Test Bank

Multiple Choice

Chapter 1: An Introduction to the Organization, its Environment and Human Resource Management.

1. A model of HRM that focuses more on ensuring that HR strategy fits and is driven by the overall corporate strategy is known as a ______ Model.

a. Systems

b. Soft

c. Hard

d. Planning

2. According to Robbins, a cost minimization strategy is best suited to what of the following types of structure?

a. loose

b. tight control

c. low specialization

d. low formalization

3. Who provides the following definition of organizational structure?

‘The structure of an organization can be defined simply as the sum of the total ways in which it divides labour into distinct tasks and then achieves coordination among them’.

a. Deal and Kennedy

b. French, Rayner, Rees and Rumbles

c. Guest

d. Mintzberg

4. One of the most leading authors in the field of HRM posited that there are rhetorics and realities of HRM practices. Who is this?

a. Karen Legge

b. Michael Beer

c. John Kotter

d. Jay Barney

5. Who posits the following three strategic options in order to gain competitive advantage: cost reduction, quality enhancement and innovation?

a. David Farnham

b. Michael Porter

c. David Guest

d. David Porter

6. Rees and Smith (2017) refer to which of the following three elements that make up the external triangle for HRM/Strategic HRM?

a. Strategy, Structure and Staff

b. Strategy, Culture and Environment

c. Strategy, Structure and Culture

d. Environment, Strategy and Structure

7. Buchannan and Huczynski (2010) define structure as ‘the formal system of task and reporting relationships that control, ______, and motivate employees to work together to achieve organizational goals’.

The missing word is:

a. lead

b. manage

c. reward

d. co-ordinate

8. Whose model is known as the matching model of HRM, linking mission and strategy with HRM and Organizational Structure?

a. Mintzberg

b. Fombrun

c. Child

d. Legge

9. Boxall and Purcell (2003) argue that ‘HRM includes anything and everything associated with the management of the ______ in the firm’.

a. people

b. employees

c. employment relationship

d. strategy

10. What is the following descriptor an example of?

An organization that has widespread use of project teams and networks that typically separate functions and hierarchical levels, leading to greater flexibility.

a. networked organization

b. bureaucracy

c. boundaryless organization

d. adhocracy

11. Beer’s Harvard Model is otherwise known as:

a. the hard model of HRM.

b. the soft model of HRM.

c. the integrative model of HRM.

d. there is no such thing as the Beer Harvard model.

12. Which of the following is not a type of structural configuration for organizations?

a. matrix

b. functional

c. complex

d. strategic

Chapter 2: Strategic Approaches

1. Pisano et al. (2017) identified two main approaches to corporate strategy, namely:

a. prescriptive and predictive.

b. prescriptive and emergent.

c. nascent and emergent.

d. none of these.

2. Which of the following was identified by Grant (2008) as the common element of a successful strategy?

a. having a clear vision

b. having a clear mission

c. having a profound understanding of the competitive environment

d. having conducted a thorough stakeholder analysis

3. Pisano et al. (2017) identified three core areas of corporate strategy, namely:

a. strategic formation, strategic analysis and strategic implementation.

b. corporate scanning, strategic analysis and strategic implementation.

c. corporate scanning, environmental analysis and strategic implementation.

d. strategic formulation, strategic analysis and strategic implementation.

4. Which of the following IS NOT included within the analysis of the external environment?

a. understanding stakeholder views

b. surveying participants regarding the purpose and performance of the organization

c. understanding the factors affecting the industry, the economy communities and the environment.

d. understanding the maturity of the organization in terms of deriving and supporting strategy

5. Which of the following IS NOT included within the process of strategic analysis?

a. SWOT

b. internal analysis

c. external analysis

d. stakeholder analysis

6. Porter’s forces of competition framework consists of how many forces?

a. three

b. four

c. five

d. six

7. Who defined a business model whereby the union of four blocks that create and deliver value – customer value proposition, profit formula, key resources and processes?

a. Porter (1999)

b. Johnson (2008)

c. Miles and Snow (2011)

d. Kotler (2000)

8. Which of the following IS NOT part of a red ocean strategy?

a. beating the competition

b. exploiting existing demand

c. creating uncontested market space

d. making the value/cost trade-off

9. When considering the content, context and process framework, which of the following three questions are directly related to these three areas in sequence?

a. what, why and when

b. what, when and why

c. why, what and when

d. None of these

10. In a world of uncertainty where investments once made are irreversible, flexibility is:

a. irrelevant.

b. valuable.

c. invaluable.

d. risky.

