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The degree to which organizational leaders are successful in making corrective adjustments when things are not going well hinges on
a) how well they communicate their willingness to give large, visible rewards to company personnel who take the initiative and exercise the entrepreneurial ability to fix the problems causing sub par performance
b) accurate analysis of the circumstances causing unacceptable performance, exercising good judgment in deciding when corrective adjustments are needed and deciding what adjustments to make, and good implementation of the corrective actions that are initiated
c) how good they are at spotting company personnel who are good change agents and whether they give these change agents sufficient authority to get the causes of poor performance fixed quickly
d) how good they are at crafting turnaround strategies and inspiring company personnel to quickly implement the actions needed to boost performance
e) being able to determine when to replace poorly performing subordinates versus when to work closely with them to fix the problems causing weak performance
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b) accurate analysis of the circumstances causing unacceptable performance, exercising good judgment in deciding when corrective adjustments are needed and deciding what adjustments to make, and good implementation of the corrective actions that are initiated
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Which one of the following statement about company subcultures is inaccurate?
a) companies that have instituted a values statement and a code of ethics very rarely have subcultures
b) subcultures can exist because a company has recently acquired other companies
c) global and multinational companies tend to be at least partly multicultural because cross-country organization units have different operating histories an work climates, as well as members who speak different languages, have grown up under different social customs and traditions, and have different sets of values and beliefs
d) a company can have multiple cultures or subcultures because sometimes there are varying values, beliefs, and practices across the company’s departments, geographic locations, divisions, or business units
e) the problem a company encounters with having subcultures is that they can clash, or at least not mesh well
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a) companies that have instituted a values statement and a code of ethics very rarely have subcultures
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Leading the drive for good strategy execution and operating excellence calls upon managers to
a) personally exert a strong, highly visible influence on the company’s approaches to strategy execution
b) be creative in establishing policies and procedures that will result in high standards of operating excellence
c) be very personable, an effective communicator, and skilled in the empowerment of company personnel
d) practice MBWA, put constructive pressure on the organization to achieve good results and operating excellence, and push corrective actions to improve strategy execution and achieve the targeted results
e) be charismatic, a decisive decision-maker, and make inspiring speeches at company events
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d) practice MBWA, put constructive pressure on the organization to achieve good results and operating excellence, and push corrective actions to improve strategy execution and achieve the targeted results
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The characteristics of unhealthy company cultures include
a) incompatible subcultures; a politicized internal environment; hostility to change and a wariness of people who champion new ways of doing things; an aversion to looking outside the company for best practices, new managerial approaches, and innovative idea; and executives who exude the negatives of arrogance, ego, greed, and an "ends-justify-the-means" mentality
b) a lack of emphasis on innovation, managerial willingness to take big risks, a strong preference for hiring managers from outside the company, very few core values and traditions, a weakly-enforced code of ethics, and disregard for social responsibility strategies
c) a preference for conservative strategies, unwillingness to be a first-mover, excessive preoccupation with profitability, an aversion to promotion from within, and reward systems that are tilted more toward punishing poor performance rather than rewarding good performance
d) overemphasis on employee empowerment, a complacent approach to building competencies and capabilities, a greed-driven strategic intent, clashing subculture, excessively bureaucratic policies and procedures, overemphasis on being socially responsible, a willingness to take big risks to achieve big rewards, and minimal emphasis on providing good customer service
e) decentralized centralized decision-making, many layers of management bureaucracy, overly strict enforcement of longstanding policies and procedures, an aversion to risk-taking, greed-driven executives, low regard for making charitable contributions, and hostility to high taxes and government regulation
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a) incompatible subcultures; a politicized internal environment; hostility to change and a wariness of people who champion new ways of doing things; an aversion to looking outside the company for best practices, new managerial approaches, and innovative idea; and executives who exude the negatives of arrogance, ego, greed, and an "ends-justify-the-means" mentality
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The menu of substantive actions top managers can take to change a problem company culture does not include which one of the following?
a) screening all candidates for new positions carefully, hiring only those who appear to fit in with the new culture
b) shifting from decentralized to centralized decision-making so as to give senior executives more authority and control in driving cultural change
c) promoting individuals who are known to possess the desired cultural traits, who have stepped forward to advocate the shift to a different culture, and who can serve as role models for the desired cultural behavior
d) revising policies and procedures in ways that will help drive cultural change
e) replacing high-profile executives and managers who are strongly associated with the old culture and are opposing or stonewalling needed organizational and cultural changes
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b) shifting from decentralized to centralized decision-making so as to give senior executives more authority and control in driving cultural change
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Which of the following statements about a strong culture company is false?
