CHAPTER 11 Homework QUESTIONS 1 AND 2

Q1. Since job specialization has its own problems, managers

recommend five alternative approaches that may be more beneficial:
a) Job Rotation: Moving employees around from one job to another
in a planned manner is called job rotation. As compared to
specialization, job rotation increases flexibility and skills and
reduces monotony. Also, it can reduce labour costs since
workers who can do multiple jobs can easily be moved around
to different jobs hence enabling the business to make do with
fewer workers. However, job rotation is not always successful.
b) Job Enlargement: Job enlargement means to increase the
number of tasks each worker performs, thus increasing job
variety and eliminating monotony and boredom, the main cause
of worker dissatisfaction. This is a major advantage over job
specialization.
c) Job Enrichment: In job enrichment, an employee not only does a
variety of jobs but his involvement and responsibility is also
stepped up.By doing more challenging tasks, an employees
growth opportunities within the company are multiplied
manifold.
d) Job Characteristics Approach: Taking worker preferences into
consideration, this approach suggests that jobs should be
improved according to skill variety, job identity, task
significance, autonomy and feedback. As compared to
specialization, this approach improves work quality, even
though this may not be the final answer to specialization.

e) Work Teams: Under this alternative, a group of workers

themselves decide regarding allocation of jobs. In
specialization, each worker does a specific previously assigned
job.
Q.2 Chain of Command means the establishment of distinct lines of
authority and reporting amongst all levels in the organisation. Unity
of Command and Scalar Principle are two components of the Chain of
Command. The first, Unity of Command, suggests that each person in
the organisation must report to only one boss; the basic notion
behind this concept is that a supervisor is provided with clear
position authority besides preventing a subordinate from receiving
conflicting orders from more than one superior. The second is Scalar
Principle according to which there has to be a clear, unbroken line of
authority extending from the lowest to the highest position in any
organisation. This line of authority establishes an organizations
hierarchy. Blind adherence to the chain of command and unity of
command may result in communication delays, that is the reason
perhaps the unity of command is routinely broken. Organizations
today are more flexible in adapting to either principle, as per the
requirement. For instance, the gang plank allows communication
outside the chain of command as along as superiors are aware.
(Chapter 11, Griffin, 2012)

CHAPTER 12: HOMEWORK QUESTIONS 1 1ND 2

Q1. Even though most organisations use multiple technologies to

transform raw materials to finished products (inputs into outputs),
the most important technology from the organisations viewpoint is
called core technology. The three forms of core technology, in order
of increasing complexity,are (a) unit or small-batch technology by
which small batches of custom-made products are produced as per
customer specifications, e.g. a tailor producing custom-made suits;
the management levels in organisations using this technology were
flattest, with minimum number of organisational levels.(b) Largebatch or mass-production technology in which an assembly line
combines component parts to produce another part or finished
product, e.g. automobile manufacturing plants. Such organisations
had taller organisational structures with more management levels;
and (c) Continuous Process Technology using which finished products
are produced by transforming raw materials by a series of machine
or process conversions which change the composition of the
materials themselves. Such organisations had the most complex
management levels too. Thus, increasing core technology complexity
results in taller organisational levels; however, fewer but more
specialized workers were needed as automation levels increase.
Q2. Growth in the size of an organisation is accompanied by higher
specialization levels, more rules and regulations, more standard
operating procedures and increased decentralization. Small business
will either die out with time or exist only as long as the owner or
founder is alive. But some businesses grow exponentially to become
giants with complex organisational levels, e.g. Walmart, while others

may find they are better off if they reduce their size through layoffs
or divestment as exemplified by Marathon Oil. The four stages in the
life cycle of an organisation are birth, growth, midlife and maturity.
Any organisation in the fourth stage of its life cycle faces the real
danger of going into decline if its managers are not careful to arrest
such tendencies and be on the look-out to re-energise the
organisation by introducing new products and look for fresh markets.
Hence growth in size is a natural outcome in the life cycle of any
organisation.
(Chapter 12, Griffin, 2012)

CHAPTER 15: HOMEWORK QUESTIONS 1 AND 2

Q1. A psychological contract is an unwritten, informal understanding
between an individual and an organisation about what the individual
is expected to contribute towards the organisations growth and
what the organisation will give her in return for his or her efforts.
Thus, unlike a standard written contract, psychological contracts are
neither executed on paper nor are all its conditions explicitly laid
out. In a psychological contract between the individual and the
organisation, the individual promises things like effort, ability,
loyalty, time, skills and competencies towards the performance of
her job with the organisation. By using the aforementioned qualities
for the betterment of the organisation, she or he will justify her
position in the organisation. However, the organisation, in its turn,
shall reward the individual for her contribution by offering
inducements like job security, status, a good salary and other

benefits and opportunities for career advancement and growth.

