If sustainable competitive advantage depends on work-force skills, American firms have a problem. Human-resource management is not traditionally seen as central to the competitive survival of the firm in the United States. Skill acquisition is considered an individual responsibility. Labor is simply another factor of production to be hired—rented at the lowest possible cost—much as one buys raw materials or equipment.
The lack of importance attached to human-resource management can be seen in the corporation hierarchy. In an American firm the chief financial officer is almost always second in command. The post of head of human-resource management is usually a specialized job, off at the edge of corporate hierarchy. The executive who hold, it is never consulted on major strategic decisions and has no chance to move up to Chief Executive Officer (CEO). By way of contrast, in Japan the head of human-resource management is central—usually the second most important executive, after the CEO, in the firm’s hierarchy, While American firms often talk about the vast amounts spent on training their work forces, in fact they invest less in the skills of their employees than do either Japanese or German firm. The money they do invest is also more highly concentrated on professional and managerial employees. And the limited investments that are made in training workers are also much more narrowly focused on the specific skills necessary to do the next job rather than on the basic background skills that make it possible to absorb new technologies.
As a result, problems emerge when breakthrough technology arrives. If American workers, for example, take much longer to learn how to operate new flexible manufacturing station than workers in German (as they do), the effective cost of those stations is lower in German than it is in the United States. More time is required before equipment is up and running at capacity, and the need for extensive retaining generate costs and created bottlenecks that limit the speed with which new equipment can be employed. The result is a slower pace of the technological change. And in the end the skills of the bottom half the population affect the wages of the top half. If the bottom half can’t effectively staff the processes that have to be operated, the management and professional jobs that go with these processes will disappear.
1.Which or the following apples to the management of human resources in American companies?
2.What is the position of the head of human-resource management in an American firm?
3.According to the passage, the decisive factor in maintaining a firm’s competitive advantage is ______.
4.What is the main idea of the passage?
问题1选项
A.They hire people at the lowest cost regardless of their skills.
B.They only hire skilled workers because of keen competition.
C.They attach more importance to workers than to equipment.
D.They see the gaining of skills as their employees’ own business.
问题2选项
A.He is one of the most important executives in the firm.
B.His post is likely to disappear when new technologies are introduced.
C.He has no say in making important decisions in the firm.
D.He is directly under the chief financial executive.
问题3选项
A.the introduction of new technology
B.the improvement of workers’ basic skills
C.the rational composition of professional and managerial employees
