File: 6e chapter3TestBank.

doc, Chapter 3, Organizational Strategy and Information

Systems

Multiple Choice

1. Cognizant’s organizational structure was ________, but realized as its organization

grew and its services became more complicated that a __________ structure for the
organization was more appropriate.
a) hierarchical, networked
b) matrix, networked
c) flat, matrix
d) hierarchical, matrix
e) flat, hierarchical

Ans: d (Hard)
Response: See page 55, 56, 61

2. The organizational structure of Tata Consulting Services (TCS) is a ___________

organizational structure.
a) hierarchical
b) networked
c) matrix
d) flat
e) zero time
Ans: a (Hard)
Response: See pages 56, 57

3. All statements below are true about a matrix organization structure EXCEPT:
a) The design supports both function and purpose.
b) Operating complexities can be reduced by sharing information among
management.
c) Workers are assigned to two or more managers.
d) One weakness is that multiple dimensions of a business are not integrated well
with a matrix organization
e) Confusion must be dealt with through frequent meetings and conflict resolution
sessions.

Ans: d (Medium)
Response: See page 61

4. This type of organizational structure is based upon the concepts of division of labor,
specialization, and unity of command. Key decisions are made at the top and filter down
through the organization.
a) Hierarchical
 b) Networked
c) Flat
d) Matrix
e) Social

Ans: a (Medium)
Response: See page 60

5. This newer organizational design is designed to be highly flexible so that resources

can be configured quickly to respond to changing demands.
a) Up time organization
b) Social networked organization
c) Hierarchical organization
d) Matrix organization
e) Elastic enterprise

Ans: e (Hard)
Response: See page 62

6. IS plays three important roles in management control processes. These processes are
data collection, evaluation, and _______________.
a) transformation
b) management
c) communication
d) implementation
e) conversion

Ans: c (Medium)
Response: See pages 63-64

7. Organizational design is all about making sure that _________ are properly allocated,
reflecting the structure of formal reporting relationships.
a) decision rights
b) business processes
c) values
d) incentives
e) IS

Ans: a (Medium)
Response: See page 58

8. Traditional organizations have one of four types of organizational design. What are
these four structure types?
a) Traditional, flat, matrix, technology
b) Hierarchical, flat, matrix, networked
c) Matrix, networked, flat, information
d) Matrix, flat, networked, traditional
e) Social, networked, matrix, hierarchical

Ans: b (Medium)
Response: See page 59

9. In which type of organizational design do middle managers do the primary information

processing and communication function, telling subordinates what to do and then
reporting the outcome to senior management?
a) Flat
b) Networked
 c) Hierarchical
d) Matrix
e) Hybrid

Ans: c (Medium)
Response: See page 60

10. In which type of organizational structure will employees report to two or more
supervisors?
a) Hierarchical
b) Networked
c) Flat
d) Matrix
e) Functional

Ans: d (Medium)
Response: See page 61

11. In which type of organizational structure is power centralized and the type of
environment best supported stable and certain?
a) Flat
b) Networked
c) Hierarchical
d) Matrix
e) Traditional

Ans: c (Medium)
Response: See page 60

12. In which type of organizational structure is power distributed, and particularly suited
for an environment that is dynamic and unstable?
a) Flat
b) Networked
c) Hierarchical
d) Matrix
e) Hybrid

Ans: b (Medium)
Response: See page 61

13. A networked organizational structure feels both like a_______ and a_______
organizational structure because it supports a rigid structure with well-connected
communication networks.
a) matrix, flat
b) flat, hierarchical
c) hierarchical, hybrid
d) flat, networked
e) matrix, traditional

Ans: b (Medium)
Response: See page 61
14. When using information technologies to collect data for the purpose of monitoring
workers, a manager should do all of the following EXCEPT:
a) Inform employees when and what is being monitored.
b) Consider the privacy rights of individuals.
c) Ensure monitoring is meaningful to the organization’s mission.
d) Capture qualitative inputs in addition to quantitative data.
e) Require workers to complete additional tasks.

