Deck 8: Supervisory Principles for Organizing

Question 1

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

Answer 1

False

Question 2

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

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Informal organizations do not exist in well-run companies.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

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

Question 5

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 6

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

Question 7

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

Question 8

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

Question 9

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

Question 10

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

Question 11

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 12

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

Question 13

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

Question 14

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

Question 15

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 16

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

Question 17

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

Question 18

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

Question 19

Informal groups always make a supervisor's job easier.

Question 20

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

Question 21

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

Question 22

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) The culture encourages all employees to be the best they can be.
D) Either the goals of effective work performance or high job satisfaction exist.

Question 23

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 24

Without the proper chairperson, meetings will not be effective.

Question 25

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

Question 26

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

Question 27

Other names for downsizing are right-sizing and restructuring.

Question 28

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 29

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

Question 30

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

Question 31

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

Question 32

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

Question 33

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

Question 34

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 35

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

Question 36

Which need do informal work groups satisfy?

A) Physiological
B) Biological
C) Social
D) All of these answers

Question 37

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

Question 38

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

Question 39

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

Question 40

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

Question 41

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 42

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 43

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 44

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 45

Line authority provides:

A) Counsel, advice, support, and service in a person's area of expertise.
B) Direction to others requiring them to conform to decisions, policies, rules, and objectives.
C) Both a and b.
D) Neither a or b.

Question 46

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 47

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 these answers.

Question 48

Most supervisors are given:

A) The opportunity to structure new departments.
B) Already existing departments.
C) Departments that require no re-structuring.
D) Both b and c

Question 49

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

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

Question 50

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 51

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 52

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 53

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 54

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

A) departmentation.
B) specialization.
C) classification.
D) organization.

Question 55

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 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 these answers.

Question 57

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 58

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 59

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 60

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 61

Brandon has been selected as the lead IT analyst for a resource center project at a small virtual company. For the time being, his primary supervisor will be the manager of the resource center, however he will also report to the company's IT manager for technical issues and tasks. This type of management structure is referred to as:

A) Functional structure
B) Product structure
C) Project management structure
D) Organic structure

Question 62

William is a supervisor at his work, where he has three employees that report directly to him. William reports to his boss Jennifer, who reports to the president of the company. This type of organizational structure can best be described as:

A) Informal structure
B) Grapevine structure
C) Formal structure
D) Hybrid structure

Question 63

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

Question 64

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

Question 65

ARVA International is a nonprofit organization that strives to promote social justice throughout the world. At ARVA, employees continually improve their skills and expand their capacities to meet the organization's social mission. ARVA International can best be described as what type of organization?

A) Learning organization
B) Teaching organization
C) Social organization
D) Empowered organization

Question 66

Landing Page Services has spent the last several months streamlining production and cross-training employees so they can do multiple tasks. Landing Page most likely uses which of the following?

A) Virtual organization processes
B) Lean manufacturing
C) Just in time inventory control
D) Self-directed teams

Question 67

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

Question 68

Sean and Maurice, colleagues at work, get along very well. They regularly discuss professional as well as social matters, and occasionally meet after work with their families. This type of relationship demonstrates what type of organization?

A) Organic organization
B) Mechanistic organization
C) Formal organization
D) Informal organization

Question 69

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

Question 70

Describe the role that the chairperson of a meeting serves.

Question 71

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

Question 72

At K2X Industries, top management believe that having more than one boss usually leads to unsatisfactory performance by the employee due to confusion over who is in charge. As a result, all employees only report to one boss. This demonstrates which management principle?

A) Span of control
B) Unity of command
C) Decentralization
D) Flat organizational structure

Question 73

XYC Company recently restructured it's entire company, eliminating many levels of supervision to focus on customer processes rather than functions. After the restructuring, XYC is most likely a _________ corporation.

A) horizontal
B) vertical
C) virtual
D) bureaucratic

Question 74

To allow team members to gain leadership experience, in many organizations, the role of __________ rotates regularly.

A) group leader
B) supervisor
C) arbitrator
D) meeting facilitator

Question 75

What can a supervisor do to influence an informal organization?

Question 76

Managers at IT Inc. see a great deal of employee turnover. For this reason, supervisors avoid becoming overly reliant on any one individual lest that individual choose to leave in the near future. IT Inc. is employing which management principle?

A) Project management principle
B) Principle of organizational stability
C) Principle of reengineering
D) Division of work principle

Question 77

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

Question 78

The Benex One firm recently revamped its entire organization. Instead of being organized based on departments and functions, the company now has fluid departments that change based on the projects being developed as they are demanded by customers. This is an example of:

A) Restructuring
B) Downsizing
C) Retrofitting
D) Reengineering

Question 79

Alina works at a company where she meets with a group to regularly set work-related tasks. Individuals within this group have considerable authority to make many of their own job-related decisions. Alina's company utilizes which of these?

A) Self-directed teams
B) Focus groups
C) Reengineering teams
D) Staff authority

Question 80

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