Deck 6: Managing in the Global Environment

Question 1

The aging of the population of a country is an example of a demographic force that affects organizations in the country.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

The greater the economies of scale of an existing organization, the lower are the barriers to entry for new competitors.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

Managers today have fewer ways to supervise and coordinate geographically dispersed employees.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

Economic forces are outcomes of changes in, or changing attitudes toward, the characteristics of a population, such as age, gender, ethnic origin, race, sexual orientation, and social class.

Question 5

National culture is the traditional system of relationships established between people and groups in a society.

Question 6

Potential competitors are organizations that are not presently in a task environment but have the resources to enter if they so choose.

Question 7

Distributors are the individuals and companies that provide an organization with the input resources it needs to produce goods and services.

Question 8

Forces in the task environment have little impact on short-term decision making.

Question 9

Cost advantages associated with large operations are called economies of scale.

Question 10

The global environment is a set of forces and conditions in the world outside an organization's boundary that affect how it operates and shape its behavior.

Question 11

Economic forces affect the general health and well-being of a country or world region.

Question 12

Forces in the general environment do not require continuous monitoring because they do not affect ongoing decision-making and planning.

Question 13

A high level of rivalry typically results in price competition that increases existing prices.

Question 14

Low rivalry results in a task environment where competitive pressures are intense and managers have few opportunities to acquire the resources they need to make their organizations effective.

Question 15

Opportunities and threats that result from changes in the task environment are easier to identify and respond to than events in the general environment.

Question 16

Competitors are organizations that produce goods and services that are similar and comparable to a particular organization's goods and services.

Question 17

Global outsourcing has grown enormously to take advantage of differences in the cost and quality of resources available in different countries.

Question 18

The quality of managers' understanding of forces in the global environment and their ability to respond appropriately to those forces are critical factors affecting organizational performance.

Question 19

Nations forming political unions that allow free exchange of resources and capital is an example of the political and legal forces in the environment.

Question 20

Economic, technological, sociocultural, demographic, political, and legal forces in the general environment often have important effects on forces in the task environment that determine an organization's ability to obtain resources.

Question 21

The flow of capital around the world has helped establish an open global environment.

Question 22

Organizations with culturally homogeneous management teams are best equipped to tailor their management systems to meet the requirements of different cultures.

Question 23

Folkways are those norms which include proscriptions against murder, theft, adultery, and incest.

Question 24

The free-trade doctrine predicts that if each country agrees to specialize in the production of the goods and services that it can produce most efficiently, this will make the best use of global capital resources and will result in lower prices.

Question 25

Societies high on uncertainty avoidance, according to Hofstede, value diversity and tolerate differences in personal beliefs and actions.

Question 26

Falling trade barriers pose a serious threat to the nation's domestic market because they increase competition in the task environment.

Question 27

Political capital is the flow of people around the world through immigration, migration, and emigration.

Question 28

According to Hofstede, the gap between the rich and poor in low-power-distance societies is very wide.

Question 29

Societies that have a nurturing orientation, according to Hofstede, value personal relationships highly.

Question 30

The flow of natural resources, parts, and components between companies and countries is called human capital.

Question 31

Norms that are considered to be central to the functioning of society and to social life are called folkways.

Question 32

The violation of folkways is a serious matter and is punishable by law.

Question 33

According to Hofstede, a national culture with a long-term orientation rests on values such as thrift and persistence in achieving goals.

Question 34

According to Hofstede's model of national culture, individualist societies adhere to the principle that people should be judged by their contribution to the group.

Question 35

According to Hofstede, in low-power-distance countries, the government uses taxation and social welfare programs to reduce inequality and improve the welfare of the least fortunate.

Question 36

The aim of import tariffs is to encourage the entry of foreign goods into a country's market.

Question 37

Tariffs are taxes that governments impose on goods in the domestic market that are only circulated within the nation.

