Question 1

Human resource management activities include identifying staffing needs, writing detailed job descriptions, and recruiting the right people.

Accepted Answer

Human resource management encompasses a wide range of activities aimed at effectively managing an organization's workforce, including identifying staffing needs, writing detailed job descriptions, and recruiting the right people to fill those positions.

Question 2

In a centralized organization, many decisions are made by the managers at the subsidiary level.

Accepted Answer

In a centralized organization, decision-making authority is concentrated at the top levels of management, and very few decisions are made by lower-level managers or subsidiary levels.

Question 3

Decentralized organizations are used to exert control over subsidiary operations.

Accepted Answer

Decentralized organizations delegate decision-making authority to lower levels, allowing subsidiaries more autonomy and flexibility, rather than exerting control over them.

Question 4

Most international companies try first to find internally qualified people to fill open positions, before recruiting from outside the company.

Accepted Answer

Many international companies prioritize internal recruitment to fill open positions as it promotes employee retention, leverages existing talent, and reduces onboarding time and costs.

Question 5

Expatriates are citizens of the country in which they are working.

Accepted Answer

Expatriates are individuals living and working in a country other than their country of citizenship.

Question 6

Expatriates typically fill clerical and assembly line jobs.

Accepted Answer

Expatriates often fill specialized, managerial, or executive roles rather than clerical and assembly line jobs, as they are usually hired for their specific expertise or to lead and manage operations in a foreign subsidiary.

Question 7

One major drawback of placing expatriates is the costs that are associated with such assignments.

Accepted Answer

Expatriate assignments often involve significant costs, including relocation expenses, housing allowances, schooling for children, and higher salaries to incentivize employees to accept overseas positions.

Question 8

Job specification describes in detail the various tasks that the person hired should accomplish, to whom the person should report, and the skills that are required to complete the assigned tasks.

Accepted Answer

A job specification outlines the qualifications, skills, and responsibilities required for a position, including tasks, reporting structure, and necessary skills.

Question 9

One of the main causes of expatriate burnout is the difficulty encountered by these personnel in adjusting to the local cultures.

Accepted Answer

Expatriate burnout often occurs due to the stress and difficulty of adjusting to a new cultural environment, which can lead to feelings of isolation, frustration, and overall dissatisfaction with the expatriate experience.

Question 10

Use of expatriates allows international companies to have better control of their subsidiary operations as well as provide training for developing future senior executives.

Accepted Answer

Expatriates can help ensure that the subsidiary aligns with the company's overall strategic goals and corporate culture. Additionally, the international experience gained by expatriates can be invaluable in preparing them for future senior executive roles within the company.

Question 11

Expatriate personnel are selected on the basis of their interest in history and geography.

Accepted Answer

Expatriate personnel are primarily selected based on their job skills, experience, adaptability, and sometimes language proficiency, rather than their interest in history and geography.

Question 12

When cultural issues, language considerations, and local laws play a critical role, hiring local staff is more advantageous than placing expatriates in these positions.

Accepted Answer

Local staff are more familiar with the cultural nuances, language, and legal requirements of their region, making them better suited to navigate these complexities than expatriates.

Question 13

Because hourly wage rates across countries do not differ, it is easy to establish a uniform salary and wage policies among the various subsidiaries of an international company.

Accepted Answer

Hourly wage rates significantly differ across countries due to varying economic conditions, living costs, and labor laws, making it challenging to establish uniform salary and wage policies for international companies.

Question 14

Improvement in working conditions and enactment of labor laws have led to a decline in union membership.

Accepted Answer

Improvements in working conditions and the enactment of labor laws have addressed many of the issues that unions traditionally fought for, leading to a perceived decrease in the necessity of union membership for workers.

Question 15

It is easy for an international company to deal with unions as they are organized similarly.

Accepted Answer

Unions vary significantly across different countries in terms of their organization, legal frameworks, and cultural approaches to labor relations, making it challenging for international companies to navigate these differences.

Question 16

International organizational structures are designed to look presentable in annual reports.

Accepted Answer

International organizational structures are designed to manage operations across different countries effectively, addressing legal, cultural, and market differences, rather than just for presentation in annual reports.

Question 17

Organizational structures normally reflect where the level of authority and control is vested.

Accepted Answer

Organizational structures are designed to delineate the hierarchy of decision-making authority, indicating where control and responsibilities lie within the organization.

Question 18

The organizational structures of most international companies are static and hardly changes.

Accepted Answer

International companies often adapt their organizational structures to respond to changes in the global market, regulatory environments, and their own growth strategies, making their structures dynamic rather than static.

Question 19

The organizational structure of a global company need to integrate three type of knowledge: area knowledge, product knowledge, and functional knowledge.

Accepted Answer

Global companies must integrate area knowledge (understanding of specific geographic regions), product knowledge (expertise in the products they offer), and functional knowledge (proficiency in various business functions such as marketing, finance, etc.) to effectively manage their operations across diverse markets.

Question 20

Depending on the industry and size of the firm, each company develops its own organizational design.

Accepted Answer

Organizational design varies by industry and firm size as companies develop structures that best meet their specific needs, goals, and operational requirements.

Quiz 12: Human Resource Management and Organizational Structures