MNGT Chap 10

The four elements of the MBO process

1 Establishing and communicating organizational objectives. 2. Setting individual objectives (through superior-subordinate interactions) that help implement organizational ones. 3. Developing an action plan of activities needed to achieve the objectives. 4. Periodically (at least quarterly) reviewing performance as it relates to the objectives and including the results in annual performance appraisal.

Hofsted's FIVE dimensions of national culture

1) Power Distance (PD) is the extent to which a society accepts an unequal distribution of power in organizations. 2) Uncertainty avoidance (UA) is the extent to which a society feels threatened by uncertain and ambiguous situations. 3) Individualism-collectivism (I-C) is the extent to which a society values individual freedom and independence of action compared with tight social framework and loyalty to the group 4) Masculinity-femininity (M-F) is the extent to which society is oriented toward money and things (which Hofstede labels masculine) or toward people (which Hofstede labels feminine). 5) Long-term orientation (LT) is the extent to which society is oriented toward the long-verses the short term.

TQM's essential ingredients

1. An intense focus on customer satisfaction 2. Internal as well as external customers 3. Accurate measurment of every critical variable in a company's operation 4. Continuous improvement of products and services 5. New work relationships based on trust and teamwork

Guides proposed for successful downsizing

1.Eliminate unnecessary work instead of making across the board cuts 2. Contract out work that others can do cheaper 3. Plan for long-run efficiencies 4. Communicating the reasnons for actions 5. Invest in the remaining employees 6. Develop value-added jobs to balance out job elimination

Hiring insiders vs. outsiders

a. important for a company that usually promotes from within to prepare its current managers for promotion. b. Companies using relay executive succession, in which a candidate is groomed to take over the CEO position, have significantly higher performance than those that hire someone from the outside or hold a competition between internal candidates. c. Prosperous firms tend to look outside for CEO candidates only if they have no obvious internal candidates vs. firms in trouble overwhelmingly choose outsiders to lead them. d. CEO's from outside tend to introduce significant change and high turnover among the current top management. e. CEO's from outside tend to have a low survival rate. f. Compared to that of insiders, the performance of outsides tends to be either very good or very poor. g. Outsides performed much better (in terms of share-holder returns) than insiders in the first half of their tenure, they did much worse in their second half. h. The average tenure of an outsider is significantly less than for insiders. i. The probability of an outsider being chosen to lead a firm in difficulty increased if there is no internal heir apparent, if the last CEO was fired, and if the board of directors is composed of a large percentage of outsiders. j. Outsiders have been very effective in leading strategic change for firms in Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Discuss TQM - Total Quality Management

a. is an operational philosophy committed to customer satisfaction and continuous improvement. b. is committed to quality/excellence and to being the best in all functions c. aims to reduce costs and improve quality and can be used as a program to implement an overall low-cost or a differentiation business strategy. d. Top management is the key to the success of TQM. e. Greater flexibility in adjusting to customers' shifting requirements f. Faulty processes, not poorly motivated employees, are the cause of defects in quality. g. requires strong leadership form top management, employee training, empowerment of lower-level employees, and teamwork in ore to succeed in a company h. emphasizes prevention not correction

Executive Succession

a. is the process of replacing a key top manager. b. Two-thirds of all major corporations worldwide replace their CEO at least once in a five-year period. c. Only half of large U.S. companies have them in place e. executive "heirs apparent" are provided special assignments including membership on other firms' boards of directors.

Define Hofstede's dimensions of national culture

set of five dimensions by which each nation's unique culture can be identified. He found that the national culture is so influential that it tends to overwhelm even a strong corporate culture