【正文】 e better performance. (moderate) Chapter 3 – Organizational Culture Essay Questions 123. In a short essay, identify and define the seven dimensions that make up an anization’s culture. Answer a. Innovation and risk taking—degree to which employees are encouraged to be innovative and take risks b. Attention to detail—degree to which employees are expected to exhibit precision analysis and attention to detail c. Oute orientation—degree to which managers focus on results or outes rather than on how these outes are achieved d. People orientation—degree to which management decisions take into account the effects on people in the anization e. Team orientation—degree to which work is anized around teams rather than individuals f. Aggressiveness—degree to which employees are aggressive and petitive rather than cooperative g. Stability—degree to which anizational decisions and actions emphasize maintaining the status quo (difficult) 125. In a short essay, list and discuss the four most significant ways in which culture is transmitted to employees. Include specific examples of each to support your answer. Answer a. Stories—anizational stories typically contain a narrative of significant events or people including such things as the anization’s founders, rule breaking, and reactions to past mistakes. For instance, managers at Nike feel that stories told about the pany’s past help shape the future. Whenever possible, corporate ―storytellers‖ (senior executives) explain the pany’s heritage and tell stories that celebrate people getting things done. These stories provide prime examples that people can learn from. b. Rituals—corporate rituals are repetitive sequences of activities that express and reinforce the values of the anization, what goals are most important, which people are important, and which are expendable. One of the bestknown corporate rituals is Mary Kay Cosmetics’ annual meeting for its sales representatives. At the meeting, salespeople are rewarded for their success in achieving sales goals with an array of flashy gifts including gold and diamond pins, furs, and pink Cadillacs. This ―show‖ acts as a motivator by publicly acknowledging outstanding sales performance. c. Material symbols—the layout of an anization’s facilities, dress attire, the types of automobiles top executives are provided, and the availability of corporate aircraft are examples of material symbols. Others include the size of offices, the elegance of furnishings, executive ―perks,‖ the existence of employee lounges or onsite dining facilities, and reserved parking spaces for certain employees. These material symbols convey to employees who is important, the degree of equality desired by top management, and the kinds of behavior that are expected and appropriate. d. Language—many anizations and units within anizations use language as a way to identify members of a culture. By learning this language, members attest to their acceptance of the culture and their willingness to help to preserve it. For instance, Microsoft has its own unique vocabulary: ―work judo‖ (the art of deflecting a work assignment to someone else without making it appear that you’re avoiding it) and ―eating your own dog food‖ (the strategy of using your own software programs or products in the early stages as a way of testing it even if the process is disagreeable). Over time, anizations often develop unique terms to describe equipment, key personnel, suppliers, customers, or products that are related to its business. (moderate) Chapter 6 – DecisionMaking: The Essence of the Manager’s Job Essay Questions THE DECISIONMAKING PROCESS 121. In a short essay, list and discuss the eight steps in the decisionmaking process. Answer a. Step 1: Identifying a problem – the decisionmaking process begins with the existence of a problem or a discrepancy between an existing and a desired state of affairs. However, a discrepancy without pressure to take action bees a problem that can be postponed. b. Step 2: Identify decision criteria – once the manager has identified a problem that needs attention, the decision criteria important to resolving the problem must be identified. That is, managers must determine what’s relevant in making a decision. c. Step 3: Allocating weights to the criteria: at this step, the decision maker must weigh the items in order to give them the correct priority in the decision. A simple approach is to give the most important criterion a weight of 10 and then assign weights to the rest against that standard. d. Step 4: Developing alternatives – the fourth step requires the decision maker to list the viable alternatives that could resolve the problem. No attempt is made in this step to evaluate the alternative, only to list them. e. Step 5: Analyzing alternatives – once the alternatives have been identified, the decision maker must critically analyze each one. From this parison, the strengths and weaknesses of each alternative bee evident. f. Step 6: Selecting an alternative – the sixth step is the important act of choosing the best alternative from among those considered. All the pertinent criteria in the decision have now been determined, weighted, and the alternatives have been identified and analyzed. g. Step 7: Implementing the alternative – implementation involves conveying the decision to those affected by it and getting their mitment to it. If the people who must carry out a decision participate in the process, they’re more likely to enthusiastically support the oute than if they are just told what to do. h. Step 8: Evaluating decision effectiveness – the last step in the decisionmaking process involves appraising the oute of the decision to see if the problem has been resolved. Did the alternative