11. Whose work stressed the importance of product and market selection in strategy?

a. Ohmae (1982)

b. Kim and Mauborgne (2004 and 2005)

c. Mintzberg (2005)

d. Ohmae (1982) and Kim and Mauborgne (2004 and 2005)

12. Substantial change to the range of offerings or to the markets served, or both, is known as ______

a. intensification.

b. diversification.

c. differentiation.

d. none of these.

13. Which of the following is the blueprint that defines how the company creates value for itself while providing value to the customer?

a. customer value proposition

b. profit formula

c. net present value

d. none of these

Chapter 3: Strategic Human Resource Management: Concepts, Practices and Trends

1. Bratton and Gold (2012) argue that people management has become ever more important because of _______

a. structural changes in the global economy.

b. economic factors.

c. governmental factors.

d. cultural variations.

2. Miles and Snow’s (1978) typology argues that there are four types of organization: Defenders, Analysers, Reactors and ______.

a. Evaluators

b. Prospectors

c. Attackers

d. Designers

3. The resource-based view of HRM is typically associated with:

a. Mintzberg (1983)

d. Guest (1999)

c. Barney and Hesterley (2006)

d. Rudd (2007)

4. The AMO model by Purcell (2003) refers to HR policies linked to organizational performance by ______.

a. attitude, motivation and opportunity

b. ability, management and organization

c. ability, motivation and opportunity

d. none of these

5. KSA’s refer specifically to ______.

a. knowledge, skills and attitudes

b. knowledge, skills and abilities

c. knowledge, staff and abilities

d. none of these

6. The black box problem and research about it led to the ______ Model of Strategic HRM?

a. Hard

b. Soft

c. AMO

d. None of the above

7. Which model of HRM identifies 11 core HR policies that can reinforce each other if introduced in a positive bundle?

a. Hard

b. Soft

c AMO

d. None of these

8. According to Wood and Kispal-Vitai (2017), Strategic HRM is different from HRM in that the researchers in this field typically look at ______ in the organizations and also look for ______ that enhance and complement each another.

a. people; factors

b. systems; practices

c. people; practices

d. systems; relationships

9. According to Schuler and Jackson (2005), SHRM is a complex system contains four key characteristics ______.

a. vertical integration, horizontal integration, effectiveness and partnership

b. vertical integration, horizontal integration, systems integration and partnership

c. vertical integration, systems integration, partnership and innovation

d. horizontal integration, systems integration, innovation and effectiveness

10. Firms resources, according to Barney (2006), will represent a competitive advantage if they contain four key attributes:

Being valuable, being rare, are without good substitutes and ______

a. are perfectly imitable by other firms

b. are imperfectly imitable by other firms

c. are cost-effective

d. are able to secure profit maximization

11. Which classic HR theorists argue that ‘HR can add value to business operations by either cutting costs or creating revenues’?

a. Butler and Wilson (1976)

b. Barney and Wright (1997)

c. Buchannan and Huczynski (1999)

d. None of these

12. Which of the following is a variation of the contingency approach of HR?

a. the best fit model

b. the configurational approach

c. the contextual approach

d. none of these

Chapter 4: HRM: The Added Value Debate

1. Jamrog and Overholt (2004) argue that HR professionals need which of the following competencies?

a. business knowledge, knowledge of HR practices and managing change competencies

b. strategic knowledge, knowledge of HR practices and employment law knowledge

c. business knowledge, strategic knowledge and managing change competencies

d. knowledge of HR practices, knowledge of employment law and knowledge of managing change

2. Which of the following ARE NOT included within the Ulrich Business Partner Model?

a. Strategic Partner.

b. Functional Expert.

c. Employee Advocate.

d. Strategic Partner, Functional Expert and Employee Advocate are all included within the model.

3. Ulrich argues that fundamentally the HR role MUST NOT BE:

a. a passenger.

b. strategic.

c. service-oriented.

d. a creator of profit.

