PHR Vocabulary Exam Questions and Answers
ability to pay - -Level of compensaton an organization pays its employees, determined by
its financial resources.
-accounting - -Organizational function concerned with recording financial transactions,
paying bills, collecting revenue from customers, and producing financial statements.
-acquired-needs theory (1961) - -Theory developed by David McClelland that states that
people are motivated by experiences acquired thoughout their lives. Overall, humans are
motivated to excel in achievement, affiliation, or power.
-active training method - -Learning experience focused on the learner, such as case
studies, computer-based training (CBT), and programmed instructions.
-ADDIE model - -Five elements of the instructional design process: analysis, design,
development, implementation , and evaluation.
-ad hoc arbitrator - -Person selected to hear a single case between two parties in conflict.
-administrative services only (ASO) plan - -Benefit plan used by some self-funded
organization. These organizations contract with an insurance company to manage and pay
claims.
-adverse impact - -Any negative result of an employment action.
-Affirmative Action Plan (AAP) - -Plan that analyzes a workforce to determine whether
protected classes are underutilized in different job groups and describes how an
organization will address any under utilization that exists.
-agency shop clause - -Clause in a labor contract specifying that all employees must either
join the union or pay union dues if they choose not to join the union.
-ally doctrine - -Principle stating that if an employer whose workers are on strike contacts
a neutral employer to produce the work that would normally be performed by the striking
workers, the neutral employer becomes an ally of the struck employer and is therefore a
legitimate target of a picket line.
-average/central tendency bias - -Occurs when interviewer characterized by a group of
candidates (in a selections process) or employees (in a performance-management process)
who are all rated about the same because the interviewer or reviewers has difficulty
deciding which one is best.
-average - -Means; Quantative measurement calculated by taking the sum of the values in
a set of numbers and dividing by the number of values in the set (1+2+3 = 6/3 = 2).
,-autonomy - -Degree of independence or discretion allowed on the job.
-authorization card - -Means by which the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB)
determines that there is sufficient support for a union to hold an election. The NLRB will
hold an election if 30 percent of the eligible employees in the anticipated bargaining unit
sign.
-authoritarian leader - -Type of leader who tells people what to do. This approach can be
effective in emergencies or when productivity is the organization's primary concern.
-auditory learner - -Learners who retain information best when they hear it.
-application-tracking system (ATS) - -Automated approach for keeping track of job
applicants from the receipt of an application or resume to final disposition.
-andragogy - -The study of how adults learn. In this form of education, the learner
participates in decision about what will be taught and how it will be delivered.
-Americans with Disabilities Act - -Employers with 15 or more employees are prohibited
from discriminating against people with disabilities. In general, this employment provision
requires equal opportunities in selecting, testing, and hiring qualified appplicants with
disabilities when such accommodations would not impose "undue hardship," and equal
opportunity in promotion and benefits.
-alternative dispute resolution (ADR) - -Range of methods used to solve disagreements
without litigation. Often able to resolve problems with less animosity than occurs when a
lawsuit is filed, and at far less cost to the parties.
-alter ego doctrine - -Principle stating that when two businesses have interrelated
operations, central control of labor relations, common management, and common
ownership, they are considered alter ego employers, and the National Labor Relations
Board (NLRB) may determine that employees of the alter ego employer are part of the
bargaining unit.
-undue hardship - -Exception to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) that weighs the
cost of an accomodation against the size of the organization and other similar factors.
-litigation - -To contest in legal proceedings to engage in legal proceedings.
-bargaining unit - -Composed of persons who are recognized by both the company and a
legally organized labor union to negotiate matters involving employment issues. Some of
these issues include safety conditions on the job, salary and benefits, job qualifications, and
general working conditions and procedures. The main purpose is to create a working
situation that is advantageous for both the employer and the employee.
, -disability - -Having a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more
major life activities of such individual; a record of or being regarded as having such an
impairment.
-National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) - -Governement agency charged with conducting
elections and preventing and remedying unfair labor practices. The agency does not
instigate action on its own, it merely reponds to charges of unfair labor practices or
petitions for representation elections filed in ofe of its offices.
-National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) - -Guarantees the right of employees to organize and
bargain collectively with their employers. Enforces oversight of workers rights.
-balanced scorecard - -Business measurement tool used by managers to track information
in four key areas: financial results, customer results, key internal processes, and how
people are hired and trained to achieve organization goals.
-business process outsource (BPO) - -Practice of engaging a third-party provider to
assume operational control of and responsibility for a particular business function.
-business-continuity planning - -Proactive strategy to protect an organization from
emergencies and other circumstances. It results in a written document describing possible
disruptions to operations and actions to be taken to minimize those disruptions and
assigns responsibility for executing the plan to specific individuals.
-broadbanding - -Job-classification method that consolidates multiple pay grades into a
few broad "bands" with a wide range between the minimum and maximum of the band.
-balance sheet - -Statement that provides a snapshot of an organization's financial
condition on a specific day, usually the last day of the accounting period. Information on the
balance sheet includes the company's assets, liabilities, and equity.
-base pay - -Preset salary or hourly rate paid to an employee for performing their job
responsibilities.
-behavioral reinforcement - -Also known as behavior modification. Process studied by B.F.
Skinner that reveled behavior could be changed through the use of four interventions
strategies: positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement, punishment, and extinction.
-behaviorally anchored rating scale (BARS) - -Performance-appraisal system that
identifies key job requirements from a job description and creates dimensions and anchor
statements that are used to rate employee performance.
-behavior evaluation method - -Third level of a training-evaluation model developed by
Donald Kirkpatrick that uses a test to measure how well participants learned the
information presented in a training. Occurs between six weeks and six months after the
ability to pay - -Level of compensaton an organization pays its employees, determined by
its financial resources.
