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SPHR 90 Practice Test Examination
Which of the following would not be an effective strategy for encouraging healthy debate among team members?
- a) asking them to paraphrase each other's ideas
- b) inviting feedback focused on the facts supporting each argument
- c) encouraging team members to openly share any personal conflicts that might inhibit productive discussion
- d) dividing speaking time equally among all team members - Correct
Answer ✔️ ✔️ The correct answer is C. Allowing a debate to stray into matters of personal conflict, rather than staying focused on the issues at hand, will usually impede constructive debate.
Which of the following types of leadership theories is still in general use?
- b) situational
- c) trait-based
- d) behavior-based - Correct Answer ✔️ ✔️ The correct answer is
B. While the Great Man theory of leadership has been largely discredited, and trait-based and behavior-based theories have given way to more advanced constructs, situational leadership theories remain the basis for much current thinking on the issue of leadership.
A good or service developed for the client during a project is known as a ________.
- a) scope
- b) executable
- c) deliverable
- d) closing - Correct Answer ✔️ ✔️ The correct answer is C.
Deliverables are the goods or services developed during a project, which are to be delivered to the client.
- b) Satoe assigns a project to her team and waits for them to finish it.
- c) Satoe allows her team to make some decisions that will affect the outcome of a project.
- d) Satoe keeps her desk organized and encourages team members to collaborate on projects. - Correct Answer ✔️ ✔️ The correct
answer is C. Democratic approaches to leadership are most appropriate when employees are highly skilled and can take an active role in decision-making processes. If Satoe is completely hands off, as in the second option, she most likely utilizes a Laissez-Faire style of leadership. A Democratic approach lets employees in on the big picture and allows them to be active in the decision-making process.
David McClelland is most closely identified with which of the following theories?
- a) Expectancy Theory
- b) Two-Factor Theory
- c) Theory of Acquired Needs
- d) Hierarchy of Needs Theory - Correct Answer ✔️ ✔️ The
correct answer is C. David McClelland developed the Theory of Acquired Needs, also known as the Three Needs Theory, in the 1960s.
The CEO announces that the company is moving to a new building in the next town over. The announcement frustrates Aubrey, a member of the IT staff, because the new location will add 30 minutes each way to his already long commute. Visibly distressed, Aubrey confronts Evelyn, his manager, and harangues her about his displeasure. Evelyn takes a moment, then asks if telecommuting on Tuesdays and Thursdays would make Aubrey's situation easier. Aubrey says yes, agrees to this new work schedule, and thanks Evelyn. Which of the following components of emotional intelligence should Aubrey work on for the future?
- a) self awareness
- b) self management
one to three years, then most likely the company is going through intentional turnover or has onboarding issues.
Hasan is a Graphic Design Artist for a marketing firm. He recently submitted the third design that failed to impress his superiors for a new ad campaign. After this latest rejection, he meets with his Manager, Niko, who tells him that the team just doesn't like the designs. Hasan asks Niko for guidance on what the company is trying to convey with the ad campaign, but Niko only tells him not to do what he's already done. Which communications principle needs to be adjusted most in this situation?
- a) vision
- b) fairness
- c) honesty
- d) sensitivity - Correct Answer ✔️ ✔️ The correct answer is A. At the end of the discussion, both the manager and employee should have
a clear, shared plan for what should happen in the future. Neither Hasan nor Niko seem to have a clear vision for the future in terms of what management wants for the ad campaign, which makes it hard to provide effective feedback. Both Hasan and Niko should have a clear understanding of what should be done differently.
At Oswald's Umbrellas, employees are compensated based on the company's overall performance. How much an employee is paid depends on their level of responsibility, seniority, and what their base pay is. Which type of payment system does Oswald's Umbrellas utilize?
- a) merit pay
- b) commission
- c) profit sharing
- d) group incentive pay - Correct Answer ✔️ ✔️ The correct answer is C. This company utilizes profit sharing. How the profits are divided is determined by an allocation formula, which usually takes into
detailed answers, will produce more and better information than a survey of employees.
In ________, a neutral third party is invited into deadlocked negotiations to make decisions which both negotiating parties agree to abide by.
- a) mediation
- b) moderation
- c) arbitration
- d) constructive confrontation - Correct Answer ✔️ ✔️ The correct answer is C. Arbitration is the use of a neutral third party, an arbitrator, invited into negotiations by both contending parties to resolve an impasse.
