Deck 15: Organisation Culture

Question 1

Research into the process of socialisation indicates that socialisation programmes change new employees' values,

Answer 1

False

Question 2

Strong organisational cultures are always better than weak organisational cultures.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

The statement 'the customer is always right' is an example of a cultural value.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

A company intranet that is rarely updated can still have a strong effect on company culture as long as its content is good.

Question 5

Symbolic stories effectively transmit the complex concepts of an organisation's culture.

Question 6

A major obstacle to changing an organisation's culture is that, even if the culture is successfully changed, it is likely to change back shortly thereafter.

Question 7

Intranets that contain 'like it or not?' feedback tools and features that allow employees to contribute reflect a participative culture that values employee contributions.

Question 8

Due to the difficulty of changing organisational culture, no major company has ever managed to change its culture.

Question 9

Most managers are NOT in a position to create an organisational culture.

Question 10

The values that make up an organisation's culture are often taken for granted.

Question 11

Managers interested in changing cultures should attempt to substitute stories and myths that support old cultural values with stories and myths that support new ones.

Question 12

Entrepreneurial types of activities are typically welcome within large organisations.

Question 13

Innovation and organisational culture are not generally related.

Question 14

Employees are socialised into organisations through observation alone.

Question 15

When an organisation's enacted values contradict its espoused values, new employees adopt the espoused values.

Question 16

A major obstacle to changing an organisation's culture is that upper-level managers may sometimes inadvertently revert to old patterns of behaviour.

Question 17

An organisation's culture can vary across divisions and even across managers.

Question 18

Myths may be part of an organisation's culture.

Question 19

Innovation involves targeted aspects of the organisation.

Question 20

Not all organisations have cultural values that are consistent with high performance.

Question 21

All of the following are mechanisms that can affect the socialisation of workers EXCEPT

A) reading corporate statements about organisational culture.
B) observing experienced employees.
C) reading corporate pamphlets.
D) attending formal training.
E) All of these are correct.

Question 22

An organisation's culture takes a __________ time to evolve, and it takes a __________ time to change it.

A) short, long
B) long, short
C) short, short
D) long, long
E) moderate, moderate

Question 23

If a company's top managers engage in illegal or unethical behaviour, these are the enacted values and norms of the organisation.

Question 24

__________ is a system of shared values, norms and assumptions that guides organisation members' attitudes and behaviours.

A) An enacted value
B) An espoused value
C) An artefact
D) Organisational culture
E) Diversity

Question 25

Ben wants to take advantage of the existing culture of his organisation.To do this, Ben must first

A) achieve productivity through people.
B) empower his employees.
C) be fully aware of the culture's values.
D) practise hands-on management.
E) implement cultural innovations.

Question 26

Organisational culture can be managed by

A) sticking to the knitting.
B) conducting in-depth research and evaluation.
C) allowing autonomy and entrepreneurship.
D) taking advantage of the culture that is already there.
E) staying close to the customer.

Question 27

Weak cultures are always better than strong cultures.

Question 28

A(n) _________ is a physical manifestation of an organisation's culture.

A) enacted value
B) espoused value
C) artefact
D) assumption
E) formal practice

Question 29

Organisational culture is independent of organisational performance.

Question 30

The values that make up organisational culture are often

A) discussed among employees.
B) popularised in the company.
C) taken for granted.
D) used as a strategic planning tool.
E) celebrated on a monthly basis.

Question 31

According to Fortune magazine, the most admired organisations are those that are the most

A) profitable.
B) successful.
C) innovative.
D) functional.
E) improved.

Question 32

Assumptions are highly resistant to change.

Question 33

A dominating conflict culture is passive and disagreeable.

Question 34

Incremental innovations

A) are rarely necessary for radical or systems innovations.
B) are major breakthroughs that change or create industries.
C) occur much less frequently than radical and systems innovations.
D) force organisations to improve their products continuously.
E) create new functionality by assembling parts in new ways.

Question 35

Intrapreneurship

A) is most effective as a rare event in the organisation.
B) is most effective when it occurs in the research and development department alone.
C) occurs both inside and outside the organisation.
D) gives new organisations an edge over existing organisations.
E) is entrepreneurial activity that takes place within the organisation.

Question 36

Organisational culture helps people in an organisation understand

A) which actions are considered acceptable and which are considered unacceptable.
B) why their organisation is outperforming the competition.
C) how to improve their relations with customers.
D) when to best socialise new employees.
E) which types of problems are likely to arise in their company.

