C236 Compensation and Benefits

The employment relationship is:

A. An agreed-upon basis for organizations and people meeting each other's needs

B. A disagreed-upon basis for organizations and people meeting each other's needs

C. An agreed-upon basis for organizations and government meeting each other's needs

D. None of the above

A

Organizations get work done through:

A. Dollars

B. Customers

C. People

D. Product

C

Total rewards includes:

A. Benefits, base salary, paid time off

B. Benefits

C. Base salary and benefits

D. Base salary

C

Meaningful work would be considered a discretionary employee benefit.

A. True

B. False

B

Understanding the total rewards system will not allow you to create a meaningful total rewards plan.

A. True

B. False

B

Which of the following job families would not be affected by total rewards?

A. Engineers

B. Finance

C. Marketing

D. All job families are affected by total rewards

D

Pay is not a broad category that refers to the monetary compensation that is provided to an employee in exchange for their work.

A. True

B. False

B

Cash compensation is monetary pay from ____________ to __________________.

A. Employers, employees

B. Employees, employers

C. Government, citizens

D. None of the above

A

Fringe benefits have become quite ____________ to compensation plans.

A. Central

B. Unimportant

C. Conditional

D. Proven

A

When you think about a company's health benefits or retirement plan, you are thinking about employee benefits.

A. True

B. False

A

________________________ refers to the direct monetary pay given to an employee in exchange for their contributions to the organization.

A. Total rewards

B. Cash compensation

C. Benefits

D. Time off

B

Which of the following would not be included as an intangible reward?

A. Meaningful work

B. Salary

C. Positive working relationships

D. Location

B

Cash compensation can have an influence on the employee's perception of how much they are valued at the firm.

A. True

B. False

A

To create a strategic total rewards plan, you need to understand all of the following except:

A. Market

B. Benefits

C. Customers

D. None of the above

B

Base pay includes:

A. Salary or hourly wages

B. Hourly and benefits

C. Benefits and salary

D. None of the above

A

Team performance:

A. Comprises the collective actions of groups of employees

B. Comprises senior management level of performance

C. Comprises customer feedback regarding employees

D. Comprises the star employees' level of performance

A

Total Reward Systems do not need to be reviewed to ensure that they are not penalizing such OCBs and instead provide a degree of encouragement for those helpful behaviors.

A. True

B. False

B

Organizational performance includes all but:

A. Profits

B. Meeting customer needs

C. Employee satisfaction

D. New market share

C

Employee perception of the organization has potential to lead to turnover and performance.

A. True

B. False

A

Managing total rewards is an art and a science.

A. True

B. False

A

What is the total rewards content strategy?

A. A negotiation between management and the employee for total rewards offered

B. Market-driven levels of rewards offered

C. Type, Level, and Combination of rewards offered

D. Experienced-based rewards offered

C

Reward form combination strategy refers to:

A. Rewards (cash, benefits, etc.) and how they compete in the market

B. Rewards (cash, benefits, etc.) and how they compete with departments within the organization

C. Rewards (cash, benefits, etc.) and how they differ from each other

D. Rewards (cash, benefits, etc.) and how they relate to each other

D

Absolute level refers to:

A. Base salary

B. Experience salary

C. Fair salary

D. Competitive salary

A

What is a communication strategy?

A. The plan for sharing coworkers' salary data

B. The plan for communicating with employees about competitive salaries

C. The plan for communicating with other HR professionals to understand market data

D. The plan for sharing the compensation strategy with employees and receiving their ongoing feedback

D

Cost leadership focuses more on:

A. Strategy

B. Cost

C. Leadership

D. Price

D

Which of the following industries best demonstrates the cost leadership strategy?

A. Fine dining

B. Fast food

C. Technology

D. Manufacturing

B

Within the cost leadership strategy, a business will have a ____________ cost structure.

A. Frugal

B. Higher

C. Lower

D. Expensive

C

Within the cost leadership strategy, the customers will be charged ________________.

A. More

B. Less

C. Nothing

D. All of the above

C

Total Rewards are one of those decisions that businesses make that influences their cost structure and their ability to provide those low costs to customers.

A. True

B. False

A

In the differentiation strategy, the costs of the organization will be passed on to the:

A. Employees

B. Customer

C. Organization

D. Government

B

Generally, an organization that follows the differentiation strategy will be able to pay their employees:

A. Less

B. Higher benefits

C. More

D. A higher overall total compensation package

C

In a niche-focused strategy, an organization will have to compete with the following strategies:

A. Cost leadership

B. Differentiation strategy

C. Hybrid

D. None of the above

D

Rewards strategies that work in the ______ term, while the firm is niche focused, may be forced to change in the _______ term.

A. Short, long

B. Long, short

C. Short, short

D. Long, long

A

A company cannot have a hybrid strategy.

