Exam 10: The Organization of Global Business

A geographic region structure is one where an organization:

Any combination of different organizational structures is generally referred to as a ________.

At GM, North American Operations, GM Acceptance Corporation, International Operations, and Hughes Electronics are examples of the company's subsidiaries.

Under a matrix structure, the functional managers and the divisional managers have equal authority within the organization.

Are export departments important for global businesses? How do they differ from international divisions? Explain.

Scenario - Windmere Technologies Windmere Technologies has been in operation since 1984. Today, Windmere is actually considered to be a globally-based firm with corporate offices in thirteen foreign nations. There is not one office of this company with higher authority or more decision making power than any other of the thirteen in operation. Windmere Technologies is recognized as a business leader in all thirteen nations in which it has corporate offices. According to the CEO of the company, "Windmere considers the world to be its home base." The management has done a good job of creating its organizational structure where people are grouped simultaneously by function and by division. Windmere is best known for its work in creating alternative energy sources. As this is of vital concern to all nations of the world today, Windmere's ideas and products are welcomed by all nations. This business takes in revenues in excess of $8 billion per year and expects it to substantially increase in the future. -Which one of the following best describes Windmere Technologies claim that the world is its home base?

A basic problem of the matrix structure is _____.

Mirkhani Mining Supplies is the industry leader in the production of underground mining equipment. The company has its headquarters in South Africa and has been in operation there since its inception in 1987. Mirkhani is known worldwide for the safety features it incorporates in its equipment. This company conducts its operations with the safety of the underground miner as its guiding objective. Mirkhani Mining was recently called in to respond to the latest mine accident in China. Mirkhani not only provides safe mining equipment, it also makes superior mine rescue equipment. The company will be receiving a global award for freely rendering the use of its rescue equipment to China during a mine collapse. Mirkhani Mining Supplies will be recognized around the globe as saving the lives of forty underground miners in China. The company states, "Saving those lives is better than receiving a billion dollars for mining machinery." -As the growth of Mirkhani Mining Supplies has taken place, which one of the following is least likely to be a step it has taken in its international advancement?

A special case of the divisional structure where products are grouped into separate divisions according to their similarities or differences is called a _____ structure.

_________ is an organizational structure that groups people together because they hold similar positions in a company, perform a similar set of tasks, or use the same kind of skills.

C.K. Prahalad an expert in the field and professor at the University of Michigan suggests that stateless corporations represent the third stage of globalization.

Some companies are global and so well integrated into the countries where they have a presence, that it is difficult, if not impossible, to identify one country as the home country for these corporations. such companies are called _____.

The reason why some organizations reject a functional organizational structure is because they believe it renders them unable to respond to environmental changes that require coordination between functional areas, and because it offers each employee a restricted view of the organizations primary goal.

There are four stages of globalization: Global companies produce goods in one country and export them to other countries, foreign subsidiaries are established to handle the exports from their own countries, operations are set up in other countries, the corporation locates their core corporate functions and top executive in different countries in order to achieve competitive advantage.

According to the text, ConocoPhillips placed their ethics office in which part of the organization structure?

An ______ is a tool that people use to coordinate their actions to obtain something they seek or value.

A market structure is a particular kind of divisional structure that groups products into separate divisions according to the needs of different customers.

________ is a particular kind of divisional structure that groups products into separate divisions according to their similarities or differences.

Also called customer structure or customer class structure, a ______ is a particular kind of divisional structure that groups products into separate divisions according to the needs of different customers.

A _______ is a new phase in the evolution of the multinational corporation, where work is sourced wherever it is most efficient and the corporation transcends nationality altogether.