Deck 2: Strategic Training

Question 1

Shaw Industries annually providing more than one million training hours to different constituents-employees, including machinists, marketers, scientists, sales representatives, designers, data scientists, nurses, and administrators-was provided an example of which of the following strategic training initiatives?

A) expand who is trained
B) capture and share knowledge
C) diversify the learning portfolio
D) accelerate the pace of learning

Answer 1

A

Question 2

Paycor's redesign of its training from face-to-face to blended learning was provided as an example of which of the following strategic training initiatives?

A) diversify the learning portfolio
B) capture and share knowledge
C) expand who is trained
D) accelerate the pace of learning

Answer 2

D

Question 3

Which of the following is true about a learning organization?

A) A learning organization primarily encourages team learning.
B) The notion of the learning organization came into being in the early 2000's.
C) In a learning organization, employees learn from failure and from successes.
D) In a learning organization, most learning occurs through formal training.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Job-based employees are characterized by

A) high value and high uniqueness.
B) high value and low uniqueness.
C) low value and low uniqueness.
D) low value and high uniqueness.

Question 5

Companies that emphasize innovation and creativity are labeled as ________.

A) clubs
B) academies
C) fortresses
D) baseball teams

Question 6

________ refers to the company's decisions regarding where to find employees, how to select them, and the desired mix of employee skills and statuses.

A) Concentration strategy
B) Staffing strategy
C) External growth strategy
D) Disinvestment strategy

Question 7

In ________, financial and other resources are not available for development, so companies tend to rely on hiring talent from the external labor market.

A) clubs
B) fortresses
C) baseball teams
D) academies

Question 8

Which of the following is not one of the major business strategies discussed in the text?

A) internal growth
B) external growth
C) divestment
D) product differentiation

Question 9

The ________ considers four different perspectives: customer, internal, innovation and learning, and financial.

A) SWOT analysis
B) value chain analysis
C) BCG matrix
D) balanced scorecard

Question 10

A SWOT analysis is typically conducted in the ________ step of the strategic training and development process.

A) business strategy formulation and identification
B) strategic training and development initiatives
C) training and development activities
D) measures or metrics identification

Question 11

Business-level outcomes chosen to measure the overall value of training or learning initiatives are referred to as ________.

A) values
B) goals
C) business strategies
D) metrics

Question 12

Which of the following positions is characterized by high value and low uniqueness?

A) lab technician
B) scientist
C) secretarial staff
D) legal adviser

Question 13

Uniqueness refers to

A) employee potential to improve company effectiveness and efficiency.
B) the extent to which training and learning is centralized in an organization.
C) the extent to which employees are rare, specialized, and not highly available in the labor market.
D) the picture of the future an organization wants to achieve.

Question 14

Which of the following is true with regard to SWOT analysis?

A) In a SWOT analysis, external analysis attempts to identify the company's strengths and weaknesses.
B) A SWOT analysis represents the strategy believed to be the best alternative to achieve the company goals.
C) A SWOT analysis is typically conducted in the strategic training and development initiatives step of the strategic training and development process.
D) A SWOT analysis provides a company the information needed to generate several alternative business strategies and make a strategic choice.

Question 15

________ typically includes information on the customers served, why the company exists, what the company does, the value received by the customers, and the technology used.

A) Balanced scorecard
B) Vision
C) Mission
D) Code of conduct

Question 16

The strategic training and development process begins with ________.

A) choosing strategic training and development initiatives
B) identifying the business strategy
C) developing websites for knowledge sharing
D) identifying measures or metrics

Question 17

________ involves examining a company's operating environment to identify opportunities and threats.

A) Internal analysis
B) Gap analysis
C) External analysis
D) Pareto analysis

Question 18

Which of the following is not one of the four major components of the balanced scorecard?

A) customers
B) internal business processes
C) sustainability
D) financial

Question 19

The final step of the strategic training and development process involves ________.

A) choosing strategic training and development initiatives
B) identifying the business strategy
C) identifying measures or metrics
D) creating concrete training and development activities

Question 20

Which of the following is not a step in the strategic training and development process?

A) determining strategic initiatives based on business strategy
B) translating initiatives into concreate learning activities
C) facilitating strategic training
D) identifying metrics to determine whether training has contributed to goals related to the business strategy
E) none of the above-each is a step

Question 21

Internal analysis involves identifying opportunities and threats.

Question 22

The first step in the strategic training and development process is to identify metrics to determine if training will be successful.

Question 23

Which of the following is true of the business-embedded (BE) learning function?

A) The BE function is customer-focused.
B) A BE training function views trainees as marketers.
C) A BE training function does not guarantee that training will improve performance.
D) Training functions organized by the BE model do not involve line managers.

Question 24

A(n) ________ strategy focuses on new market and product development, innovation, and joint ventures.

