Deck 7: Appraising and Managing Performance

Question 1

A firm implementing a relative judgment performance appraisal system would most likely experience which of the following?

A) Employees comparing themselves to other employees
B) Managers making judgments based completely on performance standards
C) Managers grouping employees into two categories when evaluating performance
D) Employees receiving clear and useful information about improving their performance

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Job performance dimensions are:

A) a way to eliminate rater bias in the performance appraisal.
B) aspects of performance that determine effective job performance.
C) the relative judgments that a rater makes about an employee's job performance.
D) job appraisals conducted in businesses that are greatly influenced by organizational politics.

Answer 2

B

Question 3

An appraisal system that focuses on individuals rather than on any other factor is a(n):

A) absolute system.
B) behavioral system.
C) relative system.
D) trait-based system.

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Which term refers to observable characteristics that are associated with successful job performance?

A) Ethics
B) Traits
C) Dimensions
D) Competencies

Question 5

Which of the following is a comprehensive list of the functions in a performance appraisal?

A) Identifying, measuring, and managing
B) Identifying, determining, and implementing
C) Recruiting, selecting, and assessing
D) Managing, selecting, and assessing

Question 6

Which of the following is most likely a true statement about relative and absolute judgment appraisal systems?

A) Relative judgments do not force raters to make distinctions between employees where none exist, but absolute judgments do.
B) Absolute judgments allow for equal ratings among employees, but relative judgments do not.
C) Absolute judgments tend to create conflict between employees, but relative judgments do not.
D) Relative judgments are easy to defend in court, but absolute judgments are not.

Question 7

You are discussing changing your performance appraisal system with your executive management team.The VP of Operations wants the ability to compare employees working for different managers in different areas of the plant.The best appraisal system for this would be a(n):

A) ranking system.
B) relative system.
C) absolute system.
D) behavior-based system.

Question 8

Your CEO is considering the use of a relative judgment system for your company's performance appraisal program.She asks you about the disadvantages of such a system,and it would be most appropriate for you to state that such systems:

A) provide unclear performance feedback to employees.
B) rely too much on employee competencies.
C) fail to measure job-relevant behavior.
D) are costly and time consuming.

Question 9

Which of the following is a disadvantage of an absolute judgment performance appraisal system?

A) Managers make irrelevant and unfair distinctions among employees
B) Conflict develops among employees competing for the best rating
C) Legal defense of evaluations is difficult
D) Standards vary among managers

Question 10

One of your managers returns from a management seminar eager to use a relative judgment system for performance appraisals.He asks you for your opinion about the value of such systems.It would be most accurate for you to state that relative judgment systems:

A) require supervisors to differentiate between employees.
B) minimize employee conflict regarding performance assessment.
C) clarify performance differences between similarly ranked employees.
D) force managerial judgments based exclusively on performance standards.

Question 11

Keith owns a small marketing firm and has 15 employees.Keith needs to implement a performance appraisal system.Which of the following is most important for Keith?

A) Developing broad job dimensions
B) Using quantitative measurement tools
C) Assessing employees on a monthly basis
D) Ranking performance levels within work teams

Question 12

The most common use of performance appraisals is to:

A) comply with EEO rules.
B) justify employee recruitment.
C) improve organizational performance.
D) make personnel administrative decisions.

Question 13

Which of the following is NOT a trait typically used on trait-based rating scales?

A) Decisiveness
B) Punctuality
C) Reliability
D) Energy

Question 14

Billy will be appraising employees at H.R.T.,Inc.He is compiling a list of aspects by which he will measure the employees.Billy is compiling:

A) dimensions of job performance.
B) measurement standards.
C) relative judgments.
D) absolute judgments.

Question 15

When it comes to the performance appraisal process:

A) it is most commonly conducted twice a year.
B) most firms fail to maximize its potential.
C) most firms use a team-based appraisal.
D) it is rarely used by most businesses.

Question 16

Emma is thinking through the future evaluation of her employees.Right now she is determining what specific areas of each employee's work to examine.Emma is in the process of:

A) measuring performance to make a judgment about employee effectiveness.
B) identifying areas of job performance that should be evaluated.
C) managing the work process within an organization.
D) determining employee training needs.

Question 17

A pitfall of using relative judgments for performance appraisal is that they:

A) fail to clarify how great or small the performance differences are between employees.
B) force appraisers to make judgments based solely on performance standards.
C) focus too much on the individual rather than the individual's performance.
D) provide inadequate information when making termination decisions.

Question 18

Bob wants to focus this year's employee assessment interviews on discussing the traits each employee displays.You should most likely tell him that trait-based appraisal tools:

A) can be beneficial but are more expensive than other methods.
B) have a tendency to make employees defensive.
C) are illegal according to EEOC guidelines.
D) are helpful in boosting employee morale.

