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True/False Questions
The four contemporary functions of management are planning, organizing, leading, and controlling.
True (easy)
Effectiveness refers to the relationship between inputs and outputs.
False (moderate)
Efficiency is often referred to as "doing things right."
True (moderate)
When managers meet organizational goals, they are efficient and effective.
False (difficult)
According to Mintzbergs management roles, the informational role involves receiving, collecting, and disseminating
information.
True (moderate)
Technical skills become less important as a manager moves into higher levels of management.
True (moderate)
The systems perspective underscores and emphasizes the fact that organizations are different, face different
circumstances, and thus may require different ways of managing.
False (moderate)
Multiple Choice
_____________ are organizational members who integrate and coordinate the work of others.
a. Managers (easy)
b. Team leaders
c. Subordinates
d. Operatives
e. Agents
Typically, in organizations it is the _____________ who are responsible for making organizational decisions and
setting policies and strategies that affect all aspects of the organization.
a. team leaders
b. middle managers
c. first-line managers
d. top managers (easy)
e. subordinates
_____________ distinguishes a managerial position from a nonmanagerial one.
a. Manipulating others
b. Concern for the law
c. Increasing efficiency
d. Coordinating and integrating others' work (moderate)
e. Defining market share
Which of the following is NOT an example of a decisional role according to Mintzberg?
a. spokesperson (moderate)
b. entrepreneur
c. disturbance handler
d. resource allocator
e. negotiator
Which of the following skills are more important at lower levels of management since these managers are dealing
directly with employees doing the organizations work?
a. human skills
b. technical skills (easy)
c. conceptual skills
d. empirical skills
Understanding building codes would be considered a _____________ skill for a building contractor.
a. human
b. technical (easy)
c. conceptual
d. empirical
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e. functional
Which of the following phrases is best associated with managerial conceptual skills?
a. decision-making (easy)
b. communicating with customers
c. motivating subordinates
d. product knowledge
e. technical skills
According to the text, _____________ are not influenced by and do not interact with their environment.
a. open systems
b. closed systems (easy)
c. flextime systems
d. reverse systems
e. forward systems
The _____________ view of a manager's job implies that decisions and actions taken in one organizational area will
impact other areas.
a. systems (moderate)
b. contingency
c. conceptual
d. functional
e. environmental
Which of the following best describes the concept that management is needed in all types and sizes of organizations,
at all organizational levels and in all organizational work areas, and in all organizations, no matter what country
theyre located in?
a. the partiality of management
b. the segmentation of management
c. the universality of management (moderate)
d. the cultures of management
Scenarios and Questions
The Busy Day (Scenario)
Don Eskew, plant manager at Control Systems, Inc., sighed as he sipped his first cup of coffee at 5 a.m. and read his
agenda for the day. He is giving two company tours in the morning; the first to a newspaper reporter who is writing a
story on the new plant expansion and has several questions, and the second to a group of Control Systems, Inc.,
managers from the east coast. He then has a meeting with unit manager, Phil Johnson, to discuss Phil's recent drop in
performance (a task he always hates). Next, he is spending a couple of hours reviewing the trade journals he receives
from his high-tech association and writing up a brief synopsis for his presentation next week to the Division President.
Finally, in late afternoon, he will be reviewing the new equipment malfunction and deciding whether to bring in extra
people to get the equipment running as soon as possible. Whew! Just another day in the glamorous life of a manager.
Together, all of these behaviors performed by Don during his busy day correspond to the management roles
discovered in the late 1960s by which of the following management scientists?
a. Herzberg
b. Skinner
c. Mintzberg (easy)
d. Fayol
e. Maslow
When Don was meeting with Phil to discuss his performance concerns, he was operating in which management role?
a. leader (difficult)
b. figurehead
c. monitor
d. disturbance handler
e. spokesperson
114. What role was Don performing when he gave the plant tour to the newspaper reporter?
a. monitor
b. figurehead
c. disseminator
d. spokesperson (difficult)
e. resource allocator
115. When Don was reviewing the new equipment malfunction, what management role was he playing when
deciding whether to bring in extra people?
2
a. monitor
b. disseminator
c. resource allocator (moderate)
d. disturbance handler
e. figurehead
Essay Questions
In a short essay, discuss the difference between efficiency and effectiveness and include a specific example to support
each concept.
Answer
a. Efficiency refers to getting the most output from the least amount of inputs. Because managers deal with
scarce inputsincluding resources such as people, money, and equipmentthey are concerned with the
efficient use of resources. For instance, at the Beiersdorf Inc. factory in Cincinnati, where employees make
body braces and supports, canes, walkers, crutches, and other medical assistance products, efficient
manufacturing techniques were implemented by doing things such as cutting inventory levels, decreasing
the amount of time to manufacture products, and lowering product reject rates. From this perspective,
efficiency is often referred to as doing things rightthat is, not wasting resources.
b. Effectiveness is often described as doing the right thingsthat is, those work activities that will help the
organization reach its goals. For instance, at the Biersdorf factory, goals included open communication
between managers and employees, and cutting costs. Through various work programs, these goals were
pursued and achieved. Whereas efficiency is concerned with the means of getting things done,
effectiveness is concerned with the ends, or attainment of organizational goals.
(moderate)
In a short essay, list and explain the four basic functions of management.
Answer
a. Planning involves the process of defining goals, establishing strategies for achieving those goals, and
developing plans to integrate and coordinate activities.
b. Organizing involves the process of determining what tasks are to be done, who is to do them, how the
tasks are to be grouped, who reports to whom, and where decisions are to be made.
c. Leading when managers motivate subordinates, influence individuals or teams as they work, select the
most effective communication channel, or deal in any way with employee behavior issues, they are leading.
d. Controlling to ensure that work is going as it should, managers must monitor and evaluate performance.
The process of monitoring, comparing, and correcting is what is meant by the controlling function.
(moderate)
In a short essay, list and discuss the three essential skills according to Katz that managers need to perform the duties
and activities associated with being a manager.
Answer
a. Technical skills include knowledge of an proficiency in a certain specialized field, such as engineering,
computers, accounting, or manufacturing. These skills are more important at lower levels of management
since these managers are dealing directly with employees doing the organizations work.
b. Human skills involve the ability to work well with other people both individually and in a group.
Managers with good human skills are able to get the best out of their people. They know how to
communicate, motivate, lead, and inspire enthusiasm and trust. These skills are equally important at all
levels of management.
c. Conceptual skills these are the skill that managers must have to think and to conceptualize about abstract
and complex situations. Using these skills, managers must be able to see the organization as a whole,
understand the relationships among various subunits, and visualize how the organization fits into its broader
environment. These skills are most important at the top management levels.
(moderate)
Chapter 2 Management Yesterday and Today
True/False
According to Adam Smith, division of labor was an important concept.
3
True (easy)
In the Industrial Revolution, machine power began substituting for human power.
True (easy)
Principles of Scientific Management was written by Frederick Taylor.
True (moderate)
Frank Gilbreths best-known contribution to scientific management concerned selecting the best worker.
False (moderate)
Frederick Taylor is most associated with the principles of scientific management.
True (easy)
One could say that Fayol was interested in studying macro management issues, whereas Taylor was interested in
studying micro management issues.
True (moderate)
Bureaucracy, as described by Weber, emphasizes rationality and interpersonal relationships.
False (moderate)
Decisions on determining a companys optimum inventory levels have been significantly influenced by economic
order quantity modeling.
True (moderate)
Barnard, Follet, Musterberg, and Owen are all theorists are associated with the early organizational behavior
approach.
True (moderate)
Multiple Choice
Adam Smith's, "The Wealth of Nations," put forth that the primary economic advantage by societies would be gained
from which of the following concepts?
a. management planning and control
b. on-the-job training
c. union representation
d. fair employment legislation
e. division of labor (difficult)
Which of the following is not one of the four management approaches that grew out of the first half of this century?
a. scientific management
b. general administrative
c. organizational behavior
d. systems approach (easy)
e. quantitative
According to the text, probably the best-known example of Taylors scientific management was the ______________
experiment.
a. horse shoe
b. pig iron (moderate)
c. blue collar
d. fish tank
Which of the following is NOT one of Taylors four principles of management?
a. Develop a science for each element of an individuals work, which will replace the old rule-of-thumb
method.
b. Scientifically select and then train, teach, and develop the worker.
c. Heartily cooperate with the workers so as to ensure that all work is done in accordance with the principles
developed.
d. Provide managers will less work than other employees so the managers can plan accordingly. (difficult)
General administrative theory focuses on
a. the entire organization. (easy)
b. managers and administrators.
c. the measurement of organizational design relationships.
d. primarily the accounting function.
e. administrative issues affecting non-managerial employees.
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a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
time management.
division of labor. (moderate)
group work.
quality management.
time and motion studies.
107. Cindy visited a bookstore where there was a book signing occurring. She looked down and saw that the title of
the book was Principles of Scientific Management and concluded that the author must be
a. Adam Smith.
b. Frank Gilbreth.
c. Henry Gantt.
d. Frederick Taylor. (easy)
e. Henri Fayol.
108. Cindy admired the works of Taylor and Gilbreth, two advocates of
a. scientific management. (moderate)
b. organizational behavior.
c. human resource management.
d. motivation.
e. leadership.
109. Cindy spent some time visiting with __________, a researcher she previously knew little about but who also
contributed to management science by being among the first to use motion picture films to study hand-andbody motions and by devising a classification scheme known as a "therblig."
a. Henry Gantt
b. Max Weber
c. Chester Barnard
d. Frank Gilbreth (moderate)
e. Mary Parker Follet
Essay Questions
SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT
In a short essay, discuss Frederick Taylors work in scientific management. Next, list Taylors four principles of
management.
Answer
Frederick Taylor did most of his work at the Midvale and Bethlehem Steel Companies in Pennsylvania. As a
mechanical engineer with a Quaker and Puritan background, he was continually appalled by workers
inefficiencies. Employees used vastly different techniques to do the same job. They were inclined to take it
easy on the job, and Taylor believed that worker output was only about one-third of what was possible.
Virtually no work standards existed. Workers were placed in jobs with little or no concern for matching their
abilities and aptitudes with the tasks they were required to do. Managers and workers were in continual
conflict. Taylor set out to correct the situation by applying the scientific method to shop floor jobs. He spent
more than two decades passionately pursuing the one best way for each job to be done.
Taylors Four Principles of Management
a.
Develop a science for each element of an individuals work, which will replace the old rule-of-thumb
method.
b. Scientifically select and then train, teach, and develop the worker.
c. Heartily cooperate with the workers so as to ensure that al work is done in accordance with the principles
of the science that has been developed.
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d. Divide work and responsibility almost equally between management and workers. Management takes over
all work for which it is better fitted than the workers.
(difficult)
122. In a short essay, discuss the work in scientific management by Frank and Lillian Gilbreth.
Answer
Frank Gilbreth is probably best known for his experiments in bricklaying. By carefully analyzing the
bricklayers job, he reduced the number of motions in laying exterior brick from 18 to about 5, and on laying
interior brick the motions were reduced from 18 to 2. Using the Gilbreths techniques, the bricklayer could be
more productive and less fatigued at the end of the day. The Gilbreths were among the first researchers to use
motion pictures to study hand-and-body motions and the amount of time spent doing each motion. Wasted
motions missed by the naked eye could be identified and eliminated. The Gilbreths also devised a classification
scheme to label 17 basic hand motions, which they called therbligs. This scheme allowed the Gilbreths a more
precise way of analyzing a workers exact hand movements.
(moderate)
GENERAL ADMINISTRATIVE THEORISTS
123. In a short essay, discuss the work of Henri Fayol as it relates to the general administrative approach to
management. Next list and discuss seven of Fayols fourteen principles of management.
Answer
Fayol described the practice of management as something distinct from accounting, finance, production,
distribution, and other typical business functions. He argued that management was an activity common to all
human endeavors in business, government, and even in the home. He then proceeded to state 14 principles of
managementfundamental rules of management that could be taught in schools and applied in all
organizational situations.
Fayols Fourteen Principles of Management
a. Division of work. specialization increases output by making employees more efficient.
b. Authority managers must be able to give orders. Authority gives them this right. Along with authority,
however, goes responsibility.
c. Discipline employees must obey and respect the rules that govern the organization.
d. Unity of command every employee should receive orders from only one superior.
e. Unity of direction the organization should have a single plan of action to guide managers and workers.
f. Subordination of individual interests to the general interest the interests of any one employee or group of
employees should not take precedence over the interests of the organization as a whole.
g. Remuneration workers must be paid a fair wage for their services.
h. Centralization this term refers to the degree to which subordinates are involved in decision making.
i. Scalar chain the line of authority from top management to the lowest ranks in the scalar chain.
j. Order people and materials should be in the right place at the right time.
k. Equity managers should be kind and fair to their subordinates.
l. Stability of tenure of personnel management should provide orderly personal planning and ensure that
replacements are available to fill vacancies.
m. Initiative employees who are allowed to originate and carry out plans will exert high levels of effort.
n. Esprit de corps promoting team spirit will build harmony and unity within the organization.
(difficult)
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124. In a short essay, discuss Max Webers contribution to the general administrative approach to management.
Answer
Max Weber was a German sociologist who studied organizational activity. Writing in the early 1900s, he
developed a theory of authority structures and relations. Weber describes an ideal type of organization he called
a bureaucracya form or organization characterized by division of labor, a clearly defined hierarchy, detailed
rules and regulations, and impersonal relationships. Weber recognized that this ideal bureaucracy didnt exist
in reality. Instead he intended it as a basis for theorizing about work and how work could be done in large
groups. His theory became the model structural design for many or todays large organizations.
(easy)
TOWARD UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR
125. In a short essay, describe the Hawthorne Studies. Next, discuss the role of Elton Mayo in these studies and
some of the findings of his research.
Answer
Without question, the most important contribution to the developing OB field came out of the Hawthorne
Studies, a series of studies conducted at the Western Electric Company Works in Cicero, Illinois. These studies
were initially designed by Western Electric industrial engineers as a scientific management experiment. They
wanted to examine the effect of various illumination levels on worker productivity. Based on their research, it
was concluded that illumination intensity was not directly related to group productivity. In 1927, the Western
Electric engineers asked Harvard professor Elton Mayo and his associates to join the study as consultants.
Through additional research, Elton Mayo concluded that behavior affected individual behavior, that group
standards establish individual worker output, and that money is less a factor in determining output than are
group standards, group sentiments, and security. These conclusions led to a new emphasis on the human
behavior factor in the functioning of organizations and the attainment of their goals.
(difficult)
CURRENT TRENDS AND ISSUES
126. In a short essay, define entrepreneurship and discuss the three import themes that stick out in this definition of
entrepreneurship.
Answer
Entrepreneurship is the process whereby an individual or a group of individuals uses organized efforts and
means to pursue opportunities to create value and grow by fulfilling wants and needs through innovation and
uniqueness, no matter what resources are currently controlled. It involves the discovery of opportunities and
the resources to exploit them. Three important themes stick out in this definition of entrepreneurship. First, is
the pursuit of opportunities. Entrepreneurship is about pursuing environmental trends and changes that no one
else has seen or paid attention to. The second important theme in entrepreneurship is innovation.
Entrepreneurship involves changing, revolutionizing, transforming, and introducing new approachesthat is,
new products or services of new ways of doing business. The final important theme in entrepreneurship is
growth. Entrepreneurs pursue growth. They are not content to stay small or to stay the same in size.
Entrepreneurs want their businesses to grow and work very hard to pursue growth as they continually look for
trends and continue to innovate new products and new approaches.
(moderate)
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127. In a short essay, define e-business and e-commerce. Next discuss the three categories of e-business
involvement.
Answer
E-business (electronic business) is a comprehensive term describing the way an organization does its work by
using electronic Internet-based) linkages with its key constituencies (employees, managers, customers,
suppliers, and partners) in order to efficiently and effectively achieve its goals. Its more than e-commerce,
although e-business can include e-commerce. E-commerce (electronic commerce) is any form of business
exchange or transaction in which the parties interact electronically. The first category of e-business
involvement an e-business enhanced organization, a traditional organization that sets up e-business capabilities,
usually e-commerce, while maintaining its traditional structure. Many Fortune 500 type organizations are
evolving into e-businesses using this approach. They use the Internet to enhance (not to replace) their
traditional ways of doing business. Another category of e-business involvement is an e-business enabled
organization. In this type of e-business, an organization uses the Internet to perform its traditional business
functions better, but not to sell anything. In other words, the Internet enables organizational members to do
their work more efficiently and effectively. There are numerous organizations using electronic linkages to
communicate with employees, customers, or suppliers and to support them with information. The last category
of e-business involvement is when an organization becomes a total e-business. Their whole existence is made
possible by and revolves around the Internet.
(moderate)
128. In a short essay, discuss the need for innovation and flexibility as it relates to the survival of todays
organizations.
Answer
Innovation has been called the most precious capability that any organization in todays economy must have
and nurture. Without a constant flow of new ideas, an organization is doomed to obsolescence of even worse,
failure. In a survey about what makes an organization valuable, innovation showed up at the top of the list.
There is absolutely no doubt that innovation is crucial. Another demand facing todays organizations and
managers is the need for flexibility. In a context where customers needs may change overnight, where new
competitors come and go at breathtaking speed, and where employees and their skills are shifted as needed
from project to project, one can see how flexibility might be valuable.
(easy)
129. In a short essay, discuss the concept of total quality management and the six characteristics that describe this
important concept.
Answer
A quality revolution swept through both the business and public sectors during the 1980s and 1990s. The
generic term used to describe this revolution was total quality management, or TQM for short. It was inspired
by a small group of quality experts, the most famous being W. Edwards Deming and Joseph M. Juran. TQM is
a philosophy of management driven by continual improvement and responding to customer needs and
expectations. The objective is to create an organization committed to continuous improvement in work
processes. TQM is a departure from earlier management theories that were based on the belief that low costs
were the only road to increased productivity.
The Six Characteristics of Total Quality Management
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a.
Intense Focus on the customer the customer includes not only outsiders who buy the organizations
products or services but also internal customers (such as shipping or accounts payable personnel) who
interact with and serve others in the organization.
b. Concern for continual improvement TQM is a commitment to never being satisfied. Very good is not
good enough. Quality can always be improved.
c. Process-focused TQM focuses on work processes as the quality of goods and services is continually
improved.
d. Improvement in the quality of everything the organization does TQM uses a very broad definition of
quality. It relates not only to the final product but also to how the organization handles deliveries, how
rapidly it responds to complaints, and how politely the phones are answered.
e. Accurate measurement TQM uses statistical techniques to measure every critical variable in the
organizations operations. These are compared against standards or benchmarks to identify problems, trace
them to their roots, and eliminate their causes.
f. Empowerment of employees TQM involves the people on the line in the improvement process. Teams
are widely used in TQM programs as empowerment vehicles for finding and solving problems.
(difficult)
130. In a short essay, describe the learning organization and discuss the concept of knowledge management.
Answer
Todays managers confront an environment where change takes place at an unprecedented rate. Constant
innovations in information and computer technologies combined with the globalization of markets have created
a chaotic world. As a result, many of the past management guidelines and principles no longer apply.
Successful organizations of the twenty-first century must be able to learn and respond quickly, and will be led
by managers who can effectively challenge conventional wisdom, manage the organizations knowledge base,
and make needed changes. In other words, these organizations will need to be learning organizations. A
learning organization is one that has developed the capacity to continuously learn, adapt, and change. Part of a
managers responsibility in fostering an environment conducing to learning is to create learning capabilities
throughout the organizationfrom lowest level to highest level and in all areas. Knowledge management
involves cultivating a learning culture where organizational members systematically gather knowledge and
share it with others in the organization so as to achieve better performance.
(moderate)
Chapter 3 Organizational Culture
In the symbolic view of management, managers are seen as directly responsible for an organization's success or
failure.
False (easy)
The current dominant assumption in management theory suggests managers are omnipotent.
True (moderate)
An organizational culture refers to a system of shared meaning.
True (moderate)
Organizational culture is a perception, not reality.
True (moderate)
Strong cultures have more influence on employees than weak ones.
True (moderate)
An organization's founder has little influence on its culture.
False (moderate)
The link between values and managerial behavior is fairly straightforward.
10
True (moderate)
Multiple-Choice Questions
What view suggests that managers are directly responsible for an organization's success or failure?
a.
Symbolic view of management
b.
Autocratic view of management
c.
Omnipotent view of management (moderate)
d.
Linear view of management
e.
Quality view of management
Organizational culture is similar to an individual's _____________.
a.
skills
b.
personality (easy)
c.
motivation
d.
ability
e.
knowledge
Which of the following phrases is associated with the definition of organizational culture?
a.
Individual response
b.
Shared meaning (easy)
c.
Diversity of thought
d.
Explicit directions
e.
Internal growth
The organizational _____________ is (are) a system of shared meaning held by members that distinguish(es) the
organization from other organizations.
a.
culture (easy)
b.
values
c.
rituals
d.
structure
e.
hierarchy
Which of the following is not implied by your text's definition of culture?
a.
Culture is a perception.
b.
Individuals tend to describe an organization's culture in dissimilar terms. (difficult)
c.
There is a shared aspect of culture.
d.
Organizational culture is a descriptive term.
e.
Research suggests seven dimensions to an organization's culture.
Most organizations have ____________ cultures.
a.
very weak
b.
weak to moderate
c.
moderate
d.
moderate to strong (moderate)
e.
strong to very strong
What is the original source of an organization's culture?
a.
The organization's industry
b.
The organization's size
c.
The organization's age
d.
The organization's geographic location
e.
The organization's founder (moderate)
_____________ are repetitive sequences of activities that express and reinforce key values of the organization.
a.
Rituals (easy)
b.
Stories
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c.
d.
e.
Symbols
Language
Habits
If you were talking with Todd and asked him what the term culture meant, he would reply that, basically, it is
a.
the formal rules of an organization.
b.
the nationality of the workers in the company.
c.
a system of shared meaning. (easy)
d.
a system that reflects diversity and respect for differences.
e.
the nonverbal behaviors in an organization.
107.
Todd is concerned with the degree to which managers focus on results or outcomes rather than techniques and
processes used to achieve those outcomes. He is concerned with _____________.
a.
stability
b.
aggressiveness
c.
team orientation
d.
outcome orientation (moderate)
e.
people orientation
108.
Todd notices that management is very concerned with the effects of outcomes on people within the
organization. This is referred to as _____________.
a.
stability
b.
aggressiveness
c.
team orientation
d.
outcome orientation
e.
people orientation (moderate)
109.
Todd is assessing the organization's _____________, the degree to which organizational activities emphasize
maintaining the status quo in contrast to growth.
a.
stability (moderate)
b.
aggressiveness
c.
team orientation
d.
outcome orientation
e.
people orientation
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110.
Todd has been learning the seven dimensions of organizational culture. Which of the following is not one of
those seven dimensions?
a.
Stability
b.
Aggressiveness
c.
Team orientation
d.
Outcome orientation
e.
Member orientation (moderate)
Changing Organizational Culture (Scenario)
Mary has been asked by the company president to change the organizational culture to reflect the company's new
organizational goals. As executive vice president, she certainly understands the goals, but is really not sure she
understands what to do about the culture.
111.
Mary asked employees if they knew what constituted "good employee behavior." She found that very few
understood and most had a variety of ideas. This is one indication
a.
that her company has a strong culture.
b.
that her company has a weak culture. (moderate)
c.
that her company has no culture.
d.
that her company must have high turnover.
e.
that her company must not be productive.
112.
Mary also found out that in order to build a strong new culture, she should do all but which of the following?
a.
Utilize their recruitment efforts.
b.
Develop socialization practices to build culture.
c.
Encourage a high turnover rate.
d.
Have management make explicit what is valued in the organization. (difficult)
e.
Encourage employee commitment to organizational values.
113.
Mary was surprised to find that most organizational culture strengths are
a.
weak.
b.
weak to moderate.
c.
moderate to strong. (moderate)
d.
strong.
e.
very strong.
e.
varied
Essay Questions
123.
In a short essay, identify and define the seven dimensions that make up an organizations culture.
Answer
a. Innovation and risk takingdegree to which employees are encouraged to be innovative and take risks
b. Attention to detaildegree to which employees are expected to exhibit precision analysis and attention to
detail
c. Outcome orientationdegree to which managers focus on results or outcomes rather than on how these
outcomes are achieved
d. People orientationdegree to which management decisions take into account the effects on people in the
organization
e. Team orientationdegree to which work is organized around teams rather than individuals
f. Aggressivenessdegree to which employees are aggressive and competitive rather than cooperative
g. Stabilitydegree to which organizational decisions and actions emphasize maintaining the status quo
(difficult)
125.
In a short essay, list and discuss the four most significant ways in which culture is transmitted to employees.
Include specific examples of each to support your answer.
13
Answer
a. Storiesorganizational stories typically contain a narrative of significant events or people including such
things as the organizations founders, rule breaking, and reactions to past mistakes. For instance, managers
at Nike feel that stories told about the companys past help shape the future. Whenever possible, corporate
storytellers (senior executives) explain the companys heritage and tell stories that celebrate people
getting things done. These stories provide prime examples that people can learn from.
b. Ritualscorporate rituals are repetitive sequences of activities that express and reinforce the values of the
organization, what goals are most important, which people are important, and which are expendable. One
of the best-known corporate rituals is Mary Kay Cosmetics annual meeting for its sales representatives.
At the meeting, salespeople are rewarded for their success in achieving sales goals with an array of flashy
gifts including gold and diamond pins, furs, and pink Cadillacs. This show acts as a motivator by
publicly acknowledging outstanding sales performance.
c. Material symbolsthe layout of an organizations facilities, dress attire, the types of automobiles top
executives are provided, and the availability of corporate aircraft are examples of material symbols. Others
include the size of offices, the elegance of furnishings, executive perks, the existence of employee
lounges or on-site dining facilities, and reserved parking spaces for certain employees. These material
symbols convey to employees who is important, the degree of equality desired by top management, and the
kinds of behavior that are expected and appropriate.
d. Languagemany organizations and units within organizations use language as a way to identify members
of a culture. By learning this language, members attest to their acceptance of the culture and their
willingness to help to preserve it. For instance, Microsoft has its own unique vocabulary: work judo (the
art of deflecting a work assignment to someone else without making it appear that youre avoiding it) and
eating your own dog food (the strategy of using your own software programs or products in the early
stages as a way of testing it even if the process is disagreeable). Over time, organizations often develop
unique terms to describe equipment, key personnel, suppliers, customers, or products that are related to its
business.
(moderate)
Chapter 5 Social Responsibility and Managerial Ethics
True/False Questions
5.
The classical view of organizational social responsibility is that managements only social responsibility is to
maximize profits.
True (moderate)
7.
In the socioeconomic view of organizational social responsibility, maximizing profits is a company's second
priority.
True (moderate)
9.
Socially responsible businesses tend to have less secure long-run profits.
False (difficult)
12. The difference between an organization's social obligation and social responsiveness is the legal aspect.
False (moderate)
14. Values-based management is an approach to managing in which managers establish, promote, and practice an
organization's shared values.
True (easy)
15. Though the outcomes are not perfectly measured, the majority of research studies show a positive relationship
between corporate social involvement and economic performance.
True (easy)
20. The market approach to going green is when organizations respond to multiple demands of stakeholders.
False (moderate)
21. The activist approach to going green is when an organization looks for ways to respect and preserve the earth
and its natural resources.
True (moderate)
25. Ethics refers to the rules and principles that define right and wrong conduct.
True (moderate)
26. In the rights view of ethics, decision-makers seek to impose and enforce rules fairly and impartially.
False (moderate)
27. The integrative social contracts theory proposes that decisions should be made on the basis of empirical and
normative factors.
14
True (difficult)
Studies have shown that most business people continue to hold utilitarian attitudes toward ethical behavior.
True (moderate)
29. In the preconventional stage of moral development, individuals make a clear effort to define moral principles
apart from the authority of the groups to which they belong or society in general.
False (moderate)
28.
Multiple Choice
35. Which of the following is associated with the classical view of social responsibility?
a. economist Robert Reich
b. concern for social welfare
c. stockholder financial return (moderate)
d. voluntary activities
e. ethical behaviors
37.
39.
______________ is defined as a business firms obligation, beyond that required by law and economics, to
pursue long-term goals that are good for society.
a. Social obligation
b. Social responsibility (moderate)
c. Social screening
d. Value-based management
e. Social autonomy
54.
Which of the following terms refers to when a firm meets its economic and legal responsibilities?
a. social responsibility
b. social obligation (moderate)
c. social responsiveness
d. social duty
e. social standard
57.
When a firm advertises that it only uses recycled paper products, it is ______________.
a. meeting its social obligation.
b. meeting social responsibilities.
c. being socially responsive. (difficult)
d. paying attention to the bottom line.
e. attempting to defraud consumers.
59.
One should be cautious in the interpretation, but a summary of more than a dozen studies analyzing the
relationship between organizational social responsibility and economic performance provides what conclusion?
a. Being socially responsible causes good economic performance.
b. Good economic performance allows firms to be socially responsible.
c. There is a positive relationship between corporate social involvement and economic performance.
(difficult)
d. Corporate social involvement tends to devalue stock price in the long run.
e. Corporate social involvement tends to result in increased net income but lower stock prices.
a.
65.
Social autonomy
b.
c.
d.
e.
72.
The ______________ approach to environmental issues is when an organization obeys rules and regulations
but exhibits little environmental sensitivity.
a. legal (moderate)
b. market
c. stakeholder
d. responsibility
e. activist
74.
75.
Which of the following approaches toward environmental issues exhibits the highest degree of environmental
sensitivity and is a good illustration of social responsibility?
a. legal approach
b. market approach
c. stakeholder approach
d. activist approach (moderate)
81.
84.
Which of the following encourages efficiency and productivity and is consistent with the goal of profit
maximization?
a. utilitarian view (moderate)
b. principled view
c. rights view
d. theory of justice view
e. integrative social contracts theory
85.
86.
87.
The integrative social contracts theory of ethics is based on which of the following?
16
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
92.
93.
______________ is a personality attribute that measures the degree to which people believe they control their
own fate.
a. Ego strength
b. Locus of control (easy)
c. Social responsibility
d. Social obligation
e. Social autonomy
97.
Which of the following is true concerning the impact of organizational culture on ethical behavior?
a. Low conflict tolerance leads to ethical behavior.
b. A strong culture will support high ethical standards. (moderate)
c. Conflict tolerance is related to unethical behavior.
d. A culture that is high in control tends to encourage unethical behavior.
e. None of the above is true.
104. A survey of various codes of ethics found that their content tended to fall into all of the following categories
EXCEPT:
a. be a dependable and organizational citizen.
b. do not do anything unlawful or improper that will harm the organization.
c. consider profit maximization to be the primary focus of the company. (moderate)
d. be good to customers.
Essay Questions
WHAT IS SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY?
122. In short essay, discuss social responsibility and compare and contrast social obligation and social
responsiveness.