Question 38

The establishment of free-trade areas is disadvantageous for manufacturing organizations since it increases their costs.

Question 39

Superstitions are unwritten, informal codes of conduct that prescribe appropriate behavior in particular situations and are considered important by most members of a group or organization.

Question 40

Globalization has increased the levels of interdependence between people and nations.

Question 41

Which of the following statements supports the fact that Candlewick Inc. operates in a task environment with a high barrier to entry?

A) The task environment within which Candlewick Inc. operates is inexpensive to enter.
B) Candlewick Inc. is able to sell its products easily, even though they are overpriced.
C) Candlewick Inc. has many competitors and faces challenges from them frequently.
D) The task environment within which Candlewick Inc. operates is easy to enter.
E) Candlewick Inc. is unable to obtain customers, despite the excellent quality of its products.

Question 42

Jay's Furniture Factory gets its raw material from the local timber yard. The timber yard acts as Jay's _____.

A) competitor
B) distributor
C) retailer
D) supplier
E) consumer

Question 43

As the only store to design and sell curtains in the suburb of Oakland, the merchandise sold by Plush Parade is overpriced. Noticing this, Diana's Draperies sets up a showroom in the same suburb, reasoning that with lower prices, they would be able to attract more customers. Diana's Draperies is Plush Parade's _____.

A) partner
B) distributor
C) competitor
D) processor
E) franchiser

Question 44

In what way does the task environment differ from the general environment?

A) Threats in the general environment are easier to respond to than threats in the task environment.
B) Forces in the task environment have a more immediate and direct effect on managers than forces in the general environment.
C) Opportunities in the task environment are less easy to identify than opportunities in the general environment.
D) Unlike the task environment, the general environment deals with conditions that effect an organization's ability to obtain inputs and dispose outputs.
E) Unlike the general environment, the task environment includes the global, economic, sociocultural, political, and legal forces that affect an organization.

Question 45

Companies that provide other organizations with input resources are known as _____.

A) suppliers
B) competitors
C) distributors
D) processors
E) consumers

Question 46

What benefits does the global environment offer organizations?

A) The global environment provides organizations with several opportunities to increase efficacy and efficiency.
B) The global environment is easy to operate within and is constant, straightforward, and predictable.
C) Fluctuating sociocultural factors never affect the performance of organizations which function at a global level.
D) Organizations are faced with fewer challenges and risks when they grow to prominence internationally.
E) Organizations that operate internationally seldom compete for scarce and valuable resources.

Question 47

Jeremy has a personal library with over 5,000 novels of various genres-most of them bought from Benison's Bookhouse. He is an example of Benison Bookhouse's _____.

A) customer
B) supplier
C) distributor
D) competitor
E) processor

Question 48

A supplier's bargaining position is especially strong when:

A) the input supplied has multiple sources and channels of distribution.
B) the input supplied has inexpensive and easily available substitutes.
C) the input supplied is a fundamental component of the organization's product.
D) the input supplied is found freely and can be accessed by people with little effort.
E) the input supplied is not protected by any patent.

Question 49

_____ result(s) from factors such as manufacturing products in very large quantities, buying inputs in bulk, or making more effective use of organizational resources than do competitors by fully utilizing employees' skills and knowledge.

A) Brand loyalty
B) Demographic forces
C) Political forces
D) Brand positioning
E) Economies of scale

Question 50

_____ are organizations that help other organizations sell their goods or services directly to customers.

A) Producers
B) Suppliers
C) Distributors
D) Manufacturers
E) Processors

Question 51

The more difficult it is to enter the task environment:

A) the easier it is to keep prices high.
B) the lower is the barrier to entry.
C) the harder it is to obtain customers.
D) the more competitors an organization faces.
E) the less expensive it is to enter the industry.

