MG355 Chapter 3 Practice Test

Improved health and medical care for the aging workforce

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

By rewarding people whose behaviors are consistent with the current culture

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

It is intangible in nature.

Which of the following is accurate regarding organizational culture?

Values of customers

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

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

Which of the following is true of organizational culture?

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

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

Merger

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

External

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

Task

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

Its founder

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

Suppliers

_____ are organizations that provide resources for other organizations.

Diversity

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

Interest rates

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

bring outsiders into important managerial positions

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

Political-legal

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?

can become a weakness

An organization's culture _____.

helps members understand what it stands for

An organization's culture _____.

The growth of rival factions within the organization

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

Environmental scanning

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?

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

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?

Non-Hispanic White

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

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?

articulating the culture through slogans and ceremonies

Culture can be maintained by _____.

feel

Culture determines the organization's _____.

The technological dimension

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

Strategic partners

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?

owner

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

shared experiences

Determinants of organizational culture include _____.

differences in people along important dimensions such as age or race

Diversity describes _____.

customer

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 _____.

offer greater flexibility

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

Maintain the status quo.

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?

Older workers make greater contributions to productivity.

How does the aging of the workforce affect organizations?

By forcing organizations to hire more broadly

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

The same culture is not found throughout 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?

Degree of homogeneity

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

A competitive advantage

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?

A member of the board of directors

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?

Her company is likely to become more diverse and multicultural.

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?

Establishing a single organizational culture

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?

Economic

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?

There is a high degree of uncertainty.

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?

organizational culture

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 _____.

internal environment

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 _____.

Technological

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?

New entrants

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?

Highly uncertain

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?

Stable and simple environments

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

Improved quality of the 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?

It is relatively simple.

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

task environment

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 _____.

employees

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 _____.

internal environment

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

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?

internal environment

The board of directors is part of an organization's _____.

Shared experiences

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?

The degree of homogeneity

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

To ensure corporate governance

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?

external environment

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 _____.

Rate of change

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

Regulators

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

Unemployment

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

organizational culture

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

Promote employees whose behaviors are consistent with the desired culture.

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

Degree of uncertainty

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

Organizations becoming more diverse and multicultural

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

It is a barrier that keeps women from upper management positions.

What is meant by the glass ceiling?

Multiculturalism

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

Ethnicity

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

To protect the public

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

52 percent

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

Interest group

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

Supplier

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?

When there are relatively few buyers

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

When forming an initial understanding

When is information management especially important to an organization?

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

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

Threat of substitute products

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

The task environment

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

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?