Chapter 3, Resources in a Global Economy

Multiple Choice

1. _________________________ includes the organization’s design, as well as the managerial

choices that define, set up, coordinate, and control its work processes.
a) Organizational structure
b) System architectures
c) Organizational strategy
d) Work strategy
e) Organizational processes

Ans: c (Medium)
Response: See page 3-2

2. What indicates who in the organization has the responsibility to initiate, supply information
for, approve, implement, and control various types of decisions?
a) Organizational Strategy
b) Formal Strategy Rights
c) Decision Rights
d) Decision Strategy
e) Functional Rights

Ans: c (Medium)
Response: See page 3-3

3. In this type of organization work is organized into small work groups and integrated regionally
and nationally/globally. IS reduces operating complexities and expenses by allowing
information to be easily shared among different managerial functions.
a) Network structured
b) Traditionally structured
c) Flat structured
d) Matrix structured
e) Functionally structured

Ans: d (Medium)
Response: See page 3-8
4. What type of organizations, which are comprised of formal/informal communication systems
that connect all employees in the company and are known for their flexibility and adaptability?
a) Traditionally structured
b) Network structured
c) Flat structured
d) Matrix structured
e) Functionally structured

Ans: b (Medium)
Response: See page 3-9

5. This type of structure is based upon the concepts of division of labor, specialization, and unity
of command. Key decisions are made at the top and filter down through the organization.
a) Hierarchical
b) Traditionally structured
c) Flat structured
d) Matrix structured
e) Functionally structured

Ans: a (Medium)
Response: See page 3-5

6. This type of organizational structure typically assigns workers with two or more supervisors in
an effort to make sure multiple dimensions of the business are integrated, with each supervisor
directing a different aspect of the employee’s work.
a) Hierarchical
b) Traditionally structured
c) Flat structured
d) Matrix structured
e) Technology based

Ans: d (Medium)
Response: See page 3-8

7. These organizations take the networked structure one step further by combining IT with
traditional components to form new types of components. These include electronic linking,
production automation, electronic workflows, electronic customer/supplier relationships and self-
service Internet portals
a) Hierarchical
b) Traditionally structured
 c) Flat structured
d) Matrix structured
e) Technology based

Ans: e (Hard)
Response: See page 3-10

8. Which organizational structure has centralized decision making with power often residing in
the owner?
a) Matrixed
b) Networked
c) Meshed
d) Flat
e) Hybrid

Ans: d (Medium)
Response: See page 3-7

9. Which organizational structure relies on highly decentralized decision rights?

a) Matrixed
b) Networked
c) Meshed
d) Flat
e) Hybrid

Ans: b (Medium)
Response: See page 3-9

10. IS plays three important roles in management control processes. These processes are data
collection, evaluation, and _______________.
a) transformation
b) management
c) communication
d) implementation
e) conversion

Ans: c (Medium)
Response: See page 3-12
11. This includes the organization’s design, as well as the managerial choices that define, set up,
coordinate, and control its work processes.
a) Organizational strategy
b) Business strategy
c) Information resources strategy
d) Systems strategy
e) IT strategy

Ans: a (Medium)
Response: See page 3-2

12. Which ONE of the following would be considered a weakness of the matrix organizational
structure?
a) Decision rights
b) Business options
c) Informal structure
d) Dual authority
e) Formal reporting relationships

Ans: d (Medium)
Response: See page 3-8

12. Which one of the following would NOT be considered an organizational variable in
organizational design?
a) Decision rights
b) Business processes
c) Informal networks
d) Incentives
e) Formal reporting relationships

Ans: d (Medium)
Response: See page 3-2

13. A cultural variable would be which one of the following in organizational design?
a) Decision rights
b) Business processes
c) Values
d) Incentives
e) Formal reporting relationships

Ans: c (Medium)
Response: See page 3-2
14. Traditional organizational structures are considered to be one of three types of organizational
design. What are these three structure types?
a) traditional, flat, matrixed
b) hierarchical, flat, matrixed
c) matrixed, networked, flat
d) matrixed, flat, networked
e) traditional, networked, matrixed

Ans: b (Hard)
Response: See page 3-4

15. In which type of organizational design do middle managers do the primary information
processing and communication function, telling subordinates what to do and then reporting the
outcome to senior management?
a) Network structured
b) Traditionally structured
c) Flat structured
d) Matrix structured
e) Hierarchical structured

Ans: e (Medium)
Response: See page 3-5

16. In which type of organizational structure will employees report to 2 or more supervisors?
a) Hierarchical
b) Traditionally structured
c) Flat structured
d) Matrix structured
e) Functionally structured

Ans: d (Medium)
Response: See page 3-8

17. In which type of organizational structure is the power structure centralized, and the type of
environment best supported is stable and certain?
a) Flat structured
b) Traditionally structured
c) Hierarchical structured
 d) Matrix structured
e) Functionally structured

Ans: c (Medium)
Response: See page 3-5

18. In which type of organizational structure is the power structure distributed, and its
characteristics are known for flexibility and adaptability?
a) Flat structured
b) Network structured
c) Hierarchical structured
d) Matrix structured
e) Functionally structured

Ans: b (Medium)
Response: See page 3-9

19. Many Internet-based companies have adopted this organizational structure because it uses
self-service Internet portals, electronic workflows, and electronic linking?
a) Flat structured
b) Traditionally structured
c) Hierarchical structured
d) T-Form structured
e) Functionally structured