Question 19

Which of the following is NOT a common criticism of trait appraisal instruments?

A) Lack of legal defensibility
B) Too much rater bias
C) Costly and time consuming
D) Ambiguous ratings

Question 20

A manager is in the process of deciding how effective or ineffective an employee's behavior has been.This manager is in the ________ stage of the performance appraisal model.

A) identification
B) measurement
C) management
D) design

Question 21

Shawn is reviewing a performance appraisal instrument with a scale of 1-10.Each number has a descriptive statement next to it,from 1 (rarely gives direction when assigning work)to 10 (makes expectations clear).This is an example of a(n):

A) trait-based appraisal instrument.
B) outcome-based appraisal instrument.
C) behavior-based appraisal instrument.
D) relative judgment appraisal instrument.

Question 22

MBO performance appraisal systems focus primarily on employee:

A) competencies.
B) behaviors.
C) results.
D) traits.

Question 23

A company designs a performance evaluation process that evaluates the value of specific employee behaviors.The company is most likely using a(n):

A) outcome-based system.
B) relative judgment system.
C) trait-based system.
D) behavioral-based system.

Question 24

Outcome-based appraisal tools have a tendency to:

A) use ambiguous criteria.
B) encourage employee conflicts.
C) provide a distorted view of worker performance levels.
D) force raters to make unnecessary distinctions between employees.

Question 25

Additional Case 7.1
Shannon is the CEO of a firm that provides high-tech service support to other small businesses. He plans to revise the performance appraisal system to align it more closely with company goals. The tailored program should be fair and ethical and should produce consistent results.
Shannon wants service employees to work together to maximize service quality. Since the sales force has not been particularly aggressive, sales are lagging. Shannon believes that profits and customer satisfaction will increase if sales people start providing after-sale service to customers.
In the past, Shannon's sales managers have been receiving the same raises, regardless of their effectiveness. Now, Shannon wants to identify and reward the best-performing managers. By comparing managers across functions, Shannon believes he will be able to identify workers who are ready for more challenging responsibilities.
Refer to Additional Case 7.1.Shannon's first step in developing the new performance appraisal system is to:

A) identify the performance dimensions to measure.
B) identify the performance appraisal tool(s) he wants to use.
C) develop the performance management process he will use.
D) communicate the changes in the program to the employees.

Question 26

Ahmad has been a line manager at a large jewelry factory for nearly 10 years.This year,the factory is letting the employees directly under him contribute to Ahmad's performance appraisal.This is an example of:

A) subordinate review.
B) superior review.
C) self-review.
D) 360° feedback.

Question 27

Additional Case 7.1
Shannon is the CEO of a firm that provides high-tech service support to other small businesses. He plans to revise the performance appraisal system to align it more closely with company goals. The tailored program should be fair and ethical and should produce consistent results.
Shannon wants service employees to work together to maximize service quality. Since the sales force has not been particularly aggressive, sales are lagging. Shannon believes that profits and customer satisfaction will increase if sales people start providing after-sale service to customers.
In the past, Shannon's sales managers have been receiving the same raises, regardless of their effectiveness. Now, Shannon wants to identify and reward the best-performing managers. By comparing managers across functions, Shannon believes he will be able to identify workers who are ready for more challenging responsibilities.
Refer to Additional Case 7.1.Shannon is considering an appraisal system based on relative judgment.Which statement best supports the use of such a system?

A) The firm would benefit from specifying the differences between employees.
B) Managers need to know which employees are the best at the firm.
C) The firm frequently needs to make decisions about pay raises.
D) Employees require specific details about their performance.

Question 28

The implementation of a ________ process offers a well-rounded picture of an employee's performance.

A) self-review
B) peer review
C) subordinate review
D) 360° feedback

Question 29

The critical incident technique can be used to create ________ rating scales.

A) relative-judgment based
B) trait-judgment based
C) outcome-based
D) behavior-based

Question 30

Trait-based performance appraisal systems are most similar to:

A) outcome-based performance appraisal systems.
B) behavioral-based performance appraisal systems.
C) relative judgment performance appraisal systems.
D) absolute judgment performance appraisal systems.

Question 31

The most common form of behavior appraisal instrument is a:

A) management by objectives format.
B) behaviorally anchored rating scale.
C) situational interviewing form.
D) personality trait scale.

Question 32

If supervisors want to help employees gain insight into their performance problems and have input into the performance appraisal,they should most likely use:

A) peer reviews.
B) self reviews.
C) team reviews.
D) subordinate reviews.

Question 33

Studies of performance appraisal systems show that the most influential element on the effectiveness of the system is the:

A) number of employees for whom the rater is responsible.
B) intelligence and experience of the rater.
C) type of tool or system being used.
D) job category being evaluated.

