Exam 15: The Organization of International Business

In general terms,we see the principles of horizontal differentiation in the design logic of ________.

IBM puts investments,people,and work anywhere in the world based on the best mix of costs,skills,and environment and uses sophisticated strategies and technologies to support and coordinate activities. IBM most likely uses a ________ structure.

Companies tend to use geographic divisions when they have large foreign operations that are not dominated by a single country or market.

The fundamental limitation of a matrix structure is that it ________.

Which of the following is NOT one of the three prevalent approaches to coordination?

Gary is a manufacturing manager at Forman Enterprises. Gary works at the MNE's headquarters in the U.S. Before Gary can implement any major changes or decisions,he must communicate and coordinate his plans with Raj,a sales manager at Forman's facility in India. Which structure is most likely used by Forman Enterprises?

One advantage of centralized corporate practices is a reduced risk that lower-level employees make costly,wrong decisions.

Andrews Enterprises,which uses an international division structure,should be able to respond quickly to foreign activities but will most likely experience costly country-to-country duplication.

The benefits of managerial visits to foreign subsidiaries can easily be replicated with frequently submitted and reviewed operational reports and schedules.

Concord Foods,an international firm based in the U.S.,is in the process of transitioning from a classical organizational structure to a neoclassical structure. Which of the following tools would most likely enable Concord to make this change?

Vertical and horizontal constraints that segment employees and their tasks within an organization are generally referred to as ________.

Which of the following is most likely a true statement about organization culture?

At Tyson Manufacturing,departments and units are organized around discrete business activities,such as finance,production,marketing,and human resources. Tyson most likely has a ________ structure.

How might centralization of decision making adversely affect local managers in an MNE?

New configurations of value activities create coordination and control challenges that cannot be addressed by the functionality outlined in a formal structure.

Tyrone is a production manager at Penderhall Electronics,an MNE with operations in Asia,Europe,and the U.S. Tyrone has very little decision-making authority at Penderhall,since most decisions are made at headquarters and distributed downward. Which structure is most likely used by Penderhall?

A Japanese keiretsu is best described as a ________.

A major benefit of the international division structure is ________.

Neoclassical structures attempt to minimize boundaries between all of the following EXCEPT ________.

Profile the causes and likely benefits that prompt companies to consider adopting a neoclassical structure.