Deck 7: Individual and Group Decision Making: How Managers Make Things Happen

Question 1

The rational model of decision making is also called the logical model.

Answer 1

False
Explanation: The rational model of decision making,also called the classical model,explains how managers should make decisions.

Question 2

Tom is in the marketing department with Home Made Soups.He was given the responsibility of determining if customers like the new spicy chicken noodle soup.It is believed that over 4,000 customers purchased the new soup last month.If Tom surveys 25 of those customers,this is an appropriate sample size for decision making.

Answer 2

False
Explanation: Is there enough data on which to make a decision? The unrepresentative sample bias recommendation is that you need to be attuned to the importance of sample size.Example: If all the secretaries in your office say they prefer dairy creamer to real cream in their coffee,is that enough data on which to launch an ad campaign trumpeting the superiority of dairy creamer? It might if you polled 3,000 secretaries,but 3 or even 30 is too small a sample.

Question 3

The steps in the rational decision-making process are (1)identify the problem or opportunity, (2)think up alternative solutions, (3)evaluate the solution chosen, (4)evaluate alternatives and select a solution,and (5)implement the solution chosen.

Answer 3

False
Explanation: The steps in the rational decision-making process are (1)identify the problem or opportunity, (2)think up alternative solutions, (3)evaluate alternatives and select a solution,and (4)implement and evaluate the solution chosen (see Figure 7.1).

Question 4

Sue tends to have strong beliefs.When confronted with decision making,she tends to make her decisions based on her beliefs,even if evidence shows those beliefs are wrong.This is known as the past-beliefs perception.

Question 5

Satisficing is a weak method of decision making because the advantages gained by just making a quick decision to have an answer and not delaying a decision until all information is in and all alternatives are weighed,usually results in major problems.

Question 6

The rational model assumes that managers have complete information,and they are able to make an unemotional analysis,and make the best decision for the organization.

Question 7

Decision making is the process of identifying and choosing alternative courses of action.

Question 8

Some engineers design electronic products,such as DVD remote controls,with so many buttons that these devices are ultimately useful only to other engineers.As one writer noted,"People who design products are experts cursed by their knowledge,and they can't imagine what it's like to be as ignorant as the rest of us." This is known as the curse of knowledge.

Question 9

With satisficing,managers look for alternatives until they find one that is satisfactory,not optimal.

Question 10

Dwayne,the sales manager of IT Sales,mentioned to his assistant,Marla,"I just got off the phone with one of our best customers and he told me about quite a few customer service issues,and I'm glad he took the time to call.You know most people will not call companies when they have a problem;they just tell friends,family,and coworkers." This statement about who customers call when complaining about faulty customer service is accurate.

Question 11

The basic reason female investors make trades much less often than men is that women do a lot more research,and tend to base their investment decisions on considerations other than just numbers.

Question 12

Gretchen,the office manager in a small company,was told by her boss to start shopping for a new office copier,in addition to her many other duties.Although she spent some time shopping for the copier,she was limited by the lack of time,how much she has to spend,and the complexity of choices to select from.This is an example of an individual limited by bounded rationality.

Question 13

When confronted with a problem,the decision to be made is how to make improvements.This is known as diagnosis or analyzing the underlying causes.

Question 14

The rational model of decision making explains how managers should make decisions.

Question 15

Psychologist Daniel Kahneman describes two kinds of thinking: System 1,which is intuitive and largely unconscious,and System 2,which is analytical and conscious.

Question 16

When evaluating the alternatives of a decision,people need to base decisions strictly on cost,quality and feasibility.

Question 17

As a manager evaluates alternative solutions to a problem,that is the time to identify opportunities.

Question 18

Nonrational models of decision making assume that managers have complete information and are able to make the best decision for the organization,describing how managers ought to make decisions.It doesn't describe how managers actually make decisions.

Question 19

When the alternative chosen in a decision does not look like it is working,do not change things.You should always give it more time to work correctly.

Question 20

Doug,the CEO of an auto dealership,has to significantly reduce the hours of many employees due to the high costs from the Affordable Care Act.Doug knows that he is typically successful in implementing the correct alternative in decisions,even with sensitive issues like this,because he carefully plans how he will execute decisions and he is sensitive toward those who are affected.Careful planning and being sensitive typically will result in successful implementation.

Question 21

Last year,Paul's home of 50 years,which contained so many family,school,and career memories,was destroyed in a fire.It is normal for this event to have a negative impact on Paul's life and decision making abilities for at least three years.

