Which of the following actions is likely to have the highest initial cost in terms of its impact on other
parts of the organization?
Lay off a portion
... [Show More] of your workforce and then try to motivate everyone who’s left to work harder.
This option also means selecting future hires from a lower-skill labor pool and paying lower wages.
Begin buying slightly lower-grade materials, including hardwood, aluminum, vinyl, and nylon.
Replace existing equipment with newer, more efficient equipment. Although this option entails
substantial up-front investment, you’re sure that you can more than make up the difference in lower
production costs.
Points:
1 / 1
Close Explanation
Explanation:
Replacing existing equipment is likely to cost the company not only the cost of the equipment, but also
money to make changes to facilities, train employees and managers on how to use the new
equipment, pay increased insurance costs, and pay for reorganization of work processes. Buying lowergrade materials may have a low initial cost, but the overall cost to the company could be high if the
company loses customers because of the reduced qualities of their goods. Layoffs will be very costly
for the organization because lower-skilled employees are likely to work less efficiently and effectively
than higher-skilled employees.
Suppose that you decided to buy slightly lower-grade materials for your company. Which of the
following obstacles might you face if you made that decision? Check all that apply.
Complaints from manufacturing about the difficulty of using new materials with existing equipment
Complaints from customers about product quality
Complaints from executives about cost overruns
Complaints from employees about workplace safety
Complaints from distributors about easily broken products
Points:
0.8 / 1
Close Explanation
Explanation:
Lower-grade materials make lower-grade products, and this is likely to cause complaints from
customers and distributors. In addition, manufacturing employees are likely to find it more difficult to
work with the lower-grade materials. Finally, employees who work with the lower-grade materials are
more likely to have accidents, so they are likely to complain about workplace safety. Because the
lower-grade materials cost less, executives are less likely to complain about cost overruns.
Which of the following ideas might also help the CEO meet his corporate objectives (if you did not
choose any of the options you have identified for cutting costs)?
Redesign corporate products to appeal to a specific high-end market segment, and price products
according to the value they provide to those consumers.
Ask the workforce to take a 10% pay cut so that no one has to be laid off.
Increase work process efficiencies, and manufacture significantly more products than competitors.
Create new product designs that compete more directly against your competitors’ products.
Which of the following actions is likely to have the best effect on employee morale?
Replace existing equipment with newer, more efficient equipment. Although this option entails
substantial up-front investment, you’re sure that you can more than make up the difference in lower
production costs.
Begin buying slightly lower-grade materials, including hardwood, aluminum, vinyl, and nylon.
Lay off a portion of your workforce and then try to motivate everyone who’s left to work harder.
This option also means selecting future hires from a lower-skill labor pool and paying lower wages.
Points:
1 / 1
Close Explanation
Explanation:
Employees are likely to feel that the new equipment helps them to do better work, thus they are likely
to be satisfied with this option. They are less likely to be satisfied by working with lower-grade
materials or by potentially losing their jobs or having to work harder for less money.
Which of the following groups has information that could help you make a better decision about how to
reduce organizational costs by 10%? Check all that apply.
Customers
Employees
Managers
Executives
Suppliers
Points:
1 / 1
Close Explanation
Explanation:
When making a decision about cutting company costs, it is best to get information from the widest
possible range of people. Executives can help you understand the reason for cutting costs and the
vision for the company’s future; managers can help you understand the company’s work process and
how it might be redesigned to operate more efficiently; employees can help you understand the dayto-day work of the company and where their efforts are wasted or unneeded; suppliers can help you
gain materials more effectively and efficiently; and customers can tell you what products they need
most, and what products they don’t need at all. You are likely to make a better decision if you
incorporate information from all sources.
Which of the following actions is likely to have the lowest overall cost in terms of its impact on other
parts of the organization?
Begin buying slightly lower-grade materials, including hardwood, aluminum, vinyl, and nylon.
Lay off a portion of your workforce and then try to motivate everyone who’s left to work harder.
This option also means selecting future hires from a lower-skill labor pool and paying lower wages.
Replace existing equipment with newer, more efficient equipment. Although this option entails
substantial up-front investment, you’re sure that you can more than make up the difference in lower
production costs.
Which of the following is a cultural difference that you must keep in mind when involved in
international business?
Japan defines male and female roles more rigidly than does Sweden.
Feedback: Correct. Japan defines male and female roles more rigidly and values qualities such as
forcefulness and achievement more than does Sweden.
Which of the following statements is true?
Some areas of Switzerland are very much like Italy.
Denmark, Canada, Norway, Singapore, Hong Kong tolerate a great deal of__________________?
uncertainty.
Which of the following is a trait that is shared by managers who are adept in the organizing function?
Coordinating with others to assure steady progress on the task
Which of the following is a characteristic of a good controller?
Having a clear sense of the priorities necessary to accomplish the task
Item 3 Score: 100% (1 of 1)
A manager who is adept in the ________ function will show a genuine interest in the work of others.
leading
Which of the following is a dimension of an organization's task environment?
Board of directors
Owners
Regulators
Employees
Which of the following is a part of the economic dimension of an organization’s
general environment?
Regulatory agencies
Physical work environment
Suppliers
Interest rates
The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002: [Show Less]