Management Quiz 4

Butch, I know you are trying hard, but you aren't meeting your sales quotas We have to let you go.

Ability. If you his trying hard, we have to assume he doesn't have the ability to meet the sales quotas.

John boy makes more sales calls than the other five reps, but he has the lowest sales.

Ability. The others seem to have greater ability.

Kendra joined a committee that she has no real interest in to make contacts. At a meeting, she makes a recommendation that is opposed by narcissist Kirkland, who is using a forcing style.

Accommodating style. When the conflict is not important to you but is for the other party, let it go. If you take a stance against the other person, this person and others that side with this person will not help in networking.

"Don't let it bother you; just ignore the swearing."

Advising. To ignore the swearing is advice.

"Chet, I know we can make more money by fixing prices, but it's illegal, so I'm not going to do it."

Avoidance Reinforcement. Avi is avoiding getting into legal problems.

Donald is on his way to an important meeting and running a little late. As he leaves the office, at the other end of the work area he sees Bonita socializing instead of working.

Avoiding style. Donald doesn't have time to confront Bonita now; however, when he gets back, Donald should talk to her.

"Ramzie, I don't like texting back and forth, and it takes longer, so please call me so we can talk."

Channel selection. The person prefers a different channel.

Samuel is not wearing a required safety vest again, saying it is too hot.

Coercive. When employees are intentionally not following orders or rules, discipline through coercion is appropriate.

Jessica is the sales manager. Competent sales rep Hemet is trying to close a big sale. The two are discussing the next sales call, and they disagree on the strategy to use to close the sale.

Collaborating style. This is an important issue that requires an optimal solution. Hemet needs to feel comfortable going into the sale. If the manager forces Hemet to do it her way, he may rebel and intentionally lose the sale to show Jessica was wrong. If they both agree on the strategy, the odds of closing the sale will be higher.

A new expensive robot machine is now available that can increase your department productivity. Major purchases must be approved by a committee, and its decisions tend to be influenced by politics.

Connection. Working on the political connections is advisable to gain support for your request.

"Tom, I just closed another sale. I'm looking forward to a nice commission check this week."

Continuous. He gets a commission for every sale made.

"Anita, congratulations. You made the most computer chips again this week, making you the high income earner for the fourth month in a row since we started this new piece rate system."

Continuous. Piece rate in production is a continuous reinforcement.

"Are you going to the company picnic?"

Diverting. Talking about health is changing the subject.

Ronnie signed up to play on the company softball team that includes some higher-level managers.

Effective. Ronnie can make some political connections by learning the power players.

Juanita has to drop off daily reports at a certain office by noon. She brings them in around 10:00 on Monday and Wednesday so that she can run into some higher-level managers who meet at that time near the office. On the other days, Juanita drops the reports off around noon on her way to lunch

Effective. This is a way of getting recognition and visibility and developing connections.

Juliet sent copies of a report that she wrote to three higher-level managers.

Effective. This is a way of getting recognition and visibility for your work. However, you don't want to sound like a bragger.

You are running late for a meeting and want your boss to know you are on your way and will be around five minutes late.

Email/text. A quick text is appropriate as most people check text instantly.

"Ronnie, you shouldn't be upset, so chill out, will you?"

Emotions. Being told to chill out is a sign of emotions running high.

"I was hoping that Heidi would stop being mean to Jake, but it has been going on for a week now, so I guess I'm going to have to talk to her about it."

Extinction. Ignoring the problem is extinction, and it is not working.

"Helen, for being late again, next time we have overtime I'm not going to give you extra hours.

Extinction. Not giving overtime is withholding of a reward to change undesired behavior of coming in late for work.

Chris is late again, and you need to take some action.

Face-to-face. An oral discussion and reprimand are in order. Also, a memo/written warning (e) may be placed in the employee's file.

"Yes, Deondre. We are right on schedule" (meanwhile thinking, "We are actually behind, but we'll catch up").

