Question 1

________ is the term used to describe those functions that a firm can do as well or better than others. It performs these functions in-house, rather than outsourcing.
A) Benchmarks
B) Standard responsibilities
C) Operational requirements
D) Core competencies

Accepted Answer

Core competencies are the unique capabilities that a company possesses and can perform in-house better than others, providing a competitive advantage. It is crucial for a company to identify its core competencies to focus its resources and efforts on improving and expanding in those areas.

Question 2

________ refer to those functions that an organization does as well as, or better than, any other organization in the world.
A) Primary functions
B) Comparative strengths
C) Residual functions
D) Core competencies

Accepted Answer

Core competencies refer to the functions an organization is exceptionally good at, surpassing other organizations in the world.

Question 3

Younger people today are often called ________ because they have never known life without the Internet and cell phones.
A) the high-tech heroes
B) social networkers
C) digital natives
D) electronic eggheads

Accepted Answer

The term "digital natives" is commonly used to describe younger people who have grown up with technology as an integral part of their lives. This term acknowledges that this generation is comfortable and adept with using technology in ways that older generations may not be. The other answer choices ("high-tech heroes," "social networkers," and "electronic eggheads") may be used to describe subsets of this generation, but do not fully capture the broader experience of growing up in a digital age.

Question 4

Empowering employees to better serve customers requires ________ front-line employees.
A) fewer
B) less training for
C) more support for
D) uniforms for

Accepted Answer

Empowering employees to better serve customers requires more support for front-line employees. This could be in the form of additional training, resources, and tools to enable them to perform their jobs more efficiently and effectively. It could also involve creating a work environment that encourages and rewards employee initiative and innovation. By empowering front-line employees, organizations can improve customer satisfaction and loyalty, as well as enhance employee engagement and retention.

Question 5

For an inverted organization to be effective, it requires
A) managers with strong position power.
B) managers who are both technologically savvy and conceptually savvy.
C) better educated, better trained, and better paid employees.
D) a focus on what is best for production.

Accepted Answer

Due to the fact that the inverted organization empowers front-line employees to make important customer decisions, the workforce of such an organization is typically better educated, better trained, and better paid.

Question 6

Donna is a sales representative for the Eastern Essentials Company. She really enjoys working for Eastern Essentials, because she and others are treated as highly valued employees. Sales reps are given freedom and flexibility in their relationships with customers. While there are only a few layers of management at Eastern Essentials, Donna has found that these managers try their best to support and assist her efforts. Based on Donna's experience, it appears that Eastern Essentials is a(n)
A) bureaucratic organization.
B) inverted organization.
C) tall organization.
D) casual organization.

Accepted Answer

Donna's experience at Eastern Essentials indicates that it is an inverted organization. Inverted organizations are characterized by few layers of management, but a high degree of trust, support, and empowerment for employees. These organizations prioritize employee satisfaction and engagement, and often have a more collaborative and flat structure than traditional bureaucratic organizations.

Question 7

In an inverted organization, the job of management is to
A) closely monitor employee performance.
B) establish rules and regulations to guide worker behavior.
C) make all of the basic decisions.
D) assist and support front-line people.

Accepted Answer

In an inverted organization, management's role is to assist and support front-line employees, rather than controlling and monitoring them. This allows for more empowerment and autonomy among employees, leading to increased motivation and productivity. The establishment of rules and regulations may still be important, but they would be developed in collaboration with employees rather than imposed from above. Basic decisions may also be made more collaboratively in an inverted organization.

Question 8

Excite Enterprises, a corporation of amusement parks, uses an accounting firm to handle the payroll and tax functions for the company. Using the services of another firm in this manner is an example of
A) outsourcing.
B) functional reassignment.
C) core competencies.
D) benchmarking.

Accepted Answer

Outsourcing is the practice of hiring another company or individual to perform a function or service that could be done in-house. In this case, Excite Enterprises is outsourcing their payroll and tax functions to an accounting firm.

Question 9

An organization that has contact people at the top and the chief executive officer at the bottom is known as a(n)
A) bureaucracy.
B) oligarchy.
C) improvised organization.
D) inverted organization.

Accepted Answer

An organization with contact people at the top and the chief executive officer at the bottom is an inverted organization. This is a less common structure, but it can be used for companies or teams that prioritize employee empowerment and decision-making.