Answer
a. Social responsibility adds an ethical imperative to do those things that make society better and not to do
those that could make it worse. A social responsible organization goes beyond what it must do by law or
chooses to do only because it makes economic sense to do what it can to help improve society because
thats the right, or ethical, thing to do. Social responsibility requires business to determine what is right or
wrong and to make ethical decisions and engage in ethical business activities. A social responsible
organization does what is right because it feels it has a responsibility to act that way.
b. Social obligation is the obligation of a business to meet its economic and legal responsibilities. The
organization does the minimum required by law. Following an approach of social obligation, a firm
pursues social goals only to the extent that they contribute to its economic goals. This approach is based
on the classical view of social responsibility; that is, the business feels its only social duty is to its
stockholders. In contrast to social obligation, however, both social responsibility and social responsiveness
go beyond merely meeting basic economic and legal standards.
c. Social responsiveness refers to the capacity of a firm to adapt to changing societal conditions. The idea of
social responsiveness stresses that managers make practical decisions about the societal actions in which
17
they engage. A socially responsive organization acts the way it does because of its desire to satisfy some
popular social need. Social responsiveness is guided by social norms. The value of social norms is that
they can provide managers with a meaningful guide for decision making.
(moderate)
125. In a short essay, explain the four approaches that organizations can take with respect to environmental issues.
Answer
The first approach simply is doing what is required legally: the legal approach. Under this approach,
organizations exhibit little environmental sensitivity. They obey laws, rules, and regulations willingly and
without legal challenge, and they may even try to use the law to their own advantage, but thats the extent of
their being green. This approach is a good illustration of social obligation: These organizations simply are
following their legal obligations of pollution prevention and environmental protection. As an organization
becomes more aware of and sensitive to environmental issues, it may adopt the market approach. In this
approach, organizations respond to the environmental preferences of their customers. Whatever customers
demand in terms of environmentally friendly products will be what the organization provides. Under the next
approach, the stakeholder approach, the organization chooses to respond to multiple demands made by
stakeholders. Under the stakeholder approach, the green organization will work to meet the environmental
demands of groups such as employees, suppliers, or the community. Both the market approach and the
stakeholder approach are good illustrations of social responsiveness. Finally, if an organization pursues an
activist approach, it looks for ways to respect and preserve the earth and its natural resources. The activist
approach exhibits the highest degree of environmental sensitivity and is a good illustration of social
responsibility.
(moderate)
126. In a short essay, describe the four-stage model of an organizations expanding social responsibility.
Answer
A Stage 1 manager will promote stockholders interests by seeking to minimize costs and maximize profits.
Although all laws and regulations will be followed, Stage managers do not feel obligated to satisfy other
societal needs. This is consistent with Friedmans classical view of social responsibility. At Stage 2, managers
will accept their responsibility to employees and focus on human resource concerns. Because theyll want to
recruit, keep, and motivate good employees, Stage 2 managers will improve working conditions, expand
employee rights, increase job security, and the like. At Stage 3, managers expand their responsibilities to other
stakeholders in the specific environmentthat is, customers and suppliers. Social responsibility goals of Stage
3 managers include fair prices, high-quality products and services, safe products, good supplier relations, and
similar actions. Their philosophy is that they can meet their responsibilities to stockholders only by meeting the
needs of their other constituents. Finally, Stage 4 characterizes the extreme socioeconomic definition of social
responsibility. At this stage, managers feel a responsibility to society as a whole. Their business is seen as a
public entity, and they feel a responsibility for advancing the public good. The acceptance of such
responsibility means that managers actively promote social justice, preserve the environment, and support
social and cultural activities. They take these stances even if such actions negatively affect profits.
(moderate)
127. In a short essay, discuss the four views of ethics. Include a discussion of the benefits and drawbacks related to
each of the four views.
Answer
a. The utilitarian view of ethics says that ethical decisions are made solely on the basic of their outcomes or
consequences. Utilitarian theory uses a quantitative method for making ethical decisions by looking at
how to provide the greatest good for the greatest number. Utilitarianism encourages efficiency and
productivity and is consistent with the goal of profit maximization. However, it can result in biased
allocations of resources, especially when some of those affected by the decision lack representation or a
voice in the decision. Utilitarianism can also result in the rights of some stakeholders being ignored.
b. The rights view of ethics is concerned with respecting and protecting individual liberties and privileges
such as the rights to privacy, freedom of conscience, free speech, life and safety, and due process. This
would include, for example, protecting the free speech rights of employees who report legal violations by
their employers. The positive side of the rights perspective is that it protects individuals basic rights, but it
18
has a negative side for organizations. It can present obstacles to high productivity and efficiency by
creating a work climate that is more concerned with protecting individuals rights than with getting the job
done.
c. The next view is the theory of justice view of ethics. Under this approach, managers are to impose and
enforce rules fairly and impartially and do so by following all legal rules and regulations. A manager
would be using the theory of justice perspective by deciding to provide the same rate of pay to individuals
who are similar in their levels of skills, performance, or responsibility and not basing that decision on
arbitrary differences such as gender, personality, race, or personal favorites. Using standards of justice also
has pluses and minuses. It protects the interests of those stakeholders who may be underrepresented or
lack power, but it can encourage a sense of entitlement that might make employees reduce risk taking,
innovation, and productivity.
d. The final ethics perspective, the integrative social contracts theory, proposes that ethical decisions should
be based on empirical and normative factors. This view of ethics is based on the integration of two
contracts: the general social contract that allows businesses to operate and defines the acceptable ground
rules, and a more specific contract among members of a community that addresses acceptable ways of
behaving. This view of business differs from the other three in that it suggests that managers need to look
at existing ethical norms in industries and companies in order to determine what constitutes right and
wrong decisions and actions.
(difficult)
Chapter 6 Decision-Making: The Essence of the Managers Job
True/False Questions
4.
The first step in the decision-making process is identifying a problem.
True (easy)
6.
It is possible at the end of the decision-making process that you may be required to start the decision process
over again.
True (easy)
10. Decision-making is synonymous with managing.
True (easy)
12. One assumption of rationality is that we cannot know all of the alternatives.
False (difficult)
13. Accepting solutions that are "good enough" is termed satisfying.
False (easy)
15. Managers regularly use their intuition in decision-making.
True (easy)
16. Rational analysis and intuitive decision-making are complementary.
True (moderate)
18. Programmed decisions tend to be repetitive and routine.
True (easy)
21. Most managerial decisions in the real world are fully nonprogrammed.
False (easy)
24. Risk is a situation in which a decision maker has neither certainty nor reasonable probability estimates.
False (difficult)
25. An optimistic manager will follow a maximin approach.
False (moderate)
Multiple Choice
THE DECISION-MAKING PROCESS
34.
A series of eight steps that begins with identifying a problem and decision criteria and allocating weights to
those criteria; moves to developing, analyzing, and selecting an alternative that can resolve the problem; implements
the alternative; and concludes with evaluating the decision's effectiveness is the ______________.
a. decision-making process. (easy)
b. managerial process.
c. maximin style.
d. bounded rationality approach.
e. legalistic opportunism process.
19
36.
"A discrepancy between an existing and a desired state of affairs" describes which of the steps in the
decision-making process?
a. criteria weight allocation
b. analysis of alternatives
c. problem identification (difficult)
d. decision effectiveness evaluation
e. decision criteria identification
38.
Which of the following must be present in order to initiate the decision-making process?
a. plenty of time
b.
pressure to act (moderate)
c. a lack of authority
d. a lack of resources
e. environmental certainty
39.
Managers aren't likely to characterize something as a problem if they perceive ______________.
a.
they don't have authority to act. (difficult)
b. pressure to act.
c. a discrepancy.
d. they have sufficient resources.
e. they have budgetary authority.
44.
47.
48.
Which of the following is important to remember in evaluating the effectiveness of the decision-making
process?
a. Ignore criticism concerning the decision-making.
b. You may have to start the whole decision process over. (difficult)
c. Restart the decision-making process if the decision is less than 50% effective.
d. 90% of problems with decision-making occur in the implementation step.
e. Keep track of problems with the chosen alternative, but only change those issues that upper management
demand.
49.
51.
52.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
53.
54.
57.
58.
In "bounded rationality," managers construct ______________ models that extract the essential features from
problems.
a. multiple
b. binding
c. interactive
d. simplified (difficult)
e. past
59.
According to the text, because managers cant possibly analyze all information on all alternatives, managers
______________, rather than ______________.
a. maximize; satisfice
b. maximize; minimize
c. satisfice; minimize
d. satisfice; maximize (moderate)
62.
An increased commitment to a previous decision despite evidence that it may have been wrong is referred to as
_____________.
a. economies of commitment
b. escalation of commitment (moderate)
c. dimensional commitment
d. expansion of commitment
64.
According to the text, all of the following are aspects of intuition EXCEPT:
a. experienced-based decisions
b. affect-initiated decisions
c. cognitive-based decisions
d. values or ethics-based decisions
e. programmed decisions (easy)
21
65.
According to the text, _____________ are straightforward, familiar, and easily defined problems.
a. poorly-structured problems
b. well-structured problems (moderate)
c. unique problems
d. non-programmed problems
e. programmed problems
68.
______________ decision-making is relatively simple and tends to rely heavily on previous solutions.
a. Nonprogrammed
b. Linear
c. Satisficing
d. Integrative
e.
Programmed (moderate)
70.
A ______________ is a series of interrelated sequential steps that a manager can use for responding to a
structured problem.
a.
procedure (easy)
b. rule
c. policy
d. system
e. solution
71.
A ______________ is an explicit statement that tells a manager what he or she ought or ought not to do.
a. procedure
b. policy
c.
rule (moderate)
d. solution
e. system
72.
A ______________ provides guidelines to channel a manager's thinking in a specific direction.
a. system
b. rule
c. solution
d.
policy (moderate)
e. procedure
75.
A business school's statement that it "strives for productive relationships with local organizations," is an
example of a ______________.
a. rule.
b.
policy. (moderate)
c. procedure.
d. commitment.
e. contract.
78. Which of the following terms is associated with nonprogrammed decisions?
a. unique (moderate)
b. recurring
c. routine
d. repetitive
e. well-defined
79. Lower-level managers typically confront what type of decision-making?
a. unique
b. nonroutine
c. programmed (moderate)
d. nonprogrammed
e. nonrepetitive
83. If an individual knows the price of three similar cars at different dealerships, he/she is operating under what
type of decision-making condition?
a. risk
b. uncertainty
c. certainty (easy)
d. factual
e. unprogrammed
22
84. ______________ is those conditions in which the decision maker is able to estimate the likelihood of certain
outcomes.
a. Certainty
b. Risk (easy)
c. Uncertainty
d. Maximax
e. Maximin
85. A retail clothing store manager who estimates how much to order for the current spring season based on last
spring's outcomes is operating under what kind of decision-making condition?
a. seasonal
b. risk (difficult)
c. uncertainty
d. certainty
e. cyclical
86. ______________ is a situation in which a decision maker has neither certainty nor reasonable probability
estimates available.
a. Certainty
b. Risk
c. Uncertainty (easy)
d. Maximax
e. Maximin
87. A person at a horse racetrack who bets all of his/her money on the odds-based longshot to "win" (rather than
"place" or "show") is making what kind of choice?
a. maximax (moderate)
b. maximin
c. minimax
d. minimin
89.
An individual making a "maximin" type of choice has what type of psychological orientation concerning
uncertain decision-making?
a. optimist
b. realist
c. pessimist (moderate)
d. satisficer
e. extremist
91.
According to the text, a manager who desires to minimize his or her maximim regret will opt for a
______________ choice.
a. maximax
b. maximin
c. minimax (moderate)
d. minimin
93.
Which of the following decision-making styles have low tolerance for ambiguity and are rational in their way
of thinking?
a. directive (moderate)
b. egotistical
c. analytic
d. conceptual
e. behavioral
95.
The decision-making style that makes fast decisions and focuses on the short terms is referred to as the
______________ style.
a. directive (moderate)
b. egotistical
c. analytic
d. conceptual
e. behavioral
98.
According to the text, ______________ are best characterized as careful decision makers with the ability
to adapt or cope with unique situations.
a. conceptual
23
b. behavioral
c. empirical
d.
analytic (moderate)
e. spatial
99. Which of the following is the decision-making style that would most likely look at as many alternatives as
possible and focus on the long run?
a. analytical
b. directive
c. conceptual (moderate)
d. behavioral
e. spatial
101.
A manager who would decide what computer system to purchase for the department by holding a meeting
and receiving feedback from his/her subordinates matches with which type of decision-making style?
a. analytical
b.
behavioral (difficult)
c. conceptual
d. directive
e. empirical
Scenarios
Decision-Making Conditions (Scenario)
Sandy Jo is the manager for TrucksRUs, a medium-sized hauling service located in the Southeast. She is responsible
for scheduling trucks, initiating new routes, and staffing both existing and new routes. She is currently struggling with
existing information about the profitability of existing and future truck routes.
116.
Bubba, Sandy Jo's best driver tells her that he believes that he can estimate that there is a 75% probability that
they can get the business of Pork Brothers Inc. if they initiate a truck route through rural North Carolina. Bubba
is operating under a condition of ______________.
a. certainty.
b. risk. (difficult)
c. uncertainty.
d. maximax.
e. maximin.
117.
Sandy Jo can make accurate decisions if she is willing to pay $5,000 for research about the profitability of
various truck routes. If she pays for the research, she believes that she is operating under a condition of
______________.
a. certainty. (difficult)
b. risk.
c. uncertainty.
d. maximax.
e. maximin.
118. Sandy Jo knows that she is operating in an uncertain environment. She is basically an optimist, and we would,
therefore, expect her to follow a ______________ strategy.
a. certainty
b. risk
c. uncertainty
d. maximax (moderate)
e. maximin
119. Sandy Jo knows that she is operating in an uncertain environment. She is basically a pessimist, and we would,
therefore, expect her to follow a ______________ strategy.
a. certainty
b. risk
c. minimax
d. maximax
e. maximin (moderate)
24
120. Sandy Jo wishes to minimize her regret and will probably opt for a ______________ strategy.
a. certainty.
b. risk.
c. minimax (moderate)
d. maximax.
e. maximin.
Essay Questions
THE DECISION-MAKING PROCESS
121. In a short essay, list and discuss the eight steps in the decision-making process.
Answer
a. Step 1: Identifying a problem the decision-making process begins with the existence of a problem or a
discrepancy between an existing and a desired state of affairs. However, a discrepancy without pressure to
take action becomes a problem that can be postponed.
b. Step 2: Identify decision criteria once the manager has identified a problem that needs attention, the
decision criteria important to resolving the problem must be identified. That is, managers must determine
whats relevant in making a decision.
c. Step 3: Allocating weights to the criteria: at this step, the decision maker must weigh the items in order to
give them the correct priority in the decision. A simple approach is to give the most important criterion a
weight of 10 and then assign weights to the rest against that standard.
d. Step 4: Developing alternatives the fourth step requires the decision maker to list the viable alternatives
that could resolve the problem. No attempt is made in this step to evaluate the alternative, only to list
them.
e. Step 5: Analyzing alternatives once the alternatives have been identified, the decision maker must
critically analyze each one. From this comparison, the strengths and weaknesses of each alternative
become evident.
f. Step 6: Selecting an alternative the sixth step is the important act of choosing the best alternative from
among those considered. All the pertinent criteria in the decision have now been determined, weighted,
and the alternatives have been identified and analyzed.
g. Step 7: Implementing the alternative implementation involves conveying the decision to those affected
by it and getting their commitment to it. If the people who must carry out a decision participate in the
process, theyre more likely to enthusiastically support the outcome than if they are just told what to do.
h. Step 8: Evaluating decision effectiveness the last step in the decision-making process involves appraising
the outcome of the decision to see if the problem has been resolved. Did the alternative chose and
implemented accomplish the desired result? If not, the manager may consider returning to a previous step
or may even consider starting the whole decision process over.
(difficult)
123. In a short essay, discuss the assumptions of rationality and the validity of those assumptions.
Answer
A decision maker who was perfectly rational would be fully objective and logical. He or she would carefully
define a problem and would have a clear and specific goal. Moreover, making decisions using rationality
would consistently lead toward selecting the alternative that maximizes the likelihood of achieving that goal.
The assumptions of rationality apply to any decision. Rational managerial decision making assumes that
decisions are made in the best economic interests of the organization. That is, the decision maker is assumed to
be maximizing the organizations interests, not his or her own interests. Managerial decision making can follow
rational assumptions if the following conditions are met: The manager is faced with a simple problem in which
the goals are clear and the alternatives limited, in which the time pressures are minimal and the cost of seeking
out and evaluating alternatives is low, for which the organizational culture supports innovation and risk taking,
and in which outcomes are relatively concrete and measurable. However, most decisions that managers face in
the real world dont meet all those tests.
(moderate)
126.
In a short essay, discuss the difference between well-structured and poorly structured problems. Include
specific examples of each type of problem to support your answer. Next discuss the type of decisions that would be
used to address each of these problems.
25
Answer
a. Well-structured problems - the goal of the decision marker is clear, the problem is familiar, and information
about the problem is easily defined and complete. Examples of these types of problems might include a
customers wanting to return a purchase to a retail store, a suppliers being late with an important delivery,
a news teams responding to an unexpected and fast-breaking event, or a colleges handling of a student
wanting to drop a class. Such situations are called well-structured problems since they are straightforward,
familiar, and easily defined problems. In handling these problem situations, the manager uses a
programmed decision. Decisions are programmed to the extent that they are repetitive and routine and to
the extent that a definite approach has been worked out for handling them. Because the problem is well
structured, the manager doesnt have to go to the trouble and expense of going through an involved
decision progress. Programmed decision making is relatively simple and tends to rely heavily on previous
solutions.
b. Poorly-structured problems these problems are new or unusual and for which information is ambiguous
or incomplete. For example, the selection of an architect to design a new corporate manufacturing facility
in Bangkok is an example of a poorly-structured problem. When problems are poorly-structured, managers
must rely on nonproprammed decision making in order to develop unique solutions. Nonprogrammed
decisions are unique and nonrecurring. When a manager confronts a poorly-structured problem, or one
that is unique, there is no cut-and-dried solution. It requires a custom-made response through
nonprogrammed decision making.
(difficult)
130. In a short essay, list and discuss the four decision-making styles as described in the text.
Answer
a. Directive style people using the directive style have low tolerance for ambiguity and are rational in their
way of thinking. Theyre efficient and logical. Directive types make fast decisions and focus on the short
run. Their efficiency and speed in making decisions often result in their making decisions with minimal
information and assessing few alternatives.
b. Analytic style decision-makers with an analytic style have much greater tolerance for ambiguity than do
directive types. They want more information before making a decision and consider more alternatives than
a directive style decision-maker does. Analytic decision-makers are best characterized as careful decisionmakers with the ability to adapt or cope with unique situations.
c. Conceptual style individuals with a conceptual style tend to be very broad in their outlook and will look
at many alternatives. They focus on the long run and are very good at finding creative solutions to
problems.
d. Behavioral style these decision markers work well with others. Theyre concerned about the
achievements of subordinates and are receptive to suggestions from others. They often use meetings to
communicate, although they try to avoid conflict. Acceptance by others is important to this decisionmaking style.
(moderate)
Chapter 7 Foundations of Planning
True/False Questions
4.
Research indicates that managers who plan always outperform managers who do not plan.
False (moderate)
9.
Plans that specify the details of achievement of the overall objectives are called operational plans.
True (difficult)
10.
12.
Standing plans are created in response to programmed decisions that managers make and include policies,
rules, and procedures.
True (moderate)
26
13.
The greater the environmental certainty, the more plans need to be directional and emphasis placed on the short
term.
False (moderate)
22.
An organization's real goals are what they actually plan on accomplishing, rather than what they hope to
accomplish.
False (moderate)
24.
Real goals are official statements of what an organization says its goals are.
False (easy)
Multiple Choice
36. One purpose of planning is that it minimizes ______________ and ______________.
a. cost; time
b. time; personnel needs
c. waste; redundancy (difficult)
d. time; waste
e. mistakes; cost
38.
What does the evidence suggest about organizations that plan compared to organizations that do not plan?
a. Planning organizations always outperform nonplanning organizations.
b. Nonplanning organizations always outperform planning organizations.
c. Planning organizations generally outperform nonplanning organizations (easy)
d. Nonplanning organizations generally outperform planning organizations.
e. They generally perform at about the same level.
45.
46.
According to the text, _____________ are documents that outline how goals are going to be met and which
typically describe resource allocations, schedules, and other necessary actions to accomplish the goals.
a. strategies
b. goals
c. plans (moderate)
d. policies
e. procedures
50.
54.
What should a person do to understand what are the real objectives of the organization?
a. observe organizational member actions (moderate)
b. attend a stockholders annual meeting
c. read their statement of purpose
d. read their annual report
e. watch television news reports
59.
When we categorize plans as being single-use versus standing, we categorize them by ______________.
27
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
breadth.
specificity.
frequency of use. (easy)
depth.
time frame.
61.
Based on the information presented in the text, ______________ are short term, specific, and standing.
a. operational (moderate)
b. long-term
c. strategic
d. specific
e. directional
67.
An organizational plan that has a 6-year time frame would be considered what type of plan?
a. operational
b. short-term
c. strategic
d. intermediate
e. long-term (moderate)
68.
71.
Compared to directional plans, what type of plan has clearly defined objectives?
a. strategic
b. single-use
c. short-term
d. specific (moderate)
e. standing
76.
Planning accuracy with a high degree of environmental change tends to produce which of the following
results?
a. Planning accuracy is likely.
b. Planning accuracy becomes much more important.
c. Planning accuracy becomes less important.
d. Planning accuracy is less likely. (moderate)
e. Planning accuracy occurs in the long-run.
78.
A ______________ plan is a one-time plan designed to meet the needs of a unique situation and created in
response to nonprogrammed decisions that managers make.
a. single-use (easy)
b. short-term
c. directional
d. standing
e. strategic
79.
A small town's preparation for a visit by the President of the United States would be considered what type of
plan?
a. strategic
b. directional
c. standing
d. long-term
e. single-use (moderate)
28
81.
A city's policy concerning skateboarding on downtown sidewalks providing guidance for police action would
be considered what type of plan?
a. standing (difficult)
b. contingency
c. directional
d. single-use
e. strategic
84.
89.
A management system in which specific performance goals are jointly determined by employees and their
managers is known as ______________.
a. management by objectives. (moderate)
b. means-ends chain.
c. traditional goal setting.
d. management by opinions.
91.
Which of the following is not one of the four common elements of Management By Objectives (MBO)?
a. goal specificity
b. participative decision-making
c. an explicit time period
d. a systems loop (difficult)
e. performance feedback
93.
105. According to the boxed feature, Managing in an E-Business World, probably the biggest change for planning
in e-business is that ______________.
a. the environment is more stable.
b. customers are calling the shots. (moderate)
c. employees are making the demands.
d. only a few competitors exist.
Essay Questions
122. In a short essay, list and discuss the four reasons for planning.
Answer
a. Planning establishes coordinated effort. It gives direction to managers and nonmanagers alike. When
employees know where the organization or work unit are going and what they must contribute to reach
goals, they can coordinate their activities, cooperate with each other, and do what it takes to accomplish
those goals. Without planning, departments and individuals might be working at cross-purposes,
preventing the organization from moving efficiently toward its goals.
b. Planning reduces uncertainty by forcing managers to look ahead, anticipate change, consider the impact of
change, and develop appropriate responses. It also clarifies the consequences of actions managers might
take in response to change. Even though planning cant eliminate change, managers plan in order to
anticipate changes and develop the most effective response to them.
c. Planning reduces overlapping and wasteful activities. When work activities are coordinated around
established plans, wasted time and resources and redundancy can be minimized. Furthermore, when means
29
and ends are made clear through planning, inefficiencies become obvious and can be corrected or
eliminated.
d. Planning establishes goals or standards that are used in controlling. If managers are unsure of what they
are trying to accomplish, they will be unable to determine whether or not the goal has actually been
achieved. In planning, goals and plans are developed. Then, through controlling, actual performance is
compared against the goals, significant deviations are identified, and necessary corrective action is taken.
Without planning, there would be no way to control.
(moderate)
127. In a short essay, list and discuss five characteristics of well-defined goals.
Answer
(1) A well-designed goal should be written in terms of outcomes rather than actions. The desired end result is
the most important element of any goal and, therefore, the goal should be written to reflect this. (2) Next, a
goal should be measurable and quantifiable. Its much easier to determine if a goal has been met if its
measurable. In line with specifying a quantifiable measure of accomplishment, (3) a well-designed goal should
also be clear as to a time frame. Although open-ended goals may seem preferable because of their supposed
flexibility, in fact, goals without a time frame make an organization less flexible because a manager is never
sure when the goal has been met or when he or she should call it quits because the goal will never be met
regardless of how long he or she works at it. (4) Next a well-designed goal should be challenging but
attainable. Goals that are too easy to accomplish are not motivating and neither are goals that are not attainable
even with exceptional effort. (5) Next, well-designed goals should be written down. Although actually writing
down goals may seem too time consuming, the process of writing the goals forces people to think them
through. In addition, the written goals become visible and tangible evidence of the importance of working
toward something. (6) Finally, well-designed goals are communicated to all organizational members who need
to know the goals. Making people aware of the goals ensures that theyre on the same page and working in
ways to ensure the accomplishment of the organizational goals.
(moderate)
128. In a short essay, list and discuss the five steps in the goal-setting process.
Answer
a. Step 1: Review the organizations mission, the purpose of the organization. These broad statements of
what the organizations purpose is and what it hopes to accomplish provide an overall guide to what
organizational members think is important. Its important to review these statements before writing goals
because the goals should reflect what the mission statement says.
b. Step 2: Evaluate available resources. A manager doesnt want to set goals that are impossible to achieve
given the available resources. Even though goals should be challenging, they should be realistic. If the
resources a manager has to work with doesnt allow for the achievement of that goal no matter how had the
manager tries of how much effort is exerted, that goal shouldnt be set.
c. Step 3: Determine individually, or with input from others, the goals. These goals reflect desired outcomes
and should be congruent with the organizational mission and goals in other organizational areas. These
goals should be measurable, specific, and include a time frame for accomplishment.
d. Step 4: Write down the goals and communicate them to all who need to know. Writing goals down forces
people to think them through and also makes those goals visible and tangible evidence of the importance of
working toward something.
e. Step 5: Review results and whether goals are being met. Make changes, as needed. Once the goals have
been established, written down, and communicated, a manager is ready to develop plans for pursuing the
goals.
(difficult)
129. In a short essay, list and discuss the three contingency factors that affect planning.
Answer
a. Level in the organization for the most part, operational planning dominates managers planning efforts at
lower levels. At higher organizational levels, the planning becomes more strategy oriented.
b. Degree of environmental uncertainty when environmental uncertainty is high, plans should be specific,
but flexible. Managers must be prepared to reword and amend plans as theyre implemented. At times,
managers may even have to abandon their plans.
c. Length of future commitments the more that current plans affect future commitments, the longer the time
frame for which managers should plan. This commitment concept means that plans should extend far
30
enough to meet those commitments made when the plans were developed. Planning for too long or for too
short a time period is inefficient and ineffective.
(moderate)
Chapter 8 Strategic Management
True/False Questions
3.
The first step in the strategic management process is analyzing the external environment.
False (difficult)
6.
Within an industry, an environment can present opportunities to one organization and pose threats to another.
True (moderate)
11.
The final step in the strategic management process is implementing the objectives.
False (difficult)
Corporate-level strategies are developed for organizations that run more than one type of business.
True (moderate)
21.
The business group that is characterized by having low growth but high market share is known as a cash cow.
True (moderate)
23.
According to the Boston Consulting Group matrix, question marks are businesses that generate large amounts
of cash, but their prospects for future growth are limited?
False (moderate)
27.
According to Porter's competitive strategies framework, the cost leadership strategy would result in the best
quality product at a justifiable cost.
False (difficult)
Multiple Choice
38.
The strategic management process is divided into which of the following sections?
a. planning, implementation, and evaluation (easy)
b. problem identification, planning, and implementation
c. implementation, evaluation, and restructuring
d. mission statement, environmental evaluation, and specific goals
e. mission statement, environmental scoping, and evaluation
39.
In the strategic management process, the ______________ defines the organizational purpose and answers the
question: "What is our reason for being in business?"
a. objective
b. evaluation
c. strategy
d. mission (easy)
e. values statement
41.
45.
What step in the strategic management process follows analyzing the external environment?
a. identifying opportunities and threats (moderate)
b. mission statement
c. evaluation
d. identifying strengths and weaknesses
e. formulating strategies
50.
What step in the strategic management process follows analyzing the organization's resources?
a. identifying opportunities and threats
b. formulating strategy
c. mission statement
d. implementing strategy
e. identifying strengths and weaknesses (easy)
55.
In the strategic management process, what step comes prior to evaluating results?
a. identifying strengths and weaknesses
b. formulating strategies
c. identifying opportunities and threats
d. implementing strategies (easy)
f. analyzing the organization's resources
56.
60.
62.
Lower level managers in an organization are typically responsible for which of the following types of
strategies?
a. functional-level strategies
b. business-level strategies
c. corporate-level strategies
d. mergers and acquisitions
63.
65.
When PepsiCo seeks to integrate the strategies of Pepsi, 7-Up International, and Frito-Lay, it is developing
what level of business strategy?
a. functional
b. system
c. management
d. business
e. corporate (moderate)
68.
70.
76.
In ______________, the organization attempts to gain control of its inputs by becoming its own supplier.
a. forward vertical integration
b. backward vertical integration (moderate)
c. horizontal integration
d. related diversification
e. unrelated diversification
78.
Which of the following describes a company growing by combining with other organizations in the same
industry?
a. forward vertical integration
b. backward vertical integration
c. horizontal integration (moderate)
d. related diversification
e. unrelated diversification
86.
Which of the four business groups in the corporate portfolio matrix has high growth and high market share?
a. cash cow
b. stars (difficult)
c. question marks
d. dogs
e. elephants
98.
Michael Porter's competitive strategies framework identifies three generic competitive strategies: cost
leadership, differentiation, and ______________.
a. depth.
b. breadth.
c. revenue growth.
d. focus. (moderate)
e. acquisition.
102. Porter's competitive strategies framework describes a ______________ strategy whereby an organization wants
to be unique in its industry along dimensions widely valued by buyers.
a. differentiation (moderate)
b. focus
c. cost leadership
d. depth
33
e. defender
105. According to the boxed feature, Managing in an E-Business World, all of the following are mentioned as
major implications of the increasingly dynamic and uncertain environments on e-business strategies EXCEPT:
a. environmental analysis will become an important part of everyones job.
b. strategy will become increasingly long term in orientation. (moderate)
c. barriers to entry are practically nonexistent.
d. a sustainable competitive advantage will be harder to achieve.
Scenarios
A Large Taco (Scenario)
It is now ten years later and, as the original owner of Taco Rocket, you have seen your business holdings grow
substantially. You now need to decide how to best manage and utilize the large number of assets represented by the
companies you own. You called the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), and they have offered you some advice based
on their corporate portfolio matrix.
117.
Your oldest holding, Taco Rocket, has not grown much in recent years but, due to low debt, generates a huge
amount of cash. Taco Rocket would be considered, according to BCG, a ______________.
a. cash cow. (moderate)
b. star.
c. question mark.
d. dog.
e. does not fit with their matrix-
118.
Recently, you also purchased a company that manufactures a new satellite dish, allowing you to enter into the
cable television market. The business is profitable and growing, but the technological unknowns make it risky.
BGC considers it a ______________.
a. cash cow.
b. star.
c. question mark. (moderate)
d. dog.
e. does not fit with their matrix-
119.
