Question 1

The systems viewpoint regards the various parts making up the whole system as
A) microsystems.
B) macrosystems.
C) subsystems.
D) management collections.
E) organizational sets.

Accepted Answer

The systems viewpoint regards the organization as a system of interrelated parts. By adopting this point of view, you can look at your organization both as (1) a collection of subsystems-parts making up the whole system-and (2) a part of the larger environment.

Question 2

Jasmine, a chef in a fine restaurant, utilizes top-of-the-line equipment as she prepares meals for customers. Jasmine and her equipment are a(n) ________ in the restaurant's system.
A) cog
B) component
C) output-participant
D) output
E) input

Accepted Answer

Inputs are the people, money, information, equipment, and materials required to produce an organization's goods or services. Whatever goes into a system is an input.

Question 3

Paul English of Kayak.com uses new employees as an excuse for altering an existing open-office seating arrangement. English's action is an application of ________ to management.
A) the country club approach
B) the office politics approach
C) the behavioral science approach
D) the synergy research approach
E) a Theory X approach

Accepted Answer

Behavioral science relies on scientific research for developing theories about human behavior that can be used to provide practical tools for managers, such as increasing productivity by changing an office seating plan.

Question 4

When a line cook in a restaurant uses raw meat to cook a hamburger that becomes part of the restaurant's Super Burger Special, the cook is taking part in a
A) transformation process.
B) conversion process.
C) metamorphosis.
D) turning point.
E) therblig.

Accepted Answer

Transformation processes are the organization's capabilities in management, internal processes, and technology that are applied to converting inputs into outputs. The main activity of the organization is to transform inputs into outputs. In this case, the cook uses inputs in the creation of the output, which is the Super Burger Special.

Question 5

A computer manufacturer is seeking to cut costs by designing an inventory system that reduces the number of finished products in stock due to overproduction and to set in place a production schedule that better matches customers' orders. These plans are an example of ________ in action.
A) operations management
B) scientific management
C) production management
D) inventory oversight
E) inventory analysis

Accepted Answer

In the day-to-day running of the company, operations management consists of all the job functions and activities in which managers schedule and delegate work and job training, plan production to meet customer needs, design services customers want and how to deliver them, locate and design company facilities, and choose optimal levels of product inventory to keep costs down and reduce backorders.

Question 6

When a manager assesses a particular situation and decides what to do according to the individual and environmental situation, the manager is utilizing the ________ viewpoint.
A) behavioral
B) systems
C) scientific
D) bureaucratic
E) contingency

Accepted Answer

The contingency viewpoint emphasizes that a manager's approach should vary according to, or be contingent on, the individual and the environmental situation. Thus, the manager who assesses a particular situation and decides what to do is using a contingency viewpoint.

Question 7

Management science stresses the use of rational, science-based techniques and mathematical models to improve
A) decision making and goal setting.
B) synergy.
C) cost-cutting and planning.
D) decision making and strategic planning.
E) sales and customer relationships.

Accepted Answer

Management science stresses the use of rational, science-based techniques and mathematical models to improve decision making and strategic planning.

Question 8

Oleg, the CEO of a large global production company, is excited about the introduction of statistics and computer simulations in the design stage of the company's products. Oleg is using
A) the design approach.
B) quantitative techniques.
C) MBO.
D) scientific management.
E) behavioral management.

Accepted Answer

Quantitative management is the application to management of quantitative techniques, such as statistics and computer simulations.

Question 9

The American economy consists of a complex combination of organizations and variables, such as countless companies differing in size and what they sell, current events, and markets (for example, the housing market and the stock market). According to ________, all of these independent factors interact with one another according to certain simple rules.
A) complexity theory
B) a closed market system
C) a webbed system
D) contingency theory
E) behavioral theory

Accepted Answer

The systems viewpoint has led to the development of complexity theory, the study of how order and pattern arise from very complicated, apparently chaotic systems. Complexity theory recognizes that all complex systems are networks of many interdependent parts that interact with one another according to certain simple rules.

Question 10

A local farmer grows and sells corn and pumpkins to the local grocers. Look at the farmer's business as a system. In which category do the corn and pumpkins, profits, and losses fall?
A) input
B) therblig
C) transformational process
D) result
E) output

Accepted Answer

Outputs are the products, services, profits, losses, employee satisfaction or discontent, and the like that are produced by the organization. Whatever comes out of the system is an output.

Question 11

When the sales of a certain brand of diet soda slowed, a national grocery retailer decided to drop the price of that product, which resulted in a large increase in sales of the soda. This sales increase is a type of
A) Big Data.
B) input.
C) quality control.
D) change
E) feedback.

Accepted Answer

Feedback is information about the reaction of the environment to the outputs that affects the inputs. Are the customers buying or not buying the product?

Question 12

Gary Hamel suggests we need to look at management as a process and then make improvements and innovation
A) intuitively.
B) only if doing so results in synergy.
C) ongoing and systematic.
D) only if doing so saves money.
E) occasionally.

Accepted Answer

Gary Hamel suggests we need to look at management as a process and then make improvements and innovation ongoing and systematic.

Question 13

Operations management focuses on managing the production and delivery of an organization's products or services
A) more economically.
B) by utilizing motion studies.
C) with a more diverse workforce.
D) more effectively.
E) to more customers.

Accepted Answer

Operations management focuses on managing the production and delivery of an organization's products or services more effectively. It is a form of quantitative management.

