EXAM 2
evidence-based management
"Management decisions," they argue, "[should] be based on the best evidence, managers [should] systematically learn from experience, and organizational practices [should] reflect sound principles of thought and analysis." They define evidence-based management as "a commitment to finding and using the best theory and data available at the time to make decisions," but their "Five Principles of Evidence-Based Management" make it clear that EBM means more than just sifting through data and crunching numbers.
role overload
A final consequence of a weak role structure is _________, which occurs when expectations for the role exceed the individual's capabilities. When a manager gives an employee several major assignments at once, while increasing the person's regular workload, the employee will probably experience role overload.
personality clash
A frequent source of interpersonal conflict in organizations is what many people call a ___________—when two people distrust each other's motives, dislike each other, or for some other reason simply cannot get along.*
steps in rational decision making
A manager who really wants to approach a decision rationally and logically should try to follow the________. These steps in rational decision making help keep the decision maker focused on facts and logic and help guard against inappropriate assumptions and pitfalls.
organizational life cycle
Although no clear pattern explains changes in size, many organizations progress through a four-stage ___________.* The first stage is the birth of the organization. The second stage, youth, is characterized by growth and the expansion of organizational resources. Midlife is a period of gradual growth evolving eventually into stability. Finally, maturity is a period of stability, perhaps eventually evolving into decline.
work teams
Another alternative to job specialization is _________. Under this arrangement, a group is given responsibility for designing the work system to be used in performing an interrelated set of tasks. In the typical assembly-line system, the work flows from one worker to the next, and each worker has a specified job to perform. In a work team, however, the group itself decides how jobs will be allocated. For example, the work team assigns specific tasks to members, monitors and controls its own performance, and has autonomy over work scheduling.
conglomerate design
Another common form of organization design is the conglomerate, or H-form (for holding, as in holding company), approach.* The _____________ is used by an organization made up of a set of unrelated businesses. Thus, the H-form design is essentially a holding company that results from unrelated diversification.
escalation of commitment
Another important behavioral process that influences decision making is ___________ to a chosen course of action. In particular, decision makers sometimes make decisions and then become so committed to the courses of action suggested by those decisions that they stay with them, even when the decisions appear to have been wrong.*
Authority
Another important building block in structuring organizations is the determination of how authority is to be distributed among positions. ____________ is power that has been legitimized by the organization.* Two specific issues that managers must address when distributing authority are delegation and decentralization.
span of management
Another part of establishing reporting relationships is determining how many people will report to each manager. This defines the ___________ (sometimes called the span of control). For years, managers and researchers sought to determine the optimal span of management. Today we recognize that the span of management is a crucial factor in structuring organizations but that there are no universal, cut-and-dried prescriptions for an ideal or optimal span.*
nominal group
Another useful group and team decision-making technique that is occasionally used is the _________. Unlike the Delphi method, in which group members do not see one another, nominal group members are brought together in a face-to-face setting. The members represent a group in name only, however; they do not talk to one another freely like the members of interacting groups. Nominal groups are used most often to generate creative and innovative alternatives or ideas.
interorganizational conflict
Conflict that arises between one organization and another is called _______________. A moderate amount of interorganizational conflict resulting from business competition is expected, of course, but sometimes conflict becomes more extreme. For example, the owners of Jordache Enterprises, Inc., and Guess?, Inc., battled in court for years over ownership of the Guess? label, allegations of design theft, and several other issues.*
delegation
Delegation is the establishment of a pattern of authority between a superior and one or more subordinates. Specifically, _____________ is the process by which managers assign a portion of their total workload to others.*
role
Each individual in a team has a part, or _______, to play in helping the group reach its goals. Some people are leaders, some perform tasks, some interface with other teams, and so on.
risk propensity
The behavioral element of _________ is the extent to which a decision maker is willing to gamble when making a decision. Some managers are cautious about every decision they make. They try to adhere to the rational model and are extremely conservative in what they do. Such managers are more likely to avoid mistakes, and they infrequently make decisions that lead to big losses.
forming
The first stage of development is informally called _________. The members of the group or team get acquainted and begin to test which interpersonal behaviors are acceptable and which are unacceptable to the other members. The members are very dependent on others at this point to provide cues about what is acceptable.
role structure
The group's _________ is the set of defined roles and interrelationships among those roles that the group or team members define and accept. Each of us belongs to many groups and therefore plays multiple roles—in work groups, classes, families, and social organizations.*
departmentalization.
