SHRM-CP 2026 Practice Examination-
HR Fundamentals, Strategy &
Workplace Integration||Questions And
Answers With Rationales/Graded
A+/2026 Update/100% Correct
/Instant Download)
Section 1: People Domain (HR Expertise)
Focus: Talent acquisition, learning & development, total rewards, and employee
engagement.
1. A company is struggling with high turnover among new hires who feel they
were misled about their job duties during recruitment. Which action best
addresses the root cause of this issue?
A) Increasing the sign-on bonus to compensate for the misalignment.
B) Implementing realistic job previews (RJPs) during the interview process.
C) Removing the performance review for the first six months of employment.
D) Outsourcing recruitment to a third-party agency.
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Realistic job previews provide candidates with an accurate picture of
both positive and negative aspects of the job, reducing unmet expectations which is
the primary driver of turnover due to "misleading" information .
2. To comply with the latest pay transparency laws and support the 2026 focus
on pay equity, what is the best strategic action for an HR department?
A) Only disclose pay ranges to candidates who complete the first interview.
B) Post the exact salary (a fixed number) rather than a range for every role.
C) Proactively list salary ranges in all job postings and explain the criteria for
placement in the range.
D) Keep pay confidential to avoid internal disputes among current employees.
,Correct Answer: C
Rationale: Transparency laws require proactive disclosure. Posting ranges and the
logic behind placement (experience, skills) supports fairness and reduces
negotiation biases related to gender or race .
3. A manager wants to fire an employee who just returned from 10 weeks of
approved FMLA leave because their sales numbers are slightly below target.
What is the HR responsibility?
A) Approve the termination as the employee is an "at-will" worker.
B) Deny the request due to potential interference with FMLA rights, as poor
performance may be a pretext.
C) Immediately place the employee on a Performance Improvement Plan (PIP).
D) Transfer the employee to a different department without a pay cut.
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Terminating an employee immediately after FMLA leave creates a
presumption of retaliation. While performance can be a reason, the timing suggests
FMLA interference. HR must investigate if the performance drop is directly related
to the leave absence .
4. Your organization is implementing an AI-driven applicant tracking system
(ATS) that screens resumes for keywords. What is the most critical risk to
audit for?
A) The speed of processing applications.
B) The cost savings compared to manual screening.
C) Adverse impact against protected classes due to biased algorithmic weighting.
D) The storage capacity required for video interviews.
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: The 2026 BASK emphasizes ethical AI use. If the AI is trained on past
successful (potentially homogenous) employees, it may screen out diverse
candidates, violating the "Inclusive Mindset" competency and EEOC guidelines .
5. An employee is consistently late but is a top performer. The company policy
states three lates result in a written warning. As an HR professional with an
inclusive mindset, what is the best first step?
A) Terminate the employee to enforce the policy strictly.
B) Give the warning as policy dictates, but tell the manager to ignore future lates.
C) Engage in a dialogue to see if the employee requires a reasonable
, accommodation (e.g., flexible schedule, ADA).
D) Change the attendance policy for everyone to remove the late penalty.
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: The "Inclusive Mindset" competency requires HR to consider
underlying circumstances. While policy is important, the late arrivals could be
related to a disability (ADA) or caregiving responsibilities. Exploring
accommodation comes before discipline .
Section 2: Organization Domain (HR Strategy)
Focus: HR strategy, organizational effectiveness, change management, and
analytics.
6. The organization is merging with a competitor. Employees are anxious and
resisting the integration of new IT systems. What is the best HR intervention
to address the root cause of the resistance?
A) Send a mass email detailing the technical specifications of the new IT system.
B) Terminate employees who refuse to log into the new system to set an example.
C) Acknowledge the loss of the old identity, communicate a clear vision for the
future, and train managers on change management.
D) Outsource the IT department entirely to avoid integration issues.
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: Resistance usually stems from fear of the unknown or loss of identity
(emotional response). Effective change management requires addressing the
emotional "people side" first, not just technical logistics .
7. HR is asked to calculate the "Cost per Hire" for the fiscal year. Total
internal costs
were 50,000,externalagencyfeeswere50,000,externalagencyfeeswere30,000, and
total new hires were 20. What is the Cost per Hire?
A) 2,500B)2,500B)4,000
C) 6,000D)6,000D)1,500
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Cost per Hire = (Internal Costs + External Costs) / Total Hires =
(50,000+50,000+30,000) / 20 = 80,000/20=80,000/20=4,000. This metric is crucial
for Business Acumen .
