Deck 8: Supervisory Organizing at the Departmental Level

Question 1

Work specialization holds that jobs can be divided into smaller components and tasks to increase efficiency and output.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Once the supervisor's span of management is established, it cannot be increased or decreased.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

Informal organizations do not exist in well-run companies.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

Informal groups cannot satisfy the needs of their members. Only formal groups can.

Question 5

Numerous research studies have demonstrated that informal groups can influence employees to restrict production and work against supervisors.

Question 6

Span of management refers to the amount of control a supervisor possesses.

Question 7

Informal groups always make a supervisor's job easier.

Question 8

Departments exist because no one can manage an unlimited number of employees.

Question 9

According to the unity-of-command principle, supervisors should make decisions together so their orders are not contradictory.

Question 10

Andrea supervises employees who make programmed decisions; Harrison supervises employees who make non-programmed decisions. Andrea's span of management is likely to be greater than Harrison's.

Question 11

Departmentation by geographic location is highly inefficient and is rarely used in most organizations today.

Question 12

The number of employees a supervisor can manage is dependent in part on the level of employees' competence and abilities.

Question 13

The quality of line/staff relationships depends on how clearly top-level managers have defined the scope of activities and authority of the staff.

Question 14

Organizing the overall activities of the enterprise is the responsibility of the chief executive, not the supervisors.

Question 15

Upper-level managers generally have more subordinates than first-level supervisors.

Question 16

Organizational structures will tend to be taller when spans of management are wider.

Question 17

There is less confusion when an employee reports to multiple supervisors because there are more people to guide the employee in the right direction.

Question 18

Louella has a great deal of staff assistance available to her. She will probably have a narrower span of management than those supervisors who have no staff assistance.

Question 19

A manager's organizing function consists of designing a structure, grouping activities, and assigning them to specific work units.

Question 20

Close working relationships between supervisors and employees usually leads to a decrease in performance.

Question 21

Supervisors should utilize the organizational structure they believe can best achieve the department's objectives.

Question 22

An organizational manual is a graphic portrayal of a company's authority and responsibility relationships.

Question 23

Meetings should be called by supervisors on a frequent basis regardless of necessity.

Question 24

The project management type organizational structure is a good example of how to use the unity-of-command principle effectively.

Question 25

First and foremost, supervisors should plan their organizational structure around employee personalities.

Question 26

Other names for downsizing are right-sizing and restructuring.

Question 27

Formal organization structure is based on a company's number and types of departments, functions and authority, and reporting relationships.

Question 28

Many companies base job descriptions on information provided by the people who actually perform the work.

Question 29

Employee productivity skyrockets at firms that downsize repeatedly because the remaining workers want to be sure that they are not the next to be let go.

Question 30

The only benefit to preparing an organizational chart is to acquaint employees with the structure of the department and the enterprise.

Question 31

In order for a supervisor to be successful, the supervisor needs to be able to structure the department.

Question 32

Line authority is the right to direct others and to require them to conform to decisions, policies, rules, and objectives.

Question 33

The most frequent problem associated with the project management type organizational structure is direct accountability.

Question 34

Without the proper chairperson, meetings will not be effective.

Question 35

No organization should become overly dependent on one or several "indispensible" individuals.

Question 36

The primary purpose of staff authority is to provide line personnel with advice and counseling.

Question 37

One concern of a virtual corporation is that a firm might lose control over its own operations.

Question 38

Organizational success is likely to happen when:

A) Attention to details is a top priority.
B) Authority is concentrated solely at the top of the organization.
C) Supervisors do not become preoccupied with developing the formal structure.
D) Either the goals of effective work performance or high job satisfaction exist.

Question 39

Before recruiting for an open position, the supervisor would want to have a job description, not job specifications.

Question 40

Supervisors should resist the temptation to give more work to their more capable employees and less work to those who are not as skilled.

Question 41

What has been created when employee groups are given wide latitude and considerable authority to make job-related decisions?

A) A horizontal corporation.
B) A virtual corporation.
C) A self-directed work team.
D) A reengineered work team.

Question 42

All of the following are common methods by which an organization can create departments, EXCEPT:

A) By Function.
B) By Products.
C) By Customer.
D) By Stability.

Question 43

The project management type organizational structure violates:

A) The span-of-management principle.
B) The division-of-work principle.
C) The principle of organizational stability.
D) The unity-of-command principle.