Ans: d (Hard)
Response: See page 3-10

20. Which one of the following is NOT considered to be a control activity of management?
a) Collecting
b) Monitoring
c) Rewarding
d) Evaluating
e) Compensating

Ans: a (Easy)
Response: See page 3-12

21. IS plays three important roles in management control processes. These three processes
include which of the following?
a) Collection, Communication, Decision
b) Communication, Collection, Monitoring
c) Monitoring, Decision, Collection
d) Decision, Evaluation, Collection
e) Collection, Communication, Evaluation

Ans: e (Medium)
Response: See page 3-12

22. The organizational design challenge in data collection is twofold: (1) to embed monitoring
tasks within everyday work, and (2) to _____________________________.
a) reduce the negative impacts to workers being monitored
b) increase the reliability of the data being collected by the company
c) decrease the amount of unnecessary data being collected by the organization
d) improve the security of the information being collected
e) reduce the transfer occurrence of data being sent between business units

Ans: b (Medium)
Response: See page 3-14

23. The ready availability of so much information catches some managers in this dilemma.
a) data overload
b) analysis paralysis
c) information paralysis
d) information overload
e) data paralysis

Ans: b (Medium)
Response: See page 3-16

24. What is the name of the evaluation of an individual’s performance is based on feedback
provided by the individual’s supervisors, subordinates, and coworkers?
a) Holistic
b) 180-degree
c) 360-degree
d) Complete
e) Circular

Ans: c (Medium)
Response: See page 3-17
25. One of the challenges of information technology is the _________ diversity faced by an
organization, particularly one that spans multiple countries.
a) organizational
b) technical
c) system
d) cultural
e) dynamic

Ans: d (Easy)
Response: See page 3-18

26. What would a company need to implement if it wanted to provide an environment that is
flexible and adaptable?
a) Matrix
b) Networked
c) Meshed
d) Flat
e) Hybrid

Ans: b (Medium)
Response: See page 3-9

27. Which type of organizational structure feels flat when IT is used primarily as a
communication vehicle?
a) Matrix
b) Network
c) Hierarchical
d) Flat
e) Traditional

Ans: b (Medium)
Response: See page 3-9

28. Managers need to control work done at the _________ level.

a) process
b) cetralized
c) job
d) task
 e) objective

Ans: a (Medium)
Response: See page 3-13

29. A company that has locations across the globe and provides for interconnections between
workers using intranets and the Internet is using what type of organizational structure?
a) Traditionally structured
b) Network structured
c) Flat structured
d) Matrix structured
e) Functionally structured

Ans: b (Medium)
Response: See page 3-9

30. According to the Zara case in chapter 3, the decision rights for ordering had been moved to
whom?
a) Regional managers
b) Individual purchasing agents
c) Store managers
d) Central production
e) Headquarters

Ans: c (Medium)
Response: See page 3-4
True/False

31. Organizational strategy includes the organization’s design, as well as the managerial choices
that define, set up, coordinate, and control its work processes.

Ans: True (Medium)

Response: See page 3-2

32. Hierarchical organization structure is based on division of labor, specialization and unity of
command.

Ans: True (Medium)

Response: See page 3-5

33. In the flat organization structure decision making is decentralized.

Ans: False (Easy)

Response: See page 3-7

34. A fine foods company delivers frozen foods to several restaurant chains in the greater Austin,
TX area. The management of the company is currently hierarchical but wants to move to a
networked organizational structure because of the structures flexibility and adaptability.

Ans: True (Hard)

Response: See page 3-9

35. Decision rights indicate who in the organization has the responsibility to initiate, supply
information for, approve, implement, and control various types of decisions.

Ans: True (Medium)

Response: See page 3-3

36. The matrixed organizational structure usually has employees reporting to 2 or more
supervisors and is known for its stable and certain environment

Ans: False (Medium)

Response: See page 3-8

37. Information systems play an important role in management control processes. Specifically,
these roles include data collection, communication, and evaluation.

Ans: True (Medium)

Response: See page 3-12

38. At the individual level, IS can streamline the process of data collection (i.e., monitoring), and
support performance measurement and evaluation, as well as compensation through salaries,
incentives and rewards.

Ans: True (Medium)

Response: See page 3-14

39. Differences in national culture normally do not affect system development and use.

Ans: False (Medium)

Response: See page 3-19

40. The flat organizational structure is known for its dynamic and certain environment.

Ans: False (Medium)

Response: See page 3-7

Short Answer

41. Which organizational structure uses IS and distributed information systems?

Ans: Networked
Response: See page 3-9
42. These indicate who in the organization has the responsibility to initiate, supply information
for, approve, implement, and control various types of decisions.

Ans: Decision Rights.

Response: See page 3-3

43. IS plays three important roles in management control processes. What are they?

Ans: Data Collection, Evaluation, and Communication.

Response: See page 3-12

44. What organization takes the networked organizational structure to the next level by using IT
extensively as a design tool?

Ans: T-Form organization

Response: See page 3-10

45. Which management control process is responsible for comparing actual performance with the
desired performance that is established as a result of planning?

Ans: Evaluation
Response: See page 69

Essay

46. Compare and contrast the four organization structures.

47. Discuss how organization structures can facilitate information flows.

48. What role do informal networks play in organizations? How can management utilize
informal networks to the organizations advantage?
49. List and define ways that management can use information technology for performance
measurement and evaluation.

50. What is the “zero time” organization? What are the five disciplines that the organization
must master?