Exam 1: Introduction to Management and Organizations

Interpersonal role is heavily involved in disseminating information throughout the organization.

As managers move to higher organizational levels,the need for ________ skills decreases,but the need for ________ skills continues to be equally important.

The Busy Day (Scenario) Don Martin, plant manager at Control Systems, Inc., sighed as he sipped his cup of coffee and reviewed his hectic schedule for the day. He has to escort two company tours in the morning: the first to a newspaper reporter who is writing a story on the new plant expansion, and the second to a group of Control Systems managers from the East Coast. Then he has a meeting with the unit manager, Phil Johnson, to discuss Phil's recent drop in performance (a task he does not enjoy). Next, he is spending a couple of hours reviewing the trade journals he receives from his high-tech association and writing up a brief synopsis for his presentation next week to the division vice-president. Finally, in the late afternoon, he will be reviewing a recent equipment malfunction and deciding whether to bring in extra technicians to get the equipment operating again as soon as possible. Whew! It was just another busy day in the life of a manager. -When Don meets with Phil to discuss his performance concerns,he will be performing which management role?

From a business perspective,a company's ability to achieve its business goals and increase long-term shareholder value by integrating economic,environmental,and social opportunities into its business strategies is known as ________.

A Day in the Life of a CEO (Scenario) Carly spent the day "shadowing" her uncle Dave, who is the CEO of a large consumer electronics company. Carly is a business management major at a local college, and one of her class assignments was to interview a business manager. When she approached her uncle about the assignment, he invited her to follow him around for a day to observe the typical business activities of a top manager. She noted that he spent the day dealing with a variety of issues. First he met with a division manager who was having difficulty achieving production targets due to his inability to motivate the employees. Then they visited the assembly line to inspect a new machine designed to increase production output. Uncle Dave had once been a production engineer, and the department supervisor and assembly workers were impressed by his knowledge of the new machine's operating specifications. At lunch they met with a group of local CEOs from other companies where everything from the new hiring laws to the latest economic reports was discussed. After lunch, Carly attended a meeting where the five-year strategic plan for the entire company was being evaluated. For her uncle it was a typical day in the life of a CEO, but for Carly it had been a day full of information that she could use for her class assignment. -As a former production engineer,Uncle Dave was able to use his ________ skills to examine the operating specifications of the new machine.

Manager's job is primarily about ________.

The three common characteristics of all organizations are distinct purpose,deliberate structure,and material resources.

A Day in the Life of a CEO (Scenario) Carly spent the day "shadowing" her uncle Dave, who is the CEO of a large consumer electronics company. Carly is a business management major at a local college, and one of her class assignments was to interview a business manager. When she approached her uncle about the assignment, he invited her to follow him around for a day to observe the typical business activities of a top manager. She noted that he spent the day dealing with a variety of issues. First he met with a division manager who was having difficulty achieving production targets due to his inability to motivate the employees. Then they visited the assembly line to inspect a new machine designed to increase production output. Uncle Dave had once been a production engineer, and the department supervisor and assembly workers were impressed by his knowledge of the new machine's operating specifications. At lunch they met with a group of local CEOs from other companies where everything from the new hiring laws to the latest economic reports was discussed. After lunch, Carly attended a meeting where the five-year strategic plan for the entire company was being evaluated. For her uncle it was a typical day in the life of a CEO, but for Carly it had been a day full of information that she could use for her class assignment. -The division manager's inability to motivate his employees may be a sign of weak ________ skills.

Efficiency refers to ________.

Empowered employees and virtual workplaces fall into the ________ category of challenges facing managers.

Joe the Manager (Scenario) As a production supervisor, Joe decides on Friday afternoon how many units of output his employees should produce next week, as well as which products will be produced on which days in the department. He also decides which employees are going to be responsible for operating which machines, since all his subordinates are multi-skilled assemblers. On Monday, he hands out work assignment sheets to inform the employees about which machines each will operate for the week. Joe also announces that the schedule will be challenging because of an increase in the targeted number of output units. He encourages his subordinates by telling them that he is confident they will achieve the production targets because they are such hard-working and skilled employees. Then, during the week, he monitors the daily production output and records the number of units that successfully achieved the company's quality standards, as well as the number of units that were unsatisfactory and had to be scrapped. -When Joe tells the employees he is confident they can achieve the production targets because they are such hard-working and skilled employees,he is performing which management function?

Michael's strength as a manager lies in his ability to work with people.He is very good at motivating and leading his subordinates.Michael is demonstrating which managerial skill?

Technical skills are critical in dealing with abstract and complex situations.

Many of Mintzberg's roles align with the basic functions of management.For example,all three interpersonal roles are part of the ________ function.

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

Management Skills (Scenario) Gavin Clayton is vice-president of product development at Canadian Aircraft Manufacturing (CAM). The company specializes in smaller civilian aircraft for commuter airlines and corporate executives. Gavin is trying to decide if the company should proceed in its plans to produce a new larger scale aircraft. He knows that the new aircraft supports the corporate strategy and will enhance their competitive position in the industry. As a former engineer with years of experience in aircraft design and production, he also knows that his company has the skills and capability to produce the new aircraft. In fact, he believes that the new larger aircraft will result in scale economies for CAM—allowing it to produce more profitable aircraft with roughly the same labour resources. Unfortunately, this could be a sore point with the labour union that represents the aircraft assembly workers. While Gavin has always maintained a good relationship with these workers, he knows they are suspicious of management's motives. If the workers perceive the new larger aircraft as a management ploy to increase worker productivity, they will resist the change. Management will definitely have to get the support of the union before they implement the new production plans. Gavin gazes out his window and ponders how best to proceed with the situation. -Gavin's reliance on his previous engineering and design experience to assess their production capabilities best demonstrates which managerial skill?

An adaptable organization should be ________.

Resource allocation and negotiating are both considered decisional roles.

If a college cuts the cost of an education by using mostly unskilled instructors and at the same time fails to adequately educate its students,it can be said to be doing the wrong things well.In other words,the college is ________.

Management affects employee morale but not the company's financial performance.