CHAPTER ELEVEN: EMPLOYEE AND MANAGEMENT DEVELOPMENT

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS
1.

The reason(s) companies are willing to invest more in employee development

today compared to the past include which of the following?
A)
Employees are willing to change employers to advance their careers.
B)
There is a shortage of skilled workers in the labor pool.
C)
Companies are becoming more complex.
D)
Both A & B.
E)
All of the above.
Answer:
D
Difficulty:
Moderate
Page Ref:
418

2.

Creating a culture that supports employee development is the responsibility

of______.
A)
the organization
B)
the HR department
C)
the supervisor
D)
All of the above
Answer:
A
Difficulty:
Moderate
Page Ref:
423

3.

Developing systems and practices that support employee development is the

responsibility of______.
A)
the organization
B)
the HR department
C)
the supervisor
D)
All of the above
Answer:
B
Difficulty:
Moderate
Page Ref:
424

4.

Assisting in the creation of the development plan and identifying programs

where development objectives can be met is the responsibility of______.
A)
the organization
B)
the HR department
C)
the supervisor
D)
All of the above
Answer:
C
Difficulty:
Moderate
Page Ref:
424-425

5.

Ultimately, the responsibility for an employees development is _____.

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A)
the organizations
B)
the HR department
C)
the supervisors
D)
the employees
Answer:
D
Difficulty:
Moderate
Page Ref:
425
6.

Management development requires careful attention because

A)
The managers job is complex.
B)
Managers are accountable for success.
C)
Companies that align management development with strategic
planning are generally more competitive.
D)
All of the above.
Answer:
D
Difficulty:
Easy
Page Ref:
425

7.

Which of the following is NOT a managerial interpersonal role?

A)
Spokesperson
B)
Leader
C)
Liaison
D)
Figurehead
E)
All of the above
Answer:
A
Difficulty:
Challenging
Page Ref:
428

8.

Entrepreneur & Disturbance Handler are under which of Mintzbergs

Managerial Roles?
A)
Interpersonal
B)
Informational
C)
Decisional
D)
Negotiator
Answer:
C
Difficulty:
Moderate
Page Ref:
428

9.

Mintzberg identified three types of managerial roles that managers took on.
They were
A)
Informational, interpersonal, and decisional.
B)
Authority, assignment, and monitor.
C)
Rewarder, discipliner, and monitor.
D)
None of the above.
Answer:
A
Difficulty:
Moderate
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Page Ref:

428

10.

To understand a managers development needs, you must first understand

_____.
A)
The strategic direction of the organization
B)
The technology of the managers unit
C)
The structure of the managers unit in relation to the rest of the
organization
D)
Both B & C
E)
All of the above
Answer:
E
Difficulty:
Easy
Page Ref:
429

11.

For a market leader the technology tends to be _____and the design _____.
A)
Non routine; organic
B)
Decentralized; non routine
C)
Routine; mechanistic
D)
High tech; unstructured
Answer:
A
Difficulty:
Easy
Page Ref:
429

12.

For a cost leader, decision making tends to be _____ and the design _____.
A)
Organic; centralized
B)
Decentralized; mechanistic
C)
Centralized; mechanistic
D)
Routine; structured
Answer:
C
Difficulty:
Easy
Page Ref:
429

13.

Management style is related to two dimensions of leader behavior _____

and _____.
A)
Employee-related; job-related
B)
Employee-oriented; job-oriented
C)
Task-oriented; organizationally-oriented
D)
Employee-oriented; task-oriented
Answer:
D
Difficulty:
Easy
Page Ref:
430

14.

What management style emphasizes goal setting and high-performance

expectations for subordinates?
A)
Supportive
B)
Participative
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C)
Directive
D)
Achievement
Answer:
D
Difficulty:
Easy
Page Ref:
430
15.

What management style is characterized by friendliness, as well as empathy

and concern for meeting employees needs?
A)
Supportive
B)
Participative
C)
Directive
D)
Achievement
Answer:
A
Difficulty:
Easy
Page Ref:
430

16.

In the _______ management style, subordinates are given

instructions about what to do, how to do it, and when to do it.
A)
Supportive
B)
Participative
C)
Directive
D)
Achievement
Answer:
C
Difficulty:
Easy
Page Ref:
430

17.

What management style emphasizes involving subordinates in decision

making, particularly in how they go about achieving their task?
A)
Supportive
B)
Participative
C)
Directive
D)
Achievement
Answer:
B
Difficulty:
Easy
Page Ref:
430

18.

_____ refer to the mental abilities required to analyze and diagnose complex
situations and make appropriate decisions.
A)
Technical knowledge and skills
B)
KSAs
C)
Conceptual knowledge and skills
D)
Personal traits
Answer:
C
Difficulty:
Easy
Page Ref:
430

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19.

Conceptual knowledge is related to

A)
Understanding technology.
B)
Problem solving.
C)
Carrying out operations in a functional area.
D)
Conflict resolution.
Answer:
B
Difficulty:
Challenging
Page Ref:
430-431

20.

