9. Essentials of Leadership & Management

Which statement is true about planning?

It defines the responsibilities of various departments and coordinates their activities to achieve common goals.

Middle manager Alexandra Rodriguez oversees planning an event for the alumni of the college she works for. She has scheduled a performance by the Amazing Panini Brothers to entertain the guests, and it will be the focus of her event. At the last minute, the Amazing Panini Brothers get the flu and cannot perform. With her event's success in danger, Rodriguez is scrambling to figure out what to do. Which statement about the benefits of planning best fits her situation?

Planning for various (including unpleasant) possible events is necessary.

Matt Snow runs a small office-cleaning business, SnowFlake Services. The company has only two employees, Snow himself and his assistant Jess Thicke. Thicke reports directly to Snow. On an organization chart, Snow's name and position title would appear in what position in relation to Thicke's name and position title?

Thicke would appear directly below Snow.

Which example depicts the use of technical skills?

a web designer's ability to use HTML code, Illustrator design software, and search-engine optimization

Supervisory manager Robin Ward won't take "no" for an answer when she gives her employees orders. Drawing from her military background, she takes the attitude, "Do it because I said so." Whenever Ward makes a decision, she rarely asks her subordinates for input. When she heads down the hall, people get out of the way, whispering, "There goes 'My-Way-or-the-Highway' Ward." Ward is a(n) ________ leader.

autocratic

When employees are new and are developing job skills, the best leadership-style choice for a manager is

autocratic.

Autocratic leadership can be described as ________ leadership.

boss-centered

Which activity is part of the four steps of the managerial decision-making process?

brainstorming

When planning, it is a good idea for managers to define the responsibilities of various departments because

each department can coordinate their activities based on what other departments are doing.

Kate DiStefano, a manager at Tigertail Entertainment, was responsible for launching a new video game, I Love Housework. She made good use of resources, coming in under budget, but the video game did not achieve the number-one company goal of being profitable. In fact, sales were extremely low. Looking back over her efforts, she admits she failed to manage this project in a(n) ________ manner.

effective

Fredericka Burton is a project manager for Pendant Publishing, a publisher of scientific journals. Burton has three main goals. She wants to deliver all her publications (1) on time, (2) under budget, and (3) to high-quality standards. Burton's third goal is part of managing

effectively.

Employees should be allowed to share management responsibilities, including decision making. This statement is an argument in favor of ________ employees.

empowering

Margarita Ramos, a Cantankerous Coffee House supervisory manager, tells her staff, "Our performance goal is to have every coffee drink made to specification with less than 1 percent waste." The step in the control process that applies to this statement is

establish standards.

An example of a(n) ________ in a SWOT analysis is when buyers' preferences change.

external threat

"BrewU is committed to creating a fun, safe, affordable space that provides innovative beverage and food options for college students to work, study, and play" is an example of a vision statement.

false

An example of strategic planning is when a supervisory manager figures out how to get specific tasks done with the resources at hand within the upcoming week.

false

Brainstorming answers the question, "Are we on track?"

false

Conceptual skills are the job-specific knowledge needed to perform well in a specialized field.

false

Controlling is a term for a management style that is characterized by adopting a strict, no-nonsense attitude toward influencing employees' day-to-day behavior.

false

Managing by leading is still the preferred way to manage low-skill workers, such as fast-food restaurant employees.

false

Top managers make short-term decisions about the direction of their organization.

false

Green Solutions' middle manager Will Robinson just hired a consultant to coach his sales force on newer, better sales techniques. The consultant, Flo Cash, is aggressive and opinionated, but Robinson likes her energy and can-do attitude. "Just give me the basics and the resources I need, and I'll make it work," Cash says. What is Robinson's best leadership-style choice when managing the work of his new consultant?

free-rein

Min-Ji Park is a top manager at a Taskmasters Online, a marketplace that matches freelancers with busy consumers who need jobs and errands done for them. Park sets general objectives for her employees, such as responding to a task request within a certain time period. Because she uses highly skilled professionals who know what they're doing, Park feels comfortable giving her employees freedom to decide on their own how to achieve Taskmasters Online's goals. "I just want to get out of the way and give folks the resources to get the job done," she explains. Park's approach is an example of the ________ leadership style.

free-rein

A large firm employs vice presidents to oversee the various specializations within the organization—a vice president of marketing, a vice president of finance, and so on. To understand his firm's areas of specialization and who heads them, new employee Heath Fleetwood should examine the organization chart

from side to side.

