PHR/SPHR Prep Blog

Congratulations New PHR and SPHR's!

jthorp@trainmetoday.com (Jacquelyn Thorp SPHR-CA) — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 19:20:00 GMT

From the Folks at HRCP - Congratulations to all those who passed the PHR or SPHR exam!
For those of you who weren't successful this time around, you may be suffering from HRCI post-traumatic stress disorder.

Ive seen it time and time again: the nightmares, the flashbacks, the anxiety, and the absolute insistence that nothing they studied was on the PHR or SPHR exam. Okay, the nightmares and flashbacks might be a bit of an exaggeration, but many people who have recently suffered through taking the HR certification exam truly believe that what they studied had no correspondence with what they found on the actual exam.

I can understand the feeling. When I was in my early twenties, I lived in Honduras, Central America, for a year and a half. In preparation for my time abroad, I studied Spanish intensively for nine weeks, and I felt pretty confident in my ability to carry on basic conversations in the language. When I arrived in Honduras, however, I couldnt understand a word anyone was saying. I thought, Oh, no, they taught me the wrong language. Of course, I soon found that I had, indeed, studied the right language, but I needed some time to adapt to the accent and the speed with with the people spoke. I had studied the right stuff. The application of the knowledge was the difficult part.

For many, their experience with the PHR and SPHR exam is similar. The exam seems to be written in a different language. There are more application questions than many test-takers are expecting. The which of the following would you do first and which is the most important consideration questions baffle even the most seasoned HR professional. In most cases, the topics are not unfamiliar and are included in any decent set of HR certification study materials. The oh-no-they-taught-me-the-wrong-language reaction is due to the nature of the exam questions. When we study, we tend to focus on facts. We review, we drill, we memorize, and we assess our progress by how much we can regurgitate. On the exam we are expected to be able to apply the facts.

True, there will almost always be some topics covered on the exam that we didnt study. Every time Ive taken the exam, Ive been blindsided by one or more questions. In stressful situations, we tend to become fixated on, and remember, the difficult parts, while the easy stuff makes no lasting impression.

So, is there a treatment for HRCI post-traumatic stress disorder? Yes. Its the same one that worked for me in Central America: hang in there. Fluency comes when facts and application meld.

Interest List Now Forming for Fall 2010 PHR SPHR Exam Preparation Programs

jthorp@trainmetoday.com (Jacquelyn Thorp SPHR-CA) — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 14:21:00 GMT

Please let us know where you would like to see a PHR SPHR Study group or Exam Preparation program. Click on the link below to communicate your preferred location.

https://hr-coachonline.com/PHR_SPHR_Survey.html

Reserving a Date to Take the PHR SPHR GPHR or CA Exam

jthorp@trainmetoday.com (Jacquelyn Thorp SPHR-CA) — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 15:17:00 GMT

Can you please share about your experience in setting up your test date.

Did you select the date and location or is it already set up for you by HRCI?

Anything else you can share with us?

PHR SPHR Flashcard

jthorp@trainmetoday.com (Jacquelyn Thorp SPHR-CA) — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 16:36:00 GMT

PHR SPHR Flash Card: According to the textbooks Management is: Planning, Organizing, Directing and ___________________?

California Workplace Violence Act

jthorp@trainmetoday.com (Jacquelyn Thorp SPHR-CA) — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 00:31:00 GMT

Under the California Workplace Violence Safety Act, employers may seek a temporary restraining order or injunction against anyone who poses a threat to the workplace, such as a disgruntled former employee or client, or the spouse of an employee who is a victim of domestic violence.

A workplace protective order protects not only the victim of the violence or threat of violence, but also the victim's co-workers. Under current law, after the protective order is obtained, the employer must serve the order on the perpetrator to ensure he or she has notice and therefore is subject to enforcement for violations of the order.

