Organization

Question 1

Center of excellence (COE)

Answer 1

An organizational structure that leverages staff
expertise in certain areas to improve the entire
organization’s strategic performance.

Question 2

Cosourcing

Answer 2

Arrangement in which an enterprise and a vendor
share different tasks within a larger complex, often
strategic responsibility.

Question 3

Dedicated HR

Answer 3

HR structural alternative that allows organizations with
different strategies in multiple units to apply HR
expertise to each unit’s specific strategic needs.

Question 4

Functional HR

Answer 4

HR structural alternative in which headquarters HR
specialists craft policies and HR generalists located
within divisions or other locales implement the policies,
adapt them as needed, and interact with employees.

Question 5

HR audit

Answer 5

Systematic and comprehensive evaluation of an
organization’s HR policies, practices, procedures, and
strategies.

Question 6

Outsourcing

Answer 6

Process by which an organization contracts with thirdparty
vendors to provide selected services/activities
instead of hiring new employees.

Question 7

Shared services HR model

Answer 7

HR structural alternative in which centers with specific
areas of expertise develop HR policies in those areas;
each unit can then select what it needs from a menu of
these services.

Question 8

Chain of command

Answer 8

Line of authority within an organization.

Question 9

Departmentalization

Answer 9

Way an organization groups jobs to coordinate work.

Question 10

Formalization

Answer 10

Refers to the extent to which rules, policies, and
procedures govern the behavior of employees in an
organization.

Question 11

Functional structure

Answer 11

Organizational structure in which departments are
defined by the services they contribute to the
organization’s overall mission, such as marketing and
sales, operations, and HR.

Question 12

Geographic structure

Answer 12

Organizational structure in which geographic regions
define the organizational chart.

Question 13

Line units

Answer 13

Work groups that conduct the major business of an
organization.

Question 14

Matrix structure

Answer 14

Organizational structure that combines
departmentalization by division and function to gain the
benefits of both; results in some employees reporting
to two managers rather than one, with neither manager
assuming a superior role.

Question 15

Organizational development

Answer 15

Process of enhancing the effectiveness and efficiency
of an organization and the well-being of its members
through planned interventions.

Question 16

Product structure

Answer 16

Organizational structure in which functional
departments are grouped under major product
divisions.

Question 17

Span of control

Answer 17

Refers to the number of individuals who report to a
supervisor.

Question 18

Staff units

Answer 18

Work groups that assist line units by providing
specialized services, such as HR.

Question 19

Co-employment

Answer 19

Situation in which an organization shares responsibility
and liability for its alternative workers with an alternative
staffing supplier; also known as joint employment.

Question 20

Downsizing

Answer 20

Termination of employment of individual employees or
groups of employees for reasons other than
performance, for example, economic necessity or
restructuring; also known as reduction in force (RIF).

Question 21

Due diligence

Answer 21

Process of investigating a decision thoroughly before
finalizing it to identify all potential factors that could
affect the positive and negative impacts of the
decision.

Question 22

Independent contractors

Answer 22

Self-employed individuals hired on a contract basis for
specialized services.

Question 23

Joint employment

Answer 23

Situation in which an organization shares responsibility
and liability for its alternative workers with an alternative
staffing supplier; also known as co-employment.

Question 24

Judgmental forecasts

Answer 24

Use of information from past and present to predict
future conditions.

Question 25

Knowledge management (KM)

Answer 25

Process of creating, acquiring, sharing, and managing knowledge to augment individual and organizational performance.

Question 26

Reduction in force (RIF)

Answer 26

Termination of employment of individual employees or groups of employees for reasons other than performance, for example, economic necessity or restructuring; also known as downsizing.

Question 27

Regression analysis

Answer 27

Statistical method used to determine whether a relationship exists between variables and the strength of the relationship.

Question 28

Replacement planning

Answer 28

“Snapshot” assessment of the availability of qualified backup for key positions.

Question 29

Restructuring

Answer 29

Act of reorganizing the legal, ownership, operational, or other structures of an organization.

Question 30

Simulations

Answer 30

Representations of real situations; give organizations the opportunity to speculate as to what would happen if certain courses of action were pursued.

Question 31

Succession planning

Answer 31

Process of implementing a talent management strategy for identifying and fostering the development of high-potential employees or other job candidates who, over time, may move into leadership positions of increased responsibility.

Question 32

Talent management

Answer 32

Development and integration of HR processes that retain the knowledge, skills, and abilities of employees that will meet current and future organizational needs.

Question 33

Turnover

Answer 33

Act of replacing employees leaving an organization; attrition or loss of employees.