Whatever its type—strategic, tactical, or operational—the purpose of planning is to achieve a ________, which is a broad, long-range target an organization wishes to attain.

goal

One of the purposes control serves for a manager is

helping detect errors.

Enrique Linares recognizes that his department needs to go in a different direction. He plans and budgets for this new direction, communicates it to his subordinates, and inspires people to commit to his course of action by appealing to human needs and emotions to keep them motivated despite obstacles. Linares is demonstrating

how leaders deal with change.

Employees who work primarily with information or who develop and use knowledge in the workplace are known as ________ workers.

knowledge

Management is the pursuit of organizational goals effectively and efficiently through planning, organizing, ________, and controlling the organization's resources.

leading

What type of decisions are made by those in top management roles, such as chief executive officers and company presidents?

long-term decisions about the overall direction of the company

"Our department must find better ways to be more efficient with our resources," is something you would expect a company ________ to say.

manager

In the traditional view of management, managers are divided into three levels: top, ________, and supervisory.

middle

Expressing an organization's fundamental purposes is a key element of its ________ statement.

mission

Rebecca Espinoza, a young entrepreneur, wants to market a new app, What Say You, designed for people who want to learn a new language. She's interested in attracting investors, and she needs a formal way to let them know her company's basic purposes are to help users learn a new language and help them connect with others across the globe as they learn. Espinoza should write a(n)

mission statement.

Leadership ________ people to work to achieve important goals.

motivates

It doesn't make much sense to evaluate how well the work you are managing is going if you don't already have a ________ to measure your progress against.

plan

Janie Quest spends a lot of time at her desk listing her job tasks and prioritizing them in the best order for getting her projects finished efficiently. Her manager, Mrs. Brown, notices this characteristic and is impressed. "You'd make a good manager," she tells Quest one day. Mrs. Brown is likely referring to Quest's ability to ________, one of the four functions of management.

plan

Myesha Johnson is a candidate for promotion to a management position at Sweet and Sour, a restaurant chain. "I'm not totally sure I have what it takes," she tells a friend over coffee. "I feel up to the challenge of leading other employees, but I'm not strong at the other three functions of management." Johnson is concerned about her ability to

plan, organize, and control.

Monica and Chris Murphy own and manage Perky's Place, a small coffee-house chain in Rush County. After inspecting their five coffee houses in various parts of the county, the Murphys sit down and discuss their focus for the coming months. "Our baristas need better product knowledge and more opportunities to practice building different types of coffee drinks," Monica says. Chris agrees that Perky's Place baristas need to improve their

technical skills.

Robert Ochoifeoma is a new supervisory manager at Hearthside Restaurant Supply Company. He wants to know the name and title of his supervisor's supervisor as well as the names and titles of the people whom that person oversees. He needs to look at

the company's organization chart.

Jennifer Nez has a humble, quiet manner, and she is hardworking, responsible, and dependable. Given these personality traits, Nez would make a good ________ manager.

transactional

Josh Hemsworth does a great job making sure all his team members understand their roles and what they need to do to reach or exceed company goals. He also holds them accountable for their progress. Hemsworth is a ________ leader.

transactional

When Zoe Marchand inherited the family dry-cleaning business from her mother, it was disorganized and chaotic. Customers complained about having to wait in long lines and about garment stains being overlooked. The record-keeping was messy, and key employees sometimes failed to open the doors on time in the morning or ended up closing early to the frustration of customers. To turn around her business, Marchand should adopt a(n) ________ leadership style.

transactional

Of the two leadership behaviors, ________ leadership involves getting people to do ordinary things, while ________ leadership involves getting people to do exceptional things.

transactional; transformational

Having the required technical skills seems to be the most important for ________ managers.

supervisory

Managers who make short-term operating decisions, directing the daily tasks of nonmanagerial personnel, are known as ________ managers.

supervisory

Daisy Castillo's management duties at Care Hospice used to involve supervising volunteers, nursing staff, and social workers who reported directly to her. Recently, her job duties changed. She now coordinates the efforts of other managers who have employees reporting directly to them. Castillo has transitioned from being a ________ manager to being a ________ manager.

supervisory; middle

Middle managers do ________ planning, which is a way of determining what contributions their teams can make with their existing resources during the next several months to two years.

tactical

To determine what contributions their teams can make with their existing resources during the next six months to two years, middle managers should engage in ________ planning.

tactical

The four steps in the control process are establishing standards, monitoring performance, comparing performance against standards, and

taking corrective action.

