Assessment & Evaluation Techniques Flashcards
7 cards from real COA practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Assessment & Evaluation Techniques flashcards as text
Which assessment approach is MOST useful for identifying whether an office employee has the skills needed before being assigned a new responsibility?
Answer: Needs assessment / skills gap analysis
A skills gap analysis identifies the difference between current competencies and those required for a new role or task before assignment.
A COA practitioner reviews a vendor's invoice processing system and finds that errors are most frequent on Fridays. This finding is an example of using which evaluation technique?
Answer: Trend/pattern analysis
Trend and pattern analysis examines data over time or across conditions to identify recurring patterns, such as error spikes on specific days.
Which element is essential for making an employee performance goal evaluable under the SMART framework?
Answer: The goal must include a specific, measurable outcome
The 'M' in SMART stands for Measurable — a goal must include quantifiable criteria so success or failure can be objectively determined.
When a performance review focuses primarily on events that occurred in the last few weeks rather than the entire review period, the evaluator is demonstrating:
Answer: Recency bias
Recency bias occurs when recent events disproportionately influence an evaluation that is supposed to cover a longer time period.
Which document is BEST suited for tracking observed examples of outstanding or poor performance throughout the year to support an annual evaluation?
Answer: Critical incident log
A critical incident log is a running record of specific notable behaviors — both positive and negative — that provides concrete evidence for annual performance reviews.
In office administration, 'benchmarking' as an evaluation technique involves:
Answer: Comparing processes or performance against industry best practices or competitors
Benchmarking uses external reference points — such as industry standards or top-performing organizations — to evaluate and improve internal processes.
An evaluation tool that lists specific job tasks and asks raters to mark whether each behavior was observed is called a:
Answer: Behavioral observation checklist
A behavioral observation checklist provides a list of specific work behaviors and asks evaluators to indicate whether or not each was observed during the review period.