Question 10

One of the most difficult management challenges today is managing change. Why is this?
A) Change requires cooperation and an awareness of a need for change.
B) Change requires a lot of bailout money from the government.
C) Change requires decentralization of decision making.
D) Change will invariably result in an inverted organization and management does not want to relinquish its position power in order to make that happen.

Accepted Answer

Managing change is difficult because it requires cooperation and an awareness of a need for change. Many employees may resist changes to established procedures, and management must effectively communicate the reasons for the change and how it will benefit the organization in order to overcome this resistance. Additionally, managing change often involves significant planning and coordination efforts to ensure that the change is implemented smoothly and does not negatively impact organizational operations.

Question 11

Which of the following statements best describes the evolution of organization design?
A) Companies have evolved to cross-functional teams because line models and line-and-staff models have become too costly to maintain.
B) Most companies are finding that the stages of product development are much slower than in the past because new products are much more complicated than products of several years ago. Matrix models work much better in the current environment.
C) The development of new technology allows for companies to be much more self-contained and able to maintain their competitive advantage due to more privacy.
D) Companies are now part of a vast network of global businesses, and part of a larger system.

Accepted Answer

The statement that best describes the evolution of organization design is that companies are now part of a vast network of global businesses, and part of a larger system. This reflects the trend towards more complex, interdependent organizations that rely on global networks and collaboration to achieve their goals. This trend has been driven by factors such as globalization, technological change, and the increasing importance of knowledge-based and service-oriented industries. Matrix models have become more common as companies seek to balance the need for flexibility and innovation with the need for efficiency and control. Cross-functional teams are also important as companies seek to break down silos and facilitate collaboration across different areas of expertise.

Question 12

In today's competitive environment, cost containment is extremely important to survival. Which of the following increases efficiency in the production and distribution of goods?
A) tablets
B) real-time data
C) assembly lines
D) self-managed teams

Accepted Answer

Real time simply means the present moment or the actual time in which an event takes place. Online data is readily available between firms to help create efficiencies in production and distribution.

Question 13

Cash Now Industries just hired 500 new workers to build ATMs and self-service check-out systems at its manufacturing plant in Tennessee. The company also plans to hire several hundred more employees by 2021. In the past, these machines were built primarily in Asia. Both shipping costs and quality control were cited as the reasons these companies have elected to change production strategy to
A) competency control.
B) benchmarking.
C) insourcing.
D) outsourcing.

Accepted Answer

Insourcing refers to the practice of using a company's own resources to provide goods or services that were previously purchased from an external source. The decision to hire more workers to build ATMs and self-service check-out systems at Cash Now Industries' manufacturing plant in Tennessee suggests that the company is insourcing its production rather than outsourcing it to Asia. This is likely because of shipping costs and quality control concerns associated with outsourcing production. Therefore, option C is the best choice.

Question 14

Which of the following are common responses of employees when faced with change?
A) "That's the way we've always done things."
B) "Perhaps I'll be able to get a promotion now."
C) "I'm excited to learn something new."
D) "This should be easy to accept."

Accepted Answer

"That's the way we've always done things" is a common response because employees often resist change and prefer the status quo.

Answer: B 
 "Perhaps I'll be able to get a promotion now" is a response that could be motivated by a desire for personal gain rather than an embrace of the change.

Answer: C 
 "I'm excited to learn something new" is a response that could show enthusiasm and a willingness to adapt to change.

Answer: D 
 "This should be easy to accept" is not a common response, as change can often be difficult to accept for employees.

Question 15

Companies benefit today from interfirm cooperation. One of the ways they cooperate is through networking. Another way is by seeking technological knowledge and new processes from exemplary firms sometimes outside their own industries. This is called
A) competency capturing.
B) technology swapping.
C) benchmarking.
D) broadening the knowledge base.

Accepted Answer

The described practice of seeking technological knowledge and new processes from exemplary firms outside their own industries is called benchmarking.

Question 16

The management of Entertainment Electronics sees itself as a topnotch producer of components used in DVD and Blu-ray players. The outstanding performance of the production department indicates that this activity is one of the firm's
A) fiscal responsibilities.
B) core competencies.
C) benchmark assets.
D) target competitive advantages.

