Exam 4: The Competitive Environment

Describe the factors that affect human resource strategy formulation.

Andy Inc., an electronics firm, decides to own and operate several separate businesses in the consumer durables and food processing sectors.Which of the following strategies is being employed by Andy in this scenario?

Functional strategies help determine what businesses the firm will operate.

Raibo Electric Inc.owns and operates a number of different businesses ranging from fast moving consumer goods to automobiles.As part of its strategy, it adds a wide variety of products to their already existing product lines.This is primarily an example of a _____ strategy.

Scenario 4.1 T&P Corporation is a transnational company with four distinct businesses, including a national music and video store chain, a rap music production company, a talent agency that represents several famous rap stars, and a digital video disc (DVD) production facility that makes and records music videos on DVDs.T&Pis in the process of acquiring another company, its major music store rival ReBop Records.Because its rap stars are so famous, T&Pcharges crazed fans a higher price for its music compact discs and DVD videos.The fans don't mind, as they often have the opportunity to meet the rap stars in person at various T&P music stores throughout the year.T&Phas a policy of promotion from within as well as a no-layoff policy, and all managers are required to rotate through each business before they can be promoted. -Refer to Scenario 4.1.Which competitive strategy does T&P's music and video store chain appear to have adopted?

When a fast moving consumer goods company faced bankruptcy, the company decided to encourage its employees by inviting them to contribute their ideas toward organizational development and growth.Further, the organization asked its human resource team to assess the workers' levels of commitment.In this scenario, which of the following human resource management practices is being used by the company?

The U-form, M-form, and H-form are known to be different organizational designs.

Which of the following strategic alternatives of the adaptation model is more likely to work best when a business environment situation is highly stable with low uncertainty?

Which of the following organizational designs is most likely to be used by smaller or newer organizations?

A _____ strategy occurs when a company targets a specific segment of the marketplace forits products or services.

In the context of the adaptation model, which of the following strategic alternatives isseen as a strategic failure and is not held upas a model that any firm should emulate?

The top management team in a company usually includes all the shareholders.

_____ is the process of dealing with employees who arerepresented by an employee association.

An organization's _____refers to the set of values thathelps its members understandwhat the organization standsfor, how it accomplishes whatit wants to accomplish, andwhat it considers important.

A cost leadership strategy is one that focuses on increasing costs and charging high prestige prices.

Compare and contrast related and unrelated diversification.

How would an organization conduct an evaluation of its human resource function?

Why is an organization's culture an important link to its human resource management?

When an organization uses human resource management practices such as attitude surveys and continuous training, it will most likely lead to _____.

An agency problem occurs when there is a conflict between the interests of managers and the interests of shareholders.