MENG 540 Final Exam Questions and Answers Graded A+
540 Mission - Answers To help you transition from being an engineering-trained individual
contributor to effectively managing and leading others.
What were the issues with the James Webb Telescope? - Answers 5B over budget, low work
process efficiency, screws fell off the telescope shield when shaken, no one would share bad
news/low team trust
What was Greg Robinson able to do for the James Webb Telescope? - Answers he was able to
improve team trust with wise leadership; work process efficiency increased and managers were
more willing to share bad news; successful launch on christmas day 2021
Difficult Conversation guide - Answers Create a constructive climate for authentic conversation;
frame the conversation; state the issue; listen, discuss, resolve; agree on action plan; close
Authority - Answers power to influence or command
Sources of Authority - Answers positive presence, confidence & courage, care for humans, deep
desire to help your team succeed, your technical and management expertise, your position/title
What helped strengthen Greg robinson's sources of authority? - Answers He would sit with his
colleagues during lunch; he cared about people and people were able to share bad news with
him
Satya Nadella relevance - Answers Valued continued learning and a "growth mindset"
5 learnings from Eugene Kranz's leadership - Answers Pre-Crisis Planning, Mission-Focus,
Template for superior team (develop a competence standard), Engage/Empower/Lead, Be
Effective: use all tools.
How did Eugene Kranz's changes contribute to Apollo 13's safe return? - Answers Uniformity of
decision making + seamless decision handoffs, minimized "us" vs. "them" & sense of owning
the position, strengthened focus on mission, full use of individual capabilities
Google's Keys to an Effective Team (5) - Answers Psychological Safety, Dependability, Structure
& Clarity, Meaning of Work, Impact of Work.
5 dysfunctions of a team - Answers 1. Absence of trust
2. Fear of conflict
3. Lack of commitment
4. Avoidance of accountability
5. Inattention to results
, How to prevent the 5 dysfunctions of a team - Answers Establish vulnerability based trust,
encourage healthy conflict, earn commitment, foster peer to peer accountability, focus on team
results.
Leading Teams Note, Polzer: Sustained Effectiveness requires attention to 3 dimensions--what
are these? - Answers Quality of team's output, team members abilities to increase their capacity
to work together effectively over time, the extent to which the team meets its members
individual needs.
What 3 things should a manager consider when determining if a team is required? - Answers
Task complexity, task interdependence, task objectives
What should a manager consider when choosing team members - Answers Individual Skills (IP
and technical skills), Diversity, Leadership Arrangement
Process Losses - Answers Process losses refer to reductions in group performance due to
problems of coordination, communication and motivation. Formal Team processes can mitigate
process losses.
What do effective virtual teams do? - Answers establish common ground despite their
dispersed locations and/or cultures. Appropriate IT can help develop common ground and
improve virtual team interaction
5 Leadership Practices (kouzes & posner) - Answers Model the Way, Inspire a Shared Vision,
Challenge the Process, Enable Others to Act, Encourage the Heart
5 Functions of management - Answers Plan, Organize, Staff, Direct, Control (monitoring results
vs. plan, corrective action/re-planning)
What is significant about Hubert Joly and Best Buy - Answers Hubert Joly turned Best Buy
around by treating humans with dignity, added Purpose/meaning. He used leadership tools to
change oh the company was managed. His #1 tool was intrinsic motivation.
Because of today's access to technology and the ever-changing market, how has the role of a
manager changed? (Based on The Leader as a Coach, HBR) - Answers The role of a manager is
to be adaptive and primarily to be a coach. They can no longer "command and control".
Based on The Leader as a Coach, HBR--what is the best type of coaching in their outlined
framework? - Answers Situational Coaching, which refers to striking a fine balance between
directive and nondirective coaching.
Directive Coaching - Answers This takes place primarily through "telling", and mentoring
generally falls into this category. A couple downsides to this include the fact that it unleashes
little energy from the person being coached, and it assumes that the person being coached
knows less (not always true in an ever changing marketplace).
