Deck 5: Planning For, Recruiting, and Selecting the Workforce

Question 1

What are two techniques used to assess the internal supply of labour?

A) staffing tables and vacancy analysis
B) vacancy analysis and Markov analysis
C) Markov analysis and job analysis
D) staffing tables and Markov analysis

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Several years ago, ThinkFast Marketing Solutions was rapidly expanding and had just over 120 permanent employees. Since then, the organization has shifted its market focus. Senior management has determined that it has 12 percent more employees than it needs to operate efficiently and effectively. What is this an example of?

A) surplus of employees
B) oversupply of labour
C) natural attrition
D) high turnover

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Which of the following do HR staff use to locate qualified internal candidates for job openings?

A) succession planning and internal job postings
B) recruitment and selection
C) internal job postings and employment branding
D) attrition and computerized record systems

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Several years ago Jeremy Sanchez launched a specialized environmental services company. The demand for his services has been three times greater than he expected. He estimates that he requires at least six more employees to run his business successfully. What is Jeremy experiencing?

A) shortage of labour
B) lack of skills inventory
C) natural attrition
D) labour force shift

Question 5

What is one major consequence of inadequate HR planning?

A) Managers spend more time performing employee selection tasks.
B) Key employees leave the organization to seek better career opportunities.
C) Turnover of poor performers is reduced.
D) Changes in the demographics of the workforce go unnoticed.

Question 6

What can employee transfers within an organization achieve?

A) increase the motivation of poor performers
B) reward employees who were unsuccessful in obtaining a promotion
C) encourage employee empowerment
D) protect employees from layoffs

Question 7

What is employment branding?

A) a recruitment technique
B) an organization's reputation as an employer
C) how an organization begins the recruitment process
D) a critical task

Question 8

Which term refers to the process of locating and encouraging people to apply for existing or anticipated job openings?

A) hiring
B) human resource planning
C) recruitment
D) job design

Question 9

What is a key purpose of human resource planning?

A) to provide greater job security in uncertain times
B) to remove the responsibility for effective employee selection from line managers
C) to anticipate labour shortages and surpluses
D) to deploy human resources in a manner that conforms to employment legislation

Question 10

What is one risk faced by organizations that rely heavily on internal candidates to fill job openings?

A) employment branding
B) employee cloning
C) labour shortages
D) low turnover

Question 11

What does employee promotion within an organization achieve?

A) It protects the organization from discrimination suits.
B) It removes some pressure from HR to fill outstanding job vacancies.
C) It reduces compensation budgets.
D) It rewards employees for past performance.

Question 12

Which term refers to the process of setting overall organization objectives and developing plans to achieve them?

A) strategic planning
B) job analysis
C) environmental scanning
D) HR planning

Question 13

How does effective HR planning assist an organization that has made a strategic decision to move into a new market?

A) It provides information about the objectives the organization is attempting to achieve.
B) It helps the organization to understand the relevance of the skill sets of existing employees.
C) It removes the need for managers to evaluate their current labour costs.
D) It outlines information about the compensation levels of competitors in the new market.

Question 14

In the past, the traditional retirement age was usually 65. Today, many people postpone retirement and continue to work past 65. Which HR function does this trend have the greatest impact on?

A) selecting recruitment sources
B) planning training and development
C) determining the natural attrition rate
D) calculating salaries and benefits

Question 15

What does recruiting from within enable an organization to do?

A) locate and encourage all potential job applicants
B) simplify the application of its HR practices and policies
C) capitalize on the investment it has made in recruiting, training, and development
D) broaden the pool of qualified applicants

Question 16

What is the purpose of recruitment?

A) to create a sufficient pool of qualified applicants
B) to ensure that the organization is adequately staffed
C) to forecast demand for labour
D) to fill job vacancies

Question 17

Margot's gourmet bakery is growing in popularity. She needs to hire two new employees, a baker and a server. Where should she focus her recruitment efforts?

A) among her current staff
B) within the city
C) across the province
D) on national job boards

Question 18

In what type of organization does HR planning happen more systematically?

A) small organizations
B) entrepreneurial organizations
C) organizations with rapidly changing environments
D) large organizations

Question 19

What is human resources planning?

A) setting major organizational objectives and developing comprehensive plans to achieve these objectives
B) determining the primary direction of the firm
C) ensuring that the organization has qualified people to accomplish the strategic and operational goals of the organization
D) identifying the critical aspects of a job

Question 20

What is the first step of an effective HR process?

A) developing a strategic action plan
B) forecasting the demand for labour
C) determining the internal and external supply of labour
D) identifying the gap between demand and supply

Question 21

Which of these external recruiting sources normally provides employers with high-quality applicants?

A) job postings
B) educational institutions
C) newspaper ads
D) employee referrals

Question 22

Why are professional organizations a useful source of recruitment?

A) The retention rates tend to be higher for members of professional organizations.
B) These organizations pay the employment agency fee for their members seeking employment.
C) They provide placement services to their members as a benefit.
D) Some associations provide screening services for employers seeking to hire their members.