Another purchase you made was to acquire a local coffee-cart chain with thirty locations around the city. You
don't see it growing very much, but then, it doesn't cost much to operate. BGC has labeled this venture a
______________.
a. cash cow.
b. star.
c. question mark.
d. dog. (moderate)
e. does not fit with their matrix
120.
You also got somewhat lucky with an investment made a few years ago. You were an original investor in a
computer chip company that took off quickly and now dominates the market. While growing quickly, it does not tend
to generate positive cash flow and is in continuous need of reinvestment of equipment and product development. BGC
considers this a ______________.
a. cash cow.
b. star. (moderate)
c. question mark.
d. dog.
e. does not fit with their matrixEssay Questions
THE STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT PROCESS
121. In a short essay, list and discuss the eight steps in the strategic management process.
34
123. In a short essay, list and discuss the three levels of strategy that an organization must develop.
Answer
a. Corporate-level strategy this strategy seeks to determine what businesses a company should be in or
wants to be in. Corporate-level strategy determines the direction that the organization is going and the
roles that each business unit in the organization will plan in pursuing that direction.
b. Business-level strategy this strategy seeks to determine how an organization should compete in each of
its businesses. For a small organization in only one line of business or the large organization that has not
diversified into different products or markets, the business-level strategy typically overlaps with the
organizations corporate strategy. For organizations with multiple businesses, however, each division will
have its own strategy that defines the products or services it will offer and the customers it wants to reach.
c. Functional-level strategy this strategy seeks to determine how to support the business-level strategy. For
organizations that have traditional functional departments such as manufacturing, marketing, human
resources, research and development, and finance, these strategies need to support the business-level
strategy
(moderate)
126. In a short essay, discuss the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) matrix and explain its usefulness in segmenting
businesses. Include a discussion of the characteristics for each of the four categories based on the BCG matrix.
Answer
The Boston Consulting Group matrix introduced the idea that an organizations businesses could be evaluated
and plotted using a 2 x 2 matrix to identify which ones offered high potential and which were a drain on
organizational resources. The horizontal axis represents market share, which was evaluated as either low or
high; and the vertical axis indicates anticipated market growth, which also was evaluated as either low or high.
Based on its evaluation, the business was placed in one of four categories:
a. Cash cows (low growth, high market share) businesses in this category generate large amounts of cash,
but they prospects for future growth are limited.
b. Stars (high growth, high market share) these businesses are in a fast-growing market, and hold a
dominant share of that market. Their contribution to cash flow depends on their need for resources.
c. Question marks (high growth, low market share) these businesses are in an attractive industry, but hold a
small market share percentage.
d. Dogs (low growth, low market share) businesses in this category do not produce, or consume, much cash.
However, they hold no promise for improved performance.
(easy)
128. In a short essay, list and discuss the five competitive forces, according to Porter, which determine industry
attractiveness and profitability.
Answer
a. Threat of new entrants determined by the height of barriers to entry which includes factors such as
economies of scale, brand loyalty, and capital requirements determine how easy or difficult it is for new
competitors to enter an industry.
b. Threat of substitutes factors such as switching costs and buyer loyalty determine the degree to which
customers are likely to buy a substitute product.
c. Bargaining power of buyers factors such as number of customers in the market, customer information,
and the availability of substitutes determine the amount of influence that buyers have in an industry.
d. Bargaining power of suppliers factors such as the degree of supplier concentration and availability of
substitute inputs determine the amount of power that supplier have over firms in the industry.
e. Existing rivalry factors such as industry growth rate, increasing or falling demand, and product
differences determine how intense the competitive rivalry will be among firms in the industry.
(moderate)
129. In a short essay, list and discuss the three competitive strategies, according to Porter. Include specific examples
of companies that pursue each of the three competitive strategies.
Answer
a. Cost leadership strategy when an organization sets out to be the lowest-cost producer in its industry, its
following a cost leadership strategy. A low-cost leader aggressively searches out efficiencies in production,
35
marketing, and other areas of operation. Overhead is kept to a minimum, and the firm does everything it
can to cut costs. For example, Wal-Marts headquarters in Bentonville, Arkansas, office furnishings are
sparse and drab but functional. Although low-cost leaders dont place a lot of emphasis on frills, the
product or service being sold must be perceived as comparable in quality to that offered by rivals or at least
be acceptable to buyers. Examples of companies that have used the low-cost leader strategy include WalMart, Hyundai, and Southwest Airlines.
b. Differentiation strategy the company that seeks to offer unique products that are widely valued by
customers is following a differentiation strategy. Sources of differentiation might be exceptionally high
quality, extraordinary service, innovative design, technological capability, or an unusually positive brand
image. The key to this competitive strategy is that whatever product or service attribute is chosen for
differentiating must set the firm apart from its competitors and be significant enough to justify a price
premium that exceed the cost of differentiating. Practically any successful product or service can be
identified as an example of the differentiation strategy: Nordstroms (customer service); Sony (reputation
for quality and innovative design); Coach handbags (design and brand image); and Kimberly-Clarks
Huggies Pull-Ups (product design).
c. Focus strategy - the aim of the focus strategy is at a cost advantage or a differentiation advantage in a
narrow segment. That is, managers select a market segment or group of segments in an industry and dont
attempt to serve the broad market. The goal of a focus strategy is to exploit a narrow segment of a market.
These segments can be based on product variety, type of end buyer, distribution channel, or geographical
location of buyers. Research suggests that the focus strategy may be the most effective choice for small
businesses because they typically do not have the economies of scale or internal resources to successfully
pursue one of the other two strategies.
(moderate)
Chapter 10 Organizational Structure and Design
True/False Questions
A MANAGERS DILEMMA
1.
According to the boxed feature, A Managers Dilemma, Nokia was once involved in industries ranging from
paper to chemicals and rubber.
True (moderate)
2.
According to the boxed feature, A Managers Dilemma, Nokia has been competing in the telecommunications
industry since 1965.
False (moderate)
Organizational design is the organization's formal framework by which job tasks are divided, grouped, and
coordinated.
False (difficult)
4.
The concept of work specialization can be traced back a couple of centuries to Adam Smith's discussion of
division of labor.
True (moderate)
5.
The degree to which tasks in an organization are divided into separate jobs is division of labor.
True (moderate)
6.
7.
Grouping jobs on the basis of product or customer flow is termed process departmentalization.
True (moderate)
36
8.
Geographic departmentalization has greatly increased in importance as a result of todays competitive business
environment
False (moderate)
9.
A group of individuals who are experts in various specialties and who work together is a cross-functional team.
True (moderate)
10.
11.
12.
13.
A manager's span of control refers to the number of subordinates who can be effectively and efficiently
supervised.
True (moderate)
14. The classical view of unity of command suggests that subordinates should have only one superior to whom they
report.
True (easy)
15.
The trend in recent years has been toward smaller spans of control.
False (easy)
16.
When decisions tend to be made at lower levels in an organization, the organization is said to be decentralized.
True (moderate)
17.
Decentralization describes the degree to which decision making is concentrated at a single point in the
organization.
False (moderate)
18.
In the last 35 years, there has been a trend of organizations moving toward increased decentralization.
True (easy)
19.
Appropriate organizational structure depends on four variables: the organization's strategy, size, technology, and
degree of environmental uncertainty.
True (difficult)
20.
Standardization refers to the degree to which jobs within the organization are standardized and the extent to
which employee behavior is guided by rules and procedures.
True (moderate)
22.
23.
Innovators need the efficiency, stability, and tight controls of the mechanistic structure.
False (easy)
24.
False (difficult)
25.
26.
27.
Woodward's findings support that there is "one best way" to organize a manufacturing firm.
False (moderate)
28.
29.
Multiple Choice
A MANAGERS DILEMMA
31.
According to the company profile in A Managers Dilemma, the organizational structure of Nokia is best
described as ______________.
a. mechanistic
b. organic (moderate)
c. centralized
d. formalized
32.
The factor contributing the most to Nokias success in the mobile phone industry according to the company
profile in A Managers Dilemma is ______________.
a. new product development (moderate)
b. government subsidies
c. national trade barriers
d. weak competition
33.
According to the text, a(n) ______________ is the formal framework by which job tasks are divided, grouped,
and coordinated.
a. mission statement
b. environmental scan
c. internal resource analysis
d. organizational structure (moderate)
35.
Which of the following is not one of the six key elements in organizational design?
a. work specialization
b. departmentalization
38
c. chain of command
d. bureaucratic design (difficult)
e. span of control
36.
37.
The term ______________ is used to describe the degree to which tasks in an organization are divided into
separate jobs.
a. work ethics
b. managerial capitalism
c. social responsibility
d. work specialization (moderate)
38.
When did the idea of enlarging, rather than narrowing, job scope begin?
a. 1950s
b. 1960s (moderate)
c. 1970s
d. 1980s
e. 1990s
39.
Which of the following is not an example of the classical view of division of labor?
a. assembly-line production
b. Burger King
c. Taco Bell
d. TQM (moderate)
e. Kentucky Fried Chicken
40.
______________ is the basis on which jobs are grouped in order to accomplish organizational goals.
a. Departmentalization (moderate)
b. Centralization
c. Formalization
d. Coordination
e. Efficiency
41.
A local manufacturing organization has groups of employees who are responsible for sales, marketing,
accounting, human resources, etc. These are examples of what concept?
a. authority
b. chain of command
c. empowerment
d. departmentalization (moderate)
e. social grouping
42.
Grouping sporting equipment in one area, men's clothing in another area, and cosmetics in a third area, is an
example of what kind departmentalization?
a. customer
b. product (easy)
c. geographic
d. process
e. outcome
43.
Sales responsibilities divided into the southwest, midwest, southern, northern, and western regions would be an
example of ______________ departmentalization.
a. product
39
44.
b. geographic (easy)
c. process
d. outcome
e. customer
Grouping activities on the basis of customer flow is ______________.
a. functional departmentalization.
b. product departmentalization.
c. geographical departmentalization.
d. process departmentalization. (moderate)
e. technological departmentalization.
45.
What type of departmentalization expects that each department will specialize in one specific phase of the
process or product production?
a. product
b. geographic
c. process (easy)
d. outcome
e. customer
46.
What kind of departmentalization would be in place in a government organization where different public
service responsibilities are divided into activities for employers, children, and the disabled?
a. product
b. geographic
c. process
d. outcome
e. customer (moderate)
47.
48.
Today's competitive business environment has greatly increased the importance of what type of
departmentalization?
a. geographic
b. customer (difficult)
c. product
d. process
e. outcome
49.
According to the text, managers are using ______________, which are groups of individuals who are experts in
various specialties and who work together.
a. specialized teams
b. cross-demanded teams
c. cross-functional teams (moderate)
d. simple structured teams
50.
b. process departmentalization.
c. product departmentalization.
d. cross-functional team. (moderate)
e. continuous improvement team.
52. The ______________ is the continuous line of authority that extends from upper organizational levels to the
lowest levels and clarifies who reports to whom.
a. chain of demand
b. chain of command (easy)
c. demand hierarchy
d. continuous design structure
53.
54.
55.
56.
The ______________ principle (one of Fayols 14 principles of management) helps preserve the concept of a
continuous line of authority.
a. unity of demand
b. unity of command (moderate)
c. demand structure
d. continuous demand
57.
Wider spans of control may be viewed as more efficient, but eventually, wider spans tend to have what effect on
organizations?
a. reduced effectiveness (difficult)
b. increased turnover
c. loss of managerial power
d. customer dissatisfaction
41
e.
60.
An organization that spends money on maintaining a well-trained work force can expect which of the following
span-of-control outcomes?
a. increased contempt for management
b. increased voluntary turnover
c. centralized authority
d. less direct supervision (moderate)
e. increased need for managerial-level employees
61.
A high-tech manager who supervises the development of a new computer chip needs ______________
compared to a manager who supervises the mailing of unemployment insurance checks at the local government
office.
a. about the same span of control
b. a narrower span of control (difficult)
c. a wider span of control
d. a more informal span of control
e. elimination of the span of control
62.
63.
______________ describes the degree to which decision making is concentrated at a single point in the
organization.
a. Decentralization
b. Centralization (moderate)
c. Transnationalism
d. Cross sectional analysis
64.
If lower-level employees provide input or are actually given the discretion to make decisions, the organization
is ______________.
a. formalized.
b. centralized.
c. decentralized. (easy)
d. mechanistic.
e. organic.
65.
66.
Which of the following factors WOULD NOT influence an organization to have a higher degree of
centralization?
a. Environment is stable.
b. Company is geographically dispersed. (difficult)
c. Company is large.
d. Decisions are significant.
e. Organization is facing a crisis.
67.
______________ refers to the degree to which jobs within the organization are standardized and the extent to
which employee behavior is guided by rules and procedures.
42
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
Standardization
Centralization
Chain of command
Strategy
Formalization (moderate)
68.
All of the following factors indicate that a decentralized organization would be most effective EXCEPT when
______________.
a. the environment is complex.
b. decisions are relatively minor.
c. the organization is facing a crisis. (difficult)
d. the company is geographically dispersed.
e. effective implementation of strategies depends on managers having involvement and flexibility
to make decisions.
69.
Which of the following factors describes an environment in which a high degree of decentralization is desired?
a. Environment is complex, uncertain. (moderate)
b. Lower-level managers do not want to have a say in decisions.
c. Decisions are significant.
d. Company is large.
e. Organization is facing a crisis or the risk of company failure.
70.
71.
72.
74.
75.
In the early years of Apple Computers, its desire for highly proficient and creative employees who operated
with few work rules was an example of what type of organization?
a. bureaucratic
b. mechanistic
c. volatile
d. nouvelle
e. organic (difficult)
76.
77.
Which of the following is not one of the four contingency variables that help determine appropriate
organizational structure?
a. organizational size
b. organizational strategy
c. organizational technology
d. organizational age (moderate)
e. degree of environmental uncertainty
78.
79.
Most current strategy-structure contingency frameworks tend to focus on three strategy dimensions. These
dimensions are ______________.
a. revenue maximization, customer satisfaction, and visibility.
b. customer satisfaction, employee satisfaction, and ethics.
c. innovation, cost minimization, and imitation. (difficult)
d. legal considerations, profit maximization, and innovation.
e. long-term survival, profit maximization, and customer satisfaction.
80.
What kind of relationship is there between organizational size and degree of mechanistic structure?
a. -1.0
b. unclear
c. positive (moderate)
d. bimodal
e. exponential
81.
Joan Woodward's research was the first major attempt to view organizational structure from a ______________
perspective.
a. strategic
b. contingency
c. size
d. departmental
e. technological (easy)
82.
The three production categories that Joan Woodward divided organizations into in order to uncover
relationships between organizational structure and technology are ______________.
44
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
83.
According to Woodward's studies, what type of production works best with a mechanistic structure?
a. unit
b. process
c. product
d. mass (moderate)
e. just-in-time
84.
Which of the following is not a characteristic that would suggest unit production would be a best "fit"?
a. low horizontal differentiation
b. low vertical differentiation
c. small-batch, custom products
d. low formalization
e. mechanistic structure (difficult)
85.
A characteristic that both unit production and process production have is that the most effective organizational
structure for both technologies is ______________.
a. organic. (difficult)
b. mechanistic.
c. adhocracy.
d. matrix.
e. team.
86. Woodward's studies generally demonstrate that organization ______________ should adapt to their
______________.
a. processes; environment
b. employees; leaders
c. technologies; legal constraints
d. structures; technology (moderate)
e. outputs; resources
87.
88.
According to the text, all of the following are examples of the more traditional organizational designs EXCEPT:
a. the simple structure.
b. the functional structure
c. the matrix structure (moderate)
d. the divisional structure
89.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
91.
elaborate
high-complexity
formal
decentralized
flat (moderate)
A wine store that employs six people most likely has what kind of organizational structure?
a. bureaucracy
b. simple (difficult)
c. functional
d. divisional
e. team-based
92.
95.
96.
97.
The ______________ is an organizational structure that assigns specialists from different functional
departments to work on one or more projects being led by project managers.
a. functional structure
b. simple structure
c. matrix structure (moderate)
d. divisional structure
98.
c. customer focus
d. linear lines of responsibility
e. large spans of control
99.
What type of organization assigns specialists from different functional departments to work on one or more
projects led by a project manager?
a. classical
b. contemporary
c. matrix (easy)
d. evolutionary
e. product-based
100. A ______________ organization is not defined by, or limited to, the horizontal, vertical, or external boundaries
imposed by a predefined structure.
a. team-based
b. boundaryless
c. mechanistic
d. project (moderate)
e. simple
101. A ______________ organization has developed the continuous capacity to adapt and change.
a. simple
b. mechanistic
c. bureaucratic
d. team-based
e. learning (moderate)
MANAGING IN AN E-BUSINESS WORLD
102. According to the boxed feature, Managing in an E-Business World, all of the following are needed for Ebusiness to achieve the characteristic necessary for success in the digital world EXCEPT:
a. high vertical, horizontal, and lateral communication.
b. cross-hierarchical and cross-functional teams.
c. extensive employee empowerment.
d. high formalization. (moderate)
103. According to the boxed feature, Managing in an E-Business World, Amazon.coms organizational structure is
best described as ______________.
a. mechanistic
b. organic (moderate)
c. formal
d. diagonal
104. According to the boxed feature, Managing in an E-Business World, the ______________ organization is the
concept that describes an E-business organization.
a. mechanistic
b. boundaryless (moderate)
c. functional
d. diagonal
105. The important characteristics of a learning organization revolve around all of the following EXCEPT:
a. organizational design.
b. market capitalization (moderate)
c. information sharing.
d. leadership.
e. culture.
Scenarios
47
c. unit
d. environmental
e. procedural
112. Custom Leather is unable to use a continuous process, or ______________ production, because leather is a
unique item.
a. mass
b. process (moderate)
c. unit
d. environmental
e. procedural
ORGANIZATIONAL DESIGN DECISIONS
You Can Bank on It (Scenario)
Susan's employer, Western Bank, like many others, had recently undergone decruitment in order to "right size" the
organization. The Board of Directors felt that their sagging stock price could be improved with some labor cost
cutting. Along with other new challenges, a problem now existed with span of control and decision-making authority.
In the past, her bank's policy was that no manager should supervise more than six subordinates and only managers
should make decisions for their individual units. But now, with the cuts in middle management, upper management
had increased the span of control but still insisted on managerial-only decision-making. The result was that managers
spent all of their time putting out fires and subordinates felt they were getting answers too slowly and wanted to start
having the authority to make decisions on their own. Clearly, something had to change.
113. Of the following, which is not a reason that would be consistent with Western Bank's wanting to maintain a
centralized form of decision-making?
a. Environment is uncertain. (moderate)
b. Environment is stable.
c. Company is large.
d. Decisions are more significant.
e. Organization is facing a crisis.
114. Of the following which is not a reason Western Bank would not change to a more decentralized form of
decision-making?
a. lower-level managers are capable of decision-making
b. company is geographically dispersed
c. decisions are relatively minor
d. organization is in risk of failure (easy)
e. lower-level managers want a voice in decisions
ORGANIZATIONAL DESIGN DECISIONS
115. Susan believes that Western Bank should be highly adaptive and flexible. She would like for Western Bank to
be a(n) ______________ structure.
a. organic (easy)
b. mechanistic
c. formalized
d. technological
e. strategic
116. The contingency approach would consider all of the following variables EXCEPT the ______________.
a. organization's strategy.
b. organization's size.
c. organization's age. (moderate)
d. orga nization's technology.
e. degree of environmental uncertainty.
Food for Thought (Scenario)
49
Burgess owned a ToutLeMart, a store that sold food and nonfood items in a warehouse environment. He employed
350 people and had them work in very specialized areas. Some people only unloaded the pallets from the trucks or
drove the pallets onto the floor, while still others unloaded the pallets in their specific area of responsibility. He had
managers controlling each specific area. For example, the automotive manager was in charge of all functions;
accounting, purchasing, sales, etc. This arrangement had generally worked well, but recently, he noticed that
employees seemed bored and turnover and absenteeism had risen. In addition, he found that attempting to get special
projects completed, such as creating their new "First-Class Customer" card, had turned into a nightmare due to the
lack of cooperation and misunderstanding between the groups.
117. ToutLeMart currently operates under the classical view of the division of labor. This is characterized by which
of the following?
a. You only report to one manager.
b. Employees specialize in doing part of a task. (easy)
c. Employees specialize in doing one complete task.
d. People are divided according to their work interest.
e. Employees are trained to do many tasks to increase flexibility.
118. The type of departmentalization practiced by ToutLeMart is best described as ______________.
a. product. (moderate)
b. function.
c. customer.
d. geographic.
e. process.
119. If ToutLeMart decided to reorganize their departmentalization so that one manager was in charge of accounting,
one manager in charge of food stuffs, one manager in charge of nonfood items, etc., this would be described as
______________ departmentalization.
a. product
b. function (moderate)
c. customer
d. geographic
e. process
120. If Burgess regularly put together teams made up of specialists from different areas to tackle new projects, like
the "First-Class Customer" card project, these would be called ______________.
a. cross-functional teams. (easy)
b. quality circles.
c. total quality management.
d. special project teams.
e. specialty teams.
Essay Questions
DEFINING ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE
121. In a short essay, list and explain the six key elements in designing an organizations structure.
Answer
a. Work specialization this concept describes the degree to which tasks in an organization are divided into
separate jobs. The essence of work specialization is that an entire job is not done by one individual but
instead is broken down into steps, and each step is completed by a different person.
b. Departmentalization the basis by which jobs are grouped together is called departmentalization. The five
common forms of departmentalization include functional, product, geographical, process, and customer
departmentalization.
c. Chain of command this is the continuous line of authority that extends from upper organizational levels
to the lowest levels and clarifies who reports to whom. It helps employees answer questions such as Who
do I go to if I have a problem? or To whom am I responsible?
50
d. Span of control this concept is important because, to a large degree, it determines the number of levels
and managers an organization has. All things being equal, the wider or larger the span, the more efficient
the organization.
e. Centralization and decentralization centralization describes the degree to which decision making is
concentrated at a single point in the organization. If top managers make the organizations key decisions
with little or no input from below, then the organization is centralized. In contrast, the more that lowerlevel employees provide input or actually make decisions, the more decentralization there is.
f. Formalization this refers to the degree to which jobs within the organization are standardized and the
extent to which employee behavior is guided by rules and procedures. If a job is highly formalized, then
the person doing that job has a minimum amount of discretion over what is to be done, when its to be
done, and how he or she could do it.
(difficult)
122. In a short essay, list and discuss the five common forms of departmentalization.
Answer
a. Functional departmentalization jobs are grouped by functions (i.e. marketing, finance, human resources)
performed. This approach can be used in all types of organizations, although the functions change to
reflect the organizations objectives and work activities.
b. Product departmentalization jobs are groups by product line. In this approach, each major product area is
placed under the authority of a manager whos a specialist in, and is responsible for, everything having to
do with that product line.
c. Geographical departmentalization jobs are grouped on the basis of territory or geography such as
southern, mid-western, or north-western regions for an organization operating only in the United States; or
for a global company, maybe a U.S., European, Canadian, and Asian-Pacific regions.
d. Process departmentalization groups jobs on the basis of product or customer flow. In this approach, work
activities follow a natural processing flow of product or even customers.
e. Customer departmentalization jobs are grouped on the basis of common customers who have common
needs or problems that can best be met by having specialists for each.
(moderate)
123.
In a short essay, explain the concepts of authority, responsibility, and unity of command.
Answer
Authority refers to the rights inherent in a managerial position to tell people what to do and to expect them to do
it. To facilitate decision making and coordination, an organizations managers are part of the chain of command
and are granted a certain degree of authority to meet their responsibilities. As managers coordinate and
integrate the work of employees, those employees assume an obligation to perform any assigned duties. This
obligation or expectation to perform is known as responsibility. Finally, the unity of command principle helps
preserve the concepts of a continuous line of authority. It states that a person should report to only one
manager. Without unity of command, conflicting demands and priorities from multiple bosses can create
problems.
(easy)
124. In a short essay, list six factors that influence the amount of centralization and six factors influence the amount
of decentralization in an organization.
Answer
More Centralization
a. Environment is stable.
b. Lower-level managers are not as capable or experienced at making decisions as upper-level managers.
c. Lower-level managers do not want to have a say in decisions.
d. Decisions are significant.
e. Organization is facing a crisis or the risk of company failure.
f. Company is large.
g. Effective implementation of company strategies depends on managers retaining say over what happens.
More Decentralization
a. Environment is complex, uncertain.
51
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
small businesses in which the owner and manager are one and the same. Strengths of this type of
organizational structure are that it is fast, flexible, inexpensive to maintain, and has clear accountability.
Weaknesses are that it becomes inappropriate as the organization grows and the reliance on one person is
risky.
b. Functional structure this is an organizational design that groups similar or related occupational specialties
together. Its the functional approach to departmentalization applied to the entire organization. Strengths
of this types of organizational structure are cost-saving advantages from specialization and employees are
grouped with other who have similar tasks. Weaknesses are pursuit of functional goals can cause managers
to lose sight of whats best for the overall organization and that functional specialists may become
insulated and have little understanding of what other units are doing.
c. Divisional structure this is an organizational structure made up of separate units or divisions. In this
design, each unit or division has relatively limited autonomy, with a division manager responsible for
performance and who have strategic operational authority over his or her unit. A main strength of this type
of organizational structure is that it focuses on results where division managers are responsible for what
happens to their products and services. A weakness is duplication of activities and resources increases
costs and reduces efficiency.
(moderate)
COMMON ORGANIZATIONAL DESIGNS
128. In a short essay, discuss the matrix organizational structure.
Answer
The matrix structure is an organizational structure that assigns specialists from different functional departments
to work on one or more projects being led by project managers. One unique aspect of the matrix design is that
it creates a dual chain of command and explicitly violates the classical organizing principle of unity of
command. Employees in a matrix organization have two managers: their functional department manager and
their product or project manager, who share authority. The project managers have authority over the functional
members who are part of their project team in areas relative to the projects goals. However, decisions such as
promotions, salary recommendations, and annual reviews remain the functional managers responsibility. To
work effectively, project and functional managers have to communicate regularly, coordinate work demands on
employees, and resolve conflicts together.
(moderate)
129. In a short essay, explain the concept of a boundaryless organization.
Answer
The boundaryless organization is an organization whose design is not defined by, or limited to, the horizontal,
vertical, or external boundaries imposed by a predefined structure. This idea may sound odd, yet many of
todays most successful organizations are finding that they can most effectively operate in todays environment
by remaining flexible and unstructured: that the ideal structure for them is not having a rigid, predefined
structure. Instead, the boundaryless organization seeks to eliminate the chain of command, to have limitless
spans of control, and to replace departments with empowered teams.
(easy)
130.
In a short essay, describe a learning organization and list and discuss the four elements which the important
characteristics of a learning organization revolves around.
Answer
A learning organization is an organization that has developed the capacity to continuously adapt and change
because all members take an active role in identifying and resolving work-related issues. In a learning
organization, employees are practicing knowledge management by continually acquiring and sharing new
knowledge and are willing to apply that knowledge in making decisions or performing their work.
a.
boundaryless environment, employees are free to work together and collaborate in doing the organizations
work the best way they can and to learn from each other.
b. Information sharing - for a learning organization to learn, information must be shared among members;
that is, organizational employees must engage in knowledge management. This means sharing information
openly, in a timely manner, and in as accurate a form as possible. Because there are few structural and
physical barriers in a learning organization, the environment is conducive to open communication and
extensive information sharing.
c. Leadership - leadership plays an important role as an organization moves to become a learning
organization. One of the most important functions of leaders is facilitating the creation of a shared vision
for the organizations future and then keeping organizational members working toward that vision. In
addition, leaders should support and encourage the collaborative environment thats critical to learning.
Without strong and committed leadership throughout the organization, it would be extremely difficult to be
a learning organization.
d. Culture - the organizational culture is an important aspect of being a learning organization. A learning
organizations culture is one in which everyone agrees on a shared vision and everyone recognizes the
inherent interrelationships among the organizations processes, activities, functions, and external
environment. There is a strong sense of community, caring for each other, and trust. In a learning
organization, employees feel free to openly communicate, share, experiment, and learn without fear of
criticism or punishment.
(difficult)
Chapter 13 Managing Change and Innovation
True/False Questions
WHAT IS CHANGE?
1.
2.
4.
The change in demand for health care technicians is an example of an economic change.
False (difficult)
5.
6.
The "calm waters" approach to change would be consistent with Lewin's concept of unfreezing, changing, and
refreezing.
True (difficult)
8.
In the "white-water rapids" metaphor of change, managers should expect change at any time, and it may last for
unspecified lengths of time.
54
True (moderate)
MANAGING CHANGE
9.
Change threatens the investment you've already made in the status quo.
True (easy)
10.
One reason people resist change is that is substitutes ambiguity for uncertainty.
False (difficult)
11.
The manager's options for change essentially fall into three categories: structure, technology, and product.
False (difficult)
12.
13.
Probably the most visible technology changes in recent years have come through managers efforts to expand
corporate financing.
False (moderate)
14.
15.
16.
Techniques to change people and the quality of interpersonal work relationships are termed organizational
development.
True (moderate)
17.
18.
20.
21.
22.
Negotiation refers to covert attempts to influence, twisting and distorting facts or withholding information.
False (moderate)
23.
In cooptation, an organization seeks to "buy off" the leaders of a resistance group by giving them a key role in
the change decision.
True (moderate)
24.
False (moderate)
25.
26.
In process reengineering, a company drastically changes its structure, technology, and people by starting from
scratch in reexamining the way the organization's work is done.
True (moderate)
27.
Stress is a dynamic condition a person faces when confronted with an opportunity, constraint, or demand related
to what he or she desires and for which the outcome is perceived to be both uncertain and important.
True (moderate)
28.
In terms of organizational factors, any attempt to lower stress levels has to begin with employee selection.
True (moderate)
The Paradox of Diversity is described as situations in which limitations are placed upon diverse individuals by
strong organizational cultures.
True (moderate)
STIMULATING INNOVATION
30.
Creativity is the process of taking an idea and turning it into a useful product, service, or method of operation.
False (difficult)
Multiple Choice
A MANAGERS DILEMMA
31.
According to the company profile in A Managers Dilemma, which of the following branded products does
Panamerican Beverages, Inc sell in Latin America?
a. Pepsi
b. Coca-Cola (moderate)
c. Ocean Spray
d. Gatorade
e. Evian
32.
WHAT IS CHANGE?
33.
Being a manager, with no environmental uncertainty or threat of competitors' new products, would be simple
without any ______________.
a. government regulations.
b. unions.
c. diversity.
56
d. cultural differences.
e. change. (moderate)
FORCES FOR CHANGE
34.
35.
The Americans With Disabilities Act is an example of which of the following forms of environmental change?
a. internal
b. technology
c. government laws and regulations (moderate)
d. labor markets
e. economic
36. Changing human resource activities to attract and retain health care specialists due to increased needs for those
workers is an example of what kind of environmental change factor?
a. marketplace
b. technology
c. labor markets (difficult)
d. economic
e. government laws and regulations
37.
Falling interest rates would most stimulate what change factor for a manager?
a. marketplace
b. government laws and regulations
c. labor markets
d. economic (easy)
e. technology
38.
39.
What change factor did Harley-Davidson motorcycles react to in its turnaround of production quality control
and modernization?
a. technology
b. external
c. work force
d. equipment
e. strategy (difficult)
40.
