Deck 1: The Training and Development Process

Question 1

Performance management is the acquisition of knowledge,skills,and abilities to improve performance in one's current job.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

Alberta and Quebec are the only provinces in Canada to have mandatory training laws for companies with payrolls greater than $1 million.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

One of the intrinsic benefits of training and development is the benefits realized by society.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

Development is the acquisition of knowledge,skills,and abilities required to perform future job responsibilities.

Question 5

Strategic training and development (ST&D)is often described as the alignment between T&D and short-term corporate goals.

Question 6

Human resource development is part of a larger system known as training and development.

Question 7

One of the reasons for the underinvestment in training and development is the perception that training,learning,and development expenditures represent a cost rather than an investment.

Question 8

A needs analysis typically has three levels including an organizational analysis,a department analysis,and a person analysis.

Question 9

Performance management is often based on a single event like a training program.

Question 10

The trend toward flatter organizational structures is causing some element of blurriness between what constitutes traditional roles associated with management functions.

Question 11

An organization's learning and training strategy will directly influence its training and development programs.

Question 12

An example of strategic training would be an enterprise offering cultural training given that its strategy calls for international expansion.

Question 13

TD Bank's Robbery Prevention and Awareness initiative is an example of a training program.

Question 14

Research seems to indicate a negative relationship between per employee expenditures on training and development and voluntary and involuntary turnover rates.

Question 15

A high-performance work system is a rational and scientific model of the training and development process that consists of a needs analysis,training design and delivery,and training evaluation.

Question 16

Organizations are always successful in recovering training costs when employees sign training bonds.

Question 17

Once a training program has been designed and delivered,the next stage is to seek additional funding so that the program can continue to evolve.

Question 18

The key environmental factors that drive human resources and training and development within an organization include technology,global competition,the labour market,and organizational strategy.

Question 19

When applying the ISD model of training and development,the process often begins with the identification of a concern.

Question 20

Restructuring,downsizing,and reengineering often lead to changes in employees' tasks and responsibilities and so necessitate the need for training.

Question 21

Which organization does the textbook describe as a Canadian leader in training investments for employees?

A) Molson Coors
B) BMO-Bank of Montreal
C) Providence Health Care
D) Scotiabank

Question 22

What are two extrinsic benefits that training will give an employee?

A) an improved marketability and greater job security
B) a greater sense of self-efficacy and a sense of accomplishment
C) a more positive attitude toward their employer and their own confidence
D) a greater sense of engagement toward customers and fellow employees

Question 23

The majority of organizations follow all the steps in the ISD model when introducing training programs.

Question 24

Which Canadian report was quoted as saying "organizations that spend more per employee on training and development have significantly lower voluntary and involuntary turnover rates"?

A) Toronto Transit Commission
B) Conference Board of Canada
C) Alberta Government
D) Royal Canadian Mounted Police

Question 25

Which Canadian organization has a people strategy that ensures "the right people,with the right skills,are in the right roles"?

A) BMO-Bank of Montreal
B) Transport Canada
C) Providence Health Care
D) TD Canada Trust

Question 26

A significant amount of research links higher investments in training with positive organizational outcomes.What is one of those outcomes?

A) higher operating profits
B) higher payroll costs
C) higher development costs
D) higher book-to-market values

Question 27

What central theme(s)are shared by the three main functions of human resource development?

A) organizational development and career development
B) employee development and organizational development
C) learning
D) strategic development and career development

Question 28

What is the term for the process of establishing performance expectations,designing interventions and programs to improve performance,and monitoring the success of interventions and programs?

A) performance review
B) performance management
C) performance evaluation
D) performance system

Question 29

Why does Canada's productivity growth increasingly lag behind its main competitors?

A) Canadian organizations do not have the same economies of scale.
B) Canadian organizations do not invest enough resources in training and development.
C) Canadian organizations do not follow the voluntary training laws in Canada.
D) A large source of skilled labour is available to Canadian companies.

Question 30

According to the textbook,what is the number-one attraction and retention tool for many organizations?

A) compensation
B) training
C) bonuses
D) development

Question 31

Which statement best describes the current state of training and development in Canada?

A) it tends to be fairly similar across industries
B) in dollar terms, T&D in Canada tends to lag other G7 countries
C) small and medium companies tend to spend less per employee
D) Canada has seen a recent increase in per employee training hours

Question 32

The TD Bank example described in the textbook had several goals.Which statement best describes those goals?

A) to improve productivity for the bank's front-line employees
B) to improve the confidence level of the bank's front-line employees
C) to link its training programs to the bank's strategic plan
D) to decrease the number of robberies and improve safety for the bank's employees

Question 33

What pattern best describes training and development expenditures in Canada from 2003 to 2010?