Question 23

Lucinda recently joined a large accounting firm as an HR assistant. A junior staff person in accounts receivable team had a family emergency occur on the weekend and is expected to be off work for four to six weeks. Lucinda must find someone to perform the employee's tasks during this time. What should her first step be?

A) Place an ad in the city's daily online newspaper.
B) Start the recruitment process.
C) Review the HR department's waiting list of applicants.
D) Consult the department's succession plan.

Question 24

Which activity is illegal for an employment agency?

A) billing an employer more than 20 percent of the annual salary of a successful candidate
B) head-hunting prospective candidates while they are at work for their present employer
C) charging job-seekers a fee for helping them find work
D) contacting a prospective candidate on behalf of two different employers

Question 25

What must a hiring manager be aware of before a candidate is interviewed for a specific vacancy?

A) the number of candidates that belong to a protected group under legislation
B) the current location of the candidate's residence
C) the knowledge, skills, and abilities required for success on the job
D) the quality of the candidate's references

Question 26

What is one major disadvantage of external recruitment?

A) An outside person may not have the skills the organization requires.
B) There is a lack of solid information about the person's performance on the job.
C) Different experiences and perspectives will disrupt the culture of the organization.
D) Salary requirements for the external hire may be higher than for an internal hire.

Question 27

What is the primary purpose of the selection process?

A) to choose individuals who have relevant qualifications to fill job openings
B) to use employment tests to supplement interviews
C) to weed out obvious misfits
D) to validate the organization's job descriptions

Question 28

What is an essential part of any employment equity policy?

A) recruitment of men into jobs traditionally held by women
B) a preference toward hiring women
C) favouritism toward hiring members of designated groups
D) an effort to recruit members of designated groups

Question 29

What is one advantage of external recruitment?

A) It stabilizes the organization.
B) Employees have less resentment toward an outsider who fills a job they wanted.
C) It can bring in people with a variety of experiences and perspectives.
D) It can help maintain the corporate culture.

Question 30

Which of the following methods is most commonly used by employers to develop a diverse workforce?

A) Advertise vacancies in foreign countries.
B) Focus recruitment efforts on communities of different ethnic and cultural backgrounds.
C) Rely on employee referrals from existing employees who belong to minority groups.
D) Require employment agencies to contact only candidates who belong to minority groups.

Question 31

What often occurs during a tight labour market?

A) There is a high unemployment rate.
B) The demand for labour exceeds the supply of labour.
C) The number of job applicants and job openings are about equal.
D) There is an overall decline in compensation rates.

Question 32

Which statement best describes the employee selection process?

A) Selection is typically a seasonal process.
B) The selection process should be consistent for all roles in one organization.
C) There are generally seven steps in the selection process.
D) Not all applicants will go through all steps in the selection process.

Question 33

What is an advantage of using temporary workers?

A) ease of fit with permanent employees
B) little training is required
C) increased employee loyalty
D) greater flexibility in maintaining proper staffing levels

Question 34

Which of the following are three of the designated groups under federal employment equity legislation?

A) visible minorities, French-speaking people, and women
B) women, visible minorities, and people with disabilities
C) new Canadians, people with disabilities, and Aboriginal peoples
D) Aboriginal peoples, French-speaking people, and visible minorities

Question 35

Which employment agency service is growing the fastest?

A) executive position searches
B) full-time position searches
C) temporary position searches
D) technical position searches

Question 36

What is one concern associated with using employee referrals as a method for recruitment?

A) Employees don't want to compete with people they know for positions.
B) This recruitment method raises the potential for systemic discrimination.
C) The costs associated with employee referrals is often high.
D) The quality of employee-referred applicants is usually low.

Question 37

What is the most important type of information to have when making selection decisions?

A) details that will predict job performance of the candidate
B) information about the educational background of the candidate
C) an overview of the positions previously held by the candidate
D) a personality profile of the candidate

Question 38

What should employers keep in mind in order to develop effective advertisements?

A) Avoid being overly creative.
B) Use smaller newspapers and journals to target a particular group of readers.
C) Provide a limited amount of job-specific information in the advertisement.
D) Include the contact information for the hiring manager.

Question 39

Which of the following are common tools used in the employee selection process?

A) application forms and reference checks
B) cover letters and employee referrals
C) internal job postings and interviews
D) job fairs and interviews

Question 40

Executive search firms typically charge the employer which percentage of the annual salary for the position to be filled?

A) 15 percent to 25 percent
B) 20 percent to 35 percent
C) 30 percent to 40 percent
D) 45 percent to 60 percent

Question 41

Which statement best describes employment-related drug and alcohol testing?

A) The Canadian Human Rights Commission prohibits any drug and alcohol testing during the employment selection process.
B) With the legalization of recreational marijuana, employers will no longer test for this substance.
C) Any policies relating to substance abuse testing during the selection process must have a clear and legitimate purpose.
D) If substance abuse is detected during the selection process, the candidate may take the test again.