A) disinvestment
B) privatization
C) external growth
D) internal growth

Question 25

Emphasis on the creation of intellectual capital and the movement toward high-performance work systems using teams has resulted in employees performing many roles once reserved for management.

Question 26

It has been estimated that about one-quarter of all companies have an extensive learning organization and that one-half possess at least some of the characteristics of a learning organization.

Question 27

Development of an organizational culture that values creative thinking and analysis is characteristic of a company adopting a(n) ________ strategy.

A) concentration
B) disinvestment
C) internal growth
D) external growth

Question 28

Which of the following is not one of the major "change-related" problems that need to be addressed before the implementation of new training practices?

A) resistance to change
B) loss of control
C) power imbalance
D) training-business strategy incongruence

Question 29

Which of the following is true of centralized training?

A) A centralized training function helps drive stronger alignment with business strategy.
B) Training and development programs, resources, and professionals are housed in a number of different locations.
C) A centralized training function hinders the development of a common set of metrics or scorecards.
D) A centralized training function is largely ineffective during times of change.

Question 30

Tacit knowledge is easy to imitate.

Question 31

Companies need to support formal training because it is the best means to acquire tacit knowledge.

Question 32

Which of the following is not an advantage of centralized training?

A) stronger alignment with business strategy
B) streamlined processes
C) integrated programs for managing talent and training during times of change
D) the ability to respond quickly to client needs and provide high quality services

Question 33

From a strategic perspective, "diversify the learning portfolio" refers to providing strategic diversity training to enhance a company's competitive advantage.

Question 34

In learning organizations, there is an understanding that failure provides important information.

Question 35

Kitty Merriweather, a product manager working in a manufacturing firm, is highly anxious about change. When the top management of Merriweather's firm made it mandatory for all product managers to undergo training, she told her superior that she would be uncomfortable doing so. She added that she was certain of not being able to cope with the new developments. In this instance, Kitty is demonstrating

A) indifference to change.
B) uniqueness.
C) resistance to change.
D) loss of control.

Question 36

Learning organizations emphasize that learning occurs not only at the individual employee level but also at the group and organizational levels.

Question 37

Which of the following is not one of the major reasons organizations outsource training?

A) potential cost savings
B) desire for greater control
C) time savings
D) desire to access best practices

Question 38

Companies adopting a ________ strategy need to train employees in job-search skills and focus on cross-training their remaining employees.

A) concentration
B) disinvestment
C) external growth
D) internal growth

Question 39

Strategic training and development initiatives vary by company depending on a company's industry, goals, resources, and capabilities.

Question 40

Explicit knowledge is thought to have a stronger impact on helping organizations achieve a competitive advantage than tacit knowledge.

Question 41

Companies should generally avoid involving unions in retraining and productivity-improvement efforts.

Question 42

There is an increasing trend for the training function to be organized by a blend of the business-embedded (BE) learning function and centralized training.

Question 43

Line managers spend less time managing individual performance and developing employees than mid-level managers.

Question 44

Outsourcing allows a company to focus better on its business strategy by saving cost and time.

Question 45

In highly integrated businesses, training is likely to include rotating employees between jobs in different businesses.

Question 46

For companies in an unstable or recessionary business environment, training programs focus more on correcting skill deficiencies rather than preparing staff for new assignments.

Question 47

Compared to ten years ago, organizations are less focused now on creating a learning and training brand.

Question 48

A centralized training function not only hampers the streamlining of processes but also denies the company a cost advantage in purchasing training from vendors.

Question 49

When companies are trying to revitalize and redirect, earnings may be flat, and there are likely fewer incentives for participation in training programs.

Question 50

Skill-based pay systems determine employees' pay on what skills they are using for their current jobs rather than the number of skills they are competent in.

Question 51

The CEO of a company is responsible for setting a clear direction for learning.

Question 52

Business process reengineering refers to the outsourcing of any business process, such as HRM, training, or production.

Question 53

Uniqueness refers to employee potential to improve company effectiveness and efficiency.

Question 54

Companies that adopt state-of-the-art HRM practices realize higher levels of performance than firms that do not.

Question 55

In the context of strategic training, the balanced score card is often used to determine levels of organizational support to enhance transfer of training.

Question 56

Define balanced scorecard. What are the four perspectives it considers? Provide examples of metrics used to measure them.

Question 57

Training for contract employees would focus on sharing expertise and team training.

Question 58

Describe the human capital requirements for fortresses, baseball teams, clubs, and academies.

Question 59

Job-based employees are likely to receive less training than knowledge-based employees.

Question 60

Companies pursuing an external growth strategy typically focus on human capital issues to enhance efficiency.

Question 61

What are the advantages and disadvantages of a centralized training function?

Question 62

Explain the business-embedded learning function.

Question 63

Describe five strategies for marketing training to internal customers.

Question 64

How does the strategic value of jobs and their uniqueness influence how training and learning resources are invested?