SHRM SHRM-SCP Online Practice Questions and Exam Preparation

SHRM SHRM-SCP Online Questions & Answers

• Question 431:

  "What we need to do is to simplify the process by which a customer returns an item or better still eliminate unnecessary business practices in the returns process". This is an example of?

  A. Reengineering
  B. Corporate restructuring
  C. Workforce expansion
  D. Workforce reductions
  A. Reengineering

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  Reengineering includes changing or eliminating practices to increase customer satisfaction or improve efficiencies. Corporate restructuring focuses on entire departments and their subsequent processes to consider a structural change. Workforce expansions and reductions are strategies that are used to respond to fluctuations in operational needs, such as increased sales or the need to reduce expenses.

• Question 432:

  If the Fizz company's product is canned soda and coffee beverages, which strategy for competing internationally would the Fizz company most likely employ?

  A. multidomestic
  B. transnational
  C. global
  D. international
  B. transnational

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  A transnational approach is appropriate for the Fizz company. Country-to-country customization (of labels and brands) to accommodate differences in taste preferences would most likely be necessary. The transnational company has a high global integration and a high local responsiveness strategy. The transnational company has characteristics of both the global and multidomestic firm. Its aim is to maximize local responsiveness but also to gain benefits from global integration. Transnational companies often try to create economies of scale more upstream in the value chain (production) and be more flexible and locally adaptive in downstream activities such as marketing and sales. Think of Soda drinks being marketed in the local language of the foreign market even though it is the same content across countries.

• Question 433:

  An organization pays different salaries to two employees in the same position based on market rates at the time of employment. How can the HR director balance market considerations and internal consistency when adjusting pay rates?

  A. Create a ranking chart to identify the highest-paid positions.
  B. Conduct a paired comparison with a job evaluation committee.
  C. Perform alternation ranking to assess job value before adjusting salaries.
  D. Use point method results and a regression analysis to amend pay rates.
  D. Use point method results and a regression analysis to amend pay rates.

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  Applying a point-method evaluation establishes internal job worth, and using regression analysis against market salary data creates a pay curve that preserves internal consistency while aligning with external competitiveness.

• Question 434:

  A strategy:

  A. summary of how the company will achieve its goals, and sustain a competitive advantage in the marketplace.
  B. actionable plans that enable a business take advantage of opportunities as they arise
  C. techniques that enable a business unit move from one milestone to the other in pursuit of the overall goal
  D. specific and measurable results a business aims to achieve
  A. summary of how the company will achieve its goals, and sustain a competitive advantage in the marketplace.

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  A strategy provides long term direction to a business and seeks to sustain long-term competitive advantages. Tactics are the means by which a strategy is carried out, i.e., planned and ad hoc activities meant to deal with the demands of the moment, and to move from one milestone to the other in pursuit of the overall goals (option C). Option D refers to objectives. Strategy is often decided by the board of directors, while tactics are determined from the strategy and decided by the department heads for implementation by junior employees.

• Question 435:

  A company prepares to implement a system that requires employees to use their mobile phones to submit hours worked. Before implementing the system, which should the HR team consider first?

  A. Effects of automation on the payroll processing team
  B. Security and encryption of the transmitted information
  C. Technology skills of the employees who will use the system
  D. Training needed for managers to approve time recorded in the system
  B. Security and encryption of the transmitted information

• Question 436:

  During an initial client meeting for a consulting project which is key to ensuring a successful engagement?

  A. Understanding the client organization's culture
  B. Understanding the limits of one's own expertise
  C. Setting mutual project-related expectations
  D. Planning the timeline and scope of the project
  A. Understanding the client organization's culture

• Question 437:

  HR creates a focus group by soliciting volunteers from different departments to identify ways to improve work/life balance. Participants are equally divided in terms of tenure. Most are from three departments, but all departments are represented. An outside, experienced facilitator is hired to encourage brainstorming. No one is satisfied with the experience. What might have contributed to this?

  A. Participants are not representative of the workplace
  B. The facilitator should have been selected from within the organization.
  C. Participants should have been assigned by their supervisors
  D. Brainstorming did not offer sufficient structure for discussion
  A. Participants are not representative of the workplace

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  The participants do not fully represent the workplace since there is an overrepresentation of three departments. This could decrease participation of members from other departments and give a false sense of employees' attitudes and needs. An outside facilitator is usually more effective as is voluntary, rather than involuntary, participation. Brainstorming is appropriate for a group trying to develop alternative solutions.

• Question 438:

  The most accurate definition of a strategy is?

  A. the general direction of a company towards which effort and actions are focused.
  B. specific and measurable steps taken to achieve business goals
  C. an approach that deploys the strengths and opportunities of an organization to compete and gain a greater market share
  D. a tool used to achieve an objective associated with a strategy
  C. an approach that deploys the strengths and opportunities of an organization to compete and gain a greater market share

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  A strategy is the approach taken toward achieving a goal by utilizing its strengths and opportunities to its competitive advantage. Strategies define an organization's approach toward competing with other businesses in its field.

• Question 439:

  What is the key concept behind organizational design?

  A. Activities have inputs and outputs
  B. Collaboration is key to superior performance
  C. Rewards must be aligned with responsibility
  D. Organizations are integrated systems
  D. Organizations are integrated systems

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  Organization Design is a process for shaping the way organizations are structured and run. It involves different aspects work-flow, including team formations, shift patterns, lines of reporting, decision-making procedures, communication channels. A key premise behind organizational design is the interconnectedness or cohesiveness of organizations. Organizational design is a step-by-step methodology which identifies various aspects of work flow, procedures, structures and systems, realigns them to fit current business realities/goals and then develops plans to implement the new changes.

• Question 440:

  What action should HR take to validate that training goals support the overall strategy?

  A. Set training goals that target the unit objectives of the company
  B. Measure results of the training needs analysis to make certain all sequential steps were achieved
  C. Review training analytics with training managers and process owners for context
  D. Create a value driver tree to determine a line of sight to the strategy
  D. Create a value driver tree to determine a line of sight to the strategy

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  A value driver tree is used to map enterprise-level goals to the functional/departmental level goals. Completing an assessment using a value driver tree would validate whether or not there is a line of sight (also called sight line) in training goals. Line of sight means that employees can see the connection between their tasks and the organization's strategic goals. This ensures that employee efforts help to achieve the strategic goals. (Remember strategy is done at the executive-level, it is inter-departmental, it is long-term, and it is cascaded down to departments and units)