A Guide to the Human Resource Body of Knowledge (HRBoK)

Appendix HGlossary of Terms

absenteeism    Not coming to work

Not coming to work because of illness or personal problems. Many companies calculate the rate of absenteeism of their employees, which is the average number of days they do not come to work.

accountability    Responsibility

An obligation to accept responsibility for one's actions

accrual    A method of accounting

An accounting method that recognizes a company's financial performance by recording income and expenses at the time a transaction occurs, rather than when a payment is received or an invoice is paid

acquiring company    A company that buys another company

The business or organization that is buying another business

acquisition    An acquired company

A process in which one organization buys another organization

active listening    Checking for understanding

A communication method that a listener uses to interpret and evaluate information from a speaker

ADA    Americans with Disabilities Act

A U.S. law that prevents an organization or person from discriminating against an employee because of physical or mental disabilities

ADDIE model    A training design technique

A process for designing training programs that has five steps: analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation

ad hoc    Not planned, for a specific case

A solution to a specific problem that is not planned, or cannot be used in other situations

ADR    Alternative dispute resolution

A method for resolving a disagreement without going ...