Midterm

Question 1

Organization (definition)

Answer 1

A structured social system consisting of groups and individuals working together to meet some agreed-upon objectives.

Question 2

Organizational behavior (definition)

Answer 2

the field that seeks increased knowledge of all aspects of behavior in organizational settings using the scientific method.

Question 3

OB ypatumai (i guess?)

Answer 3

• Studies human behavior in organizations
• 3 levels of analysis: individual, group, organizational processes
• Multidisciplinary field: psychology, sociology, anthropology, political science, economics, management.
• Theories x and y

Question 4

OB aims to answer these practical questions:

Answer 4

• How to make people more productive and satisfied?
• When and how to organize teams?
• How should jobs and organizations be designed to help people adapt to changes?
• How to improve the quality of organizational communication?
• How to lower work-related stress?

Question 5

3 levels of analysis in OB

Answer 5

• Organizational processes
• Group processes
• Individual processes

Question 6

Theory x

Answer 6

Claims people are lazy and irresponsible and will work well only when forced to

Question 7

Theory Y

Answer 7

Claims that under right circumstances people are fully capable of working productively and accepting responsibilities for their work

Question 8

3 criteria that Employer Brand must meet:

Answer 8

• Reflects the reality about the organization
• Stands out from others in the job market
• Is attractive to target audience

Question 9

5 main steps in developing an Employer Brand:

Answer 9

• Strategic analysis
• Target audience segmentation
• Development of employer value proposition
• Internal, external communication
• Evaluation of performance

Question 10

Employer value proposition

Answer 10

A package of benefits that makes an organization an attractive employer

Question 11

Main areas HR employees are responsible for:

Answer 11

• Recruitment and Selection
• Learning and Development
• Compensation and Benefits
• Employee experience and wellbeing
• Labor relations and compliance

Question 12

Employee life cycle:

Answer 12

• Attract
• Recruit
• Onboard
• Develop talent
• Reward and recognize
• Manage performance
• Exit/ retain

Question 13

Organizational processes level of analysis (Aim)

Answer 13

• Aims to understand how organizations and their processes work

Question 14

Organizational structure (definition)

Answer 14

Formal configuration between individuals and groups with respect to allocation of tasks, responsibilities and authorities within organizations

Question 15

Organizational design (definition)

Answer 15

The process of coordinating the structural elements of an organization

Question 16

Key 5 elements of organizational structure:

Answer 16

1. Hierarchy of authority:
   * Tall- many levels
   * Flat- few levels
2. Division of labor:
   *Tasks are divided into specialized jobs.
   *Specialization increases, number of tasks individuals have to perform decrease.
3. Span of control:
   * Wide span- flat hierarchy
   * Narrow span- tall hierarchy
4. Line vs staff:
   * Line- decision making power
   * Staff- provides advice and recommendations (HR, etc.)
5. Centralization va decentralization:
   * Centr. -Few individuals make most decisions
   *Decentr. - Delegating power from higher to lower levels

Question 17

Approaches to Organizational design (3):

Answer 17

*Classical: Tall hierarchies, narrow spans of control

*Neoclassical: Flat hierarchies, wide span of control

*Contingency: Depends on environmental conditions

Question 18

Departmentalization (definition)

Answer 18

Process of breaking up organizations into coherent units. Organizations can be divided by: function, product, market, matrix

Question 19

Organizational culture (definition)

Answer 19

Cognitive framework consisting of attitudes, values, behavioral norms and expectations.

Question 20

Cultural iceberg: (3 parts)

Answer 20

*Tip- Observable artefacts (easily seen, e.g. office layout, clothes)

*Middle- Espoused values (Things explicitly stated in writing or verbally)

*Bottom- Basic underlying assumptions (Unconscious and taken for granted ways of seeing the world)

Question 21

4 types of cultures:

Answer 21

• Clan culture- People focused, trust & loyalty, Teamwork, participation, satisfaction & commitment. Horizontal structure. Usually start-ups, smaller companies

*Adhocracy culture- Change, growth & adaptability, creativity & agility, innovation. Usually tech companies

*Market culture- Achievement, objectives & rewards, customer focus, profit & market share. Often tall structure. Usually large, industry-leading companies.

*Hierarchy culture- Stability, roles & rules, consistency, efficiency. Usually banks, hospitals, energy companies.

Question 22

Decision Making (definition)

Answer 22

Process of making choices among several alternatives

Question 23

3 phases of decision-making process:

Answer 23

1. Formulation: What is a problem?
2. Consideration: How will we handle it?
3. Implementation: How will we enforce the decision?

Question 24

3 major ways to distinguish among decisions:

Answer 24

*Routineness
*Riskiness
*Who gets to make them

Question 25

Rational-economic decision-making model

Answer 25

*Ideal decision-making *People consider all possible alternatives *Accurately and completely evaluate all alternatives *Select decision which maximizes the chance of attaining goal

Question 26

Administrative decision-making model

Answer 26

*How decisions are usually made *People consider available alternatives *Decide on first alternative that meets criteria for acceptability *Selects solution that is just good enough but not optimal

Question 27

Image theory decision-making

Answer 27

* Decisions are made in an automatic, intuitive fashion * Decision-making process is rapid and simple * Step 1 - compatibility test. Eliminate options that don’t align with principles, values, goals. * Step 2 - Profitability test. Evaluate expected benefits and risks of the remaining options to determine best one.

Question 28

Decision-making in groups: (benefits, problems)

Answer 28

Benefits: * Pooling of resources * Specialization of labor within the group * Greater acceptance of the decision Problems: * Tend to waste time * There is a greater potential for disruptive group conflict * There is greater likelihood of intimidation by group leaders

Question 29

Decision-making styles: (4)

Answer 29

*Directive - efficient and logical, aggressively uses status, simple & clear solutions *Analytical - complex solutions, desire for more info, enjoy solving problems, ability to adapt *Conceptual - Creative solutions, consider many alternatives *Behavioral - Work well with others, avoid conflict

Question 30

Framing effects (definition)

Answer 30

The tendency for people to make different decisions based on how the problem is presented

Question 31

4 biases in decision-making process:

Answer 31

*Implicit favorites bias - Tend to pick favorite option early, other options are used only to convince themselves that selected option is right. *Hindsight bias- Tend to perceive that past events were more predictable than they were. *Person sensitivity decision bias- Tend to blame others too much when things are going poorly; give them too much credit when things are going well. *The escalation of commitment bias- Tend to support unsuccessful courses of action because they have sunk costs invested in them.

Question 32

Communication (definition)

Answer 32

Process by which the sender transmits the message to the receiver

Question 33

Elements of communication process:

Answer 33

* Encoding - translating an idea into form * Channels - pathways over which massages are transmitted * Decoding - Converting the message back into the sender’s original ideas * Feedback - providing info about the impact of messages on receivers * Noise - factors that distort the clarity of messages