Organization Behavior Exam 4 quiz questions

How does H&M, the clothing retailer, use a network organization to keep costs down? a. Its managers control a network of independent clothing suppliers. b. Its design and sales teams are organized around geographic regions. c. Its designers and suppliers are permanently assigned to a product team. d. Its designers report to both a product team and a sales manager.

a. Its managers control a network of independent clothing suppliers.

Which of the following is true about organizational change? a. Overdetermination is an organizational source of resistance to change. b. Resistance to change is a situation that needs to be overcome. c. People and organizations resist change due to decreased uncertainty. d. Resistance may come from the organization but not the individual.

a. Overdetermination is an organizational source of resistance to change.

Which of the following statements characterizes mechanistic organizations? a. They have formal rules and regulations for decision making. b. They have less clear lines of authority. c. They are flexible, decentralized, and quickly adaptable. d. They can respond quickly to changing market conditions.

a. They have formal rules and regulations for decision making.

Different countries have different approaches to conflict culture. Which of the following is true for national cultures that avoid conflict? a. They highly dislike uncertainty. b. They have greater power distance. c. They emphasize individualism. d. They are more egalitarian.

a. They highly dislike uncertainty.

Which of the following conditions is NOT true for virtual organizations? a. They tend to be very simple. b. Career paths are challenging for virtual employees. c. Companies gain competitive advantages from them. d. They can exist without a permanent physical office.

a. They tend to be very simple.

A professional discussion of an event that enables discovery of what happened, why it happened, and how to sustain strengths and improve on weaknesses is known as a(n) __________. a. after-action review b. productivity evaluation c. performance evaluation d. cost-benefit analysis

a. after-action review

What type of innovation reflects continuous technical improvement and extends the applications of existing innovations? a. incremental b. disruptive c. radical d. systems

a. incremental

Which production technology is characterized by a tall bureaucratic structure with a large managerial span of control? a. mass b. unit c. small batch d. custom

a. mass

Which of the following behaviors would be most likely to decrease the overall occurrence of politics within an organization? a. reducing uncertainty b. enacting change c. increasing workgroup size d. building coalitions

a. reducing uncertainty

When Walmart founder Sam Walton drove his old pick-up truck to work, his employees embraced his ethic of frugality. What type of power did he display? a. referent b. expert c. informational d. persuasive

a. referent

All of Linda's coworkers have decided to go along with a new policy regarding getting paid overtime instead of taking comp time. Linda strongly disagrees with this policy, but she decides to say nothing due to __________. a. social factors b. habit c. economic factors d. security

a. social factors

The process through which individuals learn what constitutes polite and acceptable behavior is called __________. a. socialization b. culture c. innovation d. intrapreneurship

a. socialization

Transition management in contemporary organizations is typically overseen by __________. a. the management team b. outside consultants c. change agents d. the board of directors

a. the management team

(15) Which of the following statements is true about the importance of organizational culture? a. A good business strategy will override corporate culture. b. Culture can give competitive advantages. c. Culture should emphasize results and growth. d. A strong culture is always desirable.

b. Culture can give competitive advantages.

Assume you are interested in acquiring more power within your organization. Which of the following statements is true for your situation? a. Being able to influence others against their will ensures greater power. b. Having professional relationships outside the company is powerful. c. Convincing people that they're in-group members builds your power. d. Being able to fire a subordinate who does not follow formal work rules increases power.

b. Having professional relationships outside the company is powerful.

Which of the following statements indicates an accurate understanding of organizational culture? a. Within an organization, people explicitly tell newcomers how to adhere to the culture. b. Strong organizational cultures aren't necessarily associated with high performance. c. People who can do well in one organization can do well pretty much anywhere. d. Skills and experience are way more important in hiring than how a person fits in.

b. Strong organizational cultures aren't necessarily associated with high performance.

