Chapter 7 Self managed Work Teams Are Goal Oriented And

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Lussier, Management Fundamentals, 7e

Answers to Case Questions

Chapter 7: Organizing and Delegating

Work

Zappos

1. Is Zappos a mechanistic or organic organization? How so?

Zappos has incorporated elements of both forms of organization. Customer service representatives have

2. From the perspective of authority, is Zappos more centralized or decentralized? Specify

characteristics of the firm to support your answer.

Firms lie somewhere on the continuum of authority with centralized and decentralized authority of on

3. Explain how the move to a self-managed, self-organized structure from a hierarchical structure was

a form of reengineering.

Reengineering involves radical change and redesign rather than incremental adjustments to achieve

4. Can Zappos be characterized as a learning organization? Why or why not?

By moving towards a decentralized structure, the firm allows for employees to move into various roles

Lussier, Management Fundamentals, 7e

5. How has Zappos used job enrichment to its advantage?

Call centers typically suffer from low employee motivation and high turnover rates. Zappos empowers

6. How do self-managed work teams factor into the new structure of Zappos?

Self-managed work teams are goal oriented, and the team plans, organizes, leads and controls to

7. Explain the role of organizational culture at Zappos. Can it be characterized as strong or weak?

At Zappos, culture is everything. Culture drives the employee’s behaviors to match the strong

8. How did strategic planning factor into Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh’s decision to move to a new

organizational structure? What explanation can you offer for the change considering Zappos’

continued success in its previous structure?

Strategic planning involves developing or updating a mission using long-range goals. This is typically

done by upper-level management. Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh set out to increase self-management, self-

9. Search online for updates on Zappos’ structural transition. Using the information in the case and

the updates you find online, how have the firm’s employees responded to this change? Use the four

stages of the change process to explain how people tend to react to change.

The first two stages of denial and resistance can be seen in the increased attrition rate of 14%. 210 of

Lussier, Management Fundamentals, 7e