4. Ulrich argues that HR professionals need to align functions and translate business strategies into HR priorities, increase administrative efficiency, increase employee commitment and competence, and ______.

a. employee engagement

b. adding value

c. ensuring ethical practice

d. the ability and capacity to manage change

5. Which of Ulrich’s HR roles would be described as the ‘cuddly side of HRM’?

a. Strategic Partner

b. Functional Expert

c. Employee Advocate

d. None of these

6. Who argues that ‘strategic HR is owned by the line managers and is focused on turning business strategies into a HR strategy that is meaningful’.

a. Wright (1999)

b. Barney (2000)

c. Ulrich (1996)

d. Salaman (2000)

7. Human Resource Accounting is work attributed to:

a. Tootell (2009) and Flamholz (2007).

b. Weiss and Finn (2005).

c. Brown (1996).

d. Guest (2003).

8. One of the major criticisms of the Human Resource Accounting approach is that it struggles to measure what two qualities?

a. leadership and culture

b. leadership and knowledge

c. knowledge and performance

d. performance and employee engagement

9. According to a CIPD Report (2012), four key internal aspects that HR should measure are performance measurement and metrics, employee engagement, capability and talent and _______.

a. value added

b. capability and talent

c. culture

d. work ethic

10. The Balanced Scorecard was originally proposed in 1996 by:

a. Guest and White (1996)

b. Kaplan and Norton (1996)

c. Guest (2000)

d. Jamrog (2004)

11. Which of the following does the Balanced Scorecard NOT ADDRESS?

a. clarification and translation of vision and strategy

b. planning, setting targets and aligning strategic initiatives

c. provision of strategic feedback and learning

d. designing an appropriate mission statement

12. The HR Balanced Scorecard model includes the financial perspective, the internal business perspective, the customer perspective and ______.

a. the cultural perspective

b. the learning and growth perspective

c. the added value perspective

d. the competitive perspective

Chapter 5: Recruitment and Selection

1. Who originally defined the term ‘competency’?

a. Guest (1990)

b. Boyzatis (1982)

c. Kandola (2000)

d. Taylor (1995)

2. In recent years, Milsom (2009) argues that competency frameworks have tended to move away from person specifications towards statements which are ______.

a. more job description oriented

b. more clearly value-laden

c. more related to organizational structures

d. none of these

3. According to Kandola (2000), competency-based recruitment decisions result in:

a. increased diversity.

b. decreased diversity.

c. no discernible difference in diversity.

d. poorer management decisions.

4. The term ‘Informal recruitment’ refers to situations where:

a. existing staff are given preference over external staff.

b. jobs are not formally advertised at all.

c. the least-competent employees are promoted.

d. none of these.

5. Taylor (2014) argues that one of the major arguments in favour of internal recruitment is speed of adjustment, which refers that:

a. the induction process is not needed.

b. training to perform is shortened in time.

c. the psychological contract is different.

d. they adapt to organizational culture more quickly.

6. Which of the following terms indicates that an organization is generally recognized as being the most desirable in the industry from an employer’s perspective?

a. Employer Branding

b. Employer of Choice

c. Hobson’s choice

d. None of these

7. Taylor (2017) argues that one of the major drawbacks of employing headhunters when recruiting is that they:

a. over-concentrate on the job description.

b. over-concentrate on the person specification.

c. only recruit from a very narrow field of candidates.

d. none of these.

8. According to Smith (1989), which of the following provides the highest predictive correlations within selection techniques?

a. graphology

b. biodata

c. ability tests

d. personality tests

9. According to Taylor (2017), which of the following are the very worst selection tools when judging people who then go on to perform well in jobs?

a. semi-structured interviews

b. unstructured interviews

c. non face -to-face interviews

d. psychometric assessments

10. According to Taylor (2017), five major personality constructs are extraversion/introversion, emotional stability, agreeableness, conscientiousness and ______.

a. hardiness

b. locus of control

c. openness to experience

d. none of these

11. What is the greatest disadvantage of organizations using assessment centres?

a. getting everyone on the same place at the same time.

b. the cost

c. the problems with cross comparing different tests

d. the subjectivity of assessors

12. Tung (1981) identifies four key sets of attributes that organizations should take into account when selecting people for expatriate assignments – family preparedness, environmental coping ability, relational ability and ______.

