Deck 10: Ethically Engaging and Empowering Employees

Question 1

In which of the following ways does Maslow's conceptualization of hierarchy of needs differ from Lawrence's four drives?

A) It is less applicable to life in organizations.
B) It places less of a priority on defensive needs like shelter and food.
C) It does not consider social fulfillment to be a part of human need.
D) It prioritizes physical needs before other emotional or intellectual needs.

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Which of the following is a commonality among Fortune magazine's "100 Best Companies to Work For"?

A) seeking to hire employees that rate very low on McClelland's power need
B) seeking to hire employees that rate very high on McClelland's power need
C) eliminating all of Herzberg's job dissatisfaction factors
D) addressing Lawrence's conception of employee drives and McClelland's three needs

Answer 2

D

Question 3

Which of the following is most characteristic of a fully engaged employee at work with respect to Maslow's hierarchy?

A) powerful in self-actualization without the need to fulfill lower levels
B) achievement of physiological and safety needs
C) fulfillment of all levels of the hierarchy
D) no need for recognition for personal achievements

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Abby has been working at her new job for six months. She perceives that her coworkers all treat her with respect and make sure that she has a say in decisions that affect them all. Abby's workplace is strong in what form of justice?

A) informational
B) interactional
C) procedural
D) distributive

Question 5

Katie feels like the primary reason she works so hard at her job is so she can afford the nice vacations and cars that she desires. What would Paul Lawrence say about Katie?

A) She is only influenced by one major innate, subconscious drive.
B) Of the four innate drives, she is most influenced by the drive to acquire.
C) Of the four innate drives, she is most influenced by the drive to defend.
D) Katie works primarily to understand the world around her and her place in it.

Question 6

Job dissatisfaction among employees typically leads to ______.

A) higher self-actualization
B) higher affiliation
C) unethical behavior
D) high turnover

Question 7

Researchers have shown a positive correlation between employee engagement and ______ organizations.

A) profitable
B) ethical
C) ecologically sound
D) smaller, close-knit

Question 8

How does the text define "employee engagement"?

A) an emotional bond or attachment an employee has to the work task, organization, and its members
B) the ability of organization management to create a positive relationship between employees and the work
C) the extent to which employees engage in nonwork socialization with coworkers or informal employee groups
D) the attachment an employee has to his or her specific job description

Question 9

If Chip Conley evaluated a specific employee's working life and evaluated that employee to have achieved "transformation," which of the following would most likely apply to that employee?

A) She takes personal fulfillment in her work and sees it as a great life achievement.
B) She has realized she is not happy in her work and is now doing something about it.
C) She feels safe and comfortable in her work environment but is not attracted to the work itself.
D) She is very unhappy in her work and is not sure how to alter her situation.

Question 10

How do Frederick Herzberg's job satisfaction factors relate to Maslow's hierarchy of needs?

A) Both address high-level psychological motivation factors and recommend that employers first provide these to employees before anything else.
B) Neither consider the lack of basic physical needs like safety to be related to job dissatisfaction.
C) Both address high-level social needs like self-esteem and self-actualization, though Herzberg calls them motivation factors.
D) Both rank basic physiological needs as most important for happiness and engagement with work.

Question 11

Which of the following statements about job satisfaction is accurate?

A) It is important to make sure your worst employees are highest in job satisfaction.
B) Around two-thirds of workers report very low job satisfaction.
C) Higher job satisfaction will not necessarily lead to higher productivity.
D) More employees are satisfied with their performance review process than their job.

Question 12

What are the four forms of organizational justice?

A) procedural, informational, interactional, and distributive
B) distributive, organizational, relational, absolute
C) relational, procedural, collegial, managerial
D) managerial, interactional, informational, citizen

Question 13

In which of the following ways does David McClelland's needs conceptualization differ from both Lawrence's four needs and Maslow's hierarchy of needs?

A) He does not specifically consider power or domination as a core need.
B) He has a wider range and bigger variety of needs.
C) He does not specifically consider physical or tangible needs like safety or possessions.
D) He believes all employees have roughly the same needs in the same intensities.

Question 14

When a person's effort at their job is most directed, even subconsciously, by the need to provide their child with basic resources, this is most related to the drive to ______.

A) acquire
B) defend
C) learn
D) bond

Question 15

According to Paul Lawrence, the drive managers most often suppress in the work place is the drive to ______.

