Deck 8: Organizational Culture, Structure, and Design: Building Blocks of the Organization

Question 1

An organization's basic assumptions are difficult to change.

Answer 1

True
Explanation: Basic assumptions, which are not observable, represent the core values of an organization's culture that are taken for granted and, as a result, are difficult to change.

Question 2

A ritual is a narrative based on true events, which is repeated and sometimes embellished upon to emphasize a particular value of an organization.

Answer 2

False
Explanation: A story is a narrative based on true events, which is repeated and sometimes embellished upon to emphasize a particular value.Stories are oral histories that are told and retold by members about incidents in the organization's history.

Question 3

For IKEA, whose vision is "to create a better life for the many," the inexpensive LACK side table would be considered a symbol.

Answer 3

True
Explanation: A symbol is an object, act, quality, or event that conveys meaning to others.In an organization, symbols convey its most important values.Example: One of the most iconic products of IKEA, maker of inexpensive home furnishings, whose vision is "to create a better life for the many," is the LACK table, a 22-inch by 22-inch side table that sells for only $9.99.

Question 4

A clan culture has an external focus and values flexibility rather than stability and control.

Question 5

A company with a formalized, structured work environment aimed at achieving efficiency, timeliness, and reliability in the creation and delivery of products has a clan culture.

Question 6

Corporate culture is as also known as organizational structure.

Question 7

A formal system of task and reporting relationships that coordinate and motivate an organization's members is known as an organizational configuration.

Question 8

Organizational culture can vary widely across organizations on dimensions of treatment of employees, teamwork, and risk taking.

Question 9

An adhocracy culture attempts to create innovative products by being adaptive, creative, and quick to respond to the environment.

Question 10

Organizational culture appears as three layers: observable artifacts, token values, and foundational beliefs.

Question 11

A hero is a person whose accomplishments embody the values of the organization.

Question 12

In an organization, culture exists on both visible and unobservable levels.

Question 13

Allowing business-casual dress in the workplace is an example of the espoused values portion of organizational culture.

Question 14

When Pfizer Pharmaceuticals manages failure and disappointment and helps drug researchers live for the small victories in discovering new drugs for various diseases, it is focusing on the adhocracy aspects of its culture.

Question 15

Espoused values represent the values and norms actually exhibited in the organization.

Question 16

When the National Football League annually presents the winners of the Super Bowl with rings in a ceremony, it is an example of a ritual.

Question 17

Confidential matters and issues involving discipline cannot be effectively delegated.

Question 18

The "social glue" that binds customers to a particular firm is called organizational culture.

Question 19

If your boss asked you to take care of a task, productivity expert Odette Pollar says it is still OK to delegate it.

Question 20

A market culture has a strong external focus and values stability and control.

Question 21

A good organizational culture can facilitate a low turnover rate.

Question 22

An organization chart typically takes on a family-treelike pattern, with many boxes and lines showing official positions and reporting relationships.

Question 23

Business founders and subsequent managers primarily use power and coercion to embed the culture into the organization.

Question 24

The fit perspective assumes that the most effective cultures help organizations anticipate and adapt to environmental changes.

Question 25

A formal vertical hierarchy shows a company's most typical channels of communication.

Question 26

When employees are forced to adhere to an organization's values through extensive procedures and bureaucracies, its culture is said to be weak.

Question 27

Research shows that organizations with market cultures report higher profits and financial growth.

Question 28

Only for-profit organizations can be meaningfully represented by an organization chart.

Question 29

The pink Cadillac that Mary Kay presents to the best salespeople of its cosmetic line is an example of an emblem.

Question 30

The Red Cross is an example of a mutual-benefit organization.

Question 31

Horizontally on an organizational chart are the various companies outside of the firm, such as suppliers and distributors.

Question 32

By definition, an organization can be composed of as few as two people.

Question 33

Sharing stories, legends, or myths are good ways to develop an organizational structure.

Question 34

The division of labor means that an employee should report to no more than one manager.

Question 35

Sometimes an organizational structure can be strong enough to take the place of organizational culture.

Question 36

The type of training provided to new hires and the frequency of performance evaluations contribute to their understanding of the organization's culture.

Question 37

As you are promoted to higher levels in an organization, you may have to actively resist isolation.

Question 38

The hierarchy of authority, or who reports to whom, is shown with horizontal lines on an organization chart.

Question 39

Danilo opened a new restaurant in Phoenix called El Barrancón.He wanted to be sure a culture of service and excellence was embedded in his new organization so he posted the values of the organization in the kitchen and in the dining room.Danilo is teaching his organization the culture through this action.

Question 40

An investigation of companies with different organizational cultures showed that long-term financial performance was highest for those with an adaptive culture.

Question 41

The functional structure is the most typical type for small firms.

Question 42

Integration is the tendency of the parts of an organization to draw together to achieve a common purpose.

Question 43

The process of fitting the organization to its environment is called incidental design.

Question 44

An advantage in using centralized authority is that there is less duplication of work, because fewer employees perform the same task.

Question 45

The founder of McDonald's, Ray Kroc, intended that a Big Mac should taste the same anywhere, and accordingly, the company has many specific procedures, making it a mechanistic organization.

Question 46

An organization is said to be flat when there are only a few levels with wide spans of control.

Question 47

Director of accounting is an example of a staff position.

Question 48

A hollow structure is often called a network structure.

Question 49

Hierarchy of authority is also referred to as the chain of command.

Question 50

An organization with different groupings of people based on its products, customers, or geographic regions has a functional structure.