Workplace protective orders often are difficult for employers to serve, as the location of the perpetrator can be difficult to ascertain. California just recently adopted legislation to make this process easier. The new law requires law enforcement officers responding to the scene of reported unlawful violence or a credible threat of violence to provide the perpetrator with verbal notice of the protective order. The officer's verbal notice of the terms of the order constitutes service of the order and sufficient legal notice. Once verbal notice of the order has been given, the employer need only mail an endorsed copy of the restraining order to the individual within one day. This relaxation of the service requirements will make it less difficult for employers to protect employees from violence or the threat of violence.

If someone violates a restraining order under this law, the first conviction is punishable by a fine and up to one year in jail. Although a victim of harassment or domestic violence can obtain a restraining order on their own, a restraining order Workplace Violence Safety Act can also protect the victim and coworkers.

Employers can proactively make the work place safer for the victim, clients and other employees.

About the Author: Carl H. Starrett II has been a licensed attorney since 1993 and is a member in good standing with the California State Bar and the San Diego County Bar Association.

California Learning System

jthorp@trainmetoday.com (Jacquelyn Thorp SPHR-CA) — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 17:00:00 GMT

As we prepare for the California exam, we are finding a number of errors in the California SHRM Learning System. The most obvious one is that it still states that minimum wage is $7.50 in California. Please feel free to post errors that you find. We will then send them to HRCI and hopefully they will update the books for the next round of HR practitioners preparing for the California exam.

It is "That Time of Year"! Fall 2009 PHR SPHR Study Time!

jthorp@trainmetoday.com (Jacquelyn Thorp SPHR-CA) — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 14:53:00 GMT

Welcome new PHR or SPHR Study Group Participants! This blog is for you to ask questions and get answers about preparing for the upcoming exam. The exam dates are from December 1, 2009 to January 31, 2010. Good luck and prepare!

So You Think You Are A Qualified Human Resources Practitioner?

jthorp@trainmetoday.com (Jacquelyn Thorp SPHR-CA) — Sat, 30 May 2009 13:00:00 GMT

So you think you are a qualified human resources practitioner? Here are a few questions to ponder. What makes a qualified professional Human Resources practitioner? Would you go to a doctor that did not belong to the AMA? Would you go to a lawyer that does not stay up to date on current laws? Would you hire an Architect without a license? What credentials can an HR person have that demonstrates that they know what they are doing? How can someone demonstrate their knowledge and experience? Does experience trump education and if so how? Why should an employer hire you over someone else? What strategy have you taken to differentiate yourself from other HR practitioners? When you see someone with the initials SPHR, do you secretly think, "Wow they must be good test takers"? LOL Or, do you recognize that they successfully completed a four hour really difficult exam about the breadth and knowledge required to be an excellent HR practitioner?

STUDYING FOR THE EXAM

jthorp@trainmetoday.com (Jacquelyn Thorp SPHR-CA) — Sat, 22 Nov 2008 15:41:00 GMT

There are so many ways to study using the SHRM Learning System. But, don't expect that memorizing the PowerPoint presentation or every word in the modules will ensure success on the exam. The SHRM Learning system will help you learn and retain key content, but you must know the information and have confidence that you know it. It is a widely believed myth that the HRCI exam is somehow connected to SHRM Learning materials. Some HR practitioners get very frustrated because they feel that the questions were not related to the SHRM Learning System.

Here are some practical tips for preparing for the exam (from the SHRM Learning System):

Plan "Study Time". We all have busy lives - families, HR jobs, many of us are in college, holidays coming up, etc..
Don't Cram.
HRCI does not test state-specific laws on the PHR or SPHR exam.
For the areas that you must memorize to learn use memory techniques such as analogies, images, rhymes, acronyms, repeating it out loud a number of times or intentionally remember.
Taking the class is not enough - you must combine lectures with reading and understanding the text.
Interaction and reinforcement with others is the best way to actually learn the material, especially if you are struggling with a topic.
Read the questions carefully. Do not panic if it does not make sense to you. If you find you are paralyzed by a question, move to the next question and return to the "scary" question once you have gained your composure.
Trust your first impressions.
Avoid over analyzing.

