Deck 5: Digital Systems and the Design of Work

Question 1

Which model suggests that employee attitudes may change if they think the new system will help them to do more or better work for the same effort, and that it's easy to use. Employee participation in the system's design and implementation also helps.

A) Information Management Model (IMM)
B) Employee Technology Model (ETM)
C) Capability Maturity Model (CMM)
D) Computer Access Model (CAM)
E) Technology Acceptance Model (TAM)

Answer 1

E

Question 2

Team members who are _______________ and prefer to do several activities at one time may want to have IM or VOIP available to them so that they can communicate with their colleagues and still work on other tasks.

A) bichronous
B) monochronous
C) asynchronous
D) synchronous
E) polychronous

Answer 2

E

Question 3

Shoshana Zuboff studied how papermakers' jobs were changed by the introduction of computers. What was one of her findings?

A) Web portals were useful in a manufacturing context
B) The workers felt empowered by the technology
C) The workers sabotaged the technology
D) The managers were unable to take their typical shortcuts
E) The workers were no longer able to smell and squeeze the pulp, resulting in lower productivity

Answer 3

E

Question 4

While there are many advantages to working remotely, there are some potential problems. For example, once work has been successfully performed remotely, a company may find economic reasons to let go of workers and choose to _______ the work abroad.

A) Outplace
B) Offshore
C) Automate
D) Recruit
E) Isolate

Question 5

All of the following are new types of jobs created by the growing reliance on technology EXCEPT:

A) Database administrator
B) Web site designers
C) Network security advisor
D) Editors/writers
E) Social media specialists

Question 6

IT has altered employees and the way they work by doing all of the following EXCEPT:

A) Creating new types of jobs
B) Greatly changing day-to-day tasks
C) Supporting new ways to manage talent
D) Needing more technically knowledgeable individuals
E) Providing distinct lines between work and play

Question 7

IBM has implemented a social network analysis tool that maps the _________ and the connections of IBM employees, supporting innovation by allowing employees to find others in the company with particular skills, interests or expertise.

A) knowledge
B) IS
C) friendships
D) departments
E) job descriptions

Question 8

Managers in today's global, virtual workforce must rethink how they break from traditional methods of managing, particularly in the all of the following ways EXCEPT:

A) Hiring new employees
B) Evaluating an employee's contribution to a team and the company
C) Creating individual-based rewards and compensation policies
D) Setting strategic objectives
E) Supervising employees

Question 9

Diversity in virtual teams increases the communication challenges. However, virtual teams with diversity have demonstrated which of the following?

A) More creative solutions.
B) Better compliance with deadlines.
C) Equitable performance management.
D) Tighter security policies.
E) A high degree of self-reliance.

Question 10

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) realized it did not have adequate policies, education, or technology in place for remote workers when:

A) An employee whose laptop carrying unencrypted, sensitive military personnel information was stolen.
B) Because of lack of coordination, all remote workers were not available for an extended period of time.
C) Employees posted sensitive data on a public social networking site.
D) Employees copied sensitive data over an unsecured network.
E) A virus from an employee's remote computer crashed the VA's intranet.

Question 11

Steve works for a pharmaceutical company and he specializes in marketing and sales. He generally works from home. According to the text, what type of worker is Steve?

A) Teleworking
B) Mobile device
C) Global worker
D) Vagabond worker
E) Contract worker

Question 12

Which collaboration technology is becoming more and more popular both inside and outside organizations, consuming much of our attention on a day-to-day basis?

A) Intranet
B) Wikis
C) VoIP
D) Social networking on mobile devices
E) Talking on mobile phones

Question 13

The concept of "jobs" is being replaced with the concept of work, requiring a framework that links the IS Strategy with the organization strategy to answer all of the following EXCEPT:

A) What work will be performed?
B) Who is going to do the work?
C) Where will the work be performed?
D) When will the work be performed?
E) Who will develop the IS?

Question 14

What was involved in the American Express BlueWork program?

A) A system that tracks the hours each employee works in a given day
B) Employees are provided with opportunities for flexible arrangements
C) Employees are provided with better office facilities so they stay in the office longer
D) Employees can work on tasks they choose, as long as they are in the office
E) Employees who are wary of newer technologies

Question 15

Which virtual team challenge is more difficult for managers to manage/manipulate since there may be a great deal of difference between groups and individuals?

