Exam 15: Foundations of Organization Structure

Consultants Exceptional (CE) has hired you to develop training materials for their consultants. Your first assignment is to develop a training program that helps their consultants to analyze and understand the organizational structure of the company that they are assisting. You believe that in order to adequately evaluate and understand a client company, consultants need to understand the basic organizational structure of the company. Consultants are then able to recommend actions and changes based on the company's structure. One of the questions you tell the trainees to ask is, "To what degree are tasks subdivided into separate jobs?" This question addresses the issue of ________.

Aeronautics Inc., a parts supplier, has departments for government aircraft and contracts, large commercial aircraft clients, and small personal aircraft clients. This is an example of ________ departmentalization.

Which of the following statements is true regarding work specialization?

Compare and contrast centralized and decentralized organizations.

Work specialization increases the time spent in changing tasks.

________ is a systematic effort to make an organization leaner by selling off business units, closing locations, or reducing staff.

The chain of command is an unbroken line of authority that extends from the top of the organization to the lowest echelon and clarifies who reports to whom.

The basis by which jobs are grouped is called ________.

You assign your students a project that involves developing a business plan for a retail chain. The retail chain will have 1000 employees and will serve customers both locally and internationally via a storefront and an Internet catalog. Which of the following organizational designs is least likely to be suitable for this retail store?

Which of the following types of organizational designs combines two forms of departmentalization: functional and product?

The right inherent in a managerial position to give orders and expect orders to be obeyed is termed ________.

Lotus Inc. is attempting to flatten its organizational hierarchy. It is encouraging the use of cross-hierarchical teams, participative decision-making practices, and the use of 360-degree performance appraisals. Based on this information we can say that Lotus Inc. is attempting to create a ________ organization.

The virtual organization is also called the ________ or ________ organization.

Some of the departments in Procter & Gamble are Tide, Pampers, Charmin, and Pringles. This is an example of departmentalization by ________.

Which of the following dimensions of an environment describes the degree to which the environment can support growth?

Span of control is a key element of an organization's structure. Which of the following key questions is addressed by this element?

Which of the following statements is true about the simple structure?

The matrix structure breaks the unity-of-command concept.

The clerical and editorial employees in a publishing house need to be at their desks by 8:00 AM and follow a set of precise procedures dictated by management. The jobs of these clerical and editorial employees ________.

Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of a matrix structure.