Exam 5: Basic Organization Designs

The wider the span of control, the more the organization will tend to _________ .

Application of Departmentalization John is aware that the structure of his organization must change in order to compete more effectively in today's global market. However, he is not sure which structure would work best for his company. His company is currently organized around an accounting, human resource, sales, purchasing, and manufacturing departments. However, there are other choices available. He has considered reorganizing around their primary products, which are frames, silk flowers, dried flowers, art supplies, craft supplies, and material. However, equally important are the differing clientele they serve, who are homemakers that do arts/crafts, interior decorators, large institutions, and professional consultants. Since the business is growing, they now have stores across the United States primarily in the Northwest, Midwest, South, and Southwest areas. Plus, his customers seldom shop for just one type of item. Frequently they purchase not only the flowers, but also the vases and other supplies that are needed in order to complete the arrangement, which means oftentimes shopping in most of the areas in the store. -Which of the following structures would be used if the grouping were done by frames, silk flowers, dried flowers, art supplies, craft supplies, and material?

_________organizations tend to be ill equipped to respond to rapid environmental change.

Grouping activities by the following categories would be an example of functional departmentalization: men's clothing, women's clothing, tools, home decorations, and shoes.

Application of Organizational Structure Jim Johnson is the CEO of a major manufacturer of farming equipment. His company has been in business for the last 100 years and has been very profitable. The company is very formal and tall with formalized communication channels and rigid hierarchical relationships. Mr. Johnson makes all major decisions. This has worked very well until lately. It has begun to have some major global competition. Companies overseas are bringing new products into the United States at a lower price. Furthermore, just yesterday, the new vice- president had mentioned that he felt that there was a major market overseas for the company's products. As its strategy was beginning to change, Mr. Johnson also realized its structure too would need to change, but to what? The company was large and, prior to these changes, the technology utilized, while extensive, had been very routine. What is he to do? -The large size of the company and the use of routine technology are indicators that which type of structure would be most effective?

The strength of the functional structure lies in the advantages that accrue from work specialization.

Role conflicts are likely to result from the way that reporting relationships are organized in a matrix structure.

Application of Departmentalization John is aware that the structure of his organization must change in order to compete more effectively in today's global market. However, he is not sure which structure would work best for his company. His company is currently organized around an accounting, human resource, sales, purchasing, and manufacturing departments. However, there are other choices available. He has considered reorganizing around their primary products, which are frames, silk flowers, dried flowers, art supplies, craft supplies, and material. However, equally important are the differing clientele they serve, who are homemakers that do arts/crafts, interior decorators, large institutions, and professional consultants. Since the business is growing, they now have stores across the United States primarily in the Northwest, Midwest, South, and Southwest areas. Plus, his customers seldom shop for just one type of item. Frequently they purchase not only the flowers, but also the vases and other supplies that are needed in order to complete the arrangement, which means oftentimes shopping in most of the areas in the store. -What is one of the most popular ways to group activities/departmentalize that John could model after?

Name and briefly describe the difference between centralization and decentralization.

Power based upon identification with a person who has desirable resources or personal traits is known as

As an organization becomes flatter the span of control becomes smaller.

Which of the following statements accurately describes the functional organizational structure?

Which type of power is not displayed in Jerri's organization?

Rather than having standardized jobs and regulations, the organic organization's loose structure allows it to change rapidly as needs require.

Application of Organizational Structure Jim Johnson is the CEO of a major manufacturer of farming equipment. His company has been in business for the last 100 years and has been very profitable. The company is very formal and tall with formalized communication channels and rigid hierarchical relationships. Mr. Johnson makes all major decisions. This has worked very well until lately. It has begun to have some major global competition. Companies overseas are bringing new products into the United States at a lower price. Furthermore, just yesterday, the new vice- president had mentioned that he felt that there was a major market overseas for the company's products. As its strategy was beginning to change, Mr. Johnson also realized its structure too would need to change, but to what? The company was large and, prior to these changes, the technology utilized, while extensive, had been very routine. What is he to do? -Which type of decision- making authority is currently being used in the company?

Application of Organizational Structure Jim Johnson is the CEO of a major manufacturer of farming equipment. His company has been in business for the last 100 years and has been very profitable. The company is very formal and tall with formalized communication channels and rigid hierarchical relationships. Mr. Johnson makes all major decisions. This has worked very well until lately. It has begun to have some major global competition. Companies overseas are bringing new products into the United States at a lower price. Furthermore, just yesterday, the new vice- president had mentioned that he felt that there was a major market overseas for the company's products. As its strategy was beginning to change, Mr. Johnson also realized its structure too would need to change, but to what? The company was large and, prior to these changes, the technology utilized, while extensive, had been very routine. What is he to do? -Which of the following contingency variables had the biggest impact on the need for changes in Mr. Johnson's organization?

The simple structure form of organization is fast, flexible, and inexpensive to maintain, and accountability is clear. It is effective in _________organizations.

The major disadvantage of the divisional structure is

The span of control today is increasingly being determined by analyzing contingency variables.

Stanley Milgram, a Yale University social psychologist, performed an experiment in which subjects were instructed to administer a shock to learners when they made a mistake. What can be concluded from his experiments?