Management Chapter 10 – Organizational Change and Innovation Test Answers

Which of the following is not a supertrend affecting the future of business?

In the ______ stage of Kurt Lewin’s change model, managers try to instill in employees the motivation to change, encouraging them to let go of behaviors that are resistant to innovation.

Employees resist change for all the following reasons except

When a grocery store chain adopts a new practice of its competitors by staying open 24 hours a day, requiring employees to work flexible schedules, it is implementing a(n) ______ change.

Organizational development managers and consultants follow a moving vehicle model.

When a company improves the packaging of its product, it is introducing a radically innovative change.

Which of the following is not a recommended way to manage innovation and change?

Adaptive change is the introduction of a practice that is new to the organization.

To explain how to initiate, manage, and stabilize planned change, Kurt Lewin developed a model with three stages:

Disruptive innovation is a process by which a product or service takes root initially in simple applications at the bottom of a market and then relentlessly moves up market, eventually displacing established competitors.

Which of the following is an effective way to deal with change and innovation? A. Insist on success.
B. Increase work rules and hierarchy.
C. Copy others’ successes.
D. Have the courage to follow your ideas.
E. Jump right into it.

According to Jim Collins, undisciplined pursuit of more and grasping for salvation are stages of organizational
A. innovation.
B. change.
C. intervention.
D. resistance.
E. decline.

Which of the following is not a supertrend shaping the future of business?
A. More niche products.
B. Traditional companies struggling with radically innovative change.
C. Information becoming a competitive advantage.
D. Offshore suppliers affecting U.S. business.
E. Faster speed-to-market.

A change that is made in response to arising problems or opportunities is called
A. reactive change.
B. incremental change.
C. proactive change.
D. radical change.
E. process change.

Which of the following is an example of a proactive change?
A Ciara’s staff is unhappy about the long hours they have been working and several of them quit before
. she knows there is a problem.
B. Ciara cannot get permission to hire another person until her group misses several deadlines.
C Ciara’s group sent a product that was nearing its launch date back to the drawing board based on a
. competitor’s superior new offering.
D Ciara explores improvements in bonus structures with her staff and begins to implement them despite . thefactthatheremployeesaregenerallycontent.
E. Ciara is constantly “putting out fires,” responding to daily crises in her group.

Walmart’s implementation of RFID, a type of technology that allows it to improve inventory tracking, is an example of a(n) ______ change.
A. reactive
B. incremental
C. proactive D. responsive E. radical

Which of the following is an example of a force for change originating outside the organization?
A. Productivity issues
B. Conflict management
C. Structural reorganization
D. Absenteeism
E. Social pressures

The increasing diversity of the American workforce is an example of a(n) ______ force for change. A. demographic
B. market
C. social and political D. political
E. economic

The invention of a machine to make plastic corks for wine bottles has severely affected companies that produce traditional cork. This is an example of a(n) ______ force for change.
A. market
B. social and political
C. demographic D. technological E. economic

Arizona Pottery is having a difficult time finding inexpensive labor, which it attributes to an unfriendly climate toward Hispanics since passage of tough illegal immigration legislation in that state. This is an example of a(n) ______ force for change.
A. market
B. employee
C. social or political D. technological
E. economic

Inside forces for change include which of the following?
A. Domestic competition
B. Low productivity
C. Advancements in automation
D. Immigration E. Recession

During the recession and its accompanying high levels of unemployment, Giordano Construction has had its choice of employees to support its growth. This is an example of a(n) ______ force for change.

A. market
B. social or political
C. arbitrary
D. technological E. demographic

Recently many older workers who had planned to retire soon decided to keep working longer. This is an example of a(n) ______ force for change.
A. social or political
B. arbitrary
C. demographic D. financial
E. structural

Which of the following is not an inside force that indicates organizational change might be needed?

A. High turnover
B. Excessive conflict between managers and employees
C. Job dissatisfaction
D. High levels of stress among employees
E. Increased competition

Nonmanagerial employees at Kennedy Steel belong to a union. The union has come close to striking several times over the years, and labor negotiations have recently been very tense. Kennedy likely needs to focus on changing

A. values among potential customers.
B. the likelihood that an acquisitions might occur.
C. manufacturing processes and procedures.
D. population variables.
E. forces originating inside the organization.