a) continuity of leadership, low workforce turnover, geographic concentration, and considerable organizational success all contribute to the emergence and sustainability of a strong culture
b) a strong implanted corporate culture has a powerful influence on how we do things are here because so many company personnel are accepting of the company’s culturally approved traditions and because this acceptance is reinforced both by management expectations and coworker peer pressure to conform to cultural norms
c) in a strong culture company, there is an unequivocal expectation that company personnel will act and behave in accordance with the adopted values, principles, and ways of doing business
d) culturally approved behaviors and ways of doing things flourish, while culturally disapproved behaviors and work practices get squashed
e) the most distinctive and dominating theme of a strong culture company is wide support among both managers and employees for high ethical standards and ways of operating that are widely considered to a model of socially responsible behavior
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e) the most distinctive and dominating theme of a strong culture company is wide support among both managers and employees for high ethical standards and ways of operating that are widely considered to a model of socially responsible behavior
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Which of the following are standout traits of a change-resistant culture
a) must-be-invented here thinking, unflinching belief in the company’s skills and capabilities, neglect of what customers are saying and how their needs and expectations are changing, and a command-and-control approach to managing people
b) little regard for ethical standards, aversion to employee empowerment, a strong preference for strictly-enforced policies and procedures, and a politicized internal environment
c) profit-driven decision-making, an aversion to employee empowerment and team-based incentive compensation, and a preoccupation with traditional core values
d) complacency about the need to develop innovative new products or implement best practices, a strong preference for following up rather than leading market change, not making bold proposals to pursue emerging opportunities, and a "we have done it this way for years" syndrome
e) a strong commitment to providing job security for employees, an aversion to stretch objectives and performance targets, and ego-driven executives that relish empire-building
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d) complacency about the need to develop innovative new products or implement best practices, a strong preference for following up rather than leading market change, not making bold proposals to pursue emerging opportunities, and a "we have done it this way for years" syndrome
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Which one of the following is unlikely to be effective in helping to perpetuate a company’s culture?
a) screening and selecting new employees that will mesh well with the culture
b) assigning employees who fail to display cultural norms to dead-end jobs where the duties are tightly prescribed and strictly enforced
c) expecting managers at all levels to be cultural role models and exhibit the advocated cultural norms in their own behavior
d) encouraging company personnel to exert strong peer pressure on coworkers to conform to expected cultural norms
e) periodically holding ceremonies to honor employees who excel in exhibiting and role modeling the desired cultural behaviors
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b) assigning employees who fail to display cultural norms to dead-end jobs where the duties are tightly prescribed and strictly enforced
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Which one of the following is NOT a typical characteristic of a weak company culture?
a) few, if any, entrenched operating practices and culture-induced norms to align, constrain, or otherwise paint the white lines for the actions, decisions, and behavior of company personnel
b) little pressure on employees to do things in ways governed by particular values, business principles, or behavioral norms
c) little employee passion about the company and emotional commitment to what it is trying to accomplish-conditions that often result in many employees viewing their company as just a place to work and their job as just a way to make a living
d) a complicated value chain and a very diverse set of core competencies–both of which act to create multiple subcultures
e) no strong employee allegiance to what the company stands for or to operating the business in well-defined ways
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d) a complicated value chain and a very diverse set of core competencies–both of which act to create multiple subcultures
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When a company’s present culture promotes attitudes, behaviors, and ways of doing things that are conducive to first-rate strategy execution,
a) a company is better equipped to set stretch performance targets and then meet or beat them
b) a company has much less risk of becoming entangled in embarrassing ethical violations in trying to execute its strategy
c) the culture functions as a valuable managerial ally in the strategy execution process
d) the culture is said to be proactive, aggressive, and results productive
e) the culture is said to be strong, healthy, and performance driven
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c) the culture functions as a valuable managerial ally in the strategy execution process
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Which of the following is unlikely to be true in a strong culture company?
