Chapter 3

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

Organizations becoming more diverse and multicultural

Culture can be maintained by...

articulating the culture through slogans and ceremonies

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

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

✓ The degree of homogeneity

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

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

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 competitive advantage

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.

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

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

Degree of uncertainty

An organization's culture....

Can become a weakness

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

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 Feedback: Correct. A second dimension of the task environment is customers or whoever pays money to acquire an organization's products or services. Schools, hospitals, government agencies, wholesalers, retailers, and manufacturers are just a few of the many kinds of organizations that may be major customers of other organizations. Some institutional customers, such as schools, prisons, and hospitals, also buy food in bulk Additional Resources

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

Degree of homogeneity

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

Diversity

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

Culture determines the organization's....

Feel

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

The board of directors is part of an organization's

Internal environment

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

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

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

Multiculturalism

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

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

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

contacts an employment When Amina needs additional employees on a short term basis , she 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 are organizations that provide resources for other organizations . They are a part of an organization's external environment .

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

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

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

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

The task environment

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

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

Threat of substitute products

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

Maximus Technologies changed a few of its environment employee - friendly . It increased the incentives and benefits policies and made its work 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

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

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

owner

Determinants of organizational culture include

shared experiences

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

✓ Unemployment

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 Feedback: Correct. Another reason for the increase in diversity is that both legislation and judicial decisions have forced organizations to hire more broadly. But starting with the passage of the Civil Rights Act in 1964, numerous laws have outlawed discrimination against these and most other groups. Additional Resources

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 Sushi's firm?

Technological

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

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

✓ Establishing a single organizational culture

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 .

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

What is meant by the glass ceiling ?

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

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

✓ Its founder

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 .

How does the aging of the workforce affect organizations ?

✓ Older workers make greater contributions to productivity .

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 .

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 several other board organization . Ugar felt he would be held accountable for this unwarranted pay raise , as did members . What is their responsibility to the organization referred to as ?

✓ To ensure corporate governance

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

✓ When there are relatively few buyers

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

✓ internal environment

Employers often prefer to rely on temporary workers because they

✓ offer greater flexibility

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

✓ organizational culture

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

✓52 percent

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

✓bring outsiders into important managerial positions

An organization's culture

✓helps members understand what it stands for

Which of the following is accurate regarding organizational culture ?

✔It is intangible in nature .