D.the attachment of importance to the bottom half of the employees
问题4选项
A.American firms are different from Japanese and German firms in human-resource management.
B.Extensive retraining is indispensable to effective human-resource management.
C.The head of human-resource management must be in the central position in a firm’s hierarchy.
D.The human resource management strategies of American firms affect their competitive capacity.
第1题:
【选项释义】
Which or the following apples to the management of human resources in American companies? 美国公司的人力资源管理有哪些问题？
A. They hire people at the lowest cost regardless of their skills. A. 他们会以最低的成本雇佣工人而不在乎其劳动技能。
B. They only hire skilled workers because of keen competition. B. 他们因竞争激烈而只雇佣有技术的工人。
C. They attach more importance to workers than to equipment. C. 相比于生产设备，他们更加重视劳动力。
D. They see the gaining of skills as their employees’ own business. D. 他们认为技能的获得是员工自己的事。
【考查点】事实细节题。
【解题思路】根据第一段倒数第二句“技能的获取被认为是个人的责任”可知D项符合原文，所以正确答案为D选项。
【干扰项排除】
A选项：“他们会以最低的成本雇佣工人而不在乎其劳动技能”，原文没有提及，属于无中生有
B选项：“他们因竞争激烈而只雇佣有技术的工人。”，根据第一段第一句“如果可持续的竞争优势取决于劳动力技能，美国公司就有问题了”可知美国企业并没有很注重劳动力的技能，该选项属于曲解原文；
C选项：“相比于生产设备，他们更加重视劳动力”，根据第一段最后一句“劳动力不过是雇来的另一种生产要素——可能低的成本租用——就像购买原材料或者设备”可知该选项属于曲解原文。
第2题:
【选项释义】
What is the position of the head of human-resource management in an American firm? 美国公司的人力资源主管是什么职位？
A. He is one of the most important executives in the firm. A. 他是公司最重要的管理人员之一。
B. His post is likely to disappear when new technologies are introduced. B. 随着新技术的出现，他的职位可能会消失。
C. He has no say in making important decisions in the firm. C. 他在公司的重大决策中没有发言权。
D. He is directly under the chief financial executive. D. 他直接听命于首席财务官。
【考查点】事实细节题。
【解题思路】根据选项可以定位答案所在区域为第二段。根据第二段第三句至第四句内容“人力资源管理负责人的职位通常是一个专门的工作，处于企业等级制度的边缘。公司的高管在重大战略决策上从不征求意见，也没有机会升为首席执行官”可知人力资源主管在公司的重大决策中没有发言权，所以正确答案为C选项。
【干扰项排除】
A、B、D选项均属于曲解原文。
第3题:
【选项释义】
According to the passage, the decisive factor in maintaining a firm’s competitive advantage is ______. 根据文章，保持企业竞争优势的决定性因素是______。
A. the introduction of new technology A. 新技术的引进
B. the improvement of workers’ basic skills B. 员工基本技能的提高
C. the rational composition of professional and managerial employees C. 专业人员和管理人员的合理组成
D. the attachment of importance to the bottom half of the employees D. 对底层员工的重视
【考查点】判断推理题。
【解题思路】根据第一段第一句“如果可持续竞争优势取决于劳动力技能，那么美国公司就有问题了”，结合文章第二段讲了美国公司与日德公司在劳动力培训方面的差异，美国主要培训那些管理层，而日本、德国则重视员工技巧培训。第三段说到了结果，美国员工学习新技术时需要花更多时间。综上可知保持企业竞争优势的决定性因素是员工基本技能的提高。正确答案为B选项。
【干扰项排除】
A、C、D选项均属于曲解原文。
第4题:
【选项释义】
What is the main idea of the passage? 这篇文章的主旨是什么？
A. American firms are different from Japanese and German firms in human-resource management. A. 美国企业在人力资源管理方面不同于日本和德国企业。
B. Extensive retraining is indispensable to effective human-resource management. B. 广泛的再培训是有效的人力资源管理不可缺少的。
C. The head of human-resource management must be in the central position in a firm’s hierarchy. C. 人力资源管理主管必须处于公司等级制度的中心位置。
D. The human resource management strategies of American firms affect their competitive capacity. D. 美国企业的人力资源管理战略影响着企业的竞争力。
【考查点】主旨大意题。
【解题思路】根据第一段第二句“在美国，人力资源管理传统上并不被视为公司竞争生存的核心”可推测出之前认为人力资源管理不是公司竞争生存的核心的看法是错误的，再结合本文后面两段对比了美国公司与日德国公司的人力资源管理策略，揭示了美国公司缺乏对人力资源管理的重视和对员工的培养，所以公司竞争力下降了。因此，本文旨在说明美国企业的人力资源管理战略影响着企业的竞争力。正确答案为D选项。
【干扰项排除】
A选项：“美国企业在人力资源管理方面不同于日本和德国企业”，根据第三段第二句至三句“在一家美国公司里，首席财务官几乎总是二把手。人力资源管理负责人的职位通常是一项专门的工作，处于公司等级的边缘”，以及第三段第五句部分内容“相比之下，在日本，人力资源管理主管是公司的核心”可知该选项属于第三段内容之一，不是全文主旨，属于以偏概全；
B选项：“广泛的再培训是有效的人力资源管理不可缺少的”，原文没有提及，属于无中生有；
C选项：“人力资源管理主管必须处于公司等级制度的中心位置”，原文没有提及，属于无中生有。