The Human Resources manager at the Apex Golf and Tennis Club has just calculated the employee absenteeism rate for 2012, and it is 25% higher than it was in 2010 and 2011. He should

A. wait until the end of 2013 and see what the rate is then.
B. begin a major restructuring effort.
C. reduce employees’ work hours.
D. address job design and ways to deal with work overload.
E. institute strict disciplinary procedures for employees who are absent.

Which of the following is not an area in which change is often needed? A. Strategy
B. Information C. People
D. Structure E. Technology

Employees might feel they are being underpaid for what they do, even if pay and benefits are superior to the competition. Here, managers must change
A. the tone of the debate.
B. attitudes.
C. tendencies toward greed.
D. perceptions.
E. the facts.

Maid to Clean is considering implementing a system that will pay its cleaning workers based on the number of completed residential jobs, coupled with satisfactory ratings on random inspections to ensure quality. Managers believe that this will reduce labor costs. Maid to Clean is focusing on changing employee
A. performance. B. skills.
C. attitudes.
D. management. E. structure.

Saitou Insurance is about to install a new computer system that will change the way claims adjusters settle claims. Adjusters will be able to do the adjustment and issue the check right at the scene of the accident. Saitou most likely needs to focus on changing employee
A. performance.
B. skills.
C. attitudes.
D. management. E. perceptions.

Mattress Emporium has had several incidents lately in which its drivers became lost when attempting deliveries. The drivers have no GPS or other access to computerized information and rely on the customers themselves for directions. Mattress Emporium probably needs to change its
A. structure.
B. people.
C. technology. D. culture.
E. strategy.

Managers at Lucky Peach magazine are in the process of cross training entry-level employees to be able to take phone orders or answer customer questions, and to process orders in overflow situations. The company is changing its
A. people.
B. skills.
C. technology. D. attitudes. E. structure.

Frisco Recreational Vehicles recently instituted cross-functional teams to develop new products. Team members are spread across the country, so it is expensive and time consuming for people to travel to headquarters to meet. The company would benefit most from a change in ______ involving
A. technology; teams meeting “virtually” through electronic media.
B. structure; disbanding the teams and relying on individuals to develop products. C. culture; sending team members to conflict management courses.
D. people; hiring new people in the organization at the headquarters location.
E. strategy; dropping the strategy of developing new products.

he record industry has been forced into a ______ change because of the prevalence and ease of illegally downloading music.
A. technology
B. structure
C. culture D. people E. strategy

________ is an emotional/behavioral response to real or imagined threats to an established work routine.
A. A change agent
B. Resistance to change C. An OD intervention D. Radical innovation E. Benchmarking

Which of the following is not an interacting factor that affects the level of resistance to change?

A. Longevity of the change agent.
B. Employee perceptions of change.
C. Individual differences of the change agent.
D. Change agent-employee relationship. E. Change agent actions and inactions.

The reintroduction of a familiar practice within the same organization is called a(n) A. practical change.
B. adaptive change.
C. reactive change.
D. innovative change.
E. radically innovative change.

Employees are likely to see an adaptive change as A. highly threatening.
B. moderately threatening.
C. somewhat threatening.
D. least threatening.
E. totally unacceptable

At Hartford Toy Depot, employees know that during the month of December they are generally required to work different schedules, often with some overtime, to support the holiday shopping season. This is an example of a(n) ______ change.
A. adaptive
B. reactive
C. innovative
D. incremental
E. radically innovative

Peter, the owner and lead accountant at a tax preparation firm, is changing the work schedule of his long-term employees for the months of March and April, the company’s busiest time. He is requiring work on weekends for everyone, using the same basic schedule as last year. Peter should expect that his employees will be

A. terribly upset and quit.
B. terribly upset but not quit.
C. moderately upset and complain.
D. moderately upset but not complain. E. hardly upset or not upset at all.

