Exam 8: Foundations of Planning

____________ plan is a plan specifically designed to meet the needs of a unique situation.

MBO works best in dynamic environments where new goals can be set every few weeks.

Refer to the scenario given to answer the following questions. MBO (Scenario) Kay was excited. She had just returned from a manager's retreat where MBO was discussed. MBO had never been used in her organization before, and Kay was enthusiastic about implementing it in her department. She received permission from her manager, the division head, who vaguely remembered learning about MBO in university several years earlier. Kay looked over the information she had received but was still confused about who was to choose the goals for the employees. However, she knew that once the goals were chosen they needed to be specific and have explicit time periods attached. Even though it would take a lot of work to implement the program, Kay was confident that MBO would prove to be very beneficial to the organization. -Based on Kay's observations about effective goal setting, which of the following is an appropriate goal for a MBO program?

Which of the following types of plans dominates managers' planning efforts at lower levels of the organization?

Refer to the scenario given to answer the following questions. E-Biz Dreams (Scenario) Robert Lee has just completed a Bachelor of Computer Science degree at Carleton University. He now wants to begin a new Internet business selling his services as a website developer for companies in Ottawa. He estimates that within one year, if his business idea is a success, he will be employing five programmers and two analysts. -To ensure that the objectives are clearly defined and do not leave room for interpretation, he will have to develop __________ plans.

How can managers effectively plan when the external environment is continually changing?

Refer to the scenario given to answer the following questions. E-Biz Dreams (Scenario) Robert Lee has just completed a Bachelor of Computer Science degree at Carleton University. He now wants to begin a new Internet business selling his services as a website developer for companies in Ottawa. He estimates that within one year, if his business idea is a success, he will be employing five programmers and two analysts. -To make his business successful, Robert will first have to develop a(n) __________ plan that establishes the company's overall goals and positions it in terms of its environment.

Real goals are goals that an organization actually pursues.

Planning reduces ____________ by forcing managers to look ahead and anticipate _____________.

Refer to the scenario given to answer the following questions. The Sea to Sky Collaborative (Scenario) Nadia Mainardi is the senior planner for the Whistler-Blackcomb Regional Development Council. She has met with a group of stakeholders, including the British Columbia Ministry of Transportation, Tourism B.C., and others who are interested in working together to improve the Sea to Sky Highway between North Vancouver and Whistler. To date, Nadia has successfully obtained a Technical Assistance Grant from the province to help organize several small communities along the Sea to Sky Highway into an intergovernmental unit, all sharing the same mission and goals. Nadia is now charged with developing a strategic plan for this group, called the Sea to Sky Collaborative. -While each community in the Sea to Sky Collaborative maintains its identity and independence, Nadia believes that the leverage of multi-governmental applications will ultimately secure more major funding in the future. However, due to the intergovernmental nature of the organization, Nadia, although in charge of the collaborative, wields little direct power over any member community individually. Which contingency factor best represents Nadia's situation?

Which of the following is true concerning standing plans?

Formal planning involves which of the following aspects?

Plans that specify the details of how the overall goals are to be achieved are called ____________ plans.

An organization's mission states that it "is committed to reducing its environmental footprint"; but its facilities do not comply with statutory environmental regulations. This is an instance of how ________.

Refer to the scenario given to answer the following questions. It's Academic (Scenario) Rachel is the academic dean for a regional community college. The president has asked her to develop a plan for the college. He wants a plan covering the next five years, and he wants it to be as specific as possible, but not to the extent that it constrains flexibility. In developing the plan, Rachel must address several emerging issues, including advancements in teaching technology, shifting demand for various academic programs, declining student enrolment, and increasing competition from other schools. Despite projections that student enrolment will continue to decline over the next five years, Rachel must ensure that the plan allows the college to meet its employment obligations to tenured faculty who have been offered long-term teaching positions. -Declining student enrolment and increasing competition are examples of which contingency factor that can affect planning?

Which of the following is the best indicator of an organization's real goals?

Planning can't eliminate change. Managers plan in order to ____________.

Plans that apply to the entire organization, establish the organization's overall goals, and seek to position the organization in terms of its environment are called ______________ plans.

Planning reduces overlapping and wasteful activities. True False

In traditional goals setting, goals often lose clarity and unity as they make their way from the top of the organization to lower levels.