HRM Chapter 4 Vocab – Flashcards
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An organization's mission a. specifies how it will achieve its purpose. b. affects its human resources practices. c. is its basic reason for existence. d. describes its unique characteristics and strengths. e. all of these.
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e. all of these.
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_____ strategy involves the actions taken by firms to better operate in a relevant industry or market. a. Adaptation b. Business c. Functional d. Competitive e. Corporate
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b. Business
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When organizations are downsizing the number of employees in the heirarchy, this usually involves a ____ strategy. a. growth b. retrenchment c. stability d. business e. diversification
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b. retrenchment
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When a company decides to own and operate several separate companies, which strategy is being employed? a. Diversification b. Stability c. Retrenchment d. Multifaceted e. Branching
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a. Diversification
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An organization made up of various businesses similar in the products or services they provide is pursuing which type of strategy? a. Growth b. Related diversification c. Differentiation d. Stability e. Prospector
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b. Related diversification
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Which adaptation model of business strategy is best used when the situation is highly stable with low uncertainty? a. defender b. prospector c. analyzer d. differentiation e. cost leadership
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a. defender
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Which adaptation model of business strategy is characterized by ignoring the environment? a. defender b. prospector c. analyzer d. differentiation e. reactor
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e. reactor
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A publisher groups its personnel into different departments on the basis of the customer because the processes are closely related. This is called the ____ design. a. functional b. U-form c. H-form d. divisional e. both functional and U-form
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d. divisional
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Prada creates fashions that convey status and luxury. It follows a differentiation strategy. Therefore, an important goal of its human resource strategy will likely be to a. focus employee training on cost reduction efforts. b. hire workers who are flexible and can perform a variety of tasks. c. keep the size of the workforce small to increase efficiency. d. retrench using layoffs and terminations. e. provide minimal compensation and benefits.
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b. hire workers who are flexible and can perform a variety of tasks.
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Which of the following organizational designs is MOST likely to have few managerial levels? a. flat b. H-form c. M-form d. conglomerate e. divisional
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a. flat
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Purpose
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An organization's basic reason for existence.
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Mission
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An organization's statement of how it intends to fulfill its purpose.
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Top Management Team
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The group of senior executives responsible for the overall strategic operation of the firm.
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Corporate Strategy
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Deals with determining what businesses the corporation will operate.
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Business Strategy
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Deals with how the firm will compete in each market where it conducts business.
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Functional Strategy
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Deals with how the firm will manage each of its major functions such as marketing, finance, and human resources.
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Growth Strategy
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Focuses on growing and expanding the business. It can be pursued internally by opening additional locations or externally through mergers, joint ventures, or the acquisition of other businesses.
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Retrenchment (Turnaround) Strategy
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When an organization finds that its current operations are not effective, and major changes are usually needed to rectify the problem. In most cases, this strategy involves rightsizing the organization by closing operations, shutting down factories, and terminating employees in order to get back on the right track.
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Stability Strategy
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Calls for maintaining the status quo. A company that adopts this strategy plans to stay in its current businesses and intends to manage them as they are already being managed. Usually used after a period of retrenchment or after a period of rapid growth.
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Diversification Strategy
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Used by companies that are adding new products, product lines, or businesses to their existing core products, product lines, or businesses.
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Related Diversification
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Used when a corporation believes it can achieve synergy among the various businesses that it owns.
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Unrelated Diversification
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Used when a firm attempts to operate several unique businesses in different, unrelated markets. A company can shield itself from the adverse effects of business cycles, unexpected competition, and other economic fluctuations.
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Adaptation Model
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One popular approach to business strategy where a business seeks ways to adapt to its environment.
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Organization Design
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The framework of jobs, positions, clusters of positions, and reporting relationships among positions that are used to construct an organization.
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Culture
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The set of values that helps its members understand what the organization stands for, how it accomplishes what it wants to accomplish, and what it considers important.
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Psychological Contract
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The overall set of expectations held by an individual with respect to what he or she will contribute to the organization and what the organization will provide the individual in return.
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Motivation
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The set of forces that causes people to behave in certain ways.