a. cognitive ability

b. technical competence

c. language skills

d. cultural fit

Chapter 6: Flexible Working

1. Which of the following IS NOT a dimension of flexibility?

a. functional

b. numerical

c. structural

d. temporal

2. Which legislation was introduced in April 2015?

a. paternity leave scheme extended to two weeks

b. shared parental leave scheme

c. flexible working practice scheme

d. unpaid parental scheme

3. Models of the HR causal chain (like Wright and Nishii 2004), seek to explain how HRM impacts on ______ and ______ are often taken as a proximal measure of performance.

a. productivity; functionality

b. performance; flexibility

c. performance; functionality

d. innovation; flexibility

4. The core periphery model (flexible firm) (1984) is one belonging to:

a. Child

b. Atkinson

c. Stewart

d. Schein

5. The model of HR causal chain argues that ______.

a. bundles of HR result in best practice

b. bundles of HR result in best fit

c. employee attitudes relate to best fit

d. employee attitudes are a predictor of performance

6. Whose theory argues that the psychological contract ‘delivers the deal’?

a. Rousseau (1995)

b. Schein (1988)

c. Guest and Conway (2002)

d. none of these

7. Transactional psychological contracts are concerned with:

a. the tangibles of the employment relationship.

b. the intangibles of the employment relationship.

c. have nothing to do with the employment relationship.

d. the tangibles and intangibles of the employment relationship.

8. According to Tieze and Nadin (2011), when it comes to the psychological contract, a serious transgression of promises is defined as:

a. a violation.

b. a breach.

c. a termination.

d. none of these.

9. Relational psychological contracts are concerned with:

a. the tangibles of the employment relationship.

b. the intangibles of the employment relationship.

c. have nothing to do with the employment relationship.

d. the tangibles and intangibles of the employment relationship.

10. What refers to a situation where employees have some choice, normally around core times, over when to begin and end work?

a. compressed hours

b. flexitime

c. annual hours

d. mobile working

11. What refers to a situation where employees are contracted to work a set number of hours on an annual basis?

a. compressed hours

b. flexitime

c. annual hours

d. mobile working

12. What is defined as ‘individuals being able to have some control and autonomy over where, when and how they work’ (Jones 2007)?

a. well-being

b. work–life balance

c. flexible working

d. none of these

Chapter 7: Reward Strategy and Managing Performance

1. The concept of the reward relationship being one of exchange between buyers and sellers of labour is known as:

a. the value proposition.

b. total reward management.

c. the effort bargain.

d. equity theory.

2. According to White (2017), Reward Management is based primarily on two bodies of theoretical literature, namely:

a. sociology and economics.

b. social psychology and economics.

c. anthropology and economics.

d. none of these.

3. According to White (2017), intrinsic rewards of work include a sense of meaningfulness, growth, community and ______.

a. opportunity

b. engagement

c. satisfaction

d. choice

4. According to White (2017), three main contingencies for reward have been identified ______.

a. person, team and job

b. person, team and performance

c. person, job and performance

d. job, team and performance

5. Brown (1989) argues that pay systems are subject to two basic criteria:

a. performance and contribution.

b. contribution and time.

c. time and performance.

d. none of these.

6. The ‘effort bargain’ (Behrend 1957) concept of reward concerns:

a. the reward relationship, which is one of exchange between buyers and sellers of labour.

b. the reward relationship, which is one of effort leading to fair reward.

c. the reward relationship, where rewards are negotiated in advance.

d. none of these.

7. Which author is the first to use the phrase ‘New Pay’ (where remuneration needs to be linked to business strategy and corporate objectives) in 1990?

a. Guest

b. Lawler

c. Rees

d. Armstrong

8. New Pay needs to vary in line with ______ performance.

a. individual

b. group

c. organizational

d. individual, group and organizational

9. Classic economic theory argues that ______.

a. the price of labour is not fixed where the supply of labour intersects with the demand for labour.

b. the price of labour is fixed where the supply of labour intersects with the demand for labour.

c. the price of labour is not linked to the demand for labour.

d. the price of labour is fixed to the demand for labour

10. Process theories of motivation explain:

a. what motivates people to do.

b. how individuals are motivated.

c. the contextual factors concerning motivation.

d. none of these.