Increasing the numbers of employed women and minorities forces managers to pay attention to what change
factor?
a. strategy
b. work force (moderate)
c. equipment
d. technology
e. employee attitudes
41.
Labor strikes are an example of what change factor that may encourage a change in management thinking and
practices?
57
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
42.
43.
44.
work force
equipment
employee attitudes (easy)
strategy
government laws and regulations
In organizations, people who act as catalysts and assume responsibility for managing the change process, are
called ______________.
a. change masters.
b. change agents. (moderate)
c. operations managers.
d. charismatic leaders.
e. transformational leaders.
In an organization, who is usually the change agent?
a. CEO
b. executive vice-president
c. any manager or nonmanager (difficult)
d. any competitor
e. union leaders
In spurring organizational change, outside consultants are usually more ______________, while internal
managers may be more ______________.
a. drastic; thoughtful (moderate)
b. highly paid; risky
c. resistant; bold
d. cautious; friendly
e. interested; scared
46.
Who theorized the change process involving unfreezing, changing, and refreezing?
a. Drucker
b. Robbins
c. Lewin (easy)
d. Mayo
e. Lawler
47.
According to Kurt Lewin, which of the following is not a stage in the change process?
a. unfreezing
b. changing
c. refreezing
d. restraining (moderate)
48.
According to Kurt Lewin, increasing the driving forces, which direct behavior away from the status quo, is a
means of doing which of the following?
a. unfreezing (moderate)
b. changing
c. restraining forces
d. refreezing
e. melting
58
49.
50.
Which of the following terms best describes the two primary views of the change process?
a. problematic, encouraged
b. occasional, continuous (difficult)
c. costly, conservative
d. optimistic, pessimistic
e. reactive, proactive
Which of the following is the objective of refreezing, according to Lewin?
a. directs behavior away from the status quo
b. hinders movement away from existing equilibrium
c. changes to a new environment
d. eliminates the need for future change
e. stabilize the new situation (moderate)
51.
According to the text, the ______________ is consistent with uncertain and dynamic environments.
a. calm-waters metaphor
b. white-water rapids metaphor (moderate)
c. contemporary metaphor
d. continuous metaphor
e. cultural metaphor
52.
A manager who comes to work every morning expecting that today will definitely bring new challenges from
competitors, the work force, etc., views organizational change in what way?
a. pragmatic
b. continuous (moderate)
c. pessimistic
d. reactive
e. occasional
53.
According to the text, managers in such businesses as wireless telecommunications, computer software, and
womens high-fashion clothing have long confronted the ______________.
a. calm-waters metaphor
b. white-water rapids metaphor (moderate)
c. contemporary metaphor
d. continuous metaphor
e. cultural metaphor
MANAGING CHANGE
54.
As ______________, managers should be motivated to initiate change because they are committed to
improving their organization's effectiveness.
a. change agents (difficult)
b. efficiency experts
c. manipulators
d. process consultants
e. reengineering specialists.
55.
Managers' options for change essentially fall into what three categories?
a. environment, technology, and mission
b. structure, technology, and people (difficult)
c. mission, structure, and people
d. mission, environment, and process
e. environment, attitudes, and processes
56.
According to the text, changing structure includes alteration in any of the following EXCEPT:
a. authority relations.
b. coordination mechanisms.
c. degree of centralization.
d. job redesign.
59
57.
e. technology (moderate)
Which of the following is not a part of organizational structure?
a. work specialization
b. departmentalization
c. chain of command
d. formalization
e. work processes (difficult)
58.
If an organization increases the span of control, what factor is being focused on in an organizational change?
a. structure (difficult)
b. people
c. technology
d. strategy
e. human resources
59.
A company that decides to decentralize its sales procedures is managing what change category?
a. technology
b. people
c. equipment
d. competitors
e. structure (moderate)
60.
According to the text, competitive factors or new innovations within an industry often require managers to
introduce all of the following EXCEPT:
a. new equipment.
b. new tools.
c. new operating methods.
d. new employees (moderate)
61.
62.
Probably the most visible technological changes in recent years have come through managers efforts to expand
_____________.
a. corporate financing.
b. organizational culture.
c. computerization.
d. employee retention.
63.
When grocery stores installed scanners to read the product price, this was an example of managing what
change category?
a. technology (moderate)
b. people
c. competitors
d. structure
e. laws and regulations
64. If Kraft Foods hired a consultant to decrease group friction and enhance cooperative work relationships, this
would be an example of managing what change category?
a. technology
b. people (difficult)
c. competitors
d. structure
e. laws and regulations
60
65.
Techniques to change people and the quality of interpersonal work relationships are termed ______________.
a. operations.
b. organizational development. (moderate)
c. downsizing.
d. robotics.
e. automation.
66.
67.
According to the text, an individual is likely to resist change because of all of the following reasons EXCEPT:
a. uncertainty.
b. increased productivity. (easy)
c. concern over personal loss.
d. belief that the change is not in the organizations best interest.
68.
Which of the following reactions to change is a threat to the investment you have already made in the status
quo?
a. uncertainty
b. freezing
c. change is not good for the organization
d. concern over personal loss (moderate)
e. refreezing
69.
Which of the reasons for resistance to change may be beneficial to the organization?
a. uncertainty
b. freezing
c. change is not good for the organization (difficult)
d. refreezing
e. concern over personal loss
70.
All of the following are mentioned in the text as actions that managers can use to deal with resistance to change
EXCEPT:
a. education and communication.
b. diversification (moderate)
c. participation.
d. facilitation and support.
e. negotiation.
71. Which of the following techniques for reducing resistance to change is based on the belief that, if employees
receive the full facts and clarifications, they will no longer be resistant?
a. education and communication (easy)
b. participation
c. facilitation and support
d. negotiation
e. manipulation and cooptation
72.
If K-mart has employees serving on the committee to decide what color the new uniform colors should be, this
is an example of what tactic for reducing change resistance?
a. education and communication
b. manipulation and cooptation
c. participation (easy)
d. facilitation and support
e. coercion
61
73.
If a bank offers personal and financial counseling to employees prior to an upcoming downsizing, this is an
example of what kind of tactic for reducing change resistance?
a. education and communication
b. coercion
c. manipulation and cooptation
d. negotiation
e. facilitation and support (moderate)
74.
If management offers the union guaranteed wage hikes and a no-layoff promise in exchange for help in
implementing a new production process, this would be an example of what kind of tactic for reducing change
resistance?
a. participation
b. facilitation and support
c. coercion
d. negotiation (difficult)
e. manipulation and cooptation
75.
If a state legislator purposely misrepresents public employee wages to the citizens in order to apply downward
wage pressure in the collective bargaining process, this would be an example of what kind of tactic for
reducing change resistance?
a. negotiation
b. coercion
c. cooptation
d. education and communication
e. manipulation (difficult)
76.
______________ refers to covert attempts to influence, twisting and distorting facts or withholding
information.
a. Negotiation
b. Coercion
c. Cooptation
d. Education and communication
e. Manipulation (moderate)
77. "Buying off" the leader of a resistance group in order to get his/her endorsement is an example of what kind of
tactic for reducing change resistance?
a. negotiation
b. coercion
c. education and commitment
d. cooptation (moderate)
e. facilitation and support
78.
79.
A manager who threatens to ruin an employee's name in the company if he/she does not cooperate with an
impending organizational change is using what kind of tactic for reducing change resistance?
a. negotiation
b. coercion (moderate)
c. manipulation and cooptation
d. education and communication
e. facilitation and support
80.
According to the boxed feature, Managing Your Career, all of the following are examples of means in which
individuals can reinvent themselves EXCEPT:
a. take advantage of continuing education or graduate courses at local colleges.
b. sign up for workshops and seminars that can help enhance personal skills.
c. depend on the organization to provide career development and training opportunities. (moderate)
d. voice concerns in a constructive manner.
81.
Which of the following represents the relationship between organizational culture and change?
a. Culture and change are naturally compatible.
b. Culture tends to be very resistant to change. (moderate)
c. Culture can change in months but not weeks.
d. Culture can never be purposely changed.
e. There is no relationship between culture and change.
82.
Which of the following is not a favorable situational condition that may facilitate change in organizational
culture?
a. A dramatic crisis occurs.
b. The culture is weak.
c. Stock price sharply falls. (moderate)
d. The organization is young and small.
e. Leadership changes hands.
83.
Which of the following is the first step in accomplishing organizational cultural change?
a. Appoint new leadership with a new vision.
b. Initiate a reorganization.
c. Conduct a cultural analysis. (moderate)
d. Change the selection and socialization process.
e. Introduce new stories and rituals to convey the new mission.
84.
Which of the following is the last step in accomplishing organizational cultural change?
a. Make it clear that change is necessary to organizational survival.
b. Introduce new stories and rituals to convey new vision.
c. Appoint new leadership with a new vision.
d. Change the selection, socialization, and reward system to support new values. (difficult)
e. Initiate a reorganization.
85.
86.
Which of the following statements reflects the relationship between Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI)
and reengineering?
a. They are basically the same.
b. CQI begins with reengineering.
c. They are radically different. (difficult)
d. Reengineering begins with TQM.
e. Both require decentralized participative decision-making.
87.
In _____________, a company drastically changes its structure, technology, and people by starting from
scratch in reexamining the way the organization's work is done.
a. process reengineering
b. Continuous Quality Improvement (moderate)
c. team building
d. structural realignment
63
88.
89.
______________ is a dynamic condition a person faces when confronted with an opportunity, constraint, or
demand related to what he or she desires and for which the outcome is perceived to be both uncertain and
important.
a. Stereotyping
b. Stress (moderate)
c. A halo effect
d. Creativity
90.
91.
92.
According to the text, stress symptoms can be grouped under any of the following three general categories
EXCEPT:
a. physiological.
b. cultural (moderate)
c. psychological.
d. behavioral.
93.
Which of the following general categories of stress symptoms is least relevant to managers?
a. physiological. (moderate)
b. cultural
c. psychological.
d. behavioral.
94.
In terms of organizational factors, any attempt to lower stress levels has to begin with ______________.
a. employee work loads.
b. the reward system.
c. the organizational leader.
d. the organizational culture.
e. employee selection. (difficult)
95.
96.
Which of the following is true concerning stress that arises from an employee's personal life?
a. A manager should offer advice.
b. A manager who understands his/her subordinates can help control employee personal stressors.
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______________ refers to the ability to combine ideas in a unique way or to make unusual associations
between ideas.
a. Innovation
b. Imagination
c. Creativity (moderate)
d. Interpretive thinking
e. CQI
98. ______________ is the process of taking a creative idea and turning it into a useful product, service, or method
of operation.
a. Innovation (moderate)
b. Imagination
c. Creativity
d. Interpretive thinking
e. CQI
MANAGING IN AN E-BUSINESS WORLD
99.
According to the boxed feature, Managing in an E-Business World, which of the following best describes the
metaphor of the E-business world?
a. calm-waters
b. white-water rapids (moderate)
c. contemporary
d. continuous
e. cultural
100. According to the boxed feature, Managing in an E-Business World, Tivoli Systems is a division of which of
the following companies?
a. General Motors
b. Microsoft
c. IBM (moderate)
d. Hewlett Packard
e. Gateway
101. Which of the following is an example of a variable that can foster innovation?
a. mechanistic structure
b. organic structure (difficult)
c. few organizational resources
d. low ambiguity acceptance
e. low job security
102. Which of the following is not a cultural value that supports innovation?
a. acceptance of ambiguity
b. tolerance for the impractical
c. high external controls (moderate)
d. focus on ends, not means
e. open-system focus
103. Which of the following human resource variables is supportive of organizational innovation?
a. low commitment to training
b. selection of Type A employees
c. high job security (moderate)
d. unionization
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e.
104. ______________ actively and enthusiastically support new ideas, build support, overcome resistance, and
ensure that innovations are implemented.
a. Idea champions (moderate)
b. Whistle blowers
c. Idea generators
d. Idea screeners
105. According to the text, all of the following are common personality characteristics of idea champions EXCEPT:
a. extremely high-self-confidence
b. persistence
c. energy
d. risk averse (moderate)
Scenarios
FORCES FOR CHANGE
Changing The Way (Scenario)
Due to his spouse's accepting a promotion, Colin had recently left his private sector job in Kansas and accepted a new
position in public service with the state of Ohio. The change had been quite a shock at first. The organizational
cultures were quite different and each environment offered a different set of challenges. One new challenge Colin
accepted was implementing changes into a state government system. Historically, this environment had not seen a lot
of changes, and now, with the changes in Washington and the move toward privatization, change was necessary. Plus,
his agency director was also new and had announced that the agency would be developing a new strategic plan.
Together, Colin had been through many changes recently, and would be involved in more in the near future.
106. The changes the state government was facing due to pressures put on by Washington could be referred to as
a(n) ______________ force of change.
a. driving
b. external (moderate)
c. technological
d. internal
e. marketplace
107. The changes Colin's agency was facing due to the new strategic plan anticipated from the new director could be
referred to as a(n) ______________ force of change.
a. driving
b. external
c. technological
d. internal (moderate)
e. marketplace
108. If Colin accepts the responsibility and acts as a catalyst for change, he could be referred to as a(n)
a. change master.
b. director of change.
c. change agent. (each)
d. change manager.
e. enforcer of change.
TWO VIEWS OF THE CHANGE PROCESS
109. The past environment of state government, with very little change, where the status quo is considered the
equilibrium state, would be consistent with all but which of the following terms?
a. calm waters
b. unfreezing
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c. refreezing
d. white-water rapids (easy)
e. Lewin
MANAGING CHANGE
Making Change Happen (Scenario)
Colin was getting accustomed to his surroundings in state government. His efforts at getting people to accept change
had met with a little resistance due to his and his new director's efforts and the hard work of his subordinates. But now
the hard part really started, actually managing the change. What techniques could he and his agency's new director
employ to most effectively implement changes that would result in increased productivity in his department? He
considered changing three aspects of his agency: the structure, technology, and people.
110.
If the new agency director decided to remove layers in the agency and increase the span of managerial control,
this would be considered changing the
a. structural design.
b. selection process.
c. degree of centralization.
d. structural components. (moderate)
e. technological design.
111.
If the agency director decided to shift away from a functional to a product design, this would be considered
changing the
a. structural design. (challenging)
b. selection process.
c. degree of centralization.
d. structural components.
e. technological design.
112.
If Colin decided to replace some employee work time with a telephone menu system, this would be considered
changing the
a. organizational structure.
b. technology. (moderate)
c. people.
d. organizational development.
e. attitudes.
113.
Finally, Colin decided his people could benefit from ___________, a method of changing behavior through
unstructured group interaction.
a. survey feedback
b. sensitivity training (difficult)
c. team building
d. intergroup development
e. process consultation
CONTEMPORARY ISSUES IN MANAGING CHANGE
Changing Culture (Scenario)
Mandy recently returned from her two-day managerial seminar, How to Totally Change Your Management and
Leadership Style in Two Days. Even though she felt the seminar was worthless (as she had predicted), it did give her a
chance to think about how to change the culture of her organization. She had been brought in by the new CEO as a
change agent, and her position had the authority to have impact. She felt that the recent hostile takeover by their
parent company had shocked everyone, especially given that the entire organization consisted of only 150 people and
had been in business for only five years. She felt this might be the time to attempt the cultural change while everyone
was still thinking in terms of change. As she tossed her leadership seminar manual into the wastebasket, she
considered what might be her first step and how well the cultural change would work.
67
114.
Of the following, which is an advantage that Mandy has to implement cultural change?
a. her new leadership skills
b. the recent purchase of her company (difficult)
c. previous stable leadership
d. her managerial level
e. her change agent power
115.
Which of the following statements is true concerning the leadership of Mandy's company and its effect on
cultural change?
a. New top leadership can be an advantage. (moderate)
b. New top leadership is rarely an advantage.
c. It is important for the cultural change to begin with employees first.
d. Leadership issues have little impact on cultural change.
e. Retaining the old leadership would have been preferable for cultural change.
116.
Which of the following statements about her company is most advantageous to Mandy as she attempts to
change the cultural leadership?
a. Change would be easiest with a company that is older and has a small number of employees.
b. Change would be easiest in an older company with many employees.
c. Small companies that are new are easiest in which to implement change. (difficult)
d. Small companies that are old are easiest in which to implement change.
e. In terms of cultural change, company size and age rarely matter.
117.
Of the following, which statement about her company's previous culture would be most advantageous to her
accomplishing a change?
a. A previously strong culture is receptive to change.
b. A previously nonexistent culture is receptive to change.
c. A moderately strong culture is receptive to change.
d. A weak culture is more receptive to change. (difficult)
e. An organization with multiple cultures is receptive to change.
Fred's Stress (Scenario)
Fred was not handling the change in his department well. The company had recently changed hands, and even though
no one had lost his job, people had been changing jobs and were being asked to move to different locations. The new
leadership had a completely different outlook than those people he had worked under for the past twenty-one years.
Fred found that he was unable to concentrate at work and generally felt like he did not like his job anymore. At home,
he was getting headaches and having trouble sleeping, which only enhanced his feeling that things were not going to
work out well for him. When he thought about it, he had always hated change. He worked in the job he did partially
because it was considered stable (boring to some) and predictable. Fred's new boss kept trying to convince him that he
was a valuable employee and that new opportunities, along with salary increases, were in his future. Unfortunately,
what Fred wanted was to have things the way they used to be.
118.
Fred was obviously feeling stress. Which of the following is not a factor in the definition of stress?
a. It is a static condition. (moderate)
b. It may involve opportunity or threats.
c. It is related to what a person desires.
d. It is related to a desire that is uncertain.
e. It is related to a desire that is important.
119.
Which of the following statements is not true concerning the stress Fred may be feeling.
a. Stress may come from any change in Fred's life.
b. Stress may come from personal factors.
c. Stress is not related to personality differences. (easy)
d. Job-related factors may be part of Fred's stress.
e. The new opportunities Fred may receive are positive and not part of Fred's stress.
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a.
Education and communication communicate with employees to help them see the logic of change;
educate employees through one-on-one discussions, memos, groups meetings, or reports; works if source
of resistance is either poor communication or misinformation; must be mutual trust and credibility between
managers and employees.
b. Participation allows those who oppose a change to participate in the decision; assumes that they have
expertise to make meaningful contributions; involvement can reduce resistance, obtain commitment to
seeing change succeed, and increase quality of change decision.
c. Facilitation and support provide supportive efforts such as employee counseling or therapy, new skills
training, or short paid leave of absence; can be time consuming and expensive.
d. Negotiation exchange something of value to reduce resistance; potentially high costs and likelihood of
having to negotiate with other resisters.
e. Manipulation and cooptation manipulation is covert attempts to influence such as twisting or distorting
facts, withholding damaging information, or creating false rumors; cooptation is a form of manipulation
and participation; inexpensive and easy ways to gain support of resisters; can fail miserably if targets feel
theyve been tricked.
f. Coercion using direct threats or force; inexpensive and easy ways to get support; may be illegal. even
legal coercion can be perceived as bullying.
(difficult)
CONTEMPORARY ISSUES IN MANAGING CHANGE
126. In a short essay, list and discuss the four conditions that are most likely to facilitate cultural change. Include an
example of each condition to support your answer.
Answer
a. A dramatic crisis occurs this can be the shock that weakens the status quo and makes people start
thinking about the relevance of the current culture. Examples are a surprising financial setback, the loss of
a major customer, or a dramatic technological innovation by a competitor.
b. Leadership changes hands new top leadership, who can provide an alternative set of key values, may be
perceived as more capable of responding to the crisis than the old leaders were. Top leadership includes
the organizations chief executive but might include all senior managers.
c. The organization is young and small the younger the organization, the less entrenched its culture.
Similarly, it is easier for managers to communicate new values in a small organization than in a large one.
d. The culture is weak the more widely held the values and the higher the agreement among members on
those values, the more difficult it will be to change. Conversely, weak cultures are more receptive to
change than are strong ones.
(moderate)
127. In a short essay, discuss the concept of process reengineering. Include an examples of this concept to support
your answer.
Answer
Process reengineering is about dramatic and radical shifts in the way an organization performs its workthat is,
its work processes. Its focused on quantum changes by throwing out the old ways of doing things and starting
over in redesigning the way work is done. It involves defining customer needs and then designing work
processes to best meet those needs. For instance, Eaton Corporation reengineered its new-product-development
process to help the company reach aggressive growth goals. The managers and workers redesign of the
product innovation process led to a doubling of revenues and profits during a five-year period. Because of the
extensive nature of process reengineering, it is initiated by top management. However, because the process
itself requires significant hands-on input from managers and workers, participative decision making is an
important element.
(easy)
128. In a short essay, define stress. Next ,discuss the various causes of stress and explain how managers can
recognize stress in their employees.
Answer
Stress is a dynamic condition a person faces when confronted with an opportunity, constraint, or demand related
to what he or she desires and for which the outcome is perceived to be both uncertain and important. Stress is
71
highest for individuals who are uncertain whether they will win or lose and lowest for individuals who think
that winning or losing is a certainty. The importance of the outcome is also a critical factor. If winning or
losing is unimportant, there is no stress. The causes of stress can be found in issues related to the organization
or in personal factors that evolve out of the employees private life. Clearly, change of any kind has the
potential to cause stress. Stress symptoms can be grouped under three general categories: physiological,
psychological, and behavioral. Of these, the physiological symptoms are least relevant to managers. Of greater
importance are the psychological and behavioral symptoms since these directly affect an employees work.
(moderate)
STIMULATING INNOVATION
129. In a short essay, define creativity and innovation. Next, discuss the three sets of variables that have been found
to stimulate innovation.
Answer
a. Creativity refers to the ability to combine ideas in a unique way or to make unusual associations between
ideas. An organization that stimulates creativity develops unique ways to work or novel solutions to
problems. Innovation is the process of taking a creative idea and turning it into a useful product, service,
or method of operation. Thus, the innovative organization is characterized by its ability to channel
creativity into useful outcomes. When managers talk about changing an organization to make it more
creative, they usually mean they want to stimulate and nurture innovation.
b. The three sets of variables that have been found to stimulate innovation are the organizations structure,
culture, and human resource practices. Research into the effect of structural variables on innovation shows
three things. First, organic structures positively influence innovation. Second, the easy availability of
plentiful resources provides a key building block for innovation.
Finally, frequent inter-unit
communication helps break down barriers to innovation. Innovative organizations tend to have similar
cultures. They encourage experimentation; reward both successes and failures; and celebrate mistakes.
Within the human resource category, innovative organizations actively promote the training and
development of their members so that their knowledge remains current; offer their employees high job
security to reduce the fear of getting fired for making mistakes; and encourage individuals to become
champions of change.
(difficult)
130.
In a short essay, list and discuss six characteristics of an innovative culture.
Answer
a. Acceptance of ambiguity too much emphasis on objectivity and specificity constrains creativity.
b. Tolerance of the impractical individuals who offer impractical, even foolish, answers to what-if questions
are not stifled. What at first seems impractical might lead to innovative solutions.
c. Low external controls rules, regulations, policies, and similar organizational controls are kept to a
minimum.
d. Tolerance of risk employees are encouraged to experiment without fear of consequences should they fail.
Mistakes are treated as learning opportunities.
e. Tolerance of conflict diversity of opinions is encouraged. Harmony and agreement between individuals
or units are not assumed to be evidence of high performance.
f. Focus on ends rather than means goals are made clear, and individuals are encouraged to consider
alternative routes toward meeting the goals. Focusing on ends suggests that there might be several right
answers to any given problem.
g. Open-system focus managers closely monitor the environment and respond to changes as they occur.
(moderate)
Chapter 14 Foundations of Behavior
True/False Questions
ATTTITUDES
3.
4.
When an employee says, "I make less money at this company than I could earn at another company," he/she is
reflecting the cognitive component of an attitude.
True (difficult)
5.
The behavioral component of an attitude is made up of the beliefs, opinions, knowledge, or information held by
a person.
False (moderate)
6.
7.
8Job involvement is the degree to which an employee identifies with his or her job, actively participates in it,
and considers his or her job performance to be important to his or her self-worth.
True (moderate)
89.
Cognitive dissonance theory seeks to explain the correlated relationship between the affective, cognitive, and
behavioral components of attitudes.
False (moderate)
9.
10.
PERSONALITY
11.
According to the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, a person who rates strongly as a "perceptive" would likely be
spontaneous.
True (moderate)
12.
13.
In the Big Five Model, emotional security was positively related to job performance.
False (difficult)
14.
The Big Five Model found that calm and secure workers performed better than nervous ones.
False (difficult)
15.
Employees with high self-esteem tend to be more satisfied with their jobs than low SEs.
True (moderate)
16.
A person who believes that if he works hard, he will be successful, would be described as having an internal
locus of control.
True (easy)
17.
A person who rates as being high in Machiavellianism would accomplish her task regardless of what it takes.
True (moderate)
18.
A low self-monitoring employee would not adjust well to self-sent signals, but responds well to signals in
his/her external environment.
False (difficult)
19.
According to Holland's Typology, enterprising types tend to be self-confident, ambitious, energetic and
domineering.
True (moderate)
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20.
According to Holland's Typology, a realistic personality type might be well suited to be an economist.
False (moderate)
21.
People from Middle Eastern countries believe they can dominate their environment.
False (difficult)
22.
U.S. workers, more than Iranian workers, would likely have an external locus of control.
False (moderate)
23.
According to Holland's Vocational Preference Inventory, farming is considered a conventional job type.
False (moderate)
PERCEPTION
24.
Perception is a process by which individuals give meaning to their environment by organizing and interpreting
their sensory impressions.
True (moderate)
25.
Attribution is a process by which individuals organize and interpret their sensory impressions in order to give
meaning to their environment.
False (easy)
26.
Distinctiveness refers to whether an individual displays a behavior in many situations or whether it's particular
to one situation.
True (moderate)
27.
In stereotyping, the observers perception of others is influenced by the observers own characteristics than by
those of the person observed.
False (moderate)
28.
Your human resource director believes that married employees are more stable than single persons are. This is
an example of the halo assumed similarity.
False (moderate)
29.
If a manager thinks that all attractive employees are also productive employees, the manager is committing
an error based on a halo effect.
True (moderate)
30.
Multiple Choice
A MANAGERS DILEMMA
31.
According to the boxed feature, A Managers Dilemma, what is the dilemma facing Kelman at Plumtree?
a. determining how to expand the business.
b. determining how to properly implement the strategic plan.
c. determining how to balance personal and business issues with his roommates. (moderate)
d. determining how to source additional capital.
Which of the following are the two major areas on which organizational behavior focuses?
a. individual behavior, group behavior (moderate)
b. managerial behavior, employee behavior
c. traits, environments
d. macro personality traits, micro personality traits
74
e.
33.
34.
35.
36.
The four common behaviors typically studied in organizational behavior are employee productivity,
absenteeism, turnover, and the attitude of ______________.
a. job satisfaction. (moderate)
b. pay satisfaction.
c. individualism.
d. risk taking.
e. creativity.
ATTITUDE
37.
38.
39.
In the statement, "The highway is very busy at 5 p.m. and is scary to drive on, so I'll wait until 7 p.m. to go
home," the phrase, "The highway is very busy," represents which component of an attitude?
a. cognitive (difficult)
b. behavioral
c. emotive
d. affective
e. judgmental
40.
In the statement, "The highway is very busy at 5 p.m. and is scary to drive on, so I'll wait until 7 p.m. to go
home," the word "scary" represents which component of an attitude?
a. cognitive
75
b.
c.
d.
e.
behavioral
emotive
affective (difficult)
judgmental
41.
In the statement, "The highway is very busy at 5 p.m. and is scary to drive, so I'll wait until 7 p.m. to go home,"
the phrase, "so I'll wait until 7 p.m. to go home," represents which component of an attitude?
a. cognitive
b. behavioral (difficult)
c. emotive
d. affective
e. judgmental
42.
43.
A management trainee working for a bank who says, "Working in this industry is just not who I am as a
person," probably lacks ______________.
a. job satisfaction.
b. self perceptions.
c. organizational commitment.
d. job involvement. (difficult)
e. pay satisfaction.
44.
Which of the following terms is defined as "an employee's orientation toward the organization in terms of
his/her loyalty, identification, and involvement"?
a. job satisfaction
b. self perception
c. organizational commitment (easy)
d. job involvement
e. pay satisfaction
45.
______________ refers to any inconsistency that an individual might perceive between two or more of his/her
attitudes or between his/her behavior and attitudes.
a. Behavioral inconsistency
b. Affective dissonance
c. Cognitive dissonance (moderate)
d. Attitude adjustment
e. Emotive disfunctioning
46.
The cognitive dissonance theory proposed that the desire to reduce dissonance is determined by
______________.
a. importance, influence, and rewards. (difficult)
b. economics, politics, and organizational structure.
c. stability, position, and power.
d. awareness, status, and punishments.
e. authority, responsibility, and relevance.
47.
Which of the following cases contains an element that may lead a politician to correct cognitive dissonance?
a. A politician does not really care if the spotted owl lives or becomes extinct.
b. The politician has the power to pass legislation to keep the spotted owl from extinction. (difficult)
c. The politician will get re-elected for ignoring the needs of the spotted owl.
d. The politician grew up in the city.
e. The politician is a male.
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48.
What does the research evidence suggest about the statement, "Happy workers are productive workers"?
a. It's false; instead, productive workers are least happy.
b. There is strong supportive evidence since the Hawthorne studies.
c. There is a small positive relationship between the two variables. (moderate)
d. Actually, there is no relationship between the two variables.
e. It is true for the manufacturing sector but not the service sector.
49.
Where does the "happy worker/productive worker" relationship seem to be most strong?
a. higher-level employees (moderate)
b. lower-level employees
c. service industry employees
d. manufacturing sector employees
e. entry-level employees
50.
Which of the following is true about organizationally committed and satisfied employees?
a. lower rates of turnover and absenteeism (easy)
b. higher rates of voluntary turnover
c. higher rates of cognitive dissonance
d. much higher pay levels
e. less risk taking
PERS0NALITY
51.
When we describe someone as "shy," "aggressive," "extroverted," or "loyal," we are talking about his or her
______________.
a. attitude.
b. behavior.
c. personality. (easy)
d. emotion.
e. ability.
52.
According to the text, an individuals ______________ is the unique combination of the psychological traits
used to describe that person.
a. moral
b. attitude
c. behavior
d. personality (moderate)
e. perception
53.
Which of the following is not one of the four dimensions of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator?
a. extrovert or introvert
b. sensing or intuitive
c. agreeableness or disagreeableness (moderate)
d. feeling or thinking
e. perceptive or judgmental
54.
The first dimension of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator concerns your level of ______________.
a. preference for gathering data.
b. preference for decision making.
c. social interaction. (difficult)
d. style of decision making.
e. internal or external orientation.
55
The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator categorizes preference for gathering data as ______________.
a. extrovert or introvert.
b. sensing or intuitive. (moderate)
c. feeling or thinking.
d. agreeable or disagreeable.
77
e.
perceptive or judgmental.
56.
If you are a person who dislikes taking time for precision work, such as completing tax returns, you would
probably score high on what aspect of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator?
a. extrovert
b. feeling
c. intuitive (difficult)
d. judgmental
e. sensing
57.
The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator assesses preferences for decision making as ______________.
a. extrovert or introvert.
b. sensing or intuitive.
c. feeling or thinking. (moderate)
d. agreeable or disagreeable.
e. perceptive or judgmental.
