Exam 8: Systems-Based Organizing

Different teams in the same sport league would belong to which component of Parsons' model of organizing?

According to Thompson, organizations seek to isolate their ___________________ from environmental influences by establishing ___________________ to buffer or level environmental fluctuations.

Organizations should simultaneously undertake both differentiation and integration.

Both Thompson and Parsons would argue that the ___________________ of an organization must be insulated from environmental disturbances.

The essence of the "flexiform" model is that the differentiated units are loosely coupled to each other.

Lawrence and Lorsch's (1967) basic premise was that a manufacturing organization is divided into three major subsystems: sales, production, and research and development

The customer-employee interface in a ___________________ organization operates in a highly unpredictable environment.

The idea of loosely coupled systems in the flexiform model stems from the distinction between ________________ and ________________.

In order to interact effectively with ever-changing environments, organizations have tended to adopt newer forms of structuring that are loosely labeled ____________________________.

According to Lawrence and Lorsch, the relative certainty of the environment faced by subsystems creates two specific problems for the organization: (a) ________________ and (b) ________________.

An open system has many environmental influences that affect the organization.

Which of the following phrases best describes "interorganizational networks"?

All of the following are components of the Parsonian model except:

Thompson would argue that if the boundary-spanning units are to be efficient, they must be able to work in a stable environment.

According to Thompson, which of the following is important in sealing off the technical core from environmental uncertainties?

The process of structuring units of an organization differently and staffing them with people of varying skills in order to cope with the particular environment and its requirements is called ___________________.

The Parsonian model suggests that organizations consist of distinct hierarchical sub-organizations.

A "boundary-spanning unit" is best described as which of the following?

In Parsons' model, the ___________________ subsystem is a higher order system that both administers and serves the technical system.

Which of the following is a network organization that involves one or more internal units interacting with units external to the organization?