The process of grouping jobs is called ________ When organizations are small, the owner-manager can personally oversee everyone who works there. As an organization grows, however, personally supervising all the employees becomes more and more difficult for the owner-manager. Consequently, new managerial positions are created to supervise the work of others.
Storming
The second stage of development, often slow to emerge, is __________. During this stage, there may be a general lack of unity and uneven interaction patterns. At the same time, some members of the group or team may begin to exert themselves to become recognized as the group leader or at least to play a major role in shaping the group's agenda.
organization structure and design
The term ___________________________________ refers to the overall set of elements that can be used to configure an organization.
Norming
The third stage of development, called ___________, usually begins with a burst of activity. During this stage, each person begins to recognize and accept her or his role and to understand the roles of others. Members also begin to accept one another and to develop a sense of unity. There may also be temporary regressions to the previous stage. For example, the group or team might begin to accept one particular member as the leader.
Performing
__________, the final stage of group or team development, is also slow to develop. At this stage, the team really begins to focus on the problem at hand. The members enact the roles they have accepted, interaction occurs, and the efforts of the group are directed toward goal attainment. The basic structure of the group or team is no longer an issue but has become a mechanism for accomplishing the purpose of the group.
group
a ________ as two or more people who interact regularly to accomplish a common purpose or goal.* The purpose of a group or team may range from preparing a new advertising campaign, to informally sharing information among people, to making important decisions about a potential merger, to fulfilling social needs of group members.
groupthink
a group or team may succumb to a phenomenon known as __________, which occurs when the desire for consensus and cohesiveness overwhelms the goal of reaching the best possible decision.* Under the influence of groupthink, the group may arrive at decisions that are made not in the best interests of either the group or the organization but rather to avoid conflict among group members.
Product departmentalization
a second common approach, involves grouping and arranging activities around products or product groups. Most larger businesses adopt this form of departmentalization for grouping activities at the business or corporate level.
_____ is a situation that occurs when a group or team's desire for consensus and cohesiveness overwhelms its desire to reach the best possible decision. a. Groupthink b. Groupshift c. Brainstorming d. Condorcet's paradox e. Group polarization
a. Groupthink
_____ is the degree to which the overall task of the organization is broken down and divided into smaller component parts. a. Job specialization b. Job enrichment c. Job rotation d. Job enlargement e. Task identity
a. Job specialization
Tall organizations a. have more managers than flat organizations. b. foster employee morale better than flat organizations. c. place excessive supervisory responsibilities on managers. d. have very few communication problems. e. have less managerial expenses than flat organizations.
a. have more managers than flat organizations.
During the _____ stage of group development, members begin to accept one another and develop a sense of unity. a. norming b. storming c. forming d. performing e. transforming
a. norming
In job _____, the jobs do not change, but instead workers move from job to job. a. rotation b. specialization c. enrichment d. deskilling e. enlargement
a. rotation
Which of the following stages of group development is often characterized by a general lack of unity and uneven interaction patterns? a. storming b. norming c. performing d. forming e. reforming
a. storming
According to Weber, in a bureaucracy a. there should not be any arbitrary dismissals. b. there should be no rules and regulations. c. promotions should not be given based on technical expertise. d. there should not be a social distance between supervisors and subordinates. e. there should not be a chain of command.
a. there should not be any arbitrary dismissals.
[Matching] Match the following numbered items with the most accurate response letter to indicate which role in a group the description refers to. One who suggests new goals and ideas a. Leader b. Follower c. Coordinator d. Orienter e. Initiator
a. Leader
matrix design
another common approach to organization design, is based on two overlapping bases of departmentalization.* The foundation of a matrix is a set of functional departments. A set of product groups, or temporary departments, is then superimposed across the functional departments. Employees in a matrix are simultaneously members of a functional department (such as engineering) and of a project team.
Interacting groups or teams
are the most common decision-making group. The format is simple—either an existing or a newly designated group or team is asked to make a decision. Existing groups or teams might be functional departments, regular work teams, or standing committees. Newly designated groups or teams can be ad hoc committees, task forces, or newly constituted work teams.
chain of command
argued that clear and distinct lines of authority need to be established among all positions in an organization. The chain of command actually has two components. The first, called unity of command, suggests that each person within an organization must have a clear reporting relationship to one and only one boss (as we see later, newer models of organization design routinely—and successfully—violate this premise). The second, called the scalar principle, suggests that there must be a clear and unbroken line of authority that extends from the lowest to the highest position in the organization.