58.
As a manager, if you prefer to have a harmonious work environment, and dislike reprimanding your
subordinates, you would probably score high on which of Myers-Briggs indicators?
a. introvert
b. sensing
c. intuitive
d. feeling (moderate)
e. perceptive
59.
60.
If your boss could be described as flexible, adaptable, and tolerant, he/she would probably score high on which
Myers-Briggs indicator?
a. extrovert
b. sensing
c. feeling
d. perceptive (moderate)
e. intuitive
61.
In the Myers-Briggs assessment, if you are a good planner, you would probably score high on which scale?
a. extrovert
b. intuitive
c. thinking
d. perceptive
e. judgmental (difficult)
62.
63.
The degree to which someone is responsible, dependable, persistent, and achievement oriented is described as
which of the following big five personality traits?
a. extraversion
b. agreeableness
78
c. conscientiousness (moderate)
d. emotional stability
e. openness to experience
64.
65.
66.
According to the text, an ______________ locus of control is one in which people believe that they control
their own destiny.
a. external
b. internal (moderate)
c. superficial
d. imaginary
e. diagonal
67.
Employees who have a high internal locus of control exhibit all but which of the following?
a. more satisfaction with their jobs (moderate)
b. more alienated from their work setting
c. less involved in their jobs
d. blame their bosses for poor performance
e. blame co-workers for their poor performance
68.
______________ is a measure of the degree to which people are pragmatic, maintain emotional distance, and
believe that ends can justify means.
a. Machiavellianism (easy)
b. Self-esteem
c. Self-monitoring
d. Locus of control
e. Risk taking
69.
A person who believes that "the ends justify the means" would describe a person who has a high level of what
personality trait?
a. Self-confidence
b. Machiavellianism (moderate)
c. Locus of control
d. Self-monitoring
e. Self-perception
70.
Which of the following is true about people with high self- esteem?
a. They have low expectations for success but are happy with themselves.
b. They take fewer risks than others.
c. They choose more unconventional jobs. (moderate)
d. They are susceptible to external influence.
e. They change jobs more often.
71.
______________ is a personality trait that measures an individual's ability to adjust his or her behavior to
external situational factors.
a. Machiavellianism
79
b. Self-esteem
c. Self-monitoring
d. Locus of control (easy)
e. Risk taking
72. A person who can adapt and adjust her behavior to external factors would describe which of the following
personality traits?
a. low self-esteem
b. internal locus of control
c. high self-monitoring (moderate)
d. high risk-taking
e. low authoritarianism
73.
A manager who takes very little time to make a decision probably could be described by what personality trait?
a. high self-esteem
b. external locus of control
c. low self-monitoring
d. high risk taking (moderate)
e. high authoritarianism
74.
75.
Which of the following is true concerning personality types and national cultures?
a. There is no relationship between nationality type and cultures.
b. Middle Eastern countries believe they can dominate their environment.
c. You would find many people with an internal locus of control in the U.S. and Canada. (difficult)
d. North Americans believe life is essentially predetermined.
e. The U.S. rates high in power distance.
76.
77.
78.
d. economist
e. bank teller
80.
A person rating high on the conventional personality type would have a good job match for all but which of the
following jobs?
a. accountant
b. corporate manager
c. mathematician (difficult)
d. bank teller
e. file clerk
81.
According to Holland, becoming a lawyer would be a good job match for someone with what type of
personality type?
a. realistic
b. investigative
c. conventional
d. enterprising (moderate)
e. social
82.
Writing would be a good job match for a(n) ______________ personality type, according to Holland.
a. realistic
b. investigative
c. social
d. enterprising
e. artistic (moderate)
PERCEPTION
83.
______________ is the process of organizing and interpreting sensory impressions to give meaning to the
environment.
a. Attribution
b. Selection
c. Learning
d. Conditioning
e. Perception (easy)
84.
______________ theory explains how we judge people differently depending on what meaning we attribute to a
given behavior.
a. Perception
b. Behavior
c. Attribution (moderate)
d. Social contrast
e. Intuitive meaning
85. If only 6 out of 20 managers completed their subordinate performance appraisals on time, we would probably
attribute manager non-completion to which of the following?
a. other managers
b. an external source (difficult)
c. one manager
d. an internal source
e. a personality flaw
86.
______________ refers to whether an individual displays a behavior in many situations or whether it's
particular to one situation.
a. Consistency
b. Distinctiveness (easy)
c. Attribution
d. Selection
e. Perception
81
87.
If we are attempting to decide whether a particular behavior of an individual is unusual or not, we are making
judgment on what factor of attribution theory?
a. consensus
b. distinctiveness (difficult)
c. repetitiveness
d. consistency
e. control
88.
If a person who is always late for work is late once again and blames it on a train, co-workers would probably
attribute that person's lateness to ______________.
a. the train.
b. an external source.
c. the individual. (easy)
d. the car.
e. bad luck.
89.
______________ refers to whether a person responds the same way over time.
a. Consistency (easy)
b. Distinctiveness
c. Attribution
d. Selection
e. Perception
90.
The fact that individuals, when observing others, tend to underestimate the influence of external factors and
overestimate the influence of internal factors is called ______________.
a. blame theory.
b. self-serving bias.
c. external consistency bias.
d. internal favoritism.
e. fundamental attribution error. (moderate)
91.
We tend to attribute our own successes to ______________., while putting the blame for our failures on
______________.
a. luck; the environment
b. ability; luck (moderate)
c. power; other people
d. our parents; ourselves
e. our bosses; co-workers
92.
93.
In ______________, the observers perception of others is influenced more by the observers own
characteristics than by those of the person observed.
a. stereotyping
b. self-serving bias
c. assumed similarity (moderate)
d. halo effect
e. selectivity
94.
When people judge someone on the basis of the perception of a group they are a part of, they are using the
shortcut called _______________.
a. stereotyping (moderate)
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b.
c.
d.
e.
self-serving bias
assumed similarity
halo effect
selectivity
95.
If a manager is hesitant to hire older people because "they are slow," he/she is exhibiting what kind of
perception shortcut?
a. selective perception
b. assumed similarity
c. stereotyping (difficult)
d. horn effect
e. halo effect
96.
When people form a general impression about a person on the basis of a single characteristic, such as
intelligence, sociability, or appearance, they are being influenced by ______________.
a. selectivity
b. assumed similarity
c. the halo effect (moderate)
d. stereotyping
e. the contrast effect
97.
A recruiter who assumes that a candidate with a high GPA also has other great job match qualities (without
checking), has engaged in what type of perception shortcut?
a. selectivity
b. assumed similarity
c. halo effect (moderate)
d. stereotyping
e. contrast effect
LEARNING
98.
Any relatively permanent change in behavior that occurs as a result of experience is known as
______________.
a. training.
b. learning. (easy)
c. development.
d. change.
e. effort.
99.
According to Skinner, if a manager wants employees to show up for work on time, which of the following
should that manager do?
a. Compliment employees when they show up on time. (difficult)
b. Say nothing when employees show up late.
c. Punish employees who arrive late.
d. Do not do anything since behaviors are based on innate personality.
e. Sometimes compliment employees when they arrive late.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
102. According to the boxed feature, Managing Your Career, which of the following types of difficult people
should the facts be stated without comment or apology and the conversation be switched to problem solving?
a. the hostile, aggressive types.
b. the unethical, persuader .
c. the complainers. (moderate)
d. the silent or nonresponsive types.
e. the know-it-all experts
103. According to the boxed feature, Managing Your Career, with which of the following types of difficult people
should open-ended questions be asked and a friendly, silent stare be used?
a. the hostile, aggressive types.
b. the unethical, persuader .
c. the complainers.
d. the silent or nonresponsive types. (moderate)
e. the know-it-all experts
104. Which of the following is a managerial tool that can help guide employees in their learning in graduated steps?
a. retention behavior
b. reproduction behavior
c. reinforcement behavior
d. shaping behavior (moderate)
e. motivational behavior
105. A boss who promises to remove a past written reprimand from an employee's personal file, if he/she is on time
for work during the next two months, is using ______________.
a. positive reinforcement.
b. negative reinforcement. (difficult)
c. punishment.
d. extinction.
e. forcing.
Scenarios
PERSONALITY
Just Your Type Employees (Scenario)
Doug has recently been promoted to manager of a group of thirteen scientists. All of his employees are well educated
and have been with the company for a minimum of three years. In an attempt to learn more about the employees and
to better assign them to jobs that they will enjoy, he has administered the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator.
106. Sandy is patient with details and good at precise work. She dislikes new problems unless there are standard
ways to solve them. Sandy's preferred method of gathering data is ______________.
a. sensing. (moderate)
b. feeling.
c. introverted.
d. intuitive.
e. judgmental.
107. George dislikes telling people unpleasant things and relates well to most people. George tends to be
a. sensing.
b. feeling. (moderate)
c. introverted.
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d. intuitive.
e. judgmental.
108. Alan tends to dislike doing the same thing over and over again and jumps to conclusions. He is impatient with
routine details. Alan's data gathering preference is ______________.
a. sensing.
b. feeling.
c. introverted.
d. intuitive. (moderate)
e. judgmental.
109. Doug's decision-making style is spontaneous. He focuses on starting a task and postpones decisions. His
decision-making style is ______________.
a. sensing.
b. feeling.
c. introverted.
d. perceptive. (moderate)
e. judgmental.
An Interesting Group (Scenario)
Robin had her hands full. She had recently taken over managing the technical support group at her company and
immediately noticed that her supervisors represented a collection of personalities like she had never seen before. She
was having a problem understanding them and called the human resource department who referred her to a local
psychologist. The psychologist suggested that there be some "low-key" testing completed. Robin agreed, as she felt
she had to have some understanding of her supervisors soon or she would go nuts!
The testing was completed and Robin reviewed the results of the information.
110. though clearly capable, Mary did not seem to like herself. Her results indicated an unwillingness to take risks in
job selection and seemed very susceptible to evaluations from other people. Together, these finding indicate that
Mary ______________.
a. was high in cognitive dissonance.
b. was high in Machiavellianism.
c. was low in self-monitoring.
d. was low in self-esteem. (easy)
e. was high in risk taking.
111. Peter, her assistant manager, seemed to always maintain an emotional distance from others -- and others from
him. He is self-described as "pragmatic," and the tests indicate that he believe that the "ends justify the means,"
descriptions which are consistent with characteristics of ______________.
a. high Machiavellianism. (easy)
b. low self-esteem.
c. high self-monitoring.
d. low cognitive dissonance.
e. high risk taking.
112. Sarah, the floor supervisor, seems to be a different person depending on whom she is with and what the
situation demands. The tests were consistent with this observation, indicating her ability to adjust her behavior.
This is consistent with her being described as having ______________.
a. high self-esteem.
b. low Machiavellianism.
c. high risk taking.
d. low cognitive dissonance.
e. high self-monitoring. (moderate)
113. Kevin was a whirlwind as research and development supervisor. He made decisions very quickly and always
with less information than others. This characteristic was consistent with his test, which described him as
having ______________.
a. high self-esteem.
85
b. low Machiavellianism.
c. high risk taking. (moderate)
d. low cognitive dissonance.
e. high self-monitoring.
Mentoring Careers (Scenario)
Jeff was glad to see the high school interns come and work in his office -- and glad to see them go. It was not that he
did not enjoy their company or that they did not work hard and attempt to perform at a high level. Many times he had
seen kids come into his plant determined to be in a particular occupation that they were not cut out for. It was both
frustrating and sad to see them try so hard at something they did not like and were not good at performing. So, for this
next group of five interns he decided to do something different. He did a little research and found out about Holland's
Typology of Personality and Vocational Preference. Then, as the interns arrived, he asked each to take the test to help
guide them into occupations for which they may better be suited.
114. The testing indicated that Sally prefers coordinated physical activity and she was basically shy, stable, and
conforming. All but which of the following occupations is a potentially good match for her?
a. mechanic
b. drill press operator
c. biologist (difficult)
d. assembly-line worker
e. farmer
115. Darrin's testing indicated that he prefers activities involving thinking, organizing, and understanding and that he
is basically analytical and curious. All but which of the following occupations is a potentially good match for
him?
a. economist
b. mathematician
c. news reporter
d. accountant (difficult)
e. biologist
116. The testing suggested that Bridget prefers rule-regulated, orderly, and unambiguous activities and could be
described as conforming, efficient, and practical. All EXCEPT which of the following occupations is a
potentially good match for her?
a. corporate manager
b. bank teller
c. accountant
d. file clerk
e. teacher (difficult)
117. Andrew prefers activities that involve helping and developing others. Consistent with the testing, he is
described as being social, friendly, and understanding. All EXCEPT which of the following occupations is a
potentially good match for him?
a. social worker
b. writer (difficult)
c. teacher
d. counselor
e. clinical psychologist
PERCEPTION
Which Is It? (Scenario)
Chris had been Linda's boss now for about six months. Recently, Linda had been recommending the firing of Charles,
one of her own staff for his repeated "inability to get along with others." Chris checked with Charles's co-workers and
none of them supported Linda's contention. In addition, several of Linda's peers had met with Chris. Word of Charles's
fate was getting out and they wanted to let Chris know that in the past other employees had been singled out by Linda
for persecution. When asked for specific problems with Charles, Linda mentioned that in addition to his attitude he
had been late several times recently. Chris knew that Charles lived several miles away and that others had been late
86
due to poor weather. Chris did not know whether he should support Linda, his manager, or hold off and not fire
Charles.
118. Which factor of attribution theory was Chris concerned about when he asked Charles's coworkers about Linda's
observations about his attitude problem?
a. consistency
b. repeatedness
c. consensus
d. distinctiveness (difficult)
e. seriousness
119. What factor of attribution theory was Chris concerned about when Linda's peers mentioned about her past
history with subordinates?
a. consistency (difficult)
b. repeatedness
c. consensus
d. distinctiveness
e. seriousness
120. What factor of attribution theory was Chris concerned about when he found out that others besides Charles had
been late to work because of the weather?
a. consistency
b. repeatedness
c. consensus
d. distinctiveness (difficult)
e. seriousness
Essay Questions
ATTITUDES
121. In a short essay, define attitudes. Next, list and discuss the three components that attitudes are made of.
Include an example of a statement that describes each component to support your answer.
Answer
a. Attitudes are evaluative statementseither favorable or unfavorableconcerning objects, people, or
events. They reflect how an individual feels about something. When a person says, I like my job, he or
she is expressing an attitude about work.
b. The three components that make up attitudes are cognition, affect, and behavior. The cognitive component
of an attitude is made up of the beliefs, opinions, knowledge, or information held by a person. The belief
that discrimination is wrong illustrates a cognition. The affective component of an attitude is the
emotional or feeling part of an attitude. This component would be reflected by the statement, I dont like
Jon because he discriminates against minorities. Finally, affect can lead to behavioral outcomes. The
behavioral component of an attitude refers to an intention to behave in a certain way toward someone or
something. For instance, I might choose to avoid Jon because of my feelings about him is an example of
the behavioral component of an attitude.
(moderate)
122. In a short essay, define cognitive dissonance and discuss the three factors that affect how people cope with
cognitive dissonance.
Answer
Cognitive dissonance is any incompatibility or inconsistency between attitudes or between behavior and
attitudes. The theory argued that any form of inconsistency is uncomfortable and that individuals will try to
reduce the dissonance and thus, the discomfort. In other words, individuals seek stability with a minimum of
dissonance. How do people cope with cognitive dissonance? The theory proposed that the desire to reduce
dissonance is determined by the importance of the factors creating the dissonance, the degree of influence the
individual believes he or she has over those factors, and the rewards that may be involved in dissonance. If the
87
factors creating the dissonance are relative unimportant, the pressure to correct the inconsistency will be low.
If individuals perceive the dissonance to be an uncontrollable resultsomething about which they have no
choicethey are not likely to be receptive to attitude change or to feel a need for it. Finally, coupling high
dissonance with high rewards tends to reduce the discomfort inherent in the dissonance, by motivating the
individual to believe that there is consistency.
(difficult)
PERSONALITY
123. In a short essay, discuss the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. Be sure to include a discussion of the four
dimensions of personality to support your answer.
Answer
One of the most popular personality tests is the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. It consists of more than a
hundred questions that ask people how they usually act or feel in different situations. The way an individual
responds to these questions puts him or her at one end or another of four dimensions.
a.
Social interaction (extrovert or introvert) an extrovert is someone who is outgoing, dominant, and often
aggressive and who wants to change the world. Extroverts need a work environment that is varied and
action oriented, that lets them be with others, and that gives them a variety of experiences. An individual
who is shy and withdrawn and focusing on understanding the world is described as an introvert. Introverts
prefer a work environment that is quiet and concentrated, that lets them be alone, and that gives them a
chance to explore in depth a limited set of experiences.
b. Preference for gathering data (sensing or intuitive) sensing types dislike new problems unless there are
standard ways to solve them; they like an established routine, have a high need for closure, show patience
with routine details, and tend to be good at precise work. On the other hand, intuitive types are individuals
who like solving new problems, dislike doing the same thing over and over again, jump to conclusions, are
impatient with routine details, and dislike taking time for precision.
c. Preference for decision making (feeling or thinking) individuals who are feeling types are aware of other
people and their feelings, like harmony, need occasional praise, dislike telling people unpleasant things,
tend to be sympathetic, and relate well to most people. Thinking types are unemotional and uninterested in
peoples feelings, like analysis and putting things into logical order, are able to reprimand people and fire
them when necessary, may seem hard-hearted, and tend to relate well only to other thinking types.
d. Style of making decisions (perceptive or judgmental) perceptive types are curious, spontaneous, flexible,
adaptable, and tolerant. They focus on starting a task, postpone decisions, and want to find out all about
the task before starting it. Judgmental types are decisive, good planners, purposeful, and exacting. They
focus on completing a task, make decisions quickly, and want only the information necessary to get a task
done.
(moderate)
124.
In a short essay, list and discuss the five personality traits that are based on the Big-Five Model of Personality.
Answer
a. Extroversion the degree to which someone is sociable, talkative, and assertive.
b. Agreeableness the degree to which someone is good-natured, cooperative, and trusting.
c. Conscientiousness the degree to which someone is responsible, dependable, persistent, and achievement
oriented.
d. Emotional stability the degree to which someone is calm, enthusiastic, and secure or tense, nervous,
depressed, and insecure.
e. Openness to experience the degree to which someone is imaginative, artistically sensitive, and
intellectual.
(easy)
125. In a short essay, list and describe five types of personalities based on the personality-job theory as developed by
psychologist John Holland. Include a description of the characteristics and sample occupations of each
personality to support your answer.
Answer
88
a.
Realistic prefers physical activities that require skill, strength, and coordination. Personality
characteristics include being shy, genuine, persistent, stable, conforming, and practical. Sample
occupations include mechanic, drill press operator, assembly-line worker, and farmer.
b. Investigative prefers activities involving thinking, organizing, and understanding. Personality
characteristics include being analytical, original, curious, and independent. Sample occupations include
biologist, economist, mathematician, and news reporter.
c. Social prefers activities that involve helping and developing others. Personality characteristics include
being sociable, friendly, cooperative, and understanding. Sample occupations include social worker,
teacher, counselor, and clinical psychologist.
d. Conventional prefers rule-regulated, orderly, and unambiguous activities. Personality characteristics
include being conforming, efficient, practical, unimaginative, and inflexible. Sample occupations include
accountant, corporate manager, bank teller, and file clerk.
e. Enterprising prefers verbal activities in which there are opportunities to influence others and attain
power. Personality characteristics include being self-confident, ambitious, energetic, and domineering.
Sample occupations include lawyer, real estate agent, and small business manager.
f. Artistic prefers ambiguous and unsystematic activities that allow creative expression. Personality
characteristics include being imaginative, disorderly, idealistic, emotional, and impractical. Sample
occupations include painter, musician, writer, and interior decorator.
(moderate)
126.
In a short essay, list and discuss the five personality traits that have proved to be the most powerful in
explaining individual behavior in organizations.
Answer
a. Locus of control some people believe that they control their own fate. Others see themselves as pawns,
believing that what happens to them in their lives is due to luck or chance. The locus of control in the first
case is internal; these people believe that they control their own destiny. The locus of control in the second
case is external; these people believe that their lives are controlled by outside forces. Research evidence
indicates that employees who rate high on externality are less satisfied with their jobs, more alienated from
the work setting, and less involved in their jobs than are those who rate high on internality.
b. Machiavellianism an individual who is high in Machiavellianism is pragmatic, maintains emotional
distance, and believes that ends can justify means. In jobs that require bargaining skills or that have
substantial rewards for winning, high Machs are productive. In jobs in which ends do not justify the means
or that lack absolute measures of performance, its difficult to predict the performance of high Machs.
c. Self-esteem people differ in the degree to which they like or dislike themselves. This trait is called selfesteem (SE). The research on self-esteem offers some interesting insight into organizational behavior. For
example, self-esteem is directly related to expectations for success. High SEs believe that they possess the
ability they need in order to succeed at work. Individuals with high SEs will take more risks in job
selection and are more likely to choose unconventional jobs than are people with low SE. A number of
studies confirm that high SEs are more satisfied with their jobs than are low SEs.
d. Self-monitoring this refers to an individuals ability to adjust his or her behavior to external, situation
factors. Individuals high in self-monitoring show considerable adaptability in adjusting their behavior.
Theyre highly sensitive to external cues and can behave differently in different situations. High selfmonitors are capable of presenting striking contradictions between their public persona and their private
selves. Low self-monitors cannot adjust their behavior. They tend to display their true dispositions and
attitudes in every situation, and theres high behavioral consistency between who they are and what they
do.
e. Risk-taking people differ in their willingness to take chances. Differences in the propensity to assume or
to avoid risk have been shown to affect how long it takes managers to make a decision and how much
information they require before making their choice. To maximize organizational effectiveness, managers
should try to align employee risk-taking propensity with specific job demands. For instance, high risktaking propensity may lead to effective performance for a commodity trader in a brokerage firm because
this type of job demands rapid decision making. On the other hand, high risk-taking propensity might
prove a major obstacle to accountants auditing financial statements.
(difficult)
PERCEPTION
89
127. In a short essay, describe the attribution theory and discuss the three factors that determine externally caused
behavior based on the attribution theory.
Answer
a. Attribution theory was developed to explain how individuals judge people differently depending on what
meaning they attribute to a given behavior. Basically, the theory suggests that when people observe an
individuals behavior, we attempt to determine whether it was internally or externally caused. Internally
caused behaviors are those that are believed to be under the personal control of the individual. Externally
caused behavior results from outside factors; that is, the person is forced into the behavior by the situation.
b. That determination, however, depends on three factors: distinctiveness, consensus, and consistency.
Distinctiveness refers to whether an individual displays a behavior in many situations or whether its
particular to one situation. If everyone who is faced with a similar situation responds in the same way, the
behavior shows consensus. Finally, an observer looks for consistency in a persons actions. The more
consistent the behavior, the more the observer is inclined to attribute it to internal causes.
(difficult)
128. In a short essay, define perception.
perception.
Next, list and discuss the factors that shape and sometimes distort
Answer
Perception is a process by which individuals give meaning to their environment by organizing and interpreting
their sensory impressions. Research on perception consistently demonstrates that individuals may look at the
same thing yet perceive it differently. A number of factors act to shape and sometimes distort perception.
These factors can reside in the perceiver; in the object, or target, being perceived; or in the context of the
situation in which the perception occurs.
a.
The perceiver when an individual looks at a target and attempts to interpret what he or she sees, the
individuals personal characteristics will heavily influence the interpretation.
These personal
characteristics include attitudes, personality, motives, interests, experiences, and expectations.
b. The target the characteristics of the target being observed can also affect whats perceived. Because
targets are not looked at in isolation, the relationship of a target to its background also influences
perception, as does the tendency to group close things and similar things together.
c. The situation the context in which an individual see objects or events is also important. The time at
which an object or even is seen can influence attention, as can location, light, heat, color, and any number
of other situational factors.
(moderate)
129. In a short essay, list and discuss three shortcuts frequently used in judging others. Discuss the impact these
shortcuts have on the management of employees.
Answer
a. Individuals cannot assimilate all they observe, so they engage in selectivity. They take in bits and pieces of
the vast amounts of stimuli bombarding their senses. These bits and pieces are not chosen randomly; they
are selectively chosen depending on the interests, background, experience, and attitudes of the observer.
Selective perception allows us to speed read others, but not without the risk of being inaccurate. Its
easy to judge others if we assume that theyre similar to us. In assumed similarly, the observers
perception of others is influenced more by the observers own characteristics than by those of the person
observed. When we judge someone on the basis of our perception of a group he or she is part of,
stereotyping is the shortcut being used. When individuals form a general impression about a person on the
basis of a single characteristic, such as intelligence, sociability, or appearance, the halo effect is the
influencing factor.
b. Managers need to recognize that their employees react to perceptions, not to reality. So whether a
managers appraisal of an employee is actually objective and unbiased or whether the organizations wage
levels are among the highest in the community is less relevant than what employees perceive them to be.
If individuals perceive appraisals to be biased or wage levels as low, they will behave as if those conditions
actually exist. Employees organize and interpret what they see, so there is always the potential for
perceptual distortion.
(moderate)
90
Command groups, cross-functional teams, self-managed teams, and task forces are all examples of informal
groups.
False (moderate)
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
When the forming stage is complete, there will be a relatively clear hierarchy of leadership within the group and
agreement on the groups direction.
False (difficult)
9.
Under some conditions, high levels of conflict are conducive to high levels of group performance.
True (difficult)
91
10.
A norm is a set of expected behavior patterns attributed to someone who occupies a given position in a social
unit.
False (difficult)
11.
12.
The impact that group pressures for conformity can have on an individual member's judgment and attitudes was
demonstrated in research by Solomon Asch.
True (moderate)
13.
14.
15.
The human relations view of conflict held that conflict must be avoided because it indicates a malfunctioning
within the group.
False (moderate)
16.
The interactionist view of conflict holds that some conflict is absolutely necessary for effective group
performance.
True (moderate)
17.
Resolving conflicts by placing another's needs and concerns above one's own is termed forcing.
False (moderate)
18.
19.
20.
21.
Groupthink is a form of group conformity in which group members withhold deviant, minority, or unpopular
views in order to give the appearance of agreement.
True (moderate)
TURNING GROUPS INTO EFFECTIVE TEAMS
22.
Work teams are formal groups made up of interdependent individuals who are responsible for the attainment of
a goal.
True (moderate)
23.
A self-managed work team brings together experts in various specialties to work together on various
organizational tasks.
False (moderate)
24.
A formal group of employees who operate without a manager and are responsible for a complete work process
or segment is referred to as the self-managed team.
True (moderate)
25.
Functional teams are teams that use computer technology to link physically dispersed members in order to
achieve a common goal.
False (moderate)
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26.
Moving decision making vertically down to teams allows the organization greater flexibility for faster
decisions.
True (difficult)
DEVELOPING AND MANAGING EFFECTIVE TEAMS
27.
28.
Effective team leaders are increasingly taking the role of coach and facilitator.
True (easy)
29.
30.
Multiple Choice
A MANAGERS DILEMMA
31.
According to the company profile in A Managers Dilemma, which of the following describes the types of
teams used to develop successful ad campaigns for clients of StrawberryFrog?
a. functional teams
b. domestic teams
c. regional teams
d. virtual teams (moderate)
33.
34.
In what type of formal group is the traditional work group determined by formal authority relationships?
a. command groups (moderate)
b. cross-functional teams
c. self-managed teams
d. business unit alliances
e. task forces
35.
e.
36.
37.
Which of the following formal groups are essentially independent groups, which, in addition to their regular
job, take on tasks such as hiring, performance evaluations, etc.?
a. business unit alliances
b. command groups
c. self-managed teams (moderate)
d. cross-functional teams
e. task forces
Temporary groups created to accomplish a specific task are termed _____________.
a. command groups.
b. cross-functional teams.
c. self-directed teams.
d. self-managed teams.
e. task forces. (easy)
38.
39.
In which of the following stages of group development do people join the group either because of a work
assignment, in the case of a formal group, or for some other benefit desired, in the case of an informal group?
a. forming (moderate)
b. conforming
c. storming
d. norming
e. performing
40.
The stage of group development in which you would most likely see a battle over group leadership is
_______________.
a. forming
b. conforming
c. storming (moderate)
d. norming
e. performing
41.
At the completion of which of the following stages of group development would there be a relatively clear
hierarchy of leadership within the group and agreement on the groups direction?
a. forming
b. conforming
c. storming (moderate)
d. norming
e. performing
42.
What stage of group development is complete when the group structure solidifies and the group has assimilated
a common set of expectations about behavior?
a. forming
b. storming
c. conforming
d. norming (moderate)
e. performing
43.
c. storming
d. conforming
e. adjourning
44.
Which of the following is an accurate statement about the progression of groups through their development
stages?
a. Conflict inhibits group effectiveness.
b. Groups develop in a linear manner.
c. Several stages may be happening simultaneously. (difficult)
d. Groups will always regress to previous stages, if only for a short time.
e. Groups in the conforming stage are more effective than in the norming stage.
45.
A _____________ refers to a set of expected behavior patterns attributed to someone who occupies a given
position in a social unit.
a. norm
b. conformity behavior
c. role (moderate)
d. status system
e. group cohesiveness
46.
47.
A middle manager who is expected by his/her boss to keep performance evaluations low to save on merit
increase costs, but feels compelled to reward his/her high performing subordinates fairly, is experiencing which
of the following?
norm decisiveness
b. role conflict (difficult)
c. status separation
d. conformity pressure
e. cohesiveness conflict
a.
48.
The acceptable standards or expectations that are shared by the groups members are referred to as
_______________.
a. roles
b. norms (moderate)
c. values
d. morals
e. policies
49.
A new commercial bank employee who notices stares from other officers because he does not wear
conservative work attire is experiencing what aspect of groups?
a. role conflict
b. norms (difficult)
c. status separation
d. cohesiveness conflict
e. performing pressure
50.
The findings of Asch's experiment utilizing lines of different lengths would relate to which of the following?
a. job status
b. workplace conformity (moderate)
c. work group cohesiveness
d. role conflict
e. performance perceptions
95
51.
52.
53.
54.
55.
56.
57.
Which of the following is a potential means of limiting the free rider effect?
a. be able to identify individual responsibility (moderate)
b. reward groups collectively, not individually
c. never allow an outsider into a group once it is formed
d. provide merit pay that is proportional to group effectiveness
e. allow groups to punish poor team players
58.
The degree to which members are attracted to a group and share the groups goals is referred to as
______________.
a. group diversity.
b. group cohesiveness (moderate)
c. group expansion.
d. group norms.
e. group continuity.
96
59.
60.
61.
62.
What view of conflict sees it as natural, inevitable, and potentially resulting in positive results for the
organization?
a. contemporary view
b. conservative view
c. human relations view (moderate)
d. traditional view
e. interactionist view
63.
Which view of conflict sees it as absolutely necessary for effective organizational performance?
a. contemporary view
b. conservative view
c. human relations view
d. traditional view
e. interactionist view (moderate)
64.
The type of conflicts that the interactionist says support the goals of the organization are known as
_____________.
a. goal-oriented conflicts.
b. strategic conflicts.
c. natural conflicts.
d. functional conflicts. (moderate)
e. realistic conflicts.
65.
67.
68.
69.