Filtering. The person is making performance sound better than it actually is.

"Hillary, I look forward to getting out of working on Monday mornings to attend our weekly department meeting."

Fixed interval. A weekly meeting is based on a fixed/set schedule and the passage of time.

"Katie, you need to work fast so we can meet our quarterly sales goal, and get a share of the profits."

Fixed ratio. Profit sharing is a type of bonus given after meeting the set/standard objective/standard.

Channel Selection

For each of the communication situations, select the most appropriate channel for transmitting the message. Oral communication A. Face-to-face B. Meeting C. Presentation D. Telephone Written communication E. Email/text F. Memo G. Letter H. Report I. Bulletin board, poster, newsletter

Usain is over budget for labor this month. The store currently is not busy, so he asks Erica, a part-time employee, to leave work early. Erica tells him she doesn't want to go because she needs the money.

Forcing style. It is part of the manager's job to implement unpopular decisions.

"Hey, Bubba, have you heard that Paul and Betty Sue were caught . . . ?"

Grapevine. This gossip about a mistake that is going through the grapevine.

"Tomas, I just sold products to two new customers who want to set up charge accounts. Please rush the credit check so we can increase business."

Horizontal/departmental. This is communication between colleagues in different departments.

"Arjun, will you please hold this so we can get it straight and finish the job?"

Horizontal/peer. They are working on a job together as peers.

Using Power

Identify the appropriate type of power to use in each situation. A. coercive B. connection C. reward or legitimate D. referent E. information or expert

Communication Barriers

Identify the communication barrier indicated by each statement. A. Perception B. Information overload C. Channel selection D. Noise E. Trust and credibility F. Not listening G. Emotions H. Filtering I. Language/culture

Performance Formula

Identify the factor contributing to low performance in the following five situations. A. Ability B. Motivation C. Resources

Communication Flow

Identify the form of communication flow occurring for each statement. A. Vertical downward B. Vertical upward C. Horizontal--identify as between (1) peers or (2) departments D. Grapevine

Conflict Management Styles

Identify the most appropriate conflict management style to use in each situation. A. avoiding style B. accommodating style C. forcing style D. negotiating style E. collaborating style

Political Behavior

Identify the political behavior in each situation as A. effective B. ineffective

Response Styles

Identify the response style exemplified in each statement. A. Advising B. Diverting C. Probing D. Reassuring E. Reflecting

Schedules of Reinforcement

Identify the theory behind each of the following statements on how to motivate employees. A. Continuous incremental schedule B. Fixed interval C. Variable interval D. Fixed ratio E. Variable ratio

Types of Reinforcement

Identify the theory behind each of the following statements on how to motivate employees. A. Positive/reward B. Avoidance/negative C. Punishment D. Extinction

Romeo avoids socializing so that he can be more productive on the job.

Ineffective. Being a good worker is important, but you also need interpersonal relations to get things done politically. Socializing is an important part of power and politics.

Hoang told his boss's boss about a mistake her boss made yesterday.

Ineffective. If Hoang's boss finds out about this behavior, this could be a big surprise that his boss could hold against Hoang.

Amita has talked to you about getting ahead and has asked you to help prepare her for a supervisor position when the next opportunity opens.

Information or Expert. Amita is looking for information and your expertise to help him get promoted.

"So, Billy Jean, do you understand?" She doesn't respond (thinking, "You just went through 14 steps, and I was lost back on step 2").

Information overload. The listener is so overwhelmed with all the information given, he or she doesn't know what to say.

"Jose, please come over here and tell me what Juan is talking about because I can't understand him."

Language/culture. They don't seem to speak the same language.

Jose is applying to colleges and asked you for a recommendation.

Letter. College often ask for a letter of recommendation.

You need to explain a new project to three of your ten employees.

Meeting. Getting together as a group would be an effective way to give the assignment. A memo/written instructions (e) could also be used at the meeting.

HR came out with a new policy and wants to inform employees internally of the change.

Memo. Memos are used for sending internal information.