Anne works for a traditional manufacturing firm. What is the most common means of developing innovation in such an organization? a. intrapreneurship b. corporate research c. organizational socialization d. entrepreneurship

b. corporate research

You have been hired as CEO of a new company focused on providing home health services. What could you do to establish a strong and positive organizational culture? a. delegate to subordinates the power to maintain culture b. craft organizational vision, values, and goals c. let the culture develop organically d. embrace the company's enacted values and norms

b. craft organizational vision, values, and goals

Organizational politics are a function of both individual employees and organizational culture. Which of the following would NOT be considered political behavior under the right circumstances? a. controlling communication b. providing access to information c. coalition building d. image management

b. providing access to information

What is a category of issues that management can address through quality-of-work-life programs? a. self-esteem b. social integration c. dress codes d. specializing tasks

b. social integration

The way in which task reporting and authority relationships interact as a system determines an organization's __________. a. hierarchy b. structure c. division of labor d. strategy

b. structure

Which upward influence style emphasizes reason and uses an average amount of influence? a. shotgun b. tactician c. bystander d. ingratiator

b. tactician

When managing successful organizational change, what does it mean to take a holistic view? a. It means recognizing uncertainties and ambiguities that arise during a transition time. b. It entails considering environmental complexities on a multinational and societal scale. c. It encompasses the culture as well as the people, tasks, structure, and information systems. d. It involves starting with just one team, making adjustments, and then adopting gradually.

c. It encompasses the culture as well as the people, tasks, structure, and information systems.

(14) Which of the following statements about communities of practice is true? a. They are generally not recognized by executive leadership. b. They usually are officially referenced on organizational charts. c. They can use the company intranet to cultivate a sense of community. d. They are able to operate independent of any management.

c. They can use the company intranet to cultivate a sense of community.

Which of the following is NOT one of the four questions a group would consider in order to learn from an after-action review? a. Why were there differences? b. What was supposed to happen? c. Who gets credit and who gets blame? d. What actually happened?

c. Who gets credit and who gets blame?

As a demographic group within the workforce, millennials are most accurately described by the fact that they __________. a. are eager to accept adult roles b. prioritize professional stability c. are willing to embrace diversity d. are individually oriented

c. are willing to embrace diversity

Liam wants to influence his team by requesting their advice to solve a problem and to mutually set some performance goals. Which type of influence would this represent? a. ingratiation b. inspirational appeals c. consultation d. personal appeals

c. consultation

Johann is an German-American. Because he's bilingual, he's been assigned to work in Germany. Which influence tactics would he most likely encounter while working there? a. personal relations and avoidance b. exchange and rational information c. exchanging benefits and coalition d. assertiveness and upward appeals

c. exchanging benefits and coalition

Creating smaller units within a larger organization can increase which of the following benefits? a. economies of scale b. lower costs c. coordination d. flexibility

d. flexibility

Rewards are one of the strongest tools a manager can use to influence employee behavior. You want to develop rewards for the sales force at your company in order to increase profits. Which of the following statements is true about how you should proceed? a. Set high goals so that there's a sense of competition for the rewards. b. Tailor rewards so that top earners can get a head start for success. c. Offer a monthly prize based on total sales. d. Give different rewards to different employees, based on their desires.

d. Give different rewards to different employees, based on their desires.

How can intranets be used to reflect an open and positive organizational culture in a large company with multiple workgroups? a. They can be narrow in scope and reflect a respect for privacy of information. b. They can be carefully edited to avoid uncomfortable feedback. c. They can vary in appearance and level of information for different departments. d. They can use stories and symbols to craft the organization's image.

d. They can use stories and symbols to craft the organization's image.

