MGT 420 Practice 8

Which of the following is the best example of external control?

Roger receives a company memo stating that he must wear a suit and tie to work every day.

Tom, Ron and two others comprise a group that makes the decisions for his organization. Ron is new, but quickly realizes that Tom and the others always agree, probably because they spend so much time discussing the agenda outside of formal meetings. What should Ron do?

Ron should seek to network with Tom, his friends, and the other group members. If more time together results in more opportunities to discuss options as a group, better decisions will be made.

MegaCorp will be changing its focus from specialized teams, which it used for years, to cross-functional product teams for better communication and teamwork. What would you propose doing to prepare employees for the transition?

Share the reasons for the change and a clear vision of how the new direction will have a long-term positive impact despite short-term challenges.

Kathleen is the manager in charge of selecting the functional department that will be outsourced at her company. How will she make the decision?

She will consider which department will save money with elimination without compromising the company's mission.

Which of the following asks people to identify others who energize or de-energize them, as well as those they turn to the most for help?

Social network analysis.

The Fix-Pro operations are in trouble. The office employees are treating the warehouse employees with disrespect, as though they are more important than the warehouse employees. What will happen in this situation?

Subcultures are likely to emerge from the separatist attitudes.

What is formal structure?

The official structure of the organization.

Why is a social network analysis beneficial?

The relationships can increase job satisfaction and improve job performance.

A small marketing company needs to be able to create teams of subject-matter experts from time to time but cannot afford to keep all employees on staff full-time. Which horizontal structure should the company adopt?

team

As characteristics of change, benefits, compatibility, simplicity, and triability are

the primary elements to consider when individuals are reluctant to change.

Record Shack has assured the public their product components are made entirely with renewable resources, the first in their industry to do so. This idea was presented by a board member and supported by the CEO. How does this business move compare to a market control?

This is not a market control, because it was suggested and developed internally.

Teenagers often exhibit certain behaviors due to peer pressure. What type of control is most similar to peer pressure?

clan

Rick performs an analysis at the end of each shift that measures performance in terms of quantity produced, the quality of production, time utilized, and overall cost. What does Rick's control process utilize?

output standards

In which case is it more effective to use input standards rather than output standards to evaluate progress toward the organization's objectives?

when comparing student achievement in one teacher's class from year to year

Brian tells Sally that he is frustrated because many of his Japanese coworkers are very slow to make decisions, so meetings take forever. Which of the following would be Sally's response?

"Brian, you are displaying ethnocentrism and should instead concentrate on the strength it brings to our company to have different styles of decision making."

Nathan gets a promotion, putting him in an existing position leading the marketing division. This is an example of which of the following?

A change in formal structure that does not require in a change in the organization chart.

What is a virtual organization?

A changing network of suppliers linked by information technology doing what was formerly done by internal divisions.

What will happen at Giant Savers food wholesale club, which is organized into departments like human resources, accounting, and sales when the focus on achieving excellence in the various departments leads to the pursuit of departmental goals over organizational goals?

A functional silos problem.

Adele's Closet was a family-owned store retailing fashion and accessories. Her first hires were family members and neighbors of the same ethnicity. Now, she wishes to open more locations in more neighborhoods. Adele knows that a diverse workforce will provide better service to a diverse customer base. What should be her first step to increasing diversity?

Adele should intentionally and proactively seek to hire workers of different ethnicities.

What are the benefits of improvisational change processes?

Adjustments can be made during change implementation.

At work, no one realizes that Melinda speaks Japanese almost exclusively at home. She avoids mentioning or inviting coworkers to her son's coming of age ceremony, and does not take a day off to prepare for it in order to fit in with her coworkers. This is an example of

biculturalism

To reduce costs, a financial firm is adopting a network structure. As the manager in charge of overseeing this, which of the following company divisions would you MOST recommend to be outsourced?

building maintenance division

What is a similarity between political maneuvering and rational persuasion?

Both would provide faster results but less commitment than a shared power strategy.

According to Lewin, what are the three phases of planned change?

unfreezing, changing, refreezing

_____ is intentionally destabilizing to prepare for change. In contrast _____ is adding stability to recover from change.

unfreezing, refreezing

The power to make most decisions is given to lower levels of _______ management in a centralized organization and lower levels of _______ management in a decentralized organization.

upper management, lower levels of management

Using virtual networks to eliminate boundaries that traditionally separate a firm from its suppliers and customers is characteristic of a

virtual organization.

Observable culture is defined as

what you see and hear when walking around an organization.

A work environment that promotes community and meaning is called

workplace spirituality.

What is the most effective method of socialization?

Include a discussion of mission, tradition, and expectations in new member orientation programs.

What is the standard that measures work efforts that go into a performance task?

input standard

What is a similarity between core culture and value-based management?

Both depend on the adoption and transmission of core values.

What is a similarity between affirmative action and managing diversity?

Both promote diversity in the workplace.

Which of the following is the best example of market control?

Dysfinity Internet Company provides modems and routers to its customers free of charge, so its competitor, Wilderness Services, begins providing them as well.

