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271. Which of the following statements best describes how firms must treat their front-line
workers in order to remain competitive? Front-line workers must be ____________.
A. empowered with the authority to respond quickly to the unmet needs of customers
B. closely supervised to reduce the risk of product liability and discrimination law suits
C. eliminated and replaced with automated equipment whenever possible
D. relieved of any burden to make a customer decision
Feedback: In order to meet the needs of customers, firms must give their front-line workers
more freedom to respond quickly to customer requests. This is the concept of empowerment,
which is an important theme throughout the text.
272. Max is in charge of production for a family-owned firm that makes and sells sports gloves
including baseball gloves, softball gloves, golf gloves, and more. He has stated that speed
of delivery is the most important factor for success in the competitive environment. Which
of the following would be the best response to Max?
A. You are right on target, Max. Time is money.
B. You are the man, Max. As long as our price is competitive, speedy delivery will win in
today’s changing marketplace.
C. Well Max, speed isn’t everything. What would exceed our customers’ expectations?
Some consumers may put more importance on high quality and/or lower prices.
D. Dude, you couldn’t be more wrong. Quality is the name of the game. He who has the
best product will win in the competitive environment.
Feedback: Successful organizations are customer-driven. This means that customers’ wants
and need are the first priority. All decisions are focused on the blend of price, service, and
quality that will best delight the customers.
273.
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The statistical study of human population to learn its size, density, and characteristics is
called:
A. psychographics.
B. econometrics.
C. demography.
D. geometry.
274. Businesses collect ________ information on where people live, what they buy, and how
they spend their time.
A. geometric
B. econometric
C. demographic
D. anthropologic
275. Diversity is more than recruiting and keeping minorities and women. Diversity means
appreciating and understanding other differences in our customers and in our workforce.
The statement that best describes this difference is:
A. disabilities, sexual orientation, religious preferences, and even personality differences
such as extroverts and introverts.
B. gender roles.
C. surface level things such as green eyes versus brown eyes.
D. racial differences and gender differences.
276.
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Efforts are underway to serve the needs of a diverse population. Diversity means:
A. selling products to immigrants.
B. dealing sensitively with workers and cultures around the world.
C. providing government programs such as free health care for illegal and legal
immigrants.
D. meeting employment quotas so that diverse groups are always represented in your
workforce.
277. Due to population shifts,
A. businesses that cater to older consumers will see exceptional growth.
B. businesses that cater to older consumers will see slower growth.
C. businesses that sell electronic devices will see a significant decline.
D. healthcare will emerge as the only business sector that will grow.
278. Which of the following industries will benefit from an aging population?
A. Financial services to help clients plan for their education
B. Home health care businesses
C. Children’s day-care centers
D. Auto industry
279.
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The social security system,
A. continues to burden businesses due to the fact that businesses must provide and pay for
this benefit for their employees.
B. met the needs of our nation when it was conceived, but needs an overhaul.
C. will continue to serve the needs of U.S. citizens into the distant future, due to the fact
that there are so few retirees placing a strain on it.
D. is failing because the U.S. government failed to invest the money that employees
contributed.
280. People between the ages of 65 and 74 represent:
A. the unemployed generation
B. the single-parent family generation
C. a lucrative market
D. a group that has never contributed to social security
281. Businesses are supporting single-parent families with:
A. social security benefits.
B. a more lenient welfare system.
C. more flexible work benefits such as flex time and family leave.
D. limited benefits due to the declining numbers of these families. Five-member families
are steadily growing.
282.
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Which of the statements about demography is most accurate? Demographic studies:
A. focus on factors that have great political relevance, but little relevance to business
firms.
B. suggest that the number of single-parent families will decline in the future.
C. provide businesses and individuals with insights into business and career opportunities
for the future.
D. are an important source of information about changes in health patterns.
Feedback: Demography is the statistical study of the human population to learn its size,
density, and characteristics. Demographics can provide important insights into which markets
are growing and which are declining.
283. Which of the following business policies would most likely help a single-parent family?
A. Requiring the employee to work regularly scheduled hours each day.
B. Allowing sick leave to be used only if the employee is ill.
C. Requiring education outside of regular business hours to help the employee advance.
D. Allowing family leave and flextime.
Feedback: Single parents have encouraged businesses to implement programs such as family
leave (where workers can take time off to attend to a sick child) and flextime (where workers
can come in or leave at selected times).