A) learn
B) acquire
C) defend
D) bond

Question 16

If applying the lessons of Maslow's hierarchy, what would a manager first need to do if that manager wanted her employees to forge an emotional bond to their work?

A) Hold employees accountable for pursuing social engagement.
B) Give the employees very high material comfort.
C) Improve the employees' self-esteem.
D) Make the employees feel safe.

Question 17

How would David McClelland likely differ from Paul Lawrence in assessing an employee who seems extremely driven to seek promotions and control the work of others?

A) McClelland would say there is simply a high need for power instead of an imbalance of needs.
B) McClelland would say the employee had achieved all needs in the hierarchy instead of a healthy balance.
C) McClelland would say the employee needs more emphasis on social needs instead of the drive to learn.
D) McClelland would say the employee has a strong drive to learn instead of a strong need for power.

Question 18

What would David McClelland recommend that a company give an employee with a high need for achievement?

A) a high salary and merit-based bonuses
B) frequent breaks
C) regular promotions
D) complex, difficult work

Question 19

Which of the following statements about employee engagement is accurate?

A) Highly engaged business units show much fewer product defects than low-engagement business units.
B) Mid-sized organizations (between 100 and 1000 employees) showed the highest levels of engagement.
C) New hires are the most engaged class of employees.
D) Some 75 percent of employees report lack of engagement in their work.

Question 20

In Chip Conley's needs model, what would you have if you had reached the "success" stage?

A) a job that feels like a "calling" to you
B) a good working and personal relationship with coworkers
C) a high level of self-actualization
D) assurance that you would not be injured on the job

Question 21

As bullying can happen to almost anyone, what should employees always be doing that can ultimately help if ever a victim of bullying?

A) seeking promotions to gain in status/hierarchical powers
B) developing coalitions with ethical workers
C) practicing mindfulness to be better able to handle bullying mentally
D) learning about legal options for litigating against coworkers

Question 22

Bullying affects organizational performance by causing ______.

A) higher absenteeism
B) lower turnover
C) higher levels of organizational commitment
D) highly unethical company leadership

Question 23

Hanson is what the text would classify as a fence-sitter. Which of the following likely describes a typical workday for Hanson?

A) He arrives on time, competently finishes only the tasks assigned to him, and leaves at the official end of the workday.
B) He arrives early, finishes his tasks and asks for more, and stays late to put in maximum effort.
C) He often complains about his work and undermines others but performs well on the tasks given to him.
D) He does slightly substandard work and refuses attempts to involve him in decision making about company work or policies.

Question 24

Which of the following statements about bullying is accurate based on the Workplace Bullying Institute's 2014 survey of 1,000 employees?

A) Roughly half of bulling incidents are perpetrated by managers.
B) More than half of employees reported being bullied.
C) Hurtful jokes cannot be considered a form of bullying.
D) Most victims reported ignoring or being unaffected by the bullying.

Question 25

Among subordinates, who should a good manager imbue with the most autonomy and decision-making authority?

A) all employees equally
B) the best performers
C) the fence-sitters
D) the adversarials

Question 26

Which of the following is an example of distributive justice?

A) Notifications about changes to company polices are communicated to all employees in a timely way.
B) Promotions are granted in a fair and consistent way.
C) Managers keep an open-door policy for employees to express concerns.
D) The decision to reprimand or sanction an employee can be appealed by that employee

Question 27

After reading statistics about bullying in the workplace, Omari, a manager, decides to make sure it is adequately addressed in his own department. What should Omari's first move be?

A) Announce that he is adopting a no-tolerance policy toward maltreatment by employees.
B) Ask employees if there are any offenders who should be targeted.
C) Make sure hiring process weed out those with bullying tendencies.
D) Do a self-assessment to make sure he has no bullying tendencies himself.

Question 28

Sarah thinks of herself as a healer at heart, and all her life, she has wanted to bring mental and physical health to others. She is now a doctor working in developing countries, a path that is very aligned with her self-concept. Based on this, we would say that her work is ______.

A) self-sacrificing
B) special
C) meaningful
D) collegial

Question 29

With respect to the workplace, what does "empowerment" mean?

A) employee belief in the mission of the organization
B) giving employees a say in their training
C) making employees feel appreciated
D) giving employees decision-making authority

Question 30

According to the sources of meaningful work articulated by Lips-Wiersma and Morris, how does the source "unity with others" differ from "serving with others"?

A) It emphasizes impact on humanity.
B) It involves a sense of belonging, such as with coworkers.
C) It is more related to personal growth.
D) It is more concerned with making a difference in the lives of others.