540 Mission - Answers To help you transition from being an engineering-trained individual
contributor to effectively managing and leading others.
What were the issues with the James Webb Telescope? - Answers 5B over budget, low work
process efficiency, screws fell off the telescope shield when shaken, no one would share bad
news/low team trust
What was Greg Robinson able to do for the James Webb Telescope? - Answers he was able to
improve team trust with wise leadership; work process efficiency increased and managers were
more willing to share bad news; successful launch on christmas day 2021
Difficult Conversation guide - Answers Create a constructive climate for authentic conversation;
frame the conversation; state the issue; listen, discuss, resolve; agree on action plan; close
Authority - Answers power to influence or command
Sources of Authority - Answers positive presence, confidence & courage, care for humans, deep
desire to help your team succeed, your technical and management expertise, your position/title
What helped strengthen Greg robinson's sources of authority? - Answers He would sit with his
colleagues during lunch; he cared about people and people were able to share bad news with
him
Satya Nadella relevance - Answers Valued continued learning and a "growth mindset"
5 learnings from Eugene Kranz's leadership - Answers Pre-Crisis Planning, Mission-Focus,
Template for superior team (develop a competence standard), Engage/Empower/Lead, Be
Effective: use all tools.
How did Eugene Kranz's changes contribute to Apollo 13's safe return? - Answers Uniformity of
decision making + seamless decision handoffs, minimized "us" vs. "them" & sense of owning
the position, strengthened focus on mission, full use of individual capabilities
Google's Keys to an Effective Team (5) - Answers Psychological Safety, Dependability, Structure
& Clarity, Meaning of Work, Impact of Work.
5 dysfunctions of a team - Answers 1. Absence of trust
2. Fear of conflict
3. Lack of commitment
4. Avoidance of accountability
5. Inattention to results
, How to prevent the 5 dysfunctions of a team - Answers Establish vulnerability based trust,
encourage healthy conflict, earn commitment, foster peer to peer accountability, focus on team
results.
Leading Teams Note, Polzer: Sustained Effectiveness requires attention to 3 dimensions--what
are these? - Answers Quality of team's output, team members abilities to increase their capacity
to work together effectively over time, the extent to which the team meets its members
individual needs.
What 3 things should a manager consider when determining if a team is required? - Answers
Task complexity, task interdependence, task objectives
What should a manager consider when choosing team members - Answers Individual Skills (IP
and technical skills), Diversity, Leadership Arrangement
Process Losses - Answers Process losses refer to reductions in group performance due to
problems of coordination, communication and motivation. Formal Team processes can mitigate
process losses.
What do effective virtual teams do? - Answers establish common ground despite their
dispersed locations and/or cultures. Appropriate IT can help develop common ground and
improve virtual team interaction
5 Leadership Practices (kouzes & posner) - Answers Model the Way, Inspire a Shared Vision,
Challenge the Process, Enable Others to Act, Encourage the Heart
5 Functions of management - Answers Plan, Organize, Staff, Direct, Control (monitoring results
vs. plan, corrective action/re-planning)
What is significant about Hubert Joly and Best Buy - Answers Hubert Joly turned Best Buy
around by treating humans with dignity, added Purpose/meaning. He used leadership tools to
change oh the company was managed. His #1 tool was intrinsic motivation.
Because of today's access to technology and the ever-changing market, how has the role of a
manager changed? (Based on The Leader as a Coach, HBR) - Answers The role of a manager is
to be adaptive and primarily to be a coach. They can no longer "command and control".
Based on The Leader as a Coach, HBR--what is the best type of coaching in their outlined
framework? - Answers Situational Coaching, which refers to striking a fine balance between
directive and nondirective coaching.
Directive Coaching - Answers This takes place primarily through "telling", and mentoring
generally falls into this category. A couple downsides to this include the fact that it unleashes
little energy from the person being coached, and it assumes that the person being coached
knows less (not always true in an ever changing marketplace).