A) communication
B) technology
C) diversity
D) management
E) location

Question 16

To help employees accept new technologies like an information system, a manager will do all of the following EXCEPT:

A) Ensure employees find the system easy to use
B) Demonstrate that the system will allow them do more or better work for the same amount of effort
C) Train the user on the new system
D) Reward users of the new system
E) Provide minimal rationale for the new system

Question 17

The qualities found in a successful remote worker include all of the following EXCEPT:

A) Self-discipline
B) Socialized into the corporate culture
C) Self-starter
D) Ineffective communicator
E) Proficient in a wide range of technologies

Question 18

Which one of the following is NOT a factor driving the use of teleworking?

A) Geographic flexibility
B) Higher productivity
C) Higher job satisfaction
D) Lower employee turnover
E) Stronger sense of company culture

Question 19

The main benefit of ________________ is that users can work collaboratively to easily create and edit Web pages, and link them to useful resources.

A) a wiki
B) Groupware
C) RSS (web feeds)
D) Social networking sites
E) a Virtual Private Network

Question 20

Which one of the following is a valid statement?

A) The cost to access information has risen.
B) It takes more time to access information.
C) Personal productivity has dropped as a result of technology.
D) Traditional job roles have not changed much as a result of technology.
E) Most jobs today have a significant information systems component.

Question 21

Teams operate in one of four ways, which are represented by combinations of two dimensions: "place" vs "time," and each dimension is either "same" or "different."

Question 22

The factors driving the emergence of telecommuting include: changing demographics and lifestyle preferences, more powerful technologies, increasing reliance on web-based technologies, and _____________________.

Question 23

One of the best examples of outcome controls is the re-hiring of Steve Jobs by Apple as CEO

Question 24

Today's IT increases the effectiveness of workers, particularly with the use of both ________ tools and collaboration tools.

Question 25

__________________is an advantage of virtual teams where members in different parts of the world can cooperate to get work done faster due to time zone differences. Teams can upload their results every evening and another distant team can download those files immediately, in what is the start of their day.

Question 26

The traditional approach uses subjective observation while the digital approach involves ____________.

Question 27

As a result of increased flow of information, firms have seen an increase in middle managers.

Question 28

Retail workers and restaurant waitstaff are the most likely workers to be replaced by automation and robots.

Question 29

Technology today has increased the ways work blends together with other aspects of life. This is very similar to how work was configured in ____________ societies.

Question 30

According to Thomas Friedman, collaboration is the way that small companies can "act big" and flourish in today's flat world.

Question 31

The management of financial, material project, and human resources is a matter of __________________controls..

Question 32

Two dimensions of considering virtual team activity are: same or different ______ and same or different ______.

Question 33

Employees may resist a change in IS by: denying that the system is up and running, trying to convince others it has no value, refusing to use the system, and/or _________ the system by distorting or altering inputs.

Question 34

The type of controls that will be most likely be used for remote workers is:

A) Behavior
B) Electric shock
C) Outcome
D) All of the above
E) None of the above

Question 35

Telecommuting is (more/less) accepted by people in countries such as Japan and China

Question 36

Knowledge-based work allows employees to work remotely rather than having to physically be present at a store, manufacturing facility, or office building.

Question 37

The Technology Acceptance Model states that the two main drivers of system use are management mandates and incentives.

Question 38

The Internet greatly enhances collaboration.

Question 39

__________________are members of the generation that's grown up using computers, the Web, and social network sites as a normal, integrated part of their lives.

Question 40

Virtual teams and remote work have advantages but no known disadvantages over face-to-face teams and showing up at an office.

Question 41

Match the factor driving the use of telecommuting with its effect.
$\begin{array}{|l|l|}\hline\begin{array}{l}\text { Shift to } \\\text { knowledge-based } \\\text { work }\end{array} & \begin{array}{l}\text { Removes the requirement to perform work at } \\\text { a specific location. }\end{array} \\\hline \begin{array}{l}\text { Changing } \\\text { demographics and } \\\text { lifestyle } \\\text { preferences }\end{array} & \begin{array}{l}\text { Provides worker's with geographic and time- } \\\text { shifting flexibility. }\end{array} \\\hline \text { Reliance on Web } & \begin{array}{l}\text { Provides workers with the ability to stay } \\\text { connected to co-workers and customers }\end{array} \\\hline \text { Energy concerns } & \begin{array}{l}\text { Reduces the costs of commuting and } \\\text { maintaining office space, and can reduce } \\\text { travel. }\end{array} \\\hline \text { New technologies } & \begin{array}{l}\text { Makes working remotely practical and cost } \\\text { effective. }\end{array} \\\hline\end{array}$

Question 42

Describe the advantages and disadvantages the use of robots present in the workplace.

