HR Competencies Domain

Question 1

Ratio Analysis

Answer 1

Comparing the sizes of two variables to produce an index or percentage; commonly used to analyze financial statements.

Question 2

Online Analytical Processing (OLAP)

Answer 2

Processing applications that store data in a multidimensional “cube,” which enables users to analyze data quickly in a variety of different ways.

Question 3

Due Process

Answer 3

Concept that laws are enforced only through accepted, codified procedures.

Question 4

Liabilities

Answer 4

Organization’s debts and other financial obligations.

Question 5

Framing

Answer 5

Process of constructing a message so that an audience sees communicated facts in a certain way and is persuaded to take a certain action.

Question 6

Noise

Answer 6

In communication, any factor that can disrupt the sending and receipt of a message—for example, physical factors such as loud environments, cultural factors such as a distinctive accent, or cognitive factors such as the use of unfamiliar jargon.

Question 7

Jurisdiction

Answer 7

Right of a legal body to exert authority over a given geographical territory, subject matter, or persons or institutions.

Question 8

Extraterritoriality

Answer 8

Extension of the power of a country’s laws over its citizens outside that country’s sovereign national boundaries.

Question 9

Business Case

Answer 9

Presentation to management that establishes that a specific problem exists and argues for a proposed solution.

Question 10

Civil Law

Answer 10

Legal system based on written codes (laws, rules, or regulations).

Question 11

Social Intelligence

Answer 11

Ability to create connections or rapport with others.

Question 12

Principled Negotiation

Answer 12

Process in which negotiators aim for mutual gain, emphasizing the need to focus on the problem instead of personal differences and on mutually beneficial outcomes.

Question 13

Gross Profit Margin

Answer 13

Ratio of gross profit to net sales.

Question 14

Cultural Intelligence

Answer 14

Capacity to recognize, interpret, and behaviorally adapt to multicultural situations and contexts.

Question 15

Global Mindset

Answer 15

Ability to take an international perspective, inclusive of other cultures’ views.

Question 16

Confidentiality

Answer 16

Treatment of personal information that has been disclosed to another person or organization.

Question 17

Culture

Answer 17

Basic beliefs, attitudes, values, behaviors, and customs shared and followed by members of a group, which give rise to the group’s sense of identity.

Question 18

Focus Group

Answer 18

Small group of invited persons (typically six to twelve) who actively participate in a structured discussion, led by a facilitator, for the purpose of eliciting their input.

Question 19

Emotional Intelligence (EI)

Answer 19

Ability to be sensitive to and understand one’s own and others’ emotions and impulses.

Question 20

Accounts Payable

Answer 20

Money an organization owes its vendors and suppliers.

Question 21

Mode

Answer 21

Value that occurs most frequently in a set of data.

Question 22

Business Intelligence

Answer 22

Ability to use information to gain a deeper understanding of an organization and make sound business decisions.

Question 23

Trend Analysis

Answer 23

Statistical method that examines data from different points in time to determine if a variance is an isolated event or if it is part of a longer trend.

Question 24

Code of Conduct

Answer 24

Principles that guide decision making and behavior in an organization.

Question 25

Balance Sheet

Answer 25

Statement of an organization’s financial position at a specific point in time, showing assets, liabilities, and shareholder equity.

Question 26

Cash Flow Statement

Answer 26

Statement of an organization’s ability to meet its current and short-term obligations, showing incoming and outgoing cash and cash reserves in operations, investments, and financing.

Question 27

Networking

Answer 27

Process of developing mutually beneficial contacts through the exchange of information.

Question 28

Multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA)

Answer 28

Group decision-making tool in which the group defines the characteristics of a successful decision and then scores each alternative against those criteria.

Question 29

Common Law

Answer 29

Legal system in which each case is considered in terms of how it relates to legal decisions that have already been made; evolves through judicial decisions over time.

Question 30

Variance Analysis

Answer 30

Statistical method for identifying the degree of difference between planned and actual performance or outcomes.

Question 31

Active Listening

Answer 31

Communication technique to increase the engagement between communicators and their audiences. It involves two-way communication and attention to nonverbal signs that indicate interest and reactions to the message and speaker.

Question 32

Value

Answer 32

The benefit created when an organization meets its strategic goals; measure of usefulness, worth, or importance.

Question 33

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)

Answer 33

Business management software, usually a suite of integrated applications, that a company can use to collect, store, manage and interpret data from many business activities.

