Chapter 3: understanding the organization's environment

Jolanta was elected by stockholders to oversee a company's management. While she provides general oversight, she does not get involved with the daily activities of the company. Which part of a company's internal environment is Jolanta?

a member of the board of directors

Culture can be maintained by _____.

articulating the culture through slogans and ceremonies

the board if trustees constitute which aspect of the internal environment

board of directors

A major way to shape the culture of an organization is to _____.

bring outsiders into important managerial positions.

An organization's culture ___

can become a weakness

In filling an opening on his staff, Atmir has looked beyond traditional sources of new employees. He wants to find a broad set of better-qualified employees from a variety of backgrounds. What can be created by using nontraditional sources and creating diversity within the organization?

competitive advantage

The resources over which a company and its __________ vie include raw materials, access to capital, or real estate for a store location.

competitors

a manager who is considering entry to a new market must carefully consider all aspects of the environment as it relates to that market, including any obstacles posed by ________________ who already have established relationships with suppliers and customers

competitors

what task ED? reluctances of other energy companies to pursue deep-water oil drilling due to public outrage about environmental risks

competitors

when the scenario mentions "supporting local school", which aspect of the organization's internal environment is it referring to?

culture

Pollack Food Services supplies meals for all the schools in the Culver City public school system. In Pollack Food Services task environment, the school system is considered to be a _____.

customer

what task ED?to appeal to drivers who are concerned about climate change, using wine and solar power in the operation of gas stations

customers

The actual physical environment, such as an office or a warehouse, and the work that people do are all part of the _____.

internal environment

The board of directors is part of an organization's ____

internal environment

what environment? a manager's policy of letting employees have friday afternoons off during the summer

internal environment

what environment? a reminder to employees that business-casual attire permitted only on fridays

internal environment

Who or what is generally the starting point of an organization's culture?

its founder

which of the following are elected by shareholders to represent their interests?

members of the board of directors

What is the broad set of issues associated with differing values, behaviors, and attitudes held by people within an organization?

multiculturalism

Determinants of organizational culture include

shared experiences

Which of the following is a factor in the economic dimension of an organization?

unemployment

When two firms merge, how can the two different cultures be blended successfully?

Managers must have a clear idea of what they want to create.

Beige Inc. sells very few products in the market, has a constant and stable supply of resources, and faces relatively little competition. Which of the following statements is true of the environmental uncertainty faced by Beige?

Beige Inc. has a simple environment with relatively low levels of uncertainty.

Which of the following is a part of an organization's general environment?

interest rates

Even though there have been changes in the general environment, Pallavi and her managers feel they are responding well. How might Pallavi's company adjust their strategic response?

Maintain the status quo

top dog academy is a dog day care provider. which issues are part of its general environment?

-people increasingly acknowledge the role of pets as part of the family -as consumer confidence improves, people feel they have more discretionary income

What is the percentage of women engaged in work in management and professional occupations in the United States?

52%

How has legislation such as the Civil Rights Act of 1964 served to increase diversity in the workforce?

By forcing organizations to hire more broadly

Which of the following is a way of maintaining culture in an organization?

By rewarding people whose behaviors are consistent with the current culture

L'Meese is conducting a situational analysis in order to develop a five-year strategic plan. See is reviewing a summary of domestic GDP, inflation, and unemployment projections and trends. L'Meese is looking at potential growth patterns for which type of indicators?

Economic

Diversity describes

Differences in people along important dimensions such as age or race

Kamiya owns a small business that has always put customer service first, even if it meant a loss in profit. Kamiya's company is being bought by another firm that has always emphasized profits, to the point that some employees are fired if they cost the company profit. What will be the greatest challenge of integrating the two companies?

Establishing a single organizational culture

Watson and Raymond Inc., a courier company based in the United States, suffered a loss recently when a hurricane struck its headquarters and damaged a lot of data stored on the company's servers. In this scenario, Watson and Raymond's business was affected by its _____.