11. The hierarchy of needs model of motivation is attributable to ______.

a. Maslow (1954)

b. Vroom (1964)

c. Herzberg (1970)

d. Skinner (1953)

12. The Porter–Lawler expectancy model of work motivation argues that ______.

a. perceived effort reward probability and the value of the reward precedes performance accomplishment, rewards and perceived equitable rewards.

b. the valence of reward leads to the magnitude of job satisfaction.

c. in order to achieve satisfaction, five levels of motivation need to be accomplished.

d. none of these.

Chapter 8: Managing the Employment Relationship

1. Which of the following is described as ‘a perspective where the organization is organised, unified, group of people, which a common set of values and interest and working towards the same goals’ (Calveley et al. 2017)?

a. pluralist

b. heterogenous

c. endogenous

d. unitarist

2. Fox’s classic 1966 work typifies which of the following perspectives?

a. unitarist

b. pluralist

c. both unitarist and pluralist

d. neither unitarist nor pluralist

3. Marxist writers like Hyman (1975) argue that in the struggle for class equality, conflict is ______

a. a resource consideration.

b. inevitable.

c. a managerial prerogative.

d. none of these.

4. According to Calveley 2017, which of the following is an example of a state agency?

a. the school system

b. trade unions

c. the government

d. the fire and rescue services

5. The origins of neoliberalism date back to work of which economist?

a. Friedman

b. Housemann

c. Adam Smith

d. Schrodinger

6. What is a ‘tight labour market’ (Torrington 2008)?

a. where there are more people looking for jobs than jobs available0

b. where there is a limitation on earnings within job groups

c. where there is no limitation of earnings within job groups

d. where there are more jobs available than there are people seeking jobs

7. Where managers look for loyalty and commitment from their workforce and also expect complete and undisputed management control is known as ______.

a. pluralist

b. heterogenous

c. endogenous

d. unitarist

8. Which two concepts refer to the scope of decision-making allowed by employee voice methods? (Calveley 2017)

a. consultation and involvement

b. involvement and participation

c. consultation and participation

d. none of these

9. Kahn (1990) argues that employee engagement allows employees to ______.

a. express themselves through employee voice.

b. express themselves physically, cognitively and intellectually.

c. express themselves physically, cognitively and emotionally.

d. none of these.

10. According to Salamon (2000), what were introduced in Western Europe as ‘an integral part statutory part of the post-war industrial relations system to aid co-operative efforts for economic recovery’?

a. trade unions

b. works councils

c. employment tribunals

d. government think tanks

11. Which of the following is true?

a. Individual workers have the right to initiate strike action.

b. Works councils can initiate strike action.

c. Trade unions can initiate strike action.

d. Individual workers, works councils and trade unions can initiate strike action.

12. According to Calveley (2017), the scope of Works Councils can be grouped into three levels. They are ______, ______ and ______.

a. individual; group; organizational policies

b. corporate law; government law; employment law

c. information rights consultation rights; co-determination rights

d. none of these

Chapter 9: Equality and Diversity in the Workplace

1. Straw (1989) categorized equalities as ______.

a. equal share, equal value and equal access

b. equal chance, equal share and equal access

c. equal access, equal share and equality of opportunity

d. equal access, equal value and equality of opportunity

2. Which of the following IS Not an example of worldwide inequality and discrimination according to the ILO (2011)?

a. age

b. religious belief

c. philosophy

d. ethnicity

3. According to Neugebauer (2017), what is the following a typical approach of?

‘______ assumes that from a moral perspective each individual has an equal chance, and places great emphasis upon legal compliance.’

a. Diversity

b. Equality

c. Disability

d. Sexuality

4. According to Neugebauer 2017, what is the following a typical approach of?

‘______ assumes that there is a social justice/moral argument for each individual to have an equal chance, acknowledging that differences cannot be eliminated.’

a. Diversity

b. Equality

c. Disability

d. Sexuality

5. ‘Cognitive structures that store our beliefs and expectations about the characteristics of members of social groups’ (Cuddy and Fiske 2002:4) is a definition of ______.

a. prejudice

b. stereotyping

c. racism

d. none of these

6. Evetts (2000) identified three explanatory theories for why women’s careers could be considered as different from men. They are ______.

