Q&A Hero

Q: Which of the following refers to an organized learning event in which participants conduct self-assessments, set goals, and develop action plans? A) competency-based job analysis B) career planning workshop C) job instruction training D) management retreat

Q: Value chains that ________ information technology infrastructure often have problems coordinating and collaborating. A) share the same B) fail to share compatible C) purchase up-to-date D) provide their own

Q: Which of the following is the organization's role in an employee's career development? A) providing mentoring opportunities to support growth B) participating in career development discussions C) providing timely performance feedback D) establishing goals and career plans

Q: One of the biggest obstacles to successful value chain management on the organizational level is an organization that ________. A) shares information B) refuses to share information C) insists on shaking up the status quo D) collaborates

Q: Orion Enterprises wants to provide employees with a Web-based library of career development materials, as well as individual career coaches and career workshops. Which term best describes the program that Orion plans to offer? A) career organization B) vocational training C) work sampling D) career center

Q: In a short essay, explain how people can be an obstacle to effective management of a value chain.

Q: In a short essay, explain how required capabilities can be an obstacle to effective management of a value chain.

Q: In a brief essay, discuss the components necessary for an effective performance management process.

Q: In a short essay, explain how cultural attitudes can be an obstacle to effective management of a value chain.

Q: In a brief essay, discuss how a supervisor can develop and conduct a performance appraisal that is legally defensible.

Q: What are the guidelines that supervisors should follow to hold effective appraisals and minimize problems like bias and halo effects? How can rating committees improve the fairness of the appraisal process?

Q: In a short essay, explain how organizational barriers can be an obstacle to effective management of a value chain.

Q: In a short essay, identify and explain the three main human resource requirements for value chain management.

Q: Describe the four basic types of appraisal interviews.

Q: In a short essay, identify and discuss the leadership requirements for successful value chain management.

Q: What is a behaviorally anchored rating scale (BARS)? How would a manager develop a BARS?

Q: In a brief essay, describe the forced distribution method. What are the advantages and disadvantages of the forced distribution method?

Q: In a short essay, describe the coordination and collaboration that is necessary for successful value chain management.

Q: Partners in a value chain management system need to be able to both learn from and educate other partners in the value chain.

Q: What are the four job-relevant dimensions that can be measured by the graphic-rating scale method of performance appraisal? What problems are associated with graphic-rating scales?

Q: Trust is so important in value chain management that proponents of the system say you can never have too much trust.

Q: What are the essential steps of the performance appraisal process?

Q: Why is it important for a manager to appraise a subordinate's performance? How can a manager handle a subordinate who is defensive when told that his or her performance is poor?

Q: Employees in a value chain management organization must be flexible.

Q: Being rigorous about expectations is a key part of leadership in value chain management.

Q: As a manager, how can you set effective performance appraisal standards for your employees? Explain your answer in a brief essay.

Q: Value in value chain management is driven mainly by middle management, while top management is responsible for goals and strategy.

Q: A talent management philosophy involves segmenting employees based on their value to the firm's success and providing those employees with special coaching, feedback, and development opportunities.

Q: Ongoing performance monitoring is an element of performance management that involves the use of computer-based systems that measure an employee's progress and send out reports regarding an employee's performance.

Q: The goal of value chain management is to meet, but never to exceed, the needs and desires of customers.

Q: In value chain management, activities are eliminated from the organizational process if they do not add value to the process.

Q: Performance appraisals are a link between corporate strategy, departmental goals, employee goals and employee performance in the overall performance management process.

Q: Organizational processes in value chain management refer to how work is done.

Q: While formal written warnings are provided too late to salvage an employee's performance and position at the company, they are useful in court proceedings.

Q: Tyler, an accounting manager at Firestone, is preparing for an appraisal interview with an employee whose performance is unsatisfactory but correctable. Tyler's primary objective during the interview should be to encourage the employee with positive reinforcements like job enlargement and compliments.

Q: Sharing information is part of the coordination and collaboration requirement for successful value chain management.

Q: The goal for a supervisor conducting a satisfactory-not promotable appraisal interview is to maintain satisfactory performance by finding incentives that are important to the person.

Q: Customers played a role in IKEA's success by being willing to pay higher prices for high-quality furniture.

Q: The customer is part of the value chain in value chain management.

Q: During an exit interview, a supervisor and a subordinate review the appraisal and make plans to correct deficiencies and reinforce strengths.

Q: In many value chains, an organization must have the ability to educate ________. A) internal partners only B) external partners only C) only its own employees D) both internal and external partners

Q: Three hundred and sixty-degree feedback is generally used for development purposes rather than for pay increases.

Q: Some organizations erroneously feel that they ________ when they collaborate with a variety of value chain partners. A) lose control of their destiny B) gain control of their destiny C) change their destiny D) control the destiny of other partners

Q: Studies suggest that managers who receive upward feedback from identified subordinates view the upward appraisal process more negatively than do managers who receive anonymous upward feedback.