Charles Andrada, an electrician, has the ability to read and follow building plans and wiring diagrams. This ability is an example of a ________ skill.

technical

Monitoring performance, comparing it with goals, and taking corrective action is known as

controlling.

Sean Tyson, a new manager, is told by his supervisor that he must enroll in a training course to improve his management skill set. Tyson likes to set goals and figure out how to achieve them, and he excels at deciding how to arrange tasks in the best order to get things done. In addition, he's good at motivating people to do their best, but his supervisor tells him he also needs to focus on monitoring performance outcomes and deciding whether corrective action is needed. The function of management that Tyson needs coaching on is

controlling.

A choice someone makes from among available alternatives is called a

decision.

Quiang Zheng was recently promoted to supervisory manager at Bunk Beds and More. He has read that controlling helps managers be effective. However, the term controlling sounds authoritarian to him. He wants to be a well-liked manager, not a control freak. So far, though, his efforts to be agreeable and easygoing have been met with mixed results. Which choice accurately expresses a way Zheng can use control to be more effective as a manager?

Control can help increase productivity.

After managers set goals, they assess their competitive position with a(n) ________ analysis.

SWOT

Strategic planning often starts with a(n) ________ analysis.

SWOT

Alicia Kama is a supervisory manager at a biochemical research company, Progenica. She realizes many of her employees show a lack of understanding of Progenica's long-term goals. She feels that even though her team of lab assistants is not involved in goal setting, they should still be aware of the company's goals and the steps it plans to take in order to achieve them. What is Alicia's best course of action?

Share Progenica's strategic plan with each team member.

Customer dissatisfaction, employee turnover, cost overruns, and manufacturing defects are some of the issues managers address through

control.

Tessa Ruffin is a customer-service representative at Pelican Airlines. When problems come up on the job, as they often do, she prides herself on keeping a cheerful attitude. She is a problem solver and likes to set a good example and to motivate others to do their best. Which statement best applies to Ruffin's situation?

You can be a leader without being a manager.

Said Gupta is a top manager at Magic Garden, a manufacturer of gardening supplies and equipment. In a companywide meeting, Gupta clarifies the difference between two common business terms, saying "Think of ________ as a family road trip to Disneyworld, and think of ________ as a stop in a country village to get gasoline and water."

a goal; an objective

Selena Rojas is a supervisory manager at Petville. An expensive line of cat toys is not selling nearly as well as expected, and Rojas must decide what to do about the situation. In her morning team meeting with her subordinates, Rojas says, "The Feline Frenzy line is not doing well. Petville wants us to increase its sales. What about rearranging the store display to feature it more prominently? Any other thoughts? All suggestions are welcome." Rojas is engaging in the decision-making step known as

brainstorming ideas.

Leaders deal with ________, while managers deal with ________.

change; complexity

Which benefit of planning allows managers to know how well work is going in the organization?

checking on progress

Andrea Goldberg, a top manager at Thermal Dynamics, is appreciated by her supervisor for her ability to see the big picture and visualize how all the parts of the organization work together as a whole. She demonstrates excellent ________ skills.

conceptual

Which management skill is needed most by top managers?

conceptual

The creation of alternative courses of action a company can use if its original plans don't prove workable is called ________ planning.

contingency

What type of plan anticipates changes in the environment to offer an alternate course of action to a firm's original plan?

contingency

A business prepares for emergencies and uncertainty by creating a(n)

contingency plan.

A sandwich shop plans to start an aggressive advertising campaign if a competing sandwich shop opens nearby. This is an example of a(n)

contingency plan.

On her website, Rula Tariq plans to promote and sell essential oils made from peppermint because peppermint oil is said to relieve headache symptoms. Just in case her supplier has a shortage of peppermint oil, Tariq makes a note to herself to be sure to order a large enough quantity of lavender and eucalyptus oils, also said to relieve headaches, to substitute for peppermint oil if it is unavailable. This is an example of

contingency planning.

The desired performance level for a given goal is known as a(n) ________ standard.

control

Haylee Larson, a project manager for Western Media, frequently gets up from her desk and walks through the office, stopping to check in with team members, giving them a nod and a smile as she asks how things are going and whether they need anything from her. She always has time to share a joke or offer a compliment, and her team always seems cheerful and on task. If problems arise, they know they can count on Larson to listen and pitch in, and they don't hesitate to approach her with their concerns. Larson demonstrates excellent ________ skills.

human

Perhaps the hardest set of skills for a manager to master, ________ skills are the ability to work well in cooperation with other people to get things done.

human

Managers organize people, tasks, and resources. To do so successfully, managers need to develop their skills in three areas: technical, conceptual, and

human.