Role ambiguity
arises when the sent role is unclear. If your instructor tells you to write a term paper but refuses to provide more guidance, you will probably experience role ambiguity. You do not know what the topic is, how long the paper should be, what format to use, or when the paper is due.
organizational size
as the total number of full-time or full-time-equivalent employees. A team of researchers at the University of Aston in Birmingham, England, believed that Woodward had failed to find a size-structure relationship (which was her original expectation) because almost all the organizations she studied were relatively small (three-fourths had fewer than 500 employees).*
job enrichment
assumes that increasing the range and variety of tasks is not sufficient by itself to improve employee motivation.* Thus, job enrichment attempts to increase both the number of tasks a worker does and the control the worker has over the job. To implement job enrichment, managers remove some controls from the job, delegate more authority to employees, and structure the work in complete, natural units.
A(n) _____ is a form of group decision making in which a group arrives at a consensus of expert opinion. a. interacting group b. Delphi group c. inactive group d. unconventional group e. unstructured group
b. Delphi group
_____ is a behavioral process in which a decision maker stays with a decision even when it appears to be wrong. a. Bounded optimization b. Escalation of commitment c. Risk propensity d. Strategic maximization e. Intuitive rationality
b. Escalation of commitment
Which of the following is true of intergroup conflict? a. It occurs among members of the same group. b. It often arises from increased group interdependence. c. It occurs between organizations and consumer groups. d. It is typically reduced by increasing group interdependence. e. It can be eliminated by increasing competition for resources.
b. It often arises from increased group interdependence.
Which of the following factors reduces group cohesiveness? a. Intergroup competition b. Unpleasant experiences c. Opportunities for success d. Personal attraction e. Interaction
b. Unpleasant experiences
According to the evidence-based management approach, managers must a. discourage employees from telling the unpleasant truth. b. be committed to fact-based decision making. c. avoid experimentation. d. completely rely on the recommendations made by others. e. base decisions on untested but strongly held beliefs.
b. be committed to fact-based decision making.
The administrative model of decision making a. tells managers how they should make decisions. b. describes how decisions are actually made. c. predicts what decisions managers will make. d. assumes decision makers use logic and reason. e. is committed to fact-based decision making.
b. describes how decisions are actually made.
The _____ design is based on two overlapping bases of departmentalization. a. H-form b. matrix c. functional d. divisional e. U-form
b. matrix
[Matching] Match the following numbered items with the most accurate response letter to indicate which role in a group the description refers to. Responses a. Leader b. Follower c. Coordinator d. Orienter e. Initiator
b. Follower
_____ is the process of systematically retaining power and authority in the hands of higher-level managers. a. Specialization b. Delegation c. Centralization d. Self-dealing e. Deskilling
c. Centralization
After being laid off from his job, Joe recognized three options he could choose from before he could secure a new job: to spend less, to use savings, or to use credit. He went over every aspect of his budget, and could not find any area where he could make a cut. Therefore, the option to spend less was immediately eliminated because a. it was not satisfactory. b. it had negative consequences. c. it was not feasible. d. it was not bounded in reality. e. it was not rational.
c. it was not feasible.
One advantage of group decision making is: a. groupthink. b. saved time. c. more acceptance of the final decision. d. lowered cost of decision making. e. elimination of political forces.
c. more acceptance of the final decision.
[Matching] Match the following numbered items with the most accurate response letter to indicate which role in a group the description refers to. One who pulls together ideas and suggestions a. Leader b. Follower c. Coordinator d. Orienter e. Initiator
c. Coordinator
task specialist role
concentrating on getting the group's task accomplished.
administrative model
describes how decisions often actually are made, the model holds that decision makers (1) use incomplete and imperfect information, (2) are constrained by bounded rationality, and (3) tend to "satisfice" when making decisions.
