Q&A Hero

Q: Which sample proportion will require the largest number of work sampling observations? A. .05 B. .25 C. .50 D. .75 E. .95

Q: The technique which can be used to estimate the percentage of time a worker or piece of equipment is idle is known as: A. MTM. B. work sampling. C. methods analysis. D. micro motion study. E. none of these.

Q: A technique for estimating the proportion of time a worker spends on various activities is: A. stopwatch time study. B. standard elemental (historical) times. C. simultaneous motion study. D. predetermined (published) time standards. E. work sampling.

Q: Allowance percentages normally would not include: A. noise levels. B. monotony. C. personal phone calls. D. weight lifted. E. restroom allowances.

Q: Standard times derived from a firm's historical data are known as: A. predetermined times. B. MTM. C. work sampling times. D. judgmental times. E. standard elemental times.

Q: A job has a normal time of 12 minutes, a performance rating of .80, and an allowance factor of 20 percent of job time. The standard time for this job in minutes is: A. 11.52. B. 12. C. 14.4. D. 15. E. depends on the number of cycles observed.

Q: A job had an observed time of 10 minutes, a performance rating of .90, and an allowance factor of 20 percent of job time. Twenty-five cycles were timed. Standard time for the job in minutes is: A. 10.0. B. 10.8. C. 12.5. D. 15.0. E. depends on the number of cycles observed.

Q: In a stopwatch time study, adjusting the normal time by an allowance factor for normal delays and interruptions results in the: A. observed time. B. normal time. C. standard time. D. allowance time. E. performance rating time.

Q: When performing a time study, the analyst converts the observed time into the time an "average" worker would require working at an acceptable pace by using which of the following? A. allowance factors B. MTM C. methods analysis D. performance rating E. analysis of therbligs

Q: A job had an observed cycle time of four minutes, a performance rating of 80 percent, and an allowance factor that was 20 percent of job time. Normal time for the job in minutes is: A. 3.20. B. 3.84. C. 4.00. D. 4.80. E. 5.00.

Q: Which is not a requirement for an effective self-directed team? A. talent and skills to meet goals B. one or more members representing supervision C. a system of reinforcement and celebration D. clearly stated and commonly held vision and goals E. effective and skilled interpersonal relations

Q: In a stopwatch time study, the average time it takes a given worker to perform a task a certain number of times is the: A. observed time. B. normal time. C. standard time. D. allowance time. E. performance rating time.

Q: What is the effect of an increase in the desired confidence level on the number of observations necessary in a time study? A. increases B. decreases C. unaffected D. may increase or decrease, depending on the sample standard deviation E. impossible to say without additional information

Q: In a stopwatch time study, the number of cycles that must be timed is a function of: (I) the variability of observed times. (II) the desired accuracy for the estimated job time. (III) the desired confidence for the estimated job time. A. I only B. I and II only C. II and III only D. I, II, and III E. I and III only

Q: One form of long-term team that is increasingly being used, especially in lean production settings, is: A. quality circle. B. product design. C. self-directed. D. self-improvement. E. mandatory.

Q: The methods analysis chart which describes the movements of both hands at the same time is a: A. flow process chart. B. worker-machine chart. C. gang process chart. D. simultaneous-motion chart. E. time/efficiency chart.

Q: In methods analysis, a therblig is a: A. charting method of analysis. B. job enrichment technique. C. dummy task. D. basic elemental motion. E. fraction (.0006) of a minute.

Q: The methods analysis chart which describes the portions of a work cycle during which an operator and equipment are busy or idle is a: A. flow process chart. B. worker-machine chart. C. gang process chart. D. simultaneous-motion chart. E. time/efficiency chart.

Q: The chart used to focus on busy and idle portions of a work cycle is a: A. worker-machine chart. B. Gantt chart. C. simo chart. D. idle chart. E. flow process chart.

Q: The symbols for operation, storage, transportation, inspection, and delay would usually be found on which type of chart? A. flow process B. Gantt C. simultaneous motion D. worker-machine E. delay analysis

Q: The methods analysis chart which describes the overall sequence of operations, transportation, storage, delays, and inspection is a: A. flow process chart. B. worker-machine chart. C. gang process chart. D. simultaneous-motion chart. E. time/efficiency chart.

Q: The chart used to review the overall sequence of an operation by focusing on the movements of either the operator or materials is called a: A. simo chart. B. Gantt chart. C. worker-materials chart. D. flow process chart. E. multi-activity chart.

Q: Determining the number of cycles to observe is an element of: A. stopwatch time study. B. standard elemental times. C. predetermined time standards. D. work sampling. E. MTM tables.

Q: A simo chart includes: A. delay. B. storage. C. transportation. D. left/right hand movements. E. inspection.

Q: Which of the following is not a potential benefit of the use of self-directed teams? A. higher quality B. higher productivity C. greater worker satisfaction D. greater satisfaction for middle managers E. lower turnover

Q: Which of the following concerns is not one that job designers focus on? A. what will be done in a job B. who will do the job C. how the job will be done D. when should the job be completed E. where the job will be done

Q: A behavioral approach to job design which increases responsibility for planning and coordinating tasks is job: A. enlargement. B. rotation. C. enrichment. D. involvement. E. enhancement.

