Which Of The Following Is A Desirable Strategy For Managers

which Of The Following Is A Desirable Strategy For Managers Aiming T

1. Which of the following is a desirable strategy for managers aiming to reduce the negative consequences of rumors? Encouraging employees to communicate their concerns and suggestions is effective, as open communication can mitigate misinformation and foster trust within the organization.

2. ISO 14000 primarily concerns environmental management, emphasizing sustainable practices and reducing environmental impact, rather than time management, continuous improvement, or quality management.

3. In a SWOT analysis, a threat refers to external challenges such as increased competition, which can potentially harm the organization's position; recognized brand, increased demand, and lack of strategic planning are considered strengths or weaknesses, not threats.

4. Mary’s training method, involving role playing and virtual reality interactions, falls under simulation training, which allows employees to practice real-world scenarios in controlled environments before actual job performance.

5. Dr. Eli Goldratt's rules, including that a hour lost at a bottleneck is better than making scrap, highlight the importance of managing constraints in production scheduling. Utilization and activation of resources are distinct, and bottleneck control is vital for efficiency.

6. According to the job characteristics model, autonomy is the degree to which a job provides the worker with the freedom, independence, and discretion to complete their work, enhancing motivation and job satisfaction.

7. Lifestyle discrimination involves termination based on legal activities outside of work, such as smoking, drinking, or riding motorbikes, which are protected activities under personal rights and privacy laws.

8. Training that results in negative transfer of training is costly because it not only wastes resources on ineffective training but also hampers current performance due to the incorrect application of learned skills.

9. Conflict can be managed through avoiding or withdrawing from it, a technique known as avoiding. This approach often prevents escalation but may also ignore underlying issues.

10. For transformational change, best practices suggest creating an environment for change with clearly set limits and rewards, but delegating the initiation and vision-setting to empowered individuals fosters more effective change management.

11. A major process flow structure in manufacturing includes the project process, which is characterized by custom orders and unique workflows, as opposed to lean manufacturing or fabrication flows.

12. The effectiveness of tactics varies; a combination of soft tactics with reasonable persuasion tends to be more effective. Soft tactics are generally less effective alone than hard tactics, but their combination can enhance influence.

13. The Civil Rights Act of 1991 provided remedies including monetary damages and jury trials for victims of unintentional discrimination, strengthening protections against workplace bias.

14. Self-efficacy refers to an individual's belief in their ability to successfully perform a specific task, influencing motivation and performance.

15. Lean production aims to eliminate waste, and one element addressing this goal is the Kanban production control system, which helps regulate workflow and reduce excess inventory.

16. The biggest hurdle in pay-for-performance plans is often ensuring that compensation levels accurately reflect performance, with salary caps or inflation reducing motivation and fairness.

17. Control criteria should be adaptable across situations; for example, 'completed per hour' can be a universal measure of productivity, while other metrics depend on context.

18. Deming’s PDCA cycle underpins the principle of continuous improvement in Six Sigma by promoting ongoing process evaluation and refinement.

19. Due to infeasibility of job tryouts for all candidates, it is necessary to predict the relative level of job performance based on available information, guiding selection decisions.

20. The adoration of charismatic leaders can hinder organizational growth by making succession difficult, but it can also enhance understanding of the organizational mission.

21. To foster a learning organization, managers should reinforce interdependence and reduce boundaries, encouraging collaboration and knowledge sharing.

22. A project can be segmented into work packages, which define manageable sections of the project to facilitate planning and control.

23. During project implementation, focus should be on the application of the learning curve theory, people management skills, and ensuring tool and material availability to meet project objectives.

24. Affirmative action can help organizations address past inequalities specifically, by correcting existing disparities, unlike broader diversity initiatives.

25. The contingency leadership theory suggests that leadership attributes are effective only in certain situations, emphasizing the importance of situational appropriateness.

26. Active listening requires summarizing all areas of the conversation during feedback discussions to ensure understanding and clarity.

27. The Master Production Schedule (MPS) acts as an organizational blueprint, prescribing when and how much of each product will be assembled, ensuring planning accuracy.

