MGMT 4303 - Chapter 10

The percentage of European and Japanese-based expatriate managers who fail to adjust to a host country's social and business environment is

6% or less

Which of the following is NOT an essential ingredient of TQM?

Action planning

Executives with a particular mix of skills and experiences may be classified as an executive type and paired with

a specific corporate strategy

All of the following reflect characteristics of a successful integration manager EXCEPT

ab ability to hire like-minded people

The strategy implementation tool used to determine what actions are going to be taken, by whom, during what time frame, and with what expected results is called a(n)

action plan

Which of the following is NOT an essential ingredient of TQM?

action planning

Which of the following statements is true concerning the career life cycle for top executives?

all of the above

The percentage of US-based expatriate managers who fail to adjust to a host countrys social and business environment is

approx 35%

When Admiral was acquired by Maytag Corporation, the Admiral employees were willing to accept the dominance of Maytag's strong quality-oriented culture. This demonstrates which approach to managing culture?

assimilation

Which method of managing disparate cultures involves one organization's domination over another willing organization?

assimilation

Which of the following practices was not identified by Black and Gregersen in companies that do a good job of managing foreign assignments?

they offer assignments to those who want to return home early to share their experiences

What did a study of 173 firms over a 25-year period reveal about CEOs of successful corporations?

they tended to have the same functional specialization as the former CEO

"TQM" refers to

total quality management

A good retrenchment strategy can be implemented well in terms of organizing, but poorly in terms of staffing.

true

A professional liquidator was the executive type called in to Montgomery Ward when the declared bankruptcy for the second time.

true

An action plan states what actions are going to be taken, by whom, during what time frame, and with what expected results.

true

Analyzers tend to have CEOs with a marketing/sales background.

true

Because an organization's culture can exert a powerful influence on the behavior of all employees, it can strongly affect a company's ability to shift its strategic direction.

true

Communication is the key to the effective management of change.

true

Companies that pursue related diversification strategies through internal development make greater use of interdivisional transfers of people than do companies that grow through unrelated acquisitions.

true

Downsizing refers to the planned elimination of positions or jobs.

true

Executive succession is the process of replacing a key top manager.

true

IHOPs CEO, Julia Stewart, built a reputation as a turnaround specialist.

true

Implementation involves leading through coaching people to use their abilities and skills most effectively and efficiently to achieve organizational objectives.

true

One component of an effective action plan is the determination of the expected financial and physical consequences of each action.

true

One objective of TQM is better, less variable quality of the product and service.

true

Research indicates that a multinational corporation performs at a higher level when its CEO has international experience.

true

Research indicates that companies undertaking cost-cutting programs are four times more likely than others to cut costs again, typically by reducing staff.

true

Staffing issues can involve hiring new people with new skills, firing people with inappropriate or substandard skills, and/or training existing employees to learn new skills.

true

Staffing requirements are likely to follow a change in strategy.

true

Succession planning has become the most important topic discussed by boards of directors.

true

TQM is an operational philosophy committed to customer satisfaction and continuous improvement.

true

There is a very strong connection between strategy and training at Motorola.

true

To improve organizational learning, many multinational corporations are providing their managers with international assignments as long as five years.

true

To successfully downsize, companies must invest in the remaining employees.

true

Training and development can be especially important for organizations implementing an overall low cost or differentiation strategy, but not for those in retrenchment.

true

When Boeing created a separate unit to house the newly acquired operations of McDonnell-Douglas, they were managing the different cultures through separation

true

Research suggests that boards of directors tend to look outside the firm for the next CEO under which following circumstance?

when the company is in trouble

Strategic goals can be accomplished through defining an action plan. Which one of the following is NOT one of the components which make up an action plan?

where the action will be done

Integration involves the disintegration of one company's culture resulting from unwanted and extreme pressure from the other to impose its culture and practices.

false

TQM links organizational objectives and the behavior of individuals.

false

If a planned strategy is not compatible with the company's current culture, and management is not willing to make major organizational changes required to manage around the culture, what should the organization do?

find a joint venture partner or contract with another company to carry out the strategy

Which one of the following is NOT one of the characteristics possessed by companies that have made successful major culture changes?

if the vision is difficult, the CEO immediately terminates the goal

Which of the following is NOT one of TQM's objectives?