-accounting - -Organizational function concerned with recording financial transactions,
paying bills, collecting revenue from customers, and producing financial statements.
-acquired-needs theory (1961) - -Theory developed by David McClelland that states that
people are motivated by experiences acquired thoughout their lives. Overall, humans are
motivated to excel in achievement, affiliation, or power.
-active training method - -Learning experience focused on the learner, such as case
studies, computer-based training (CBT), and programmed instructions.
-ADDIE model - -Five elements of the instructional design process: analysis, design,
development, implementation , and evaluation.
-ad hoc arbitrator - -Person selected to hear a single case between two parties in conflict.
-administrative services only (ASO) plan - -Benefit plan used by some self-funded
organization. These organizations contract with an insurance company to manage and pay
claims.
-adverse impact - -Any negative result of an employment action.
-Affirmative Action Plan (AAP) - -Plan that analyzes a workforce to determine whether
protected classes are underutilized in different job groups and describes how an
organization will address any under utilization that exists.
-agency shop clause - -Clause in a labor contract specifying that all employees must either
join the union or pay union dues if they choose not to join the union.
-ally doctrine - -Principle stating that if an employer whose workers are on strike contacts
a neutral employer to produce the work that would normally be performed by the striking
workers, the neutral employer becomes an ally of the struck employer and is therefore a
legitimate target of a picket line.
-average/central tendency bias - -Occurs when interviewer characterized by a group of
candidates (in a selections process) or employees (in a performance-management process)
who are all rated about the same because the interviewer or reviewers has difficulty
deciding which one is best.
-average - -Means; Quantative measurement calculated by taking the sum of the values in
a set of numbers and dividing by the number of values in the set (1+2+3 = 6/3 = 2).
,-autonomy - -Degree of independence or discretion allowed on the job.
-authorization card - -Means by which the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB)
determines that there is sufficient support for a union to hold an election. The NLRB will
hold an election if 30 percent of the eligible employees in the anticipated bargaining unit
sign.
-authoritarian leader - -Type of leader who tells people what to do. This approach can be
effective in emergencies or when productivity is the organization's primary concern.
-auditory learner - -Learners who retain information best when they hear it.
-application-tracking system (ATS) - -Automated approach for keeping track of job
applicants from the receipt of an application or resume to final disposition.
-andragogy - -The study of how adults learn. In this form of education, the learner
participates in decision about what will be taught and how it will be delivered.
-Americans with Disabilities Act - -Employers with 15 or more employees are prohibited
from discriminating against people with disabilities. In general, this employment provision
requires equal opportunities in selecting, testing, and hiring qualified appplicants with
disabilities when such accommodations would not impose "undue hardship," and equal
opportunity in promotion and benefits.
-alternative dispute resolution (ADR) - -Range of methods used to solve disagreements
without litigation. Often able to resolve problems with less animosity than occurs when a
lawsuit is filed, and at far less cost to the parties.
-alter ego doctrine - -Principle stating that when two businesses have interrelated
operations, central control of labor relations, common management, and common
ownership, they are considered alter ego employers, and the National Labor Relations
Board (NLRB) may determine that employees of the alter ego employer are part of the
bargaining unit.
-undue hardship - -Exception to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) that weighs the
cost of an accomodation against the size of the organization and other similar factors.
-litigation - -To contest in legal proceedings to engage in legal proceedings.
-bargaining unit - -Composed of persons who are recognized by both the company and a
legally organized labor union to negotiate matters involving employment issues. Some of
these issues include safety conditions on the job, salary and benefits, job qualifications, and
general working conditions and procedures. The main purpose is to create a working
situation that is advantageous for both the employer and the employee.
, -disability - -Having a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more
major life activities of such individual; a record of or being regarded as having such an
impairment.
-National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) - -Governement agency charged with conducting
elections and preventing and remedying unfair labor practices. The agency does not
instigate action on its own, it merely reponds to charges of unfair labor practices or
petitions for representation elections filed in ofe of its offices.
-National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) - -Guarantees the right of employees to organize and
bargain collectively with their employers. Enforces oversight of workers rights.
-balanced scorecard - -Business measurement tool used by managers to track information
in four key areas: financial results, customer results, key internal processes, and how
people are hired and trained to achieve organization goals.
-business process outsource (BPO) - -Practice of engaging a third-party provider to
assume operational control of and responsibility for a particular business function.
-business-continuity planning - -Proactive strategy to protect an organization from
emergencies and other circumstances. It results in a written document describing possible
disruptions to operations and actions to be taken to minimize those disruptions and
assigns responsibility for executing the plan to specific individuals.
-broadbanding - -Job-classification method that consolidates multiple pay grades into a
few broad "bands" with a wide range between the minimum and maximum of the band.
-balance sheet - -Statement that provides a snapshot of an organization's financial
condition on a specific day, usually the last day of the accounting period. Information on the
balance sheet includes the company's assets, liabilities, and equity.
-base pay - -Preset salary or hourly rate paid to an employee for performing their job
responsibilities.
-behavioral reinforcement - -Also known as behavior modification. Process studied by B.F.
Skinner that reveled behavior could be changed through the use of four interventions
strategies: positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement, punishment, and extinction.
-behaviorally anchored rating scale (BARS) - -Performance-appraisal system that
identifies key job requirements from a job description and creates dimensions and anchor
statements that are used to rate employee performance.
-behavior evaluation method - -Third level of a training-evaluation model developed by
Donald Kirkpatrick that uses a test to measure how well participants learned the
information presented in a training. Occurs between six weeks and six months after the
