Table 15.1
As the new general manager of a regional cable service, Joe is studying the formal
configuration of groups and individuals in respect to the allocation of tasks,
responsibilities, and authority within the cable company. He notices that there are
numerous layers of people between the cable installers and technicians and himself as
general manager. He thinks this is because of the high degree of specialization in the
company. Everyone seems to have very narrowly defined jobs. Joe decides he wants
fewer layers of employees and for each manager to have responsibility for more
employees. He reduces the number of managers from 10 to 3. As a consequence, each
manager will make of his/her own decisions and rely less on Joe.
Refer to Table 15.1. Joe’s initial study is of the cable company’s:
A) division of labor.
B) organizational design.
C) span of control.
D) organizational structure.
Table 16.2
Loading Dock One, an international products retailer, is going through organizational
change. The entrance of several low cost retailers into their market of quality
international gifts is forcing them to seek greater efficiencies so they can lower costs
and prices. Unfortunately, their employees are resisting the changes. They understand
competition is increasing, but they fear the changes will eliminate jobs or diminish the
variety of their work. Not only are the employees resisting, but it seems that the way
LDO has hired, trained, and rewarded employees also hinders the changes they want to
make. Some managers also are resisting the change because they can see their staffs
being reduced or their entire work units eliminated.
Refer to Table 16.2. The managers’ issues are examples of:
A) the individual barrier, fear of the unknown.
B) the organizational barrier, threats to existing balance of power.
C) the individual barrier, habit.
D) the organizational barrier, structural inertia.
________ of the organizational innovation process may involve narrowing down broad
goals and gathering the resources needed to meet them.
A) Stage 1 – setting the agenda
B) Stage 2 – setting the stage
C) Stage 3 – producing the ideas
D) Stage 4- testing and implementing the ideas
Research on brainstorming shows:
A) that it works best with unique problems requiring creative solutions.
B) that groups are most productive when being creative.
C) that people feel inhibited by the presence of others when sharing far-out ideas.
D) All of these.
Table 13.2
In preparation for grid training, the managers of your company are having their current
styles assessed. Elizabeth seems to have a high concern for production and a high
concern for people. Bill on the other hand, has a low concern for both dimensions.
Recently Elizabeth noticed that one of her employees was not doing well on the job. He
was listless, late to work, and his work products were degenerating in quality. Elizabeth
decided he had been working too hard and gave him a couple of days off. Bill was
transferred to another department. He took three of his subordinates from his old
department with him. After being there six months he gave all employees performance
appraisals. The subordinates who came with him to the new department all did better
than the more experienced people who had been on the job. In fact, the subordinates
who came with Bill were having a hard time adjusting to the new department and had
not been performing all that well.
Refer to Table 13.2. Elizabeth has a(n) ________ management style according to
management grid theory.
A) country club
B) team
C) impoverished
D) middle-of-the-road
The use of “after action reviews” by the Army is a technique for:
A) fully incorporating employees in change efforts.
B) developing a cognitive oriented organization.
C) creating a sense of urgency and importance.
D) generating discomfort with the status quo.
A group is more effective than an individual at problem solving when the ________.
A) group is diverse
B) skills of group members do not overlap or complement each other
C) group’s level of communication is low
D) group is heterogeneous with complementary skills.
The extent to which employees have the freedom and discretion to plan and schedule
their jobs as desired is known as:
A) task identity.
B) task significance.
C) autonomy.
D) skill variety.
________ suggests that effective leaders are able to adjust their styles to accommodate
their followers according to their need for direction and their need for emotional
support.
A) LMX theory
B) Attribution theory
C) Situational leadership theory
D) Normative leadership theory
Skills such as the capacity to work independently, to innovate, and to persist at solving
difficult problems are important for:
A) factory workers.
B) call center operators.
C) research scientists.
D) department store cashiers.
________ are made by selecting the first minimally acceptable alternative as it becomes
available.
A) Business decisions
B) Rational decisions
C) Optimal decisions
D) Satisficing decisions
The component of creativity that focuses on what people are willing to do is:
A) creativity-relevant skills.
B) domain-relevant skills.
C) affect-based skills.
D) intrinsic task motivation.
________ involves the effort to get others (target persons) to behave in some desired
fashion.
