What method lists the individuals being rated from highest to lowest based on their performance and relative contributions?

A

_____ 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

B

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.

C

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.

D

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.

A

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.

B

Which of the following is trait-based information? a. Verbal persuasion b. Dispositions c. Units produced d. Customer satisfaction

C

Which of the following is behavior-based information? a. Improved quality b. Effective communication c. Timeliness of response d. Cost reduction

D

Which of the following is an example of results-based information? a. Teamwork b. Initiative c. Customer satisfaction d. Sales volume

A

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

B

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

C

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.

D

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.

A

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.

B

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

C

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

D

_____ 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

A

_____ 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

C

_____ 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

B

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

A

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

D

_____ 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

B

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

A

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

C

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

D

Which of the following belongs to the behavioral dimensions in graphic rating scales? a. Attendance b. Dependability c. Quantity of work d. Communication effectiveness

A

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

C

_____ 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

D

Which of the following is a comparative method of performance appraisals? a. Behavioral rating scales b. Critical incident c. Essay d. Forced distribution

A

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

B

_____ 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

C

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

B

Which of the following is a narrative method of performance appraisals? a. Behavioral rating scales b. Critical incident c. Ranking d. Forced distribution

D

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

C

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

D

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

A

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

B

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

C

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

A

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

B

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

C

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

D

The _____ occurs when a rater gives all employees an average rating. a. leniency error b. recency effect c. primacy effect d. central tendency

A

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

D

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

A

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

B

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

C

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

D

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

A

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.

B

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

T

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

F

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

F

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

F

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

F

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

T

Employee attitude is classified as trait-based information.

T

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

F

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

F

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

T

Both numerical and nonnumerical performance standards can be established

T

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.

T

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

F

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.

F

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

T

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

F

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

T

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.

F

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

F

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.

T

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

F

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

F

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

T

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.

F

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

F

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

T

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

F

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

F

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

T

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.

T

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