Question 31

Which of the following statements about employee empowerment is accurate?

A) The same control system or level of empowerment should be imposed on all employees.
B) Specific workplace criteria should not be imposed between an employee and the chance at empowerment.
C) Employees that do not want to be empowered should be forced into it.
D) Not all employees should be provided with the opportunity to be empowered.

Question 32

How does the Healthy Workplace Bill define bullying?

A) unequal power relationships between employees that are exploited by one employee for cruelty or gain
B) sexual, verbal, or physical threats by one employee against another
C) behavior by an employee that causes one or more other employees to feel that the work environment is unsafe
D) repeated verbal abuse or abusive conduct that is threatening, intimidating, or humiliating

Question 33

What is the strongest positive influence on organizational justice?

A) ethical subordinates
B) high job satisfaction
C) having a code of ethics
D) ethical leadership

Question 34

Which of the following best describes the current state of legal protection against bullying in the workplace?

A) Employees everywhere are federally protected against workplace abuse.
B) About one-third of states have legal protections against bullying.
C) Legislation has been proposed but never adopted.
D) Employees in any state can sue an organization for allowing an abusive work environment.

Question 35

A highly talented and engaged worker cites that pay is not the highest motivating factor for her level of engagement at her company. What evidence helps confirm this position?

A) This employee could likely get higher or equivalent pay at another company.
B) Talented and hard-working employees are almost always very ethical employees.
C) Polls and surveys show that pay is very rarely a motivating factor for employees.
D) This employee likely developed her level of talent and engagement through long years of motivated work in a career field she loves.

Question 36

According to Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman research into the Gallup Organization's employee engagement database, what do employees want most from the workplace?

A) to work for a great manager
B) to have great coworkers
C) to work for an ethical company
D) to find meaning in their work

Question 37

Kalai doesn't hate her job, but she doesn't love it either. Her manager thinks of her as a reliable employee who is an asset to the team. Kalai shows up each day and does what is needed of her so that she can afford the lifestyle she desires. Kalai is most likely a(n) ______.

A) manager
B) go-getter
C) adversarial
D) fence-sitter

Question 38

Based on the work of Gallup researchers, which of the following is a likely behavior of excellent managers in their training and developing of subordinates?

A) They will not engage with very many employees because most will never be good performers.
B) They will engage with an apathetic employee, but they will not try to turn this employee into a star performer.
C) They will try to engage and motivate every employee because they believe every person can show major change in who they are.
D) They will work hard, through training and encouragement, to encourage an unethical employee to adopt a philosophy of ethical behavior.

Question 39

With respect to the sources of meaningful work articulated by Lips-Wiersma and Morris, what is likely to happen to an employee too far concentrated in the "doing" side of the continuum, even if very selfless?

A) material poverty
B) disengagement
C) isolation
D) burnout

Question 40

How does text define "meaningful work"?

A) having a career that gives one both financial and emotional success
B) spending time at work to achieve something that is personally desirable
C) pursuing work that contributes to the health of others or the Earth
D) being part of a collective of workers who care deeply about the product of their labor

Question 41

In which of the following ways do adversarials differ from fence-sitters?

A) They do not self-actualize through work.
B) They should never be empowered.
C) They are eager to leave work at the official end of the work day.
D) They generally do just enough to keep from getting fired.

Question 42

Herman is a graphic designer at a large firm. He loves designing and considers it his calling in life, and he works incredibly hard and puts in extra hours to produce increasingly great work for the company. But Herman is generally uninterested in meetings and decision making and avoids attending when possible. He can even be hostile to coworkers when asked to work on joint projects too much. Overall, Herman should be classified as a(n) ______.

A) go-getter
B) adversarial
C) fence-sitter
D) unclassifiable; he fits no pattern

Question 43

How does the pinch theory reconciliation process conclude?

A) The second party accepts the first party's proposed solution.
B) Work in the organization resumes.
C) The parties agree to continue to see a solution to the conflict.
D) The parties sign a mutually agreed-upon written solution to the conflict.

Question 44

What is a likely type of information shared in open book management?

A) employee evaluations
B) profit reports
C) salaries
D) personal reflections

Question 45

What is the "positive core" of an organization with respect to the appreciative inquiry process?

A) the organization's specific ethical behaviors
B) the organization's ethical mission statement and plan for implementation
C) the main aspects of the organization that support the organization's mission and superior service
D) the group of employees that most represent the positive aspects of the organization

Question 46

How should the devil's advocate operate in the team problem-solving process?