[Matching] Match the following numbered items with the most accurate response letter to indicate which role in a group the description refers to. One who contributes to the group by following leader's directions and providing opinion as necessary a. Leader b. Follower c. Coordinator d. Orienter e. Initiator
e. Initiator
Location departmentalization
groups jobs on the basis of defined geographic sites or areas. The defined sites or areas may range in size from a hemisphere to only a few blocks of a large city. Transportation companies, police departments (precincts represent geographic areas of a city), and the Federal Reserve Bank all use location departmentalization. The primary advantage of location departmentalization is that it enables the organization to respond easily to unique customer and environmental characteristics in the various regions.
Functional departmentalization
groups together those jobs involving the same or similar activities. (The word function is used here to mean organizational functions such as finance and production, rather than the basic managerial functions, such as planning or controlling.) This approach, which is most common in smaller organizations, has three primary advantages. The most common base for departmentalization, especially among smaller organizations, is by function.
decision-making process
includes recognizing and defining the nature of a decision situation, identifying alternatives, choosing the "best" alternative, and putting it into practice.*
Ethics and Decision Making
individual ethics are personal beliefs about right and wrong behavior. Ethics are clearly related to decision making in a number of ways. For example, suppose that, after careful analysis, a manager realizes that his company could save money by closing his department and subcontracting with a supplier for the same services.
Job rotation
involves systematically moving employees from one job to another. A worker in a warehouse might unload trucks on Monday, carry incoming inventory to storage on Tuesday, verify invoices on Wednesday, pull outgoing inventory from storage on Thursday, and load trucks on Friday. Thus, the jobs do not change, but instead workers move from job to job. Unfortunately, for this very reason, job rotation has not been especially successful in enhancing employee motivation or satisfaction.
Conflict
is a disagreement among two or more individuals, groups, or organizations. This disagreement may be relatively mild or very strong. It may be short-lived or exist for months or even years, and it may be work related or personal. Conflict may manifest itself in a variety of ways. People may compete with one another, glare at one another, shout, or withdraw.
bureaucracy
is a model of organization design based on a legitimate and formal system of authority. Many people associate bureaucracy with "red tape," rigidity, and passing the buck. For example, how many times have you heard people refer disparagingly to "the federal bureaucracy"? And many U.S. managers believe that bureaucracy in the Chinese government is a major impediment to U.S. firms' ability to do business there.
classical decision model
is a prescriptive approach that tells managers how they should make decisions. It rests on the assumptions that managers are logical and rational and that they make decisions that are in the organization's best interests.
job characteristics approach
is an alternative to job specialization that does take into account the work system and employee preferences.* The job characteristics approach suggests that jobs should be diagnosed and improved along five core dimensions: Skill variety, the number of things a person does in a job Task identity, the extent to which the worker does a complete or identifiable portion of the total job Task significance, the perceived importance of the task Autonomy, the degree of control the worker has over how the work is performed Feedback, the extent to which the worker knows how well the job is being performed
functional design
is an arrangement based on the functional approach to departmentalization. This design has been termed the U-form (for unitary) approach.* Under the U-form arrangement, the members and units in the organization are grouped into functional departments such as marketing and production.
coalition
is an informal alliance of individuals or groups formed to achieve a common goal. This common goal is often a preferred decision alternative. For example, coalitions of stockholders frequently band together to force a board of directors to make a certain decision.
Intuition
is an innate belief about something without conscious consideration. Managers sometimes decide to do something because it "feels right" or they have a "hunch." This feeling usually is not arbitrary, however. Rather, it is based on years of experience and practice in making decisions in similar situations.*
situational view of organization design
is based on the assumption that the optimal design for any given organization depends on a set of relevant situational factors. In other words, situational factors play a role in determining the best organization design for any particular circumstance.*
Delphi group
is sometimes used to arrive at a consensus of expert opinion. The Delphi procedure solicits input from a panel of experts who contribute individually. Their opinions are combined and, in effect, averaged. Assume, for example, that the problem is to establish an expected date for a major technological breakthrough in converting coal into usable energy. The first step in using the Delphi procedure is to obtain the cooperation of a panel of experts
Decision making
is the act of choosing one alternative from among a set of alternatives, and can refer to either a specific act or a general process.
Job specialization
is the degree to which the overall task of the organization is broken down and divided into smaller component parts. For example, when Walt Disney started his company, he did everything himself—wrote cartoons, drew them, added the character voices, and then marketed them to theaters. As the business grew, though, he eventually hired others to perform many of these same functions.
integration
is the degree to which the various subunits must work together in a coordinated fashion. For example, if each unit competes in a different market and has its own production facilities, they may need little integration.