At Global Paper, the younger sales staff think that the older staff is old-fashioned and out-of-date because they are not as comfortable with technology. The older staff thinks that the younger group is disrespectful and lazy because they are not willing to put in long hours chasing leads. What would be the best solution?

Global Paper should partner a younger sales team member with an older one so each can learn from the other and together they could reach a more diverse group of customers.

Which statement characterizes the relationship among feedforward controls, concurrent controls, and feedback controls?

Good feedforward controls and concurrent controls could prevent problems that need to be addressed by feedback controls.

Jake is looking for a new manager for his team. He would like someone fresh, with a flair for management, and who gets along well with others. He would like to hire someone who already works for the company. What would be the best way for Jake to find candidates?

He should perform a social network analysis to see the opinions of other employees at the company.

During the merger of Kiawa Motors and Oso Auto to become OsoKiawa, performance suffered greatly because individuals were worried about how they would fit into the new organization. What would you propose as a human resource leader as an effective strategy?

Increase communication about the structure and culture of the new organization and allow for dialogue to address concerns.

If a company wants their employees to feel more empowered, what is one action they can take?

Increase delegation of tasks to lower level employees.

Against the advice of other executives, a CEO decides to expand into a new, unrelated business via acquisition. The board of directors is concerned because the CEO is not known to be resilient. What do you predict will happen if things do not go well in the new line of business over the next few years?

The CEO will not admit the mistake.

Joy works with two other managers to organize a project. They meet every Thursday and Monday afternoon. On Thursdays, the other managers often go out for drinks together, and on Monday when they come in they both have new ideas that Joy has not been involved in. What should Joy do?

Joy should go with the others for drinks on Thursday, in order to further her participation in the discussions.

Juno Bicycle Corporation used to be the clear industry leader with its innovative recumbent bicycles. Janus Bikes began eating into Juno's market share, touting its super energy-efficient plants and its use of environmentally-friendly components. What can Juno do to regain its position in the marketplace?

Juno can emphasize its own positive features while trying to be more competitive in pricing and features offered.

What would be the most effective way to prevent rumors in an organization?

Leadership should clearly communicate, especially in times of change.

An insurance company's inbound call center trains its agents extensively before they begin handling calls. Each agent keeps track of the results of each call and turns in the results at the end of the shift. After several months, management notes that sales totals are not meeting expectations. What is most likely wrong with the call center's control process?

Management is not monitoring the agents' actual calls.

Which is a characteristic of value-based management?

Managers model and reinforce the core values.

Which statement best characterizes the relationship between internal and external controls?

Managers rely on both types of controls to bring about optimal performance.

Which control would be used to change suppliers? Why?

Market control, because competitor pressure necessitated a lower-priced supplier.

How is functional structure different from matrix structure?

Matrix structure can also include divisional structure.

What is the relationship between organizational design and organic design?

Organic design is one type of organizational design.

______ divides up the work and coordinates activities.

Organizing

In your evaluation, which of the following concepts is embodied in the process of management by exception?

Pareto Principle

What is the expected result of ethnic or national subcultures?

People spend more time with others from the same region or heritage.

Which of the following is characteristic of matrix structure?

Permanent teams operate across functions to support specific products, projects or programs.

What is the relationship between empowerment and delegation?

Properly structured delegation can lead to empowerment.

A tool-and-die maker compares the work of its four production teams against each other every year. Which of the following is this an example of?

Relative comparisons.

What is a distinguishing difference between empowerment and tall structures?

Tall structures lead to less adaptability and empowerment leads to greater adaptability.

Which of the following is an example of a network structure?

TechNation has few full-time employees that handle sourcing and IT while gourmet foods are provided by a variety of suppliers and delivered by a third party package delivery firm.

What does division of labor mean?

That different people perform different jobs.

A home appliance manufacturer has three teams working on appliance production. Team members spend significant time discussing who will do which task, and teams often argue about who gets the best equipment. This has resulted in poor productivity for the company. How do you propose the company solve this problem?

The company needs to create a better bureaucracy.

What helps identify the need for action?

The control equation.

Bob's Bait & Tackle is a regional operation. It functions on a team structure, but is having trouble with the extensive meetings required to get anything done as well as friction on some of the teams. What is their most effective course of action?

They should change to a functional structure.

MegaCorp is a financial services company with marketing, investment, corporate financing, and online financing divisions with a new, results-oriented CEO. Each division functions very well separately. A new opportunity comes in requiring cooperation of all divisions. How would you propose it be handled?

They should form a cross-functional team.

What is the benefit of a manager encouraging employees in both team and functional assignments to focus on essentials when conducting meetings?

This action increases the efficiency of employees engaged in both team and functional assignments.

What is the most likely reason a company would perform a social network analysis?

To understand the complexities of the shadow organization within their company.

What is a difference between unfreezing and refreezing?

Unfreezing is intentionally destabilizing to prepare for change, while refreezing is adding stability to recover from change.

Zach is in management at a company with a strong team culture. How could he become a symbolic leader?

Verbally praise groups showing excellent team work and share authority by collaborating with others.