Question 44

Trish supervises a group of employees who are physically located in a different part of the United States than she is, whereas Roger, her colleague, supervises employees who are all headquartered in the same location that he is. Trish probably can:

A) Manage more people than Roger.
B) Manage fewer people than Roger.
C) Create a new layer of management.
D) Have the authority to decrease her span of control.

Question 45

Which of the following describes the principle of organizational stability?

A) No organization should become overly dependent on one or several "indispensable" individuals.
B) Grouping activities and people into organizational units.
C) The right to direct others to conform to decisions, policies, rules, and objectives.
D) Structure that combines line and staff authority.

Question 46

Supervisors cannot eliminate an informal organization:

A) Because the grapevine will always alert group members of the supervisors' intention to do so.
B) Unless they befriend the group's leader, which will cause the group to turn on the leader and then disband.
C) Because they did not establish the organization.
D) Until they create jobs for their employees that meet all of the employees' social and security needs.

Question 47

All of the following are typical reasons why management restructures an organization EXCEPT:

A) To reduce costs.
B) To provide employees with easier access to senior executives.
C) To streamline operations.
D) To become more competitive.

Question 48

Which need do informal work groups satisfy?

A) Physiological.
B) Biological.
C) Social.
D) All of the above.

Question 49

Which of the following is NOT a factor that influences the span of management?

A) Gender.
B) Employee abilities.
C) Staff assistance that is available.
D) The complexity of the tasks employees perform.

Question 50

Which of the following organizations would be LEAST likely to utilize a line-and-staff-type organizational structure?

A) A family-owned restaurant.
B) A manufacturing company that employs 500 workers.
C) A large bank.
D) A national chain of electronic stores.

Question 51

If the unity of command principle is followed:

A) Each employee will report to only one manager.
B) Each employee will report to several managers.
C) A project management type structure will be used.
D) Employees manage themselves.

Question 52

Dividing work into components and specialized tasks to improve efficiency and output is called:

A) Departmentation.
B) Specialization.
C) Classification.
D) Organization.

Question 53

The span of management principle states that:

A) There is a set number of employees a supervisor can manage effectively.
B) There is an upper limit on the number of employees a supervisor can manage effectively.
C) There is no limit on the number of employees a supervisor can manage effectively.
D) There is no telling a supervisor how many employees they can oversee.

Question 54

Samuel works for the Human Resources department, and provides information to both the Sales and Finance departments among others. Samuel works for a:

A) Line department.
B) Project management department.
C) Staff department.
D) It is impossible to tell.

Question 55

Which of the following is covered in a job specification?

A) The principle elements of the job.
B) The education that is required for the job.
C) The job duties.
D) All of the above.

Question 56

An employee who manages other employees and performs limited managerial functions, but is not considered part of management, is called a(n):

A) Temporary employee.
B) Supervisor.
C) Lead person.
D) None of the above.

Question 57

Fewer levels of management tend to exist in organizations where managers:

A) All supervise the same number of employees.
B) Have authority over an appropriate number of employees.
C) Supervise large numbers of employees.
D) Oversee few employees.

Question 58

Which of the following are advantages of maintaining an up-to-date organization chart?

A) It helps employees understand formal and informal authority and responsibility relationships.
B) It provides a demographic overview of the employees.
C) It tells you how much money each employee is currently paid.
D) All of the above are advantages.

Question 59

Which of the following is an example of a formal organization?

A) Grapevine.
B) Department.
C) Social network.
D) All of the above.

Question 60

Which of the following statements about project management type organizational structures is NOT true?

A) The matrix arrangement adds horizontal dimensions to the typical vertical orientation of the organizational structure.
B) The matrix arrangement allows managers to work on several projects at once.
C) Employees who are assigned to work on projects under this structure typically come from staff departments within the organization.
D) The matrix structure allows organizations to coordinate activities across departments.

Question 61

What have been the practices of the organizations that have downsized most effectively?

Question 62

Describe the role that the chairperson of a meeting serves.

Question 63

Briefly describe some steps a supervisor should take when making work assignments.

Question 64

Which organizational structure defies the unity of command principle? Why?

Question 65

What can a supervisor do to influence an informal organization?

Question 66

What are some guidelines for effectively planning and leading a meeting?

Question 67

What is the difference between job description and job specification? Provide examples.

Question 68

Simply stated, what is an "ideal" organizational structure?

Question 69

The chairperson of a meeting should be responsible for all of the following, EXCEPT:

A) Keeping the meeting focused.
B) Jotting down the minutes of the meeting.
C) Asking provocative questions.
D) Summarizing the actions taken before adjourning the meeting.

Question 70

What must be taken into consideration when trying to identify the appropriate span of management?