Accepted Answer

Core competencies are the unique strengths or capabilities that a company possesses, which sets it apart from its competitors. In this case, the outstanding performance of the production department in producing components used in DVD and Blu-ray players is a core competency of the firm, and one of the reasons why it sees itself as a top producer in the industry.

Question 17

Which of the following describes the redesigning of an organization so that it can more effectively and efficiently serve its customers?
A) reinventing
B) restructuring
C) radical reorganizing
D) extroverted reorganizing

Accepted Answer

Restructuring involves making changes to the organization's structure, processes, roles, and resources to improve its efficiency and effectiveness in serving customers. Reinventing, radical reorganizing, and extroverted reorganizing are not specific terms used in organizational design and do not accurately describe the process of improving customer service through restructuring.

Question 18

Electrolush manufactures a variety of home appliances and has historically produced the components for their products in-house. However, the company now contracts with other firms to produce these components. This strategy of ________ is a current trend among U.S. manufacturers.
A) outsourcing
B) core positioning
C) foreign competency
D) competitive benchmarking

Accepted Answer

Outsourcing is the strategy of contracting with other firms to produce components of a product, rather than producing them in-house. This has become a current trend among U.S. manufacturers as it allows them to focus more on their core competencies and save costs by leveraging the expertise and resources of other firms. Core positioning (B) refers to the process of identifying and focusing on a company's core competencies. Foreign competency (C) is not a term commonly used in business and does not apply to the given scenario. Competitive benchmarking (D) is the process of comparing a company's performance, products, or services against its competitors. While it may be related to outsourcing in some instances, it is not the best choice to describe the given scenario.

Question 19

OnTrend, a cosmetology trade publication, utilizes the resources of other organizations as needed and business relationships are temporary as well as flexible. OnTrend is a networked organization made up of replaceable firms that join the network and leave it as needed. This unique organization is an example of
A) competitive benchmarking.
B) a virtual corporation.
C) core competency ranking.
D) real-time transparency.

Accepted Answer

OnTrend's structure as a networked organization made up of replaceable firms is characteristic of a virtual corporation. Virtual corporations are temporary, flexible networks of independent companies that join together to share skills, access markets and materials, and create products or services. They are not bound by traditional organizational structures or long-term business relationships.

Question 20

Last Stop Shop, a regional discount retailer, carefully watches and compares its operations with the operations of its closest rivals. Last Stop Shop does
A) outsourcing.
B) functional positioning.
C) core competency ranking.
D) competitive benchmarking.

Accepted Answer

Last Stop Shop is engaging in competitive benchmarking by watching and comparing its operations with those of its closest rivals. This allows the company to identify areas where it can improve and stay competitive in the market.

Quiz 8: Structuring Organizations for Todays Challenges

________ is the term used to describe those functions that a firm can do as well or better than others. It performs these functions in-house, rather than outsourcing.

________ refer to those functions that an organization does as well as, or better than, any other organization in the world.

Younger people today are often called ________ because they have never known life without the Internet and cell phones.

Empowering employees to better serve customers requires ________ front-line employees.

For an inverted organization to be effective, it requires

In an inverted organization, the job of management is to

Excite Enterprises, a corporation of amusement parks, uses an accounting firm to handle the payroll and tax functions for the company. Using the services of another firm in this manner is an example of

An organization that has contact people at the top and the chief executive officer at the bottom is known as a(n)

One of the most difficult management challenges today is managing change. Why is this?

Which of the following statements best describes the evolution of organization design?

In today's competitive environment, cost containment is extremely important to survival. Which of the following increases efficiency in the production and distribution of goods?

Which of the following are common responses of employees when faced with change?

Companies benefit today from interfirm cooperation. One of the ways they cooperate is through networking. Another way is by seeking technological knowledge and new processes from exemplary firms sometimes outside their own industries. This is called

The management of Entertainment Electronics sees itself as a topnotch producer of components used in DVD and Blu-ray players. The outstanding performance of the production department indicates that this activity is one of the firm's

Which of the following describes the redesigning of an organization so that it can more effectively and efficiently serve its customers?

Electrolush manufactures a variety of home appliances and has historically produced the components for their products in-house. However, the company now contracts with other firms to produce these components. This strategy of ________ is a current trend among U.S. manufacturers.

Last Stop Shop, a regional discount retailer, carefully watches and compares its operations with the operations of its closest rivals. Last Stop Shop does