DESIGNING ADAPTIVE ORGANIZATIONS: Chapter 9 Quiz

A virtual organization is part of a network in which many companies share skills, costs, capabilities, markets, and customers with each other.

True

Empowerment can lead to changes in organizational processes because meaning, competence, impact, and self- determination produce empowered employees who take active rather than passive roles in their work.

True

______ is the degree to which a job gives workers the discretion, freedom, and independence to decide how and when to accomplish their jobs.

autonomy

Organizational authority is traditionally characterized by .

chain of command

Which of the following is NOT one of the core job characteristics in the job characteristics model (JCM)?

client relationships

A manufacturer of acrylic and latex gloves sells to medical laboratories, to factories where employees handle chemicals, to companies that manufacture micro-tech equipment, and to cleaning services. Because it is organized to better satisfy the needs of each of its four target markets, the manufacturer uses departmentalization.

customer

________ involves assigning direct authority and responsibility to a subordinate to complete tasks for which the manager is normally responsible.

delegation of authority

Kimberly-Clark is subdivided into organizational units called Kimberly-Clark Health Care, which provides products to hospitals, Kimberly-Clark Professional, which sells to businesses, and Kimberly-Clark Consumer, which sells the company's products to customers. From this information, you know that KimberlyClark uses .

departmentalization

The primary disadvantage of customer departmentalization is .

duplication

______ is a feeling of intrinsic motivation, in which workers perceive their work to have meaning and perceive themselves to be competent, having an impact, and capable of self-determination.

empowerment

Cross-department coordination tends to be very easy in organizations with functional departmentalization.

false

In matrix departmentalization, as in other forms of departmentalization, most employees report to a single boss.

false

Job enlargement and job enrichment mean essentially the same thing.

false

Decentralization .

is accurately described by all of these

An organization that has increased the number of different tasks that a worker performs within one particular job has engaged in .

job enlargement

The job design approach associated with _____ involves increasing the number of different tasks that a worker performs within one particular job, and ______ giving workers the authority and control to make meaningful decisions about their work.

job enlargement and job enrichment

is characterized by simple, easy-to-learn steps; low variety; and high repetition.

job specialization

Of all types of departmentalization, ________departmentalization requires the highest level of management skill for successful implementation.

matrix

The primary advantage of ______ departmentalization is the fact that it allows companies to manage large, complex tasks efficiently by minimizing duplication.

matrix

With departmentalization, most employees report to two bosses.

matrix

_________ is the collection of activities that transform inputs into outputs that customer's value.

organizational process

Hallmark has four departments. These departments are (1) Flowers and Gifts, (2) Cards and E-cards, (3) Hallmark Collectibles, and (4) Photo Albums and Scrapbooks. Hallmark uses departmentalization.

product

_______ is a fundamental rethinking and radical redesign of business processes to achieve dramatic improvements in critical measures of performance such as cost, quality, service, and speed.

reengineering

Jennifer Lee works in the public relations department of a large pharmaceutical company. It is her job to write speeches for the company's top managers, to issue press and video releases, to host plant tours, and to be involved in community affairs. Lee has ____ .

staff authority

is the process of solving problems by consistently applying the same rules, procedures, and processes.

standardization

_______ is the degree to which a job is perceived to have a substantial impact on others inside or outside the organization.

task significance

Functional departmentalization organizes work and workers into separate units responsible for particular business functions or areas of expertise.

true

In a decentralized organization, workers closest to problems are authorized to make the decisions necessary to solve the problems on their own.

true

In spite of their disadvantages, companies continue to create and use specialized jobs because they are very economical.

true

Matrix departmentalization is a hybrid structure in which two or more forms of departmentalization, such as the product and functional forms are used together.

true

Organizational structure is the description of the vertical and horizontal configuration of departments, authority, and jobs within a company.

true

Product departmentalization organizes work and workers into separate units responsible for particular kinds of customers.

true

Specialized jobs are characterized by simple, easy-to-learn steps; low variety; and high repetition.

true

The two disadvantages associated with product departmentalization are costly duplication and difficulties with cross-departmental coordination.

true

While organizational structure emphasizes the activities through which work is done in the organization, organizational process emphasizes jobs and their authority relationships.

true

One of the key assumptions underlying the chain of command is _________ which means that workers should report to just one supervisor.

unity of command

According to the job characteristics model, means pushing some managerial authority down to workers.

vertical loading