A change that represents the introduction of a new practice to an organization but that is not new to the industry is called a(n)

A. mimicry change.
B. adaptive change.
C. reactive change.
D. innovative change.
E. radically innovative change.

An innovative change involves ______ complexity, cost, and uncertainty.

A. no
B. minimum C. moderate D. high
E. extreme

Great Plains Credit Union has decided that tellers must rotate through a new weekend shift on Saturday afternoons since several of its competitors in the area have recently begun to offer these hours to customers. This is a(n) ______ change.

A. radically innovative
B. innovative C. adaptive D. proactive E. reactive

Introducing a practice that is new to the industry is called a(n) ______ change. A. revolutionary
B. radically innovative C. adaptive
D. reactive
E. innovative

Evanston Cable Television has decided to offer a one-hour appointment window for customers needing installation or repair of its service, which will require them to have several technicians on call. Evanston hopes this practice will give them an advantage over the competition, none of whom have adopted such a practice. It is introducing a(n) ______ change.
A. reactive
B. innovative
C. activist
D. adaptive
E. radically innovative

Which of the following is not a leading reason that employees resist change?

A. Individual predisposition toward change
B. Climate of mistrust
C. Fear of failure
D. Lack of personal ethics
E. Nonreinforcing reward systems

Lewin’s change model consists of

A. three types: adaptive, innovative, and radically innovative.
B. three forces: employee characteristics, change agent characteristics, and change agent-employee
relationships.
C. four steps: recognize problems, gain allies, overcome resistance, and execute. D. three stages: unfreezing, changing, and refreezing.
E. three steps: diagnosis, intervention, and evaluation.

During Lewin’s changing stage, managers should

A. reduce the barriers to change.
B. give employees new models for behavior.
C. reinforce the desired change.
D. make employees dissatisfied with the present situation. E. encourage employees to exhibit the new change.

uring Lewin’s refreezing stage, managers should
A. make employees dissatisfied with the present way of doing things.
B. give employees the tools for change.
C. provide benchmarking results.
D. reduce the barriers to change.
E. reinforce the desired change in the employees.

he process by which a company compares its performance with that of high-performing organizations is called
A. reference innovation.
B. competitive change.
C. benchmarking.
D. continuous improvement. E. radical innovation.

Creighton Bicycles and Repair conducted a survey and discovered that among customers who had tried both bike shops, its successful cross-town competition was preferred about 80% of the time. The most frequently cited reason was customer service. This information would be most helpful to introduce to employees during which stage of Lewin’s change model?

A. Unfreezing
B. Continuous improvement
C. Benchmarking
D. Empowerment
E. Refreezing

Kotter proposed which of the following for organization change?

A. A three stage model: unfreezing, changing, and refreezing.
B. Three types of innovation: adaptive, innovative, and radically innovative.
C. Eight steps for leading organizational change.
D. A three-step model: diagnosis, intervention, and evaluation.
E. Ten reasons employees resist change.

The set of techniques used for implementing planned change to make people and organizations more effective is called
A. corporate transformation.
B. TQM.
C. revitalization.
D. organizational development.
E. incremental innovation

Organizational development is often put into practice by a

A. catalytic consultant.
B. change agent.
C. behavioral consultant.
D. transformative consultant.
E. behavioral agent.

Which of the following is not one of the primary uses of OD?

A. Improving recruitment
B. Adapting to a merger
C. Managing conflict
D. Revitalizing an organization
E. Adapting to an acquisition

In which of the following situations would OD techniques be the most helpful?

A. Increasing efficiency among employees in a firm.
B. Assisting employees in dealing with stressful situations.
C. Helping employees from two similar organizations work better together in a strategic alliance.
D. Facilitating discussion of ethical issues in preparing a company’s code of ethics.
E. Working with the CEO to determine how to increase profitability.