A) Behavior modeling
B) Proactive behavior
C) Distributive justice
D) Influence
Iris intimidates her subordinates by throwing objects. She can best be described as a
________.
A) Constant Critic
B) Vindictive Gatekeeper
C) Two-Headed Snake
D) Screaming Mimi
The practice of requiring sexual favors in exchange for some tangible conditions or
privileges of employment is known as:
A) counterpower.
B) hostile environment sexual harassment.
C) pressure.
D) quid pro quo sexual harassment.
Which of the following is NOT an example of a self-conscious emotion?
A) Guilt
B) Embarrassment
C) Scorn
D) Pride
When making a decision, if an individual is more willing to consider complex solutions
based on ambiguous information after carefully studying the data, and enjoys solving
problems, his/her decision style is most likely to be:
A) directive.
B) analytical.
C) conceptual.
D) behavioral.
Testing takes a variety of forms. When employees are tested for flexibility and strength,
they are having their ________ tested.
A) cognitive abilities
B) memories
C) physical abilities
D) emotional intelligence
Strategic planners must answer the question of “How can we make our products
superior to our competitors?” when they are ________.
A) implementing strategy
B) assessing the external environment
C) assessing competitive advantage
D) communicating the strategy to stockholders
The nature of the workforce composition, in terms of age, gender and ethnic makeup, is
known as:
A) organizational logistics.
B) organizational demography.
C) discriminatory analysis.
D) stereotype recognition.
The tendency for members of highly cohesive groups to conform to group pressures so
strongly that they reject the potentially correcting influence of outsiders is known as:
A) escalation of commitment.
B) bias toward an implicit favorite.
C) bounded discretion.
D) groupthink.
Neo-classical design differs from classical design because it includes a concern for:
A) industrial efficiency.
B) specialization of labor.
C) employee satisfaction.
D) profits.
When an OB specialist is looking at how an organization is structured and its operating
environment and the effect these have on employee communication and coordination,
he/she is conducting research at the ________ level of OB.
A) organizational
B) group
C) individual
D) None of these; this is not OB research.
In the discussion of individual creativity, any concern that the individual has the
physical skills necessary to create or innovate is a discussion of:
A) creativity-relevant skills.
B) intrinsic task motivation.
C) extrinsic task environment.
D) domain-relevant skills.
When one organizational subunit has control over another because it has more of some
valued resource than the other, you see an example of the:
A) use of information power by a unit.
B) strategic contingencies theory.
C) resource-dependence view.
D) combination of coercive and expert power.
People who participate in making decisions tend to be:
A) more resistant to change.
B) more committed to the decision.
C) much quicker to make the decision than an individual.
D) less committed to the decision.
Management grid training involves training:
A) in how to reduce group conflict.
B) to improve manager’s communication and planning skills.
C) to help identify to what degree the organization is meeting its strategic goals.
D) to do all of these.
In a ________, each participating company only contributes its core competencies.
A) diverse organizational structure.
B) matrix organizational structure.
C) virtual organizational structure.
D) product organizational structure.
About ________ percent of e-mail messages received are considered to be spam.
A) 75
B) 60
C) 40
D) 35
Emotions that people actually experienced are known as:
A) known emotions.
B) displayed emotions.
C) felt emotions.
D) processed emotions.
People who are high in negative affectivity are likely to:
A) be managers.
B) make superior decisions.
C) function more effectively.
D) be targets of aggression.
When discipline is imposed on an employee through a series of steps designed to match
the frequency and severity of the infraction, the organization is using:
A) progressive discipline.
B) administrative discipline.
C) informal discipline.
D) continuous discipline.
Observational learning occurs when one person acquires new information or behaviors:
A) in a specified time period.
B) through practice and repetition of the task.
C) by having correct behavior rewarded and poor performance punished.
D) vicariously.
Many of today’s companies offer ________ to provide their workers with assistance for
various personal problems, such as substance abuse, career planning, and financial or
legal problems.
A) wellness programs
B) time management programs
C) employee assistance programs
D) tough love programs
Managers consider ________ the most severe type of discipline they can impose before
firing an employee.
A) probation
B) written warning
C) suspension without pay
D) transfer to another job