BSNS11 exam questions

Question 1

Do characteristics (of a pluralistic society) work for or against business? Explain your answer

Question 2

Choosing one of the major themes for BSNS111, explain how it might influence the relationship between business and society

Question 3

Explain a situation where a regulatory change has had an outcome for New Zealand society. Has this had a positive or negative outcome for society?

Question 4

Consider how elements introduced in this lecture (e.g. free trade agreements or fair pay agreements) might influence the relationship between business & society.

Question 5

Discuss and critique the three models proposed in relation to their similarities and differences. Are they feasible models for a post-covid19 economic rebuild?
Hint: There is no right or wrong here. However, you should consider the purpose of both the Anglo-American model of corporate governance and the rationale for the alternative models that have emerged.

Question 6

Explain (using media theory) how media influences society.
Hint: draw on materials presented in the first four chapters we have read in Mindtap and discussions from the first and second week.

Question 7

Identify and explain TWO theories that can be used to describe the business, government and society relationship.
Hint: remember these theories provide a lens through which we can understand and explore different perspectives.

Question 8

Explain the impact of the end of government intervention in the 1980s and 1990s (often called ‘Rogernomics’).
Hint - you can compare this to a case of perfect competition and use concepts from our discussions around capitalism.

Question 9

How might the change (in the 1980s and 1990s) to a neoliberal business environment influence how businesses operate and behave in local markets?
Hint - Try to answer using established models; for example, you might consider the Social Contract model.

Question 10

Discuss how the Māori worldview might offer an alternative perspective to dominant economic thinking.
Hint: You will need to explicitly explain Māori worldview, beliefs, values, and principles. Consider the the type of performance emphasised by Shareholder Primacy.

Question 11

Explain how the connection to the land/or perspective on human relationships can influence Māori economic development.
Hint: Consider the Stakeholder Model and the Māori worldview.

Question 12

Explain how entrepreneurship, as an instrument to allow Māori and other indigenous communities to realise their potential, may need to break out of the narrow economic and cultural assumptions associated with the practice in western societies.
Hint: you will need to consider principles of entrepreneurship, risk and return, and Shareholder Primacy to make an excellent answer.

Question 13

Explain how the managerial strategies and actions taken by Māori organisations may be influenced by their different logics and priorities rooted in their culture.
Hint: Consider the Stakeholder Model. You will also want to consider Shareholder Primacy to make an excellent answer. Finally, you will need to outline the Māori worldview to explain logic and priorities explicitly.

Question 14

How would the manager of a Māori business generate different social outcomes than a business run to enrich shareholders?
Hint: You may need to explain the Māori worldview and Shareholder Primacy (or Agency Theory) and connect the differences to social outcomes.

Question 15

What motivation is there for a Māori leader to be accountable to their collective?
Hint: Consider the Stakeholder Model and the Māori worldview.

Question 16

How can regulation of companies - with the intent of improving their environmental performance - create unwanted outcomes.

Question 17

Using examples, explain why and how a firm might actively acknowledge their obligations to society in their top-level strategy.

Question 18

Evaluate the differences between old and new social contracts between employer and employee. Does one seem fairer than the other? If so, why?

Question 19

Knowing the pros and cons of drug testing, is it justified? Make a case to support your answer.

Question 20

The text positions privacy, safety and health in terms of employees’ rights. The underlying assumption is that businesses should provide as many of these rights as possible. How much responsibility should businesses shoulder for its employees’ lives? Discuss.

Question 21

Choose a Business, Society and Government issue (e.g., marketing junk food to children). Make a case for more government regulation and then make a case for less government regulation. Compare your answers. What does this comparison tell you about your values about government and business’s relative roles and responsibilities?

Question 22

Describe the various checks and balances that ensure the efficient and effective operation of the New Zealand regulatory system. How might this system be improved?

Question 23

Outline a case for and against the lobbying and political spending by business interests.

Question 24

Explain the differences between grass roots lobbying, cyber-advocacy and astro-turf lobbying.

Question 25

Explain (using relevant examples) what a ‘wicked problem’ is and why it can not be solved and needs to be managed

Question 26

Select a complex issue. In what way can it be considered simple, complicated, complex or chaotic?

Question 27

Explain the difference between systems science and systems thinking. Illustrate your answer with examples.

Question 28

Explain (using relevant examples) what the difference is between reinforcing (positive) feedback and balancing (negative) feedback?

Question 29

Select a topical example of business, society and government from the news. Create a simple causal loop diagram which illustrates the essential dynamics.

Question 30

The three models of ethical management (immoral, moral, and amoral) provide only one “good” example–that of moral management. However, the Mindtap readings imply that immoral and amoral management are prevalent in our society, while moral management is practiced less. Explain and justify what you believe is the bigger problem in our society, immoral or amoral management?
Hint: Consider when the legal factors come into play (which it might be argued are designed to capture deliberately unethical acts.

Question 31

Discuss the relevance of one’s motivations to his or her ethical actions.
Hint: Consider whether your ethics are motivated by conseqeuence, intention or virtue

Question 32

The motive behind managers’ pressure on subordinates to perform is most likely the emphasis on ‘economic success.’ Assuming this statement is true, relate this fact to Lawrence Kohlberg’s observation that most adults operate at Level 2, the conventional level of moral development. What implications do these facts have for ethical behavior in organisations?Using an example, explain corporate transparency. How can this be useful in creating an ‘ethical climate’ within an organisation?
Hint: Consider the ‘bottom-line’ mentality of business and also whether there is a shareholder or stakeholder focus.
Hint: What is an ethical climate? What does having decisions, practices, and operational issues exposed to scrutiny mean to business activities?