Deck 12: Crisis Leadership and the Learning Organization

Question 1

When a crisis erupts,a rapid response is vital. The effective leader focuses on three key areas: goals,people,and resources.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Developing a bunker mentality is a recommended strategy for senior leaders to use when dealing with a crisis.

Answer 2

False
Explanation:A leader must be present during a crisis.

Question 3

The first step in the crisis risk assessment model is risk reduction.

Answer 3

False
Explanation:This is not the first step of the model.

Question 4

Pre-crisis planning addresses three key questions that every organization should address when putting together a comprehensive crisis management plan: (1)Do we have a crisis response team and who is on it? (2)What is our crisis plan of action?  and (3)Do we have a risk assessment team and who is on it?

Question 5

It is generally believed that within minutes of becoming aware that a crisis situation may exist,company officials must be prepared to issue an initial statement to the media and other key stakeholder groups.

Question 6

A pre-crisis plan is the first stage of any crisis management program.

Question 7

During a crisis all information must come directly from the CEO; including communications with the media and other outside groups.

Question 8

A crisis is a high-probability but low-impact event that threatens the viability of an organization and is characterized by ambiguity of cause,effect,and means of resolution,as well as by a belief that decisions must be made swiftly.

Question 9

Organizations with early crisis identification systems and crisis management plans already in place before the occurrence of a crisis are significantly better prepared to manage and survive a crisis event.

Question 10

Your leader has appointed you to supervise the crisis risk assessment part of pre-crisis planning,and,therefore,your first step in the five step process is to assess and rank risks.

Question 11

Crises come in many forms including succession crisis,product failures,human error disasters,and sexual harassment.

Question 12

Advances in communications technology has diminished organizations' attempts to control crisis communications.

Question 13

Effective crisis leadership is about having the foresight and proper pre-crisis planning for managing a crisis.

Question 14

A pre-crisis plan is the best way to lessen the negative consequences of any crisis.

Question 15

The five-step crisis risk assessment model is a scenario analysis and planning tool used in creating a crisis management action plan.

Question 16

SWOT analysis is only used in the risk identification step in the crisis risk assessment model.

Question 17

A press release is a printed statement that describes how an organization is responding to a crisis and who is in charge.

Question 18

Acceptance of the frequent occurrence of low-probability,high-impact events makes planning for crises a routine,easy process.

Question 19

In the five-step crisis risk assessment model,SWOT analysis comes into play as a tool in determining what resources and capabilities are available or needed to better manage each crisis.

Question 20

Crises are part of the regular work experience; therefore,leaders know what to expect and plan accordingly.

Question 21

Providing opportunities for employees to solve problems increases management's confidence in employees' ability to accomplish organizational goals.

Question 22

As related to organizational culture,researchers are finding that the higher the level of learning and knowledge acquisition,the greater the level of financial performance,but the lower the level of nonfinancial performance.

Question 23

In the aftermath of a crisis,it is recommended that top management form an internal crisis evaluation team to evaluate the organization's effectiveness in managing the crisis.

Question 24

Leaders in learning organizations face a single challenge of maintaining efficient operations.

Question 25

The traditional organization fosters competition and less collaboration among individuals.

Question 26

The purpose of using benchmarking is to imitate competitors' best practices which leads to a competitive advantage for a company.

Question 27

Learning organizations are constantly reinventing themselves which is seen as a distinctive capability for those who do it exceptionally well.

Question 28

Encouraging systems thinking in a learning organization means that boundaries are clearly defined within the organization and with other partners.

Question 29

A learning organization is one that is skilled at creating,acquiring,and transferring knowledge,and at modifying behavior to reflect new knowledge and insights.

Question 30

To encourage innovation and creativity,learning organizations centralize responsibility and authority to upper-level management.

Question 31

A learning organization is more appropriate for a stable environment where change is slow and incremental.

Question 32

Discontinuous change occurs when anticipated or expected changes bear no resemblance to the present or the past.

Question 33

Creative thinking can occur at the individual,group,and organizational level.

Question 34

Explicit knowledge is the instinct and intuition that an experienced practitioner possesses.

Question 35

Leaders in learning organizations face the dual challenge of maintaining efficient operations and creating a flexible and adaptive organization at the same time.

Question 36

The learning organization embraces the idea that people will learn if encouraged to be creative,to experiment,and to reflect on their experiences.

Question 37

Organizational learning involves external and internal sources.

Question 38

A press kit is a package of information about a company,including names and pictures of its executives,a fact sheet,and key milestones in the company's history.

Question 39

The traditional organization is based on the bureaucratic model that emphasizes a command-and-control structure,decentralized decision making,highly formalized systems,specialized tasks,and an adaptive culture.

Question 40

The mindset of leaders in a learning organization is that there is a "right way" to do things.