Question 34

Which appraisal format has the greatest legal defensibility?

A) Relative
B) Absolute
C) Behavior
D) Outcome

Question 35

Additional Case 7.1
Shannon is the CEO of a firm that provides high-tech service support to other small businesses. He plans to revise the performance appraisal system to align it more closely with company goals. The tailored program should be fair and ethical and should produce consistent results.
Shannon wants service employees to work together to maximize service quality. Since the sales force has not been particularly aggressive, sales are lagging. Shannon believes that profits and customer satisfaction will increase if sales people start providing after-sale service to customers.
In the past, Shannon's sales managers have been receiving the same raises, regardless of their effectiveness. Now, Shannon wants to identify and reward the best-performing managers. By comparing managers across functions, Shannon believes he will be able to identify workers who are ready for more challenging responsibilities.
Refer to Additional Case 7.1.The best appraisal system for Shannon's sales management team would most likely be:

A) rank order.
B) trait based.
C) outcome based.
D) behavioral based.

Question 36

Outcome-based performance appraisal systems are more likely to:

A) lead to a "results at any cost" mentality.
B) require significant time to establish criteria.
C) face managerial and employee resistance.
D) cause legal difficulties because of unclear standards.

Question 37

To be the most effective,all managers in a firm should maintain comparable rating standards.

Question 38

Which of the following is an upward performance appraisal process?

A) Peer reviews
B) Self reviews
C) Team reviews
D) Subordinate reviews

Question 39

Additional Case 7.1
Shannon is the CEO of a firm that provides high-tech service support to other small businesses. He plans to revise the performance appraisal system to align it more closely with company goals. The tailored program should be fair and ethical and should produce consistent results.
Shannon wants service employees to work together to maximize service quality. Since the sales force has not been particularly aggressive, sales are lagging. Shannon believes that profits and customer satisfaction will increase if sales people start providing after-sale service to customers.
In the past, Shannon's sales managers have been receiving the same raises, regardless of their effectiveness. Now, Shannon wants to identify and reward the best-performing managers. By comparing managers across functions, Shannon believes he will be able to identify workers who are ready for more challenging responsibilities.
Refer to Additional Case 7.1.The best appraisal system to enhance cooperation among service personnel would most likely be a:

A) trait-based appraisal system.
B) behavioral appraisal system.
C) relative judgment process.
D) self-review tool.

Question 40

Which of the following is a drawback of a behavior-based performance appraisal system?

A) Time-consuming to develop
B) Distorted worker performance levels
C) Ambiguous ratings which leads to bias
D) Managerial resistance due to required training

Question 41

Relative ranking systems require managers to make performance distinctions among workers even if none actually exist.

Question 42

The absolute judgment format permits comparison ratings of individual workers in different work groups by various managers.

Question 43

The critical-incident technique is useful for developing BARS.

Question 44

The most common form of behavioral appraisal instrument tends to measure the value rather than the frequency of rated behaviors.

Question 45

The performance appraisal system should praise and criticize past behavior and focus on the future in terms of how workers will achieve their potential.

Question 46

More firms are basing performance assessments on ________,which are observable characteristics that are associated with successful job performance.

Question 47

A(n)________ is an appraisal tool that asks managers to assess a worker's behavior.

Question 48

________ is an appraisal format that asks supervisors to make judgments about an employee's performance based solely on performance standards.

Question 49

The choice of which appraisal tool to use should be based on the purpose of the appraisal.

Question 50

A(n)________ is an appraisal tool that asks managers to assess the results achieved by workers.

Question 51

The advantage of outcome-based appraisal systems is that they eliminate subjectivity and the potential for rater error.

Question 52

Behavioral rating systems are well accepted by managers because they can be developed quickly.

Question 53

An appraisal tool that asks a supervisor to make judgments about worker characteristics that tend to be consistent and enduring is referred to as a(n)________.

Question 54

Trait ratings evaluate worker characteristics that tend to be consistent and enduring.Consequently,like absolute systems,they eliminate all ambiguity from appraisals.

Question 55

Colleen is appraising workers in the manufacturing department of a woodworking shop.She ranks Horace as the most skilled woodworker,Kayla as the second most skilled woodworker,and Eric as the least skilled of the three.Colleen is performing an absolute judgment appraisal.

Question 56

________ is an aspect of performance that determines effective job performance.

Question 57

An appraisal format that asks supervisors to compare an employee's performance to the performance of other employees doing the same job is referred to as ________.

Question 58

The "big picture" quality of the absolute rating system makes performance feedback too ambiguous to be beneficial.

Question 59

Like trait systems,behavioral systems are somewhat relative since the effectiveness and frequency of an important behavior is subjectively judged by the rater.

