Deck 7: Foundations of Planning

Question 1

A good understanding of the concept of "Qadar" should lead to no planning for the future.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

Strategic plans can be categorized as long term, directional, and single use.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

An organization's real goals are often quite irrelevant to what actually goes on.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

Strategic goals are related to the financial performance of the organization.

Question 5

Fatalistic attitudes have never been displayed in Arab societies.

Question 6

Most businesses have only one objective: to make a profit.

Question 7

Even without planning, departments and individuals always work together, allowing organizations to move efficiently toward their goals.

Question 8

When uncertainty is high and managers must be flexible in order to respond to unexpected changes, directional plans are preferable.

Question 9

Most companies' goals can be classified as either strategic or financial.

Question 10

In MBO, or 'management by objectives', goals are often less well- defined, giving managers and employees more flexibility to respond to changing conditions.

Question 11

Planning is concerned with how objectives are to be accomplished, not what is to be accomplished.

Question 12

Goals are the foundation of organizational planning.

Question 13

Directional plans have clearly defined objectives.

Question 14

Operational plans encompass a particular operational area of the organization.

Question 15

Goals and objectives are two terms used interchangeably in the planning process.

Question 16

Research indicates that nonplanning organizations always outperform planning organizations.

Question 17

Planning provides direction to managers and nonmanagers alike.

Question 18

'Long- term' used to mean anything over three years, but now it means anything over one year.

Question 19

'Short- term' plans are those covering one year or less.

Question 20

An integrated network of goals is sometimes called a means- end chain.

Question 21

In formal planning, .

A) general goals are developed and not written
B) specific goals covering a period of years are defined
C) general goals covering an unspecified period of years are defined
D) specific goals are developed and not written

Question 22

An MBO program consists of four elements: loose goals, participative decision making, an explicit time period, and performance feedback.

Question 23

In today's dynamic business environment, successful firms recognize that planning is an ongoing process, not a tablet of rules cast in stone.

Question 24

Managers must be able to follow through with plans even if conditions change.

Question 25

Planning can't eliminate change. Managers plan in order to .

A) decide what needs to be done when a change in environments happen
B) be prepared for when changes in management at the top occurs
C) have the appropriate materials available when the demand for them comes about
D) anticipate changes and develop the most effective response to changes

Question 26

The effect of planning on managers is that it forces them to .

A) respond indiscriminately
B) develop bureaucratic response models
C) consider the impact of change
D) react to change

Question 27

Planning is a waste of time in a dynamic environment.

Question 28

One criticism of planning is that it's not enough for managers just to plan.

Question 29

Formal planning involves which of the following aspects?

A) writing objectives
B) developing general objectives
C) distributing the plan to all managerial employees
D) planning for up to one year

Question 30

In times of dynamic environmental change, well- defined and precisely developed action plans enhance organizational performance.

Question 31

A well- designed goal should be measurable and quantifiable.

Question 32

Planning gives direction, reduces the impact of change, minimizes waste and redundancy, and .

A) sets the standards used in controlling
B) sets the basis used for promotion of individuals within the organization
C) eliminates departments that are not needed within the plan
D) establishes the workloads for each of the departments

Question 33

Goals that are too easy to accomplish are not motivating and neither are goals that are not attainable even with exceptional effort.

Question 34

A major argument against formal plans is that they can't replace intuition and creativity.

Question 35

Effective planning in dynamic environments means flattening the organizational hierarchy.

Question 36

In a typical MBO program, successful achievement of objectives is reinforced by performance- based rewards.

Question 37

Planning involves defining the organization's goals, establishing an overall strategy for achieving those goals, and developing a comprehensive set of plans _ .

A) to establish the quality and quantity of work to be accomplished
B) to determine which manager will be in charge of which department
C) as to which shift will perform what work functions
D) for organizational work activities

Question 38

The second step in goal setting is to determine the goals individually or with input from others.

Question 39

The more the current plans affect future commitments, the longer the time frame for which managers should plan.

Question 40

Studies of actual MBO programs find mixed results in terms of its effects on overall employee performance and organizational productivity.

Question 41

Plans are documents that outline how goals are going to be met and _ .

A) identify how much capital is required to complete the goals
B) define which department has what responsibilities needed to accomplish the goals
C) tell what materials and processes are necessary to fulfill the goals
D) describe resource allocations, schedules, and other necessary actions to accomplish the goals

Question 42

To encourage proper planning in Arab societies, Arab managers need to _.

