Work Industry And Canadian Society 7th Edition By Harvey J. Krahn – Test Bank

Work Industry And Canadian Society 7th Edition By Harvey J. Krahn – Test Bank

Chapter 9: In Search of New Managerial Paradigms

Multiple-Choice Questions

Identify the choice that best answers the question.

1. Which of the following is not one of the characteristics of a “winner” work organization, according to Tom Peters in his book Thriving on Chaos: Handbook for a Management Revolution?

a. Obsession with responsiveness to customers.
b. Leadership that loves change.
c. Constant innovation in all areas.
d. Clearly outlined bureaucratic control systems.

ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 269 BLM: Remember

2. Which of the following is the best explanation for Japan’s strong economic performance after its economy was basically destroyed during World War II?

a. The strong work ethic of Japanese workers.
b. Unique management approaches and organizational structures.
c. Access to cheap labour in South Asia.
d. Rapid introduction of automated technologies.

ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: p. 271 BLM: Remember

3. Ringi, a Japanese word describing a key component of Japanese management approaches, is best described by which of the following statements?

a. An emphasis on reducing work–family conflict.
b. Extensive participative decision making.
c. Tasks assigned to work teams rather than individuals.
d. Constant improvement.

ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 271 BLM: Remember

4. Hiroto, your neighbour who came to Canada from Japan 15 years ago, is telling you about the job he used to hold in a large Japanese manufacturing company. He describes frequent after-work social activities he enjoyed with his workmates, how he and his workmates worked as a team, the many women who worked in the company, and the opportunities for younger workers to get promoted. Which of these things experienced by Hiroto are basic elements of Japanese management approaches?

a. Frequent after-hour social activities involving workmates.
b. Work routines devised around teams rather than individuals.
c. A commitment to hiring women.
d. Opportunities for young workers to get promoted.

ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: p. 271 BLM: Higher Order

5. Japanese management approaches, quality of working life programs, and Swedish work reforms have many things in common. Swedish work reforms, however, went considerably further in which of the following ways?

a. Redistributing power relationships within work organizations.
b. Requiring that all workers be union members.
c. Developing family-friendly workplaces.
d. Promoting employee profit-sharing plans.

ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 274 BLM: Higher Order

6. Ajit, a machine operator in a factory, was recently trained to perform basic maintenance on his machine, and how to do related paper work (e.g., order replacement parts). Which of the following terms best describes the changes in Ajit’s job description?

a. Work team training.
b. Job rotation.
c. Workplace re-engineering.
d. Job enrichment.

ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 276 BLM: Higher Order

7. A completely new workplace that offers opportunities for both technological and social innovations is best described by which of the following concepts?

a. Sociotechnical incubator.
b. Innovation transplant.
c. Organizational restart.
d. Greenfield site.

ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 277 BLM: Remember

8. Which of the following is a key feature of “total quality management”?

a. An emphasis on continuous improvement in the production of goods or delivery of services.
b. Less emphasis on the consumer compared to most other management approaches.
c. Extensive consultation with workers about most aspects of their jobs.
d. Heavy reliance on low-skill workers.

ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 279 BLM: Remember

9. The registrar of your university has been telling the vice-president (human resources) that whatever changes she introduces, she must remember to consider everything from a student’s perspective. Which new managerial paradigm does the registrar appear to be following?

a. Total quality management.
b. The learning organization
c. Human relations management.
d. Student-centred organizational redesign.

ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: pp. 279–280 BLM: Higher Order

10. Amitai Etzioni described different ways managers might try to gain control over workers. Which of the following management approaches would Etzioni likely label as an example of “normative control?”

a. Lean production.
b. Quality of working life programs.
c. Organizational culture.
d. Total quality management.

ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 282 BLM: Higher Order

11. Attempts to convince employees to identify with the “organizational culture” of their company are most similar to which of the following management approaches?

a. Scientific management.
b. Human relations management.
c. Social and cultural capital management.
d. Industrial betterment.

ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: p. 282 BLM: Remember

12. Which of the following strategies might senior managers in a government department pursue if they wanted their department to be recognized as a “learning organization?”

a. Watching carefully what their counterparts in other provinces were doing, so they could imitate their successes and avoid their mistakes.
b. Paying close attention to what “clients” were saying, to learn what concerned them.
c. Encouraging department employees to take training courses of many kinds.
d. Paying close attention to what motivated employees in order to increase productivity.

ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 284 BLM: Higher Order

13. Piore and Sabel described what they saw as the future of manufacturing and called it “flexible specialization.” Which of the following social theorists would likely have agreed that this is the direction we are heading?

a. Karl Marx.
b. Max Weber.
c. Adam Smith.
d. Daniel Bell.

ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 287 BLM: Higher Order

14. Many different managerial approaches have been developed in Europe, Japan, and North America over the past several decades, all trying to deal with “problems of bureaucracy.” Which of the following new managerial paradigms has placed the most emphasis on employing nonstandard workers (e.g., part-time, temporary)?

a. The high-performance workplace.
b. Lean production.
c. Total quality management.
d. The flexible firm.

ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 287 BLM: Higher Order

15. Training workers to perform a variety of different tasks would represent which of the following forms of work organization flexibility?

a. Pay flexibility.
b. Work schedule flexibility.
c. Functional flexibility.
d. Numerical flexibility.

ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 287 BLM: Remember

16. Which of the following is a key feature of “lean production” methods?

a. A strong emphasis on keeping unions out of factories and other workplaces.
b. An emphasis on reducing stress experienced by workers in their jobs.
c. The elimination of kaizen in order to increase production.
d. Emphasis on worker-initiated continuous improvement.

ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 288 BLM: Remember

17. Which of the following is a key feature of a “high-performance workplace?”

a. An emphasis on a family-friendly work environment.
b. A management system in which unions are consulted on all key decisions.
c. A high level of job security for all employees.
d. Extensive use of social media by management in their communication with workers.

ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: pp. 290–291 BLM: Remember

18. Proponents of “high-performance workplaces” advocate, among other things, involving employees in decision making, training them to do a variety of tasks, providing incentives for improved performance, and encouraging teamwork. If Frederick W. Taylor were asked to evaluate this management approach, with which of these approaches would he likely agree?

a. Employee involvement in decision making.
b. Training employees to perform a variety of tasks.
c. Providing incentives for improved performance.
d. Encouraging teamwork.

ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: pp. 256, 290–291 BLM: Higher Order

19. Your university’s vice-president (human resources) has asked for your advice on creating a “high-performance workplace” (HPW). She is recommending a series of organizational changes, including: increased training for employees; additional layers of middle management to make sure everyone knows what they are supposed to do; more workplace wellness programs: and financial incentives for improved performance. Which of these proposed changes would concern you the most, given the vice-president’s goal of creating an HPW?

a. Increased training for employees.
b. Additional layers of middle management.
c. More workplace wellness programs.
d. Financial incentives for improved performance.

ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: pp. 290–291 BLM: Higher Order

20. Which of the following best describes the introduction of “high-performance workplaces” in North America?

a. They are found more frequently in the lower-tier than in the higher-tier services.
b. They may be leading to greater labour market segmentation.
c. Unions have opposed them whenever they were introduced.
d. They offer the best solution to the growing problem of social inequality.

ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: pp. 292–293 BLM: Remember

 

Short Answer Questions

21. Six central themes can be identified when reviewing the variety of new managerial paradigms that have emerged in the past several decades. In a sentence or two for each, identify and explain at least three of these themes.

REF: p. 269

22. Quality of working life (QWL) programs can involve a number of different techniques of job task and work organization redesign. In a sentence or two for each, describe four of these techniques.

REF: p. 276

23. Briefly define and give an example of each: pay flexibility, functional flexibility, and numerical flexibility.

REF: p. 287

24. List the key features of what organizational analysts call a “high-performance workplace” (HPW). Which of these features, if any, are unique to the HPW approach to management?

REF: p. 291

Essay Questions

25. A chemical plant built in Sarnia, Ontario, in the late 1970s has come to be seen as a highly successful example of the introduction of new managerial paradigms. Describe the organizational innovations that were implemented, and why this managerial experiment was successful. If the same plant had been built 30 years later, what might have been different?

Suggested student response: Students should be able to describe some of the QWL innovations (p. 277) and recognize that union involvement from the outset and the fact that this was a “greenfield site” contributed to success. Answers to the second part of the question could develop in many ways, but should focus on managerial strategies that have emerged more recently. For example, students could speculate about what might have happened if lean production had been proposed by management, or if they had tried to rely on more part-time workers (numerical flexibility)—unions might have been resistant to participate. Alternatively, management might have proposed a high-performance workplace model, which would have involved less job security while providing other benefits to workers.

26. Which of the new managerial paradigms discussed in Chapter 9 is likely to be the most influential in Canada 20 years from now, given current labour force and labour market trends? Explain your prediction.

Suggested student response: Earlier chapters have shown how manufacturing is in decline, the lower-tier services are expanding, globalization is pushing companies to cut costs, workers are becoming more educated, inequality is increasing, and so on. Students should identify some of these trends and make connections with what they have read in this chapter. For example, with less manufacturing, we might see fewer opportunities for lean production. Organizational learning might appeal to better-educated workers, as would high-performance workplaces. Alternatively, pressure to reduce costs might mean fewer HPWs.

27. Imagine that you were made the manager of a fast-food restaurant staffed largely by university students working part-time. If you could choose to implement any management system (or some part of it) that you wanted, what would you choose? Explain what your goals would be, and how this management approach would help you reach them.

Suggested student response: Students will likely take the position that the primary goal is business profitability, while a secondary goal would be satisfied workers. Based on previous chapters, they should have some sense of the type of business they are involved in (i.e., lower-tier services) and its reliance on nonstandard workers. This would make some types of management unlikely candidates (e.g., Swedish work reforms, advanced forms of QWL, the high-performance workplace model). Total quality management (TQM) with its emphasis on customer satisfaction and organizational culture approaches that try to motivate workers might be more likely (and have been used in the fast-food industry). A few students might insist that, since they could choose any approach they wanted, their goals would be more humanistic than profit-driven. This might lead to some interesting answers, but they should still be plausible.

28. See Discussion Questions at the end of Chapter 9 for additional ideas for examination essay questions.