CPHR Workforce Planning & Talent Management 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A company is experiencing high voluntary turnover among high-potential employees. Which retention strategy is most aligned with talent management best practices?
- Increase base salaries across the board
- Implement individualized development plans tied to career pathing (Correct answer)
- Reduce workload for all employees
- Offer one-time retention bonuses
Correct answer: Implement individualized development plans tied to career pathing
Individualized development plans tied to career pathing address high-potential employees' growth needs, which are a primary driver of voluntary turnover.
Question 2: In workforce planning, what does a 'supply analysis' primarily assess?
- Future business demand for roles
- Current and projected internal talent availability (Correct answer)
- External labor market conditions only
- Compensation benchmarks versus competitors
Correct answer: Current and projected internal talent availability
Supply analysis evaluates the current workforce composition and projects future internal talent availability through retirements, promotions, and attrition.
Question 3: Which metric best measures the effectiveness of a succession planning program?
- Number of employees enrolled in leadership training
- Percentage of key positions filled internally when vacated (Correct answer)
- Total budget spent on succession planning initiatives
- Average tenure of senior leaders
Correct answer: Percentage of key positions filled internally when vacated
The percentage of key positions filled internally when vacated directly measures whether succession planning is producing ready replacements.
Question 4: An HR team uses a 9-box grid. An employee rated 'High Performance / Low Potential' is typically classified as:
- A future leader to fast-track
- A core contributor to retain and reward (Correct answer)
- A talent at risk requiring development
- A poor performer to exit
Correct answer: A core contributor to retain and reward
High performers with low potential are reliable core contributors who deliver consistent results but are unlikely to advance significantly.
Question 5: Which workforce planning scenario best describes a 'talent surplus'?
- More open positions than qualified candidates
- More employees than roles expected to exist in the future (Correct answer)
- High demand for niche technical skills
- Rapid organizational growth outpacing hiring speed
Correct answer: More employees than roles expected to exist in the future
A talent surplus occurs when workforce supply exceeds projected demand, often requiring redeployment, retraining, or reductions.
Question 6: What is the primary purpose of a competency framework in talent management?
- To set salary bands for each job level
- To define the behaviors and skills required for effective performance across roles (Correct answer)
- To track employee attendance and punctuality
- To determine eligibility for benefits
Correct answer: To define the behaviors and skills required for effective performance across roles
A competency framework defines the behaviors, knowledge, and skills employees need to perform effectively, guiding hiring, development, and performance management.
Question 7: During workforce planning, an organization identifies a critical gap in data analytics capabilities. The FIRST recommended action is to:
- Immediately launch an external recruitment campaign
- Assess whether internal reskilling or upskilling can close the gap (Correct answer)
- Outsource all analytics work to a third party
- Restructure the department eliminating analytics requirements
Correct answer: Assess whether internal reskilling or upskilling can close the gap
Best practice is to first assess whether existing employees can be reskilled before committing to more costly external hiring or outsourcing.
CPHR Workforce Planning & Talent Management 2
A company is experiencing high voluntary turnover among high-potential employees.
Which retention strategy is most aligned with talent management best practices?