External environment

Rabeya's organization allows managers to use their discretion and have flexibility when making decisions in order to adapt to their environment. They have relatively few standard operating procedures. Which type of environment are they operating in?

Highly uncertain

An organization's culture

Helps members understand what it stands for

Kaia's organization just formed a strategic alliance with an overseas firm and will be working with her overseas counterparts for the next several years. This will require Kaia to travel to the strategic partner's company and work closely with them. How will this relationship change her organization?

Her company is likely to become more diverse and multicultural

Which of the following is a reason for the increase in the average age of the U.S. workforce?

Improved health and medical care for the aging workforce

Ramkumar's organization has made considerable efforts to increase the diversity and multiculturalism at his organization. As a manager, what might Ramkumar notice as a result of this increase in his organization?

Improved quality of the workforce

Maximus Technologies changed a few of its policies and made its work environment employee-friendly. It increased the incentives and benefits given to its employees. This change motivated the employees, and the production rate increased by 75 percent. Maximus Technologies benefited because of the changes implemented in its _____.

Internal environment

Which of the following is true of organizational culture?

It consists of a firm's set of values and beliefs.

What is meant by the glass ceiling?

It is a barrier that keeps women from upper management positions

Which of the following is accurate regarding organizational culture?

It is intangible in nature.

Raul works in an environment that has little segmentation and few elements. What can be said about the degree of homogeneity in his environment?

It is relatively simple.

Which of the following is true of the glass ceiling in many organizations?

It keeps women from advancing to top management positions in organizations.

Which of the following occurs when two or more firms combine to form a new firm?

Merger

What is an effective way to establish one common vision and direction when organizations with different cultural norms merge?

Promote employees whose behaviors are consistent with the desired culture

Ozlem's firm is highly specialized, and the cost of entry into the market runs in the millions, and as a result, there are only three other firms that do what her company does. However, her company's products sell well, and parts needed to produce them are plentiful. Which competitive force is Ozlem least likely to worry about?

New entrants

How does the aging of the workforce affect organizations?

Older workers make greater contributions to productivity.

What is considered to be the most fundamental trend in diversity and multiculturalism today?

Organizations becoming more diverse and multicultural

Which of the following dimensions refers to the methods available for converting resources into products or services?

Technological dimension

Raj owns a franchised food operation and operates in an environment with very little uncertainty. What contributes to this low level of uncertainty?

Stable and simple environments

When Amina needs additional employees on a short term basis, she contacts an employment agency. This agency not only has employees Amina can contract with on a short term basis, but they share information on trends and economic conditions with Amina. Which aspect of the task environment does the employment agency work in when supporting Amina?

Supplier

are organizations that provide resources for other organizations.

Suppliers

Which of the following can result in cultural problems in an organization?

The growth of rival factions within the organization

In a single organization, members of the sales staff always wear business attire, while the product development staff dresses more casually. What does this illustrate?

The same culture is not found throughout the organization.

Marah's organization is in an environment with a high number of elements that seem to be constantly changing. The environment is very dynamic and complex. What can be said about the uncertainty Marah's organization is likely to face?

There is a high degree of uncertainty.

Ugar is on the board of directors for a firm that lost millions of dollars this past year. During the board meeting, the discussion turned to providing an increase in salary for the CEO of the organization. Ugar felt he would be held accountable for this unwarranted pay raise, as did several other board members. What is their responsibility to the organization referred to as?

To ensure corporate governance

What is the ole of regulatory agencies in the task environment?

To protect the public

Which of the following is part of the sociocultural dimension of an organization?

Values of customers

When is information management especially important to an organization?

When forming an initial understanding

When do buyers have the most power as a competitive force?

