Exam 8: Structuring Organizations for Todays Challenges

Division of labor refers to deciding how many jobs must be accomplished and then dividing them up amongst the labor force.

A hierarchy requires many top managers,but only a few middle managers.

Eileen works in the human resources department of a corporation with several hundred employees.Her main function is to advise and assist managers in other departments,such as marketing and production,when they make staffing decisions.Eileen's position would be classified as an)___________ position.

_____________ is using communications technology and other means to link organizations and allow them to work together on common objectives.

Realizing that it was time to invest in an updated information system,a young CEO made the following announcement in his weekly broadcast: "We are going to shake things up around here.We need to break apart our information system,and start over." Unfortunately,the message translated poorly in the minds of employees.A total shake-up such as this could impact employee morale.Progressive companies today incorporate strategies that continuously embrace:

The decision on how to departmentalize should depend on the customer and the product or service the firm is offering.

Cardinal Foods is a wholesaler serving grocery stores.High tech communications allows Cardinal to work closely with its suppliers and customers in real time.Networking allows these organizations to operate more efficiently.

Molly,a production line employee at Holiday Industries learned from a friend at her coffee break that one of the managers in accounting is about to be fired.She is eager to learn if other friends at Holiday know any more about the situation.This flow of information is an example of Holiday's grapevine.

The ________ an organization's structure,the ________ the span of control.

Span of control refers to the number of different markets a business can serve efficiently.

_____________ refers to companies headquartered abroad who elect to bring production and manufacturing to domestic subsidiaries.

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

_______________ means that decision-making authority is delegated to lower-level managers and employees.

Improvements in information technology have permitted companies to increase their span of control.

A flat organization is less likely to respond quickly to customer needs.

Buzzoff Corporation is a medium sized organization,organized with well-defined lines of authority and responsibility.Each employee reports to only one boss.The managers at Buzzoff complain that they have no expert support staff available to offer legal advice.Lately opportunities are slipping through the cracks due to inefficient long lines of communication.These characteristics suggest that Buzzoff employs a matrix organization.

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

The basic idea behind the organization design of Fayol and Weber was that management wanted to control workers.

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

The design of a bureaucratic organization assumes a well-educated workforce.