Cohesiveness
is the extent to which members are loyal and committed to the group. In a highly cohesive team, the members work well together, support and trust one another, and are generally effective at achieving their chosen goals.* In contrast, a team that lacks cohesiveness is not very coordinated, its members do not necessarily support one another fully, and it may have a difficult time reaching goals.
differentiation
is the extent to which the organization is broken down into subunits. A firm with many subunits is highly differentiated; one with few subunits has a low level of differentiation.
Decentralization
is the process of systematically delegating power and authority throughout the organization to middle- and lower-level managers. It is important to remember that decentralization is actually one end of a continuum anchored at the other end by centralization
Intrarole conflict
may occur when the person gets conflicting demands from different sources within the context of the same role. A manager's boss may tell the manager that she needs to put more pressure on subordinates to follow new work rules. At the same time, her subordinates may indicate that they expect her to get the rules changed. Thus the cues are in conflict, and the manager may be unsure about which course to follow.
Intrasender conflict
occurs when a single source sends clear but contradictory messages. This might arise if the boss says one morning that there can be no more overtime pay for the next month but after lunch tells someone to work late that same evening.
Role conflict
occurs when the messages and cues composing the sent role are clear but contradictory or mutually exclusive.* One common form is interrole conflict—conflict between roles. For example, if a person's boss says that everyone must work overtime and on weekends to get ahead, and the same person's coworkers say that you can succeed without working nights and weekends, conflict may result.
organic organization
on the other hand, was most often found in unstable and unpredictable environments, in which constant change and uncertainty usually dictate a much higher level of fluidity and flexibility. Verizon (facing rapid technological change) and Apple (facing both technological change and constant change in consumer tastes) both use organic designs. A manager at Verizon, for example, has considerable discretion over how work is performed and how problems can be solved.
socioemotional role
providing social and emotional support to others on the team.
mechanistic organization
quite similar to the bureaucratic model, was most frequently found in stable environments. Free from uncertainty, organizations structured their activities in rather predictable ways by means of rules, specialized jobs, and centralized authority. Mechanistic organizations are also quite similar to bureaucracies.
Person-role conflict
results from a discrepancy between the role requirements and the individual's personal values, attitudes, and needs. If a person is told to do something unethical or illegal, or if the work is distasteful (e.g., firing a close friend), person-role conflict is likely.
Bounded rationality
suggests that decision makers are limited by their values and unconscious reflexes, skills, and habits. They are also limited by less-than-complete information and knowledge. Bounded rationality partially explains how U.S. auto executives allowed Japanese automakers to get such a strong foothold in the U.S. domestic market several decades ago.
customer departmentalization
the organization structures its activities to respond to and interact with specific customers or customer groups. The lending activities in most banks, for example, are usually tailored to meet the needs of different kinds of customers (business, consumer, mortgage, and agricultural loans, for instance). The basic advantage of this approach is that the organization is able to use skilled specialists to deal with unique customers or customer groups.
centralization
the process of systematically retaining power and authority in the hands of higher-level managers. Hence, a decentralized organization is one in which decision-making power and authority are delegated as far down the chain of command as possible. Conversely, in a centralized organization, decision-making power and authority are retained at higher levels in the organization.
Job enlargement
was developed to increase the total number of tasks workers perform. As a result, all workers perform a wide variety of tasks, which presumably reduces the level of job dissatisfaction. Many organizations have used job enlargement, including IBM, Detroit Edison, AT&T, the U.S. Civil Service, and Maytag. At Maytag, for example, the assembly line for producing washing machine water pumps was systematically changed so that work that had originally been performed by six workers, who passed the work sequentially from one person to another, was performed by four workers, each of whom assembled a complete pump.*
divisional design
which is becoming increasingly popular, a product form of organization is also used; in contrast to the H-form approach, however, the divisions are related. Thus the divisional design, or M-form (for multidivisional) approach, is based on multiple businesses in related areas operating within a larger organizational framework. This design results from a strategy of related diversification.
satisficing
which suggests that rather than conducting an exhaustive search for the best possible alternative, decision makers tend to search only until they identify an alternative that meets some minimum standard of sufficiency. A manager looking for a new plant site, for example, may select the first site she finds that meets basic requirements for transportation, utilities, and price, even though further searching might yield a better location.
