MGT 300 E1 C2

Which of the following is an example of a norm rather than a rule?

An informal code of conduct recommending that employees help each other if time permits Norms are unwritten, informal codes of conduct that prescribe how people should act in particular situations and are considered important by most members of a group or organization.

Which of the following statements indicates that Megabytes Inc. has implemented an organic structure?

At Megabytes, authority is decentralized to middle and first-line managers. In an organic structure, authority is decentralized to middle and first-line managers to encourage them to take responsibility and act quickly to pursue scarce resources.

_____ refers to the concentration of authority at the top of the organizational chart instead of being distributed throughout the managerial hierarchy.

Centralization Centralization is the concentration of authority at the top of the managerial hierarchy.

If a manager designs the organizational hierarchy based on the characteristics of the organizational environment, he is acting in accordance with _____.

Contingency theory the idea that the organizational structures and control systems managers choose depend on characteristics of the external environment in which the organization operates.

Obedience to a manager's authority is most consistent with Fayol's principle of:

Discipline is the obedience, energy, application, and other outward marks of respect for a superior's authority.

In a bureaucracy, tasks and roles are left ambiguous to encourage employees to respond quickly to the unexpected.

False A bureaucracy should have a clearly specified system of task and role relationships.

According to the Hawthorne effect, each manager's personal behavior or leadership approach has no effect on performance.

False According to the Hawthorne effect, each manager's personal behavior or leadership approach can affect performance.

According to Fayol's principles of management, workers should be given more job duties to perform but encouraged to assume less responsibility for their work outcomes.

False Fayol advocated that workers be given more job duties to perform or be encouraged to assume more responsibility for work outcomes.

Fayol believed that authority should be concentrated at the top of the chain of command of an organization.

False Fayol believed that authority should be decentralized and not be concentrated at the top of the chain of command of the organization.

In a bureaucratic system of administration, obedience owed to a manager depends on his or her personal qualities such as personality and social status.

False In a bureaucratic system of administration, obedience is owed to a manager not because of any personal qualities—such as personality, wealth, or social status—but because the manager occupies a position that is associated with a certain level of authority and responsibility.

Increasing the level of job specialization reduces efficiency and leads to lower organizational performance.

False Increasing the level of job specialization—the process by which a division of labor occurs as different workers specialize in tasks—improves efficiency and leads to higher organizational performance.

Standard operating procedures are unwritten, informal codes of conduct that prescribe how people should act in particular situations.

False Standard operating procedures (SOPs)are specific sets of written instructions about how to perform a certain aspect of a task.

The contingency theory suggests that there is always one best way to organize.

False The crucial message of contingency theory is that there is no one best way to organize.

Which of the following statements is consistent with the principles of scientific management?

Increase job specialization in order to make the production process more efficient. Taylor believed that if the amount of time and effort that each worker expends to produce a unit of output (a finished good or service) can be reduced by increasing specialization and the division of labor, the production process will become more efficient.

Which of the following is true of dual command?

It causes confusion among subordinates.

Mary Parker Follett's primary criticism of Taylor's system of scientific management was that:

Mary Parker Follett's primary criticism of Taylor's system of scientific management was that:

The aspect of management theory that uses mathematical techniques such as modeling and simulation to help managers make better decisions is called:

Quantitative management uses mathematical techniques—such as linear and nonlinear programming, modeling, simulation, queuing theory, and chaos theory—to help managers make decisions.

When authority is centralized, only managers at the top of the organization make important decisions.

True

When managers rely too much on rules to solve problems, their behavior becomes inflexible.

True

Scientific management produces huge cost savings in large organized work settings.

True Combining the two management practices of achieving the right worker-task specialization and linking people and tasks by the speed of the production line produces huge cost savings in large organized work settings.

Fayol recommended the use of organizational charts to show the position and duties of each employee in the organization.

True Fayol recommended the use of organizational charts to show the position and duties of each employee and to indicate which positions an employee might move to or be promoted into in the future

Bureaucracy is a formal system of organization and administration designed to ensure efficiency and effectiveness.

True Max Weber developed the principles of bureaucracy—a formal system of organization and administration designed to ensure efficiency and effectiveness.

The use of scientific management practices led workers to hide the true potential efficiency of the work setting to protect their own well-being.

True The management of work settings frequently became a game between workers and managers: Managers tried to initiate work practices to increase performance, and workers tried to hide the true potential efficiency of the work setting to protect their own well-being.

According to Fayol, the fewer the levels in the managerial hierarchy of an organization, the faster the pace of planning and organizing.

True The more levels in the hierarchy, the longer communication takes between managers at the top and bottom and the slower the pace of planning and organizing. Restricting the number of hierarchical levels to lessen these communication problems lets an organization act quickly and flexibly.

The primary message of _____ is that there is no one best way to organize.

contingency theory

When the tasks and authority associated with various positions in the organization are clearly specified, it creates a scenario where:

employees are held strictly accountable for their actions. When the tasks and authority associated with various positions in the organization are clearly specified, an organization can hold all its employees strictly accountable for their actions when they know their exact responsibilities.

Administrative management is the study of:

how an organizational structure is to be created such that it leads to high efficiency and effectiveness

EZtronics' approach to management is consistent with Theory Y because:

managers at EZtronics have created a work setting that allows workers to exercise initiative. According to Theory Y, it is the manager's task to create a work setting that encourages commitment to organizational goals and provides opportunities for workers to be imaginative and to exercise initiative and self-direction.

Fayol's principle of initiative suggests that:

managers should encourage employees to be innovative and creative. Initiative is the ability to act on one's own without direction from a superior.

The idea that employees who stay with the organization for many years develop skills on the job which can help the organization to become more efficient is consistent with Fayol's principle of:

stability of tenure. The principle of stability of tenure recognizes the importance of long-term employment

If an organization has a profit-sharing plan in which employees are able to purchase the company's stock at a discount whenever the organization makes huge profits, then this organization follows Fayol's principle of:

remuneration of personnel. Fayol proposed reward systems including bonuses and profit-sharing plans, which are increasingly used today as organizations seek improved ways to motivate employees.

According to Henri Fayol, esprit de corps refers to:

shared feelings of comradeship, enthusiasm, or devotion to a common cause among members of a group. Esprit de corpsrefers to shared feelings of comradeship, enthusiasm, or devotion to a common cause among members of a group.

According to Henri Fayol, initiative refers to

the ability to act on one's own without direction from a superior. Although order and equity are important means to fostering commitment and loyalty among employees, Fayol believed managers must also encourage employees to exercise initiative, the ability to act on their own without direction from a superior.

The line of authority in an organization is:

the chain of command extending from the top to the bottom of an organization.

Job specialization refers to:

the process by which division of labor occurs as different workers gain expertise in tasks.