Question 1

A _____ is the knowledge, expertise, or skill that underlies a company's ability to be a leader in providing a range of specific goods or services.

Accepted Answer

A core capability is the knowledge, expertise, or skill that underlies a company's ability to be a leader in providing a range of specific goods or services. It allows the company to compete on the basis of its core strengths and expertise, not just on what it produces.

Question 2

Which type of company is better at providing quality goods and services to targeted market niches?

Accepted Answer

Small companies can move fast, provide quality goods and services to targeted market niches, and inspire greater involvement from their people. The premium is on flexibility and responsiveness, the unique potential strengths of the small firm.

Question 3

Which of the following is an advantage of a small organization?

Accepted Answer

Large size creates scale economies-that is, lower costs per unit of production. Size can offer advantages, such as lower operating costs, greater purchasing power, and easier access to capital. Smaller companies can move fast, provide quality goods and services to targeted market niches, and inspire greater involvement from their employees.

Question 4

Which of the following words best describes decision making in a small batch organization?

Accepted Answer

In a small batch organization, structure tends to be very organic. There tend not to be a lot of rules and formal procedures, and decision making tends to be decentralized. The emphasis is on mutual adjustment among people.

Question 5

Which of the following is an important component of time-based competition?

Accepted Answer

Time-based competition (TBC) refers to strategies aimed at reducing the total time needed to deliver a good or service. TBC has several key organizational elements: logistics, just-in-time (JIT), and concurrent engineering.

Question 6

Glen wants to balance the strategic triangle for his company. To do this, he must take into account the competition, the customer, and the _____.

Accepted Answer

Dr. Kenichi Ohmae points out that any business unit must take into account three key players: the company itself, the competition, and the customer. These components form what Ohmae refers to as the strategic triangle.

Question 7

A company that receives certification that it meets ISO 9001 standards is a company that

Accepted Answer

Certification is not the end of the quality effort but a beginning step. Rather than defining how to operate perfectly, ISO 9001 standards establish practices that enable the organization to keep improving-assuming that it continues to follow those practices.

Question 8

The planned elimination of positions or jobs is known as _____.

Accepted Answer

Downsizing is the planned elimination of positions or jobs. Common approaches to downsizing include eliminating functions, hierarchical levels, or even whole units.

Question 9

A form of organization that seeks to maximize internal efficiency is called

Accepted Answer

Mechanistic organization is a form of organization that seeks to maximize internal efficiency. It was initially described by two British management scholars, Burns and Stalker, who also suggested that in a modern corporation, the mechanistic structure is not the only option.

Question 10

Rey's company produces a high volume of bicycle helmets, yet they come in a high variety of distinctive styles. The company is engaging in _____.

Accepted Answer

Although issues of volume and variety often have been seen as trade-offs in a technological sense, today organizations are trying to produce both high-volume and high-variety products at the same time. This is referred to as mass customization.

Question 11

The phenomenon in which employees who retain their jobs during a layoff subsequently exhibit a loss of productivity and reduced morale is known as _____.

Accepted Answer

The people who lose their jobs because of downsizing are not the only ones deeply affected. Those who survive the process and keep their jobs tend to exhibit what has become known as survivor's syndrome. Their morale and productivity usually drop.

Question 12

The process of completely overhauling an operation to achieve the greatest possible benefits to the customer and to the organization is known as _____.

Accepted Answer

Reengineering is not about making minor organizational changes here and there. It is about completely overhauling the operation, in revolutionary ways, to achieve the greatest possible benefits to the customer and to the organization.

Question 13

Big companies can typically lower costs per unit of production. In other words, large size allows for _____.

Accepted Answer

Large size creates scale economies-that is, lower costs per unit of production.

Question 14

Which of the following is an advantage of a large organization?

Accepted Answer

Large size creates scale economies-that is, lower costs per unit of production. Size can offer advantages, such as lower operating costs, greater purchasing power, and easier access to capital.

Question 15

The _____ structure is an organizational form that emphasizes flexibility.

Accepted Answer

The organic structure stands in stark contrast to the mechanistic organization. It is much less rigid and, in fact, emphasizes flexibility.

Question 16

Total quality management is characterized by a strong orientation toward both external and internal _____.

Accepted Answer

Total quality management is a comprehensive approach to improving product quality and thereby customer satisfaction. It is characterized by a strong orientation toward customers (external and internal) and has become an umbrella theme for organizing work.

Question 17

If jobholders rely more heavily on judgment than on rules, the organization most likely has a(n) _____ structure.

Accepted Answer

The organic structure stands in stark contrast to the mechanistic organization. It is much less rigid and, in fact, emphasizes flexibility. Jobholders tend to rely more heavily on judgment than on rules in an organization that employs the organic structure.

Question 18

Uma wants to improve her customer service department by using information technologies to create two-way conversations with customers to gain more knowledge of their wants and preferences. Uma wants to institute _____ management.

Accepted Answer

Customer relationship management (CRM) is a multifaceted process. It is typically mediated by a set of information technologies that focuses on creating two-way exchanges with customers so that firms have an intimate knowledge of customer needs, wants, and buying patterns. CRM helps companies understand and anticipate the needs of current and potential customers.

Question 19

The formal structure of an organization is primarily put in place to:

Accepted Answer

The formal structure is put in place to control people, decisions, and actions. But in today's fast-changing business environment, responsiveness-quickness, agility, the ability to adapt to changing demands-is more vital than ever to a firm's survival.

Question 20

The successful effort to achieve an appropriate size at which a company performs most effectively is known as _____.

Accepted Answer

Downsizing can lead to a more agile, flexible, and responsive firm. In this case, downsizing can be called rightsizing. Rightsizing is the arrival at the size at which the company performs most effectively.

Quiz 9: Organizational Agility