MGT 3013 Chapter 1

Which of the following best describes outsourcing?

Contracting a company in a low-cost country to have it perform a work activity Outsourcing involves contracting with another company, in a low-cost country abroad, such as Vietnam or China, to have it perform a work activity the organization previously performed itself, for example, manufacturing, IT programming, or customer service.

Which of the following would typically be included in a top management team?

A COO A central concern of the CEO is the creation of a smoothly functioning top management team, a group composed of the CEO, the COO, and the vice presidents most responsible for achieving organizational goals.

The daily supervision of nonmanagerial employees is the responsibility of ________.

first-line managers At the base of the managerial hierarchy are first-line managers, often called supervisors. They are responsible for daily supervision of the nonmanagerial employees who perform the specific activities necessary to produce goods and services.

When a manager chooses inappropriate goals, but makes good use of resources to pursue these goals, it usually results in a product that ________.

is of high quality but customers do not want Managers who choose inappropriate goals but make good use of resources to pursue those goals are high on efficiency but low on effectiveness, resulting in high-quality products that customers do not want.

The lower that managers' positions are in the hierarchy, the more time the managers spend ________.

leading and controlling first-line managers The amount of time managers spend planning and organizing resources to maintain and improve organizational performance increases as they ascend the hierarchy. Top managers devote most of their time to planning and organizing, the tasks so crucial to determining an organization's long-term performance. The lower that managers' positions are in the hierarchy, the more time the managers spend leading and controlling first-line managers or nonmanagerial employees.

Contracting with another company, usually in a low-cost country abroad, to have it perform a work activity the organization previously performed itself is known as ________.

outsourcing Outsourcing involves contracting with another company, in a low-cost country abroad. It increases efficiency because it lowers operating costs, freeing up money and resources that can then be used in more effective ways.

Downsizing an organization by eliminating the jobs of large numbers of top, middle, and first-line managers and nonmanagerial employees is called ________.

restructuring Restructuring involves simplifying, shrinking, or downsizing an organization's operations to lower operating costs. Restructuring can be done by eliminating product teams, shrinking departments, and reducing levels in the hierarchy.

The job-specific skills required to perform a particular type of work at a high level are a part of a manager's ________ skills.

technical Technical skills are the job-specific skills required to perform a particular type of work or occupation at a high level. Examples include a manager's specific manufacturing, accounting, marketing, and increasingly, IT skills.

Establishing accurate measuring and monitoring systems to evaluate how well the organization has achieved its goals is part of the ________ task of management.

controlling In controlling, the task of managers is to evaluate how well an organization has achieved its goals and to take any corrective actions needed to maintain or improve performance. For example, managers monitor the performance of individuals, departments, and the organization as a whole to see whether they are meeting desired performance standards.