Now, here are my personal recommendations.

Have self-confidence! You know this stuff.
Get plenty of sleep the night before. It is a scientific fact that brain gets tired and performs better when well rested.
Remember your special place. If you begin to feel anxiety, go to your special place for 30 seconds. Close your eyes. Believe me, no one in the room is actually looking at you, except for the facilitators - they know what you are doing and it is OK with them. (If you did not take the IE SHRM Study Group and want to know more about this, just let me know).
Think Federal not California.
After you study, get a good amount of sleep (even take a nap). Science has proved that if we sleep after learning we retain more. Know the information.
Know the federal laws that are essential to HR folks in doing our job, Title VII, ADA, ADEA, CRA 1866, PDA, Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection, IRCA, WARN Act, Polygraph Protection Act, Fair Credit Reporting Act, EEO, etc. There are precedent setting cases, like Griggs v. Duke Power.
Take the study test at www.HRCI.org. It costs money, but it helps you identify your weak areas. For example, I was very weak on how Union's work. I took every precaution my entire career to keep our organizations free from Unions. So, I really had to bone up on how Unions are formed and what a ULP was and what percent of vote had to be before a Union was certified (and what certified meant). To my horror, a number of Union questions showed up on the exam!
Read the question carefully...please...I have heard from many...including myself..."I read the question wrong".
Don't rush. I know people that have failed the exam, but I don't know anyone that "timed out". (I was one of the last ones in the room).
Postive Energy! I will be thinking positive thoughts for you!

Jacquelyn Thorp, SPHR-CA
CEO, Train Me Today! A Division of HR Coach LLC

PHR/SPHR Study Group Module I

jthorp@trainmetoday.com (Jacquelyn Thorp SPHR-CA) — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 13:29:00 GMT

So, we left the discussion of Descriptive Statistics to blogging! We commonly use statistics in HR as you will see through this blog (I hope). Statistics provides an indicator of variation around "central tendency" values.

Blog back and tell me what you think that means.

To understand Descriptive Statistics we need to look at a few words.

Range is the distance between highest and lowest scores. Percentile is the specific point that has a given percentage of cases below it and the standard deviation is how much scores are spread out around a mean.

In what aspect of HR do we commonly look at range?

Measures of Association - Correlation - shows the relationship between two variables.

What are variables?

Measures of Association - Regression - refers to the effect of one variable to the other. If two variables are related and one changes, the second will change. This relationship is represented by a regression equation. Regression equation is used to construct a regression line (usually a straight line) on a scattergram. (You can find a sample of a scattergram in most Excel programs).

When might HR use a regression analysis?

Inferential Statistics - form a conclusion by studying a sample of the population. Population is the entire group (all employees). A sample would be part of the employees (20 randomly chosen employees).

Normal distribution is the expected distribution given a random sampling of a large population.

For what purpose would we (HR) use inferential statistics?

Qualitative Analysis - Let's look at the words - together they look scary, but dissected in parts they are simple. Qualitative relates to the quality of something not its size or quantity. Analysis means looking at something in detail to make some sort of a decision. In HR, we use qualitative analysis to look at employee motivation, feelings, attitudes, morale, perceptions and to generate ideas about change. We might gather information from employees through interviews, surveys and questionnaires, observation, file studies, testing, etc.

Reliability - Is the information reliable? is the measuring instrument consistent? Are the results consistent? For example, two tests are given to an applicants. Applicant A passes both tests at 95%. Applicant B passes one at 75% and the other at 95%. Applicant A test scores are more consistent and therefore more reliable.

Validity - Is the information valid? Did it measure what was intended to measure? A reliable instrument is not always valid. A valid instrument is always reliable.

Give an example of something we do in HR that is reliable but may not be valid.