a. biological dimensions, structural dimensions and cultural dimensions

b. structural dimensions, cultural dimensions and action dimensions

c. cultural dimensions, biological dimensions and action dimensions

d. structural dimensions, action dimensions and biological dimensions

7. Stereotype Threat Theory (1995) is attributable to which authors?

a. McCann and Giles

b. Steele and Aronson

c. Burke and Hare

d. Duncan and Loretto

8. According to Neugebauer (2017), which two specific acts were intended to eliminate gender discrimination in selection and employment and to achieve equal pay between men and women in the UK?

a. The Sex Discrimination Act of 1972 and Equal Pay Act 1975

b. The Sex Discrimination Act of 1970 and Equal Pay Act 1975

c. The Sex Discrimination Act 1975 and Equal Pay Act of 1970

d. None of these

9. Marshall suggests that the feminist perspective of career is identified in three phases: ______.

a. women not considered for selection, women not included within career theory and models and enabling women better access to ‘career’

b. women not included within career theory and models, enabling women better access to ‘career’ and women needing to look for a new female model of career

c. women not included within career theory and models, enabling women better access to ‘career’ and women hitting the glass ceiling

d. none of these

10. In 2011, the Davies Report on Women on Boards found that the proportion of women on Corporate FTSE 100 boards had risen, but that it would take how many years before there would be a balanced male/female representation on boards?

a. 10 years

b. 25 years

c. 50 years

d. 70 years

11. Sterns and Doverspike (1989) identify five types of individual age: chronological, functional (or performance), organizational, life span age, and ______.

a. retirement age

b. psychosocial/subjective

c. religious

d. none of these

12. Religion and belief are covered under what category with the Equality Act (2010)?

a. preserved characteristics

b. protected characteristics

c. protected categories

d. preserved categories

Chapter 10: Developing Employees and Managers

1. The term ‘HRD’ emerged in the ______ in the context of what is known as ______.

The missing words are:

a. 1950s and development studies

b. 1960s and development studies

c. 1950s and training studies

d. 1960s and training studies

2. The varying emphasis on performance and on the organizational contexts of HRD reflects a long-standing debate in the HRD literature is known as ______.

a. the performance versus learning perspective

b. the performance versus development perspective

c. the context versus learning perspective

d. the context versus development perspective

3. Stewart (2017) discusses management development agendas, whereby the management development serves as a safety valve for managerial anxieties, and assumes competitive careers and associated anxieties, and is known as ______.

a. functional performance

b. compensation

c. psychic defence

d. political reinforcement

4. Burgoyne’s typology of management development suggests which of the following is contained within the six broad approaches?

a. A Human Resource Development plan

b. A Management Development strategy to implement corporate policy

c. A Talent Management plan

d. None of these

5. The ‘learning perspective’ emphasizes the emancipating potential of learning for individuals and collectives and is most closely associated with which perspective?

a. Strategic HRD

b. Critical HRD

c. Strategic Management Development

d. Knowledge Management

6. In the ‘learning perspective’, the measurement is typically based on ______.

a. competency metrics

b. objective criteria

c. subjective criteria

d. none of these

7. One of the critiques levelled against Critical HRD is that of critical pedagogy, based on what two theories? (Stewart 2017)

a. social psychology and sociology

b. psychoanalytical and sociology

c. social and psychoanalytical theory

d. none of these

8. Which of the following consists of focussing on a range of activities to attract, develop and retain employees? (Tansley 2007)

a. Recruitment and Selection strategy

b. Talent Management Strategy

c. Resourcing Strategy

d. Management Development Strategy

9. According to Iles (2010), an inclusive and position approach to talent management and development would include ______.

a. key individuals or stars

b. right people to fill key positions

c. social capital development in pivotal positions

d. everyone has talent and potential

10. When it comes to talent development programmes, Stewart and Harte (2010) identify individuals who have been nominated or selected for a Talent Development programme but who, for a variety of reasons, do not wish to join or engage with certain elements of the programme. These individuals are called ______.

a. abstainers

b. blockers

c. reluctant talent

d. the talent drain pool

11. According to Stewart (2017), there are three key differences between HRD and Talent Development. They are ______.

a. context of practice, purpose and encompasses all employees and influences all forms of learning

b. context of practice, the link to performance and encompasses all employees and influences all forms of learning

c. the link to performance, purpose and encompasses all employees and influences all forms of learning

d. none of these

12. Which learning method incorporates the following: a small group of 4 and 8 individuals who attempt to solve real-life problems, using reflection as well as a facilitator?