HR Fundamentals, Strategy &
Workplace Integration||Questions And
Answers With Rationales/Graded
A+/2026 Update/100% Correct
/Instant Download)
Section 1: People Domain (HR Expertise)
Focus: Talent acquisition, learning & development, total rewards, and employee
engagement.
1. A company is struggling with high turnover among new hires who feel they
were misled about their job duties during recruitment. Which action best
addresses the root cause of this issue?
A) Increasing the sign-on bonus to compensate for the misalignment.
B) Implementing realistic job previews (RJPs) during the interview process.
C) Removing the performance review for the first six months of employment.
D) Outsourcing recruitment to a third-party agency.
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Realistic job previews provide candidates with an accurate picture of
both positive and negative aspects of the job, reducing unmet expectations which is
the primary driver of turnover due to "misleading" information .
2. To comply with the latest pay transparency laws and support the 2026 focus
on pay equity, what is the best strategic action for an HR department?
A) Only disclose pay ranges to candidates who complete the first interview.
B) Post the exact salary (a fixed number) rather than a range for every role.
C) Proactively list salary ranges in all job postings and explain the criteria for
placement in the range.
D) Keep pay confidential to avoid internal disputes among current employees.
,Correct Answer: C
Rationale: Transparency laws require proactive disclosure. Posting ranges and the
logic behind placement (experience, skills) supports fairness and reduces
negotiation biases related to gender or race .
3. A manager wants to fire an employee who just returned from 10 weeks of
approved FMLA leave because their sales numbers are slightly below target.
What is the HR responsibility?
A) Approve the termination as the employee is an "at-will" worker.
B) Deny the request due to potential interference with FMLA rights, as poor
performance may be a pretext.
C) Immediately place the employee on a Performance Improvement Plan (PIP).
D) Transfer the employee to a different department without a pay cut.
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Terminating an employee immediately after FMLA leave creates a
presumption of retaliation. While performance can be a reason, the timing suggests
FMLA interference. HR must investigate if the performance drop is directly related
to the leave absence .
4. Your organization is implementing an AI-driven applicant tracking system
(ATS) that screens resumes for keywords. What is the most critical risk to
audit for?
A) The speed of processing applications.
B) The cost savings compared to manual screening.
C) Adverse impact against protected classes due to biased algorithmic weighting.
D) The storage capacity required for video interviews.
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: The 2026 BASK emphasizes ethical AI use. If the AI is trained on past
successful (potentially homogenous) employees, it may screen out diverse
candidates, violating the "Inclusive Mindset" competency and EEOC guidelines .
5. An employee is consistently late but is a top performer. The company policy
states three lates result in a written warning. As an HR professional with an
inclusive mindset, what is the best first step?
A) Terminate the employee to enforce the policy strictly.
B) Give the warning as policy dictates, but tell the manager to ignore future lates.
C) Engage in a dialogue to see if the employee requires a reasonable
, accommodation (e.g., flexible schedule, ADA).
D) Change the attendance policy for everyone to remove the late penalty.
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: The "Inclusive Mindset" competency requires HR to consider
underlying circumstances. While policy is important, the late arrivals could be
related to a disability (ADA) or caregiving responsibilities. Exploring
accommodation comes before discipline .
Section 2: Organization Domain (HR Strategy)
Focus: HR strategy, organizational effectiveness, change management, and
analytics.
6. The organization is merging with a competitor. Employees are anxious and
resisting the integration of new IT systems. What is the best HR intervention
to address the root cause of the resistance?
A) Send a mass email detailing the technical specifications of the new IT system.
B) Terminate employees who refuse to log into the new system to set an example.
C) Acknowledge the loss of the old identity, communicate a clear vision for the
future, and train managers on change management.
D) Outsource the IT department entirely to avoid integration issues.
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: Resistance usually stems from fear of the unknown or loss of identity
(emotional response). Effective change management requires addressing the
emotional "people side" first, not just technical logistics .
7. HR is asked to calculate the "Cost per Hire" for the fiscal year. Total
internal costs
were 50,000,externalagencyfeeswere50,000,externalagencyfeeswere30,000, and
total new hires were 20. What is the Cost per Hire?
A) 2,500B)2,500B)4,000
C) 6,000D)6,000D)1,500
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Cost per Hire = (Internal Costs + External Costs) / Total Hires =
(50,000+50,000+30,000) / 20 = 80,000/20=80,000/20=4,000. This metric is crucial
for Business Acumen .
