Chapter 6 MNGT3380

Evaluate the following exchange between Ty and Gabe, co-founders of Penny Inc.: Ty: "We would get some useful information if we let our employees evaluate themselves." Gabe: "Are you crazy? They'd just give themselves all perfect scores."

Ty is right because most people can evaluate themselves honestly

Goldie takes over as the floor manager of a computer chip processing plant. She immediately discovers that the plant's workers allow way too many flawed chips to leave the plant—a whopping 44 chips per thousand do not function. Which of the following would be the most valuable goal Goldie could put forth to her employees for the next quarter? "Reduce the flawed chip rate to 0." "Try harder not to let so many flawed chips through." "Reduce the flawed chip rate to 43 per thousand. "Reduce the flawed chip rate to 30 per thousand."

"reduce the flawed chip rate to 30 per thousand" *this goal is specific and offers a moderate degree of difficulty.

As part of his performance evaluation, Jimbo receives feedback from Xinhua, whom he supervises. Which of the following appraisal systems is Jimbo's organization using? Balanced scorecard Graphic rating scale Forced choice 360-degree feedback

360-degree feedback

Lenore, CEO of Muffin Tops Inc., would like for her executives to get feedback on their interpersonal abilities and management styles, not just on their ability to meet performance objectives. Which appraisal system should Lenore implement? 360-degree feedback Paired comparisons The balanced scorecard Traditional performance appraisal

360-degree feedback

According to goal-setting theory, which of the following is necessary for goals to create high motivation and performance? A. Setting general goals that will work for multiple employees B. Predetermining acceptable rewards for meeting goals C. Setting goals that fulfill self-actualization needs D. Reinforcing of desired behaviors E. Setting goals linked to an action plan

setting unspecified goals so that workers can establish their own measures

Each of the following is a practical way to empower others EXCEPT: articulate a clear vision and goals. specialize jobs in order to maximize efficiency. model successful behaviors. foster personal mastery experiences to enhance self-efficacy and build skills.

specialize jobs in order to maximize efficiency

Goal _____ is the clarity and precision of a goal.

specificity

The symbolic value of a reward is its ______ worth.

subjective

In most appraisal systems, the employee's primary evaluator is the _____.

supervisor

Brett and Lina work in different departments, but both receive 3% raises. Most of Brett's coworkers receive a 5% raise. Most of Lina's coworkers receive a 1% raise. Brett is unhappy with his raise, but Lina is happy with hers. Brett and Lina have different reactions to their raises because their raises have different _________.

symbolic value

Charles, a floor manager at Soylent Corporation, finds his job challenging and enjoyable but suffers increasing existential unrest over the fact that he doesn't know what Soylent Corporation actually makes. In this respect, Charles's job suffers from a lack of _____

task identity

What term refers to the degree to which a job entails the creation of a tangible, identifiable piece of work?

task identity

Neerav used to work as a free-to-play app designer. He grew increasingly dissatisfied with his job as he realized more and more that the games he was creating weren't designed to provide players genuine joy and pleasure but merely get them addicted and entice them to spend money. When Neerav quit, it was most clearly because he felt his job lacked ____

task significance

Which of the following allows employees to work from home and link to the company's offices via computer?

telecommuting

Boris is an online teacher for a test prep company. All of the classes he teaches are conducted through the internet, and he does all of his work from the desk in his bedroom. This is an example of which type of flexible work arrangement?

telecomuting

In a piecework incentive program, a worker's earnings are tied to _____

the number of units produced

Evaluate this statement: In the management by objectives (MBO) process, managers and employees set employee goals together.

the statement is accurate and outlines an integral component of MBO

Evaluate this statement: A manager who wants to increase efficiency might implement job rotation, a proven method of improving worker specialization.

the statement is inaccurate because job rotation decreases job specialization

Evaluate this statement: U.S. businesses pioneered the use of work teams.

the statement is inaccurate because work teams were pioneered in Sweden and Japan

The purpose of the balanced scorecard is to incorporate _____ performance measures into a single model.