Question 34

Affinity Diagramming

Answer 34

Data-sorting technique in which a group categorizes and subcategorizes data until relationships are clearly drawn.

Question 35

Equity

Answer 35

Amount of owners’ or shareholders’ portion of a business. | SHRM

Question 36

Mind Mapping

Answer 36

Data-sorting technique in which group members add related ideas and indicate logical connections, eventually grouping similar ideas.

Question 37

Value Chain

Answer 37

The process by which an organization creates the product or service it offers to the customer.

Question 38

Stakeholder Concept

Answer 38

Concept that proposes that any organization operates within a complex environment in which it affects and is affected by a variety of forces or stakeholders who all share in the value of the organization and its activities.

Question 39

Validity

Answer 39

Extent to which a measurement instrument measures what it is intended to measure.

Question 40

Weighted Mean

Answer 40

Average of data that adds factors to reflect the importance of different values.

Question 41

Feedback Loop

Answer 41

In communication, structuring a message to include opportunities for correction or clarification. This requires two-way communication.

Question 42

Standard Deviation

Answer 42

Distance of any data point from the center of a distribution when data is distributed in a “normal” or expected pattern.

Question 43

Net Profit Margin

Answer 43

Ratio of net income (gross sales minus expenses and taxes) to net sales.

Question 44

Assets

Answer 44

Financial, physical, and sometimes intangible properties an organization owns.

Question 45

Accounts Receivable

Answer 45

Money an organization’s customers owe an organization.

Question 46

Mean

Answer 46

Average score or value.

Question 47

Root-Cause Analysis

Answer 47

Type of analysis that starts with a result and then works backward to identify fundamental cause.

Question 48

Conflict of Interest

Answer 48

Situation in which a person or organization may benefit from undue influence due to involvement in outside activities, relationships, or investments that conflict with or have an impact on the employment relationship or its outcomes.

Question 49

High-Context Culture

Answer 49

Societies or groups characterized by complex, usually long-standing networks of relationships; members share a rich history of common experience, so the way they interact and interpret events is often not apparent to outsider.

Question 50

Culture

Answer 50

Basic beliefs, attitudes, values, behaviors, and customs shared and followed by members of a group, which give rise to the group’s sense of identity.

Question 51

Delphi Technique

Answer 51

Technique that progressively collects information from a group of anonymous respondents.

Question 52

Low-Context Cultures

Answer 52

Societies in which relationships have less history; individuals know each other less well and don’t share a common database of experience, so communication must be very explicit.

Question 53

Unweighted Mean

Answer 53

Raw average of data that gives equal weight to all values, with no regard for other factors.

Question 54

Scenario/What-If-Analysis

Answer 54

Statistical method used to test the possible effects of altering the details of a strategy to see if the likely outcome can be improved.

Question 55

Rule of Law

Answer 55

Concept that stipulates that no individual is beyond the reach of the law and that authority is exercised only in accordance with written and publicly disclosed laws.

Question 56

J Curve

Answer 56

Visualization of the impact of change on productivity. When change is introduced, there is typically a decrease in productivity and then a gradual return to—or, ideally, a surpassing of— previous levels of productivity.

Question 57

Income Statement

Answer 57

Statement that reports revenues, expenses, and profits for a specified period of time, for example, quarterly or annually.

Question 58

Motivation

Answer 58

Factors that initiate, direct, and sustain human behavior over time.

Question 59

Bribery

Answer 59

Exchange of anything of value to gain greater influence or preference.

Question 60

Nonverbals

Answer 60

Components of a message apart from its words. This could include physical gestures and posture and vocal tones, volume, and speed.

Question 61

Nominal Group Technique(NGT)

Answer 61

Technique in which participants each suggest ideas through a series of rounds and then discuss the items, eliminate redundancies and irrelevancies, and agree on the importance of the remaining items.

Question 62

Negotiation

Answer 62

Process by which two or more parties work together to reach agreement on a matter.

Question 63

Force-Field Analysis

Answer 63

Group decision-making tool designed to analyze the forces favoring and opposing a particular change. A factor is weighted, and the factors on each side are summed and compared.

Question 64

Median

Answer 64

Middle value in a range of values.

Question 65

Transparency

Answer 65

Extent to which an organization’s agreements, dealings, information, practices, and transactions are open to disclosure and review by relevant persons.

Question 66

Reliability

Answer 66

Extent to which a measurement instrument provides consistent results.