Which term refers to demeaning, exploiting, or taking advantage of another or influencing someone to do something they later regret? a. coercion b. empowerment c. reference d. abuse of power

d. abuse of power

Which of the following is NOT an element of managing organization culture? a. taking advantage of the existing culture b. teaching the organization culture c. changing the organization culture d. criticizing the organization culture

d. criticizing the organization culture

When integrating employees, under what structure do managers from different units informally work together to coordinate or to identify and solve shared problems? a. liaison roles b. permanent task forces c. cross-functional teams d. direct contact

d. direct contact

Jeff wants to implement a framework for task redesign in his organization. Which of the following reflects the correct order of three of the nine steps he should follow? a. recognize the need for change, formulate a strategy, diagnose leader behavior b. make a go/no-go decision, evaluate the task redesign, formulate a strategy c. do a cost-benefit analysis, diagnose existing jobs, make a go/no-go decision d. select a task redesign, diagnose existing jobs, do a cost-benefit analysis

d. select a task redesign, diagnose existing jobs, do a cost-benefit analysis

Which of the following is NOT an element that makes up an organization's culture? a. trust and positive relationships b. shared values, norms, and assumptions c. how employees get work done d. span of control

d. span of control

What type of change is represented by reengineering and rethinking? a. individual change b. task change c. group change d. structural change

d. structural change

(16) Angelo is resisting change at his accounting firm because the new rules say he isn't able to hire seasonal tax preparers anymore. What is this source of resistance called? a. resource allocation b. threatened power c. narrow focus of change d. overdetermination

a. resource allocation

The process of selecting and managing aspects of organizational structure and culture to enable the organization to achieve its goals is called organizational __________. a. centralization b. design c. span of control d. formalization

b. design

For multinational organizations, which type of structure is best when both global integration and local responsiveness are needed? a. global product division b. global transnational division c. regional headquarters d. global area division

b. global transnational division

Power held due to the position of authority is called __________ power. a. informational b. legitimate c. expert d. referent

b. legitimate

Because of their many layers of authority and strong bureaucracy, hospitals tend to have conflict cultures that are characterized by withholding information and withdrawing from work when there's conflict. What type of conflict culture is this? a. collaborative b. passive-aggressive c. avoidant d. dominating

b. passive-aggressive

(13) Subunits, such as departments or groups, can also acquire and wield power. Under which condition is this true? a. when a group's work is substitutable or able to be outsourced b. when the organization is going through a period of uncertainty c. when there are plentiful resources so a subunit can accumulate them d. when a group's activities are limited and peripheral to the firm

b. when the organization is going through a period of uncertainty

After the employment upheavals of the 2009 recession, top managers began to adopt more empathetic behaviors with employees and began to allow employees to express their fears and anger. Which step of Lewin's Process of Organization Structure would this situation represent? a. refreeze b. unfreeze c. change d. new state

c. change

Which is typical of companies with a prebureaucratic structure? a. grouping of people with like skills into departments b. organized functions around particular products c. early control of organizational decisions and growth d. established hierarchies and formal divisions of labor

c. early control of organizational decisions and growth

Far Horizons, Inc. has experienced a lot of absenteeism and turnover among employees, particularly among ethnic and religious minorities. Management decided to implement several policies to better reflect its values of nondiscrimination and respect for everyone. Which of the following steps could it take to create a culture of inclusion? a. Explain to employees why they need to be kind and respectful. b. Give everyone the week off between Christmas and New Year's Day. c. Survey customers on social media about their perceptions of organizational culture. d. Adjust working hours to accommodate workers' personal needs.

d. Adjust working hours to accommodate workers' personal needs.

Jian and Jared are engaged in a tech startup. Which of the following statements is true about the influences on their organizational structure? a. Because the environment changes rapidly, they should centralize authority to control responses. b. Because they want to be innovative and adaptable, they should aim to be a low-cost producer. c. Because employees collaborate and are allowed to make decisions, authority needs to be centralized. d. Because they have highly skilled technical workers, they should have flat, team-based structures.

d. Because they have highly skilled technical workers, they should have flat, team-based structures.

Andrea suspects that her boss is adept at impression management and is conveying a false sense of who he really is. She decides to watch him carefully for cues that he's being less than honest about himself. Which of the following items might provide her with evidence? a. He gestures frequently with his hands to emphasize his points. b. He uses a quieter voice when he's trying to be convincing. c. He blinks less often when trying to persuade her about something. d. He fidgets more when talking about himself and his accomplishments.

d. He fidgets more when talking about himself and his accomplishments.