Ans: e (Hard)
Response: See page 64

15. At Zara, decision rights for ordering have been granted to whom?
a) Regional managers
b) Headquarters
c) Store managers
d) Central production
e) The commercial team

Ans: c (Medium)
Response: See page 59

16. Zara’s store managers place orders that reflect their localized needs. However, order
fulfillment is ultimately the responsibility of the commercial team in headquarters
because:
a) Store managers have no real decision rights.
b) The commercial team does not trust the store managers.
c) Store managers do not have visibility into regional demands but the commercial
team does.
d) The commercial team has more direct contact with the designers and production.
e) Store managers have no access to sales information for their store.

Ans: c (Hard)
Response: See page 59

17. All of the following help to develop informal networks that play an important role in
an organization EXCEPT for:
a) Job rotation
b) Company softball team
c) Virtual communities
d) Performance reviews
e) Attendance at a conference

Ans: d (Hard)
Response: See page 62-63

18. The dimensions of national culture include all of the following EXCEPT:
a) The distribution of power in society
b) The extent to which society tolerates uncertainty
c) Avoidance of uncertainty
d) The acceptance of technology by society
e) The degree to which society engages in future-oriented behaviors

Ans: d (Medium)
Response: See page 69

19. Effective, cross-cultural communication in today’s global and “flattened” world is:
 a) Easy to achieve
b) Difficult to achieve
c) Of little consequence to the organizational strategy
d) Achieved by using the best available technologies
e) No longer an issue for managers

Ans: b (Medium)
Response: See pages 70-71

20. The negative consequences of monitoring an employee’s discrete tasks include all of
the following EXCEPT:
a) The worker can become disconnected from the larger business process.
b) There can be less of an opportunity for the worker to broaden his/her skills.
c) The worker feels empowered to make significant contributions to the business.
d) The personal freedoms of the worker may be intruded upon.
e) The privacy rights of an employee may be violated.

Ans: c (Medium)
Response: See pages 64-65

21. A matrix organization:

a) Can involve multiple bosses and multiple teams
b) Requires quite a bit of communication to be successful
c) Were rare for quite a while but have become more common in recent years
d) All of the above
e) None of the above

Ans: d (Medium)
Response: See page 55

22. Which of the following is not an organizational design variable?

a) IT Infrastructure
b) Decision rights
c) Informal networks
d) Structure
e) Formal reporting relationships

Ans: a (Hard)
Response: See page 55

23. Which of the following is not an organizational structure?

a) Hierarchical
b) Flat
c) Power Distant
d) Matrix
e) Networked

Ans: c (Medium)
Response: See page 59

24. Which organization structure typically assigns workers two or more supervisors in an
effort to make sure multiple dimensions of the business are integrated?
a) Hierarchical
b) Flat
c) Matrix
d) Networked
e) Informal
Ans: c (Easy)
Response: See page 59

True/False

25. Cognizant needed to reinvent its organizational structure many times to make sure
that it properly facilitates the flow of information between employees.

Ans: True (Medium)

Response: See page 55

26. Different organization structures reflect the different organizational strategies that are
used by firms to implement their business strategy.

Ans; True (Medium)

Response: See page 57

27. An organization feels hierarchical when IT is used primarily as a communication

vehicle.

Ans: False (Medium)

Response: See page 61

28. A firm is usually a mix of different organizational structures, known as a hybrid

structure.

Ans: True (Medium)

Response: See page 62

29. The use of performance data by managers is generally welcomed by workers and
nonthreatening to workers when the data is used for compensation rather than to improve
performance.

Ans: False (Medium)

Response: See page 65

30. National culture no longer predisposes workers to act in a certain way.

Ans: False
Response: See pages 66-67

31. Differences in organizational and national culture normally do not affect system
development and use.

Ans: False (Medium)

Response: See pages 66-68

32. If a technology is to be successfully implemented into an organization, either the

technology must fit the organization’s culture or the culture must be shaped to fit the
behavioral requirements of the technology.

