Deck 10: Performance Management and Appraisal

Question 1

Which of the following is true of performance standards?

A) Only numerical performance standards can be established.
B) Performance standards should be established while the work is being performed.
C) Only nonnumerical performance standards can be established.
D) Performance standards should be established before the work is performed.

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Which of the following is typically a responsibility of the HR department in performance appraisals?

A) Preparing formal appraisal documents
B) Tracking timely receipt of appraisals
C) Identifying development areas
D) Reviewing appraisals with employees

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Which of the following is true of organizations that practice a performance-driven approach?

A) Employee rewards vary significantly from person to person and are not based on individual performance.
B) Performance appraisal activities are seen as being primarily a "bureaucratic exercise."
C) Employee rewards vary little from person to person and are not based on individual performance.
D) Performance evaluations link results to employee compensation and development.

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Which of the following is trait-based information?

A) Verbal persuasion
B) Dispositions
C) Units produced
D) Customer satisfaction

Question 5

Which of the following is an objective measure of performance?

A) The total number of washing machines sold by an employee
B) A supervisor's rating of an employee's integrity
C) An employee's attitude toward the customer
D) An organization's perceptions of an employee's values

Question 6

_____ can help make a manager more responsive toward employees.

A) Rating of supervisors by subordinates
B) Self-rating
C) Peer rating
D) Rating of subordinates by supervisors

Question 7

_____ is the most widely used means of rating employees.

A) Outsider rating of employees
B) Self-rating
C) Peer rating
D) Supervisory rating of subordinates

Question 8

Which of the following is true of the administrative and developmental roles of performance appraisals?

A) The rater plays the role of a judge in an administrative role and plays the role of a coach in a developmental role.
B) The rater plays the role of a coach in an administrative role and plays the role of a judge in a developmental role.
C) The rater plays the role of a coach in both-the administrative role and the developmental role of performance appraisals.
D) The rater plays the role of a judge in both-the administrative role and the developmental role of performance appraisals.

Question 9

Which of the following is typically a responsibility of managers in performance appraisals?

A) Reviewing completed appraisals for consistency
B) Tracking timely receipt of appraisals
C) Identifying development areas
D) Designing and maintain appraisal systems

Question 10

A panel of division managers evaluating a supervisor's potential for advancement in the organization is known as _____.

A) outsider rating
B) self-rating
C) peer rating
D) multisource rating

Question 11

Which of the following is an example of results-based information?

A) Teamwork
B) Initiative
C) Customer satisfaction
D) Sales volume

Question 12

Which of the following is behavior-based information?

A) Improved quality
B) Effective communication
C) Timeliness of response
D) Cost reduction

Question 13

Which of the following is true of performance appraisal?

A) Performance management is a part of performance appraisal.
B) Performance appraisal is the process of determining how well employees do their jobs relative to a standard and communicating that information to them.
C) Performance appraisal is the same as performance management.
D) Performance appraisal refers to the entire series of activities designed to ensure that the organization gets the performance it needs from its employees.

Question 14

Employees working in isolation or possessing unique skills may be particularly suited to _____.

A) outsider rating
B) self-rating
C) peer rating
D) multisource rating

Question 15

Which of the following statements is true of developing a performance-focused culture throughout the organization?

A) Firms with performance-focused cultures have more positive performance than those with a maintenance-orientation culture.
B) In firms with a performance-focused culture, performance appraisal activities are seen as having few ties to performance and are primarily regarded as a "bureaucratic exercise."
C) Firms with performance-focused cultures do not usually provide training to managers and employees.
D) In firms with a performance-focused culture, adequate performance and stability dominate the firm.

Question 16

Which of the following statements is true of objective and subjective measures of performance appraisals?

A) Subjective measures can be observed and objective measures require judgment on the part of the evaluator.
B) Both subjective and objective measures require judgment on the part of the evaluator and cannot be observed.
C) Objective measures can be observed and subjective measures require judgment on the part of the evaluator.
D) Both subjective and objective measures can be observed and do not require judgment on the part of an evaluator.

Question 17

Which of the following statements is true of organizations that practice the entitlement approach?

A) Employee rewards vary little from person to person and are based on individual performance differences.
B) Employee rewards vary significantly from person to person and are not much based on individual performance differences.
C) Employee rewards vary little from person to person and are not much based on individual performance differences.
D) Employee rewards vary significantly from person to person and are based on individual performance differences.

Question 18

Which of the following is a subjective measure of performance?

A) The total number of cars sold by an employee
B) A supervisor's rating of an employee's integrity
C) The number of hours that an employee has worked
D) The revenue an employee has bought into the organization

Question 19

_____ is a series of activities designed to ensure that the organization gets the performance it needs from its employees.