a. groupthink

b. management development

c. discovery learning

d. action learning

Chapter 11: Organizational Culture

1. Who argues that the concept of culture has been borrowed from anthropology, where there is no consensus in its meaning?

a. Hofstede

b. Trompenaars

c. Schein

d. Smircich

2. According to Schneider and Barsoux (2003), the following constitute the five levels of culture: Organizational, national, regional, subculture and ______.

a. micro-culture

b. macro-culture

c. functional/professional culture

d. met-culture

3. Whose theory identifies five elements that comprise organizational culture as the business environment, values, heroes, rites and rituals, and the cultural network?

a. Graetz (2006)

b. Deal and Kennedy (1982)

c. Schein (1980)

d. Martin and Siehl (1983)

4. Dickson (2000) traces the source of organizational culture to which of the following three aspects?

a. characteristics of the industry, characteristics of the society within which the organization is located and the symbolism of the organization

b. characteristics of the industry, characteristics of the society within which the organization is located and the values and beliefs of the employees

c. characteristics of the industry, characteristics of the society within which the organization is located and the values and beliefs of the founding leaders

d. none of these

5. Complete the following:

Whilst ______ leaders work within their organizational cultures following existing rules, procedures and norms, ______ leaders change their culture by realigning it with a new vision and a revision of its shared values and norms (Bass 1085).

a. autocratic; democratic

b. transactional; transformational

c. autocratic; transactional

d. democratic and transformational

6. Who argue for a contingency model whereby better performing organizations have strong cultures, but only of culture fits the organizations environment?

a. Parry and Proctor-Thompson (2003)

b. Kotter and Heskett (1992)

c. Ogbonna and Harris (2000)

d. None of these

7. According to Zhang and Iles (2017), selection, socialization and cultural fit rely upon which of the following values?

a. tenacity, personality and goals

b. personality, goals and environment

c. goals, attributes and personality

d. attributes, personality and environment

8. For what does the ‘McDonaldisation of society’ most closely refer to?

a. the need for franchising business

b. being ahead of the competition

c. follow-on sales to increase customer sales – ‘go large with that?’

d. efficiency, consistency, quantification and control principles are then transferred to other industries

9. According to Hofstede (2001), which of the following IS NOT a dimension of culture?

a. power

b. gender

c. happiness

d. resilience

10. Which of the following IS NOT one of the four corporate models of culture according to Zhang and Iles (2017)?

a. Eiffel Tower

b. Guided Missile

c. Exocet missile

d. Incubator

11. When it comes to mergers and acquisitions, Mirvis and Marks (1992) refer to different types of post-merger outcome. Which of the following IS NOT an example of one of these?

a. absorption

b. association

c. transformation

d. preservation

12. According to Zhang and Iles (2017), the following is an example of what?

‘Orientations to influence the way we conduct like and business, so societies like the USA believe that they need to impose their will and are very much inner directed.’

a. achieved versus ascribed status.

b. human–nature relationships.

c. neutral versus emotional outlooks.

d. communitarianism versus individualism rights.

Chapter 12: Managing in a Global Context

1. According to Perlmutter (1979), there are four4 main approaches used by multi-national companies towards internationalization and International HRM: ethnocentric, polycentric regiocentric, and ______.

a. globalcentric

b. geocentric

c. macrocentric

d. none of these

2. According to Jansenns (2001), there are four key approaches to IHR – synergistic, integrative, adaptive and ______.

a. exclusive

b. inclusive

c. exportive

d. importive

3. International enterprises need to exploit the differences and similarities in their multiple host locations, thereby balancing ______ with ______ within the international enterprise’s structure (Bartlett and Ghoshal 1989).

a. global responsiveness; global integration

b. local responsiveness; global integration

c. global responsiveness; local integration

d. local responsiveness; local integration

4. What promotes the view that HR practices are closely linked to either an organizational or product life cycle?

a. contingency models

b. strategic life-cycle models

c. hard HRM models

d. soft HRM models

5. According to Adler and Ghadar (1989), what are the various stages in the development in the international organization?

a. embryonic, speculative, domestic and international

b. speculative, domestic, international and multinational

c. domestic, international, multinational and global

d. international, multinational, global and pan global

6. According to Evans and Lorange (1989), when operating in differing product markets, the different phases in the product life cycle each require ______.

