BU398 Midterm Test Questions With
Complete Solutions
organizational theory - ANSWER The study of how organizations function and how they
affect and are affected by the environment in which they operate (macro outlook)
Classical View of OT (Historical Perspective) - ANSWER Scientific management
(Fredrick Taylor) and administrative principles (Henri Fayol)
Human Relations - Hawthorne Studies - ANSWER Giving employees better work
environments to perform and increase productivity. They determined that it was not the
physical aspect that was increases performance, but it was the psychological impact
that created the most influence for employees
Contemporary Management - Contingency Approach - ANSWER - Not one single
approach will improve the company, but it is what improvements can help shape the
environment of the company that can translate to the performance
- Environment is most important, if organizations do not respond to changing
environments, they will not be able to compete
- depends on environment, tech, size, life cycle, culture
An organization is: - ANSWER A social entity;
That is goal directed;
And deliberately structured and coordinated;
linked to the environment;
and socially constructed
Closed system company - ANSWER Environment is assumed to be stable -> Focus on
internal efficiency
Open system company - ANSWER Must interact with (and adapt to) environment
Boundary Spanning - ANSWER Interactions among team members and individuals and
groups who are not part of the team
Transformation Process - ANSWER The process that converts resources into finished
goods and services
Structural Dimensions - ANSWER Describe the internal characteristics or an
organization: formalization, specialization, hierarchy of authority, complexity,
,centralization, personnel ratios
- each org will have different structural dimensions
Contextual Dimensions - ANSWER Traits that characterize the whole organization
(culture, environment, goals and strategy, size, tech)
Six Competencies of an organization - ANSWER 1. formalization
2. specialization
3. hierarchy of authority
4. centralization
5. professionalism
6. personnel ratios
Formalization - ANSWER specific rules, procedures, policies and regulations the
organization follows Large companies have large this small companies have small this
Specialization - ANSWER dividing the tasks into minute jobs so employees repeat their
jobs As organizations become bigger, tasks become more broken down to create
repetition in employees within different departments
Hierarchry of authority - ANSWER layers of employees
-Large companies have lots of layers
-Flat organizations have no supervisors or managers
Centralization and Decentralization - ANSWER - decision making process in an
organization
- If decision are made at management level, this shows a ___ organization If decisions
are made by employees at all levels, this is a ___answer__organization
Professionalism - ANSWER level of education at an organization
- Some organizations require high level education
Personnel Ratios - ANSWER number of employees available to do a particular task
- Productive ratio is the number of employees needed to complete a particular task
mechanistic organization - ANSWER -High on the 6 competencies and have high level of
organizations
- No pure ___ answer____organizations
- usually there are some combination of competencies
, organic organization - ANSWER - an organization characterized by broadly defined jobs
and responsibilities; loosely defined, frequently changing roles; and decentralized
authority and horizontal communication based on task knowledge
- Very low on the 6 competencies
- Start ups show organic structure
Mintzberg's Managerial Roles - ANSWER top management, technical support staff,
middle management, administrative support staff, technical core
technical core - ANSWER line workers in the organization working on production
Admin support staff - ANSWER HR and finance to help support the organization
top management - ANSWER goal is to create the objectives and strategy of organization
middle management - ANSWER goal is to take the objectives and strategy set by top
Technical support staff - ANSWER serve as the bridge from the organization to the
internal staff
Stakeholder Approach - ANSWER firms work to meet the environmental demands of
multiple stakeholders—employees, suppliers, and the community.
-If organization is in this approach, they are focused on not only improving value of
company, but the value generated for stakeholders
Shareholder Approach - ANSWER the firm exists to maximize the wealth of its owners
and investors
strategy - ANSWER -is the formulation of organizational missions, goals, objectives, and
action plans for achievement that explicitly recognizes the competition and the impact
of outside environmental forces.
-defines the organization's intentions.
-Plan of interacting with competitive environment to achieve the goal
Mission Statement - ANSWER a statement of the organization's purpose - what it wants
to accomplish in the larger environment
Vision Statement - ANSWER expresses what the organization should become, where it
wants to go strategically
shared values and beliefs - ANSWER Inclusive, collaboration and collegiality,
sustainability and environmental responsibility, community leadership.