Q: Peer appraisals have been shown to have a negative effect on task motivation, cohesion, and job satisfaction, so most organizations no longer use them.

Q: ________ can lead to a value chain management company suffering losses of intellectual property. A) Not enough trust B) Too much trust C) Not enough diversity D) Too much diversity

Q: In order to ensure that a performance appraisal is legally defensible, a supervisor should use only one performance appraisal tool.

Q: When ________ exist(s) in a value chain, partners will be extremely reluctant to share information. A) sophisticated technological infrastructure doesn't B) sophisticated technological infrastructure C) trust doesn't D) trust

Q: Attitudes that value collaborating, openness, and mutual respect are requirements for ________. A) all value chain management companies B) all companies C) all value chain management companies that use a "sharing" style D) some, but not all, value chain management companies

Q: The alternation ranking method of performance appraisals can be problematic and unfair if all employees have excellent job performance.

Q: In order for a value chain to function successfully, different partners in the chain must ________. A) have trust in one another B) compete with one another C) distrust one another D) like one another

Q: Central tendency is a problem that occurs when a supervisor's rating of a subordinate on one trait biases the rating of that person on other traits.

Q: Unclear standards on a performance appraisal tool will most likely lead to unfair appraisals because performance traits are too open for interpretation.

Q: Organizational culture and attitudes are shared by ________ value chain partners. A) external B) internal C) both internal and external D) customers and external

Q: Because the nature of jobs can change quickly, value chain management companies often need to make a significant investment in ________. A) heavy equipment B) market research C) light equipment D) job training

Q: Sam supervises a team of data entry clerks at Geico. The firm's electronic performance monitoring system enables Sam to electronically monitor the amount of computerized data an employee processes each day.

Q: Management by objectives cannot be used as a primary performance appraisal tool, but it is useful as a supplement to the graphic rating method.

Q: Workers in a value chain management company need to be ready to ________ at any time. A) work in dangerous conditions B) learn new job skills C) compete with coworkers D) lose their jobs

Q: The advantages of using BARS as a performance appraisal tool is the method's accuracy, clear standards, and consistency.

Q: The key to any job in a successful value chain is that it ________. A) is well defined and easy to carry out B) best helps the chain create customer value C) is maximally efficient D) saves time and money

Q: Paired comparison is a rating approach that involves keeping a record of uncommonly good or undesirable examples of an employee's work-related behavior and reviewing it with the employee at predetermined times.

Q: Above all, jobs and job design in a value chain management company must be ________. A) flexible B) high paying C) strictly defined and not likely to change D) completely undefined

Q: Top employees often outperform the average or poor employees by as much as 100%.

Q: This is the most important resource in any value chain. A) employees B) raw materials C) capital D) technology

Q: The basic problem with using a ranking method for performance appraisals is not identifying the extreme good and bad performers but differentiating meaningfully between the others.

Q: American Standard improved the quality of its value chain by getting rid of partners who ________. A) could not work on holidays B) could not meet expectations C) were not in the bath and kitchen business D) were not suppliers

Q: One of the most important things a leader can do in a value chain management company is ________. A) provide a good role model B) show a positive attitude C) be friendly with employees D) clearly express expectations

Q: Supervisors at Sun Microsystems use the forced distribution method to evaluate performance, so they must ensure that the proportions in each category are symmetrical.

Q: One key measurement that managers in value chain management companies strive to make is an accurate ________. A) supply forecast B) weather forecast C) demand forecast D) production forecast

Q: When actual job duties are appraised, the idea is to focus on the extent to which the employee exhibits the competencies that the employer values and that are essential for the job.

Q: Implementation of a value chain should be driven by ________. A) technology B) customers C) employees D) management

Q: The forced distribution method is the simplest and most popular technique for appraising performance.

Q: In organizations such as Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics, ________ are brought together to work on the company's premises. A) customers and company employees B) current and retired employees C) competitors and customers D) customers and suppliers

Q: In order to ensure that performance appraisals are effective, Felicia, a line supervisor, should make sure to schedule a feedback session to address each subordinate's performance, progress, and future development plans.

Q: Organizational processes in value chain management organizations need to eliminate ________. A) nonvalue-adding activities B) demand forecasting C) ties between customers and suppliers D) organizational core competencies

Q: The HR department monitors the performance appraisal system, but it is typically not involved in rating employees.

Q: Dell uses ________ to coordinate suppliers, customers, and its own employees to stay on top of orders that come in. A) frequent telephone calls B) an enterprise resource planning system C) email D) Facebook and Twitter

Q: Formal performance appraisals have been eliminated by almost all major firms and replaced by daily assessments by peers in addition to extensive training opportunities.

Q: An especially difficult part of the coordination and collaboration requirement for successful value chain management is identifying things that ________. A) you value but customers may not value B) customers value but you may not value C) both you and customers value D) you value but do not add value to the value chain

Q: In order to ensure that performance goals are challenging and relevant, Matthew, a marketing manager, should independently set goals for his subordinates because participatively set goals usually produce lower job performance.