Which of the following is not an advantage of group decision making over individual decision making?
a. They provide more information.
b. They generate more alternatives.
c. There is less acceptance of a solution. (easy)
d. There is increased legitimacy of the decision.
e. There is reluctance to fight a decision they helped develop.
70.
Which of the following is true concerning the effectiveness of individual decision making over group decision
making?
a. Individuals tend to be more accurate.
b. Individuals are always outperformed by groups.
c. Groups are less creative than individuals.
d. Groups are more accepting of the final decision. (moderate)
e. Group effectiveness is influenced by its size.
71.
72.
75.
All of the following are mentioned in the text as techniques that managers can use to make group decisions
more creative EXCEPT:
98
a.
b.
c.
d.
electronic meetings.
brainstorming.
nominal group technique.
quantitative analysis. (moderate)
76.
Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the text as an example of an external condition that can determine
group performance and satisfaction?
a. authority structures
b. informal communication (difficult)
c. formal regulations
d. employee selection criteria
e. organizations culture
77.
78.
Which of the following personality traits tends to have a positive impact on group productivity and morale?
a. self-reliance (moderate)
b. authoritarianism
c. dominance
d. unconventionality
e. judgmental
79.
All of the following have a negative effect on productivity and morale of groups EXCEPT:
a. authoritarianism.
b. self-reliance.
c. dominance.
d. unconventionality.
Which of the following personality traits tends to have a negative impact on group productivity and morale?
a. sociability
b. self-reliance
c. independence
d. dominance (moderate)
e. extrovertism
80.
81.
According to the group behavior model presented in your text, group size is an example of what factor of group
determination of effectiveness?
a. external conditions
b. group structure (moderate)
c. group processes
d. group tasks
e. group resources
According to the boxed feature, Managing Workforce Diversity, which of the following is NOT mentioned as
a critical interpersonal behavior needed to meet the challenge of coordinating a diverse work team?
a. understanding
b. empathy
c. tolerance
d. communication
e. competence (difficult)
83.
Group decision processes, leader behavior, and power dynamics are examples of _____________.
99
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
group structure.
external conditions.
group tasks.
group resources.
group processes. (moderate)
A formal group made up of interdependent individuals responsible for attainment of goals is a(n)
_____________.
a. informal team.
b. formal team.
c. work team. (moderate)
d. social team.
e. interdependent team.
85.
Which of the following is not one of the four characteristics used to categorize teams?
a. purpose
b. membership
c. industry (easy)
d. duration
e. structure
What team characteristic would be displayed if a team is trying to decide on a new organizational structure?
a. purpose (difficult)
b. membership
c. industry
d. duration
e. structure
86.
87.
A functional department team that is part of the organization's formal structure fits within which characteristic
of team categorization?
a. purpose
b. industry
c. structure
d. membership (moderate)
e. duration
88.
89.
What type of team has clear issues surrounding authority and is involved in specific problems in a particular
functional area?
a. self-directed
b. functional (moderate)
c. permanent
d. temporary
e. self-managed
90.
91.
Bringing together organizational members from marketing, accounting, human resources, and finance to work
on a task would be an example of what type of team?
a. cross-functional (moderate)
b. temporary
c. specific
d. functional
e. self-directed
93.
94.
Believing that your co-worker is a person who will not let you down on project completion is an example of
what characteristic of effective teams?
a. clear goals
b. relevant skills
c. good communication
d. fair compensation system
e. mutual trust (easy)
95.
Which of the following is not a suggestion for managers attempting to build trust?
a. communicate with members
b. be predictable
c. demonstrate competency
d. allow members to set their own goals (moderate)
e. be fair
96.
What characteristic of effective teams would be evident of a team that has intense team loyalty?
a. clear goals
b. mutual trust
c. unified commitment (easy)
d. good communication
e. relevant skills
97.
98.
On a baseball team, a shortstop who "raises his fist" as a signal indicating he will cover second base in the
event of an attempted steal is exhibiting what characteristic of effective teams?
a. clear goals
b. mutual trust
c. unified commitment
101
To be effective, team members should _____________ in order to be flexible and continuously make
adjustments.
a. have clear job descriptions
b. have formal documentation
c. have negotiating skills (difficult)
d. hold firm in their positions
e. maintain clear and static roles
100. Which role of leader is associated with effective teams?
a. salesperson
b. directive
c. controlling
d. seller
e. facilitator (moderate)
101. Providing a pay system that appropriately recognizes team activities is an example of what characteristic of
effective teams?
a. internal and external support (moderate)
b. appropriate leadership
c. negotiating skills
d. good communication
e. unified commitment
102. _____________ is an important part of the planning process in managing a team.
a. Goal determination (difficult)
b. Clarification of authority
c. Empowering members
d. Determining roles
e. Setting clear evaluation criteria
103. A team determining, "How much authority do we have?" is an example of what function in managing a team?
a. planning
b. leading
c. organizing (moderate)
d. evaluating
e. controlling
104. Determining how to resolve conflict between group members is an important aspect of what function in
managing a team?
a. planning
b. leading (moderate)
c. controlling
d. organizing
e. evaluating
105. "Gainsharing" is an example of _____________.
a. a group incentive pay plan. (easy)
b. a method of evaluating overall organizational success.
c. a means of measuring the percent of new market share attributed to group processes.
d. an incentive plan that recognizes individual not group performance.
e. a leader impact evaluation method.
Scenarios
UNDERSTANDING GROUP BEHAVIOR
102
103
109. The group was in the _____________ stage when they were competing to see who would lead the group.
a. performing
b. storming (moderate)
c. forming
d. adjourning
e. norming
110.
When the management group was deciding on their decision rules they were in the _____________ stage of
group development.
a. performing
b. storming
c. forming
d. adjourning
e. norming (moderate)
111.
In the third and fourth days of the retreat, the managers were in the _____________ stage of group
development.
a. performing (moderate)
b. storming
c. forming
d. adjourning
e. norming
112.
When the management team left Silver Falls to return to their work place, they had just completed the
_____________ stage of group development.
a. performing
b. storming
c. forming
d. adjourning (easy)
e. norming
114.
Conflict that prevents the organization from achieving its goals is considered _____________.
a. destructive conflict.
b. negative conflict.
c. dysfunctional conflict. (moderate)
d. nonstrategic conflict.
e. random conflict.
104
115.
Those in the company who view the conflict over the marketing strategy as bad and harmful, have a
_____________ view of conflict.
a. human relations
b. conservative
c. strategic
d. interactionist
e. traditional (difficult)
116.
Those in the company who view the conflict over the marketing strategy as natural and inevitable, have a
_____________ view of conflict.
a. human relations (difficult)
b. conservative
c. strategic
d. interactionist
e. traditional
117.
Those in the company who encourage the conflict over the marketing strategy, have a _____________ view of
conflict.
a. human relations
b. conservative
c. strategic
d. interactionist (difficult)
e. traditional
The groups that comprise individuals from various areas working on operational problems are best described as
_____________.
a. self-managed teams.
b. task forces.
c. command groups.
d. cross-functional teams. (moderate)
e. basic groups.
119.
David also saw a need for _____________ which are essentially independent groups taking on traditional
management responsibilities.
a. self-managed teams (moderate)
b. task forces
c. command groups
d. cross-functional teams
e. basic groups
120. Finally, the temporary groups David talked about, created to achieve a special task, then disband, are known as
_____________.
a. self-managed teams.
b. task forces. (moderate)
c. command groups.
d. cross-functional teams.
e. basic groups.
Essay Questions
UNDERSTANDING GROUP BEHAVIOR
121. In a short essay, list and discuss the five stages of group development.
Answer
Research shows that groups pass through a standard sequence of five stages. These five stages are forming,
storming, norming, performing, and adjourning.
105
a.
The first stage, forming, has two aspects. First people join the group either because of a work assignment,
in the case of a formal group, or for some other benefit desired (such as status, self-esteem, affiliation,
power, or security), in the case of an informal group. Once the groups membership is in place, the second
part of the forming stage begins: the task of defining the groups purpose, structure, and leadership. This
phase is characterized by a great deal of uncertainty. Members are testing the waters to determine what
types of behavior are acceptable. This stage is complete when members begin to think of themselves as
part of a group.
b. The storming stage is one of intragroup conflict. Members accept the existence of the group but resist the
control that the group imposes on individuality. Further, there is conflict over who will control the group.
When this stage is complete, there will be a relatively clear hierarchy of leadership within the group and
agreement on the groups direction.
c. The third stage is one in which close relationships develop and the group demonstrates cohesiveness.
Theres now a strong sense of group identity and camaraderie. This norming stage is complete when the
group structure solidifies and the group has assimilated a common set of expectations of what defines
correct member behavior.
d. The fourth stage is performing. The group structure at this point is fully functional and accepted. Group
energy has moved from getting to know and understand each other to performing the task at hand.
Performing is the last stage in the development of permanent work groups. Temporary groupssuch as
committees, task forces, and similar groupsthat have a limited task to perform have a fifth stage,
adjourning.
e. In the adjourning stage, the group prepares to disband. High levels of task performance are no longer the
groups top priority. Instead, attention is directed at wrapping-up activities. Responses of group members
vary at this stage. Some are upbeat, basking in the groups accomplishments. Other may be saddened by
the loss of camaraderie and friendships gained during the work groups life.
(moderate)
122. In a short essay, define formal groups and list and describe four examples of formal groups.
Answer
Formal groups are work groups established by the organization that have designated work assignments and
specific tasks. In formal groups, appropriate behaviors are established by and directed toward organizational
goals.
Examples of formal groups
a. Command groups these are the basic, traditional work groups determined by formal authority
relationships and depicted on the organizational chart. They typically include a manager and those
subordinates who report directly to him or her.
b. Cross-functional teams these bring together the knowledge and skills of individuals from various work
areas in order to come up with solutions to operational problems. Cross-functional teams also include
groups whose members have been trained to do each others jobs.
c. Self-managed teams these are essentially independent groups that, in addition to doing their operating
jobs, take on traditional management responsibilities such as hiring, planning and scheduling, and
performance evaluations.
d. Task forces these are temporary groups created to accomplish a specific task. Once the task is complete,
the group is disbanded.
(moderate)
123. In a short essay, explain the difference between the assumptions of the traditional, human relations view and
interactionist views of conflict.
Answer
Over the years, three different views have evolved regarding conflict. One view argues that conflict must be
avoided, that it indicates a problem within the group. This is called the traditional view of conflict. A second
view, the human relations view of conflict, argues that conflict is a natural and inevitable outcome in any group
and need not be negative but, rather, has potential to be a positive force in contributing to a groups
performance. The third and most recent perspective proposes that not only can conflict be a positive force in a
group but that some conflict is absolutely necessary for a group to perform effectively. This third approach is
106
called the interactionist view of conflict. The interactionist view is not suggesting that all conflicts are good.
Some conflicts are seen as supporting the goals of the work groups and improving its performance; these are
functional conflicts of a constructive nature. Other conflicts are destructive and prevent a group from achieving
its goals. These are dysfunctional conflicts.
(easy)
124. In short essay, list and discuss four advantages and four disadvantages that group decisions have over individual
decisions.
Answer
Advantages of group decisions
a. Provide more complete information a group brings a diversity of experience and perspectives to the
decision process that an individual cannot.
b. Generate more alternatives because groups have a greater amount and diversity of information, they can
identify more alternatives than an individual. This advantage is particularly evident when group members
represent different areas of expertise.
c. Increase acceptance of a solution many decisions fail after the final choice has been made because people
to not accept the solution. Group members are reluctant to fight or undermine a decision they have helped
develop.
d. Increase legitimacy the group decision-making process is consistent with democratic ideals, and
decisions made by groups may be perceived as more legitimate than decisions made unilaterally by one
person.
Disadvantages of group decisions
a.
Time consuming putting a group together takes time as does any decision making within the group. The
result is that groups almost always take more time to reach a solution than it would take an individual.
b. Minority domination members of a group are never perfectly equal. They may differ in organizational
rank, experience, knowledge about the problem, influence with other members, verbal skills, and
assertiveness. This inequality creates the opportunity for one or more members to dominate others.
c. Pressures to conform pressures to conform in a group can lead to groupthink which is a form of
conformity in which group members withhold different or unpopular views in order to give the appearance
of agreement. Groupthink undermines critical thinking in the group and eventually harms the quality of
the final decision.
d. Ambiguous responsibility group member share responsibility, but the person actually responsible for the
final outcome in a group decision is unclear. In an individual decision, its clear who is responsible.
(difficult)
125.
In a short essay, list and discuss the three types of conflict that have been found to differentiate functional
from dysfunctional conflict.
Answer
The three types of conflicts are task, relationship and process. Task conflict relates to the content and goals of
the work. Relationship conflict focuses on interpersonal relationships. Process conflict refers to how the work
gets done. Studies demonstrate that relationship conflicts are almost always dysfunctional. It appears that the
friction and interpersonal hostilities inherent in relationship conflicts increase personality clashes and decrease
mutual understanding, thereby hindering the completion of organizational tasks. On the other hand, low levels
of process conflict and low-to-moderate levels of task conflict are functional. For process conflict to be
productive, it must be kept minimal. A low-to-moderate level of task conflict consistently demonstrates a
positive effect on group performance because it stimulates discussion of ideas that help groups perform better.
(moderate)
126. In a short essay, list and discuss five conflict-resolution techniques managers can use to reduce conflict.
Answer
a. Forcing resolving conflicts by satisfying ones own needs at the expense of anothers
b. Collaborating resolving conflict by seeking and advantageous solution for all parties
c. compromising resolving conflict by each party giving up something of value
107
a.
Functional teams these teams are composed of a manager and his or her employees from a particular
functional area. Within this functional area, issues such as authority, decision making, leadership, and
interactions are relatively simple and clear. Functional teams are often involved in efforts to improve work
activities or to solve specific problems within their particular functional area.
b. Self-managed teams these teams are formal groups of employees who operate without a manager and are
responsible for a complete work process or segment. The self-managed team is responsible for getting the
work done and for managing themselves. This usually includes planning and scheduling of work,
assigning tasks to members, collective control over the pace of work, making operating decisions, and
taking action on problems.
c. Virtual teams these are teams that use computer technology to link physically dispersed members in
order to achieve a common goal. IN a virtual team, members collaborate using communication links such
as wide area networks, video-conferencing, fax, e-mail, or even Web sites where the team can hold online
conferences. Virtual teams can do all the things that other teams canshare information, make decisions,
and complete tasks; however, they miss the normal give-and-take of face-to-face discussions. Because of
this omission, virtual teams tend to be more task-oriented especially if the team members have never
personally met.
d. Cross-functional teams these teams are a hybrid grouping of individuals who are experts in various
specialties and who work together on various tasks. Many organization are using cross-functional teams.
For example, at Hallmark Cards in Kansas City, editors, writers, artists, and production specialists join
with employees from manufacturing, graphic arts, sales, and distribution to work on everything from
developing new product ideas to improving customer deliveries.
(easy)
130.
In a short essay, list and discuss five characteristics that are associated with effective teams.
Answer
a. Clear goals high-performance teams have both a clear understanding of the goals to be achieved and a
belief that the goal embodies a worthwhile or important result. Moreover, the importance of these goals
encourages individuals to redirect personal concerns to these team goals. In effective teams, members are
committed to the teams goals, know what they are expected to accomplish, and understand how they will
work together to achieve these goals.
b. Relevant skills effective teams are composed of competent individuals. They have the necessary
technical and interpersonal skills to achieve the desired goals while working well together. However, not
everyone who is technically competent has the skills to work well as a team member. High-performing
teams have members who possess both technical and interpersonal skills.
c. Mutual trust effective teams are characterized by high mutual trust among members. That is, members
believe in the ability, character, and integrity of each other. The climate of trust within a group tends to be
strongly influenced by the organizations culture and the actions of management. Organizations that value
openness, honesty, and collaborative processes and that encourage employee involvement and autonomy
are more likely to create trusting cultures.
d. Unified commitment members of an effective team exhibit intense loyalty and dedication to the team.
They are willing to do whatever it takes to help their team succeed. This loyalty and dedication is called
unified commitment. Unified commitment is characterized by dedication to the teams goals and a
willingness to expend extraordinary amount of energy to achieve them.
e. Good communication effective teams are characterized by good communication. Members convey
messages between each other in ways that are readily and easily understood. This includes nonverbal as
well as spoken messages. Good communication is also characterized by a healthy dose of feedback from
team members and managers. Feedback helps to guide team members and to correct misunderstandings.
f. Negotiating skills effective teams tend to be flexible and are continually making adjustments in the
responsibilities assigned to each member. This flexibility requires team members to possess negotiating
skills. Problems and relationships are regularly changing in teams and members need to be able to
confront and reconcile differences.
g. Appropriate leadership effective leaders can motivate a team to follow them through the most difficult
situation. How? They help clarify goals. They demonstrate that change is possible by overcoming inertia.
And they increase the self-confidence of team members, helping members to more fully realize their
potential. Increasingly, effective team leaders act in the roles of coach and facilitator. They help guide and
support the team, but dont control it.
109
h. Internal and external support the final condition necessary for an effective team is a supportive climate.
Internally, the team should have a sound infrastructure. This includes proper training, a clear and
reasonable measurement system that team members can use to evaluate their overall performance, an
incentive program that recognizes and rewards team activities, and a supportive human resource system.
Externally, managers should provide the team with the resources needed to get the job done.
(difficult)
Chapter 16 Motivating Employees
True/False
A MANAGERS DILEMMA
1.
According to the company profile in A Managers Dilemma, the majority of employees at Grupo M consist of
highly educated professionals who work from their homes?
False (easy)
2.
Based on the company profile in A Managers Dilemma, Grupo M has been profiled as a sweatshop where
employees work long hours in dirty, dimly lit factories.
False (easy)
WHAT IS MOTIVATION?
3.
4.
The three key elements in the definition of motivation are effort, organizational goals, and needs.
True (difficult)
Based on McClelland's three-needs theory, high achievers perform best when the odds are against them.
False (moderate)
The best managers are high in the need for power and high in the need for affiliation.
False (difficult)
7.
People with a high need for affiliation prefer cooperative situations over competitive ones.
True (moderate)
8.
People will do better when they get feedback on how well they're progressing toward their goals.
True (easy)
9.
Reinforcement theory is related to an individual's belief that she is capable of performing a task.
False (moderate)
10.
The key to reinforcement theory is that it ignores factors such as goals, expectations, and needs, and focuses
solely on what happens to a person when he takes some action.
True (difficult)
11.
The lower a person's self-efficacy, the more confidence he has in his ability to succeed in a task.
False (moderate)
12.
According to a recent survey, the primary reason employees stay with their jobs is because of flexible work
hours.
False (moderate)
14.
15.
Job design refers to the way tasks are combined to form complete jobs.
True (easy)
16.
When a mail sorter's job is expanded to include mail delivery, the mail sorter has experienced job enlargement.
True (easy)
17.
18.
In the job characteristics model, task significance refers to the degree to which a job requires completion of a
whole and identifiable piece of work.
False (moderate)
19.
20.
Guidance from the job characteristics model suggests that job enlargement should take place rather than task
specialization.
True (moderate)
21.
According to equity theory, a person who earns $50,000 will be less satisfied with their pay than a person who
earns $100,000.
False (moderate)
22.
Equity theory has three referent categories: other, system, and self.
True (moderate)
23.
The three variables in Vroom's expectancy theory are valence, instrumentality, and expectancy.
True (moderate)
24.
Vroom would say that if a person values an outcome, their effort to obtain that outcome will always be great.
False (moderate)
26.
27.
Open-book management is a motivational approach in which an organization's financial statements are opened
to and shared with all employees.
True (moderate)
28.
29.
The challenge to motivating employees in an e-business is much less compared to motivating
employees in a traditional organization.
False (easy)
30.
Many employers are installing Web-monitoring software since there is no evidence that such efforts
can negatively affect employee morale.
False (moderate)
Multiple Choice
A MANAGERS DILEMMA
31.
According to the company profile in A Managers Dilemma, Grupo M is the largest employer in
______________.
a. the United States.
b. Mexico.
c. Brazil.
d. Dominican Republic. (moderate)
e. Switzerland
WHAT IS MOTIVATION?
32.
______________ is the willingness to exert high levels of effort to reach organizational goals, conditions by the
efforts ability to satisfy some individual need.
a. Attribution
b. Motivation (easy)
c. Leadership
d. Goal setting
e. Tenure
33.
The three key elements in the definition of organizational motivation are ______________, organizational
goals, and needs.
a. personality
b. ability
c. effort (easy)
d. tenure
e. strategy
34.
36.
An individual who wants to buy a home in an expensive neighborhood with a low crime rate is satisfying
which psychological needs state?
a. esteem
b. safety (moderate)
112
c. physiological
d. self-actualization
e. social
37.
The drive to find food, drink, and sexual satisfaction is based on what level of need?
a. physiological (easy)
b. safety
c. self-actualization
d. social
e. esteem
38.
The need for such factors as status, recognition, attention, self-respect, autonomy, and achievement are
examples of which of the following needs according to Maslows hierarchy of needs?
a. physiological
b. esteem (moderate)
c. social
d. self-actualization
e. safety
39.
Joining a civic club because the members are considered to be very powerful and popular would be satisfying
which needs state?
a. safety
b. social
c. esteem (moderate)
d. self-actualization
e. physiological
40.
41.
Growth, achieving ones potential, and self-fulfillment, and the drive to become what one is capable of
becoming are characteristics of which need according to Maslows hierarchy?
a. physiological
b. esteem
c. social
d. self-actualization (moderate)
e. safety
42.
A manager who believes that employees need constant control would be described as ______________
according to McGregor.
a. a Theory X manager (easy)
b. a Theory Y manager
c. a Theory Z manager
d. a human relations manager
e. needs hierarchy
Which of the following would describe the beliefs of a Theory Y manager?
a. People have little ambition.
b. Work is acceptable because of financial needs, but play is more natural.
c. Employees readily accept responsibility. (easy)
d. People dislike work.
e. Managerial direction of employees is essential.
43.
44.
According to Herzberg, in order to provide employees with job satisfaction, managers should concentrate on
a. hygiene factors.
113
An individual who would enjoy taking on the challenge of personally redesigning the workflow of a
manufacturing line to improve employee productivity would probably be rated high on which of the following?
a. need for affiliation
b. need for impact
c. need for achievement (difficult)
d. need for power
e. need for control
46.
According to McClelland, the need to make others behave in a way they wouldn't have behaved otherwise is
which of the following work motives?
a. need for achievement
b. need for power (easy)
c. need for affiliation
d. need for motivation
e. need for self-fulfillment
47.
Which of the following suggests that there is a need to have good relationships at work?
a. need for achievement
b. need for power
c. need for fulfillment
d. need for affective connection
e. need for affiliation (moderate)
48.
49.
Which of the following is true concerning individuals who have a high need for achievement?
a. They desire to do many things with medium impact on quality.
b. They seek achievement but not personal responsibility.
c. They want slow but sure feedback on their performance.
d. They dislike succeeding by chance. (difficult)
e. They enjoy very difficult tasks.
50.
51.
The best managers are high in the need for ______________ and low in the need for ______________.
a. achievement; power
b. power; affiliation (difficult)
c. affiliation; power
d. achievement; affiliation
e. power; achievement
114
52.
53.
The proposition that specific goals increase performance and that difficult goals, when accepted, result in
higher performance than easy goals is termed ______________.
a. self-efficacy.
b. reinforcement theory.
c. path-goal theory.
d. goal-setting theory. (moderate)
e. equity theory.
54.
Which of the following best summarizes the relationship between goal setting and need for achievement
findings?
a. Goal setting is superior because it recommends setting difficult goals.
b. They are incompatible theories but there is no empirical research to support either claim.
c. Difficult goals are still recommended for most people because only 10-20 percent of people are high
achievers. (difficult)
d. Goal setting is not needed with high achievers.
e. They are very similar theories.
55.
People will do better when they get ______________ because it helps identify discrepancies between what they
have done and what they want to do.
a. input
b. goals
c. equity
d. power
e. feedback (easy)
56.
The higher your ______________ , the more confidence you have in your ability to succeed in a task.
a. self-efficacy (easy)
b. self-esteem
c. reinforcers
d. job scope
e. motivation
Reinforcement theorists believe that behavior results from which of the following?
a. external consequences (moderate)
b. internal personality traits, such as need for achievement
c. setting high goals
d. intrinsic satisfiers
e. hygiene factors
57.
58.
A ______________ is any consequence immediately following a response that increases the probability that the
behavior will be repeated.
a. goal
b. reinforcer (moderate)
c. conclusion
d. job characteristics model
e. valence
59.
e.
Job criteria
According to a recent survey, which of the following is the main reason employees stay with their jobs?
a. pleasant work environment
b. easy commute
c. challenging work
d. like co-workers (moderate)
e. flexible work hours
61.
According to reinforcement theory, an individual would behave in a desired manner if which of the following
occurred?
a. Nothing happened when they acted appropriately.
b. They are punished for doing the wrong behavior.
c. They set specific, difficult goals to achieve.
d. They are immediately rewarded, such as a monthly bonus. (moderate)
e. Their inner drives create the necessary tension level.
62.
According to reinforcement theory, if a manager catches an employee exhibiting unproductive behavior, the
recommended action for eliminating the behavior would be to ______________.
a. punish the behavior.
b. reward their good behavior.
c. reward other employees' good behavior.
d. punish other employees exhibiting similar unproductive behavior.
e. ignore the behavior. (difficult)
63.
The number of different tasks required in a job and the frequency with which those tasks are repeated is
______________.
a. job scope. (moderate)
b. job enlargement.
c. job enrichment.
d. job design.
e. job criteria.
64.
Horizontally expanding the tasks of a job is known by which of the following terms?
a. job enrichment
b. job enlargement (moderate)
c. task improvement
d. job expansion
e. right sizing tasks
65.
66.
67.
116
The job characteristics model identifies ______________ as the degree to which a job has substantial impact
on the lives or work of other people.
a. task significance (moderate)
b. task identity
c. skill variety
d. autonomy
e. feedback
73.
______________ is the degree to which a job provides substantial freedom, independence and discretion to the
individual in scheduling the work and determining the procedures to be used in carrying it out.
a. Task significance
b. Task identity
c. Skill variety
d. Autonomy (easy)
e. Feedback
______________ is the degree to which carrying out the work activities required by a job results in an
individual's obtaining direct and clear information about the effectiveness of her performance.
a. Task significance
b. Task identity
c. Skill variety
d. Autonomy
e. Feedback (moderate)
74.
75.
In the job characteristics model, which combination of core job dimensions combine to produce experienced
meaningfulness of work by the employee?
a. skill variety, feedback, and autonomy
b. autonomy, task significance, and task identity
c. task identity, skill variety, and task significance (moderate)
d. task significance, task identity, and feedback
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e.
76.
Which of the following personality variables moderates the relationship between job dimensions and outcomes
according to the job characteristics model?
a. need for achievement
b. growth need (difficult)
c. locus of control
d. risk taking
e. need for power
77.
78.
According to the job characteristics model, ______________ suggests that managers should design tasks that
form an identifiable and meaningful whole.
a. combining tasks
b. creating natural work units (moderate)
c. opening feedback channels
d. expanding jobs vertically
e. establishing client relationships
79.
80.
In ______________ an employee compares his job's inputs-outcomes ratio with that of relevant others and then
corrects any inequity.
a. reinforcement theory
b. the job characteristics model
c. job design
d. equity theory (moderate)
e. expectancy theory
81.
82.
If a manager seeks equity by rethinking his situation and deciding that "on second thought my office is nicer
because it has better carpet," this manager is seeking equity through which of the following methods?
a. increasing his outcomes
b. decreasing comparison other outcomes
c. distorting others' outcomes (difficult)
d. leaving the situation
e. choosing a new comparison other
83.
Based on equity theory, asking the boss to give a "comparison other" at work more responsibility is to seek
equity through which of the following methods?
a. decreasing your inputs
118
b.
c.
d.
e.
84.
85.
Organizational pay policies are what type of referent according to equity theory?
a. other
b. system (difficult)
c. internal
d. external
e. self
In general, the research support for equity theory could be described as ______________.
a. strong. (moderate)
b. moderate.
c. weak.
d. inconclusive.
e. there has been very little research on equity theory.
86.
In expectancy theory, the probability perceived by the individual that exerting a given amount of effort will
lead to a certain level of performance is ______________.
a. valence.
b. expectancy. (moderate)
c. consistency.
d. flexibility.
e. instrumentality.
87.
Which expectancy theory linkage explains the belief by a student that studying hard results in obtaining high
test grades?
a. valence of reward
b. expectancy (difficult)
c. input to outcome
d. goal setting to achievement
e. instrumentality to reward
88.
In expectancy theory, the degree to which the individual believes that performing at a particular level is
instrumental in leading to the attainment of a desired outcome is ______________.
a. valence.
b. expectancy.
c. consistency.
d. flexibility.
e. instrumentality. (moderate)
89.
Which expectancy theory linkage explains the belief that having a high grade point average is critical in
obtaining a good job?
a. instrumentality (difficult)
b. expectancy
c. goal setting to achievement
d. valence
e. input to outcome
90.
Which expectancy theory linkage explains the degree to which a student desires a good job?
a. expectancy
b. effort to performance
c. input to outcome
d. instrumentality
e. valence (moderate)
91.
a. It emphasizes payoffs.
b. It is important to understand why outcomes are important or unimportant.
c. Expected behaviors are important.
d. Reality is key. (difficult)
e. Individuals are expected to maximize needs and/or wants.
CURRENT ISSUES IN MOTIVATION
92.
To maximize motivation among today's diverse work force, managers need to think in terms of
______________.
a. flexibility. (easy)
b. consistency.
c. needs.
d. wants.
e. organizational strategy.
93.
A ______________ workweek is a workweek where employees work longer hours per day but fewer days per
week.
a. flexible
b. compressed (easy)
c. congruent
d. parallel
94.
______________ is a scheduling system in which employees are free to vary work hours within certain limits.
a. Compressed work week
b. Job sharing
c. Flextime (moderate)
d. Telecommuting
e. Job enlargement
95.
What type of job scheduling option would allow two different employees to share one forty-hour-a-week
system's analyst position?
a. compressed work week
b. job sharing (easy)
c. flextime
d. telecommuting
e. job enlargement
At which of the following companies do new employees become a part of a mentoring group called
Horizons?
a. Microsoft
b. Hewlett-Packard
c. IBM
d. Silicon Graphics (moderate)
e. Lucent Technologies
97.
The linking by computer and modem of workers at home with co-workers and management at an office is
termed ______________.
a. job sharing.
b. compressed work week.
c. flextime.
d. telecommuting. (easy)
e. job enlargement.
98. Piece-rate pay plans, wage incentive plans, profit-sharing and lump-sum bonuses are examples of
______________ programs.
a. open-book management
b. expectancy theory
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c. pay-for-performance (easy)
d. equity theory
e. job characteristics model
99.
100. ______________ is a motivational approach in which an organization's financial statements are opened to and
shared with all employees.
a. Open-book management (easy)
b. Expectancy theory
c. Pay-for-performance
d. Equity theory
e. Job characteristics model
101. Successful motivation of professions requires that managers recognize that the loyalty of professionals is
usually toward their ______________.
a. employer.
b. short-term financial well being.
c. long-term financial well being.
d. family.
e. profession. (moderate)
102. All of the following are mentioned in the text as suggestions to motivating professionals EXCEPT:
a. providing them with ongoing challenging projects.
b. using money and promotions. (moderate)
c. allowing them to structure their work in ways they find productive.
d. rewarding them with recognition.