A) trying to offer many reasons why the highest-priority solution might fail
B) trying to knock down as many early suggestions as possible to reduce idea clutter
C) acting as a force of focus during the brainstorming session
D) picking two or three of the weakest solutions and championing them

Question 47

According to Patrick Lencioni, which of the following can we expect if faced with an ineffective work team?

A) an absentee manager
B) regular constructive conflict
C) a high proportion of adversarials
D) disinterest in collective work or outcomes

Question 48

How does appreciative inquiry differ from open book management?

A) It pushes greater information sharing with employees.
B) It tries to leverage the contributions of employees.
C) It doesn't allow rumination on employee or organization weaknesses.
D) It disempowers subordinates rather than empowering them.

Question 49

The achievement of what component makes it possible for team members to be held accountable to a goal?

A) goal commitment
B) willingness to express disagreement
C) collective trust
D) collective achievement of tasks

Question 50

What is the crucial final step to the appreciative inquiry process?

A) management follow-up on employee recommendations
B) written codification of vision and image
C) making recommendations for organizational improvement
D) drafting a new organizational mission statement

Question 51

The members of an ineffective team generally suffer from a lack of commitment. According to Patrick Lencioni, what two components must already be missing for this to happen?

A) lack of trust and fear of conflict
B) fear of conflict and disinterest in collective outcomes
C) avoidance of accountability and lack of trust
D) inattention to collective results and a fear of conflict

Question 52

How are solutions initially presented in the team problem-solving process?

A) by a nominated leader of the group with input by the solution writer
B) by each team member individually, followed by commentary after reading
C) by each team member individually without comment from others
D) anonymously, by a nominated leader

Question 53

Which of the following would be the most ideal scenario in which to implement open book management?

A) A company has had steady but modest profits for several years.
B) A company has scored very low on an ethical report card analysis made by a third party.
C) A company is experiencing record profits and trying to decide how to invest the extra revenue.
D) A company's management is considering salary caps during a difficult economic downturn.

Question 54

In the first half of the pinch theory reconciliation process, the two sides of the conflict ______.

A) agree that they do not want the problem to escalate
B) agree on the common goal of the group or organization
C) air their grievance with the other
D) help each other clarify the problem

Question 55

A pinch situation is one in which ______.

A) there is a conflict over values though not over group goals
B) the team finds itself evenly divided between two major directions
C) a conflict between team members has the capacity to derail a project
D) there is a difference between people regarding expectations, values, opinions, or goals

Question 56

What is the ultimate goal of open book management?

A) motivating nonmanagement employees to seek management positions
B) empowering nonmanagement employees so they make better decisions
C) eliminating conflict between management and subordinates
D) creating a more ethical workspace

Question 57

How does the team problem-solving process differ from the pinch theory reconciliation process?

A) It emphasizes clarification of the problem up front.
B) It helps parties to the conflict understand each other's perspectives.
C) It better utilizes the unique perspectives of parties to the conflict.
D) It prevents the conflict from escalating to a more intense problem.

Question 58

What is the initial task for employees in an appreciative inquiry process?

A) Identify processes that are causing problems for their organization.
B) Identify processes that work well for their organization.
C) Envision processes that would work well for their organization.
D) Envision future problems or crises that might befall their organization.

Question 59

A group of employees have reached the "dream" stage of the appreciative inquiry process. Which of the following questions might best be asked at this stage?

A) What would the organization be like with record profits?
B) How can we make the lives of employees better?
C) How can we eliminate the problem employees that are dragging down our sales department?
D) How might creating a new office of customer relations improve our client base?

Question 60

If a manager is going to try to improve the performance of an adversarial employee, what is the recommended method of experimentation?

A) Supervise them less closely.
B) Give them more responsibility.
C) Put them in close contact with fence-sitters.
D) Reduce the amount of work assigned to them.

Question 61

What happens if a Scanlon-type gainsharing plan results in costs savings improvements over historical benchmarks?

A) No revenue sharing occurs; the point of the plan is to empower employees.
B) All savings go to employees involved in the plan.
C) A portion of the savings go to employees of the organization.
D) The organization receives the benefits and chooses whether to reward employees through pay raises.

Question 62

What happens to employees' participation in an ESOP plan if/when they leave the organization?

A) They lose their accumulated value.
B) They can purchase their vested shares (to be sold back later).
C) They sell their shares back to the company.
D) They can cash out their vested share value.