A) Performance management
B) Performance appraisal
C) Performance planning
D) Performance improvement

Question 20

_____ is especially useful when supervisors do not have the opportunity to observe each employee's performance but other work group members do.

A) Outsider rating
B) Self-rating
C) Peer rating
D) Employees rating managers

Question 21

The _____ allows the rater to mark an employee's performance on a continuum indicating low to high levels of a particular characteristic.

A) graphic rating scale
B) category scaling method
C) comparative method
D) narrative method

Question 22

_____ recognizes that for many jobs, employee performance is multidimensional and crosses departmental, organizational, and even national boundaries.

A) Outsider rating
B) Self-rating
C) Peer rating
D) 360-degree rating

Question 23

Josh, an HR manager at RoxCom LLC, is responsible for implementing a guided self-appraisal system using management by objectives in his organization. He has reviewed the job description and the key activities that constitute the employee's job. Which of the following is typically the next step for Josh?

A) Continuing performance discussions
B) Development of performance standards
C) Setting of objectives
D) Implementation of the standards

Question 24

_____ is a technique for distributing ratings that are generated with any of the other appraisal methods and comparing the ratings of people in a work group.

A) Behavioral rating scales
B) Forced distribution
C) Essay method
D) Critical incident

Question 25

The _____ method requires a manager to write a short write-up describing each employee's performance during the rating period.

A) forced distribution
B) ranking
C) essay
D) critical incident

Question 26

_____ require that managers directly evaluate the performance levels of their employees against one another, and these evaluations can provide useful information for performance management.

A) Graphic rating scales
B) Category scaling methods
C) Comparative methods
D) Narrative methods

Question 27

Which of the following belongs to the descriptive category in graphic rating scales?

A) Decision making
B) Employee development
C) Quantity of work
D) Communication effectiveness

Question 28

Luke, an HR manager at Rexi LLC, is responsible for implementing a guided self-appraisal system using management by objectives in his organization. He has established objectives that are realistically attainable. Which of the following is typically the next step for Luke?

A) Continuing performance discussions
B) Development of performance standards
C) Determining a satisfactory level of performance
D) Job review and agreement

Question 29

The _____ occurs when a rater gives greater weight to the latest events when appraising an individual's performance.

A) leniency error
B) recency effect
C) primacy effect
D) central tendency

Question 30

The simplest methods for appraising performance are _____, which require a manager to mark an employee's level of performance on a specific form divided into categories of performance.

A) graphic rating scales
B) category scaling methods
C) comparative methods
D) narrative methods

Question 31

If employers do not require a(n) _____, performance appraisal ratings often do not match the normal distribution of a bell-shaped curve.

A) ranking method
B) critical incident
C) forced distribution
D) essay method

Question 32

In the _____ method, the manager keeps a written record of both highly favorable and unfavorable actions performed by an employee during the entire rating period.

A) forced distribution
B) ranking
C) essay
D) critical incident

Question 33

Which of the following is typically the first stage in implementing a guided self-appraisal system using MBO?

A) Continuing performance discussions
B) Development of performance standards
C) Setting of objectives
D) Job review and agreement

Question 34

Zara, an HR manager at Fluxin LLC, is responsible for implementing a guided self-appraisal system using management by objectives in her organization. She has developed specific standards for performance. Which of the following is typically the next step for Zara?

A) Continuing performance discussions
B) Implementation of the performance standards
C) Setting of objectives
D) Job review and agreement

Question 35

Which of the following is typically the last stage in implementing a guided self-appraisal system using MBO?

A) Continuing performance discussions
B) Development of performance standards
C) Setting of objectives
D) Job review and agreement

Question 36

The use of _____ can cause rater error because the form might not accurately reflect the relative importance of certain job characteristics, and some factors might need to be added to the ratings for one employee, while others might need to be dropped.

A) graphic rating scales
B) category scaling methods
C) comparative methods
D) narrative methods

Question 37

Which of the following is a comparative method of performance appraisals?

A) Behavioral rating scales
B) Critical incident
C) Essay
D) Forced distribution

Question 38

Which of the following is a narrative method of performance appraisals?

A) Behavioral rating scales
B) Critical incident
C) Ranking
D) Forced distribution

Question 39

The _____ method lists the individuals being rated from highest to lowest based on their performance levels and relative contributions.

A) ranking
B) critical incident
C) essay
D) forced distribution

Question 40

Which of the following belongs to the behavioral dimensions in graphic rating scales?

A) Attendance
B) Dependability
C) Quantity of work
D) Communication effectiveness

Question 41

The number of cars sold by a car salesman is classified as a subjective measure of performance.