Question 14

Acme Sales calls its customers after they purchase an automobile from the dealership. In addition, every year customers are asked to complete a short survey about the car they purchased from Acme Sales and their customer-service experiences with the dealership. Acme Sales is an example of a(n) ________ system.
A) open
B) closed
C) open-door
D) bureaucratic
E) management

Accepted Answer

An open system continually interacts with its environment.

Question 15

The new chief information officer of a national fast food chain is using mathematical tools to aid in product ordering and scheduling decisions. The CIO is using
A) statistical management.
B) scientific management.
C) behavioral science.
D) management science.
E) goal management.

Accepted Answer

Management science focuses on using mathematics to aid in problem solving and decision making, such as aiding in product ordering and scheduling decisions.

Question 16

The Ryan family had a fire that destroyed their home. Various departments of a restoration company, from the initial cleanup crew to the assistance with the Ryan family moving back in, worked together to achieve this goal. All of the company's interrelated parts working together to accomplish a goal (in this case, the restoration of the Ryan home) is an example of a(n)
A) process.
B) hierarchical process.
C) input-output structure.
D) structure.
E) system.

Accepted Answer

A system is a set of interrelated parts that operate together to achieve a common purpose, even when it does not work well.

Question 17

The systems viewpoint sees organizations as entities made up of four interrelated parts known as
A) planning, design, monitoring, production, and feedback.
B) planning, inputs, monitoring, outputs, and feedback.
C) inputs, outputs, transformation processes, and feedback.
D) planning, design, inputs, monitoring, outputs, and follow-up feedback.
E) vision, planning, design, production, monitoring, and follow-up feedback.

Accepted Answer

The systems viewpoint regards the organization as a system of interrelated parts. The four parts of a system are inputs, outputs, transformation processes, and feedback.

Question 18

The three contemporary management perspectives are the ________ viewpoints.
A) quality management, behavioral, and customer
B) systems, scientific, and contingency
C) systems, contingency, and quality management
D) diversity, quantitative, and qualitative
E) contemporary, noncontemporary, and behavioral

Accepted Answer

The three contemporary management perspectives are systems, contingency, and quality management. The other options include either non-contemporary or incorrect perspectives.

Question 19

Nikita is the manager of a local small hotel. Just today Nikita received word that a major convention will be coming to town next month, and the demand for hotel rooms is expected to skyrocket. In a conversation with the owner, she asked, "What should our approach to pricing be for the week of the convention? Should we require payment in full at the time of the reservation?" Which management method is Nikita using?
A) the devil's advocate method
B) scientific management
C) the synergy method
D) the contingency viewpoint
E) the systems viewpoint

Accepted Answer

The contingency viewpoint emphasizes that a manager's approach should vary according to, or be contingent on, the individual and the environmental situation.

Question 20

For years Print and Copy, a copier machine supplier, enjoyed strong sales and a huge share of the copier market, far ahead of its nearest competitor. However, over the years, Print and Copy seldom asked customers for feedback. So when some of Print and Copy's competition responded to customers' needs and started offering copiers with new features (such as wireless printing from laptop and tablet computers), Print and Copy lost much of its market share. Print and Copy's system is best described as
A) open.
B) isolated.
C) entropic
D) internal.
E) closed.

Accepted Answer

A closed system has little interaction with its environment; that is, it receives very little feedback from the outside. The classical management viewpoint often considered an organization a closed system. So does the management science perspective, which simplifies organizations for purposes of analysis. However, any organization that ignores feedback from the environment opens itself up to possibly spectacular failures. In the modern era, nearly all organizations are, at least to some degree, open systems rather than closed systems.

Quiz 2: Management Theory: Essential Background for the Successful Manager

The systems viewpoint regards the various parts making up the whole system as

Jasmine, a chef in a fine restaurant, utilizes top-of-the-line equipment as she prepares meals for customers. Jasmine and her equipment are a(n) ________ in the restaurant's system.

Paul English of Kayak.com uses new employees as an excuse for altering an existing open-office seating arrangement. English's action is an application of ________ to management.

When a line cook in a restaurant uses raw meat to cook a hamburger that becomes part of the restaurant's Super Burger Special, the cook is taking part in a

A computer manufacturer is seeking to cut costs by designing an inventory system that reduces the number of finished products in stock due to overproduction and to set in place a production schedule that better matches customers' orders. These plans are an example of ________ in action.

When a manager assesses a particular situation and decides what to do according to the individual and environmental situation, the manager is utilizing the ________ viewpoint.

Management science stresses the use of rational, science-based techniques and mathematical models to improve

Oleg, the CEO of a large global production company, is excited about the introduction of statistics and computer simulations in the design stage of the company's products. Oleg is using

A local farmer grows and sells corn and pumpkins to the local grocers. Look at the farmer's business as a system. In which category do the corn and pumpkins, profits, and losses fall?

When the sales of a certain brand of diet soda slowed, a national grocery retailer decided to drop the price of that product, which resulted in a large increase in sales of the soda. This sales increase is a type of

Gary Hamel suggests we need to look at management as a process and then make improvements and innovation

Operations management focuses on managing the production and delivery of an organization's products or services

The new chief information officer of a national fast food chain is using mathematical tools to aid in product ordering and scheduling decisions. The CIO is using

The systems viewpoint sees organizations as entities made up of four interrelated parts known as

The three contemporary management perspectives are the ________ viewpoints.