Exam 8: Structuring Organizations for Todays Challenges

Transparency allows two companies to work more efficiently together.

While staff personnel have the authority to make policy decisions, line personnel have the authority to advise and make suggestions.

Because top managers supervise the firm's most talented workers, they generally have a broader span of control than middle or first-line managers.

In an inverted organization, the purpose of management is to assist and support the decisions of employees who work directly with customers.

An informal organization can be a valuable asset to managers attempting to create an environment of harmony among workers and establish the corporate culture.

Inverted organizations define the role of front-line employees as those workers who follow the orders of top and middle management.

In today's fast-paced business environment, Weber's bureaucratic ideas work well. These principles permit business to respond quickly to customer changes.

Regional monopoly, Southeastern Electric, wants to improve services to customers. Management recently rated the company's processes and products against the results achieved by the world's best at similar processes and products. Southeastern Electric has adopted a policy of international standardization.

Cross-functional self-managed teams are groups of employees empowered to work with suppliers and customers to develop new products and give great service.

Division of labor is difficult to achieve in small businesses.

Which of the following is an example of a move to reorganize?

An advantage of decentralized authority is that those individuals closest to the customers and more familiar with local conditions make decisions.

The degree to which an organization allows lower-level managers to make decisions reflects the degree of decentralization.

The Internet makes real-time availability of data possible.

Bureaucratic organizations are not very responsive to customers.

A virtual corporation is a networked organization made up of replaceable firms that join the network and leave it as needed.

Clean Sweep Corporation has seen rapid growth during its first five years. While still relatively small, Clean Sweep is now big enough that Sawyer, the firm's CEO, has decided to organize the firm into functional departments. Sawyer can likely expect which of the following to occur?

An organizational hierarchy establishes one person at the top of an organization.

Which of the following statements would best summarize Max Weber's views on the role of workers in an organization?

An organization that consists of many layers of management is referred to as a(n) ________ organization.