A) rely less on their intuition
B) cautiously implement modern technology
C) develop a proper understanding of the concept of Qadar
D) decrease their exposure to the world

Question 43

When we categorize plans as being directional versus specific, we are categorizing them by .

A) frequency of use
B) specificity
C) breadth
D) depth

Question 44

Planning is often called the primary management function because it .

A) creates the vision for the organizational members to work toward
B) establishes the basis for all the other functions
C) sets the tone for the organizational culture
D) offers some basis for future decision making

Question 45

In studies in which formal planning did not lead to higher performance, _.

A) management's execution of the plans was most often the reason for failure
B) employees' implementation of the plans was the primary reason for failure
C) the external environment often was the reason
D) lack of communication was most often the reason for failure

Question 46

Which of the following is true concerning an organization's stated objectives?

A) Organizations typically have internal and external sets of objectives.
B) Organizations may issue different objectives to stockholders, customers, employees, and the public.
C) Stated objectives are usually in line with short- term actions.
D) Organizations issue identical objectives to all constituents.

Question 47

Goals are objectives, _ .

A) and we use the two terms interchangeably
B) but goals are long term, and objectives are short term
C) but goals are used in reference to profits, and objectives are used in reference to production output
D) but goals are used by top management, and objectives are used by first- level management

Question 48

One charge against Arab culture in relation to planning relates to the concept of _.

A) determinism
B) consumerism
C) fundamentalism
D) fatalism

Question 49

What should a person do to understand what the real objectives of the organization are?

A) Watch television news reports.
B) Read their annual report.
C) Observe organizational members' actions.
D) Attend a stockholders' annual meeting.

Question 50

The quality of the planning process and the appropriate implementation of the plans probably .

A) don't contribute to high performance nearly as much as the extent of planning
B) contribute less to high performance than does the extent of planning
C) contribute more to high performance than does the extent of planning
D) should be studied more to factually determine which contributes the most

Question 51

can evaluate whether an organization is successful.

A) No single measure
B) Stakeholders are the only groups that
C) Plans are also a measure that
D) A goal is the only measure that

Question 52

When managers emphasize one goal, they .

A) assure that the one goal will be accomplished even above the established level
B) make the goal easier to be accomplished by all organizational members
C) deny the organizational members the opportunity to grow and develop
D) ignore other goals that must also be reached if long- term success is to achieved

Question 53

Using a single objective can result in unethical practices because managers _.

A) will manipulate the outcomes reported to assure that the one objective is achieved
B) want to satisfy the stockholders of the organization
C) will ignore other important parts of their jobs in order to look good on that one measure
D) will use overtime to accomplish that single objective without reporting it

Question 54

Governmental regulations, political instability, and other critical environmental forces constrain managers' options and _ the impact of planning on an organization's performance.

A) reduce
B) neutralize
C) increase
D) don't affect

Question 55

Studies of performance in organizations that plan have reached .

A) generally positive conclusions regarding the benefits of planning
B) generally negative conclusions regarding the benefits of planning
C) somewhat negative conclusions regarding the benefits of planning
D) generally mixed conclusions regarding the benefits of planning

Question 56

Official statements of what an organization says and what it wants its various stakeholders to believe are referred to as .

A) committed goals
B) real goals
C) stated goals
D) comprehensive goals

Question 57

Planning involves two important elements: .

A) plans and decisions
B) goals and plans
C) goals and decisions
D) goals and actions

Question 58

The conflict in stated goals exists because organizations respond to a variety of _ .

A) stockholders
B) external environments
C) governmental regulations
D) stakeholders

Question 59

The most common ways to describe organizational plans are by their frequency of use, time frame, specificity, and .

A) flexibility
B) attainability
C) breadth
D) quantifiability

Question 60

When we categorize plans as being single- use versus standing, we categorize them by .

A) specificity
B) time frame
C) frequency of use
D) breadth

Question 61

A well- designed goal should be .

A) short and very specific about expected outcomes
B) specific and within a manageable time frame
C) identifiable to even the first- line supervisors
D) written in terms of outcomes rather than actions

Question 62

With traditional goal setting, employees' work efforts at their respective levels and work areas are geared to meet goals _ .