Question 22

Microsoft studies correlations between its successful workers and the schools and companies they arrived from,an application of business analytics.

Question 23

Evidence-based management should not be used by the upper management.

Question 24

In business,the use of time-series forecasts,which predict future data based on patterns of historical data,is an application of evidence-based management.

Question 25

Anne,the department manager,has a good working relationship with her employees,believing in an open door policy,and she encourages the open exchange of opinions in her department.Anne utilizes the directive style of management.

Question 26

David,the IT department chair at a community college,has been having problems with his students not coming to class,so their grades are suffering.If David were to use defensive avoidance to respond to this situation,he could respond with procrastinating,passing the buck,or denying the risk of any negative consequences.

Question 27

A decision tree,which is the hierarchy or chain of command used by many organizations when discussing alternatives,must be followed when getting decisions approved.

Question 28

A benefit of the intuition model for making decisions is that it can slow decisions,which is useful when decisions involve many details.

Question 29

When an individual is aware of his or her decision-making style,this assists the individual in identifying his or her strengths and weaknesses as a decision maker,facilitating the potential for self-improvement.

Question 30

Harvard Business School Professor Constance Bagley suggests that organizations should never use a decision tree to help with ethical decisions.

Question 31

Companies that use evidence-based management seldom defeat their competition.

Question 32

When faced with a decision,Myles asks himself "Why not just take the easiest way out?" This approach is known as relaxed change,and is a form of evidence-based decision making.

Question 33

An ethics officer is someone trained about matters of ethics in the society,particularly about resolving issues with competition.

Question 34

There is usually one best decision-making style that applies to any situation.

Question 35

Going with your gut,or intuition,is using conscious thoughts or logical inference to make a choice.

Question 36

Stanford professor Jeffrey Pfeffer suggests companies incur big costs when they cut their labor forces,and should turn to evidence-based decision making for accurate guidance.

Question 37

Steve,an owner of IT Services,realized that because customers have so many low- or no-cost options available for training,offering training for Microsoft applications was not in huge demand.Therefore,Steve and his partner made a decision to change the original direction of the company and focus more on computer sales and repair.Steve is an example of how managers need to think and act as if their organization is an unfinished prototype that won't be ruined by dangerous new ideas or is impossible to change.

Question 38

Research shows that most managers have characteristics that fall into one dominant decision-making style,and this varies little across occupations,job level,and countries.

Question 39

Greg is the general manager in a fast-paced restaurant,and when working with his employees,he emphasizes speed and results.Sue,his assistant manager,told Greg's boss that "I like Greg most of the time,but he is very autocratic and controlling." Greg utilizes a behavioral style of management.

Question 40

People with a low tolerance for ambiguity and an orientation toward task and technical concerns in making decisions have an analytical decision-making style.

Question 41

In deciding to decide,a manager agrees that he or she will first research the problem before taking any further steps.

Question 42

Utilizing a group to make a decision has the advantages of having a greater pool of knowledge,gaining different perspectives,providing intellectual stimulation,having a better understanding of decision rationale,and having a deeper commitment to the decision.

Question 43

A management expert suggests that to reach a consensus,groups should try to achieve consensus by putting questions to a vote.

Question 44

With an escalation of commitment bias,decision makers increase their commitment to a project despite negative information about it.

Question 45

Two disadvantages that can occur with group-aided decision making is that either a few people dominate or satisficing occurs.

Question 46

When confronted with a choice,people with strong prior beliefs tend to make their decisions based on their beliefs even if their beliefs are false.This is known as ____.

A)prior-hypothesis bias
B)narrow-minded perception
C)tunnel vision bias
D)the curse of knowledge
E)single-vision stereotyping

Question 47

Alex is the R&D manager with Digital Copier.The company is having a problem with one of its most popular copiers jamming.The vice president of marketing told Alex that "we need to quickly discover how to make this a desirable situation.You need to determine the underlying cause of the problem and perhaps even make improvements to the copier." This is an example of ____.

A)synergy
B)diagnosis
C)analytics
D)feasibility
E)MBO

Question 48

With groups,a consensus is not usually required with decisions.

Question 49

One management expert advises that to achieve a consensus,groups should use active listening skills,involving as many members as possible.

Question 50

A choice made from among available alternatives is a ____.