Question 34

Turnover rate

Answer 34

Annualized formula that tracks number of separations and total number of workforce employees per month.

Question 35

Workforce analysis

Answer 35

Systematic approach to anticipate human capital needs and data HR professionals can use to ensure that appropriate knowledge, skills, or abilities will be available when needed to accomplish organizational goals and objectives.

Question 36

Workforce management

Answer 36

All activities needed to ensure that workforce size and competencies meet the organization’s strategic needs.

Question 37

Workforce planning

Answer 37

Activities needed to ensure that workforce size and competencies meet current and future organizational and individual needs.

Question 38

Workforce profile

Answer 38

Part of workforce analysis that identifies the current make-up of employees in terms of their demographics, skills, competencies, performance levels, expected retirement dates, pay grades, and other factors that help explain the workforce’s composition.

Question 39

Alternative dispute resolution (ADR)

Answer 39

Umbrella term for the various approaches and techniques, other than litigation, that can be used to resolve a dispute.

Question 40

Arbitration

Answer 40

Method of dispute resolution by which disputing parties agree to be bound by the decision of one or more impartial persons to whom they submit their dispute for final determination.

Question 41

Constructive discipline

Answer 41

Form of corrective discipline that implements increasingly severe penalties for employees.

Question 42

Grievance procedure

Answer 42

Orderly way to resolve differences of opinion.

Question 43

Industrial actions

Answer 43

Various forms of collective employee actions taken to protest work conditions or employer actions.

Question 44

Labor union

Answer 44

Group of workers who coordinate their activities to achieve common goals in their relationship with an employer or group of employers; also called trade union.

Question 45

Lockout

Answer 45

Action of an employer to shut down operations to prevent employees from working.

Question 46

Mediation

Answer 46

Method of nonbinding dispute resolution by which a neutral third party tries to help disputing parties reach a mutually agreeable decision; also called conciliation.

Question 47

Picketing

Answer 47

Positioning of employees at a place of work targeted for the action for the purpose of protest.

Question 48

Policy

Answer 48

Broad statement that reflects an organization’s philosophy, objectives, or standards concerning a particular set of management or employee activities.

Question 49

Project labor agreement (PLA)

Answer 49

Agreement that requires specific contractors to accept certain conditions in project contracts, such as paying a fair wage and contributing to health insurance, pension, and training funds.

Question 50

Secondary action

Answer 50

Attempt by a union to influence an employer by putting pressure on another employer, for example, a supplier.

Question 51

Sit-down strike

Answer 51

Refusal by workers to work; also refusal by workers to leave their workstations, making it impossible for the employer to use replacement workers.

Question 52

Sympathy strike

Answer 52

Action taken in support of another union that is striking the employer.

Question 53

Trade union

Answer 53

Group of workers who coordinate their activities to achieve common goals in their relationship with an employer or group of employers; also called labor union.

Question 54

Unfair labor practice (ULP)

Answer 54

Violation of employee rights; act prohibited under labor relations statutes.

Question 55

Whistleblowing

Answer 55

Reporting of an organization’s violations of policies and processes by employees.

Question 56

Wildcat strike

Answer 56

Work stoppages at union contract operations that have not been sanctioned by the union.

Question 57

Work-to-rule

Answer 57

Situation in which workers slow processes by performing tasks exactly to specifications or according to job or task descriptions.

Question 58

Artificial intelligence (AI)

Answer 58

Ability of a computer to imitate human thought and behavior.

Question 59

Cloud computing

Answer 59

Style of computing in which scalable IT-enabled capabilities are delivered as a service using Internet technologies.

Question 60

Encryption

Answer 60

Conversion of data into a format that protects or hides its natural presentation or intended meaning.

Question 61

Enterprise resource planning (ERP)

Answer 61

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 62

Hacking

Answer 62

Act of deliberately accessing computer data without permission.

Question 63

Human resource information system (HRIS)

Answer 63

Information technology framework and tools for gathering, storing, maintaining, retrieving, revising, and reporting HR data.

Question 64

Information system (IS)

Answer 64

Way to collect, organize, store, analyze, and share data.

Question 65

Social engineering

Answer 65

In a computer context, tricking a user into sharing information that can then be used to access systems.

Question 66

Social networks

Answer 66

Online clustering of individuals in groups with common or shared interests.

Question 67

Software as a service (SaaS)

Answer 67

Software that is owned, delivered, and managed remotely and delivered over the Internet to contracted customers on a pay-for-use basis or as a subscription based on use metrics.