financial and nonfinancial

A _____ allows employees, within specified ranges, to choose the combination of benefits that best suits their needs.

flexible incentive system

Paul works eight hours a day Monday through Friday. He is allowed to work from 8 a.m. to noon, then come back and finish his work from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. This is an example of which type of flexible work arrangement?

flextime

Performance appraisals with a developmental orientation focus on the _____

future

Tamar works for a bank that offers a bonus to any employee who comes up with a cost-reduction idea. This is an example of which type of incentive system?

gain-sharing programs

You manage a work group of ten secretaries who take turns answering phones, sorting mail, and typing and filing correspondence. Using the job characteristics theory, how can you assure that this team is happy and productive?

give them autonomy in deciding how to organize the workload

Goal-setting theory of motivation stages

goal directed effort, performance, intrinsic value/extrinsic value, and satisfaction

An empowered employee is one who _____.

has autonomy

George's grandparents buy him a $200,000 Ferrari as a college graduation present. What matters most to George about the present is that his grandparents have been critical of him his whole life and this is the first present they've ever given him. The Ferrari has _____ value for George.

high surface and symbolic

Esperanza works at a sandwich shop. She used to just make sandwiches, but now she also cleans the bathrooms and wipes down the counters. Esperanza's job underwent _____

horizontal loading

Gain-sharing programs, bonus systems, and profit-sharing plans are all examples of which of the following?

incentive systems

Pension plans, vacation time, and workers' compensation benefits are examples of which of the following?

indirect compensation

extended work schedule

is one that requires relatively long periods of work followed by relatively long periods of paid time off.

Which of the following statements is an accurate evaluation of Taylor's theory of job specialization? It decreases monotony at the expense of incurring some inefficiency. It improves efficiency at the cost of incurring extreme monotony. It both improves efficiency and reduces monotony. It both worsens efficiency and makes jobs more monotonous.

it improves efficiency at the cost of incurring extreme monotony

In a meeting with Duke, her manager, Marcie says that one of her goals is to think about ways to improve customer-client relations. Which of the following aspects of this goal could Duke rightly criticize?

its specifity (Marcie may well be personally interested in attaining the goal. "Think about ways to improve X" is a vague goal that's hard to measure. A better goal would be, "Develop three methods for improving our relationship with our clients.")

Huey, a janitor at a high school, used to mop only the first-floor hallways. After Edna, the janitor responsible for mopping the second-floor hallways, quit, Huey became responsible for mopping both the first- and second-floor hallways, on alternating days. Huey's job underwent _____.

job enlargement

What is the term for an approach to job design that increases a job's complexity to give workers greater responsibility and opportunities to feel a sense of achievement?

job enrichment

Perez does data entry for a very old-fashioned company. After months of complaining, Perez was finally able to convince his managers that he could get his work done more quickly if he was given access to some spreadsheet software and allowed to write macros to automate some aspects of the data entry. Perez's job underwent _____

job enrichment Job enrichment relies on vertical job loading—not only adding more tasks to a job, as in horizontal loading, but also giving the employee more control over

Which system of job design makes no effort to change the nature of individual jobs themselves? Job enrichment Job rotation Job enlargement Job specialization

job rotation

Kristen and Maya each work 20 hours of a 40-hour job managing the office of a hospice clinic. This is an example of which type of flexible work arrangement?

job sharing

_____ is the extent to which people feel that they can still meet their goals even if they failed to do so in the past.

self-efficacy

gain-sharing programs

Grant additional earnings to employees or work groups for cost-reduction ideas.

Stan works 10 hours a day, 4 days a week, and has Friday through Sunday off. What has his organization most likely implemented?

a compressed work schedule

Employees in which of the following types of country would be the least likely to be receptive to performance feedback?

a highly religious country In countries where people put a lot of faith in destiny, fate, or some form of divine control, employees may not be receptive to performance feedback at all, believing that their actions are irrelevant to the results that follow them.