increased alignment of employee goals with managements objectives

When Hewlett Packard searches for executive leadership, all of the following represent its broad competency of achieving results EXCEPT

increasing stock price

When Renault purchased a controlling interest in Japan's Nissan Motor Company, which approach to managing culture was employed?

integration

Which method of managing disparate cultures involves a relatively balanced give-and-take of cultural and managerial practices between the merger partners, and no strong imposition of cultural change on either company?

integration

According to the text, assessment centers have been able to accurately predict subsequent

job performance and career success

To ensure employees are gaining the appropriate mix of experience to prepare employees for future responsibilities, many corporations move people from one job to another utilizing the technique of

job rotation

Which is NOT one of the competencies Hewlett Packard uses for identifying potential executives?

manage around the external environment

What does "MBO" stand for?

management by objectives

Successful analyzer firms tend to be headed by CEOs with backgrounds in the areas of

marketing/sales

If a planned strategy is NOT compatible with the current culture, but the culture can be easily modified to make it more compatible with the new strategy, what should the organization do?

move forward very carefully by introducing a set of culture changing activities

According to a study of downsizing in the automobile-related industry, which one of the following is NOT a problem associated with inappropriate downsizing?

produced long-term benefits

According to the text, which one of the following is NOT one of the dangers of using primarily foreign nationals to staff managerial positions in subsidiaries?

promote anger and jealousy within the nationalistic host government

Which one of the following is NOT part of the process of Management By Objectives (MBO)?

reinforcing rules and regulations

Successful prospector firms tend to be headed by CEOs with backgrounds in the areas of

research/engineering and general management

Downsizing is often used to implement a(n) ________ strategy.

retrenchment

Which one of the following is NOT one of Malekzadeh and Nahavardi's four general methods of managing disparate cultures?

segmentation

Which method of managing disparate cultures is characterized by a separation of the two companies' cultures because of their differences?

separation

The hiring of new people with new skills, firing of people with inappropriate or substandard skills, and/or training existing employees to learn new skills are included the process of

staffing

European multinational corporations seldom use people with an international orientation to staff their management positions.

false

Firms in trouble seldom choose outsiders to lead them.

false

For each $1 spent on training, Motorola estimates it receives _____ in productivity gains within three years.

$30

According to the text, a complete package for an executive working in another country costs

300,000 to 1mill annually

Motorola provides each employee with at least ________ hours of training per year.

40

Which one of the following is NOT one of the activities and techniques typically used in an assessment center to evaluate a persons suitability for advancement?

IQ tests

Action plans are important for several reasons. Which one of the following is NOT one of the reasons?

If the action plan is implemented properly, it ensures that the strategy will be a success

Which of the following is NOT descriptive of the purpose of Management By Objectives (MBO)?

MBO operates independently and requires very little supervision

Which type of chief executive officer with a conservative style, a production or engineering background, and experience with controlling budgets, capital expenditures, inventories, and standardization procedures would be appropriate for a corporation following a stability strategy?

cautious profit planner

According to the text, what is the "key" to effective management of change in culture?

communication

When AT&T acquired NCR Corporation, which management strategy was employed in terms of culture?

deculturation

Which method of managing disparate cultures is the most common and most destructive method of dealing with two different cultures because one company imposes its demands at the expense of another company's culture?

deculturation

Which type of chief executive officer with a great deal of experience in that particular industry would be appropriate for a corporation following a concentration strategy emphasizing vertical or horizontal growth?

dynamic industry expert

One of the big common mistakes by corporations sending executives on global assignments is NOT

educating executives about customs and values in other countries

According to the text, the process of replacing a key top manager is called

executive succession

A dynamic industry expert is someone with an analytical mind who is highly knowledgeable in other industries and can manage diverse product lines.

false

According to Hofstede's dimensions of national culture, uncertainty avoidance is the extent to which a society accepts an unequal distribution of power in organizations

false

According to Hofstede's dimensions of national culture, uncertainty avoidance is the extent to which a society accepts an unequal distribution of power in organizations.

false

An essential ingredient of MBO is that an employee must be just as concerned with pleasing the internal customer as the external customer.

false

Assimilation involves the relatively balanced give-and-take of culture and managerial practices between the merger practices.

false

Chandler proposed that the most appropriate CEO for a firm remains constant as the company proceeds through its life cycle.

false

Corporate culture does not necessarily have to support the strategy of the firm.

false