A) that have been assigned in their specific areas of responsibility
B) so that their immediate supervisors will be retained in their position
C) so that the top management will be retained in their position
D) within the shortest amount of time possible

Question 63

Standing plans are ongoing plans that provide .

A) stakeholders with identifiable goals that the organization will always strive to achieve
B) guidance for activities performed repeatedly
C) general directions on how to accomplish an identifiable task
D) the stockholders with identifiable goals that the organization will always strive to achieve

Question 64

With traditional goal setting, the assumption is that .

A) lower- level managers understand more of what needs to be accomplished
B) lower- level managers are incapable of setting goals
C) top managers know what is best because they see the "big picture"
D) top managers are unfamiliar with setting goals, so lower- level managers are assigned to do the task

Question 65

Strategic plans tend to cover a longer period of time than operational goals and also .

A) cover a more narrow view of the organization
B) cover the financial projections of the planning period
C) include an estimate of the profits that the stockholder can anticipate as dividends
D) cover a broader view of the organization

Question 66

A legislative plan that calls for a 2.45 percent increase in property tax for the next 2 years would be considered what type of plan?

A) Specific
B) Operational
C) Strategic
D) Directional

Question 67

Specific plans are clearly defined and .

A) keep the stakeholders informed of the organization's objectives
B) allow managers to interpret their "flexibility" on their own
C) leave no room for interpretation
D) give the managers authority to interpret the plans for their area of responsibility

Question 68

A well- designed goal should be .

A) nearly unattainable, so that even if the unit or employee misses the goal, performance is still very high
B) clear as to a time frame
C) easy to achieve
D) discussed at orientation

Question 69

In the MBO system, .

A) objectives are determined by management
B) progress toward objectives is periodically reviewed
C) goals are only reviewed at the time of completion
D) goals are used as controls

Question 70

As organizational environments have become more uncertain, .

A) organizations are having to make longer term plans
B) organizations have to resist the uncertainties to keep the plans moving toward the objectives
C) the definition of long term has changed
D) organizations have to request that the government pass more legislation restricting the amount of uncertainty

Question 71

What happens to traditional goals as they make their way down from top management to lower levels?

A) They lose clarity and unity.
B) They unite the workforce.
C) They purposely remain vague and nonspecific.
D) Lower- level managers must continually revise and correct them.

Question 72

Directional plans .

A) last for 3- 5 years
B) meet the needs of a unique situation
C) have clearly defined objectives
D) identify general guidelines

Question 73

is a one- time plan specifically designed to meet the needs of a unique situation.

A) A single- use plan
B) A strategic plan
C) An operational plan
D) A multipurpose plan

Question 74

When the hierarchy of organizational goals is clearly defined, it forms a .

A) level- level chain
B) weakest- link chain
C) means- ends chain
D) hierarchical- link chain

Question 75

Goals provide the direction for all management decisions and actions and form the _ .

A) basis for the sharing of profits with the employees at the end
B) desired outcomes that the organizational members will achieve
C) profit basis that the organizations will accomplish for stockholders
D) criteria against which actual accomplishments are measured

Question 76

The flexibility inherent in directional plans must be weighed against the _ .

A) loss of clarity provided by specific plans
B) gain of a longer planning period provided by specific plans
C) gain of a shorter planning period provided by specific plans
D) loss of a shorter planning period provided by specific plans

Question 77

A city's policy concerning smoking in public buildings that provides guidance for police action would be considered what type of plan?

A) Standing
B) Single- use
C) Directional
D) Contingency

Question 78

Management by objectives (MBO) is a management system in which the first step is setting specific performance goals that are .

A) developed in such a manner that the employees are self- directed and do not need supervision
B) determined by top management with clarity so that the objectives are clear to even the most incompetent employee
C) jointly determined by employees and their managers
D) established and that can be easily accomplished

Question 79

What is the first step in a typical MBO program?

A) The organization's overall objectives and strategies are formulated.
B) Unit managers collaboratively set specific objectives for their units with their managers.
C) Major objectives are allocated among divisional and departmental units.
D) Action plans are specified and agreed upon by managers and employees.

Question 80

With traditional goal setting, the goals are set at the top level of management and _.

A) then they are delegated to the next lower level to be achieved
B) then it becomes the responsibility of first- line management to achieve those goals
C) then they are broken down into subgoals for each level of the organization
D) all the efforts to achieve those goals are directed by top management, to ensure that they are achieved