Exam 7: Management and Leadership

Explain the differences between strategic, tactical, operational, and contingency planning.

Planning is a key management function because other management functions depend on having a good plan.

________ are broad, long-term accomplishments an organization wants to achieve.

The type of planning that is concerned with developing detailed short-term actions about what is to be done, who is to do it, and how it is to be done is known as ________ planning.

Customers at any RefurbRite Repair Center see a framed statement prominently displayed near the front door. The plaque describes the company's fundamental purposes. In part, it states that "All RefurbRite Repair Centers operate under the belief that every customer deserves good quality parts, fast and dependable service, and a fair price." The words on this plaque reflect the ________ of RefurbRite.

Organizing involves allocating resources, assigning tasks, and establishing procedures for accomplishing the organizational objectives.

The first step in the controlling process is to monitor and record the actual results.

Strategic planning looks at the organization as a whole, while ________ planning focuses on daily tasks and decisions.

Managers focus on making efficient use of their organization's human resources, but leave decisions about the efficient use of other resources such as buildings, machinery, and supplies to engineers and accountants.

The ability to plan, coordinate, and delegate are among a manager's most basic technical skills.

Curtis created his own restaurant equipment company, supplying the greater Denver area, five years ago. Until now, he has never worried about instituting a formal control system. Now, after the Great Recession, he is facing more cost-conscious restaurant owners. He has decided that a formal control system is needed. The first step Curtis should take is

Goals tend to be broad and focus on the long term while objectives tend to be specific and more short-term in their focus.

Because economic and competitive environments frequently change, organizations should

Autumn, a manager for Shine Cosmetics, has just been given a report showing sales in her region are lower than anticipated for the third quarter. Her next task is to determine the reason for the disappointing results and find a way to get sales up to their desired level. Autumn's efforts are part of the ________ function of management.

Staffing is a less important management function today than in the past.

________ skills involve a manager's ability to picture the organization as a whole and the relationships among its various parts.

Margot needed to solve a problem fast! She called together her department team and asked them to list as many possible solutions as they could come up with in a short period of time. During the process she encouraged responses and avoided censoring what her workers said. Margot is utilizing a problem-solving technique known as brainstorming.

Which of the following activities is part of the organizing function of management?

In many smaller firms the manager's role is to direct the employees, telling them exactly what to do.

Contingency planning is most important in markets where conditions are relatively stable and market growth is predictable.