A. True

B. False

B

SWOT stands for:

A. Supply, Weakness, Opportunities, Threats

B. Supply, Weakness, Opportunities, Transfer

C. Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Transfer

D. Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats

D

Understanding weaknesses can help ask the question:

A. What can we do that our competitors can't?

B. What can we not do?

C. Where can we improve?

D. What societal flaws can hurt our organization?

B

Understanding opportunities can help ask the question:

A. What societal flaws can hurt the organization?

B. Where can we improve?

C. What can our competitors do that we can't?

D. What can we do that our competitors can't?

B

Understanding threats can help ask the question:

A. What can we do that our competitors can't?

B. What can we not do?

C. What societal flaws can hurt the organization?

D. Where can we improve?

C

The primary outcome of SWOT analysis is to list out:

A. Critical Summation Factors

B. Critical Sample Factors

C. Critical Success Factors

D. Critical Series Factors

C

CSFs take into account both internal strengths of the organization and the external values of customers and markets.

A. True

B. False

A

Human Resource Strategy is to ______ business strategy and CSFs.

A. Separate

B. Investigate

C. Analyze

D. Align

D

Reward forms include:

A. Salary

B. Retirement

C. Intangibles

D. All of the above

D

The relative level involves which of the following:

A. Leading the market

B. Lagging the market

C. Matching the market

D. Any of the above

D

A job incumbent is:

A. An employer that is seeking to hire new employees

B. An employee that is currently working in a job that you are studying

C. An employee agency seeking new part time workers

D. None of the above

B

A traditional interview does not consist of:

A. Skills

B. Time spent on activities on the job

C. Content

D. Asking about family history

D

In a traditional interview, one advantage would be:

A. Allowing for exploration

B. Asking for clarification

C. Both A & B

D. None of the above

C

This is a benefit to using generic questions in an interview:

A. Number of interviewers

B. Efficient in time

C. Length of interview

D. Financial cost

B

This is a disadvantage to using generic questions in an interview:

A. Amount of people in an interview

B. Efficient in time

C. Financial cost

D. Length of interview

C

Key personnel throughout the organization should be involved in the data's collection, synthesis, and documentation.

A. True

B. False

A

Job analysis is gathered by ____________.

A, Computer graphics

B. Guessing

C. People

D. Data

C

Job analysis needs to be _____________ to achieve buy in.

A. Incredible

B. Credible

C. Understandable

D. Respectable

B

Job analysis will be _____________ if management and employees do not buy-in to it.

A. Useful

B. Useless

C. Understandable

D. None of the above

B

The goal of job analysis is to understand the work involved in creating value for the organization.

A. True

B. False

A

A Reference ID is:

A. A series of numbers and letters that is used to reference a company

B. A series of numbers and letters that is used to reference an employee

C. A series of numbers and letters that is used to reference the job

D. A series of numbers and letters that is used to reference a government agency

C

A job family is:

A. A grouping of jobs that have similar functions or content

B. A grouping of employees that have similar functions

C. A grouping of management that have similar functions to other management in other companies

D. None of the above

A

The bulk of job descriptions do not include which of the following:

A. Requirements

B. Responsibilities

C. Tasks

D. Duties

A

If pay rates are set based upon what a job was three years ago and not what it is today, then it will not meet the needs of the employees doing the job today.

A. True

B. False

A

KSAO's stand for:

A. Kindness, Skills, Ability, and Other

B. Kindness, Skills, Agility, and Other

C. Knowledge, Skills, Agility, and Other

D. Knowledge, Skills, Ability, and Other

D

Job descriptions often contain information about the _________ that are important for accomplishing the job.

A. Understanding

B. Monetary values

C. Relationships

D. Strengths

C

Job descriptions can also reference any _______ involved in doing the job.

A. Tools

B. Necessities

C. Both A & B

D. None of the above

A

Job descriptions are simple and cannot contain every detail relating to the job.

A. True

B. False

A

What is the longest a job description should be?

A. 3 pages

B. 1 page

C. 2 pages

D. 4 pages

B

The world is changing, and organizations do not have to change with it.

A. True

B. False

Job evaluation provides the basis for developing a network or configuration of ________ that make up a rewards structure.

A. Pay decreases

B. Pay increases

C. Pay rates

D. Pay differences

C

The most fundamental question of internal reward alignment relates to the number of ____________ in an organization.

A. Distinct benefit plans

B. Distinct business goals

C. Distinct reward structures

D. Distinct business strategy

C

Which of the following is not an example of a job family?

A. Biology

B. Accounting

C. All are considered job families

D. Engineering

C

Once jobs are broadly organized into such a job structure, the next step is to create a mechanism for assigning their relative value in the organization.

A. True

B. False

A

The job value structure represents:

A. The structure of jobs internally positioned according to their immediate value

B. The structure of jobs internally positioned according to their natural value

C. The structure of jobs internally positioned according to their relative value

D. None of the above

C

Job-value structure does not answer the question of:

A. How important are jobs

B. Whom to recruit for jobs

C. How jobs are related

D. What jobs are

B

Job evaluation is a tool to help organizations create internal reward alignment that is both equitable and conducive to effective employee performance.