A main function of a middle manager is to

implement decisions passed down from the top.

Which step in a manager's decision-making process involves planning for desired outcomes and analyzing actual results?

implementing and evaluating the decision

Greenback Bank gets poor reviews on social media for its outdated facilities, unskilled employees, and frequent errors on customer bank statements. These are examples of ________ in a SWOT analysis.

internal weaknesses

Maryam Kumaran, a department manager, knows that one of the goals of Trident Advertising is to double its client base during the next five years. She meets with Kyle Slatinsky, a manager in another department, and asks him what his specific, short-term targets are to meet Trident's goal. "One target I want to hit is to increase our number of client-outreach emails by 5 percent over the next month," Slatinsky tells Kumaran. This short-term target is known as a(n)

objective.

As a recently promoted top manager of Buttons and Snaps, a clothing manufacturer, Andy Zhang is aware of plenty of long-range goals his company is eager to reach, including starting a new clothing line for working women. Zhang realizes all too quickly he isn't sure of the company's ________, or specific, short-term targets for achieving its goals.

objectives

Brick Construction has just achieved its goal of winning the job of building an elementary school. Now it needs to achieve the ________ in support of that goal, including pouring the foundation, constructing the frame, doing the electrical wiring, and so on.

objectives

A(n) ________ is a favorable circumstance that presents possibilities for progress beyond existing goals.

opportunity

A manager should choose the ________ leadership style in a workplace where employee expertise from multiple areas is needed.

participatory

Arturo Perez is vice president of marketing at Bridgeport Systems. He has just concluded a meeting to which all employees in his department were invited. His final words before dismissing them: "I want to involve each of you in this decision, so please give me your feedback in the online questionnaire I've set up, in an individual email, or in person. I want to hear everyone's thoughts." As the last person leaves the conference room, a middle manager stays behind and tells Perez, "I applaud your efforts to include the entire group, but most of those people don't have the knowledge or experience to weigh in with ideas on this important decision. Asking for their input will slow things down, right?" Perez nods. "Probably," he says. "But I need buy-in. This decision won't be popular with the finance department, so the more voices in favor of it, the better. Plus, did you see the smiles on their faces? I just increased their job satisfaction by letting them know their opinions are valued here at Bridgeport." Which leadership style is Perez using?

participatory

Chloe Severin, a supervisory manager at Ellen Email Marketing Solutions, sees great potential in one of her employees, Suresh Chaudhary. She has noticed; however, he never comes in early or stays late. Moreover, he rarely volunteers an opinion, but when he does, it is insightful and creative. She decides to talk to Chaudhary with the aim of inspiring him to a higher level of commitment. "Don't forget," Severin concludes as Chaudhary gets up to return to his desk. "Here at Ellen, we appreciate long-term vision in our employees. You are an exceptionally talented employee, and I want to encourage you to put Ellen first. You won't regret it." Severin is demonstrating ________ leadership behavior.

transformational

An objective is a specific, short-term target designed to achieve the organization's goals.

true

As a manager rises through an organization, the required mix of skills becomes more conceptual.

true

During the control process, if no corrective action is needed, managers should continue progressing forward and celebrate success.

true

The starting point for establishing strategic planning often starts with a SWOT analysis, which is a description of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

true

Transactional leadership focuses on creating a smooth-running organization, motivating employees to meet performance goals.

true

Transformational leadership supports vision, creativity, and exceptional performance in employees.

true

When managers make plans, they are creating a roadmap for action that outlines what they need to do to achieve their goals.

true

The difference between managing effectively and managing efficiently is being effective is to achieve results, while being efficient is to

use resources wisely.

A company's ________ answers the question, "What do we want to become?"

vision statement

Jesus Reyes, a manager at Singular Financial, wants to inspire and motivate his employees by reminding them of Singular's ________, which expresses what the organization wants to become. To that end, Reyes passes out laminated cards printed with its words, so each employee can carry it and refer to it during the workday. He also considered including Singular's fundamental purposes, or ________ on the card, but he decided to make an inspirational poster out of it instead.

vision statement; mission statement

A company's organization chart displays, among other relationships, the company's vertical hierarchy of authority. This hierarchy demonstrates

who reports to whom.