefit plans
Diverse groups of organizational stakeholders that are brought together to provide data to analysts in
support of the needs analysis of a new or upgraded HRIS.
Focus groups
A procedure to understand the forces during any organizational change that focuses
Force-field analysis
The use of game design elements in nongame contexts.
Gamification
An assessment of the differences between the current state of affairs in the organization and the desired
future state.
Gap analysis
A 2008 federal legislation that prohibits organizations from discriminating based on genetic information.
Genetic Information Nondisclosure Act (GINA)
A privacy law in the European Union (EU) that protects the privacy rights of individuals residing in the
EU and regulates organizational processing of personal information about individuals and places limits on
how data can be processed or transferred across national borders.
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
A form of business organization in which an international company locates operations in multiple
countries and provides flexible and customized products for each country’s market.
Global corporation
The process of integrating business operations and free flow of trade and competition across international
borders.
Globalization of business
A work motivation theory with the fundamental tenet that goals and intentions are responsible for human
behavior on the job.
Goal-setting theory
An approach to expatriate compensation that ties the base salary for international employees to the salary
levels in the host country. For example, an expatriate would earn pay that is comparable with that earned
by employees in the host country.
Going-rate approach
An HRM strategy that focuses on organizing and managing groups of highly skilled and specialized
professionals.
Group-focused HRM strategy
An individual who accesses a computer or computer network unlawfully.
Hacker
An approach to managing employees that focuses more on empowerment, engagement, and autonomy of
employees than on managing as a form of controlling employee behavior to ensure compliance.
High-performance system
A form of compensating an expatriate based upon the salary levels in the host country
Host-country approach
Employees of the multinational enterprise who are citizens of a country in which a branch or subsidiary is
located but where the organization’s headquarters is located in a different country.
Host-country nationals (HCNs)
An approach to measuring the value of the human resource function by identifying the key value-added
HR activities that contribute to business goals, measuring them, and evaluating the effectiveness of HR
through them.
HR balanced scorecard
Measures used to evaluate the functioning of HR programs and as benchmarks for the total HRM
department.
HR metrics
Analytics that focus on how efficiently HR functionality is being delivered; may support metrics such as
cost per hire, days to fill positions, and HR department costs as a percentage of sales.
HR process efficiency analytics
The number of programs or functions—such as recruiting, compensation, and job analysis—that are
operational using the specific HRIS configuration and the features of these programs that enhance their
usability and capacity to affect outcomes.
HRIS functionality
The developers of the software used to support HR processes.
HRIS vendor
This encompasses “the knowledge, skills, competencies and attributes embodied in individuals that
facilitate the creation of personal, social and economic well-being”
Human capital
Another term used for talent management.
Human capital management (HCM)
Systems used to acquire, store, manipulate, analyze, retrieve, and distribute information regarding an
organization’s human resources.
Human resource information systems (HRIS)
An integral part of the organizational system dealing with strategies, policies, and practices that aims to
attract, develop, and retain high-quality intellectual capital.
Human resource management (HRM)
Moving a company’s human resource function outside the organization to an external company.
Human resources outsourcing (HRO)
A systematic approach to estimating the future needs of a company for human capital in terms of labor
and supply.
Human resources planning (HRP)
The predominant markup language for Web pages. It provides a means to describe the structure of textbased information in a document—by denoting certain text as links, headings, paragraphs, lists, and so
on—and to supplement that text with interactive forms, embedded images, and other objects.
Hypertext Markup Language (HTML)
The costs associated with implementing a new HRIS.
Implementation costs