A)decision
B)plan
C)goal
D)consensus
E)value statement

Question 51

When Donald,a management trainee,asked Rebecca,the HR manager,how she makes the decision on who to hire,Rebecca responded with several simple steps that she called "rules of thumb." Rebecca's decision-making process,or rules of thumb,is a strategy known as heuristics.

Question 52

Says one expert in decision making,consensus is reached "when all members can say they either agree with the decision or had their 'day in court" and were unable to convince the others of their viewpoint.In the final analysis,everyone agrees to support the outcome."

Question 53

Research has found that groups tend to make higher-quality decisions than when any individual acts alone.

Question 54

Groupthink occurs when group members strive to disagree simply due to issues related to either not believing in the group leader or personal differences.

Question 55

George,a longtime hotel manager,was meeting with Sally,a new manager,and telling her about a recent decision related to whether or not to fire a front desk employee who has had customer service issues.George discussed the four stages of the decision process.He said,"I first identified the problem,and then,I gathered alternative solutions.I then evaluated each choice and selected a solution.I then implemented my decision to add training.Finally,I followed up with an evaluation of what I set in place." With this decision,George is using the ______.

A)employee relations model
B)focused decision-making model
C)interpersonal-decision agenda
D)solutions agenda
E)rational decision-making model

Question 56

The confirmation bias is when people seek information to support their point of view and discount data that do not.

Question 57

The model of decision making that explains how managers should make decisions,assuming managers will make logical decisions that will be the optimum in furthering the organization's best interests,is known as the ____.

A)employee relations model
B)focused decision-making model
C)interpersonal-decision agenda
D)solutions agenda
E)rational decision-making model

Question 58

When two customers hit their heads on a new store display,Jim,the manager,decides to just take it down instead of bringing up the issue at the next district sales meeting.This way,Jim avoids the negative aspects involved with group decision making.

Question 59

The larger and more diverse the group,the higher the quality of the decision.

Question 60

During the Apollo 13 emergency,at various times during that crisis the flight commander brought Mission Control workers and experts together to generate multiple ideas and alternatives for solving the problems.This was an example of brainstorming.

Question 61

Leon is an investment portfolio manager.While sitting in a training workshop,the facilitator mentioned that "your female investors make trades much less often than men because they ____."

A)take longer to make decisions because of their busy lives
B)do more research,and tend to base their investment decisions on considerations other than just numbers
C)rely strictly on intuition
D)are overcoming problems with the glass ceiling
E)endeavor to involve their family in decisions and it takes longer to get agreement

Question 62

Jose,the sales manager,is working on the problem of increasing sales by using the rational model of decision making.In the first step he identified the problem of his employees needing more training.In the second step he thought of alternative solutions;and in step three he evaluated alternatives and selected a solution.In the fourth step,Jose needs to _____.

A)do more research to look at types of training
B)select a contingency plan
C)implement and evaluate the training program chosen
D)determine how costly the solution will be
E)set up a diversity and synergy training plan to increase the chances of success

Question 63

A data-mining technique used to predict future behavior and anticipate the consequences of change is known as ___.

A)data digging
B)the decision tree
C)decisions by trends
D)predictive modeling
E)GIGO

Question 64

Susanne,the CEO of national IT manufacturer,was approached by Simple Phones,a new company that is marketing a new type of phone,to partner with the company on a project.The partnership is uncertain since the company and technology are new.Susanne is uncertain what to do because she is limited by numerous constraints,such as the uncertainty and complexity of the technology,the management success of Simple Phones,and time,since other companies are interested in the partnership.This is an example of _____.

A)an ethical dilemma
B)bounded rationality
C)groupthink
D)a bounded dilemma
E)limited scope

Question 65

Doug is using rational decision making,and the chosen alternative that was implemented does not appear to be working.To correct the situation,the possibilities Doug should consider _____.

A)give it more time,change it slightly,try another alternative,or start over
B)give it more time or do not change anything
C)do nothing
D)give it more time,cut costs,or increase organization synergy
E)do nothing or start over

Question 66

With the community interested in eating healthy,Sue Ellen,a restaurant owner,is considering adding more vegetarian dishes to her menu.This decision is uncertain and risky,and she finally decides to goes with her gut feelings.This is an example of _______.

A)rational decision making
B)MBO
C)nonrational decision making
D)analytics
E)a code of ethics

Question 67

Difficulties that inhibit the achievement of goals are known as _____.