Question 60

The identification,measurement,and management of human performance in organizations is referred to as ________.

Question 61

You are training first-line supervisors on how to give performance appraisals.In your explanation of the halo error,you tell these managers that they can avoid this mistake if they:

A) consider organizational goals.
B) remain current on EEO laws.
C) consider each dimension individually.
D) avoid personal relationships with workers.

Question 62

The tendency to rate similarly across dimensions is best known as ________ error.

A) liking
B) severity
C) halo
D) leniency

Question 63

________ is a goal-directed approach to performance appraisal in which workers and their supervisors set goals together for the upcoming evaluation period.

Question 64

How do firms use performance appraisals? What is the difference between a performance appraisal system built on a relative or an absolute judgment format? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each format?

Question 65

A(n)________ is a performance appraisal system in which workers at the same level in the organization rate one another.

Question 66

Which of the following is true about the influence of "liking" on performance appraisals?

A) Correlations exist between rater liking and performance ratings.
B) Most employees doubt that rater liking affects performance appraisals.
C) Correlations exist between employee liking and performance criteria.
D) The impact of liking is greatest in absolute performance appraisal systems.

Question 67

Which of the following is LEAST likely a challenge of effective performance measurement?

A) Employee contributions
B) Organizational politics
C) Instrument invalidity
D) Rater errors

Question 68

Two line managers,Cameron and Ty,are performing appraisals on their subordinates.As they discuss their findings,they realize that they have very similar views on how they rate performance.The work that Cameron rates as excellent,Ty rates as excellent.The work that Ty rates as average,Cameron rates as average.These findings most likely indicate:

A) a high rate of comparability.
B) a restriction of range error.
C) a central tendency error.
D) the influence of liking.

Question 69

You are reviewing the performance appraisal conducted by your middle managers.You notice that Carrie tends to give each employee the same score across all dimensions of the evaluation.For example,Brian's scores all are in the average range while Karl's all tend to be in the excellent range,even though you know that each man has done very well on some and very poorly on some of the dimensions.Brian and Karl's evaluations exhibit a:

A) severity error.
B) halo error.
C) leniency error.
D) central tendency error.

Question 70

Raters who commit severity errors generally:

A) rate employees on the basis of liking.
B) restrict ratings to the high portion of the appraisal scale.
C) restrict ratings to the low portion of the appraisal scale.
D) rate employee performance similarly in all appraisal areas.

Question 71

How can managers minimize the influence of "liking" on performance evaluations?

A) Participating in frame-of-reference training
B) Keeping a performance diary on each employee
C) Developing a sensitivity to organizational politics
D) Conducting group, rather than individual, performance evaluations

Question 72

Frame-of-reference training has been found to be particularly effective in eliminating:

A) persuasive effects of organizational politics.
B) problems of choosing the wrong evaluation tool.
C) most legal issues in the performance review process.
D) the impact of personal bias in performance evaluations.

Question 73

A(n)________ is a performance appraisal system in which workers rate themselves.

Question 74

Managers using a rational perspective to appraise performance believe that:

A) the goal of an appraisal is accuracy.
B) the employee is an active participant in the process.
C) the focus of the process is management of performance.
D) the assessment of specifics follows the overall assessment of the worker.

Question 75

Managers who maintain employee performance diaries most likely benefit from:

A) venting frustrations about individual employees.
B) guaranteed protection against the halo effect.
C) legal justification for the appraising process.
D) documenting organizational politics.

Question 76

Sheila believes the value of her employees' performance depends on her agenda or goals,and not on any objective standard.Sheila's perspective is a(n):

A) rational perspective.
B) absolute perspective.
C) political perspective.
D) relative perspective.

Question 77

Which of the following is used in frame-of-reference training?

A) Role playing of employee behaviors
B) Fictitious examples of worker performance
C) Actual examples of incorrect performance ratings
D) Previous performance appraisals conducted by managers

Question 78

When managers use performance appraisals to communicate a message to an employee rather than to measure actual performance,the performance appraisal is most likely being influenced by:

A) rater bias.
B) personal bias.
C) organizational politics.
D) employee personalities.

Question 79

A performance appraisal system in which workers review their supervisors is called a(n)________.

Question 80

Which of the following is a true comparison between the rational perspective of appraisal and the political perspective of appraisal?

A) A rater's bias is less likely to be a deciding factor in the political perspective than in the rational perspective.
B) Supervisors' roles in the rational approach are much more active than supervisors' roles in the political approach.
C) The goal of appraisal from the political perspective is accuracy. The goal of appraisal from the rational perspective is utility.
D) The goal of appraisal from the political perspective is utility. The goal of appraisal from the rational perspective is accuracy.