Too bad Latoya does not seem to like doing her work and just does the minimum to keep her job.

Motivation. For some reason, Latoya lacks motivation.

I know Mark is bright and could get all As, but he doesn't seem to realize that grades are important to getting a good job.

Motivation. This person is not willing to do the work to get the grades.

Deanna is on a task force that has to select a new high-tech machine. The four alternatives will all do the job, but team members disagree about the brand, price, and service.

Negotiating style. This is a situation in which there is no simple clear solution, so a compromise is appropriate.

"Eliana, please shut the loud music off. I need to talk to you about your incident with Kara."

Noise. Music can be a noise that distracts communications.

"Joe, how many times do I have to tell you to put down the phone when I'm giving you instructions?"

Not listening. The manager believes the phone is a distraction to communications

"Paul, I said I'd do it in a little while. It's only been 10 minutes, so why do you expect it to be done by now?"

Perception. There is a difference in the interpretation of "a little while."

"Avi, I really appreciate your staying late tonight to finish this project."

Positive. Praise of thanks is a reward.

Employees have been leaving the lights on in the break room when no one is in it, so you decided to send a message to them to shut them off.

Poster. A sign on the wall near the light switch should help remind them to turn off the lights. You could tell them of the problem at a meeting (b) or by memo (e), in addition to the poster.

Your boss likes your creative idea for a new product and told you to come to a meeting with higher-level managers to pitch it to them.

Presentation. Speaking at the meeting is giving a presentation to managers.

"Tell me what specific swears are being said that you find offensive."

Probing. Asking for details of the situation is probing.

"Sharron, you know the rule is that we dock your pay if you come in late. No excuses.

Punishment. Docking of pay is a punishment.

"No. I didn't know anyone was swearing because I don't spend much time in the ops department. But, I'll look into it."

Reassuring. In essence, the boss is saying, "Don't worry; I'll take care of it."

Ari, one of your best workers, is currently not doing a good job as usual. You think Ari has a personal problem affecting her work.

Referent. You will get the best results at influencing Ari by working on the relationship side of power. Show a personal concern and willingness to help.

"So you don't like swearing--is that it?"

Reflecting. This statement essentially paraphrases the message to the sender.

"Sandy, I need you to go into our big database and run these statistics for me. Can you please have the numbers to me by noon?"

Report. It is best to give a written record that can be placed in your file. Face-to-face communication (a) could also be used to reinforce the report.

Usain, it's not my fault the machine broke and now we are behind schedule.

Resources. The employee could not do the work because a resource (machine) was broken.

Betty Lou went on a sales call, but when she went online our company website was down; resulting in no sale.

Resources. The website is a resource.

You have to get an important customer order shipped today, and Sonia is not working to standard again. Sonia claims that she does not feel well and cannot afford to take time off, so she can't get much work done today.

Reward or Legitimate. You should make Sonia realize the importance of getting the order out through a legitimate request for doing her job or going home sick.

You are waiting for UPS to deliver an important package, and you want to know if it is in the mailroom yet.

Telephone. The phone is the fastest way to find out if the package is at the mail room. To text, you would likely have to know the person in the mailroom and their personal number.

"Kasandra, you don't know what you are talking about. I'll keep doing it my way."

Trust and credibility. If the person had credibility, the other person would do the job his or her way.

"Kyle, I want to continue being paid monthly, and I like February better than the months with 31 days."

Variable interval. The number of days varies by month, and months are based on time.

"Thanks Anton. You really hustled to get that shipment out on time today.

Variable ratio reinforcement. This is an occasional giving of praise based on an output.

"Juanita, please take this stamped auto registration form to the Registry of Motor Vehicles for me right away."

Vertical downward. A manager is delegating down the chain of command.

"Kyra, here is the report you asked me to complete for you. Check it, and I'll make any changes you want."

Vertical upward. The manger had the authority to tell the other person to write a report (downward). The employee is now reporting upward with the report completed.