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SHRM-CP Competencies Questions - Part 5
1. An HR manager derives his authority from his extensive background in HRM. What type of power is this manager using?
A) Expert
B) Affiliation
C) Legitimate
D) Referent
2. Refer to the following scenario for the next 4 questions. A company with a specialty product that has gained rapid popularity with hospitals has grown quickly from 15 employees to 300 in a one-year period. The organization expects to continue to grow by several hundred employees per year for the foreseeable future. The president's secretary has been handling all human resources matters, and the accounting department has been handling payroll. The supervisors have been making their own human resources decisions regarding recruitment, employee relations, discipline, and rewards, with various levels of success. The president pays little attention to the day-to-day operations of the business and focuses his attention on marketing and publicity. He decides that it is now necessary to hire an HR director to lead and manage the HR function. The supervisors are resistant to having a formal HR function in the company, believing that it will create unnecessary work and affect their ability to effectively manage the organization. During the interview process, the president indicates that there are a number of areas in need of focused attention, as the organization does not have job descriptions or a formal compensation structure and benefits are the same as when the company started. On the HR director's first day, there is no formal onboarding process. The president suggests that a good starting point for the HR director is to create a plan and catch up on the recruiting requests for the growing company. He then walks the HR director to her new office, offers to help with any questions, and walks away. In order for the HR director to effectively develop relationships, which action should she take first?
A) A. Meeting colleagues by proactively walking around to introduce herself and her role
B) B. Getting accustomed to the work environment by sitting back and observing
C) C. Asking the president for detailed guidance
D) D. Creating an onboarding plan to use for the next new hire
3. The HR director understands the need to develop and implement an effective strategic plan. What should be her first step in developing the plan?
A) A. Developing a recruiting plan, as that is the most pressing need as indicated by the president
B) B. Developing HR measures and metrics to evaluate the effectiveness of the HR function and the recently implemented programs
C) C. Talking to senior leaders, long-time managers, and other key stakeholders to get an overall understanding of the company
D) D. Conducting a SWOT analysis of the current HR function and then understanding the organization's mission, culture, value, and ethics
4. The HR director wants to determine if the current recruitment efforts are effective. Which action should she take first to best make this determination?
A) A. Computing the compa-ratio for both individuals and business units
B) B. Analyzing the promotion pattern and key talent retention
C) C. Evaluating the absence rate and vacancy costs
D) D. Calculating the cost per hire and average time to fill
5. Building integrity with the management team is going to be vital in implementing HR policies and procedures. Which action should the HR director take to build credibility with the managers?
A) A. Discussing with the president her concerns that the supervisors are not embracing the HR function
B) B. Waiting for each department head to approach her with questions or concerns
C) C. Scheduling one-on-one meetings with each department head to understand his or her business priorities and obstacles
D) D. Designing a new requisition form, mandating its use to begin the recruiting process
A) Expert
B) Affiliation
C) Legitimate
D) Referent
2. Refer to the following scenario for the next 4 questions. A company with a specialty product that has gained rapid popularity with hospitals has grown quickly from 15 employees to 300 in a one-year period. The organization expects to continue to grow by several hundred employees per year for the foreseeable future. The president's secretary has been handling all human resources matters, and the accounting department has been handling payroll. The supervisors have been making their own human resources decisions regarding recruitment, employee relations, discipline, and rewards, with various levels of success. The president pays little attention to the day-to-day operations of the business and focuses his attention on marketing and publicity. He decides that it is now necessary to hire an HR director to lead and manage the HR function. The supervisors are resistant to having a formal HR function in the company, believing that it will create unnecessary work and affect their ability to effectively manage the organization. During the interview process, the president indicates that there are a number of areas in need of focused attention, as the organization does not have job descriptions or a formal compensation structure and benefits are the same as when the company started. On the HR director's first day, there is no formal onboarding process. The president suggests that a good starting point for the HR director is to create a plan and catch up on the recruiting requests for the growing company. He then walks the HR director to her new office, offers to help with any questions, and walks away. In order for the HR director to effectively develop relationships, which action should she take first?
A) A. Meeting colleagues by proactively walking around to introduce herself and her role
B) B. Getting accustomed to the work environment by sitting back and observing
C) C. Asking the president for detailed guidance
D) D. Creating an onboarding plan to use for the next new hire
3. The HR director understands the need to develop and implement an effective strategic plan. What should be her first step in developing the plan?
