Deck 14: High-Performing Systems and the Learning Organization

Question 1

An important key to creating a successful high performance system (HPS)is the leaders' ability to display energy and zest for the task being performed,the product being built,and fellow team members.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Likert's research of organizations describes System 2 management as a benevolent but authoritative system.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Most of the evidence regarding the results of survey research and feedback methods indicates positive changes in employee attitudes and perceptions.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

High performance systems (HPSs)are often seen as a problem by other organization subsystems.

Question 5

The Grid OD Program begins with a focus on the managerial styles of executives.

Question 6

Learning organizations are characterized by employees focused on learning within their own department so that they are not confused with the interactions and objectives of other departments.

Question 7

In a learning organization people are free to try experiments,take risks,and openly assess the results.

Question 8

High performance systems (HPSs)normally utilize more resources than other subsystems in the organization doing the same type of work though they do the work much faster.

Question 9

A system-wide intervention examines _____.

A)the organizational structure
B)process and flows within the organization
C)interactions and integrations within the system
D)all of the above
E)answers a and b

Question 10

Using survey feedback with other intervention procedures usually produces effects that are more successful and long-range than using only the feedback method.

Question 11

Several system-wide approaches to OD present contradictory approaches to change.

Question 12

High performance systems (HPSs)have blurred boundaries so that the systems can be integrated with their environments.

Question 13

A manager who is feeding back the information collected through a questionnaire to his or her subordinates is involved in which intervention?

A)survey research and feedback
B)transactional analysis
C)reengineering
D)system 4
E)Grid OD

Question 14

Reengineering emphasizes methodical and minor modifications to the current practices of an organization.

Question 15

The key to a successful survey is for management to _____.

A)select an OD practitioner whose values fit those of the organization
B)clearly define the purpose of the survey and what will be done with the results
C)delegate process responsibilities to the human resource department
D)make sure that every person in the organization completes a survey
E)funnel data to top management for use in strategic planning

Question 16

During the teamwork development phase of the OD grid program,the manager of each department sets individual and group goals.

Question 17

In Likert's System 4 management,there are a great many rules,policies,and procedures that need to be done.

Question 18

Organizations inevitably change because they are open systems that are in continuous interaction with their environment.

Question 19

Today's managers can aim for success in a relatively stable and predictable environment.

Question 20

Employee surveys may be used to evaluate policies,procedures,and work processes.

Question 21

A high performance system will have the following characteristics:

A)often seen as a problem by other subsystems
B)leadership is strong and clear
C)teamwork is focused on the task
D)all of the above
E)answers b and c

Question 22

The tool used to gather information in the survey research method is _____.

A)personal stories of employees regarding effective management techniques
B)questionnaires
C)production reports
D)financial statements
E)focus groups

Question 23

The characteristics of Likert's System 1 organization include _____.

A)downward directives
B)ideas of subordinates seldom sought and used
C)participative methods
D)all of the above
E)answers a and b

Question 24

The learning objectives of the Grid OD seminar in Phase 1 include _____.

A)increasing personal objectivity in appraising oneself
B)learning and working effectively in a team
C)learning to manage intergroup conflict
D)all of the above
E)answers a and b

Question 25

In Likert's System 1 management,the organization is most like _____.

A)a matrix design
B)an organic design
C)an autocratic bureaucracy
D)a hybrid design
E)a strategic design

Question 26

Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of Likert's System 4 management?

A)empowerment of employees at all levels
B)decisions made at lower levels
C)communication primarily downward
D)perceived confidence and trust between superiors and subordinates
E)individual accountability in place of rigid policies

Question 27

Learning organizations have the following characteristics:

A)People feel they are doing something that matters.
B)Visions of the direction of the enterprise are developed at the top management level.
C)People treat each other as colleagues.
D)all of the above
E)answers a and c

Question 28

Moving to a learning organization means the organization must _____.

A)redesign the formal structures of the organization but allow the informal and less obvious interactions of people to develop without interference
B)redesign the patterns of interaction between people and processes
C)incorporate transactional thinking and learning
D)all of the above
E)answers a and c

Question 29

The eight criteria that Peter Vaill identified for examining systems include all the following EXCEPT _____.

A)doing work with the assistance of other subsystems
B)performing excellently against an external standard
C)fulfill the ideals for the culture within which they exist
D)perform with fewer resources than is assumed is needed to do the job
E)perform excellently at the level of potential

Question 30

The characteristics of Likert's System 3 organization include _____.

A)communication is down,up,and sideways
B)upward communication is readily accepted
C)ideas of subordinates are always sought and used
D)consulting with others
E)none of the above

Question 31

Reengineering,as an OD intervention,incorporates _____.

A)work design
B)centralization
C)reassigning decision making to employees most technically competent
D)all of the above
E)answers a and b

Question 32

Reengineering seeks to make all processes more efficient by _____.

A)focusing on the customer
B)combining,eliminating,and restructuring tasks
C)implementing minor modifications to current practices
D)all of the above
E)answers a and b

Question 33

The Grid OD system was created by _____.

A)B.F.Skinner and Douglas McGregor
B)Alvin Toffler
C)Robert Blake and Jane Mouton
D)Peter Senge
E)none of the above

Question 34

Steps in the survey research approach include _____.

A)involvement of top management in preliminary planning for the survey questionnaire
B)administration of the survey questionnaire by the human resource staff to organization members
C)meeting of individual work teams for data feedback
D)all of the above
E)answers a and c

Question 35

Survey feedback interventions are most effective _____.

A)for long-range planning
B)when used with T-group analysis
C)when used in conjunction with other OD activities
D)when the surveys are formulated by a self-managed team composed of members from a cross section of the organization
E)answers a and d

Question 36

High performance systems require leaders who will _____.

A)see that excessive layers of structure within the organization are removed
B)emphasize participation across functional barriers
C)display energy for the task being worked on
D)encourage communication across the organization
E)all of the above

Question 37

In Phase 2 of the Grid OD process,the focus is on _____.

A)improving teamwork with a manager and his or her immediate subordinates
B)identifying the OD practitioner's style
C)developing a strategic model
D)implementing the strategic model
E)all of the above

Question 38

The one word that best describes the major focus of Grid OD is _____.

A)delegation
B)excellence
C)control
D)power
E)structure

Question 39

Research on Likert's system model advocates _____.

A)System 4 (participative)to be the most ideal state
B)System 3 (consultative)to be the most ideal state
C)System 1 (exploitative/authoritative)to be the most ideal state
D)System 2 (benevolent/authoritative)to be the most ideal state
E)none of the above

Question 40

The potential benefits of using Grid OD include _____.

A)maximizing a manager's concern about both their subordinates and the organization
B)employees develop greater knowledge and ability to contribute to the task
C)developing teams
D)all of the above
E)answers a and b

Question 41

In Phase 4 of the Grid OD process,the focus in on _____.

A)identifying managerial style of supervisors
B)developing an ideal strategic model
C)implementing survey research programs
D)interacting with others in different teams
E)improving the management style of upper management

Question 42

Discuss the characteristics of high performance systems.

Question 43

Discuss the four management systems in Likert's system 4 management.

Question 44

Discuss the six phases of the Grid OD Program.

Question 45

Which of the following is a product of the Grid OD approach to management?

A)an organizational chart
B)a set of five-year goals for the company
C)an ideal strategic model
D)an employee training program
E)a survey report

Question 46

The final phase of the Grid OD process is a systematic examination of _____.

A)team formation and development
B)team effectiveness in task accomplishment
C)intergroup planning skills
D)individual goal accomplishments
E)progress toward change goals