Susan, a systems analyst, works a traditional schedule one week and a compressed schedule the next, having every other Friday off. This is an example of which type of flexible work arrangement?

a nine-eighty schedule

two major problems with measuring individual performance

a tendency to rate most individuals at about the same level and the inability to discriminate among variable levels of performance.

Esteban tries to achieve the goals his manager sets, but he does so merely out of obligation. According to goal-setting theory, Esteban's goals lack _____.

acceptance

In goal-setting theory, goal difficulty is the extent to which a goal is challenging to _____.

achieve

Goal _____ is the extent to which a person accepts a goal as his or her own.

attachment

According to Hackman and Oldham, the degree to which the job gives the worker freedom, discretion, and independence in scheduling the work and determining how to do the work is called _____

autonomy

Which approach to performance management identifies financial and nonfinancial performance measures and organizes them into a single model? a. balanced scorecard b. the two-factor theory c. 360-degree feedback d. the human relations approach

balanced scorecard

Albert works as a salesperson making $18 an hour plus 5% of every sale he makes. He receives two weeks of paid vacation a year, as well as 50% matching in a 401K retirement fund. In this scenario, $18 an hour represents Albert's __________.

base pay

What, for most people, is the most important component of the compensation package?

base pay

Goal _____ is the extent to which a person is personally interested in reaching a goal.

commitment

Rita works at a sunglass kiosk in a rundown mall. The owner of the kiosk gives her the goal of improving sales by 5 percent in the next month. Rita, who hates her job, plans to quit the moment her rich uncle dies, which will be any day now, and leaves her with a million dollar inheritance. Rita is unlikely to achieve the goal set by her manager because the goal lacks _____.

commitment

Which of the following is not a step in the performance appraisal process? Communication Compensation Documentation Evaluation

compensation

compressed work schedule

compresses the usual 5-day work week into 4 days

What are the four components of organizational success in the balanced scorecard?

customer perceptions, financial performance, innovation and learning, and internal business processes

Goal _____ is the extent to which a goal is challenging and requires effort.

difficulty

Ned is a technical writer. His manager asks him to come up with a goal to improve his performance in the next quarter. The goal Ned comes up with is to turn on the grammar checking feature in his word processor so that grammar will be automatically checked with spelling. What is the most significant deficiency in Ned's goal that his manager should criticize?

difficulty

the extent to which goals are challenging, attainable, and require effort is known as goal __________.

difficulty

what is the second step in the performance appraisal process?

documentation

Each of the following is a condition for initiatives to expand employee empowerment to be successful EXCEPT: participation and empowerment must be maintained over a long period. the organization must be sincere in its efforts to spread power and autonomy to lower levels. the organization must be prepared to increase its commitment to training. efforts to empower workers must be implemented quickly.

efforts to empower workers must be implemented quickly

Each of the following is a key component of organizational success in the balanced scorecard approach EXCEPT: innovation and learning. customer perceptions. financial performance. employee perceptions.

employee perceptions

nine-eighty schedule

employees work eighty hours in nine days, getting every other Friday off

What term refers to the degree to which employees have the authority to set their own work goals, make decisions, and solve problems?

empowerment

Which of the following involves the most comprehensive level of employee involvement?

empowerment

_____ is the process of enabling workers to set their own work goals, make decisions, and solve problems within their spheres of responsibility and authority

empowerment

horizontal loading

expanding a worker's job to include additional tasks

job enlargement

expands a worker's job to include tasks previously performed by other workers

Enrique lands a job applying oil to the bodies of supermodels before lingerie photoshoots. The job is fun and Enrique certainly doesn't mind hanging around supermodels, but he feels increasingly listless and starts to daydream about becoming a paramedic, a social worker, or some other job that involves tangibly helping people. According to the job characteristics theory, Enrique lacks the critical psychological state of ____

experienced meaningfulness of the work

Belinda, a midlevel manager, takes a two-week vacation. When she gets back, she is disturbed to discover that everything was fine during her absence and that she can return to work as usual without having to catch up on anything. Belinda starts to doubt whether it matters how well she does or how hard she tries at her job. According to the job characteristics theory, Belinda might lack the critical psychological state of _____.