103. Which of the following is not a suggestion for motivating employees?
a. recognize individual differences
b. make goals very difficult to achieve (easy)
c. match people to jobs
d. individualize rewards
e. don't ignore money
104.
A review of eighty studies found which of the following methods produced the highest increases in
productivity?
a. goal setting
b. job redesign
c. employee participation
d. monetary increases (moderate)
e. job/person match
105. Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the text as a suggestion to motivating employees in general?
a. recognize individual differences.
b. use goals.
c. use collective rewards. (moderate)
d. dont ignore money.
e. link rewards to performance.
Scenarios and Questions
CONTEMPORARY THEORIES OF MOTIVATION
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One suggestion, ______________, encourages putting existing fragmented tasks back together to increase skill
variety and task identity.
a. combining tasks (easy)
b. creating natural work units
c. establishing client relationships
d. expanding jobs vertically
e. opening feedback channels
111.
Another suggestion, ______________, allows employees to judge the level of their performance.
a. combining tasks
b. creating natural work units
c. establishing client relationships
122
______________ can help partially close the gap between the "doing" and the "controlling" aspects of the job
and increases employee autonomy.
a. combining tasks
b. creating natural work units
c. establishing client relationships
d. expanding jobs vertically (difficult)
e. opening feedback channels
113.
The model also suggests that ______________ will increase employee "ownership" of the work and help them
view their work as meaningful.
a. combining tasks
b. creating natural work units (difficult)
c. establishing client relationships
d. expanding jobs vertically
e. opening feedback channels
Employees are never able to meet their sales quotas and believe that no matter how hard they work, they'll
never meet them. They perceive the ______________ of their success to be low.
a. instrumentality
b. expectancy (difficult)
c. valence
d. performance-reward linkage
e. attractiveness of reward
115. Employees believe that they can make their sales quotas, but aren't sure that management will really reward
them when they do. They perceive the ______________ to be low.
a. instrumentality (difficult)
b. expectancy
c. valence
d. effort-performance linkage
e. attractiveness of reward
116.
Management has set the reward for meeting sales quotas at a lower level than last year. Employees perceive
that the ______________ is low.
a. instrumentality
b. expectancy
c. valence (difficult)
d. performance-reward linkage
e. effort-performance linkage
117.
Jill has arranged for the bonus system to be changed so that the bonus for meeting sales quotas is much higher
than it has ever been before. Jill has altered the ______________.
a. instrumentality.
b. expectancy.
c. valence. (moderate)
d. performance-reward linkage.
e. effort-performance linkage.
Terrence is allowing two people to split a 40-hour-a-week job. They are splitting the work and the benefits in
an arrangement termed ______________.
a. flexible work hours.
b. a compressed workweek.
c. flextime.
d. job sharing. (easy)
e. telecommuting.
119.
Terrence allows employees to work four 10-hour days instead of the traditional five day workweek. This work
arrangement is termed ______________.
a. home-based work.
b. a compressed workweek. (easy)
c. flextime.
d. job sharing.
e. telecommuting.
120. Some employees are working from home via computers. This work arrangement is termed ______________.
a. flexible work hours.
b. a compressed workweek.
c. flextime.
d. job sharing.
e. telecommuting. (easy)
Essay Questions
WHAT IS MOTIVATION?
121. In a short essay, define motivation and discuss the three key elements that can be seen in this definition.
Answer
Motivation is the willingness to exert high levels of effort to reach organizational goals, conditioned by the
efforts ability to satisfy some individual need. The three key elements that can be seen in this definition are
effort, organizational goals, and needs. The effort element is a measure of intensity or drive. A motivated
person tries hard. But high levels of effort are unlikely to lead to favorable job performance unless the effort is
channeled in a direction that benefits the organization. A person should be seeking effort that is directed
toward, and consistent with, organizational goals. A need refers to some internal state that makes certain
outcomes appear attractive. An unsatisfied need creates tension that stimulates drives within an individual.
These drives lead to a search behavior to find particular goals that, if attained, will satisfy the need and reduce
the tension.
(moderate)
EARLY THEORIES OF MOTIVATION
122. In a short essay, list and discuss the five needs that are based on Maslows Hierarchy of Needs Theory.
Answer
a. Physiological needs food, drink, shelter, and other physical requirements.
b. Safety needs security and protection from physical and emotional harm, as well as assurance that
physical needs will continue to be met.
c. Social needs affection, belongingness, acceptance, and friendship.
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d. Esteem needs internal esteem factors such as self-respect, autonomy, and achievement and external
esteem factors such as status, recognition, and attention.
e. Self-actualization needs growth, achieving ones potential, and self-fulfillment; the drive to become what
one is capable of becoming.
(easy)
123. In a short essay, list and discuss the three-needs theory according to David McClelland. Next, identify which of
these needs has been studied most extensively and discuss the findings of this research.
Answer
The three-needs theory says there are three needs that are major motives in work. These three needs include the
need for achievement which is the drive to excel, to achieve in relation to a set of standards, and to strive to
succeed; the need for power which is the need to make others behave in a way that they would not have
behaved otherwise; and the need for affiliation which is the desire for friendly and close interpersonal
relationships. Of these three needs, the need for achievement has been researched most extensively. The
findings show people with a high need for achievement are striving for personal achievement rather than for the
trappings and rewards of success. They have a desire to do something better or more efficiently than its been
done before. They prefer jobs that offer personal responsibility for finding solutions to problems, in which they
can receive rapid and unambiguous feedback on their performance in order to tell whether theyre improving,
and in which they can set moderately challenging goals. High achievers arent gamblers; they dislike
succeeding by chance. They are motivated by and prefer the challenge of working at a problem and accepting
the personal responsibility for success or failure. An important point is that high achievers avoid what they
perceive to be very easy or very difficult tasks.
(difficult)
124.
In a short essay, discuss job design and describe how a manager could utilize job scope, job enlargement, job
enrichment, and job depth to design motivating jobs.
Answer
Job design refers to the way tasks are combined to form complete jobs. Job design historically has concentrated
on making jobs smaller and more specialized. Yet, when jobs are narrow in focus and highly specialized,
motivating employees is a real challenge. Thus, many organizations have looked at other job design options.
One of the earliest efforts at overcoming the drawbacks of job specialization involved the horizontal expansion
of a job through increasing job scopethe number of different tasks required in a job and the frequency with
which these tasks are repeated. For instance, a dental hygienists job could be enlarged so that in addition to
dental cleaning, he or she is pulling patients files, re-filing them when finished, and cleaning and storing
instruments. This type of job design option is called job enlargement. Another approach to designing
motivating jobs is through the vertical expansion of a job by adding planning and evaluating responsibilities
job enrichment. Job enrichment increases job depth, which is the degree of control employees have over their
work. In other words, employees are empowered to assume some of the tasks typically done by the managers.
Thus, the tasks in an enriched job should allow workers to do a complete activity with increased freedom,
independence, and responsibility. These tasks should also provide feedback so that individuals can assess and
correct their own performance. For instance, in an enriched job, the dental hygienist, in addition to dental
cleaning, could schedule appointments and follow up with clients.
(difficult)
125. In a short essay, list and discuss the five core dimensions that can describe any job according to the job
characteristics model.
Answer
a.
Skill variety the degree to which a job requires a variety of activities so that an employee can use a
number of different skills and talents.
b. Task identity the degree to which a job requires completion of a whole and identifiable piece of work.
c. Task significance the degree to which a job has a substantial impact on the lives or work of other people.
125
d. Autonomy the degree to which a job provides substantial freedom, independence, and discretion to the
individual in scheduling the work and determining the procedures to be used in carrying it out.
e. Feedback the degree to which carrying out work activities required by a job results in the individuals
obtaining direct and clear information about the effectiveness of his or her performance.
(moderate)
126. In a short essay, discuss the equity theory and list five probable behavior responses that may occur when
employees perceive an inequity.
Answer
The equity theory proposes that employees perceive what they get from a job situation (outcomes) in relation to
what they put into it (inputs) and then compare their inputs-outcomes ratios of relevant others. If an employee
perceives his or her ratio to be equal to those of relevant others a state of equity exits. In other words, he or she
perceives that the situation is fair. However, if the ratio is unequal, inequity exists and he or she views
themselves as underrewarded or overrewarded. When inequities occur, employees attempt to do something
about it. The equity theory proposes that employees might (1) distort either their own or others inputs or
outcomes, (2) behave in some way to induce others to change their inputs or outcomes, (3) behave in some way
to change their own inputs or outcomes, (4) choose a different comparison person, or (5) quit their job.
(moderate)
127.
In a short essay, discuss Victor Vrooms expectancy theory and list and describe the three variables or
relationships that support this theory.
Answer
Expectancy theory states that an individual tends to act in a certain way based on the expectation that the act
will be followed by a given outcome and on the attractiveness of that outcome to the individual. It includes the
following three variables or relationships.
a.
Expectancy or effort-performance linkage probability perceived by the individual that exerting a given
amount of effort will lead to a certain level of performance.
b. Instrumentality or performance-reward linkage the degree to which the individual believes that
performing at a particular level is instrumental in attaining the desired outcome.
c. Valence or attractiveness of reward the importance that the individual places on the potential outcome or
reward that can be achieved on the job. Valence considers both the goals and needs of the individual.
(moderate)
CURRENT ISSUES IN MOTIVATION
128. In a short essay, list and discuss four types of flexible working schedules that have been implemented by
organizations as a response to the varied needs of a diverse workforce.
Answer
a.
Compressed workweek a workweek where employees work longer hours per day but fewer days per
week. The most common form is four 10-hour days (a 4-40 program). However, organizations could
design whatever schedules they wanted to fit employees needs. This compressed workweek provides
employees with time off for running errands, pursuing hobbies, or taking care of family problems.
b. Flexible work hours (also known as flextime) a scheduling system in which employees are required to
work a specific number of hours a week but are free to vary those hours within certain limits. In a flextime
schedule, there are certain common core hours when all employees are required to be on the job, but
starting, ending, and lunch-hour times are flexible. Flextime is one of the most desired benefits employees
want from their employers.
c. Job sharing the practice of having two or more people split a full-time job. This types of job schedule
might be attractive, for example, to individuals with school-age children or retirees, who want to work but
do not want the demands and hassles of a full-time position.
d. Telecommuting here, employees work at home and are linked to the workplace by computer and modem.
Many jobs can be done at home, and this approach might be close to the ideal job for some people as there
126
is no commuting, flexible hours, freedom to dress as you please, and little or no interruptions from
colleagues.
(easy)
129.
In a short essay, discuss the unique problems faced in trying to motivate professional employees, contingent
workers, and low-skilled, minimum-wage employees. Include a discussion of various methods that can be
implemented to motivate these types of employees.
Answer
a. Motivating professionals professionals are typically different from nonprofessionals. They have a strong
and long-term commitment to their field of expertise. They loyalty is more often to their profession than to
their employer. To keep current in their field, they need to regularly update their knowledge, and because
of their commitment to their profession they rarely define their workweek as 8am to 5pm five days a week.
What motivates professionals? Money and promotions typically are low on their priority list. Therefore,
provide them with ongoing challenging projects. Give them autonomy to follow their interests, and allow
them to structure their work in ways they find productive. Reward them with educational opportunities
additional training, workshops, attending conferencesthat allow them to keep current in their field. Also,
reward them with recognition, and ask questions and use other actions that demonstrate to them that youre
sincerely interested in what theyre doing and value it.
b. Motivating contingent workers contingent workers dont have the security or stability that permanent
employees have, and they dont identify with the organization or display the commitment that other
employees do. Temporary workers also typically get little or no benefits such as health care or pensions.
Theres no simple solution for motivating contingent employees. What will motivate involuntarily
temporary employees? An obvious answer is the opportunity to become a permanent employee. In cases
in which permanent employees are selected from a pool of temps, the temps will often work hard in hopes
of becoming permanent. A less obvious answer is the opportunity for training. The ability of a temporary
employee to find a new job is largely dependent on his or her skills. If the employee sees that the job he or
she is doing can help develop marketable skills, then motivation is increased.
c. Motivating low-skilled, minimum-wage employees one of the toughest motivational challenges a
manager faces is how to achieve and keep high performance levels among these types of workers.
Although money is important as a motivator, its not the only reward that people seek and that managers
can use. In motivating minimum-wage employees, managers should look at other types of rewards that
help motivate employee performance. One that many companies use is employee recognition programs
such as employee of the month, quarterly employee performance awards ceremonies, or celebrations of
employees accomplishments. These types of programs serve the purpose of highlighting employees
whose work performance has been of the type and level the organization wants to encourage in all its
employees.
(easy)
130.
In a short essay, list and discuss six specific recommendations that should be followed when motivating
employees.
Answer
a. Recognize individual differences almost every contemporary motivation theory recognizes that
employees arent identical. They have different needs, attitudes, personality, and other important
individual variables.
b. Match people to jobs theres a great deal of evidence showing the motivational benefits of carefully
matching people to jobs. For example, high achievers should have jobs that allow them to participate in
setting moderately challenging goals and that involve autonomy and feedback. However, keep in mind that
not everybody is motivated by jobs that are high in autonomy, variety, and responsibility.
c. Use goals managers should ensure that employees have hard, specific goals and feedback on how well
theyre doing in achieving those goals. The determination of whether goals should be assigned by the
manager or set with the employees participation depends on the perception of goal acceptance and the
organizations culture. If resistance to goals is expected, participation should increase acceptance. If
participation is inconsistent with the culture, assigned goals should be used.
127
d. Ensure that goals are perceived as attainable regardless of whether goals are actually attainable,
employees who see goals as unattainable will reduce their effort. Managers must be sure, therefore, that
employees feel confident that increased efforts can lead to achieving performance goals.
e. Individualize rewards because employees have different needs, what acts as a reinforcer for one may not
for another. Managers should use their knowledge of employee differences to individualize the rewards
they control, such as pay, promotions, recognition, desirable work assignments, autonomy, and
participation.
f. Link rewards to performance managers need to make reward contingent on performance. Rewarding
factors other then performance will only reinforce those other factors. Important rewards such as pay
increases and promotions should be given for the attainment of specific goals. Managers should also look
for ways to increase the visibility of rewards, making them potentially more motivating.
g. Check the system for equity employees should perceive that rewards or outcomes are equal to the inputs.
On a simple level, experience, ability, effort, and other obvious inputs should explain difference in pay,
responsibility, and other obvious outcomes. Remember that one persons equity is anothers inequity, so an
ideal reward system should weigh inputs differently in arriving at the proper rewards for each job.
h. Dont ignore money its easy to get so caught up in setting goals, creating interesting jobs, and providing
opportunities for participation that you forget that money is a major reason why most people work. Thus,
the allocation of performance-based wage increases, piecework bonuses, and other pay incentives is
important in determining employee motivation.
(difficult)
Chapter 17 - Leadership
True/False
A MANAGERS DILEMMA
1.
The Ross family decided to hire an experienced CEO to run Bob Ross Buick upon the death of Bob Ross Sr.,
the founder of the company.
False (moderate)
3.
4.
Not all leaders have the capabilities or skills needed to hold managerial positions.
True (easy)
5.
Fiedler's contingency model of leadership style effectiveness depends on the ability and willingness of the
subordinates.
False (moderate)
7.
The least-preferred co-worker questionnaire measure, whether a person is task or relationship oriented.
True (easy)
8.
Fiedler assumed a person's leadership style was adjusted based on the situation.
False (moderate)
128
9.
Fiedler identified three contingency dimensions: leader-member relations, task structure, and reward power.
False (difficult)
10.
According to Fiedler's research, task-oriented leaders tended to perform better in situations that are very
favorable to them and in situations that were very unfavorable.
False (difficult)
11.
According to Fiedler's research, relationship-oriented leaders seemed to perform better in very unfavorable
situations.
False (moderate)
12.
Review of the major studies undertaken to test the overall validity of the Fiedler model led to a generally
positive conclusion.
True (moderate)
13.
129
14.
Robert House's supportive leader consults with subordinates and uses their suggestions before making a
decision.
False (difficult)
15.
Robert House assumed that leadership style changes depending on the situation.
True (moderate)
16.
Path-goal theory holds that subordinates with an external locus of control will be more satisfied with a directive
style.
True (moderate)
17.
Vroom and Yetton's Path-Goal Model related leadership behavior and participation to decision making.
False (moderate)
18.
Research testing the original leader participation model was very encouraging.
True (moderate)
20.
People working for charismatic leaders are motivated to exert extra work effort but express lower satisfaction.
False (moderate)
21.
Charismatic leadership may not always be needed to achieve high levels of employee performance.
True (easy)
22.
Charisma is the ability to create and articulate a realistic, credible, attractive vision of the future for any
organization or organizational unit that grows out of and improves upon the present.
False (moderate)
23.
The key properties of a vision seem to be inspirational possibilities that are value centered, are realizable, have
superior imagery, and are well articulated.
True (difficult)
24.
One specific role of team leadership is that team leaders are troubleshooters.
True (easy)
25.
When team leaders assume the role of troubleshooter, they clarify expectations and roles, teach, and offer
support.
False (moderate)
26.
Transactional and transformational leadership are opposing approaches to getting things done.
False (moderate)
27.
The evidence supports the superiority of transformational leadership over transactional leadership.
True (moderate)
According to French and Raven, legitimate power and authority are one in the same.
True (moderate)
29.
Credibility is the degree to which followers perceive someone as honest, competent, and able to inspire.
True (moderate)
130
Multiple Choice
A MANAGERS DILEMMA
31.
According to the company profile in A Managers Dilemma, the problem facing Bob Ross Buick is
determining _______________.
a. how to attract more customers.
b. how to expand the company.
c. how to keep employees loyal. (moderate)
d. how to hire more qualified employees.
e. how to sell the business.
Which of the following is NOT true concerning the difference between managers and leaders?
a. Managers are appointed.
b. Managers influence through informal means. (easy)
c. Leaders may be appointed.
d. Leaders can influence beyond formal authority.
e. Leaders may emerge from a group.
33.
Persons who are able to influence others and who possess managerial authority are termed ______________.
a. managers.
b. leaders. (easy)
c. organizers.
d. visionaries.
e. team members.
Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the text as one of the three leadership styles explored in the
University of Iowa studies?
a. cultural style (easy)
b. autocratic style
c. democratic style
d. laissez-faire style
35.
Which of the following describes the leadership style in which a leader tended to centralize authority,
dictate work methods, make unilateral decisions, and limit employee participation?
a. cultural style
b. autocratic style (moderate)
c. democratic style
d. laissez-faire style
36. The _______________ style of leadership describes a leader who tends to involve employees in decision
making, delegate authority, encourage participation in deciding work methods and goals, and use feedback as an
opportunity for coaching employees.
a. cultural style
b. autocratic style
c. democratic style (moderate)
d. laissez-faire style
131
37.
Which of the following describes the leadership style in which the leader generally gives the group complete
freedom to make decisions and complete the work in whatever way it saw fit?
a. cultural style
b. autocratic style
c. democratic style
d. laissez-faire style (moderate)
38.
According to the Ohio State studies, which of the following dimensions of leader behavior refers to the extent
to which a leader is likely to define and structure his or her role and the roles of group members in the search
for goal attainment?
a. intelligence structure
b. psychological structure
c. initiating structure (easy)
d. consideration structure
39.
According to the Ohio State studies, the dimension of leader behavior that is defined as the extent to which a
leader had job relationships characterized by mutual trust and respect for group members ideas and feelings is
called _______________.
a. initiation.
b. consideration. (moderate)
c. cultural.
d. physical.
41.
42.
43.
44.
45.
46.
Fiedler's dimension termed ______________ is the degree of confidence, trust, and respect subordinates had
for their leader.
a. leader-member relations (easy)
b. power relationship
c. task structure
d. authority
e. position power
47.
Which of the following are two of the three key situational factors Fielder felt were important in determining
leader effectiveness?
a. leader-member relations, maturity of followers
b. organizational success, position power
c. task structure, leader-member relations (moderate)
d. maturity of organization and subordinates
e. organizational age and task structure
48.
Fiedler's term ______________ refers to the degree to which the job assignments are formalized and
procedurized.
a. leader-member relations
b. power relationship
c. task structure (easy)
d. authority
e. position power
49.
The degree to which the job assignments are formalized and procedurized is the ______________ contingency
dimension according to Fielder.
a. position power
b. subordinate maturity
c. task structure (moderate)
d. centralization
e. leader-member relations
Fiedler's term ______________ refers to the degree of influence a leader has over power-based activities.
a. leader-member relations
b. position power (moderate)
c. responsibility
d. task structure
e. respect
50.
51.
52.
e.
very unfavorable
53.
According to Fielder, the two ways to improve leadership effectiveness are to change the situation to fit the
leader or ______________.
a. train the employees.
b. change the leader. (moderate)
c. train the leader.
d. apply systematic pressure.
e. enhance the reward system.
54.
According to Fiedler, if a group situation was rated as highly unfavorable and was led by a relationship leader,
the group's performance could be improved by ______________.
a. restructuring tasks. (difficult)
b. changing the leader's style.
c. retraining followers.
d. empowering employees.
e. reducing the leader's authority.
55.
Overall, the validity of the Fiedler contingency model could be described as ______________.
a. supportive. (moderate)
b. moderately supportive.
c. inconclusive.
d. unsupportive.
e. very unsupportive.
56.
According to the text, the ______________theory is a contingency theory that focuses on followers readiness.
a. consideration leadership
b. situational leadership (moderate)
c. passive leadership
d. active leadership
57. Which of the following leadership styles describes a leader who provides both directive and supportive
behavior?
a. telling
b. selling (moderate)
c. participating
d. delegating
e. referring
58.
The main role of the leader is to facilitate and communicate in which of the following leadership styles?
a. telling
b. selling
c. participating (moderate)
d. delegating
e. referring
59.
Which of the following leadership styles describes a leader who provides little direction or support?
a. telling
b. selling
c. participating
d. delegating (moderate)
e. referring
60.
61.
62.
According to path-goal theory, a leader's behavior is ______________ to subordinates to the degree that they
view it as an immediate source of satisfaction.
a. motivational
b. acceptable (moderate)
c. compatible
d. transactional
e. transformational
63.
According to the path-goal theory, a leader's behavior is ______________ to the extent that it makes the
satisfaction of subordinates' needs contingent on effective performance and provides coaching and guidance.
a. motivational
b. acceptable (moderate)
c. compatible
d. transactional
e. transformational
64. According to path-goal theory, a leader who lets subordinates know what's expected of them, schedules work to
be done, and gives specific guidance as to how to accomplish tasks is termed ______________.
a. directive. (moderate)
b. achievement oriented.
c. participative.
d. supportive.
e. authoritative.
65.
According to path-goal theory, a leader who is friendly and shows concern for the needs of subordinates is
termed ______________.
a. directive.
b. achievement oriented.
c. participative.
d. supportive. (moderate)
e. authoritative.
66.
According to path-goal theory, a manager who consults with subordinates and uses their suggestions would be
exhibiting what type of leadership behavior?
a. directive
b. achievement oriented
c. participative (moderate)
d. supportive
e. authoritative
67.
Which of the following is NOT a leadership behavior identified in House's path-goal theory?
a. directive leader
b. supportive leader
c. participative leader
d. transactional leader (difficult)
e. achievement-oriented leader
68.
A leader who sets challenging goals and expects very high performance levels from subordinates would be
classified as what type of leader, according to path-goal theory?
a. supportive
b. participative
135
In contrast to Fielder's contingency theory, House's path-goal theory assumes leaders are ______________.
a. trained.
b. flexible. (moderate)
c. born.
d. visionary.
e. managers.
70.
The task structure a subordinate works with would be important in understanding the ______________ variable
that moderates the leader behavior-outcome relationship.
a. subordinate
b. leader
c. environmental (easy)
d. work group
e. authority system
71.
In the path-goal theory, which of the following is included in the class of contingency variables termed
"environment"?
a. task structure and formal authority system (difficult)
b. locus of control and experience
c. perceived ability
d. employee satisfaction
e. performance
72.
Path-goal theory identifies two classes of situation variables that moderate the leadership-behavior outcome
______________.
a. tact and relationship.
b. path and goal.
c. people and history.
d. participation and structure.
e. environment and subordinates. (moderate)
73.
Which of the following is included in the class of contingency variables termed "follower"?
a. locus of control (difficult)
b. performance
c. employee satisfaction
d. formal authority system
e. task structure
74.
According to the text, which of the following is NOT a hypothesis from the path-goal theory?
a. Supportive leadership results in high employee performance and satisfaction when subordinates are
performing structured tasks.
b. Directive leadership leads to greater satisfaction when tasks are high structured and well laid out than when
tasks are ambiguous or stressful. (difficult)
c. Directive leadership is likely to be perceived as redundant among subordinates with high perceived ability
or with considerable experience.
d. The clearer and more bureaucratic the formal authority relationships, the more leaders should exhibit
supportive behavior and deemphasize directive behavior.
e. Directive leadership will lead to higher employee satisfaction when there is substantive conflict within a
work group.
75.
Which of the following is not one of the hypotheses that have evolved from the path-goal theory?
a. Supportive leadership results in high employee performance and satisfaction when subordinates are
performing structured tasks.
136
b. Directive leadership is likely to be perceived as redundant among subordinates with highly perceived
ability or with considerable experience.
c. The more clear and bureaucratic the formal authority relationships, the more leaders should exhibit
supportive behavior and deemphasize directive behavior.
d. Directive leadership will lead to higher employee satisfaction when there is substantive conflict within a
work group.
e. Subordinates with an external locus of control will be more satisfied with a directive style. (difficult)
76.
77.
According to the path-goal theory, directive leadership will lead to higher employee satisfaction when there is
______________ within a work group.
a. cohesiveness
b. high structure
c. substantial conflict (moderate)
d. internal locus of control
e. a visionary leader
Research on path-goal theory could be summarized as ______________.
a. negative support.
b. inconclusive.
c. positive support. (easy)
d. very unsupportive.
e. varying widely as supportive and nonsupportive.
What type of leaders guide or motivate their followers in the direction of established goals by clarifying role
and task requirements?
a. transactional (moderate)
b. charismatic
c. trait
d. transformational
e. informational
79.
Which type of leaders provide individualized consideration, intellectual stimulation, and possess charisma?
a. transactional
b. charismatic
c. trait
d. transformational (moderate)
e. informational
80.
A leader, such as Bill Gates of Microsoft, who can inspire followers above their own self-interests and can have
a profound effect on their performance, are known as ______________.
a. transactional leaders.
b. directive leaders.
c. informational leaders.
d. emotional leaders.
e. transformational leaders. (difficult)
81.
82.
The evidence supporting the superiority of transformational leadership over the transactional variety is
______________.
a. inconclusive.
b. moderately supportive.
137
83.
c. moderately negative.
d. overwhelmingly impressive. (moderate)
e. difficult to interpret.
Which of the following nonverbal behaviors do researchers who are training charismatic leaders NOT include?
a. leaning toward the subordinate
b. avoiding eye contact
c. having relaxed posture (easy)
d. having animated facial expressions
84.
______________ leadership is the ability to create and articulate a realistic, credible, attractive vision of the
future for an organization or organizational unit that grows out of and improves upon the future.
a. Visionary (easy)
b. Charismatic
c. Trait
d. Transactional
e. Informational
85.
The key properties of a vision include all of the following EXCEPT that they ______________.
a. are value centered.
b. are realizable.
c. have superior imagery.
d. are easily achieved. (moderate)
e. are well articulated.
86.
Which of the following is NOT an important leadership role for team leaders?
a. liaison with external constituencies
b. liaison with internal constituencies (moderate)
c. troubleshooter
d. conflict manager
e. coach
All of the following are sources of power identified by French and Raven EXCEPT:
a. legitimate.
b. status. (easy)
c. expert.
d. coercive.
e. reward.
88.
Which of the following, according to French and Raven, is the type of power a person has as a result of his or
her position in the formal organizational hierarchy?
a. legitimate power (moderate)
b. coercive power
c. reward power
d. expert power
e. referent power
89.
90.
According to the boxed feature, Managing Your Career, which of the following is NOT mentioned
as a suggestion to improve an individuals political effectiveness?
a. Frame arguments in terms of organizational goals.
b. Gain control of organizational resources.
c. Mix with everyone regardless of the reputation. (moderate)
d. Be visible.
e. Develop powerful allies.
91.
______________ is the power that rests on the leaders ability to punish or control.
a. Reward power.
b. Coercive power. (moderate)
c. Expert power.
d. Referent power.
e. Legitimate power.
92.
The power utilized when a boss threatens to dismiss an employee if he/she does not comply with a demand is
______________.
a. reward power.
b. coercive power. (moderate)
c. expert power.
d. referent power.
e. legitimate power.
93.
94.
Your firm's attorney has ______________ power when he gives legal advice.
a. legitimate
b. status
c. expert (moderate)
d. coercive
e. reward
95.
96.
When a young child emulates a professional sports star's behavior, the star has what kind of power over the
child?
a. legitimate
b. expert
c. coercive
d. referent (difficult)
e. reward
______________ is the power that arises because of a persons desirable resources or personal traits.
a. Reward power.
b. Coercive power.
c. Expert power.
d. Referent power. (moderate)
e. Legitimate power.
97.
139
98.
99.
The dimension of trust that is used to describe honesty and truthfulness is ______________.
a. integrity. (easy)
b. competence.
c. consistency.
d. loyalty.
e. openness.
100. The dimension of trust that is used to describe reliability, predictability and good judgment in handling
situations is termed ______________.
a. integrity.
b. competence.
c. consistency. (moderate)
d. loyalty.
e. openness.
101. Which of the following is an accurate statement about the differences between gender and leadership style?
a. Males and females do not use different styles.
b. Men are more democratic than women.
c. Women encourage more participation. (moderate)
d. Men share power more than women.
e. Women rely on formal authority more than men.
102. According to the text, women tend to use ______________ leadership, motivating other by transforming their
self-interest into organizational goals.
a. transactional
b. transformational (moderate)
c. situational
d. initiating
103. According to the text, men tend to use _____________, handing out rewards for good work and punishment for
bad.
a. transactional (moderate)
b. transformational
c. situational
d. initiating
MANAGING IN AN E-BUSINESS WORLD
104.
Which of the following is NOT mentioned as one of the three differences that seem to be most
evident when comparing leadership in e-businesses versus traditional organizations?
a. The importance of being a specialist. (moderate)
b. The speed at which decisions must be made.
c. The importance of being flexible.
d. The need to create a vision of the future.
105. Leaders in e-businesses frequently use the term ______________, which is a reference to a rapidly speeded up
working environment.
a. turbo time
b. Internet time (easy)
c. speed of light
d. rapid time
140
Brooke should understand that the path-goal theory is a(n) ______________ model of leadership that extracts
key elements from the expectancy theory of motivation.
a. fixed
b. alternative
c. contingency (moderate)
d. untested
141
e.
charismatic
112.
Brooke generally lets subordinates know what's expected of them, schedules work to be done, and gives
specific guidance as to how to accomplish tasks. Brooke would be termed a(n) ______________ leader.
a. achievement-oriented
b. participative
c. supportive
d. directive (moderate)
e. charismatic
113.
114.
Lately Brooke has been setting challenging goals and expecting subordinates to perform at their highest level.