Q: Which of the following most closely describes job enlargement? A. horizontal loading B. increasing the level of responsibility associated with a job C. transferring workers through a series of jobs to increase their scope of experience D. increasing the amount of workspace assigned to a worker E. assigning two jobs to the same worker

Q: Process chart symbols do not include: A. delay. B. inspection. C. operation. D. rejection. E. storage.

Q: Which of the following is not generally considered an advantage of specialization? A. high productivity B. low wage costs C. ease of training employees D. low equipment costs E. All are advantages

Q: A major advantage of job specialization in business is increased: A. motivation. B. opportunity for advancement. C. opportunity for self-fulfillment. D. productivity. E. job enrichment.

Q: Behavioral approaches to job design include: A. specialization. B. ergonomics. C. job rotation. D. flow process charts. E. simo charts.

Q: Methods analysis is particularly valuable when it is used on jobs that: (I) are high in labor content. (II) are done frequently. (III) involve a high degree of automation and mechanization. (IV) are unsafe, tiring, unpleasant, and/or noisy. A. I, II, III, and IV B. I, II, and IV only C. II and III only D. II and IV only E. I and III only

Q: From the worker's perspective, an output-based pay system has the advantage of: A. linking pay more directly to effort. B. keeping earnings stable. C. keeping pay totally in the worker's control. D. minimizing the temptation to work harder for more money. E. keeping effort from influencing pay.

Q: Which of the following is not an advantage of time-based pay systems? A. labor cost stability B. incentives to increase output C. ease of administration D. stability of output E. ease of pay computations

Q: Asking a group of employees at a particular level to take on more responsibility is a form of ___________ loading, also known as job __________. A. horizontal; enlargement B. horizontal; rotation C. vertical; rotation D. vertical; enrichment E. horizontal; enrichment

Q: If there is a good chance that one or a few employees could wind up in monotonous jobs, job __________ can be a good idea. A. alteration B. expansion C. enrichment D. enlargement E. rotation

Q: Giving a worker a larger portion of the total task is known as job: A. expansion. B. enrichment. C. enlargement. D. rotation. E. elimination.

Q: A worker-machine chart can be used to determine how many machines an operator can manage.

Q: A worker-machine chart can help identify nonproductive parts of a process.

Q: Increasing compensation is always a way to improve worker satisfaction.

Q: Output-based systems compensate employees according to the amount of output they produce, thereby tying pay directly to performance.

Q: Time-based systems compensate employees according to the time they have worked and the amount of output they produce.

Q: Methods analysis and motion study techniques do not directly consider behavioral aspects of jobs.

Q: Work sampling provides both quick and accurate estimates of activity times.

Q: It would be acceptable to use a group incentive plan for an assembly line operation.

Q: Measured day work refers to an output-based system.

Q: Work sampling provides a detailed elemental breakdown of a task for purposes of establishing reliable time standards.

Q: No stopwatch is required in a work sampling study.

Q: An advantage of work sampling, compared to a stopwatch time study, is that observations are spread out over a period of time in work sampling.

Q: Work sampling involves the use of some method of randomizing the observations.

Q: Work sampling can be used to estimate the proportion of time a machine is idle.

Q: Predetermined time standards involve the use of published data regarding how long various activities are expected to take.

Q: A performance rating of less than 1.0 means that the observed worker was judged to be working at a faster than normal ratedoing the job more quickly than normal.

Q: Predetermined time standards use historical data from a company's own files.

Q: The standard time for a job can be obtained by multiplying the normal time by an appropriate allowance factor.

Q: The design of work systems, because objective standards are used, avoids most ethical issues.

Q: The normal time for a job is multiplied by the performance rating to obtain the standard time for the job.

Q: Studies on worker efficiency and time of day suggest that the greatest efficiency is at the end of the day when workers are "warmed up."

Q: The normal time in time study is obtained by multiplying the observed time by the performance rating.

Q: One factor in determining how many cycles to time in a time study is the degree of variation that is present in the observed times.

Q: For purposes of obtaining good time standards using a stopwatch time study, the analyst should try to avoid having the worker discover he or she is being observed.

Q: The most widely used method of work measurement is work sampling.

Q: Ergonomics is important for preventing common workplace injuries such as back injuries and repetitive-motion injuries.

Q: Work measurement concentrates on how long the tasks take to accomplish.

Q: We incorporate the average seriousness of accidents by measuring the number of lost-time accidents per million labor hours worked.

Q: Therbligs are basic elemental motions.

Q: Predetermined time standards are usually based on observing one very efficient worker performing the task.

Q: A flow process chart is helpful for visualizing the portions of a work cycle during which the operator and equipment are busy or idle.

Q: One therblig is the equivalent of one hour of sustained work by one average person.

Q: Methods analysis cannot be done for new jobs (ones that do not yet exist) since it requires observation of the process.

Q: Job design relates to people, therefore technology has little impact.

Q: One potential disadvantage of self-directed teams is higher training costs.

Q: One of the potential benefits of self-directed teams is higher quality.

Q: One of the potential benefits of self-directed teams is higher productivity and greater worker satisfaction.

Q: Ergonomics is an important part of job design to consider when we automate the system.

Q: One important factor that influences productivity is trust between workers and managers.

Q: Motivation influences quality and productivity, but not the work environment.

Q: Self-directed teams help other work groups make changes to their processes.

Q: Self-directed teams are allowed to make changes in the work processes under their control.