HRM Key Terms Glossary - Noe's Human Resource Management

This set of vocabulary flashcards covers key human resource management terms, including strategic concepts, legal frameworks, recruitment and selection methods, training, development, and employee benefits.

Agility

The ability of an organization to respond quickly and flexibly to changes in its environment through rapid adjustment to shifting talent needs, technology, and business conditions.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Computer systems that perform tasks normally requiring human intelligence, such as pattern recognition, decision-making, and natural language processing.

Balanced Scorecard

A strategic performance measurement framework with four perspectives: Financial, Customer, Internal Business Processes, and Learning & Growth.

Belonging

The feeling of being accepted, valued, and included as a full member of a team or organization, allowing employees to bring their authentic selves to work.

Big Data

Extremely large datasets analyzed computationally to reveal patterns and trends; used in HR for predicting turnover, identifying high performers, and measuring training ROI.

Competitiveness

A company's ability to maintain and gain market share in its industry by attracting, developing, and retaining superior human capital.

Employee Engagement

The degree to which employees are committed to their work and organization, motivated to contribute, and unlikely to leave.

Employee Value Proposition (EVP)

The unique set of benefits an employee receives in return for the skills, capabilities, and experience they bring to the organization, including compensation, culture, and career growth.

Equity

Fairness in processes and outcomes by accounting for different starting points to ensure everyone has access to the same opportunities, distinct from treating everyone identically.

Evidence-Based HR

Making HR decisions based on data, research findings, and rigorous analytics rather than intuition, tradition, or anecdote.

High-Performance Work Systems (HPWS)

An integrated set of HR practices including rigorous selection, training, and performance-based pay designed together to maximize employee performance and organizational effectiveness.

Human Resource Management (HRM)

The policies, practices, and systems that influence employees' behavior, attitudes, and performance to achieve organizational goals.

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

Federal law prohibiting discrimination against qualified individuals with disabilities in all aspects of employment, applicable to employers with $15+$ employees.

Bona Fide Occupational Qualification (BFOQ)

A characteristic that is a legitimate, essential requirement for performing a specific job; race is NEVER a valid BFOQ.

Disparate Impact

Unintentional discrimination where a facially neutral employment policy disproportionately and negatively affects a protected class, detected using the four-fifths rule.

Disparate Treatment

Intentional discrimination where an individual is treated differently because of their protected class membership, requiring proof of discriminatory intent.

Four-Fifths Rule (4/5 Rule)

A guideline for detecting adverse impact: if the selection rate for a protected group is less than $rac{4}{5}$ ($80\%$) of the rate for the highest-selected group, adverse impact is indicated.

General Duty Clause

Section 5(a)(1) of the OSH Act requiring employers to provide a workplace free from recognized hazards likely to cause death or serious physical harm.

Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA)

Federal law (1970) requiring employers to provide a safe and healthful workplace, comply with specific safety standards, and keep records of work-related injuries and illnesses.

Employment-at-Will Policies

The default U.S. employment doctrine allowing either the employer or employee to end the relationship at any time, for any reason, as long as it is not illegal.

Transitional Matrix

A workforce planning tool showing the percentage and number of employees who move from one job category to another or exit the organization over a given time period.

Cognitive Ability Tests

Selection tests measuring general mental ability such as verbal comprehension, quantitative reasoning, and reasoning ability.

Reliability

The consistency or stability of a selection measure, yielding the same results under the same conditions across time or different raters.

Validity

The extent to which a selection instrument accurately measures what it claims to measure and predicts job performance.

Explicit Knowledge

Knowledge that can be clearly articulated, documented, and codified, such as manuals, procedures, and databases.

Tacit Knowledge

Knowledge that is difficult to articulate or document, such as intuitions and expert judgment; best transferred through mentoring and coaching.

Return on Investment (ROI)

A measure comparing the monetary benefits of a training program to its total costs, calculated as $ROI\% = \frac{\text{Benefits} - \text{Costs}}{\text{Costs}} \times 100$.

9-Box Grid

A talent management tool plotting employees on a $3 \times 3$ matrix of performance (low/medium/high) versus potential (low/medium/high).

Protean Career

A career driven and managed by the individual rather than the organization, characterized by self-direction, adaptability, and personal psychological success.

Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA)

Federal law allowing employees to continue employer-sponsored health insurance for up to $18$ months after a qualifying event, provided the individual pays the full premium.

Defined Benefit Plan

A traditional pension plan where the employer promises a specific monthly retirement benefit and bears all investment risk.

Defined Contribution Plan

A retirement savings plan where the benefit depends on contribution amounts and investment returns, with the employee bearing all investment risk (e.g., 401(k)).

Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA)

Federal law (1974) establishing minimum standards for private-sector employee benefit and pension plans, including vesting schedules and fiduciary responsibilities.

Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)

Federal law requiring employers with $50+$ employees to provide eligible employees up to $12$ weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave for qualifying medical or family reasons.