Question 41

In planning for a crisis,the leader has to focus on five integrated tasks. These tasks include all of the following EXCEPT:

A)formulate an overarching vision of crisis management for the organization.
B)coordinate the creation of a crisis management plan.
C)establish strategic goals and program objectives for crisis management.
D)communicate regular updates on the planning process to all employees.

Question 42

Which of the following is NOT one of the three key principles of crisis leadership?

A)Work with your crisis management team.
B)Play to win and develop a bunker mentality.
C)Stay engaged and lead from the front.
D)Focus on the big picture and communicate the vision.

Question 43

The best way to mitigate the negative consequences of any crisis is by:

A)top management support.
B)a pre-crisis plan.
C)a capable and supportive staff of employees.
D)having updated communication capabilities.

Question 44

During the first step of the crisis risk assessment model the team brainstorms "what-if" scenarios that focus on:

A)identifying realistic incidents under various crisis situations.
B)ranking using criteria such as loss of life or injuries.
C)identifying available resources needed.
D)formulating strategies.

Question 45

Which of the following is NOT true when developing a crisis plan of action?

A)Planning involves imagining the worst possible scenarios and their impact on stakeholders.
B)The team prepares a structured crisis response evaluation for use after the crisis.
C)The plan must include as many potential emergency situations as possible.
D)The team assesses the risk of potential events and evaluates their possible ramifications.

Question 46

Which of the following is NOT one of the steps in the crisis risk assessment model?

A)Risk reduction.
B)Risk identification.
C)Crisis management.
D)Risk analysis.

Question 47

A ____ is a printed statement that describes how an organization is responding to a crisis and who is in charge.

A)press release
B)benchmark
C)press kit
D)bulletin release

Question 48

Encouraging systems thinking is a guideline for enhancing organizational learning.

Question 49

Ultimately,the best gauge to determine an organization's readiness to respond to a crisis is how it rates according to five factors. Which of the following is NOT one of those factors?

A)Awareness and access to crisis management information.
B)Readiness for an effective and timely response.
C)Effective communication plan in place
D)Availability of stockpiled resources.

Question 50

All of the following are questions that often emerge after a crisis EXCEPT:

A)What happened?
B)What are you going to do to ensure it never happens again?
C)When did it happen?
D)How did it happen?

Question 51

Which of the following is NOT one of the three key questions pre-crisis planning addresses?

A)Do we have a crisis response team and who is on it?
B)What is our crisis plan of action?
C)Who is the first person called in the event of a crisis?
D)Do we have all the necessary resources in place?

Question 52

It is important for leaders to narrow the lens through which employees see the organization and the world around them,focusing energy inward.

Question 53

An organization that claims to support experimentation should not then turn around and punish employees for taking risks that are within accepted company guidelines.

Question 54

By the end of the risk identification step of the crisis risk assessment model,team members will have created a ______________.

A)ranking of scenarios
B)risk chart
C)simulation for chosen scenarios
D)strategy

Question 55

Due to advances in communications technologies,all of the following statements concerning an organization's ability to control crisis communications are now true,except for one.Which statement is NOT true?

A)During a crisis, the company's Facebook page delivers all needed communication to stakeholders.
B)A company many have only minutes to contain a crisis.
C)Stakeholders may have more information about an ongoing crisis than the organization.
D)A crisis is instantly visible and viral with the potential to inflict terminal damage on the affected organization.

Question 56

Within _________ of becoming aware that a crisis situation may exist,company officials must be prepared to issue an initial statement to the media and other key stakeholders.

A)24 hours
B)minutes
C)an hour
D)48 hours

Question 57

Though suffering some loss is almost unavoidable having a crisis plan in the event of an actual crisis has several benefits,including all of the following EXCEPT:

A)reduce the duration of a crisis.
B)allow for quick and effective responses.
C)limit or protect financial loss.
D)bring about discontinuous change.

Question 58

Which of the following statements concerning the importance of having a standing crisis response team is NOT true?

A)The best crisis response team is compiled of objective third-party individuals.
B)A crisis response team increases an organization's ability to respond to a crisis in a timely and effective manner.
C)In the event of a crisis, a leader wants a team that has trained and worked together.
D)Diversity in the makeup of the team increases diverse input that contributes to better decisions.

Question 59

In planning for a crisis,the leader focuses on five integrated tasks. These five tasks point to the essential competencies of crisis leaders,which include all of the following EXCEPT:

A)craft a vision.
B)communicate.
C)benchmark.
D)manage people.

Question 60

An aspect of pre-crisis planning is deciding on the appropriate communications strategy when a crisis hits. Which of the following statements concerning crisis communication is NOT true?