a. a very different type of manager

b. a very different type of strategy

c. a very different price mechanism

d. a very different operating process

7. Di Cieri and Dowling (1989) focus on the international concerns of the multi-national company, and argue that there are four key components, namely ______ factors, ______ factors, strategic HRM and International enterprise concerns and goals.

a. domestic; international

b. macro; micro

c. exogenous; endogenous

d. none of these

8. Who argues that there is not one particular HR policy which aligns to provide a benefit to HRM, but rather a bundle of internally consistent HR practices?

a. Dess and Davies (1994)

b. Barney (1995)

c. Huselid (1995)

d. Guest (1996)

9. Whitley 1999 identifies three ideal types of National Business Systems. They are ______.

a. opportunistic, collaborative and hierarchical

b. particularistic, collaborative and hierarchical

c. particularistic, collaborative and arm’s length

d. none of these

10. VET stands for:

a. voluntary education training.

b. vocational education training.

c. vocational education teachers.

d. none of these.

11. Which of the following IS NOT an example of alternatives to typical expatriation assignments?

a. short-term assignments

b. international commuting

c. frequent flying or business trips for irregular specific tasks

d. transfer to headquarters

12. Black and Mendenhall (2007) refer to three modes of training and development for cross-cultural development. They are factual, analytical and ______.

a. virtual

b. experiential

c. experimental

d. simulation

Chapter 13: The Future of HR

1. Brown’s 2010 descriptor of companies attempting to increase surplus by reducing the cost of knowledge work through a technology-assisted process of knowledge capture is known as ______.

a. the knowledge economy

b. digital Taylorism

c. eHRM

d. the knowledge economy divide

2. Clemmer (1992) described the characteristics of high-performance organizations as ______

a. teamwork, partnering and working across boundaries, shared corporate culture.

b. teamwork, partnering and working across boundaries, intense customer and market focus.

c. intense market focus, teamwork and shared corporate culture.

d. none of these.

3. According to Holbeche (2017), she argues that ‘within the pervasive dominant perspective in HRM theory, the implicit predominant view, especially within American models of HRM’ is that of a ______ perspective.

a. pluralist

b. unitarist

c. ideological

d. none of these

4. Pemberton and Herriot (1995) refer to the ‘New Deal’ from employers, which was no longer about job security but about ______.

a. job satisfaction

b. total reward management

c. self-actualization

d. employability in exchange for performance

5. According to Holbeche (2017), since the late 1980s, the development and expansion of HRM is to some extent a result of ______.

a. neoliberalism

b. managerialism

c. trade union expansion

d. none of these

6. To what does the following specifically refer?

‘An individual’s belief regarding the terms and conditions of a reciprocal exchange agreement between the focal person and another party’ (Rousseau 1989).

a. an implied contract

b. an inferred contract

c. the psychological contract

d. a memorandum of agreement

7. According to Alvesson and Deetz (2005), what is a disparate field encompassing critical versions of postmodernism?

a. Critical Management Studies

b. Strategic Human Resource Management

c. Strategic Human Resource Development

d. Human Resource Development

8. Holbeche (2017) argues that critics see HRM as an offshoot of ______ because of its deliberately shaping new work cultures characterized by flexibility, work intensification ad performativity.

a. HRD

b. managerialism

c. corporate greed

d. libertarianism

9. Brown (2010) describes the following as what?

‘In the current era of knowledge capitalism, companies are attempting to increase surplus by reducing the cost of knowledge work through a technology-assisted process of knowledge capture’, referred to as ______.

a. knowledge management

b. eHRM

c. digital Taylorism

d. none of these

10. A Gallop Consulting Report in 2010 reported that world-class engaged companies have how many times earnings per share compared to lower engaged companies in the same sector?

a. the same

b. 2.1 times

c. 3.9 times

d. 5 times

11. According to Pfeffer (1998), which of the following IS NOT identified as one of the seven best practices for HRM?

a. selective training

b. sharing information

c. employment security

d. employee engagement

12. According to Hutchinson (2000), the following is an example of what?

‘HR practices that include rewarding commitment with promotion and a degree of job security, and a participative leadership style that forces a commonality of interest and mobilizes consent to the organisations goals.’

a. hard HRM

b. soft HRM

c. critical HRM

d. none of these