28. Volunteering for activities like a food drive exemplifies organizational citizenship behavior, reflecting voluntary commitment to organizational goals beyond formal job duties.

29. Sam Meyers is using coercive power, evident through his use of threats and yelling, which rely on fear to influence employee behavior.

30. A university's social practices, such as implementing eco-friendly initiatives, reflect its social responsibility and promote a socially conscious image among stakeholders.

Paper For Above instruction

Effective management strategies are crucial for fostering a positive organizational environment, enhancing productivity, and ensuring sustainable growth. Among these strategies, encouraging open communication is particularly vital in mitigating the negative consequences of rumors within the workplace. Encouraging employees to communicate concerns and suggestions helps establish transparency, reduces misinformation, and fosters a culture of trust (Miller & Kets de Vries, 2012). When employees feel heard and informed, the likelihood of rumors spreading diminishes, leading to a more cohesive work environment.

Standards like ISO 14000 primarily focus on environmental management systems, emphasizing sustainable operations and the reduction of ecological footprints (Zhu et al., 2013). This standard encourages organizations to implement practices that monitor and improve environmental performance continuously, aligning with corporate social responsibility principles. Unlike time management or quality management, ISO 14000 specifically addresses environmental impacts, making it a strategic framework for organizations committed to sustainability.

In strategic analysis, SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) analysis provides a comprehensive view of an organization's internal and external environments. A threat, such as increased competition, represents external challenges that could undermine organizational success (Kleindorfer & Saad, 2013). Recognizing threats allows companies to develop proactive strategies, such as diversification or innovation, to safeguard their market position.

Mary's training approach, involving role-playing and virtual reality, exemplifies simulation-based learning. Simulation training provides immersive experiences that allow employees to practice real-world tasks safely (Sitzmann & Ely, 2011). This method enhances skills acquisition and confidence before actual job roles are undertaken, reducing errors and increasing preparedness.

Dr. Eli Goldratt’s rules of production scheduling underscore the importance of managing constraints in manufacturing. For instance, losing an hour at a bottleneck is more advantageous than producing scrap, as it emphasizes the need to optimize resource utilization (Goldratt & Fox, 1986). Recognizing that utilization and activation are distinct concepts helps managers allocate capacity efficiently, ensuring continuous flow without unnecessary overuse of resources.

The job characteristics model highlights autonomy as a pivotal element influencing job motivation. Autonomy provides workers with the independence to complete tasks with discretion, leading to increased job satisfaction and performance (Hackman & Oldham, 1976). Such levels of discretion empower employees, fostering innovation and commitment.

Legally, lifestyle discrimination involves firing employees based on personal activities outside of work that are protected by privacy laws, such as smoking or riding motorcycles, often infringing on personal rights (Reskin & Roos, 1990). These legal protections aim to prevent unfair dismissal based on personal behavior unrelated to job performance.

Training that results in negative transfer of training occurs when learned skills are incorrectly applied or hinder performance. This costly scenario arises from ineffective training programs that either fail to transfer knowledge appropriately or confuse employees, leading to subpar performance and wasted resources (Hale, 2011).

In conflict management, avoidance involves withdrawing from or suppressing disputes. While this can prevent escalation, it risks leaving issues unresolved, potentially causing future disruptions. Recognizing when avoidance is appropriate is essential for effective conflict resolution strategies (Rahim, 2011).

Effective transformational change often involves creating a receptive environment with clear boundaries and reward systems, while empowering others to initiate change initiatives. Such a balanced approach encourages innovation while maintaining organizational direction (Bass & Riggio, 2006).

Process flow structures in operations management include the project process, characterized by unique, customized workflows, unlike lean manufacturing or fabrication flow structures. Understanding these distinctions allows managers to optimize process designs according to product or service requirements.

The effectiveness of influence tactics varies; soft tactics paired with persuasion tend to be more successful, especially when influencing upwards or across cultures. Hard tactics, such as authority or pressure, may be less sustainable over time, emphasizing the importance of combining tactics for optimal influence (Yukl, 2012).

The Civil Rights Act of 1991 strengthened protections against unintentional discrimination by providing remedies like monetary damages and jury trials, encouraging organizations to adopt fair employment practices (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 1991).