A)During pre-crisis planning, decisions on who will take charge of news conferences  and who will handle ongoing daily communications is finalized.
B)A well-coordinated crisis communication plan helps avoid mixed messages.
C)Problems with communication during a crisis affect crisis response effectiveness.
D)The pre-crisis plan is put into action before the actual event of a crisis.

Question 61

Which of the following is a characteristic of a traditional organization?

A)Flat and flexible structure.
B)Changing environment.
C)Centralized decision making.
D)Loose, flexible, and adaptive roles.

Question 62

In the event of a crisis,a press kit should include all of the following EXCEPT:

A)key milestones in the company's history.
B)a fact sheet.
C)a press release related to the current incident.
D)a copy of financial records showing current earnings.

Question 63

All of the following are characteristics of learning organizations EXCEPT:

A)flat and flexible structure.
B)centralized decision making.
C)adaptive organizational culture.
D)strategy is a collaborative effort.

Question 64

Under which of the following conditions is a learning environment most needed?

A)A stable environment where change is slow and incremental.
B)A rapidly changing environment where employee skills and abilities remain unchanged.
C)An environment with increasing pressure for employees to upgrade their skills and where there are no guarantees of job security.
D)In a rapidly changing environment with increasing globalization, competition, and technological shifts.

Question 65

_________ occurs when anticipated or expected changes bear no resemblance to the present or the past.

A)Organizational knowledge
B)Benchmarking
C)Crisis
D)Discontinuous change

Question 66

All of the following are characteristics of traditional organizations EXCEPT:

A)decentralized decision making.
B)stable environment.
C)vertical structure.
D)rigid culture that is not responsive to change.

Question 67

An effective post-crisis evaluation should include all of the following performance indicators EXCEPT:

A)crisis team effectiveness.
B)learning culture effectiveness.
C)leadership effectiveness.
D)effectiveness in dealing with victims and family members.

Question 68

Which of the following is a rule for effective crisis communication?

A)Provide a plan for how the organization will avoid a repeat in the future.
B)Assemble all stakeholders together and present the same message.
C)Keep the crisis leader informed about how the organization is handling the crisis.
D)Interact with the media only through approved channels.

Question 69

In his book,The Fifth Discipline,Peter Senge makes a compelling case that an organization's survival is linked to its:

A)top management.
B)employees' dedication.
C)ability to learn and adapt.
D)financial resources.

Question 70

A ____ organization is one that is skilled at creating,acquiring,and transferring knowledge,and at modifying behavior to reflect new knowledge and insights.

A)traditional
B)learning
C)diverse
D)dynamic

Question 71

The encouragement of systems thinking:

A)is a task of leaders who seek to enhance organizational learning.
B)has the best results in traditional organizations.
C)was a driving force in the 1980s, but has been largely discarded in favor of specialized thinking.
D)increases efficiency, but appears to deter creativity.

Question 72

In learning organizations:

A)the horizontal structures are effective under stable environmental conditions.
B)few strict rules and procedures prescribe how things are done.
C)rewards are individualized.
D)the pace of change is slow.

Question 73

Which of the following statements concerning traditional organizations is NOT true?

A)The traditional organization is rigid and resistant to change.
B)The vertical structure of traditional organizations are effective when the pace of change is slow.
C)Network systems facilitate communication and exchange.
D)Employees of traditional organizations don't take chances and mistakes are hidden.

Question 74

Which of the following is a characteristic of a learning organization?

A)Strategy is formulated from the top and passed down.
B)Top-down communication model.
C)Stable environment.
D)Changing environment.

Question 75

Which of the following statements concerning organizational knowledge is true?

A)Organizational knowledge can be easily developed through training sessions.
B)Organizational knowledge is both tacit and explicit knowledge.
C)Organizational knowledge could not exist without the sponsorship of top management.
D)Organizational knowledge has been referred to as discontinuous change.

Question 76

Explicit or formal knowledge is:

A)highly personal.
B)strongly rooted in action.
C)the instinct and intuition that an experienced practitioner possesses.
D)expressed in a system of rules.

Question 77

Benchmarking:

A)allows a company to imitate the best practices of others.
B)is a leader strategy.
C)yields a comparative advantage.
D)is not recommended to develop creative thinking skills.

Question 78

Tacit knowledge is acquired from

A)manuals regarding an organization's culture.
B)databases acquired from other sources.
C)intuition based on experience.
D)genetics.

Question 79

Which of the following is NOT one of the guidelines for enhancing organizational learning?

A)Narrow employees' scope of reference.
B)Encourage systems thinking.
C)Create a shared vision for learning.
D)Create a climate in where risk taking and failure are tolerated.

Question 80

Which of the following is an internal source of organizational learning?

A)Customers.
B)Competitors.
C)Academic publications.
D)Employees.