Question 52

An organization that is not presently in a task environment but has the resources to enter if it so chooses is called a potential:

A) supplier
B) competitor
C) distributor
D) processor
E) consumer

Question 53

Amethyst, an Italian house of high fashion, designs and creates luxury items like jewelry and hair accessories. It sells its merchandise only through Fiesta- a multinational retail store. Fiesta acts as Amethyst's _____.

A) producer
B) supplier
C) distributor
D) manufacturer
E) processor

Question 54

Which of the following is true of the general environment?

A) It contains opportunities and threats that are easier to identify and respond to than those in the task environment.
B) It comprises the set of forces that originate with global suppliers, distributors, customers, and competitors.
C) It includes the wide-ranging global, technological, sociocultural, and political forces that affect organizations.
D) It contains the forces that have the most immediate effect on managers and their decisions.
E) It contains forces that have very little impact upon the performance of organizations.

Question 55

_____ refers to customers' preference for the products of organizations currently in the task environment.

A) Brand recognition
B) Brand positioning
C) Brand loyalty
D) Brand saturation
E) Brand awareness

Question 56

Which of the following is true of the task environment?

A) It includes the wide-ranging global, technological, sociocultural, and political forces that affect organizations.
B) It contains the forces that have the least immediate effect on managers and their decisions.
C) It contains opportunities and threats that are harder to identify than those in the general environment.
D) It is a framework of environmental policies that dictate the CSR policies of global organizations.
E) It is the set of forces that originate with global suppliers, distributors, customers, and competitors.

Question 57

Apple Inc. contracts with companies in Taiwan to make inputs such as the chips, batteries, and LCD displays that power its digital devices at lower costs. This strategy is an example of _____.

A) global exporting
B) global franchising
C) global importing
D) global networking
E) global outsourcing

Question 58

In what way is the task environment similar to the general environment?

A) They are both a set of geopolitical forces that are predictable and unchanging.
B) They both present managers with few opportunities and risks when operating at a global level.
C) They are both a set of forces and conditions that operate beyond an organization's boundaries.
D) They both contain challenges that are easily identified and anticipated.
E) They are both forces that are easy to control and have little impact on organizational performance.

Question 59

Which of the following statements supports the fact that Toy Track operates in a task environment with a low barrier to entry?

A) Toy Track has few competitors and faces no challenges from other organizations.
B) Toy Track is able to sell its products easily, even though they are overpriced.
C) The task environment within which Toy Track operates is expensive to enter.
D) The task environment within which Toy Truck operates is easy to enter.
E) Toy Track is unable to obtain customers, even though it has no rivals or competitors.

Question 60

Individuals and groups that buy the goods and services an organization produces are called _____.

A) customers
B) suppliers
C) distributors
D) competitors
E) processors

Question 61

_____ is the traditional system of relationships established between people and groups in a society.

A) Cultural imperialism
B) Cultural pluralism
C) National culture
D) Social structure
E) Social relativism

Question 62

Which of the following forces are outcomes of changes in or changing attitudes toward the characteristics of a population?

A) Demographic
B) Terminal
C) Ethnographic
D) Geopolitical
E) Instrumental

Question 63

Dolphin's Diner, a famous seafood chain, has opened its newest restaurant in a small town. It soon finds that the only customers it attracts are tourists, because the locals prefer to go to The Clam Café-an older but more expensive restaurant. The Clam Café enjoys significant _____.

A) brand saturation
B) brand emersion
C) brand loyalty
D) brand dilution
E) brand acceleration

Question 64

Which of the following factors played an important role in speeding up globalization?

A) The imposition of government-enforced import-tariffs that protected the domestic economy
B) The export-restrictions which ensured that the people of a country had access to their own products
C) Declining barriers to trade and investment that eased the flow of capital throughout the world
D) The rejection of the free-trade doctrine which increased global outsourcing
E) The fortification of trade and investment barriers between each country

Question 65

Deregulation, privatization, and the removal of legal barriers to trade are examples of changing _____ forces

A) sociocultural
B) political
C) technological
D) ethnographic
E) demographic

Question 66

Greg belongs to a society which makes very few distinctions between people and groups. This is reflected in his company, Sonata DCM, the managers of which represent several different classes and cultures. The society to which he belongs is _____.