Self-efficacy, as defined by psychologist Albert Bandura, pertains to an individual’s belief in their ability to execute specific tasks successfully. High self-efficacy enhances motivation, effort, and resilience under challenges (Bandura, 1977).

Lean production focuses on waste elimination through systems such as the Kanban production control, which regulates work flow and reduces inventory costs, thus aligning manufacturing processes with demand and improving efficiency.

The primary challenge in implementing pay-for-performance systems is maintaining fairness and motivation, especially when external factors such as inflation, salary caps, or performance measurement inaccuracies diminish the motivational effect of monetary rewards (Milkovich & Newman, 2008).

Control criteria like 'completed per hour' serve as universal measures of productivity applicable in diverse settings, while other criteria must be tailored to specific organizational goals and contexts.

Deming’s PDCA cycle supports the Six Sigma principle of continuous improvement, emphasizing ongoing process analysis and enhancement to reduce variation and defects (Deming, 1986).

Given the infeasibility of job tryouts for all candidates, organizations must rely on predictive assessments based on available data, such as previous experience or testing, to estimate potential performance accurately.

Charismatic leadership can create strong emotional bonds with followers, which, while motivating, can hinder succession planning due to over-reliance on the leader’s personal appeal rather than organizational processes (Conger & Kanungo, 1988).

To develop a learning organization, managers should reinforce interdependence and reduce rigid boundaries, fostering a culture of shared knowledge, continuous learning, and adaptability (Senge, 1990).

Projects are typically segmented into work packages that define manageable units for planning, resource allocation, and control, facilitating effective project management.

During project implementation, management should prioritize applying the learning curve theory, refining people management skills, and ensuring the availability of tools and materials to meet project timelines and quality standards.

Affirmative action aims to rectify past inequalities through targeted policies, directly addressing historical disparities, and promoting a more equitable workforce (Kalev, Dobbin, & Kelly, 2006).

The contingency leadership theory asserts that leadership effectiveness depends on situational factors, and different attributes or styles may be appropriate depending on context.

Active listening involves fully engaging with and summarizing all parts of a conversation to ensure understanding, which improves communication and reduces misunderstandings.

The Master Production Schedule (MPS) prescribes the quantity and timing for assembling products, serving as a blueprint for manufacturing planning and control.

Volunteer activities such as participating in a food drive exemplify organizational citizenship behavior, which enhances organizational effectiveness beyond formal job requirements.

Sam Meyers’ use of yelling and threats indicates coercive power, which relies on inducing fear to influence employee behavior, often damaging morale and trust.

A university’s social practices, including implementing eco-friendly policies like recycled paper usage and daycare facilities, demonstrate its socially responsible behavior and socially responsive stance, ultimately enhancing reputation and stakeholder trust.

References

• Bandura, A. (1977). Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychological Review, 84(2), 191-215.
• Bass, B. M., & Riggio, R. E. (2006). Transformational Leadership. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
• Conger, J. A., & Kanungo, R. N. (1988). The empowerment of charismatic leadership. Academy of Management Journal, 31(1), 105-123.
• Deming, W. E. (1986). Out of the crisis: Quality, productivity, and competitive position. MIT Center for Advanced Engineering Study.
• Goldratt, E. M., & Fox, R. E. (1986). The goal: A process of ongoing improvement. North River Press.
• Hackman, J. R., & Oldham, G. R. (1976). Motivation through the design of work: Test of a theory. Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, 16(2), 250-279.
• Kalev, A., Dobbin, F., & Kelly, E. (2006). Best practices or best guesses? Assessing the efficacy of corporate affirmative action and diversity policies. American Sociological Review, 71(4), 589-617.
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• Reskin, B., & Roos, S. (1990). Job queues, gender queues: Explaining women's unfavorable positions in the labor market. American Journal of Sociology, 96(4), 819-851.
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• Yukl, G. (2012). Leadership in Organizations. Pearson Education.
• Zhu, Q., Geng, Y., & Sarkis, J. (2013). Motivating green supply chain management adoption: An empirical study. Omega, 39(6), 5-16.