Question 43

The life cycle of a virtual team consists of 5 phases. List these phases in the order they occur in the life cycle.
$$\begin{array} { | l | l | } \hline 1 ^ { \text {st } } & \text { Preparation } \\\hline 2 ^ { \text {nd } } & \text { Lanuch } \\\hline 3 ^ { \text {rd } } & \text { Perfornarnce marnagenent } \\\hline 4 ^ { \text {th } } & \text { Team development } \\\hline 5 ^ { \text {th } } & \text { Disbarnding } \\\hline\end{array}$$

Question 44

Identify the following technologies as primarily supporting either communication or collaboration efforts.
$$\begin{array} { | l | l | } \hline \text { Corrmurication tool } & \text { E-mail } \\\hline \text { Cornrmuication tool } & \text { Instart messaging } \\\hline \text { Cornrmuication tool } & \text { Video teleconferencing } \\\hline \text { Collaboration tool } & \text { Social networking sites } \\\hline \text { Collaboration tool } & \text { Blogs } \\\hline \text { Collaboration tool } & \text { Groupware } \\\hline\end{array}$$

Question 45

Explain how IS radically changed the paper maker's work at a paper mill.

Question 46

Lewin's change model to gain acceptance of new technology is based on 3 stages. Order the stages based on the stage a manager would seek to achieve 1^st and so on.
$$\begin{array} { | l | l | } \hline \text { 1st } & \text { Unfreezing } \\\hline \text { 2nd } & \text { Charnging } \\\hline \text { 3rd } & \text { Refreezing } \\\hline\end{array}$$

Question 47

List the challenges that a global, virtual team must overcome to be successful.

Question 48

How have hiring practices been impacted by IT?

Question 49

Describe one job that once existed but today is obsolete (or is slowly becoming obsolete) because of technology.

Question 50

Data entry has always been a challenge in many business processes. There are technologies that have removed this challenge by allowing data to be captured at the time it is created, reducing the need for data entry clerks. List a specific example of this technology and the impact it has had on a particular industry.

Question 51

Match the technology with its classification.
$$\begin{array} { | l | l | } \hline \text { Skype } & \text { Voice over Intermet Protocol (VoIP) } \\\hline \text { Wikipedia } & \text { Wiki } \\\hline \text { SharePoirt } & \text { Groupware } \\\hline \text { FTP } & \text { File Trarsfer } \\\hline \text { Facebook } & \text { Social networking site } \\\hline\end{array}$$

Question 52

Why are teams using collaborative tools like groupware and wikis to coordinate their work rather than a communication tool like e-mail?

Question 53

Lewin's change model to gain acceptance of new technology is based on 3 stages. Match the stage to its objective.
$$\begin{array} { | l | l | } \hline \text { Unfreezing } & \begin{array} { l } \text { Motivate employees for the new } \\\text { technology. }\end{array} \\\hline \text { Changing } & \begin{array} { l } \text { Provide ernployees with the new } \\\text { technology }\end{array} \\\hline \text { Refreezing } & \begin{array} { l } \text { Reinforce the value of the new technology } \\\text { by highlighting successes. }\end{array} \\\hline\end{array}$$

Question 54

Match the scenarios below as either representative of a virtual team or a more traditional team (non-virtual team).
$$\begin{array} { | l | l | } \hline \text { Virtual team } & \begin{array} { l } \text { Scheduling meetings is difficult because of } \\\text { different time zones. }\end{array} \\\hline \text { Traditional team } & \text { Tearns often have face-to-face discussions. } \\\hline \text { Virtual team } & \begin{array} { l } \text { Reliance on techrology to support tearn } \\\text { effectiveness. }\end{array} \\\hline \text { Traditional team } & \text { Easily forned proup identity. } \\\hline \text { Virtual team } & \begin{array} { l } \text { It's necessary for individuals to have strong } \\\text { cornrnuinication skills. }\end{array} \\\hline \text { Virtual team } & \text { More likely to be diverse. } \\\hline\end{array}$$

Question 55

Identify the following technologies as primarily supporting either communication or collaboration efforts.
$\begin{array}{|l|l|}\hline \text { Communication tool } & \text { Gmail } \\\hline \text { Communication tool } & \text { Twitter } \\\hline \text { Communication tool } & \text { RSS feed from Yahoo! } \\\hline \text { Collaboration tool } & \text { LinkedIn } \\\hline \text { Collaboration tool } & \text { SharePoint } \\\hline\end{array}$

Question 56

A virtual team is faced with communication, technology, and ______ challenges.