An organization with an organic design is

adaptive and uses a decentralized and horizontal structure.

Rajiv's company, LargeNet, is a search engine optimization firm dedicated to flexibly scaling to meet any level of client demand, staying current with new technologies, and focusing on a team-centered approach with employees who share tasks and can cross between multiple functions. LargeNet needs

an organic design.

New Age Beverage just entered the smoothie market with the acquisition of Smooth Moe Drive Thru, which completely differs from their past model of distributing their beverages through grocery stores and other retailers. This situation is an example of which of the following?

changing

In a factory that manufactures electronic circuit boards, a laser device is used to check the accuracy of the printed circuits at several points during the production process. This is an application of

concurrent control.

Which of the following is characterized by being below the surface?

core culture

Hardware Depot is a hardware company with separate divisions for corporate customers, retail stores, and mail-order specialty. They are an example of a ________ structure.

customer

Increased delegation and empowerment of employees are characteristic benefits of

decentralized organizations.

How can divisional structures typically increase costs to a company?

duplication of resources and efforts across divisions

Mary held discussions to tell the team about the new product line before it was adopted. This is an example of which the following?

education and communication

Resistance to change can be overcome by working to meet employee needs through

education and facilitation.

To identify desired performance in real time, TelaDoc, Inc. uses

engineering comparisons.

Archibald likes to try new things and always wants to learn something new. He enjoys taking risks and likes to work with money. He respects supervisors that aren't too rigid and let employees find out what works. Which type of company culture would be the BEST fit?

entrepreneurial

Phil told the team that anyone who didn't like the new organization structure was free to quit. This is an example of which the following?

explicit and implicit coercion

Grouping together people with similar skills who perform similar tasks is defined as a ________ structure.

functional

Empowerment is defined as

giving people the freedom to make decisions about how they do their jobs.

In developing a new weapons system, a manufacturer must invest a great deal of funds. The firm decides to build prototypes only if software models suggest that the new system will provide at least a 40 percent improvement over existing systems. This is an example of

historical comparisons.

Francine runs a non-profit organization that develops outreach programs for kids. She tells employees that she started with just an idea and a desire to help, and hard work became an organization that helps hundreds of kids, motivating employees to work hard for the kids. This is an example of

how stories influence observable culture.

Several months ago, your company acquired a smaller competitor. You and your colleagues recognize that there are many things to fix based on data and anecdotal evidence. How should you organize your priorities?

management by exception

Sheila is a vice president at Company M. Several months ago, Company M acquired a smaller competitor, N Co. Sheila recognizes that there are many things to do to make this process work smoothly, based on data and evidence. How should Sheila organize her priorities?

management by exception

Radio Inc. is a large, bureaucratic organization composed of several mature products in long-standing markets. An analysis of the company reveals that Radio Inc. is unable to adjust its practices and product offerings in dynamic environments. Inertia and slow rate of change are threats to the long-term success of Radio Inc. Which of the following represents the greatest threat to Radio Inc.?

market control

At Roger WillCo, a communications company, employees belong to cross-functional teams, answering to multiple bosses. This is an example of ________ structure.

matrix

Tributary Corp is an online retailer emphasizing speed, predictability, and reliability of service. Most of Tributary's employees perform very specific functions in a regimented and carefully defined process. This is an example of

mechanistic design.

As a result of __________ subcultures, one would expect people to spend more time with others from the same region or heritage.

national

Matt is one of the few employees at WebCo, an online retailer. He makes sure the servers and website are working, but never sees a customer. Order fulfillment is done through warehouses and shipping firms, and products are delivered to the warehouses from overseas manufacturers. This illustrates a ________ structure.

network

When Adam visits his customers at MegaCorp, he notices that everybody dresses professionally and treats everyone else with courtesy. This is an example of which of the following?

observable culture

One would expect people to spend more time with others who are doing the same type of work as a result of __________ subcultures.

occupational

Why does it behoove the management of a company to gain an understanding of the informal structure of the company?

operational efficiency can be improved by knowing how things actually work outside of the formal structure

If an employee is talking about the company he works for and talks about "the atmosphere," it is most likely he is referring to

organizational culture.

Responding quickly and effectively to a change in customer tastes is a characteristic advantage of ________ structure.

product

Which of the following pairs would both be divisional structures?

product and customer

In an organization with a team structure, Claude is creating a project team to work on a project with a quickly approaching deadline. In addition to breaking down functional silos, what should Claude do to get the most out of the project?

remove the barriers to quick decision making

To reduce costs, a global maritime shipping company is adopting a network structure. As the manager in charge of overseeing this, which of the following company divisions would you MOST recommend to be outsourced?

social media division

Argon Labs employs a diverse workforce of scientists from the United States, India, China, Germany, and Great Britain. The perspectives of all groups are valued and are represented at each level of the company. This is an example of which of the following?

structural integration

Neon Labs has employees from all areas of the world in positions from entry level to management. The bulk of their employees are from the United States, Japan, India, France, and Great Britain. The value the different perspectives and strive to keep each level within the company diverse. What concept does this represent?

structural integration