A) increasing year over year at a nearly constant level
B) increasing year over year
C) decreasing year over year at a nearly constant level
D) decreasing at an increasing rate

Question 34

In what year did the government of Quebec introduce and pass the Act to Foster Development of Manpower Training?

A) 1975
B) 1985
C) 1995
D) 2005

Question 35

The performance management process includes several interrelated steps.What is the first step?

A) developing performance goals
B) deciding on the process to train and develop employees
C) assigning appropriate rewards
D) developing standard rating forms

Question 36

According to the textbook,which group of employees had the highest average number of training hours per employee in 2010?

A) unionized employees
B) front-line employees
C) government employees
D) senior management and executives

Question 37

What was one of the key findings of a 2008 report regarding training legislation in Quebec?

A) the legislation had little impact on the ways Quebec firms deliver training
B) fewer companies planned and implemented training programs
C) Quebec leads the national average in training participation rates
D) all stakeholders must work together to find ways to promote training

Question 38

Which of the following is NOT a benefit to society from training and development?

A) higher levels of education
B) greater economic prosperity
C) better work-life balance
D) improved standard of living

Question 39

Which of the following is a key environmental factor that may influence human resources training and development?

A) strategy
B) competition
C) culture
D) leadership

Question 40

Which characteristics tend to be demonstrated by firms that invest and expand their training programs?

A) higher turnover and gross margins
B) higher customer satisfaction and profit levels
C) higher levels of errors and higher employee satisfaction results
D) more likely to expand internationally and enjoy higher profits

Question 41

Identify and briefly describe three organizational benefits of training and development,providing an example for each.

Question 42

What measurable outcomes do high-performance work systems tend to provide to employers?

A) an increase in employee turnover, higher sales, and higher productivity
B) superior productivity and improved non-financial performance
C) improved financial performance and superior productivity
D) lower turnover, higher labour costs, and superior financial performance

Question 43

Why do technology developments in the external environment influence the training needs within an organization?

A) Employees will require technology training to be marketable for other jobs.
B) Employees will require technology training to capture efficiencies associated with improved technology.
C) Employees will require technology training to satisfy their own intrinsic benefits.
D) Employees will require technology training to meet global demands.

Question 44

Which of the following is impacted by high-performance work systems?

A) employees' compensation
B) employers' motivation
C) employees' motivation
D) community involvement

Question 45

Using the TD example described in the chapter,identify and describe how TD Canada Trust used the ISD model in its Robbery Prevention and Awareness program.

Question 46

Describe the factors that influence high performance work systems (HPWS).

Question 47

Which of the following best describes strategic training and development?

A) an alignment of T&D with human resource practices
B) an alignment of T&D with business processes and systems
C) an alignment of organizational goals with T&D programs
D) an alignment of T&D with business strategies and objectives

Question 48

Chapter 1 of the textbook introduces the reader to the ISD model.Furthermore,it identifies seven suggested sequences of activities.All of these activities are likely to have some element of cost associated with their execution.Which of those seven activities do you suggest would be the most difficult to justify to management? (Make the assumption you need budget approval.)

Question 49

According to the textbook,why do training programs based on the instructional systems design model of training and development fail?

A) The organizations do not employ learning principles.
B) The organizations ignore an important step in the process.
C) The organizations implement training programs that are too complex.
D) The organizations over-evaluate their training programs.

Question 50

Which of the following is a major step in the instructional systems design model of training and development?

A) rigorous recruitment and selection process
B) design, delivery, and determining ROI of a training program
C) determining who should be trained
D) training evaluation

Question 51

Identify and briefly describe the three steps in the instructional systems design (ISD)model.

Question 52

Which internal factor does a company wish to influence when delivering a downsizing training program?

A) structure
B) strategy
C) values
D) culture

Question 53

Which of the following is NOT an external factor that will affect training and development?

A) goals
B) change
C) labour markets
D) increased global competition

Question 54

Differentiate between the terms training and development.

Question 55

What is the most critical internal or external factor influencing training and development programs?

A) demographics
B) the competitive nature of the industry
C) corporate strategy
D) leadership and managerial characteristics

Question 56

Define and explain the term strategic human resources management (SHRM).

Question 57

What outcome tends to result for an organization that subscribes to strategic human resource management whereby it has greater alignment between its HR practices and its strategies?

A) superior performance
B) greater work-life balance
C) enhanced efficiencies
D) exemplary quality

Question 58

Which concept can be defined as something in the organization that is not quite right or that is of concern to someone?

A) performance gap
B) performance shortfall
C) performance issue
D) performance need