Caleb, an OD consultant, is designing a survey of employee attitudes to be given to workers at Tandem Investments. Caleb is conducting the ______ stage of OD.
A. unfreezing
B. intervention
C. diagnosis
D. evaluation
E. process consultation

The question “What shall we do about the problem?” would most likely be asked during the ______ stage of OD.
A. changing B. diagnosis C. adaptation D. evaluation E. intervention

Tirzah, an OD consultant, is working with members of a cross-functional team to help them build cohesiveness and practice skills to function better as a team. Tirzah is conducting the ______ stage of OD.
A. intervention
B. diagnosis C. evaluation D. changing E. adaptation

Marc, an OD consultant, is visiting Cassidy Engineering a year after he assisted them in making changes to their employee incentive plan. Now he is comparing sales and turnover data from the last three years to the current year. Marc is in the ______ stage of OD.
A. refreezing
B. intervention C. diagnosis D. adaptation E. evaluation

Which of the following circumstances is likely to increase the success of OD?

A. Applying each OD intervention uniformly in international locations.
B. A single large intervention.
C. Support of top managers.
D. Implementing organization change for its own sake.
E. Goals focused on the short term rather than the long term.

When it comes to failure in the innovation process, Procter & Gamble CEO A. G. Lafley suggests that the key is to

A. work within a competent team so that blame is spread around among strong players.
B. look for innovation in small increments, so that failure risks are small.
C. develop a tolerance for ambiguity so that failure does not personally upset you.
D. fail early, fail cheaply, and don’t make the same mistake twice.
E. avoid it by almost any means necessary, since it will irreparably harm your reputation.

Which of the following is the factor that most reduces an organization’s ability to learn from failure?

A. Employees that like to experiment with multiple solutions.
B. Employees with a strong desire to acquire personal wealth.
C. Employees that blame others for failure.
D. Employees that embrace a learning culture.
E. Employees with a high tolerance for ambiguity.

Which of the following is not one of Scott Berkun’s seeds of innovation for organizations?

A. Hard work in a specific direction
B. Curiosity
C. Philanthropy
D. Hard work with direction change
E. Necessity

A technological innovation that improves the speed of a computer’s microprocessor would be considered a(n) ______ innovation.
A. adaptive
B. product
C. reactive
D. process
E. industrial

A(n) ______ innovation is a change in the way a product or service is conceived, manufactured, or disseminated.
A. procedural
B. radical
C. product
D. process
E. adaptive

A managerial innovation that improves the efficiency of a company’s cross-functional teams would be considered a(n) ______ innovation.
A. product
B. method
C. process
D. adaptive
E. practical

The management department at a local university began posting all assignments and other class materials to a course management website instead of creating a packet for students to purchase each term. This is a(n) ______ innovation.
A. practice
B. product C. process D. adaptive E. reactive

The creation of products, services, or technologies that modify those that already exist is called ______ innovation.
A. incremental B. product
C. process
D. radical
E. adaptive

Researchers working on hydrogen fuel cells hope that this could be a(n) ______ innovation, leading to a clean, renewable energy source, and reducing dependence on depleting fossil fuels with their adverse impact on the global environment.
A. incremental
B. product C. process D. radical
E. disruptive

Hollywood Hair recently introduced a new acai berry moisture shampoo. Wenling, director of new product development, has just reviewed the dismal results. It appears that her team did adequate research on the product’s acceptance by consumers prior to its introduction and is confused by the outcome. Wenling should
A. step down as director.
B. fire and replace the team lead as an example to others.
C. reward her team for their effort.
D. ignore the product failure.
E. demote the team leader.

Which of the following is not a way to encourage innovation?

A. Creating a culture that celebrates failure.
B. Supporting innovation with investments of time and money.
C. Rewarding successful innovations.
D. Withholding raises and promotions when innovation attempts don’t work out. E. Hiring top scientists, despite expense.

Once you have been able to gain allies and overcome employee resistance, excellent ______ will be a key to fostering innovation.
A. organization
B. communication
C. production D. execution E. recognition

Which of the following sequences best describes how a manager can foster innovation in an organization?

A. Recognize problems, gain allies, overcome resistance, execute well
B. Recognize problems, overcome resistance, gain allies, stabilize system
C. Overcome resistance, empower employees, execute well, provide incentives D. Recognize problems, empower employees, devise solutions, execute well E. Devise solutions, reorganize, change culture, stabilize system