Chapter 4: Developing the Hospitality Culture: Everyone Serves!
TRUE/FALSE
1. When any manager ignores an employee action that impacts the “show” or guest experience, this does
not affect other employees.
2. Successful hospitality managers do not spend enormous amounts of time and energy on reminding
their existing employees of the cultural values because the employees have been trained already.
3. The stronger the culture, the less necessary it is to rely on the typical bureaucratic management
controls—policies, procedures, managerial directives—found in traditional industrial organizations.
4. If an organization’s culture is strong, it becomes another core competency.
5. People in open-culture organizations are less responsive to changing customer expectations and needs.
6. Folkways are the habitual ways in which organizational members act or think, without reflecting upon
them.
7. Leaders in successful hospitality organizations stress a difference between top management and
line-level employees and do not provide easy two-way communications.
8. Only walking around allows hospitality managers to see for themselves that the quality of guest
experiences is high.
9. The way in which the leader designs the organizational systems and procedures does not have an effect
on telling people in the organization about what is valued.
10. The most important influence on a successful hospitality organization’s culture is the organizational
leadership.
11. Even if a hospitality organization is centuries old, its culture is dynamic and constantly changing.
12. Placing the organization’s quality assurance manager near the top of the organization chart can affect
the overall organizational culture; so can giving the executive chef a big office.
13. If an organization’s leadership is totally and publicly committed to a strategy of service excellence,
then service is going to be excellent regardless of what kind of culture the organization has.
14. The organization’s service strategy, as described in Chapter 2, must be consistent with the
organizational culture if it is to succeed.
15. Guests play a part in defining and shaping the cultural norms of hospitality organizations.
16. Culture helps the organization’s members know how to relate to the world outside the organization as
well as the world inside the organization.
17. All Disney World employees are called cast members; this is an example of communicating the culture
by symbols.
18. The expression “culture fills the gaps” means that culture gives guidance to employees in situations
not covered by rules, procedures, and training.
19. All of these can serve to communicate the organizational culture: laws, language, stories, legends,
heroes, symbols, and rituals.
20. Company advertising helps to define an organization’s cultural norms for employees.
21. A hospitality organization’s norms of appearance and standards of personal grooming both affect guest
expectations and are influenced by guest expectations.
22. A thriving and positive organizational culture has an effect on employees, but not usually on
customers.
23. A large organization with a strong culture will not develop subcultures.
24. Beliefs, values, and norms are important even though they are not part of the organization’s culture.
25. A strong culture can even serve as a substitute for such management controls as policies, procedures,
and managerial directives.
MULTIPLE CHOICE
26. The likelihood of employees doing whatever they can to create and sustain service excellence is
increased by
a.
a stronger cultural norm.
b.
a greater number of members who believe in it.
c.
a greater number of employees who accept it.
d.
all of the above
27. Culture helps an organization’s members deal with which issues that all organizations must resolve?
a.
how to relate to the world outside of the organization
b.
how the organization’s members should relate to one another
c.
how to bother a guest
d.
both a and b
28. Relating to the outside world refers to how members of the organization
a.
interact or interrelate with each other to accomplish their collective mission.
b.
are supposed to respond to external events.
c.
should use assumptions on making decisions about the things they control.
d.
none of the above.
29. Cultural teachings become
a.
beliefs about how things should be done.
b.
values of what has worth.
c.
norms of behavior.
d.
all of the above.
30. Through what they do, say, and write, culture-driven organizations seek to define all of the following
EXCEPT
a.
values.
b.
norms.
c.
lifestyles.
d.
beliefs.
31. Guests who ____________ become potent assistants to the managers in monitoring, reinforcing, and
shaping employee behavior.
a.
yell at employees who do things wrong
b.
are passive when there is a problem
c.
make their expectations plain
d.
None of the above
32. Mores are
a.
the little extras an employee gives.
b.
customary behaviors that must be followed to preserve the organization’s efficient
operation and survival.
c.
an interviewing criterion crucial to hiring.
d.
a training tool to ensure better employee communication.
33. Subcultures can be
a.
good or bad.
b.
supportive or destructive.
c.
consistent with or contrary to the larger corporate culture.
d.
all of the above.
34. Another way of transmitting cultural beliefs, values, and norms is through
a.
physiological and emotional appeals.
b.
hopes and dreams.
c.
stories, legends, and heroes.
d.
heroes, failures, and tales.
35. Leaders in effective hospitality organizations use ______ to recognize and reward the behaviors the
culture values.
a.
money
b.
bribes
c.
rituals
d.
nothing
36. The organizational culture can be shaped by
a.
the guests.
b.
the organization chart.
c.
the use of physical space.
d.
all of the above.
37. The most important influence on any organizational culture is
a.
the behavior of the organization’s leader.
b.
the cultural values of the behind-the-scenes employees.
c.
what the guest expects.
d.
managerial instructions to employees.
38. A strong culture allows employees to
a.
fix the ambient conditions without managerial guidance.
b.
process more information in a shorter time.
c.
respond better to the variability in guest expectations.
d.
find greater happiness in their job situations.
39. Culture helps the organization members deal with two issues that all organizations must resolve. These
are
a.
how organization members should relate to one another and to the world outside.
b.
how to identify guest key drivers and employee expectations.
c.
how to improve the guest-service product and environment.
d.
how to process more information and meet managerial expectations.
40. Walt Disney World refers to employees as cast members because
a.
the employee union contract requires that terminology.
b.
Schein wanted it that way.
c.
it reminds employees that they are playing “roles” in a show.
d.
guests can identify employees more easily.
41. Schein suggests that leaders can use all of the following mechanisms to define the strength of an
organization’s culture EXCEPT
a.
what leaders pay attention to, measure, and control.
b.
how leaders react to critical incidents and organization crises.
c.
what criteria are used to reward employees.
d.
what strategies the organization uses to process cultural information.
42. Which statement regarding culture change is TRUE?
a.
A strong culture is easier to change than a weak culture.
b.
Strong cultural values can remain even if specific applications of values change.
c.
A rich environment is easier to change than a lean environment.
d.
Cultures cannot be changed.
43. Which statement about culture is NOT true?
a.
Leaders define the culture, teach it, and sustain it.
b.
Strong cultures are worth building.
c.
Excellent organizations get rid of employees who do not fit into the culture.
d.
Once an organizational culture becomes established, it remains unchanged until the
organization dissolves.
44. A professional group known for having a strong culture is
a.
restaurant greeters.
b.
chefs.
c.
hotel managers.
d.
housekeepers.
45. An organization’s culture
a.
is not related to the organization’s competitiveness in its market.
b.
can attract employees but is not particularly relevant to attracting guests.
c.
can be a significant competitive advantage.
d.
is most important in 9-to-5 jobs.
46. Which of these is LEAST important to an organization’s culture?
a.
beliefs
b.
norms
c.
body language
d.
values
47. Subcultures
a.
require no special attention by management.
b.
always follow the same cultural norms as the overall culture.
c.
can develop values that differ from the overall culture.
d.
none of the above.
48. Telling stories about organizational heroes is important because
a.
they communicate cultural values effectively.
b.
they are more effective communication tools than PowerPoint slides.
c.
they provide role models for other employees to emulate.
d.
all of the above.
49. Symbols are
a.
a loud instrument in an orchestra.
b.
part of the ambiance of a theme park.
c.
seldom seen in hospitality organizations.
d.
a physical object that has meaning beyond itself.
50. According to the text, the most difficult culture to change is one that
a.
is not service oriented.
b.
has been strengthened recently by management.
c.
is infrequently recognized.
d.
has conflicting norms and values.