Deck 13: Strategy and Structure

Question 1

What type of organizational structure is one that is comprised of a set of autonomous divisions led by a corporate headquarters office,assisted by a corporate staff that provides information about the internal and external business environment?

A) Unitary functional structure
B) Multidivisional structure
C) Matrix structure
D) Network structure
E) Individual structure

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Which of the following structures best describes a small group of people where a collection of individuals work together to set and pursue common objectives?

A) Complex hierarchy
B) Individually
C) Self-managed team
D) Hierarchy of authority
E) Divisional

Answer 2

C

Question 3

In which of the following situations identified by Baron and Besanko will a matrix never be optimal regardless of any additional circumstances?

A) When spillovers are positively correlated and activities are profit complements
B) When activities are profit complements but spillovers are negatively correlated
C) If activities are profit substitutes and spillovers are positively correlated
D) If spillovers are negatively correlated and activities are profit substitutes
E) None of the above

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Which of the following should not be considered when selecting organizing dimensions?

A) Economies of scale
B) Economies of scope
C) Transactions costs
D) Agency costs
E) Sunk costs

Question 5

What type of organizational structure is one in which work groups may be organized by function,geography,or customer base,but where relationships between work groups are governed more by often-changing implicit and explicit requirements of common tasks than by the formal lines of authority that characterize other structures?

A) Unitary functional structure
B) Multidivisional structure
C) Matrix structure
D) Network structure
E) Individual structure

Question 6

Self-containment emphasizes which of the following when developing coordination?

A) Cost structures
B) Agency costs
C) Strong lateral relations
D) Autonomy across units
E) Unitary alignment

Question 7

Which of the following terms best describes the division of an organization into formal groupings?

A) Complex hierarchy
B) Coordination
C) Control
D) Hierarchy of authority
E) Departmentalization

Question 8

Which of the following structures best describes a small group of people where the members of the work group are paid based on individual actions?

A) Complex hierarchy
B) Individual
C) Self-managed team
D) Hierarchy of authority
E) Divisional

Question 9

Which of the following is a dimension along which departmentalization can occur?

A) Tasks
B) Inputs
C) Outputs
D) Geography
E) All of the above

Question 10

What type of organizational structure is one in which there is a single department responsible for each of the basic business functions within the firm?

A) Unitary functional structure
B) Multidivisional structure
C) Matrix structure
D) Network structure
E) Individual structure

Question 11

Which of the following terms involves the flow of information within an organization to facilitate subunit decisions that are consistent with each other and with organizational objectives?

A) Complex hierarchy
B) Coordination
C) Control
D) Hierarchy of authority
E) Departmentalization

Question 12

Which of the following terms involves the location of decision making rights and rule making authority within a hierarchy?

A) Complex hierarchy
B) Coordination
C) Control
D) Hierarchy of authority
E) Departmentalization

Question 13

Which of the following structures involves multiple groups and multiple levels of groupings arising from the need not just to organize individuals into groups,but to organize groups into larger groups?

A) Complex hierarchy
B) Coordination
C) Control
D) Hierarchy of authority
E) Departmentalization

Question 14

Which of the following terms best describes a type of network structure that involves relatively self contained organizational subunits tied together through a technology that focuses on standardized linkages?

A) Unitary functional organization
B) Multidivisional organization
C) Matrix organization
D) Modular organization
E) Hierarchical organization

Question 15

Which of the following structures best describes a small group of people where one member of the group specializes in monitoring and coordinating the work of other members?

A) Complex hierarchy
B) Individually
C) Self-managed team
D) Hierarchy of authority
E) Divisional

Question 16

What type of structure is the Japanese keiretsu structure?

A) Unitary functional structure
B) Multidivisional structure
C) Matrix structure
D) Network structure
E) Individual structure

Question 17

Which of the following terms best describes how a firm uses a division of labor to organize tasks,specify how its staff performs tasks,and facilitate internal and external information flows?