Question 42

Which of the following is an emerging trend in employee selection practices?

A) online application systems
B) employee referrals
C) conference calls
D) video interviewing

Question 43

You are interviewing a potential candidate for a position that involves some travel each month. During the interview, the candidate mentions that she has three children who are active in different sports. You want to determine whether she will be able to meet the travel requirements of this position. What is the best question to ask?

A) Does your spouse travel for work?
B) Do you foresee any difficulties meeting the travel obligations of this position?
C) What arrangements do you have in place for when your children are ill?
D) Do you have reliable childcare arrangements?

Question 44

What type of interview asks interviewees to describe how they would react in a given situation?

A) situational
B) directive
C) behavioural
D) non-directive

Question 45

Markov analysis describes how employees typically move into, within, and out of an organization.

Question 46

The overall goal of HR planning is to have the right people with the right skills in the right jobs.

Question 47

HR planning is setting key operational objectives for an organization and developing comprehensive plans to achieve those objectives.

Question 48

You have just been hired to work with a small, independent retail business that is quickly growing. The owner has asked you to design an application form. Which type of information are you legally permitted to request?

A) education, experience, date of birth
B) work experience, arrests, references
C) employment history, references, whether person is legally entitled to work in Canada
D) references, country of citizenship, work experience

Question 49

HR managers should not interfere in their organization's management steering committee or strategic planning group.

Question 50

Which interview approach typically asks an applicant what they actually did in a given situation?

A) structured interview
B) behavioural description interview
C) non-directive interview
D) situational interview

Question 51

Without the knowledge of what work is to be done and the skills required to do the work, the manager cannot select qualified employees.

Question 52

Despite the economic challenges of the past several years, about 25 percent of Canadian companies are finding it difficult to find and hire appropriate individuals to fill job openings in their organizations.

Question 53

Management forecasts are an example of quantitative analysis.

Question 54

Hiring decisions are typically approached in one of two ways. What are these two approaches?

A) clinical and unstructured
B) structured and clinical
C) unstructured and statistical
D) statistical and clinical

Question 55

Which type of test is used to measure a person's openness to experience?

A) cognitive abilities
B) personality and interest inventory
C) job sample test
D) emotional intelligence test

Question 56

Which type of test is used to measure an individual's personal qualities for leadership roles?

A) cognitive abilities
B) personality and interest inventory
C) job sample
D) emotional intelligence

Question 57

What type of interview asks interviewees to describe how they reacted in a past situation?

A) situational
B) directive
C) behavioural description
D) non-directive

Question 58

Which type of test is used to measure a person's general intelligence?

A) cognitive abilities
B) personality and interest inventory
C) job sample
D) emotional intelligence

Question 59

Which of the following is one purpose of employment application forms?

A) to indicate whether an applicant meets the minimum requirements for education and experience
B) to provide background information about possible criminal records
C) to inform employer about any physical disabilities an applicant may have
D) to offer personal information such as age and marital status

Question 60

What are two emerging trends in employee selection practices?

A) online application systems and video resumes
B) increased use of social networks and employee referrals
C) mobile platforms and increased use of social networks
D) video interviewing and conference calls

Question 61

Cost of advertising is not a constraint in an organization's effort to recruit from outside.

Question 62

Transferring employees to another department is a common tactic when managing an employee with performance issues.

Question 63

The process that informs applicants about the qualifications required to perform the job and the career opportunities the organization offers its employees is known as performance evaluation.

Question 64

Canada has sometimes relied on immigration to assist in meeting the country's labour demands.

Question 65

One advantage of external recruitment is that the individual may bring unique skills that the company requires immediately.

Question 66

Promoting from within makes use of the people who already know the organization and the contribution they have made.

Question 67

Canada has a quota program for designated groups under federal employment equity legislation.

Question 68

The boundaries of a labour market will vary with the type of job to be filled and the amount of compensation to be paid for the job.

Question 69

When an organization becomes "flatter," it means there are fewer organizational layers between front-line employees and executives.

Question 70

Succession planning is the process of identifying, developing, and monitoring employees for future promotions or transfers.

Question 71

Internal job postings and social media are two methods for locating qualified internal job candidates.

Question 72

Employment branding is a key consideration in the recruitment process.

Question 73

A disadvantage to external recruitment is that the process does not identify many qualified candidates for the job.

Question 74

During periods of high unemployment, it may be necessary to advertise more heavily to attract job applicants.

Question 75

Many public- and private-sector organizations have integrated promotion policies as part of their employment equity programs.

Question 76

Excessive reliance on internal sources can create the risk of employee cloning.

Question 77

Private-sector organizations tend to rely more on internal promotions and transfers than public-sector organizations.

Question 78

Labour market refers to the area from which applicants are to be recruited.

Question 79

Recruiting is the process of locating and encouraging potential applicants to apply for existing or anticipated job openings.

Question 80

Small organizations generally offer more opportunities for transfers and promotions than larger organizations.