A) low on cultural diversity
B) low on social stratification
C) high on economic inequality
D) high on race-discrimination
E) low on cultural pluralism

Question 67

The outcomes of the changes in the laws and regulations of a society are known as _____.

A) technological forces
B) political forces
C) economic forces
D) demographic forces
E) sociocultural forces

Question 68

A decline in the number of young people joining the workforce and an increase in the number of active employees who are postponing retirement are examples of _____ forces in the general environment.

A) demographic
B) terminal
C) ethnographic
D) geopolitical
E) Instrumental

Question 69

Which of the following is the result of globalization?

A) Globalization weakens cultural barriers and reduces dissimilarities between nations.
B) Globalization prevents the economic systems of different countries from merging with each other.
C) Globalization decreases the interconnectedness of the world's markets and businesses.
D) Globalization decreases organizational efficiency and effectiveness.
E) Globalization hinders the flow of financial and resource capital between countries.

Question 70

Which of the following can be defined as the set of values and the norms of behavior which are approved or sanctioned by a particular society?

A) National culture
B) Social stratification
C) Cultural pluralism
D) Organizational culture
E) Social structure

Question 71

Nadine belongs to an egalitarian society, one in which few distinctions are made between individuals and groups. Her society is low on _____.

A) cultural diversity.
B) gender equality
C) national culture
D) social stratification
E) cultural pluralism

Question 72

The Republic of Karibo has been losing capital steadily over the last five years. As a result of this:

A) its rate of unemployment has decreased.
B) the standard of living has fallen.
C) the impact of the recession has lessened.
D) the gap between the rich and poor has narrowed.
E) its economy has stabilized.

Question 73

All of the following are principal forms of capital that flow between countries except:

A) human capital.
B) virtual capital.
C) political capital.
D) resource capital.
E) financial capital.

Question 74

Which of the following is true of political capital?

A) It is the flow of people around the world through immigration, migration, and emigration.
B) It is the flow of natural resources, parts, and components between companies and countries.
C) It is the flow of information and data across the world through the social media.
D) It is the flow of money capital across world markets through overseas investment, credit, lending, and aid.
E) It is the flow of power and influence around the world using diplomacy, persuasion, aggression, and force of arms.

Question 75

Unlike previous generations, salespeople today can work from home offices, communicate with colleagues in different parts of the world almost instantly, and commute electronically to work. This flexibility is due to changes in_____.

A) economic forces
B) political forces
C) demographic forces
D) technological forces
E) sociocultural forces

Question 76

Which of the following contributed to the lowering of barriers caused by distance and cultural differences?

A) The imposition of government-enforced tariffs on imports
B) The development of communication and transportation technology
C) The rejection of the free-trade doctrine
D) The imposition of government-enforced tariffs on exports
E) The restrictions placed on the flow of capital between nations

Question 77

_____ are outcomes of changes in the skills and equipment managers use to design, produce, or distribute goods and services.

A) Cultural forces
B) Political forces
C) Demographic forces
D) Technological forces
E) Sociocultural forces

Question 78

_____ capital flows through the processes of overseas investment, credit, lending, and aid.

A) Human
B) Technological
C) Political
D) Resource
E) Financial

Question 79

Inflation is an example of a(n) _____ force in an organization's environment.

A) social
B) economic
C) demographic
D) ergonomic
E) legal

Question 80

Jean is the CEO of Creative Tribune, an advertising firm in Winchester. Many distinctions exist between the different classes of people in her society. Most of the top managers in her organization, for example, come from the upper classes.This implies that society in Winchester has a high degree of _____.

A) social stratification
B) gender inequality
C) cultural imperialism
D) cultural pluralism
E) economic equality