A) Organizational structure
B) Formal and informal firm arrangements
C) Firm hierarchy
D) Divisional structure
E) Firm team structure

Question 18

What type of organizational structure is one in which employees are subject to two or more sets of managers at once?

A) Unitary functional structure
B) Multidivisional structure
C) Matrix structure
D) Network structure
E) Individual structure

Question 19

Aligning individual and group tasks with those of the firm and aligning incentives so that individuals and groups will consistently work in the same direction is known as:

A) Coordination
B) Agency control
C) Accountability
D) Dimensional alignment
E) Unitary functional alignment

Question 20

In departmentalization,which of the following is a required step?

A) Specifying relationships between chosen dimensions
B) Allocating costs across departments
C) Creating agency alignment between departments
D) Identifying principals
E) None of the above

Question 21

What variant of the multidivisional structure whose units cross national boundaries do Kogut and Zander argue is superior at transferring specific types of knowledge across national boundaries?

A) Subsidiary
B) Holding Company
C) Conglomerate
D) Partnership
E) Multinational corporation

Question 22

In Chandler's classic work Strategy and Structure,what was the basic thesis he concluded by researching case studies of Dupont,GM,Standard Oil of New Jersey and Sears?

A) Neither structure nor strategy affects one another
B) Either structure or strategy can drive changes in the other
C) Strategy follows structure
D) Structure follows strategy
E) Understanding the relationship of structure and strategy is not necessary in determining how a firm organizes

Question 23

Which of the following statements is least true regarding the views of strategy that Nelson and Winter offer differing from Chandler?

A) Their views state that strategy and structure evolve from local interactions of the firm with its environment rather than from top managers formulating and implementing a comprehensive reorganization
B) Their views suggest that the relationship of the firm to the environment, as well as the current patterns of interpersonal relationships generally referred to as the firm's "structure," are both the cumulative result of a long series of adaptations
C) Their views state that strategy and structure are examples of high level heuristics
D) Their views suggest that structure is a set of principles or guidelines for coordinating a firm's decisions in a manner inconsistent with its activities in the environment
E) Their views suggest that strategy is a set of principles or decision guidelines that managers use to foster a firm's survival and profitability

Question 24

What term best defines a complex set of behavior patterns that Nelson and Winter view the actions of firms to be a result of?

A) Routines
B) Decisions
C) Heuristics
D) Relationships
E) Resolutions

Question 25

Which of the following modes of task interdependence exists when two or more workers or work groups depend on each other to do their work?

A) Technology interdependence
B) Environment interdependence
C) Reciprocal interdependence
D) Sequential interdependence
E) Pooled interdependence

Question 26

Which of the following modes of task interdependence exists when two or more positions are not directly dependent on each other but are associated through their independent contributions to the success of the firm?

A) Technology interdependence
B) Environment interdependence
C) Reciprocal interdependence
D) Sequential interdependence
E) Pooled interdependence

Question 27

Which of the following statements about "flat" organizations is least true?

A) Flat organizations emphasize long-term compensation rather than current pay from salary or bonus
B) The "prize" associated with promotion appears to be greater at flat organizations compared to tall ones
C) In a flat organization, there are fewer direct reports to a group head than in a taller firm
D) Delegating more decision making as in a flat organization might be attractive when the competitive environment is hostile
E) Flat organizations tend to have more divisions than their taller firm counterparts

Question 28

When firms encounter problems that differ according to their difficulty and frequency it is known as:

A) A problem set
B) Knowledge hierarchy
C) Agency collection
D) Organizational collection
E) None of the above

Question 29

Which of the following terms best describes the extent to which two or more positions depend on each other to do their own work?

A) Technology interdependence
B) Task interdependence
C) Information processing
D) Environmental contingencies
E) Structure-environment coherence

Question 30

Which of the following modes of task interdependence exists between two or more workers,positions,or groups when one depends on the outcome of others,but not vice versa?

A) Technology interdependence
B) Environment interdependence
C) Reciprocal interdependence
D) Sequential interdependence
E) Pooled interdependence