Exam 16: Evidence-Based Decision Making

Types of Control (Scenario) Sam has not been receiving the information that he needs from his current control system. By the time Sam receives his reports, the activity has been completed and mistakes have already been made. Direct supervision is used extensively on the production floor now, so some activities are corrected before they become costly mistakes. But Sam would like to do better. Ideally, he would like to fix mistakes before they happen and anticipate more of the problems before they occur. -The type of control used on the production floor is __________ control.

explain what benchmarking is. What do you think are the benefits of benchmarking? Provide examples of benchmarking practices.

In a short essay explain feedforward, concurrent, and feedback controls and provide an example for each one.

In giving employees feedback on their performance, the only important topic for discussion is the employee's job and how it is carried out.

Customer satisfaction with service provided can be considered an important performance indicator.

Refer to the scenario below to answer the following questions. Information Controls (Scenario) Computing Solutions Inc. is a high-tech consulting firm that focuses on helping companies to implement and adapt new technological developments in daily operations. Ted is the department head and needs to train John and Kelly, both project managers, on the proper applications of technological solutions for businesses. -When John organizes and processes the raw, unanalyzed facts, he will have __________.

Managers should use subjective measures when ________.

In the control process, which step follows "measuring actual performance"?

Feedforward control takes place while a work activity is in progress.

Financial statements are an example of __________ control.

When data are analyzed and processed, they become __________.

Which information source used to measure performance provides information that is not filtered through others?

Having a control system reduces the scope of employee empowerment and autonomy.

Refer to the scenario below to answer the following questions. Designing a Control System (Scenario) Gina realizes her department needs to make some changes in its control system. The department is one of five in her division, and she is not sure which approach will work best for the organization. She could base her department's performance on their distinct product, making it a profit centre and evaluating it against overall company results. She could also make better use of the policies, regulations, and procedures that are already in place. To date, Gina has not strictly enforced many of the regulations established by the head office because her department is self-regulating. The work groups set their goals and insure those goals are achieved. Everyone is well aware of the expected standards and work behaviours, and there is little tolerance for workers who do not meet the group norms. -In selecting the best control system, Gina understands that __________.

Refer to the scenario below to answer the following questions. Financial Ratios (Scenario) Jan was in a big hurry. She had just been given the assignment of reporting on the financial health of her company to the new divisional vice-president, Donna. Donna had asked Jan to provide several calculations to help her gain an understanding of the company's financial shape. Jan realized that this was a great career opportunity-one that could make or break her reputation with the new vice-president. She quickly pulled out her old financial management textbook and turned to the chapter on financial ratios to review the required calculations. -Donna was also interested in predicting the company's ability to meet short-term obligations, which meant that Jan had to calculate a(n) __________ ratio.

The first step in the control process is __________.

The system of organizational governance is in place to monitor and control organizational practices.

Types of Control (Scenario) Sam has not been receiving the information that he needs from his current control system. By the time Sam receives his reports, the activity has been completed and mistakes have already been made. Direct supervision is used extensively on the production floor now, so some activities are corrected before they become costly mistakes. But Sam would like to do better. Ideally, he would like to fix mistakes before they happen and anticipate more of the problems before they occur. -Ideally, Sam would like to use more __________ control.

One advantage of __________ control is that it can enhance employee motivation.

If sales of "Cool Ranch"-flavoured Doritos chips are consistently higher than targets set by parent company Frito-Lay, which type of managerial action is most likely warranted?