She is acting as a(n) ______________ leader.
a. achievement-oriented (moderate)
b. participative
c. supportive
d. directive
e. charismatic
115. Brooke has decided that the appropriate leadership style would be to show friendliness and concern for the
needs of her subordinates. She wishes to be a(n) ______________ leader.
a. achievement-oriented
b. participative
c. supportive (moderate)
d. directive
e. charismatic
CUTTING-EDGE APPROACHES TO LEADERSHIP
A Leadership Junkie (Scenario)
Carrie is a leadership "junkie." She has read all of the latest popular management text on leadership and strongly feels
that it has improved her ability to manage and perform her job. She is always eager to share her knowledge with her
peers, especially emerging issues in leadership and the differences between the ways men and women lead.
116.
Carrie stopped Harry in the hall and just had to tell him about a ______________, that is, an enthusiastic, selfconfident leader whose personality and actions influence people to behave in certain ways.
a. charismatic leadership (moderate)
b. transactional leadership
c. transformational leadership
d. attributional leadership
e. situational leadership
117.
Carrie stopped Sondra in the lunchroom and just had to tell her about ______________, whereby followers
make claims about heroic or extraordinary leadership abilities when they observe certain behaviors.
a. charismatic leadership (moderate)
b. transactional leadership
c. transformational leadership
d. attributional leadership
e. situational leadership
142
118.
Carrie stopped Perry in the parking lot and just had to tell him about ______________, where leaders guide or
motivate their followers in the direction of established goals by clarifying role and task requirements.
a. charismatic leadership
b. transactional leadership (difficult)
c. transformational leadership
d. attributional leadership
e. situational leadership
119.
Carrie stopped Steve in the parking lot and just had to tell him about ______________, where leaders provide
individualized consideration, intellectual stimulation, and possess charisma.
a. charismatic leadership
b. transactional leadership
c. transformational leadership (difficult)
d. attributional leadership
e. situational leadership
120. Carrie had to tell Sharon about the findings concerning women and leadership. Sharon was interested in the
fact that all but which of the following is true concerning women and leadership?
a. There are differences between how men and women lead.
b. Women utilize a democratic style more than men.
c. Women tend to share power less than men. (moderate)
d. Women are less likely than men to use a directive style.
e. Women tend to utilize an autocratic style when they are in male-dominated jobs.
Essay Questions
EARLY LEADERSHIP THEORIES
121. In a short essay, list and discuss the six traits associated with leadership.
Answer
a. Drive leaders exhibit a high effort level. They have a relatively high desire for achievement, they are
ambitious, they have a lot of energy, they are tirelessly persistent in their activities, and they show
initiative.
b. Desire to lead leaders have a strong desire to influence and lead others. They demonstrate the
willingness to take responsibility.
c. Honesty and integrity leaders build trusting relationships between themselves and followers by being
truthful or nondeceitful and by showing high consistency between word and deed.
d. Self-confidence followers look to leaders for an absence of self-doubt. Leaders, therefore, need to show
self-confidence in order to convince followers of the rightness of goals and decisions.
e. Intelligence leaders need to be intelligent enough to gather, synthesize, and interpret large amounts of
information, and they need to be able to create visions, solve problems, and make correct decisions.
f. Job-relevant knowledge effective leaders have a high degree of knowledge about the company, industry,
and technical matters. In-depth knowledge allows leaders to make well-informed decisions and to
understand the implications of those decisions.
(moderate)
CONTINGENCY THEORIES OF LEADERSHIP
122. In a short essay, explain Fiedlers contingency model for leadership. Next discuss the least-preferred co-worker
(LPC) questionnaire and the three key situational factors for determining leader effectiveness.
Answer
143
The Fiedler contingency model proposed that effective group performance depended upon the proper match
between the leaders style of interacting with his or her followers and the degree to which the situation allowed
the leader to control and influence. The model was based on the premise that a certain leadership style would
be most effective in different types of situations. Fielder proposed that a key factor in leadership success was
an individuals basic leadership style. To measure a leaders style, Fiedler developed the least-preferred coworker (LPC) questionnaire. The questionnaire contained 16 pairs of contrasting adjectivesfor example,
pleasant-unpleasant, cold-warm, boring-interesting, and friendly-unfriendly. Respondents were asked to think
of all the co-workers they had ever had and to describe that one person they least enjoyed working with by
rating him or her on a scale of 1 to 8 (the 8 always described the positive adjective out of the pair) for each of
the 16 sets of adjectives. Fiedler believed that you could determine a persons basic leadership style on the
basis of the responses to the LPC questionnaire. After an individuals basic leadership style had been assessed
through the LPC, it was necessary to evaluate the situation in order to match the leader with the situation.
Fiedlers research uncovered three contingency dimensions that defined the key situational factors for
determining leader effectiveness. These were:
a.
Leader-member relations the degree of confidence, trust, and respect employees had for their leader;
rated as either good or poor.
b. Task structure the degree to which job assignments were formalized and procedurized; rated as either
high or low.
c. Position power the degree of influence a leader had over power-based activities such as hiring, firing,
discipline, promotions, and salary increases; rated as either strong or weak.
(difficult)
144
123. In a short essay, discuss the situational leadership theory as developed by Paul Hersey and Ken Blanchard.
Next, list and discuss the four specific leadership styles and the four stages of follower readiness as defined by
Hersey and Blanchard.
Answer
The situational leadership theory is a contingency theory that focuses on followers readiness. Hersey and
Blanchard argue that successful leadership is achieved by selecting the right leadership style, which is
contingent on the level of the followers readiness. The emphasis of the followers in leadership effectiveness
reflects the reality that it is the followers who accept or reject the leader. Regardless of what the leader does,
the effectiveness depends on the actions of his or her followers. And, readiness refers to the extent to which
people have the ability and willingness to accomplish a specific task.
a. The four specific leadership styles are as follows:
b. Telling (high task-low relationship) the leader defines roles and tells people what, how, when, and where
to do various tasks.
c. Selling (high task-high relationship) the leader provides both directive and supportive behavior.
d. Participating (low task-high relationship) the leader and follower share in decision making; the main role
of the leader is facilitating and communicating.
e. Delegating (low task-low relationship) the leader provides little direction or support.
The final component in the model is the four stages of follower readiness:
a.
R1 people are both unable and unwilling to take responsibility for doing something. Theyre neither
competent nor confident.
b. R2 people are unable but willing to do the necessary job tasks. Theyre motivated but currently lack the
appropriate skills.
c. R3 people are able but unwilling to do what the leader wants.
d. R4 people are both able and willing to do what is asked of them.
(difficult)
124. In a short essay, discuss the path-goal leadership theory developed by Robert House. Next, list and explain the
four leadership behaviors based on the path-goal leadership theory.
Answer
Developed by Robert House, path-goal theory is a contingency model of leadership that takes key elements
from the expectancy theory of motivation. According to this theory, a leaders behavior is acceptable to group
members to the degree that they view it as an immediate source of satisfaction or as a means of future
satisfaction. A leaders behavior is motivational to the extent that it makes the satisfaction of subordinates
needs contingent on effective performance and provides the coaching, guidance, support, and rewards that are
necessary for effective performance. To test these statements, House identified four leadership behaviors.
a.
Directive leader lets subordinates know whats expected of them, schedules work to be done, and gives
specific guidance on how to accomplish tasks.
b. Supportive leader is friendly and shows concern for the needs of followers.
c. Participative leader consults with group members and uses their suggestions before making a decision.
d. Achievement oriented leader sets challenging goals and expects followers to perform at their highest
level.
(moderate)
CUTTING-EDGE APPROACHES TO LEADERSHIP
145
125. In a short essay, discuss how visionary leadership differs from charismatic leadership. Include a discussion of
the five characteristics of charismatic leaders and three qualities that are related to effectiveness in the visionary
leaders role.
Answer
A charismatic leader is an enthusiastic, self-confident leader whose personality and actions influence people to
behave in certain ways. The most comprehensive analysis of personal characteristics of the charismatic leaders
are charismatic leaders have a vision, are able to articulate that vision, are willing to take risks to achieve that
vision, are sensitive to both environmental constraints and follower needs, and exhibit behaviors that are out of
the ordinary. Theres an increasing body of evidence that shows impressive correlation between charismatic
leadership and high performance and satisfaction among followers. Although the term vision is often linked
with charismatic leadership, visionary leadership goes beyond charisma since its the ability to create and
articulate a realistic, credible, and attractive vision of the future that improves upon the present situation. This
vision, if properly selected and implemented, is so energizing that it in effect jump-starts the future by calling
forth the skills, talents, and resources to make it happen. Once the vision is identified, these visionary leaders
appear to have three qualities that are related to effectiveness in their visionary roles. First is the ability to
explain the vision to others. The visionary leader needs to make the vision clear in terms of required goals and
actions through clear oral and written communication. The second skill needed is the ability to express the
vision not just verbally but through behavior. This skill requires behaving in ways that continually convey and
reinforce the vision. The third skill visionary leaders need is the ability to extend or apply the vision to
different leadership contexts. For instance, the vision have to be as meaningful to the people in accounting as to
those in production.
(difficult)
126. In a short essay, list and discuss the four specific leadership roles that focus on the priorities of the leaders job.
Answer
a. First, team leaders are liaisons with external constituencies. These may include upper management, other
organizational work teams, customers, or suppliers. The leader represents the team to other constituencies,
secures needed resources, clarifies others expectations of the team, gathers information from the outside,
and shares that information with team members.
b. Next, team leaders are troubleshooters. When the team has problems and asks for assistance, team leaders
sit in on meetings and try to help resolve the problems. Troubleshooting rarely involves technical or
operational issues because the team members typically know more about the tasks being done than does
the team leader. The leader is most likely to contribute by asking penetrating questions, helping the team
talk through problems, and getting needed resources to tackle problems.
c. Third, team leaders are conflict managers. When disagreements arise, they help process the conflict. They
help identify issues such as the source of the conflict, whos involved, the issues, the resolution options
available. and the advantages and disadvantages of each. By getting team members to address questions
such as these, the leader minimizes the disruptive aspects of intrateam conflicts.
d. Finally, team leaders are coaches. They clarify expectations and roles, teach, offer support, cheerlead, and
do whatever else is necessary to help team members keep their work performance levels high.
(easy)
CONTEMPORARY ISSUES IN LEADERSHIP
127. In a short essay, list and discuss five sources in which leader power has been identified. Include specific
examples of each source of power to support your answer.
Answer
a. Legitimate power represents the power a leader has as a result of his or her position in the organization.
People in positions of authority are also likely to have reward or coercive power, but legitimate power is
broader than the power to coerce and reward. Because of their legitimate power, when school principals,
146
bank presidents, or army captains ask for something to be done, teachers, tellers, and lieutenants listen and
usually comply.
b. Coercive power the power that rests on the leaders ability to punish or control. Followers react to this
power out of fear of the negative results that might occur if they did not comply. As a manager, you
typically have some coercive power, such as being able to suspend or demote employees or to assign them
work they find unpleasant or undesirable.
c. Reward power the power to give positive benefits or rewards. These rewards can be anything that
another person values. In an organizational context, that might include money, favorable performance
appraisals, promotions, interesting work assignments, friendly colleagues, and preferred work shifts
d. Expert power influence thats based on expertise, special skills, or knowledge. As jobs have become
more specialized, managers have become increasingly dependent on staff experts to achieve the
organizations goals. If an employee has skills, knowledge, or expertise thats critical to the operation of a
work group, that persons expert power is enhanced. For instance, in many organizations, individuals who
have good computer skills and are seen as experts when computer problems arise have the ability
influence because of their knowledge and skillsthat is, they have expert power.
e. Referent power the power that arises because of a persons desirable personal traits. Referent power
develops out of admiration of another and a desire to be like that person. If you admire someone to the
point of modeling your behavior and attitudes after him or her, that person has referent power over you.
(moderate)
128. In a short essay, list and discuss six suggestions of how leaders can seek to build trust.
Answer
a. Practice openness mistrust comes as much from what people do not know as from what they do know.
Openness leads to confidence and trust. Keep people informed, make the criteria on how decisions are
made overtly clear, explain the rationale for your decisions, be candid about problems, and fully disclose
relevant information.
b. Be fair before making decisions or taking actions, consider how others will perceive them in terms of
objectivity and fairness. Give credit where credit is due, be objective and impartial in performance
appraisals, and pay attention to equity perceptions in reward distributions.
c. Speak your feelings leaders who convey only hard facts come across as cold, distant, and uncaring. If
your share your feelings, others will see you as real and human. They will know who you are, and their
respect for you will increase.
d. Tell the truth if honesty is critical to credibility, you must be perceived as someone who tells the truth.
People are generally more tolerant of learning something negative than of finding out that their leader lied
to them.
e. Show consistency Mistrust comes from not knowing what to expect. Take the time to think about your
values and beliefs. Then let them consistently guide your decisions and actions.
f. Fulfill your promises. Trust requires that people believe you are dependable. Keep your word. Promises
made must be promises kept.
g. Maintain confidences you trust people whoa re discreet and upon whom you can rely. If people make
themselves vulnerable by telling you something in confidence, they need to feel assured that you wont
discuss it with others or betray that confidence.
h. Demonstrate competence develop the admiration and respect of others by demonstrating technical and
professional ability. Pay particular attention to developing and practicing effective communication,
negotiation, and other interpersonal skills.
(moderate)
129. In a short essay, define trust and list and discuss the five dimensions that make up the concept of trust.
Answer
Trust is identified as the belief in the integrity, character, and ability of a leader. Followers who trust a leader
are willing to be vulnerable to the leaders actions because they are confident that their rights and interests will
not be abused. The five dimensions that make up the concept of trust are as follows.
147
Managers should be involved in the control function even if things are going as planned.
True (moderate)
3.
The three different approaches to designing control systems are cultural, domestic, and international.
False (moderate)
148
4.
5.
Market control uses external market mechanisms to establish standards used in the control system.
True (moderate)
6.
7.
In reality, management is an ongoing process, and controlling activities provide the critical link back to
planning.
True (moderate)
9.
The first step in the control process is comparing actual performance against a standard.
False (moderate)
12.
13.
What we measure is more critical to the control process than how we measure.
True (moderate)
14.
The range of variation is the acceptable parameters of variance between actual performance and the ideal.
False (moderate)
15.
Deviations that exceed the range of variation need the manager's attention.
True (easy)
16.
17.
Revising unrealistically high standards is one method of managerial action in the control process.
True (moderate)
18.
Basic corrective action is correcting an activity at once in order to get performance back on track.
False (easy)
19.
The control process is essentially a continuous flow between measuring, comparing, and managerial action.
True (moderate)
TYPES OF CONTROL
20.
21.
22.
23.
The key to feedback control is taking managerial action before a problem occurs.
False (moderate)
24.
25.
26.
Technologically advanced countries, such as the U.S., Japan, and Canada, tend to use direct control devices.
False (moderate)
It is estimated that 17 percent of Fortune 1000 companies use monitoring software of some type.
True (moderate)
Multiple Choice
A MANAGERS DILEMMA
31.
According to the company profile in A Managers Dilemma, what is the problem facing Mustafas Company?
a. How to motivate employees.
b. How to reduce theft in the stores.
c. How to reduce theft on the companys website. (moderate)
d. How to hire more qualified employees.
e. How to evaluate the competition.
WHAT IS CONTROL?
32.
33.
34.
In the control process, to what factor is actual performance compared in order to properly assess the situation?
a. last year's performance
b. competitors' outcomes
c. desired standards (moderate)
d. last month's efforts
e. management opinion
35.
The ultimate criterion to determine the control system effectiveness is how well it facilitates ______________.
a. management desires.
b. organizational goals. (moderate)
c. employee satisfaction.
d. increased market share.
e. lowering production defects.
36.
Would different organizations, such as IBM, Chevrolet, and Pizza Hut, have different control systems?
a. All organizations utilize a traditional control system design.
b. All organizations must have their own unique control system.
c. All organizations probably would not have the same control system. (difficult)
d. Organizations function with one of five different control systems, according to William Ouchi.
e. Organizations in similar industries all use the same type of control system.
37. According to the text, which of the following is NOT mentioned as one of the three different approaches to
designing control systems?
a. market
b. domestic (easy)
c. bureaucratic
d. clan
38.
______________ control is an approach that emphasizes the use of external mechanisms, such as price
competition and market share to establish standards.
a. Market (moderate)
b. Traditional
c. Bureaucratic
d. Strategic
e. Clan
39.
What type of control system is typically used when a firm's services or products are clearly specific and
distinct?
a. bureaucratic
b. strategic
c. market (moderate)
d. clan
e. traditional
40.
In the ______________ control system, company divisions are turned into corporate profit centers for
evaluation.
a. market (moderate)
b. clan
c. traditional
d. bureaucratic
e. strategic
151
41.
42.
What type of organizational control system relies on regulations, procedures, and policies?
a. strategic
b. bureaucratic (easy)
c. traditional
d. market
e. clan
43.
Standardization of activities, well-defined job descriptions, and budgets would be sources depended on by what
type of organizational control system?
a. bureaucratic (moderate)
b. strategic
c. clan
d. traditional
e. market
44. According to your text, which of the following organizations provides a good example of a bureaucratic control
system?
a. McDonald's
b. Pizza Hut
c. British Petroleum Amoco (easy)
d. Hewlett Packard
e. Ford Motor Company
45.
46.
You would likely find an "employee of the month" bonus plan under what type of organizational control
system?
a. market
b. traditional
c. clan (difficult)
d. strategic
e. bureaucratic
47.
Which of the organizational control systems is heavily dependent on the individual, group, and the use of
teams?
a. strategic
b. clan (moderate)
c. bureaucratic
d. traditional
e. market
Of the following, which is NOT a reason why control systems are important?
a. creation of organizational structure
b. facilitation and achievement of goals
c. employees can be directed
152
51.
52.
53.
According to the text, which of the following is the first step in control?
a. measuring actual performance (moderate)
b. changing the standard
c. taking managerial action
d. comparing actual against the standard
54.
Of the following, which is NOT a common source of information used by managers to measure performance?
a. personal observation
b. oral reports
c. standardized tests (moderate)
d. statistical reports
e. written reports
55.
To get firsthand, intimate knowledge of actual work activities, managers might use ______________.
a. personal observation (easy)
b. statistical reports
c. oral reports
d. written reports
56.
What source of information used to measure performance provides information that is not filtered through
others?
a. statistical reports
b. personal observation (moderate)
c. standardized tests
d. written reports
153
e.
oral reports
57.
______________ is a control technique in which the manager is out in the work area, interacting directly with
employees and exchanging information.
a. Management by walking around (moderate)
b. Management by objectives
c. Leadership by example
d. Feedforward control
e. Feedback control
58. Facial expression, tone of voice, and the ability to "read between the lines" are best provided by what source of
information?
a. oral reports
b. standardized tests
c. written reports
d. statistical reports
e. personal observation (easy)
59.
According to the text, in a time when quantitative information suggests objectivity, ______________ is often
considered an inferior information source.
a. oral reports
b. standardized tests
c. written reports
d. statistical reports
e. personal observation (easy)
60.
What informational source used to measure performance has the disadvantages of being subject to personal
bias and consuming a lot of time?
a. standardized tests
b. statistical reports
c. personal observation (moderate)
d. written reports
e. oral reports
61.
What type of information source used to measure performance may be construed by employees as obtrusive
and may lead to feelings of mistrust?
a. personal observation (easy)
b. written reports
c. oral reports
d. statistical reports
e. standardized tests
62.
The widespread use of computers has led managers to rely increasingly on ______________ for measuring
actual performance.
a. oral reports
b. standardized tests
c. written reports
d. statistical reports (moderate)
e. personal observation
63.
______________ is (are) an effective information source for showing relationships but may ignore subjective
factors.
a. Oral reports
b. Personal observation
c. Standardized tests (moderate)
d. Written reports
e. Statistical reports
154
64.
Which of the following is the best way to keep tabs on work performance in organizations where employees
work in a virtual environment?
a. Oral reports (moderate)
b. Personal observation
c. Standardized tests
d. Written reports
e. Statistical reports
65.
What type of information source allows for feedback, is fast, but historically has a problem of being unable to
document information for later reference?
a. oral reports (moderate)
b. written reports
c. statistical reports
d. personal observation
e. standardized tests
66.
______________ is (are) considered slow, easy to file and reference, and provide greater comprehensiveness
and conciseness than oral reports.
a. Personal observation
b. Standardized tests
c. Statistical reports
d. Written reports (easy)
e. Word-of-mouth reports
67.
Which of the following is an accurate statement concerning utilization of different sources of information for
performance measurement?
a. In combination, personal observation and written reports are considered superior to other methods.
b. Statistical reports are the single most effective method.
c. Managers should use as many as three different methods when possible.
d. Managers should use all four methods, if possible. (moderate)
e. It is not advised to utilize oral reports and personal observation as dual methods.
68.
Regarding the control process, what is measured is ______________ than how we measure it.
a. less important
b. equally important
c. much less important
d. more important (easy)
e. five times more important
69.
Which of the following is NOT an example of what can be measured in the control process?
a. turnover
b. personal observation (moderate)
c. absenteeism
d. defects
e. employee satisfaction
70.
In the control process, when a manager cannot find an objective and measurable performance indicator he/she
should ______________.
a. not measure the factor.
b. use the most appropriate objective indicator.
c. use a subjective indicator. (difficult)
d. use an objective indicator, but measure it several times to ensure reliability.
e. ignore the control function all together.
71.
The ______________ step determines the degree of variation between actual performance and the standard.
a. directing
b. comparing (moderate)
c. reliability
155
72.
d. validity
e. objective
Range of variation is a concept that is important in what management function?
a. controlling (difficult)
b. leading
c. planning
d. organizing
e. structuring
73.
74.
75.
In the control process, what type of corrective action asks questions of "why" and "how" performance has
deviated?
a. immediate corrective action
b. cognitive corrective action
c. strategic corrective action
d. planned corrective action
e. basic corrective action (moderate)
76.
In the control process, constantly "putting out fires" relates to what type of corrective action?
a. planned corrective action
b. strategic corrective action
c. cognitive corrective action
d. immediate corrective action
e. basic corrective action (moderate)
77.
In the control process, if "Cool Ranch" flavored Doritos chips are consistently selling more than was predicted,
what type of managerial action would be warranted?
a. immediate corrective action
b. revise the standard (difficult)
c. basic corrective action
d. increase the range of variation
e. decrease the range of variation
78.
In the control process, if employees are constantly not meeting their sales quotas, what managerial action may
be warranted?
a. fire the employees
b. retrain the employees, but never lower the standard
c. lower the standard (moderate)
d. take immediate corrective action
e. increase the range of variation
Which of the following is NOT true concerning the control process?
a. Standards evolve out of objectives.
b. Doing nothing is an acceptable management course of action.
c. Revising the standard may be necessary when product demand changes.
d. When standards are not met, attacking the standard is typically the first employee reaction.
e. The control process is a linear flow. (moderate)
79.
156
TYPES OF CONTROL
80.
81.
82.
Changing the oil and filter on your car every 3,000 miles is an example of what kind of control?
a. concurrent control
b. feedforward control (moderate)
c. definitional control
d. feedback control
e. projected control
83.
Which of the following types of control prevents anticipated problems since it takes place in advance of the
actual activity?
a. definitional control
b. projected control
c. concurrent control
d. feedback control
e. feedforward control (moderate)
84.
85.
86.
87.
What type of control can prevent ongoing problem situations from becoming too costly?
a. concurrent control (moderate)
b. definitional control
c. feedforward control
d. feedback control
e. projected control
157
88.
89.
90.
The major drawback of ______________ is that by the time the manager has the information, the problems
have already occurred leading to waste or damage?
a. definitional control
b. projected control
c. concurrent control (moderate)
d. feedback control
e. feedforward control
91.
What type of control provides information on planning effort effectiveness and can enhance employee
motivation?
a. concurrent control
b. definitional control
c. feedforward control
d. feedback control (moderate)
e. projected control
94.
What control system quality reflects whether the system is reliable and produces valid data?
a. timeliness
b. accuracy (easy)
c. understandability
d. flexibility
e. multiple criteria
95.
If a control system can change as the times and conditions of the organization change, it would be considered
a(n) ______________ control system.
a. accurate
158
b. understandable
c. flexible (moderate)
d. strategic
e. corrective
96.
If an organization placed a control on maintenance costs that is .01 percent of operating costs but did not place
a control on cost of raw goods that is 30 percent of costs, they would be failing on what quality of an effective
control system?
a. flexibility
b. economy
c. accuracy
d. reasonable criteria
e. strategic placement (difficult)
97.
______________ must be used as a characteristic in a control system because managers cannot control all
activities.
a. Responsible criteria
b. Multiple criteria
c. Emphasis on the exception (moderate)
d. Accuracy
e. Understandability
98.
99.
According to the text, which of the following is NOT mentioned as a contingency factor that will affect the
design of an organizations control system?
a. The location of the organization. (moderate)
b. The size of the organization
c. Ones position and level in the organizational hierarchy.
d. Level in hierarchy.
e. Importance of an activity.
100. Which of the following is true about adjusting controls for national differences?
a. The control process should be identical across all organizational geographic areas.
b. All cultures tend to respond similarly to control systems.
c. Managers of foreign operations tend to be less closely controlled by the home office.
d. Technologically advanced nations tend to use indirect control devices. (difficult)
e. Less technologically advanced nations tend to be highly decentralized.
MANAGING IN AN E-BUSINESS WORLD
101.
According to the boxed feature, Managing in an E-business World, which of the following is NOT
mentioned as important controlling issue that managers in e-businesses have to deal with?
a. duplication of effort
b. distractions at work (moderate)
c. employee motivation
d. employee absenteeism
102.
According to the text, it is estimated that ___________ of all companies use monitoring software of
some type.
a. 25 percent
b. 37 percent
159
c. 45 percent (moderate)
d. 57 percent
e. 75 percent
103.
Which of the following forms of electronic monitoring is the most commonly used among
employers?
a. store and review employee e-mail messages
b. store and review computer files
c. track telephone calls (moderate)
d. log computer time and keystrokes entered
e. record and review telephone conversations
104.
All of the following are considered examples of concurrent control measures used for deterring or
reducing employee theft or fraud EXCEPT:
a. involving employees in writing policies (moderate)
b. use video surveillance equipment if conditions warrant
c. install lock-out options on computers, telephones, and e-mail
d. use corporate hotlines for reporting incidences
e. set a good example
105.
Which of the following control measures for deterring or reducing workplace violence is considered
a feedback control measure?
a. careful pre-hiring screening
b. never ignore threats
c. clearly communicate policies to employees
d. review company policies and change, if necessary
e. be a good role model in how you treat others
Scenarios and Questions
Types of Control (Scenario)
Sliders Ice Cream, in order to be successful, had to have polite, effective customer relations. While they knew their
product was good, the relationships their employees built with the customers would result in repeat customers. In
order to do this, they tried several options. First, they implemented a customer suggestion box and provided customers
with cards asking them for their opinions of the service they had received. They also tried having managers closely
observe their employees' behavior and provide suggestion to employees on how to best handle difficult situations.
Finally, they decided to implement a training program during new employee orientation. And, they had considered
installing hidden cameras to observe employee behavior while management was not around but, in the end, decided
against it.
115.
The customer suggestion and comment cards are considered a form of ______________ control.
a. concurrent
b. feedback (moderate)
c. anticipatory
d. covert
e. feedforward
116. The training program Sliders implemented is considered a form of ______________ control.
a. concurrent
b. feedback
c. anticipatory
d. covert
e. feedforward (moderate)
117. Having management observe and correct employee behavior when it happens is a form of ______________
control.
a. concurrent (moderate)
b. feedback
c. anticipatory
d. covert
160
e. feedforward
Essay Questions
121. In a short essay, define control and list and discuss the three different approaches to designing control systems.
Answer
Control is the process of monitoring activities to ensure that they are being accomplished as planned and or
correcting any significant deviations. An effective control system ensures that activities are completed in ways
that lead to the attainment of the organizations goals. The criterion that determines the effectiveness of a
control system is how well it facilitates goal achievement. The more it helps managers achieve their
organizations goals, the better the control system.
The three different approaches to designing control systems are:
a.
Market control - an approach to control that emphasizes the use of external mechanisms, such as price
competition and relative market share, to establish the standards used in the control system. This approach
is typically used by organizations in which the firms products or services are clearly specified and distinct
and where theres considerable marketplace competition.
b. Bureaucratic control - emphasizes organizational authority and relies on administrative rules, regulations,
procedures, and policies. This type of control depends on standardization of activities, well-defined job
descriptions, and other administrative mechanisms, such as budgets, to ensure that employees exhibit
appropriate behaviors and meet performance standards.
c. Clan control - employee behaviors are regulated by the shared values, norms, traditions, rituals, beliefs,
and other aspects of the organizations culture. Whereas bureaucratic control is based on strict hierarchical
mechanisms, clan control is dependent on the individual and the group (or clan) to identify appropriate and
expected behaviors and performance measures.
(difficult)
123. In a short essay, list and discuss the three separate and distinct steps in the control process.
Answer
a.
Measuring to determine what actual performance is, a manager must acquire information about it. The
first step in control, then, is measuring. Most jobs and activities can be expressed in tangible and
measurable terms. When a performance indicator cant be stated in quantifiable terms, managers should
look for and use subjective measures. Of course, any analysis or decisions based on subjective criteria
should recognize the limitations of such information.
b. Comparing this step determines the degree of variation between actual performance and the standard.
Some variation in performance can be expected in all activities. It is critical, therefore, to determine the
acceptable range of variation. Deviations that exceed this range become significant and need the
managers attention. In the comparison stage, managers are particularly concerned with the size and
direction of the variation.
c. Taking managerial action the third and final step in the control process is taking managerial action.
Managers can choose among three possible courses of action: they can do nothing; they can correct the
actual performance; or they can revise the standards. If the source of the performance variation is
unsatisfactory work, the manager will want to take corrective action. Its also possible that the variance
was a result of an unrealistic standard. In such cases, its the standard that needs corrective attention, not
the performance.
(moderate)
126. In a short essay, define and discuss feedforward, concurrent, and feedback controls. Include a specific example
of each to support your answer.
Answer
a.
Feedforward control the most desirable type of control that prevents anticipated problems since it takes
place in advance of the actual activity. It is future directed. For example, when McDonalds opened its
161
first restaurant in Moscow, it sent company quality control experts to help Russian farmers learn
techniques for growing high-quality potatoes and baker to learn processes for baking high-quality breads.
McDonalds implemented these steps because the company strongly emphasizes product quality no matter
the geographical location. The key to feedforward controls is taking managerial action before a problem
occurs.
b. Concurrent control takes place while an activity is in progress. When control is enacted while the work
is being performed, management can correct problems before they become too costly. The best-known
form of concurrent control is direct supervision. When a manager directly oversees the actions of
employees, the manager can concurrently monitor their actions and correct problems as they occur.
Problems can usually be addressed before much resource waste or damage has been done. Many
organizational quality programs rely on concurrent controls to inform workers if their work output is of
sufficient quality to meet standards.
c. Feedback control the most popular type of control relies on feedback. The control takes place after the
activity is done. Feedback that indicates little variance between standard and actual performance is
evidence that the planning was generally on target. If the deviation is significant, a manager can use that
information when formulating new plans to make them more effective. Feedback control can also enhance
employee motivation. People want information on how well they have performed. Feedback control
provides that information.
(difficult)
162