Exam 1: Managers and Management

The Busy Day (Scenario) Don Sakaguchi, manager at Control Systems, Inc., sighs as he sips his coffee at 5 A.M. and reads his agenda for the day. Don's first duty is to preside over a retirement party for a beloved employee and say a few words on her behalf. Next, he will give a tour to a news reporter who is writing a story on the new plant expansion. Don then has a meeting with the unit manager, Phil Johnson, to discuss Phil's recent performance drop (a task Don always hates). Finally, in the late afternoon, Don will be reviewing the recent equipment malfunction and deciding whether to deploy extra people to get the equipment running as soon as possible. What a day! -What kind of a manager is Don likely to be?

In Mintzberg's view, the roles of figurehead, leader, and liaison are all interpersonal roles.

All organizations have ________ that define(s)the organization's purpose and reason for existing.

Organizing includes ________.

Joe, the Manager (Scenario) As a production supervisor, Joe determines the number of output units his department will produce each week. On Monday, he informs his team that the schedule is going to be difficult this week due to the increased number of output units. He goes on to tell them that he is confident that they can fulfill the schedule because they are tough, talented, and "when the going gets tough, they are the ones who get going." Each day during the week, Joe checks the amount of output that the employees have completed and the number of units that have been rejected. -When Joe decides the number of output units his team will be able to produce this week, which management process is he performing?

Deciding who will be assigned to which job is a part of the leading function of management.

The General Manager (Scenario) Michelle is the general manager of a power plant. This morning, she will meet with city officials to discuss environmental issues. After the meeting, she will confer with the plant's section managers to address the concerns of the city representatives. This afternoon, Michelle will meet with a team leader to go over a complaint filed by an employee. After the complaint meeting, Michelle plans to spend time in the library and on the Internet researching new technologies that can be used to improve the performance of her plant. -Which type of management skill does Michelle use most during the day?

Application of Skills (Scenario) Harris, a budding stand-up comedian, spent months hanging out at Laugh Town, a local club, meeting other stand-ups, doing a lot of listening and finding out how they learned their trade. It got to the point where several of the star acts were trying out their new material on Harris. If Harris laughed, the material must be good, they said. Finally Harris got to the point where he wanted to try out his own act. Bobby G, a successful comic, agreed to listen to Harris. Bobby laughed a few times, but as he performed his material Harris couldn't help but wonder about the odd, pained expression on Bobby's face. When it was over, Bobby told him, "Very funny, Harris. Keep working on it." It was at that point that Harris decided he would become an agent for other comedians. Somehow, he knew that that was what he was truly suited for. -Recognizing that the pained expression on Bobby G's face had more meaning than Bobby's encouraging words is an example of Harris using which skill?

A key difference between Fayol's and Mintzberg's view of management is that Fayol's view was based on empirical observations of managers in action.

In a short essay, explain through examples how a process can be (a)efficient but not effective and (b)effective but not efficient.

The Busy Day (Scenario) Don Sakaguchi, manager at Control Systems, Inc., sighs as he sips his coffee at 5 A.M. and reads his agenda for the day. Don's first duty is to preside over a retirement party for a beloved employee and say a few words on her behalf. Next, he will give a tour to a news reporter who is writing a story on the new plant expansion. Don then has a meeting with the unit manager, Phil Johnson, to discuss Phil's recent performance drop (a task Don always hates). Finally, in the late afternoon, Don will be reviewing the recent equipment malfunction and deciding whether to deploy extra people to get the equipment running as soon as possible. What a day! -When Don attends the retirement party, he will be operating in which of the management roles?

The General Manager (Scenario) Michelle is the general manager of a power plant. This morning, she will meet with city officials to discuss environmental issues. After the meeting, she will confer with the plant's section managers to address the concerns of the city representatives. This afternoon, Michelle will meet with a team leader to go over a complaint filed by an employee. After the complaint meeting, Michelle plans to spend time in the library and on the Internet researching new technologies that can be used to improve the performance of her plant. -When Michelle learns from city officials about how her plant's operations may be affecting the environment, she is performing which management role?

The Busy Day (Scenario) Don Sakaguchi, manager at Control Systems, Inc., sighs as he sips his coffee at 5 A.M. and reads his agenda for the day. Don's first duty is to preside over a retirement party for a beloved employee and say a few words on her behalf. Next, he will give a tour to a news reporter who is writing a story on the new plant expansion. Don then has a meeting with the unit manager, Phil Johnson, to discuss Phil's recent performance drop (a task Don always hates). Finally, in the late afternoon, Don will be reviewing the recent equipment malfunction and deciding whether to deploy extra people to get the equipment running as soon as possible. What a day! -When Don reviews the equipment malfunction, what management role will he play in deciding whether to bring in extra people?

The General Manager (Scenario) Michelle is the general manager of a power plant. This morning, she will meet with city officials to discuss environmental issues. After the meeting, she will confer with the plant's section managers to address the concerns of the city representatives. This afternoon, Michelle will meet with a team leader to go over a complaint filed by an employee. After the complaint meeting, Michelle plans to spend time in the library and on the Internet researching new technologies that can be used to improve the performance of her plant. -When Michelle addresses a complaint filed by an employee, she is performing which management role?

Designing a series of interview questions to provide information about possible customers for a company would primarily require ________.

Taylor began to develop his theory of ________ after a result of viewing workers in steel companies.

Why is innovation a key component of a manager's job in today's business environment?

Managers who are effective at meeting organizational goals always act efficiently.

Brenda's ability to delegate responsibility well is evidence that she excels at which management function?

A manager does not work directly on tasks for the organization.