British Columbia Institute of Technology

BUSA 1305

Chapter 4 Organizing

1)____is the process of arranging and grouping jobs, allocating resources, and assigning work in a department so that activities can be accomplished as planned.

1. 1. Operations
   2. Re-engineering
   3. Continuous improvement
   4. Strategic planning
   5. Organizing

2. Basic organizing principles continue to offer valuable guidance to supervisors today. Of the following, which is NOT one of those basic organizing principles?
   1. Work specialization
   2. Compartmentalization
   3. Span of control
   4. Chain of command
   5. Centralization versus decentralization,

3. It is critical today for an organization to have the right structure. Why is it important for all organizational members to understand how structures work?

4. Assembly-line production, in which each worker does the same standardized task over and over again, is an example of                                                                   .
   1. work specialization.
   2. mass production
   3. standardization
   4. compartmentalization
   5. centralization

5. Today, supervisors understand that although                                                     provides economic efficiencies, it is not an unending source of increased productivity.
   1. span of control
   2. mass production
   3. work specialization
   4. compartmentalization
   5. centralization

6. Work specialization provides economic efficiencies. However, why is it now recognized that it is not a source of unending productivity?

7.                                      is the number employees a supervisor can efficiently and effectively direct.
   1. Limit of responsibility
   2. Span of control

1. 3. Functional responsibility
   4. Chain of command
   5. Span of supervision

8. Something else important is taking place in organizations that involves a supervisor’s span of control:

                                                        .

1. 1. the increased use of technology.
   2. the increased use of collaborative workgroups.
   3. the increased trend to offshoring.
   4. the increased use of the Internet.
   5. the increased use of telecommuting.

9. The big plus in                                                  is that it gives employees more flexibility.
   1. technology
   2. job sharing
   3. automation
   4. Cloud computing
   5. telecommuting

10. The chain of command is the                                                   that extends from upper organizational levels to the lowest levels and clarifies who reports to whom.
    1. continuous line of authority
    2. vertical line of authority
    3. flexible line of authority
    4. discontinuous line of authority
    5. horizontal line of authority

11. A principle that states that an employee should have one and only one supervisor to whom he or she is directly responsible is known as                                                        .
    1. continuous line of authority
    2. singularity of command
    3. direct reporting

1. 4. unity of command
   5. line of supervision

12. Strict adherence to the                                     creates a degree of inflexibility that hinders an organization’s performance.
    1. ability to telecommute
    2. continuous line of authority
    3. unity of command
    4. the principle of authoritarianism
    5. trend of offshoring

13. Span of control is the number of employees a supervisor can efficiently and effectively direct. Discuss the possible reasons span of control has increased almost universally.

14.                                       gives the supervisor the right to direct the work of his or her employees and make certain decisions without consulting others.
    1. Vertical authority
    2. Functional authority
    3. Horizontal authority
    4. Line authority
    5. Staff authority

15. A limited authority that supports line authority by advising, servicing, and assisting is

                                                .

1. 1. Vertical authority
   2. Staff authority
   3. Functional authority
   4. Horizontal authority
   5. Line authority

16. Control over individuals outside one’s own direct areas of responsibility is                                            .
    1. Vertical authority
    2. Staff authority
    3. Functional authority
    4. Horizontal authority
    5. Line authority

17. Supervisory obligations such as achieving a unit’s goals, keeping costs within budget, following organizational policies, and motivating employees is known as                                                  .
    1. responsibility
    2. span of control
    3. functional authority
    4. operational responsibility
    5. staff authority

18. Briefly explain why authority and responsibility must be equal.

19. A supervisor might find his or her plant separated into work units—such as engineering, accounting, information systems, human resources, and purchasing. This is an example of:
    1. Functional organization
    2. Departmentalization
    3. Compartmentalization
    4. Product departmentalization
    5. Functional departmentalization

20. As many organizations have cut costs and streamlined their organizational design to respond better to customer needs, they have pushed decision-making authority to                                                              .
    1. middle-level supervisors
    2. the highest-levels of management
    3. customer service representatives
    4. the lowest levels in the organization
    5. consultants and contractors

21. When supervisors empower employees and delegate to them the authority to make decisions on those things that affect their work and to change the way that they think about work, that’s

                                                .

1. 1. departmentalization
   2. centralization
   3. decentralization.
   4. functional departmentalization
   5. compartmentalization

22. Creation of departments is typically based on all of the following EXCEPT:
    1. The work functions being performed
    2. The product or service being offered
    3. The target customer or client
    4. The geographic territory being covered
    5. The process being used to turn outputs into inputs

23. The method or methods used to departmentalize should reflect the grouping that would best contribute to the attainment of the organization’s objectives and the                                                             .
    1. financial goals of the organization
    2. goals of individual units
    3. objectives of the founders
    4. goals of the board of directors
    5. stockholder goals

24. Of the following, which is NOT a way a corporation departmentalizes?
    1. functional departmentalization
    2. product departmentalization
    3. customer departmentalization
    4. administrative departmentalization
    5. geographic departmentalization

25. Explain how the early management writers viewed centralization, as well as at how it exists today. Why is no organization either completely centralized or decentralized?