Ans: True (Hard)

Response: See page 66-68

Short Answer

33. The three components of the organizational strategy are organizational design,
management control systems and _________.

Ans: Organizational culture

Response: See page 57

34. A ________ organization allows a firm to concentrate on both function and purpose.

Ans: Matrix
Response: See page 59

35. ________ reduces the operating complexity of a matrix organization.

Ans: IS
Response: See page 61

36. IS makes it possible to evaluate performance by capturing current data in addition to

analyzing historical data. Often managers are faced with an overwhelming volume of
data and analyzing it becomes very time consuming, a situation known as ____________.

Ans: Analysis paralysis

Response: See page 65

37. A corporate culture is a firm’s set of shared values and _______

Ans: beliefs
Response: See page 66

38. This term is used to describe a situation where technology enables individuals from
all parts of the organization to reach and communicate with all other parts of the
organization.

Ans: Technological leveling

Response: See pages 61-62

39. Ideally, the person who has the most information about a decision and who is in the
best position to understand the relevant issues is the person with __________ for the
decision.
Ans: Decision Rights.
Response: See page 58

40. This IT-enabled network links individuals together, regardless of location, so that they
may get to know people and find useful information.

Ans: Social network

Response: See page 63

Essay

41. Cognizant moved to a matrix organization to “foster continuous operational

implementations and better bottom-line results for clients.” Explain how the change of
organizational design allowed Cognizant to succeed.

42. Compare and contrast the organizational structures of Cognizant (after restructuring)
and that of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS).

43. How does IS impact the 3 managerial levers: organizational, control and cultural?

44. Explain how Cognizant’s “10/10/10” program is designed, its cultural impact and the
role IS plays in supporting it.

45 Assume you are a manager of a local doctor’s office. How could you use IS to help
monitor the performance of the nurses and doctors? State the benefits as well as the
challenges.

46. List some examples of informal networking that occurs in organizations. How can
management utilize informal networks to the organization’s advantage?

47. Give an example of a tool or virtual community that enables a large, global informal
network. What is its value to a participant and the participant’s firm?

48. What recommendations would you give a manager who supports a team of
individuals with a multitude of cultural differences?

Matching
49. Match the organizational structure to the statement that best represents it.

Networked organization Decision rights are highly

decentralized.
Flat organization Decision rights are not clearly defined.
Matrix organization Decision rights are shared between
managers.
Hierarchical organization Decision rights are highly centralized.

50. Match the organizational structure to the power structure it supports.

Centralized Hierarchical organization

Decentralized Flat organization
Distributed Matrix organization
Distributed Networked organization

51. Match the organizational structure that you would find supporting the organization
strategy of the following firms:

Flat organization A start-up venture in its first few years

of existence
Matrix organization A multi-national organization with
regional and functional divisions
Hierarchical organization A military organization like the Navy

52. Match the organizational variable to its description.

Decision Rights The authority to make decisions

necessary to plan and run the business.
Business processes The set of tasks needed to complete key
objectives of the business.
Formal reporting relationships The structure set up to ensure
coordination with the organization.
Informal networks The mechanisms used to develop
organizational relationships outside of
the formal reporting relationships.

53. Match a firm’s actions with the cultural layer it helps to define.

Low power distance Invest heavily in training

Values Believe in helping employees to develop so they
can perform better in the future
Assumptions Workers inherently know that customer issues
take precedence

54. Hofstede identified cultural dimensions and researched expected behaviors within
that society. Match the cultural dimension to the organizational impact it can have.

Uncertainty Avoidance The willingness to take risk or avoid risk.

Power Distance The likeliness of innovation
Individualism/Collectivism The propensity to hire from within the
organization
Masculinity/Femininity The level of conflict to be anticipated
Confucian Work Dynamism The willingness to delay gratification