A. True

B. False

A

Which approach is not a way to establish internal reward alignment?

A. Classification approach

B. Job comparison approach

C. Point factor approach

D. All of the above

D

In which approach would it appear that jobs are ordered based on rank and file?

A. Job comparison approach

B. Point factor approach

C. Classification approach

D. None of the above

A

In which approach would it appear that jobs are categorized by job descriptions?

A. Job comparison approach

B. Point factor approach

C. Classification approach

D. None of the above

C

In which approach are jobs compared and "winning" or more "important" jobs get points?

A. Job comparison approach

B. Point factor approach

C. Classification approach

D. None of the above

A

The advantage of the job comparison approach is that it is:

A. Intuitive

B. Holistic

C. Intuitive and holistic

D. None of the above

C

A downside to the comparison approach is it:

A. Becomes inefficient as management shinks

B. Becomes inefficient as size of company grows

C. Becomes inefficient as management grows

D. Becomes inefficient as size of company shrinks

B

The goal of job evaluation is to create a way to measure the value (and relative value) of each job in the organization.

A. True

B. False

A

The point factor approach does all except:

A. Measures the extent to which each job has that element

B. Defines valuable elements of jobs

C. Developes revolutionary ideas for job analysis

D. Specifies the importance of each element of a job

C

Choose the answer which does not complete the blank: internal reward alignment is how _______ the relative value of all jobs in an organization is.

A. Fair

B. Enjoyable

C. Clear

D. Coherent

B

It is better to have a _____________ approach in job analysis.

A. Quantitative

B. Qualitative

C. Both A & B

D. None of the above

A

A compensable factor is a:

A. Statement of what the organization has

B. Statement of what the organization values

C. Statement of what the organization needs

D. Statement of what the organization wants

B

A benchmark job is:

A. A sample of jobs that is representative of the type, content, and level of jobs in the organization

B. A sample of jobs within the organization that are to be addressed for compensation levels

C. A sample of jobs provided by government to control wage decreases

D. None of the above

A

A graphic rating scale is:

A. Where raters rate the extent to which the job involves the un-compensable factor

B. Where raters rate the extent to which the job involves the compensable factor

C. Both A & B

D. None of the above

B

A reward survey is:

A. A survey published by the AMA to employers to understand rewards offered

B. A survey designed to understand employees' desire for rewards

C. A survey published by the government to employers to understand rewards offered

D. Aggregations of reward information gathered from other market organizations

D

Through the use of __________________, an organization is going to create a link between its reward structures and the external markets.

A. Exit intervie

B. Benchmark jobs

C. Interviews

D. Surveys

B

Geography has a significant impact on how an organization should define its labor market.

A. True

B. False

A

In choosing benchmark jobs, organizations should be careful to ensure adequate representation for all of the following, except:

A. Organizational levels

B. Government mandates

C.Different job families

D. Career points

B

Which of the following is not a readily available way of obtaining reward information:

A. Self-report

B. Government

C. Popular press

D. Competitors compensation plan

D

In the United States, the _________conducts a National Compensation Survey to measure broad reward practices and levels.

A. Society of Human Resources Management

B. Bureau of Animal Rights

C. Bureau of Labor Statistics

D. American Management Associates

C

Markets are one way to establish the price for any good or service.

A. True

B. False

A

State, county, or city governments conduct some form of compensation survey. These sources would have great utility for smaller, local labor markets. This data is very specific and provides data on most benchmark jobs.

A. True

B. False

B

Self-reported information is important because:

A. It provides an additional source of data that can help make your overall reward estimates more reliable

B. Data sources often are the exact sources that employees use to define market rates and their own reward expectations

C. Both A & B

D. None of the above

C

Organizations would be wise to recognize that employee choices are often driven more by what they perceive reality to be than what reality actually is.

A. True

B. False

A

One advantage of using subscription information from a third party is:

A. Relative

B. Price

C. Industry specific

D. Accuracy

C

A drawback to designing your own survey is:

A. Accuracy

B. Time

C. Price

D. Industry specific

B

Which of the following is not a primary concern when integrating data from multiple rewards surveys?

A. Matching benchmark jobs

B. Pay forms

C. Understanding government mandates

D. Aging the data

C

Many forms of employee benefits and intangible rewards are difficult to quantify.

A. True

B. False

A

Data aging refers to:

A. The adjustment of market reward information to take into account how inflation has likely changed the market rates since the data were collected

B. The adjustment of market reward information from 10 years ago

C. The adjustment of market reward information to guess the rewards for 3 years from a certain starting point

D. None of the above

A

Central tendency is:

A. A group of numbers to represent one number

B. A single number that best represents a group of numbers

C. Both A and B

D. None of the above

B

The mean is also known as the:

A. Metrics

B. Average

C. Median

D. Mode

B