Question 42

The _____ occurs when ratings of all employees fall at the high end of the scale.

A) leniency error
B) recency effect
C) primacy effect
D) central tendency

Question 43

The _____ occurs when a low rating on one characteristic leads to an overall low rating.

A) halo effect
B) horns effect
C) contrast error
D) similar-to-me error

Question 44

In the performance-driven organizational culture, employee rewards vary little from person to person and are not much based on individual performance differences.

Question 45

Both numerical and nonnumerical performance standards can be established.

Question 46

The entitlement approach of organizational culture links performance evaluations to employee compensation and development.

Question 47

The performance management process starts by identifying the strategic goals an organization needs to accomplish to remain competitive and profitable.

Question 48

Employee attitude is classified as trait-based information.

Question 49

The _____ occurs when a rater gives all employees an average rating.

A) leniency error
B) recency effect
C) primacy effect
D) central tendency

Question 50

A supervisor's rating of an employee's attitude is classified as an objective measure of performance.

Question 51

Which of the following is true of appraisal interviews?

A) Managers must communicate both praise and constructive criticism.
B) Managers must communicate only praise and not constructive criticism.
C) Managers must communicate only constructive criticism and not praise.
D) Managers must not communicate praise or constructive criticism.

Question 52

Performance appraisal is the entire series of activities designed to ensure that the organization gets the performance it needs from its employees.

Question 53

The _____ occurs when a rater gives greater weight to information received first when appraising an individual's performance.

A) leniency error
B) recency effect
C) primacy effect
D) central tendency

Question 54

The _____ occurs when a rater scores an employee high on all job criteria because of performance in one area.

A) halo effect
B) horns effect
C) contrast error
D) similar-to-me error

Question 55

The _____ is the tendency to rate people relative to one another rather than against performance standards.

A) halo effect
B) horns effect
C) contrast error
D) similar-to-me error

Question 56

If the rater has seen only a small specimen of the person's work, an appraisal may be subject to _____.

A) halo effect
B) horns effect
C) contrast error
D) sampling error

Question 57

Firms with maintenance-orientation cultures have more positive performance than those with performance-focused cultures.

Question 58

When a key part of performance management, the performance appraisal, is used to punish employees, _____.

A) performance appraisal is less effective
B) performance management is less effective
C) performance appraisal is more effective
D) performance management is more effective

Question 59

Menu up-selling by a waiter is classified as behavior-based information.

Question 60

The _____ occurs when a manager uses only the lower part of the scale to rate employees.

A) leniency error
B) recency effect
C) primacy effect
D) strictness error

Question 61

When a key part of performance management, the performance appraisal, is used to punish employees, performance management is less effective.

Question 62

The recency effect occurs when a rater gives greater weight to information received first when appraising an individual's performance.

Question 63

One concern of multisource rating is that those peers who rate poor-performing coworkers tend to inflate the ratings so that the peers themselves can get higher overall evaluation results in return.

Question 64

A disadvantage of the outsider rating approach is that outsiders may not know the important demands within the work group or organization.

Question 65

The administrative role of performance appraisals often creates stress for managers doing the appraisals and the employees being evaluated, because the rater is placed in the role of judge.

Question 66

With the ranking method, the ratings of employees' performance are distributed along a bell-shaped curve.

Question 67

In the critical incident method, the manager keeps a written record of both highly favorable and unfavorable actions performed by an employee during the entire rating period.

Question 68

The leniency error occurs when ratings of all employees fall at the high end of the scale.

Question 69

Peer and team ratings are especially useful only when supervisors have the opportunity to observe each employee's performance.

Question 70

The forced distribution method lists the individuals being rated from highest to lowest based on their performance levels and relative contributions.

Question 71

An informal appraisal is used when a system is in place to report managerial impressions and observations on employee performance and feature a regular time interval.

Question 72

The contrast error occurs when a rater scores an employee high on all job criteria because of performance in one area.

Question 73

The category scaling method allows the rater to mark an employee's performance on a continuum indicating low to high levels of a particular characteristic.

Question 74

The developmental function of performance appraisals can identify areas in which the employee might wish to grow.

Question 75

The major purpose of 360-degree feedback is to increase uniformity by soliciting like-minded views.

Question 76

The halo effect is the tendency to rate people relative to one another rather than against performance standards.

Question 77

Development of performance standards is typically the first stage of management by objectives.

Question 78

Companies must only use multisource feedback primarily as an administrative tool.

Question 79

A major concern for managers in performance management is how to emphasize the positive aspects of the employee's performance while still discussing ways to make needed improvements.

Question 80

When creating a BARS system, identifying important job dimensions, which are the most important performance factors in a job description, is done first.