Exam_1_Study_Guide Flashcards
(42 cards)
Explain the difference between efficiency and effectiveness.
Efficiency is getting work done with a minimum of effort, expense, or waste. Effectiveness is accomplishing tasks that help fulfill organizational objectives.
What are the four management functions?
Planning, organizing, leading, and controlling.
What are the main differences in the responsibilities of top managers and middle managers?
Top managers set overall vision, mission, and direction. Middle managers implement the strategies and plans developed by top managers.
What distinguishes a first-line manager from a team leader?
First-line managers oversee entry-level employees; team leaders facilitate team activities but may not have formal supervisory authority.
Describe the three principal managerial roles identified by Henry Mintzberg and give examples of each.
Interpersonal (e.g. figurehead), informational (e.g. spokesperson), and decisional (e.g. entrepreneur).
How do companies determine that employees would be good managers?
By assessing key skills like technical ability, human skills, conceptual skills, and motivation to manage.
How important is competence in the core managerial skills for the different types of managers?
Technical skills are more important at lower levels; conceptual skills become more important at higher levels.
List the mistakes that managers commonly make. What distinguishes an arriver from a derailer?
insensitive, arrogant, betraying trust, overly ambitious, performance problems, unable to adapt, overmanaging, unable to staff effectively. Arrivers adapt and build relationships; derailers fail to do so.
Describe how managers typically change in their first year on the job.
They shift from being ‘doers’ to understanding they must manage and coordinate others.
How does the way a company is managed affect its competitive advantage?
Well-managed companies attract and retain talent, adapt to change, and outperform poorly managed ones.
Describe how you’d use planning, organizing, leading, and controlling to organize a campus party.
Plan the date and budget, organize the venue and resources, lead volunteers, and control by evaluating event success.
Top managers are responsible for creating a context for change in the organization.
True
Who sets objectives consistent with organizational goals and implements subunit strategies?
Middle managers
What skills increase in importance at higher management levels?
Conceptual skills and motivation to manage
Which four skill sets do companies look for in potential managers?
Technical skills, human skills, conceptual skills, and motivation to manage
Describe the three basic characteristics of changing external environments.
Environmental change, environmental complexity, and resource scarcity.
How do the characteristics of changing environments affect uncertainty?
They increase uncertainty when change is fast, complexity is high, and resources are scarce.
What is the difference between the general and specific business environments?
General affects all businesses; specific is unique to the industry.
List the components of the general environment.
Economy, technological, sociocultural, and political/legal trends.
How do the elements of the specific business environment affect businesses?
Customers, competitors, suppliers, industry regulations, and advocacy groups directly affect operations.
Describe the three-step process that managers use to make sense of their changing environments.
Environmental scanning, interpreting environmental factors, and acting on threats and opportunities.
How are organizational cultures created and maintained?
Through company founders and maintained via stories, heroes, and socialization.
What are the characteristics of successful organizational cultures?
Adaptability, consistency, clear mission, and employee involvement.
Identify the three levels of organizational culture and give examples of each.
Seen (dress code), heard (values), and believed (unconscious beliefs).