Question 37

All of the following statements are true about innovation EXCEPT

A) there are many risks associated with being an innovative company.
B) innovation is the process of creating and doing new things that are introduced into the marketplace.
C) one of the biggest challenges is using innovative technology in a cost-effective manner.
D) true organisational innovation is pervasive throughout the organisation.
E) only small organisations can truly be innovative.

Question 38

All of the following statements are true about socialisation EXCEPT

A) it is usually something that can be accomplished in a day-long new employee orientation programme.
B) it occurs in organisations in much the same way as it occurs in society.
C) it is the process through which individuals learn acceptable behaviour.
D) socialisation programmes do not necessarily change employees' values.
E) employees who are socialised into an organisation usually accept the actual cultural values rather than the formal values of the organisation.

Question 39

Which of the following is NOT a common theme of organisational culture?

A) Being casual or formal
B) Innovation
C) Ethics
D) Collaboration
E) These are all common themes of organisational culture.

Question 40

Culture resists change for all of the following reasons EXCEPT

A) it is typically communicated through stories and symbols.
B) it embodies the basic values in the organisation.
C) it changes so frequently that employees begin to resist further change.
D) it is often taken for granted.
E) it involves changing basic assumptions.

Question 41

__________ conflict management norms tend to avoid addressing conflict.

A) Active
B) Passive
C) Agreeable
D) Disagreeable
E) Strategic

Question 42

Origin stories, ceremonies, rituals and dress codes are all examples of

A) enacted values.
B) espoused values.
C) artefacts.
D) assumptions.
E) formal practices.

Question 43

__________ are those organisational values that have become so taken for granted over time that they become the core of the company's culture.

A) Enacted values
B) Espoused values
C) Artefacts
D) Assumptions
E) Formal practices

Question 44

The strength or weakness of a culture reflects the degree to which the culture

A) produces year-over-year bottom-line growth.
B) is consistent with the organisation's business strategy.
C) is consistent with employee behaviours and values.
D) promotes ethical behaviour.
E) resists change.

Question 45

In a __________ culture, employee values and behaviours are consistent with the organisation's values, and the culture is resistant to change.

A) strong negative
B) strong positive
C) weak negative
D) weak positive
E) moderate neutral

Question 46

__________ conflict management norms resolve conflict in a cooperative manner.

A) Active
B) Passive
C) Agreeable
D) Disagreeable
E) Strategic

Question 47

If a business strategy and corporate culture are pulling in two different directions, the __________ will win __________.

A) strategy, unless the culture is really strong
B) strategy, no matter how strong the culture is
C) culture, unless the strategy is extremely good
D) culture, no matter how good the strategy is
E) None of these are correct.

Question 48

In a __________ culture, the reaction to the arrival of the plant manager is: 'Heads up! The plant manager is coming onto the production floor - look busy!'

A) strong negative
B) strong positive
C) weak negative
D) weak positive
E) moderate neutral

Question 49

In a __________ culture, employee values and behaviours are consistent with the organisation's values, and the culture is receptive to change.

A) strong negative
B) strong positive
C) weak negative
D) weak positive
E) moderate neutral

Question 50

__________ values and norms are the values and norms that employees exhibit based on their observations of what actually goes on in the organisation.

A) Enacted
B) Espoused
C) Artefact
D) Assumed
E) Formal

Question 51

In a(n) __________ conflict culture, open confrontations are accepted, as are heated arguments and threats.

A) dominating
B) collaborative
C) strategic
D) avoidant
E) passive-aggressive

Question 52

__________ values and norms are the preferred values and norms explicitly stated by the organisation.

A) Enacted
B) Espoused
C) Artefact
D) Assumed
E) Formal

Question 53

A(n) __________ conflict culture strives to preserve order and control and/or to maintain harmony and interpersonal relationships.

A) dominating
B) collaborative
C) strategic
D) avoidant
E) passive-aggressive

Question 54

Rather than dealing openly with conflict, a(n) __________ conflict culture resists conflict with tactics such as withholding information or withdrawing from contact with co-workers.

A) dominating
B) collaborative
C) strategic
D) avoidant
E) passive-aggressive

Question 55

__________ conflict management norms resolve conflict in a competitive manner.

A) Active
B) Passive
C) Agreeable
D) Disagreeable
E) Strategic

Question 56

A conflict culture is a

A) culture that is characterised by a lot of disagreement.
B) set of shared norms for managing conflict.
C) culture that attempts to avoid conflict as much as possible.
D) set of shared norms for avoiding conflict.
E) culture that is internally inconsistent.

Question 57

In a(n) __________ conflict culture, employees actively manage and resolve conflicts cooperatively to find the best solution for all involved parties.