Question 63

Karin is a new hire at her company and is told the company has a stock option plan. Which of the following is likely TRUE of her options?

A) She is now fully vested.
B) After ten years, her right to purchase shares through the stock option program will increase.
C) She can purchase as many shares as she wants through the program.
D) Her newly hired supervisor will have the right to purchase more stock options than she will.

Question 64

What is accomplished by the Mondragon Corporation's pay solidarity rules?

A) preventing too high a percentage of profits from going to workers instead of the company
B) capping the amount any worker can make in any one given year
C) equal distribution of profits
D) limiting the range of pay disparity between the highest and lowest earners

Question 65

In the appreciative inquiry process, which of the following is a criterion that must be met for the employee's new one-sentence mission statement to be valid?

A) The mission is achievable.
B) The mission improves the ecological profile of the company.
C) The mission will increase company profits.
D) The mission statement is approved by a majority of team members.

Question 66

In what structural way do profit-sharing plans increase organizational loyalty?

A) Employees must have high performance evaluations to participate in profit sharing.
B) Employees will stay on to seek management positions because only managers participate in profit sharing.
C) Employees must stay with the company a certain amount of time to access the funds.
D) Only employees who contribute the most in terms of work receive funds through profit sharing.

Question 67

Which of the following is an organizing rule or component of worker cooperatives?

A) They are governed by the founding members.
B) Every worker gets one vote.
C) The most senior workers (after a threshold year) are also owners.
D) They lack a formal governing structure.

Question 68

Who purchases the company in an employee stock option plan?

A) private shareholders
B) a legal entity composed of employees
C) the employees
D) a bank trust fund

Question 69

What does a cooperative have in common with an employee stock purchase plan?

A) It requires being vested to qualify.
B) One must be an employee to participate.
C) It is only available to senior employees/members.
D) It is voluntary.

Question 70

In which of the following situations would a company be more likely to offer phantom stock?

A) The company is not privately held.
B) The company is not publicly traded.
C) The company does not want to increase organizational loyalty among employees.
D) The company has very low profits.

Question 71

Which of the following is most likely to own a purchasing cooperative?

A) a government entity
B) a group of farmers
C) a group of health care customers
D) the employees of a company

Question 72

How does an employee stock purchase plan differ from a stock option plan?

A) Stock purchase occurs over time as a percentage of pay, not purchased outright.
B) Stock purchase is not voluntary.
C) The company typically does not offer discounts as it does with stock options.
D) Newer employees do not typically have access to this type of plan.

Question 73

How should each team member end their speaking contribution in team huddle?

A) describing a problem that was solved
B) suggesting a new course or strategy for the team
C) describing a problem that still needs addressing
D) giving a personal evaluation of another team member

Question 74

When employees make "personal commitments" in the appreciative inquiry process, what does this mean?

A) describing how they will make ethics a bigger part of their work
B) listing better or different behaviors they will implement to improve customer service
C) listing bad habits or actions they will do less of to improve customer service
D) pledges for increasing time spent with customers

Question 75

What type of employee or unit gains new responsibility in a Scanlon-type gainsharing plan?

A) a low-level department head
B) individual employees in a department
C) a work-unit team
D) union membership

Question 76

How do employee stock option plans differ from stock option plans?

A) They are exclusive to 401k plans.
B) They are more inclusive but less profitable for employees.
C) They are automatic for all employees over 21 years of age.
D) They typically involve the use of phantom stock.

Question 77

How does a profit-sharing plan differ from a Scanlon-type gainsharing plan?

A) Employees receive more financial compensation.
B) Employees do not necessarily have an increase in responsibility or accountability.
C) Profit-sharing plans have a specifically assigned coordinator.
D) Employees do less to increase organizational loyalty.

Question 78

What is the main benefit of having team members start by describing a success story in each team huddle?

A) It encourages fence-sitters to become more engaged.
B) It makes the employee see the job as meaningful work.
C) It helps the employee's self-esteem.
D) It helps other members see that employee's value to the organization.

Question 79

Which of the following governing positions or structures is common in worker cooperatives?

A) a general assembly
B) a CEO
C) a vice-president
D) a stock-option board

Question 80

Implementation of a Scanlon-type gainsharing plan at a small company results in total cost savings of $10,000 for the month of April. If the plan is typical, how much of that total will employees receive (as a group) in direct bonuses for April?

A) $2,500
B) $5,000
C) $10,000
D) $1,000