A) A. Developing a recruiting plan, as that is the most pressing need as indicated by the president
B) B. Developing HR measures and metrics to evaluate the effectiveness of the HR function and the recently implemented programs
C) C. Talking to senior leaders, long-time managers, and other key stakeholders to get an overall understanding of the company
D) D. Conducting a SWOT analysis of the current HR function and then understanding the organization's mission, culture, value, and ethics
4. The HR director wants to determine if the current recruitment efforts are effective. Which action should she take first to best make this determination?
A) A. Computing the compa-ratio for both individuals and business units
B) B. Analyzing the promotion pattern and key talent retention
C) C. Evaluating the absence rate and vacancy costs
D) D. Calculating the cost per hire and average time to fill
5. Building integrity with the management team is going to be vital in implementing HR policies and procedures. Which action should the HR director take to build credibility with the managers?
A) A. Discussing with the president her concerns that the supervisors are not embracing the HR function
B) B. Waiting for each department head to approach her with questions or concerns
C) C. Scheduling one-on-one meetings with each department head to understand his or her business priorities and obstacles
D) D. Designing a new requisition form, mandating its use to begin the recruiting process
1. Right Answer: A
Explanation: According to John French and Bertram Raven, the manager is using expert power, which influences others' behavior on the strength of the leader’s deeper knowledge and experience. Legitimate power derives from position in the organization’s hierarchy. Referent power comes from the strength of personal relationships with team members. Affiliation is actually a need that can motivate team members—the need to be part of a group.
2. Right Answer: A
Explanation: A is the best response. Considering that the company has not had a formal HR presence in the past, the HR director will need to establish credibility and trust at a very early stage so the employees understand that HR is there to help the business by helping them. It is important that the employees know who the new leader is so they can start accessing HR immediately, and it is important that the HR director begin to learn the names, faces, and positions of the employees in the company. B is incorrect. It is important for the HR director to network internally with the employees of the company in order to build relationships, trust, and credibility. Observing the work environment is good, but there are certain things that need to be done immediately and cannot wait a few months (e.g., building relationships). C is incorrect. The president purposefully hired a senior HR professional to handle all of the HR functions. Immediately asking for more details might make the president question if the right person was hired. It would be better to create a strategic HR business plan and schedule a meeting with the president in a couple of days to review it. D is incorrect. Although the company needs an onboarding plan, it would be one line item in the HR business plan. The HR director needs to first step back and determine the priorities of all of the HR-related tasks that need to be completed.
3. Right Answer: C
Explanation: C is the best response. The first step in developing a strategic plan for HR is to understand the big picture. By talking to senior leadership and long-time employees, the HR director can develop an understanding of the company's culture, values, and ethics. The president's secretary can assist by providing critical information on how the HR function has been working in the past and what some of the critical elements have been. A is incorrect. The president specifically requests that recruiting be handled first, and the HR director should devote some time immediately to recruiting efforts, but creating a recruiting plan is only one part of a comprehensive strategic HR plan. The HR plan needs to begin with a big-picture view, not by creating one piece of it. B is incorrect. HR metrics are an important way to measure the effectiveness of the HR function, but they would be determined after a comprehensive strategic HR plan is developed. The HR director must know what to measure first in order to choose appropriate metrics. D is incorrect. The SWOT analysis is an important tool when trying to understand the strengths and weaknesses of the internal and external environment of the HR function. However, it should be conducted after gaining a better understanding of the overall organization, specifically its mission, culture, etc.
4. Right Answer: D
Explanation: D is the best response. Cost per hire helps track the total cost of hiring for each position. Average time to fill is a common metric that measures HR's effectiveness by looking at how long a position is open until HR can fill the position with an acceptance of an offer. A is incorrect. This would be used to measure compensation, not recruitment. B is incorrect. A high promotion pattern speaks to the effectiveness of a strong culture and organizational development programs. A key talent retention metric measures development, recognition, and reward. These metrics are more for the evaluation of training and development effectiveness than recruiting. C is incorrect. Absence rate measures the workplace environment and conditions. Vacancy costs are used to determine the benefits of temporary or substitute labor solutions.