The midpoint for a particular pay grade at Walsh Technologies is $60,000, What would you expect to be the upper and lower limits for this pay grade?
- a) upper limit of $80,000 and lower limit of $40,
- b) upper limit of $63,000 and lower limit of $57,
- c) upper limit of $69,000 and lower limit of $51,
- d) upper limit of $90,000 and lower limit of $30,000 - Correct
Answer ✔️ ✔️ The correct answer is C. Typically pay grades have upper and lower limits that are 10 to 20 percent above and below the midpoint. Choice C falls into that range, with upper and lower limits that are 15 percent above and below the midpoint. All of the other choices are either too narrow or too broad.
Risk is defined as ________.
- a) Probability x Occurrence
- b) Prevention x Avoidance
- c) Prevention x Occurrence
value added by all employees against the money spent on them in terms of salaries and other benefits.
Gabriele is the COO at Gwynplaine Media, a video production company. She got into video production twenty five years ago because she loves telling stories on the silver screen. She quickly rose through the ranks at Gwynplaine and has been there for 15 years. Lately, however, she's been disinterested in her work. The CEO suggests that she mentor Adam, a competent Development Executive who is ready for more responsibility. What stage in the career lifecycle is Gabriele most likely at?
- a) exploration
- b) establishment
- c) maintenance
- d) disengagement - Correct Answer ✔️ ✔️ The correct answer is C. During the maintenance stage, an individual's performance may
stagnate because they have reached a plateau in their career. One way to get the individual to become reinvested in their career is to serve as a mentor.
The process of contracting an internal business function to an outside organization that specializes in that specific function is known as ________.
- a) offshoring
- b) outsourcing
- c) privatization
- d) divestiture - Correct Answer ✔️ ✔️ The correct answer is B. Outsourcing is the process of contracting an internal business function, such as payroll or janitorial services, to an outside organization that specializes in that specific function.
________ is the process of choosing from a pool of candidates for a job with an eye toward hiring the most qualified applicant; ________ is the
- c) employer Value Proposition (EVP)
- d) product line - Correct Answer ✔️ ✔️ The correct answer is D.
Your employer brand is the way your company is perceived by employees and potential job applicants. It is your company's reputation in the job market, and it is the product of many factors, including the perks and benefits it offers, its culture, and the Employer Value Proposition that it defines as part of its branding efforts. But your company's product line is mainly relevant to your customers and your competition; unless it is extraordinarily good or extraordinarily bad, it is unlikely to have a major impact on your employer brand.
What type of Congressional committee is used to reconcile the differences when the House and Senate each pass different versions of a bill?
- a) standing committee
- b) select committee
- c) conference committee
- d) steering committee - Correct Answer ✔️ ✔️ The correct
answer is C. If the House and Senate pass different versions of the same bill, and neither house will agree to accept the other's version, a conference committee is used to resolve the differences. The leaders of each house appoint conferees (usually senior members of the legislative committees that originally handled the bill in each chamber), who then meet in committee to negotiate a compromise bill that each house can accept.
The stage of a SWOT analysis in which the company assesses its business environment to identify opportunities and threats is known as ________.
- a) environmental analysis
- b) environmental testing
- c) environmental scanning
- b) turnover rate
- c) gross margin
- d) average cost per hire - Correct Answer ✔️ ✔️ The correct
answer is C. Gross margin is a lagging indicator—that is, an output- oriented metric that measures the results of a process or change. In this case, gross margin provides one measure of the company's profitability.
Which of the following is not one of Michael Porter's Three Grand Strategies?
- a) Cost Leadership
- b) Innovation
- c) Differentiation
- d) Focus - Correct Answer ✔️ ✔️ The correct answer is B.
According to Michael Porter, the Three Grand Strategies are Cost Leadership, Differentiation, and Focus. Innovation is an essential
element of Differentiation, but it is not one of Porter's Grand Strategies.
Which of the following refers to the probability that effort will lead to performance?
- a) equity
- b) valence
- c) expectancy
- d) instrumentality - Correct Answer ✔️ ✔️ The correct answer is
C. Expectancy refers to the probability that effort will lead to performance.
What is the principal downside of using surveys to gather data about employee attitudes?
- a) Employee surveys provide only limited information.
- b) Employee surveys can be very expensive.