a) the cultural norms in a strong-culture company may not change much as strategy evolves and the organization makes strategy adjustments, either because the new strategies are compatible with the present culture or because the culture’s dominant traits are somewhat strategy neutral and compatible with evolving versions of the company’s strategy
b) a strongly implanted corporate culture ends up having a powerful influence on "how we do thing around here" because so many company personnel are accepting of cultural traditions and because this acceptance is reinforced both by management expectations and coworker peer pressure to conform to cultural norms
c) top executives are reluctant to change established policies, procedures and work practices or back off strict enforcement of these policies, procedures and work practices (in order to avoid weakening the culture)
d) the values and principles on which the culture is grounded come to be widely shared by rank-and-file employees–people who dislike the culture tend to leave
e) senior executives make a conscious effort to display culturally-approved values, business principles, and behavioral norms in their own actions–they walk the talk of the company culture
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c) top executives are reluctant to change established policies, procedures and work practices or back off strict enforcement of these policies, procedures and work practices (in order to avoid weakening the culture)
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A company’s values statement and code of ethics
a) are major factors in preventing a company from having a weak or unhealthy culture
b) seldom have much impact on shaping the character of a company’s culture because a company’s stated core values and code of ethics are cosmetic, existing mainly to impress outsiders and help create a positive company image
c) usually combine to produce a strong and deeply implanted corporate culture that is unlikely to stray far from its ethics-based and values-based roots
d) have a major culture-building influence because they communicate what actions and behavior are expected of all company personnel
e) often act to produce multiple cultures (or subcultures) within a company rather than a single uniform culture throughout the company
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d) have a major culture-building influence because they communicate what actions and behavior are expected of all company personnel
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Which one of the following is not a key aspect in defining and shaping the character of a company’s corporate culture?
a) the "chemistry" and "personality" that permeates its work environment
b) the company’s approach to people management and its style of operating
c) the ingrained work practices and behaviors that define "how we do things around here"
d) the company’s strategic vision and mission and the approach to competing that underpins its strategy
e) the company’s standards of what is ethically acceptable and what is not
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d) the company’s strategic vision and mission and the approach to competing that underpins its strategy
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Which one of the following statements about a company’s culture is false?
a) company cultures aren’t static, they evolve because of such developments as diversification into new businesses, expansion into foreign countries, rapid growth that brings an influx of new employees, merger with or acquisition of another company, and/or shifting internal conditions
b) normally, employees who have worked at a company for a long time play a major role in indoctrinating new employees into the culture
c) a company’s values statement and code of ethics have a major role in determining and shaping a company’s culture because they communicate expectations of how employees should conduct themselves in the workplace
d) the single most important thing the senior company mangers can do to deeply embed and perpetuate the company’s culture is to hold periodic ceremonies to honor employees who excel in exhibiting and role modeling the desired cultural behaviors
e) it takes months to initiate the development of a culture and many more months for it to begin to take root; and it can take years, sometimes even decades, for cultural values and behaviors to become deeply ingrained and exert a truly major influence on how a company operates
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d) the single most important thing the senior company mangers can do to deeply embed and perpetuate the company’s culture is to hold periodic ceremonies to honor employees who excel in exhibiting and role modeling the desired cultural behaviors
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Which of the following are standout traits of an adaptive culture?
a) emphasis on individual initiative and creativity, strong willingness to take big risks and always be a first-mover, a pervasive results-oriented work climate, and strong top management commitment to making the company a great place to work
b) consensus-based decision-making, willingness to compromise core values and long-standing business principles if it means shifting to a better strategy and boosting company profitability, and a strong commitment to doing whatever is in the best long-term interests of shareholders
c) a willingness on the part of organizational members to accept change and take on the challenge of introducing and executing new strategies, encouragement and support for internal entrepreneurship, a proactive approach in identifying issues and moving forward with workable solutions
d) a strong preference for high-risk strategies if the profit payoff is big, politically-correct decision-making, an aversion to empire-building, and high levels of job security for employees
e) unflinching belief in the company’s skills and capabilities, a strong preference for promotion from within, a preference for big incentive compensation packages when the company meets or beats its performance targets, and a strong bias for being proactive instead of reactive
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c) a willingness on the part of organizational members to accept change and take on the challenge of introducing and executing new strategies, encouragement and support for internal entrepreneurship, a proactive approach in identifying issues and moving forward with workable solutions
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