5. Right Answer: C
Explanation: C is the best response. Taking time to understand the roles of each function within the organization before making radical organizational changes will show the department heads that HR is available to help them in any way possible. This one-on-one time provides the HR director with an opportunity to present customized solutions to each department head based on that department's greatest needs. This approach is collaborative, which builds strong relationships, instead of authoritative, which can create hostility. A is incorrect. As a senior professional, the HR director is expected to solve her own personal problems. As long as no harassment is taking place, the HR director needs to work to earn trust, respect, and credibility instead of relying on the president for protection. B is incorrect. The HR director needs to be proactive and hold one-one-one meetings with each department head. Moreover, the department heads may not feel comfortable with asking questions or sharing concerns until after the HR director has earned credibility. D is incorrect. Mandating paperwork is precisely what the supervisors are worried that HR will do. A recruiting requisition form may be necessary, but it must be delivered in a way that is collaborative and not demeaning to the managers who are accustomed to hiring their own people without any forms.
Explanation: According to John French and Bertram Raven, the manager is using expert power, which influences others' behavior on the strength of the leader’s deeper knowledge and experience. Legitimate power derives from position in the organization’s hierarchy. Referent power comes from the strength of personal relationships with team members. Affiliation is actually a need that can motivate team members—the need to be part of a group.
2. Right Answer: A
Explanation: A is the best response. Considering that the company has not had a formal HR presence in the past, the HR director will need to establish credibility and trust at a very early stage so the employees understand that HR is there to help the business by helping them. It is important that the employees know who the new leader is so they can start accessing HR immediately, and it is important that the HR director begin to learn the names, faces, and positions of the employees in the company. B is incorrect. It is important for the HR director to network internally with the employees of the company in order to build relationships, trust, and credibility. Observing the work environment is good, but there are certain things that need to be done immediately and cannot wait a few months (e.g., building relationships). C is incorrect. The president purposefully hired a senior HR professional to handle all of the HR functions. Immediately asking for more details might make the president question if the right person was hired. It would be better to create a strategic HR business plan and schedule a meeting with the president in a couple of days to review it. D is incorrect. Although the company needs an onboarding plan, it would be one line item in the HR business plan. The HR director needs to first step back and determine the priorities of all of the HR-related tasks that need to be completed.
3. Right Answer: C
Explanation: C is the best response. The first step in developing a strategic plan for HR is to understand the big picture. By talking to senior leadership and long-time employees, the HR director can develop an understanding of the company's culture, values, and ethics. The president's secretary can assist by providing critical information on how the HR function has been working in the past and what some of the critical elements have been. A is incorrect. The president specifically requests that recruiting be handled first, and the HR director should devote some time immediately to recruiting efforts, but creating a recruiting plan is only one part of a comprehensive strategic HR plan. The HR plan needs to begin with a big-picture view, not by creating one piece of it. B is incorrect. HR metrics are an important way to measure the effectiveness of the HR function, but they would be determined after a comprehensive strategic HR plan is developed. The HR director must know what to measure first in order to choose appropriate metrics. D is incorrect. The SWOT analysis is an important tool when trying to understand the strengths and weaknesses of the internal and external environment of the HR function. However, it should be conducted after gaining a better understanding of the overall organization, specifically its mission, culture, etc.
4. Right Answer: D
Explanation: D is the best response. Cost per hire helps track the total cost of hiring for each position. Average time to fill is a common metric that measures HR's effectiveness by looking at how long a position is open until HR can fill the position with an acceptance of an offer. A is incorrect. This would be used to measure compensation, not recruitment. B is incorrect. A high promotion pattern speaks to the effectiveness of a strong culture and organizational development programs. A key talent retention metric measures development, recognition, and reward. These metrics are more for the evaluation of training and development effectiveness than recruiting. C is incorrect. Absence rate measures the workplace environment and conditions. Vacancy costs are used to determine the benefits of temporary or substitute labor solutions.
5. Right Answer: C
Explanation: C is the best response. Taking time to understand the roles of each function within the organization before making radical organizational changes will show the department heads that HR is available to help them in any way possible. This one-on-one time provides the HR director with an opportunity to present customized solutions to each department head based on that department's greatest needs. This approach is collaborative, which builds strong relationships, instead of authoritative, which can create hostility. A is incorrect. As a senior professional, the HR director is expected to solve her own personal problems. As long as no harassment is taking place, the HR director needs to work to earn trust, respect, and credibility instead of relying on the president for protection. B is incorrect. The HR director needs to be proactive and hold one-one-one meetings with each department head. Moreover, the department heads may not feel comfortable with asking questions or sharing concerns until after the HR director has earned credibility. D is incorrect. Mandating paperwork is precisely what the supervisors are worried that HR will do. A recruiting requisition form may be necessary, but it must be delivered in a way that is collaborative and not demeaning to the managers who are accustomed to hiring their own people without any forms.
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