284.
Chapter 01 – Taking Risks and Making Profits within the Dynamic Business Environment
The immigrant population (both legal and illegal) is having a dramatic effect on
A. car and truck makers
B. mining and minerals industry
C. schools, hospitals and other services type industries
D. ice cream and confection industry
Feedback: The service industry is greatly impacted by immigration. As the immigrant
population increases, more social services are needed, particularly health services and
education services. The government costs have increased due to the need for accommodations
in several different languages.
285. Retired people will be draining the U.S. economy of wealth. This is due to:
A. The fact that most have smoked all their lives and now are unwilling to pay for
healthcare in order to stay alive.
B. The fact there are not enough workers in subsequent generations to support the ongoing
drain of older persons into the social security system.
C. Their lack of interest in supporting restaurants, resorts, educational institutions, and
service-intensive companies.
D. The fact that they refuse to use current information technology to improve efficiency.
Feedback: A particular situation that will be negatively impacting the social environment is
the number of aging Americans and the drain on the social security system. Today’s workers
pay for today’s retirees. When the system was enacted in 1940, there were 42 workers for each
retiree. Today the ratio has become much smaller. With baby-boomers retiring, the ratio is
more like two workers for every one retiree. Soon it is predicted that less money will be going
into the social security system than money coming out.
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286. If you were to discuss and analyze the social changes affecting the future of business,
which of the following statements should be part of that conversation?
A. It is becoming more difficult to provide expert pre-natal care for women, resulting in a
negative impact on the future of live births.
B. The increase in older citizens may impact an employee’s take-home pay if programs
such as Social Security will need to be funded at a higher level. Skilled employees may
require higher wages to make up the shortfall.
C. With less money to spend, older Americans between the ages of 65 and 74 will no
longer require transportation, entertainment, education, and lodging. This is highly likely
to negatively impact these industries.
D. Business taxes are very likely to spike (rise quickly) due to the fact that welfare laws
are making it relatively easy for single parents to stay home with their children, rather
than find jobs. Taxes will have to support parents choosing the stay-at-home lifestyle.
Feedback: The increasing rate and number of retiring workers have impacted the U.S. Social
Security system put in place by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the 1940s. It is currently a
hot topic affecting the social environment of businesses how much of their earnings current
employees will need to contribute or whether current employees should have to contribute to
this system. Many young employees speculate that the Social Security fund will run out of
money by the time they are ready to retire.
287.
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Jill is looking into the possibility of opening up a day care center in her community,
because she is aware of many single-parent families that need a place for their children to
stay while the parents work. She is concerned about the long-term prospects for such a
business. Jill believes the future of her center will depend on whether birth rates and the
number of single-parent families remain high. These concerns illustrate how businesses
can be affected by:
A. econometric trends.
B. demographic trends.
C. holographic trends.
D. psychometric trends.
Feedback: Demography is the statistical study of the human population to learn its size,
density and characteristics. Birth rates and the number of single-parent families are both
demographic factors.
288. St. Claire Hospital is considering a program that would allow some of its workers to use
flextime. One group of workers who would probably benefit from flextime is:
A. Workers who do not have access to computers at home.
B. Workers who have little self-motivation to work eight-hour days.
C. Front-line workers who frequently go out to meet with home furnishing designers.
D. Single-parent families.
Feedback: Flextime is the practice of coming in or leaving work at selected times. This allows
workers with young children the flexibility they often need.
289.
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Preferred Pet Care, Inc., a mobile veterinary care company is planning for the future. As a
business student who has studied social trends, which of the following statements reflects
the need for Preferred Pet Care’s service in the future?
A. Mobile pet care will not be needed because the majority of people are working which
means that nobody is home.
B. People will always prefer to take their pets to the veterinary clinic.
C. The aging population will be a sizeable market for this firm.
D. People who would require this service would be higher income individuals. Retired
people would not be a market for this firm because they do not have money to care for
pets.
Feedback: People are living longer and living longer in their homes. There are many business
opportunities to serve the aging population. As pets have become important family members,
the aging population is likely to be a sizeable market for pet care and in-home pet care.
290. The global environment,
A. is a new frontier.
B. is far reaching and affects all the other business environments.
C. is shrinking.
D. has not affected the United States due to its strong gross domestic product.
291. The threat of terrorism more often __________ the cost of operating a business.
A. increases
B. decreases
C. stabilize
D. destabilizes