Complete Solutions
organizational theory - ANSWER The study of how organizations function and how they
affect and are affected by the environment in which they operate (macro outlook)
Classical View of OT (Historical Perspective) - ANSWER Scientific management
(Fredrick Taylor) and administrative principles (Henri Fayol)
Human Relations - Hawthorne Studies - ANSWER Giving employees better work
environments to perform and increase productivity. They determined that it was not the
physical aspect that was increases performance, but it was the psychological impact
that created the most influence for employees
Contemporary Management - Contingency Approach - ANSWER - Not one single
approach will improve the company, but it is what improvements can help shape the
environment of the company that can translate to the performance
- Environment is most important, if organizations do not respond to changing
environments, they will not be able to compete
- depends on environment, tech, size, life cycle, culture
An organization is: - ANSWER A social entity;
That is goal directed;
And deliberately structured and coordinated;
linked to the environment;
and socially constructed
Closed system company - ANSWER Environment is assumed to be stable -> Focus on
internal efficiency
Open system company - ANSWER Must interact with (and adapt to) environment
Boundary Spanning - ANSWER Interactions among team members and individuals and
groups who are not part of the team
Transformation Process - ANSWER The process that converts resources into finished
goods and services
Structural Dimensions - ANSWER Describe the internal characteristics or an
organization: formalization, specialization, hierarchy of authority, complexity,
,centralization, personnel ratios
- each org will have different structural dimensions
Contextual Dimensions - ANSWER Traits that characterize the whole organization
(culture, environment, goals and strategy, size, tech)
Six Competencies of an organization - ANSWER 1. formalization
2. specialization
3. hierarchy of authority
4. centralization
5. professionalism
6. personnel ratios
Formalization - ANSWER specific rules, procedures, policies and regulations the
organization follows Large companies have large this small companies have small this
Specialization - ANSWER dividing the tasks into minute jobs so employees repeat their
jobs As organizations become bigger, tasks become more broken down to create
repetition in employees within different departments
Hierarchry of authority - ANSWER layers of employees
-Large companies have lots of layers
-Flat organizations have no supervisors or managers
Centralization and Decentralization - ANSWER - decision making process in an
organization
- If decision are made at management level, this shows a ___ organization If decisions
are made by employees at all levels, this is a ___answer__organization
Professionalism - ANSWER level of education at an organization
- Some organizations require high level education
Personnel Ratios - ANSWER number of employees available to do a particular task
- Productive ratio is the number of employees needed to complete a particular task
mechanistic organization - ANSWER -High on the 6 competencies and have high level of
organizations
- No pure ___ answer____organizations
- usually there are some combination of competencies
, organic organization - ANSWER - an organization characterized by broadly defined jobs
and responsibilities; loosely defined, frequently changing roles; and decentralized
authority and horizontal communication based on task knowledge
- Very low on the 6 competencies
- Start ups show organic structure
Mintzberg's Managerial Roles - ANSWER top management, technical support staff,
middle management, administrative support staff, technical core
technical core - ANSWER line workers in the organization working on production
Admin support staff - ANSWER HR and finance to help support the organization
top management - ANSWER goal is to create the objectives and strategy of organization
middle management - ANSWER goal is to take the objectives and strategy set by top
Technical support staff - ANSWER serve as the bridge from the organization to the
internal staff
Stakeholder Approach - ANSWER firms work to meet the environmental demands of
multiple stakeholders—employees, suppliers, and the community.
-If organization is in this approach, they are focused on not only improving value of
company, but the value generated for stakeholders
Shareholder Approach - ANSWER the firm exists to maximize the wealth of its owners
and investors
strategy - ANSWER -is the formulation of organizational missions, goals, objectives, and
action plans for achievement that explicitly recognizes the competition and the impact
of outside environmental forces.
-defines the organization's intentions.
-Plan of interacting with competitive environment to achieve the goal
Mission Statement - ANSWER a statement of the organization's purpose - what it wants
to accomplish in the larger environment
Vision Statement - ANSWER expresses what the organization should become, where it
wants to go strategically
shared values and beliefs - ANSWER Inclusive, collaboration and collegiality,
sustainability and environmental responsibility, community leadership.