Question 51

Ford Motor Co.has what is known as a divisional structure because it has different divisions for passenger car dealers, large trucking customers, and farm products customers.

Question 52

A functionally organized company can also use cross-functional teams to work on particular problems.

Question 53

Companies that must respond to fast-changing customer tastes often favor a mechanistic structure to an organic one.

Question 54

If a marketing person reports to both the vice president of marketing and also to the project manager for the Ford Mustang, she works in a network organization.

Question 55

Staff personnel have authority functions in that they provide advice, recommendations, and research to line managers.

Question 56

The four stages of organization life cycle include birth, growth, stability, and maturity.

Question 57

One advantage of decentralized organizations is that procedures are uniform and thus easier to control.

Question 58

Bombardier builds eight-passenger business jets from 12 separately sourced portions which can be put together in four days.This firm has a modular organizational structure.

Question 59

Power refers to the rights inherent in a managerial position to make decisions, give orders, and utilize resources.

Question 60

Lawrence and Lorsch's term for the tendency of an organization's parts to disperse and fragment is dissolution.

Question 61

Which of the following is an example of an observable artifact of organizational culture?

A)Mission statements
B)Awards ceremonies
C)Basic assumptions
D)Codes of ethics
E)Core beliefs

Question 62

In general, organizations become more bureaucratic over their lifetimes.

Question 63

______ values are the explicitly stated values and norms preferred by an organization.

A)Espoused
B)Inherent
C)Enacted
D)Expressed
E)Internalized

Question 64

The first stage of in an organization's life cycle is known as the creation stage.

Question 65

Digital Globe is a technology company that provides advanced, high-resolution satellite pictures of the earth, digitalized for electronic use.As the military, governments, and others demand clear pictures, Digital Globe provides them immediately with its innovative and responsive products.Digital Globe is most likely an example of a(n) ______ culture.

A)inventive
B)clan
C)adhocracy
D)market
E)hierarchy

Question 66

Which type of culture has an internal focus and values stability and control over flexibility?

A)Clan
B)Adhocracy
C)Market
D)Classical
E)Hierarchy

Question 67

Kia Motors takes a very aggressive stance to fire executives who don't meet sales goals, which makes the company an example of a(n) ______ culture.

A)clan
B)target-driven
C)adhocracy
D)market
E)hierarchy

Question 68

According to productivity expert Odette Pollar, which of the following should a manager delegate?

A)Emergencies.
B)Tasks that challenge subordinates.
C)Special tasks your boss has asked you to do.
D)Personnel matters.
E)Confidential matters.

Question 69

A Ritz-Carlton beach attendant who surprised a couple with flowers, candles, and champagne for the man's proposal was able to transmit the culture of the luxury hotel to other employees, so he would be considered a

A)champion.
B)key employee.
C)potential manager.
D)hero.
E)superior.

Question 70

Southwest Airlines employees all know about when CEO Herb Kelleher visited one of the airline's hangars in the middle of the night in a dress with a purple boa-just to liven things up.In fact, this is part of Southwest's history.This is an example of using a ________ to impart organizational culture.

A)myth
B)story
C)ritual
D)rite
E)value

Question 71

One of the typical devices for transmitting culture, a(n) ______ is an object, act, quality, or event that conveys meaning to others.

A)icon
B)symbol
C)sign
D)representation
E)ritual

Question 72

Among the functions of organizational ________ are that it gives members an organizational identity and it promotes social-system stability.

A)design
B)structure
C)life cycle
D)charting
E)culture

Question 73

The activities and ceremonies, planned and unplanned, that celebrate important occasions and accomplishments in the organization's life are known as

A)myths.
B)stories.
C)conventions.
D)rites and rituals.
E)values.

Question 74

Which of the following is not a description of organizational culture?

A)A system of shared beliefs and values.
B)"Social glue" binding members together.
C)A system of reporting relationships.
D)An organization's personality.
E)A system that guides the behavior of organizational members.

Question 75

Hard-working people at insurance giant AIG joked that "thank heavens it's Friday because that means there are only two more working days until Monday." This is characteristic of which layer of organizational culture?

A)Enacted norms
B)Invisible artifacts
C)Symbolic culture
D)Heroic mores
E)Basic assumptions

Question 76

The competing values framework classifies organizational cultures into which of the following?

A)Stable, flexible, and laddered cultures.
B)Observable, flexible, competitive, and driven cultures.
C)Symbolic, heroic, and basic cultures.
D)Clan, adhocracy, market, and hierarchy cultures.
E)Observable, espoused, and core cultures.

Question 77

Turnbull Software is a medium-sized but growing company that works diligently to create a supportive and familylike atmosphere for its employees.It provides superior benefits and involves employees in decisions large and small.Turnbull has a(n) ______ culture.

A)clan
B)adhocracy
C)market
D)hierarchy
E)espoused

Question 78

Which of the following is not a device through which culture is typically transmitted to employees?

A)Symbols
B)Stories
C)Strategic plan
D)Heroes
E)Rites and rituals

Question 79

Although managers may wish to affect employees with explicitly stated values, they are frequently more influenced by ______ ones.

A)subversive
B)expressed
C)espoused
D)adopted
E)enacted

Question 80

Which of the following is a good reason to avoid delegating tasks?

A)A wish to keep subordinates from taking risks.
B)To avoid making subordinates deal with a difficult client.
C)A desire to keep an enjoyable part of the job.
D)A fear that sensitive personnel matters will not be kept private.
E)A concern that subordinates could do a better job.