26. When an organization’s design reflects the owner as president, with all employees reporting directly to him or her, ,this is an example of                                                                      .
    1. simple structure
    2. functional structure
    3. divisional structure

1. 4. matrix structure
   5. project structure

27. Two of the most popular bureaucratic design options grew out of the functional and product departmentalization; these are appropriately called the                                                     , respectively.
    1. functional and simple structures
    2. divisional and matrix structures
    3. matrix and project structures
    4. project and functional structures
    5. functional and divisional structures

28. In which type of organizational structure do organizations frequently loses sight of its best interests?
    1. simple
    2. functional
    3. divisional
    4. project
    5. matrix

29. Hershey Foods and PepsiCo are examples of companies that have implemented which type of structure?
    1. simple
    2. functional
    3. divisional
    4. project
    5. matrix

30. The                                                   weaves together elements of functional and product departmentalization, creating a dual chain of command.
    1. team-based
    2. simple
    3. functional
    4. divisional

1. 5. matrix

31. Which structure has the unique characteristic in which employees have at least two bosses: their functional departmental supervisor, and their product or project supervisors?
    1. project
    2. team
    3. matrix
    4. functional

C. divisional

32. At the internationally known design firm, IDEO, teams form, disband, and form again as the work requires. This type of structure is the                                                          structure.
    1. team
    2. project
    3. matrix
    4. functional
    5. boundaryless

33. In a team structure, team members have the authority to make decisions that affect them because

                                        in these work arrangements.

1. 1. there is no rigid chain of command
   2. there are no job descriptions
   3. there is no limit on the members’ authority
   4. most of the members telecommute
   5. most of them determine which pieces of projects are completed first

34. Former General Electric (GE) chairman Jack Welch coined the term boundaryless organization because he wanted to eliminate vertical and horizontal boundaries within GE and break down external barriers between the         
    1. company and its customers
    2. company and its divisions
    3. company and its customers and suppliers.
    4. company and its suppliers

1. 5. company and its employees.

35. Nashville-based Emma Inc., an e-mail marketing firm with 100 employees who work from home or offices in Austin, Denver, New York, and Portland is an example of a                                                                  .
    1. cross-border organization
    2. virtual organization
    3. technology organization
    4. network organization
    5. hierarchical organization

36. Often referred to as a modular organization by manufacturing firms, the                                               approach allows organizations to concentrate on what they do best by contracting out other activities to companies that do those activities best.
    1. cross-border organization
    2. virtual organization
    3. technology organization
    4. network organization
    5. hierarchical organization

37. Briefly explain why boundaryless organizations are not merely flatter organizations. What factors contributed to the rise of boundaryless organizations?

38. In                                               , employees are practicing knowledge management by continually acquiring and sharing new knowledge and are willing to apply that knowledge in making decisions or performing their work.
    1. learning organizations
    2. network organizations
    3. boundaryless organizations
    4. virtual organizations
    5. modular organizations

39. What type of organizing elements would be necessary for learning to take place in an organization?

40. Once                                       is in place, you need to organize the specific jobs of each of your employees.
    1. your department budget
    2. your job description
    3. the project plan
    4. your departmental structure
    5. your staff

41. You begin the process of organizing by                                                          .
    1. choosing a project management system
    2. approving a schedule of deadlines
    3. allocating staff and resources
    4. by combining tasks into jobs
    5. making a list of all the specific tasks

42. The second step of organizing is to                                                                      .
    1. combine the tasks into jobs
    2. choose a project management system
    3. make a list of all the specific tasks
    4. formalize the process by creating job descriptions.
    5. allocate staff and resources

43. The third step of organizing is to                                                                         .
    1. combine the tasks into jobs
    2. choose a project management system
    3. make a list of all the specific tasks
    4. formalize the process by creating job descriptions.
    5. allocate staff and resources

44. A job description is a written statement of what a jobholder does, how the job is done, and why it is done. Explain why you need to write job descriptions for each job under your supervision.

45. Empowerment means increasing your employees’ involvement in their work through greater participation in decisions that control their work and by                                                                         .
    1. allowing them to telecommute
    2. involving them in deadline setting
    3. expanding responsibility for work outcomes
    4. demanding greater accountability
    5. focusing on productivity

46. Two ways to empower people are to:
    1. Provide greater oversight and job redesign
    2. Provide no boundaries and specific job descriptions
    3. Delegate budget-setting responsibilities and expand their jobs
    4. Delegate authority to them and redesign their jobs
    5. Delegate no authority to them but redesign their jobs

47. Delegation is frequently depicted as a four-step process. Of the following, which is NOT one of those steps:
    1. allocation of duties
    2. set reasonable outcomes
    3. delegation of authority
    4. assignment of responsibility
    5. creation of accountability

48. The essence of the                                          is empowering the employee to act for you.
    1. allocation of duties process
    2. assignment of responsibility process
    3. delegation process
    4. supervision process
    5. creation of responsibility process

49. Although responsibility means an employee is obliged to carry out assigned duties, accountability means that he or she has to                                                                     .
    1. meet specific financial goals
    2. be an interactive and engaged team member
    3. meet certain deadline requirements
    4. perform the assignment in a satisfactory manner
    5. perform the assignment in a superior manner