A)objectives
B)synergies
C)values
D)problems
E)alternatives

Question 68

Style Mart uses time-series forecasts,such as past holiday sales and the strength of store sales this year to predict future sales based on patterns of historical data.This is an application of ___.

A)analytics
B)the synergy trend
C)decisions by trends
D)focused trend
E)Big Data

Question 69

The idea that proposes that the ability of decision makers to be rational is limited by numerous constraints,such as complexity,time,cognitive capacity,values,skills,habits,and unconscious reflexes,is known as _____.

A)rational decision making
B)MBO
C)nonrational decision making
D)analytics
E)bounded rationality

Question 70

The rational model of decision making is also called the ____ model.

A)focused
B)analytical
C)decision
D)classical
E)logical

Question 71

In the third step of rational decision making (evaluating alternatives and select a solution),you need to evaluate each alternative not only according to cost and quality but also according to the following questions: _____

A)Is it efficient and how will it affect our marketing strategy?
B)Is it feasible,effective,and efficient?
C)Is it ethical and will it hurt diversity?
D)Is it ethical,feasible,and effective?
E)Is it feasible and profitable?

Question 72

Patricia is the owner of a floral shop.A successful global candle company approached her about selling its products in her shop.Patricia knows this product and company can help her exceed her existing goals.This defines a(n)____.

A)problem
B)opportunity
C)synergy
D)ethical dilemma
E)diagnosis

Question 73

ABC Medical Technology,a fast-growing global research firm,has accumulated so much client information that conventional database management systems cannot handle its customer needs.Therefore,it purchased very sophisticated analysis software and supercomputing-level hardware.For the company's work with hospitals and university medical schools,ABC has been noted in publications as "real pioneers for innovation and productivity." This vast amount of data is known as ____.

A)cyber-age databases
B)mega IT
C)super data
D)new age computing
E)Big Data

Question 74

The process of studying large amounts of data of a variety of types to uncover hidden patterns,unknown correlations,and other useful information is known as ____.

A)cyber-age research
B)mega research
C)super market data mining
D)new age computing
E)Big Data analytics

Question 75

Despite your best intentions,it's hard to bring the best evidence to bear on your decisions because of such reasons as ____.

A)it is too expensive;it's not ethical and there's not enough good evidence
B)it will hurt diversity and synergy within your organization
C)there's no competition or there's too much competition
D)there's too much evidence;there's not enough good evidence and the side effects outweigh the cure
E)people are trying to mislead you and it will not allow MBO

Question 76

Sal has been in the landscaping business for over 40 years,and when Donovan,his business partner,suggested adding snow removal as an extra service,Sal responded with "My gut feeling is to say yes because of my experience in the past and what I have seen other companies do over the years,both successfully and not." Sal's response to Donovan is known as _____.

A)a knowledge dilemma
B)a business reaction
C)a knee-jerk reaction
D)unbounded rationality
E)intuition

Question 77

Olivia,the owner of a small city newspaper,started her business two years ago,believing that there was still enough demand for her product.However,because people are busy and with the availability of news online,she has seen the demand for her paper drop steadily.Olivia made a decision to change the original direction of the company and focus more on an Internet news service.By demonstrating that managers need to think and act as if their company is an unfinished prototype,won't be ruined by new ideas and focusing on facts,Olivia is relying on _____.

A)a decision tree
B)a knowledge dilemma
C)the knee-jerk reaction theory
D)evidence-based decision making
E)intuition

Question 78

The combination of how an individual perceives and responds to information reflects his or her ____.

A)location on the introvert/extrovert scale
B)decision-making style
C)time orientation
D)Big Data perception
E)ambiguity index

Question 79

Paula,the controller of Tasty Pizza,is purchasing several new delivery vehicles.Paula has numerous work responsibilities,so she has limited time to shop for cars.Because of the time constraints,she cannot make an extensive search for the best alternative but instead needs to look for cars until she finds one that is satisfactory.Paula is following the _____ model.

A)dilemma
B)rational
C)limited focus
D)satisficing
E)limited scope

Question 80

Chad and his partner,John,have decided to update their computer network,although they have no expertise in this area.During a meeting with John,Chad commented that "Our decision is limited by numerous constraints,such as our understanding of the complexity of technology,time and money,imperfect information,and our conflicting goals." These limitations are hindrances to _____.

A)satisficing
B)rational decision making
C)intuitive decision making
D)MBO
E)nonrational decisions