When there are relatively few buyers

In addition to the rate of change, how does the environment affect an organization?

degree of homogeneity

The number of elements combined with the amount of segmentation in an environment make up _____.

degree of homogeneity

What is considered to be a driving force that influences many organizational decisions?

degree of uncertainty

Which of the following is a key element of multiculturalism within an organization?

diversity

what GED: low investor confidence in oil companies after the explosion

economic

The National Labor Relations Act of 1935 requires organizations to recognize and bargain with a union if that union has been legally established by an organization's _____.

employees

when the scenario refers to over 40,000 workers, it is referring to which aspect of the internal environment

employees

Azim is using an enterprise resource planning system to help monitor the activities of consumers and competitors. He plans to use this to make recommendations for future planning. Which process is Azim engaged in?

environmental scanning

What is the composition of a group or organization based on race?

ethnicity

Which type of environment includes everything outside an organization's boundaries that might affect it?

external

what environment? increased regulation of banks and mortgage lenders regarding the loans they issue

general environment

what environment? shifts in economic and political power between countries

general environment

What type of regulator is formed by its members to attempt to influence organizations

interest group

By 2030, which population group is expected to see the largest decline?

non-hispanic white

Employers often prefer to rely on temporary workers because they _____.

offer greater flexibility.

Math-A-Mazing requires all employees to wear something math-related to work every day. They help by providing pins, scarves, and caps printed with numbers or math signs. Employees can wear one of these items or come up with their own. According to the company, this policy makes the company a fun and exciting place to work. This management decision affects the _____.

organizational culture

What a company stands for, how it does things, and what it considers important are all learned from the

organizational culture

Destani bought stock in her favorite technology company, giving her legal property rights to the business. Destani is now a(n) _____.

owner

if an employee commutes to an office building to work, the office is part of the organization's

physical work environment

Alacorp wants to open a new plant, and has narrowed it down to three possible cities. Mikel's job is to investigate the deed and zoning restrictions of each potential location, as well as the tax rates. Mikel also must report on each city council's history in working with new business. Mikel is focusing on which dimension of the general environment?

political/legal

Car manufacturers must meet certain emissions standards as dictated by the federal and state governments. This requirement is an aspect of what dimension of the general environment?

political/legal

what GED: an established process for determining whether oil companies are responsible for oil spills and a requirement that guilty companies pay large fines

political/legal

Which of the following indicates how stable or dynamic the environment is?

rate of change

Which of the following is a dimension of an organization's task environment?

regulators

The culture at SilverCircle is quite weak. The management team changes often. Employees are not able to sense any direction or purpose for the company, and there is a high turnover rate. In contrast, employees at Wellesby speak very highly of the company. Many of them have worked there for years under the guidance of a steady management team. The differences in culture at the two companies are in part attributable to what?

shared experiences

Cut'n'Clip hair salon has opened locations inside many SilverCircle stores. In this situation, what are Cut'n'Clip and SilverCircle to each other?

strategic partners

Which of the following are two or more companies that work together in a joint venture or other partnership in the task environment?

strategic partners

what task ED? a joint operation between BP and state employment agencies to train people to monitor beaches and pay them to perform environmental cleanup as needed

strategic partners

what task ED? a BP contractor changing its practices to satisfy the environmental and ethical requirements set by BP

suppliers

Which type of environment includes useful information a firm can use about competitors, suppliers, customers, and strategic partners?

task

Sabine just submitted a bid to take over the paper supply contract for a large firm in town. She knows that another firm bid as well, and only one of them will win the contract. These two firms exist in each other's _____.

task environment

Which is a layer of the external environment of an organization?

task environment

what environment? for a public university, the pool of new PhD graduates seeking jobs as professors

task environment

Over the next several years, Sushil expects electric vehicles to impact revenues in the retail gas and oil unit of her firm. The expansion of electric vehicles will impact which general environment dimension for Sushil's firm?

technological

Tariq's organization manufactures custom-ordered blinds. New software on its web site that allows customers to select size, colors, and other features to design their own blinds is part of which dimension of its general environment?

technological

what GED: the ability to use deep-sea submersibles to take pictures of the oil leak a mile below the surface of the water

technological

Which competitive force can supplant or diminish the need for an existing product or service?

threat of substitute products

Culture determines the organization's _____.

to feel