Inducements like salary and career opportunities are easily
quantifiable rewards while job security and status are more abstract
but equally important. It is important for both the individual and the
organisation to view the psychological contract between them as
mutually beneficial for the relationship to continue satisfactorily.
Q2. Attitudes are complex sets of beliefs or ideas that an individual
may have about a certain situation or people. Attitudes are
comprised of three components, all closely inter-related to one
another. The first - affective component - reflects the emotions of an
individual towards a situation. Cognitive Component is the second
component of attitude and is based upon the knowledge the
individual has of the situation. Cognitive component of an attitude is
a matter of individual perception and may differ in different persons
for the same situation. The third component of attitude is the
intentional component and governs an individuals reaction towards
a particular situation. The first two components of attitude will affect
the third component of an individual towards a situation. The conflict
that a person experiences among the three components of their own
attitude is called cognitive dissonance. Cognitive dissonance, an
uncomfortable feeling, is resolved by the individual by telling oneself
that the current situation is only a temporary one and that it will
soon become normal and they can revert back to their old attitude.
Q3. The creative process essentially consists of four stages
preparation, incubation, insight and verification. The preparatory
phase is one in which an individual receives formal education and

business training and becomes familiar with the intricacies of

commerce. The second or incubation stage is when ideas and
knowledge acquired during training is allowed to mature and grow.
At the insight stage of the creative process, the creative individual
gathers all the ideas of the incubation stage and gains a new insight
to the problem, suddenly or gradually. New data or an experience
can also trigger insight. Following the insight phase, the truthfulness
and validity of the insight is tested and verified to achieve the
desired results. Managers can enhance creativity by making it a part
of the organisations culture, setting explicit goals and rewarding
creativity whenever needed.
Q4. Workplace behaviours include the following types of behaviour:
a) Performance Behaviour: These are an off shoot of the
psychological contract and are a sum of the work related
behaviour expected from an employee. Sometimes these are
easily quantified but often it is difficult to quantify them.
b) Withdrawal Behaviour: This type of behaviour can result in
withdrawal due to absenteeism or turnover. Absenteeism can
be for legitimate or illegitimate reasons but leads to loss of
output in all cases. Turnover occurs when employees quit their
jobs.
c) Organisational Citizenship: This type of behaviour makes a
positive contribution to the organisation. A good worker but
one who works-to-rule is not as good as one who is good and is
also willing to go that extra mile to help the company in any
way. The latter is more likely to be viewed as a better

organisational citizen by the management than the former even

though their work output may be equal. Studies suggest that
organisational behaviour can be a powerful tool in
organisational effectiveness and efficiency.
(Chapter 15, Griffin, 2012)
CHAPTER 20: HOMEWORK QUESTIONS 1, 2, 3, 4
Q1. The purpose of control in an organisation is four fold. The four
functions of control are:
a) Adapt to Environmental Change: In todays constantly changing
business environment, goals would be impossible to achieve
without controls. Managers have to factor in such changes in
environment and monitor targets and goals continuously.
b) Limit the accumulation of Error: Small errors can accumulate
over time and seriously damage an organisation. Hence
constant control and monitoring is vital to identify and
eliminate these errors before they spiral out of control.
c) Coping with organisational complexity: Businesses that produce
many products using different raw materials are complex
organisations with a myriad of operations. Unless suitable
controls are built into the system, targets will not be achieved.
d) Minimizing Costs: Effective controls are useful in cutting costs
and boosting profitability. Reduction in wastage and labour cost
and boosting output and productivity are the major results
when effective controls are exercised in an organisation.
Organisational Control is very important for regulation of
organisational performance. Without controls, organisations

would be unable to attain set goals or identify how far they are
from achieving them.
Q2.Controls within an organisation can be broken down into four
levels. The first, Operations Control, concentrates on regulating the
processes used to convert resources to finished products or services,
e.g. quality control. Second, Financial Control, monitors the
companys financial resources to ensure smooth functioning.
Ensuring timely payments is an example of financial control. Level
three of control is Structural Control, concerned mainly with
determining how each element of a company is functioning towards
achieving the ultimate goal, e.g. monitoring administrative ratio to
keepstaffing expenses under control. Strategic Control, focusing on
monitoring how effectively corporate, business and functional
strategies are working together to achieve the common goal, is the
final level of control. Each of the above four levels need to be
properly managed for control to be effective. Financial control is the
most vital since it is linked to all other areas of control in an
organisation. High inventory levels mean extra storage costs, poor
personnel selection leads to firing and hiring expenses and disrupted
cash flows result from inaccurate sales forecasts. Hence financial
issues pervade all levels of control.
Q3. In most organisations, the budgetary process starts with
individual operating units submitting their budgetary needs to their
division heads. These divisional budget proposals are then placed
before the budget committee made up of top managers. After review
by the budget committee and correcting for errors and duplications,

the budget committee along with the Financial Controller and CEO of
the company approve the overall budget as well as the budgets of
individual operating units after one final review. Budgets help a
manager in exercising financial control by putting dollar values on
each operation thus enabling the manager to exercise control and
pinpoint problem areas. Since budgets express diverse activities in
terms of dollars, it is easier for departments to coordinate amongst
themselves.
Q4. Bureaucratic control demands strict employee compliance, has
formal and rigid rules and lays down strict minimum acceptance
levels of performance. It has a tall structure, allows for limited
employee participation and rewards are strictly individual
performance based. In contrast, decentralized control is informal and
expects employee commitment instead of compliance. Employees are
expected to exercise self-control and shoulder responsibility to
achieve performance levels that exceed minimum levels of
acceptance. Decentralized controls are comparatively flat in
structure, encourage employee participation and reward group
performance. Bureaucratic control can result in work getting done
consistently and efficiently since standardization and best practices
are rigidly laid down. A disadvantage of this type of control is that it
discourages innovation and creativity since employee participation is
minimal. In decentralized control, employees take part in decisionmaking, giving them a sense of importance. It also enables more
efficient decision-making, facilitates expansion and better prepares
the company for emergencies since the decision-making base is wide

and evenly spread. In decentralized control, a strong sense of loyalty

is developed in employees. Overall team effort is rewarded since
group norms lead to high performance. It encourages employees to
put their experience to good use in implementing some of their
independent ideas.
(Chapter 20, Griffin, 2012).

Works Cited
Griffin, R. W. (2012). Management (Eleventh ed.). Mason: South-Western College Pub.