experienced responsibility of work outcomes

Blaze works at an offshore oil rig every day for five weeks and then gets two full weeks off. This is an example of which type of flexible work arrangement?

extended work schedule

Pauline, a freelance copyeditor, has no idea whether her clients consider her one of the best editors they've ever worked with or one of the worst. In this respect, Pauline is frustrated by her job's lack of ____

feedback

Which type of incentive system tends to be the most controversial?

long-term compensation

Ivy, a reality show contestant, wins a challenge. Her reward is a phone call home. This reward has _____ value for Ivy.

low surface and high symbolic

Vladimir works as a captioning assistant for a company that captions phone calls for the hearing impaired. All captioning assistants are paid the same, but talented ones like Vladimir receive higher raises. This is an example of which type of incentive system?

merit pay plans

What makes job specialization difficult to implement, even though it seems as if it would be highly effective?

monotony associated with each task

vertical loading

not only adding more tasks to a job but also giving the employee more control over those tasks

The surface value of a reward is its ______ worth.

objective

_____ occurs when employees have a voice in decisions about their own work

participation

Performance appraisals with a judgmental orientation focus on the _____.

past

A golf club membership, a car and driver, and use of an exclusive dining room are examples of which of the following?

perquisites

Hubert works as a fidget builder for Widget Fidgets. The more fidgets Hubert makes, the more money he makes. This is an example of which type of incentive system?

piecework programs

According to social learning theory, people are motivated to achieve goals by feelings of _____

pride and shame

Zara works for a cooperative grocery store that distributes nearly all of its profits to its employees. This is an example of which type of incentive system?

profit-sharing plans

The modern concept of a work team grew out of which of the following?

quality circles

Which of the following is NOT a method companies use to improve job design? a. raising pay for most standardized jobs b. shifting employees from one job to another c. introducing a wider variety of tasks d. giving employees more control over tasks

raising pay for most standardized jobs

According to Locke's goal-setting theory of motivation, what is the final stage of employee motivation?

satisfaction

Why does the work teams approach tend to be more effective in countries such as Japan and Sweden?

their work and rewards are team centered

what might a company best choose to use an extended work schedule?

there's a high cost of transitioning between employees

Each of the following is a true assessment of the most popular methods for measuring individual performance EXCEPT: these methods tend to rate everybody at about the same level. these methods may require computerized analytical systems to extract information. these methods are easy to use. these methods struggle to discriminate among varying levels of performance.

these methods may require computerized analytical systems to extract information

Each of the following is a true assessment of comparative methods for measuring performance EXCEPT: these methods tend to rate everybody at about the same level. these methods may require computerized analytical systems to extract information. these methods are difficult to use. these methods are unfamiliar to many managers.

these methods tend to rate everybody at about the same level

Each of the following is a purpose of performance measurement with a judgmental orientation EXCEPT: to develop ways to overcome performance barriers. to provide a basis for promotions, transfers, and layoffs. to validate selection procedures. to identify high-potential employees.

to develop ways to overcome performance barriers

Each of the following is a purpose of performance measurement with a developmental orientation EXCEPT: to foster work improvement. to establish supervisor-employee agreement on expectations. to identify training and development opportunities. to provide a basis for reward allocation.

to provide a basis for reward allocation this would be a judgement of past performance

Which of the following is NOT one of the primary purposes of goals in an organization? To act as a control device. To provide a framework for managing motivation. To weed out underperforming employees. To monitor the organization's longer-term performance.

to weed our underperforming employees

what is a reason why management by objectives (MBO) efforts can sometimes fail?

top management's goals aren't represented

Flextime

usually gives employees less say about what days they work but more personal control over the times when they work on those days

Celina, a software developer, used to write programs according to very specific instructions from her manager. Now that her manager trusts her more, Celina is given only high-level specifications and has freedom to design as well as write new software. Celina's job underwent ____

vertical loading

At the center of the balanced scorecard is ____

vision and strategy

what is the central feature of a 360-degree feed system?

wide-ranging feedback, as well as subjective measures of performance