A) dominating
B) collaborative
C) strategic
D) avoidant
E) passive-aggressive

Question 58

__________ conflict management norms resolve conflict openly.

A) Active
B) Passive
C) Agreeable
D) Disagreeable
E) Strategic

Question 59

An organisation's assumptions are __________ and __________ resistant to change.

A) written down, moderately
B) explicit, not
C) explicit, highly
D) implicit, not
E) implicit, highly

Question 60

An organisation's culture of __________ reflects the extent to which majority members value efforts to increase minority representation, and whether the qualifications and abilities of minority members are questioned.

A) diversity
B) strategy
C) conflict
D) inclusion
E) multiculturalism

Question 61

Which of the following types of innovation is the least common?

A) Strategic
B) Radical
C) Systems
D) Incremental
E) Cultural

Question 62

In complex societies, the socialisation process takes many

A) days.
B) weeks.
C) months.
D) years.
E) centuries.

Question 63

What should a top manager who works in a company with performance-reducing values do?

A) Try to change the culture
B) Try to fire as many people as possible
C) Use restructuring to put all of the bad people in the same division
D) Use restructuring to dilute all of the bad people throughout the organisation
E) Try to sell off the company to a competitor

Question 64

Combining the gasoline engine with bicycle and carriage technology to create automobiles was an example of which of the following kinds of innovation?

A) Strategic
B) Radical
C) Systems
D) Incremental
E) Cultural

Question 65

Intranets with a narrow scope can reinforce a culture of

A) wisdom and humility.
B) laziness and cheapness.
C) focus and operational excellence.
D) economy and efficiency.
E) secrecy and information hoarding.

Question 66

A(n) __________ innovation is a major breakthrough that changes or creates whole industries.

A) strategic
B) radical
C) systems
D) incremental
E) cultural

Question 67

Because workgroups develop their own subcultures, __________ can be used to build a common cultural foundation.

A) mass e-mails
B) instant messaging
C) bulletin boards
D) intranets
E) IRC channels

Question 68

__________ is the process through which children learn to become adults in a society.

A) Entrepreneurship
B) Intrapreneurship
C) Innovation
D) Organisational socialisation
E) Socialisation

Question 69

__________ is the process of creating and doing new things that are introduced into the marketplace as products, processes, or services.

A) Organisational culture
B) Intrapreneurship
C) Entrepreneurship
D) Innovation
E) Strategy

Question 70

__________ is the process through which employees learn about their organisation's culture.

A) Socialisation
B) Organisational socialisation
C) Innovation
D) Entrepreneurship
E) Intrapreneurship

Question 71

Which of the following types of innovation is the most common?

A) Strategic
B) Radical
C) Systems
D) Incremental
E) Cultural

Question 72

The positivity or negativity of a culture reflects the degree to which the culture

A) produces year-on-year-bottom-line growth.
B) is consistent with the organisation's business strategy.
C) is consistent with employee behaviours and values.
D) promotes ethical behaviour.
E) resists change.

Question 73

A(n) __________ innovation continues the technical improvement and extends the applications of radical and systems innovations.

A) strategic
B) radical
C) systems
D) incremental
E) cultural

Question 74

When the culture they observe contradicts the culture formally espoused in corporate pamphlets, new employees come to accept

A) a mixture of the two.
B) the pamphlets, unless they prefer the observed culture.
C) the pamphlets, unless they are poorly written.
D) the actual cultural values rather than those formally espoused.
E) the actual cultural values rather than those formally espoused, unless the pamphlets are particularly convincing.

Question 75

The profile of an entrepreneur typically includes all of the following EXCEPT a(n)

A) focus on concrete results.
B) willingness to take risks.
C) appreciation for the status quo.
D) desire to assume responsibility.
E) need for achievement.

Question 76

Which of the following types of innovation do other innovations often rely on?

A) Strategic
B) Radical
C) Systems
D) Incremental
E) Cultural

Question 77

Which of the following is the most important mechanism of organisational socialisation?

A) Formal training
B) Observing the behaviour of others
C) Corporate pamphlets
D) Corporate statements
E) None of these are correct.

Question 78

The most common means of developing innovation in the traditional organisation is through

A) entrepreneurship.
B) intrapreneurship.
C) radical innovation.
D) corporate research.
E) a chief innovation officer.

Question 79

A(n) __________ innovation creates a new functionality by assembling existing parts in new ways.

A) strategic
B) radical
C) systems
D) incremental
E) cultural

Question 80

The Internet was an example of which of the following kinds of innovation?

A) Strategic
B) Radical
C) Systems
D) Incremental
E) Cultural