_____ knowledge and skills are also called human skills.

A)
Communication
B)
Motivation
C)
Team building
D)
Interpersonal
Answer:
D
Difficulty:
Easy
Page Ref:
431

21.

_____ are qualities of the manager as a person.

A)
Technical knowledge and skills
B)
KSAs
C)
Personal traits
D)
Value creation skills
E)
Interpersonal knowledge and skills
Answer:
C
Difficulty:
Easy
Page Ref:
431

22.

Generally, the most effective managers are

A)
High in nPow (personal), high in nAch, and low in nAut.
B)
Moderately high in nPow (institutional), moderately high in nAch,
and moderately low in nAut.
C)
High in nPow (institutional), moderately high in nAch, and
moderately low in nAut.
D)
High in nPow (personal), moderately high in nAch, and moderately
low in nAut.
E)
High in nPow (institutional), high in nAch, and moderately low in
nAut.
Answer:
C
Difficulty:
Challenging
Page Ref:
432

23.

Integrating strategy and managerial characteristics suggests that when

comparing market leaders and cost leaders, the market leader should be higher
in all of the following EXCEPT
A)
Interpersonal skills.
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B)
Flexibility traits.
C)
Conceptual skills.
D)
Directive style.
E)
Participative style.
Answer:
D
Difficulty:
Moderate
Page Ref:
434
24.

Integrating strategy and managerial characteristics suggests that when

comparing market leaders and cost leaders in terms of supportive style
A)
Cost leaders should be higher.
B)
Market leaders should be higher.
C)
There is no difference.
D)
Supportive style is not a managerial characteristic.
Answer:
C
Difficulty:
Moderate
Page Ref:
434

25.

Which of the following is an effective way of determining a managers style,

traits, and ability to interact effectively with others?
A)
Task analysis
B)
Worker-oriented analysis
C)
360-degree feedback
D)
Cognitive tests
Answer:
C
Difficulty:
Moderate
Page Ref:
437

26.

Which of the following is NOT an advantage to using externally based

training programs for managers?
A)
Exposes managers to current thinking and theory in the management
area
B)
Quality of instruction is superior
C)
Allows an interchange of ideas among managers from different
organizations
D)
Costs less per person for the training
Answer:
B
Difficulty:
Moderate
Page Ref:
438

27.

Which of the following statements about corporate universities is NOT true?

A)
Their numbers are increasing.
B)
They are able to control training content to match company needs.
C)
They are a much less expensive approach than external programs.
D)
They are only viable for large organizations.
Answer:
C
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Difficulty:
Page Ref:

Easy
439-440

28.

Management development programs focus on developing all of the following

EXCEPT
A)
Conceptual knowledge and skills.
B)
Technical knowledge and skills.
C)
Interpersonal knowledge and skills.
D)
Personal traits conducive to effective leadership.
E)
General intelligence.
Answer:
E
Difficulty:
Moderate
Page Ref:
440-442

29.

Which of the following is a strategy for developing mid- to upper-level

managers and executives that isnt used for other employees?
A)
Coaching
B)
Being a mentor
C)
Action learning
D)
Job rotation
E)
They are all special strategies
Answer:
C
Difficulty:
Moderate
Page Ref:
468-474

30.

Action learning is
A)
Where a person higher in the hierarchy acts as both a coach and a
mentor.
B)
Very similar to on-the-job training, but for executives.
C)
Where trainees are given real and important company problems to
solve.
D)
None of the above.
Answer:
C
Difficulty:
Easy
Page Ref:
445-446

31.

For the executive, job rotation could mean

A)
Working in different divisions of the organization.
B)
Going to a subsidiary supplier for a while.
C)
Being coached.
D)
Job rotation is only for managers and below.
E)
Both A & B
Answer:
E
Difficulty:
Moderate
Page Ref:
446

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TRUE/FALSE QUESTIONS
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
38.
39.
40.
41.
42.
43.
44.
45.
46.
47.

____The main advantage to an employee for developing her KSAs is that she
is likely to be promoted. (F; pp. 418-419)
____By developing employees, the organization increases its flexibility. (T; p.
419)
____When using job rotation for employee development, it isnt necessary to
use the Training Process Model in the text. (F; pp. 420-422)
____The employee must wait for the supervisor or the HR department to
provide developmental opportunities. (F; pp. 424-425)
____The reason management development gets so much emphasis is that
managers dont get much training. (F; p. 425)
____Managerial context refers to the alignment of an organizations
environment, strategy, structure, and technology. (T; p. 429)
____A participative style of management is characterized by friendliness,
empathy, and concern for meeting employees needs. (F; p. 430)
____The achievement style of management emphasizes goal setting and
providing high performance expectations for subordinates. (T; p. 430)
____High nPow (institutional) is a focus on personal goals. (F; p. 432)
____Those high in nAch are characterized by a strong desire to assume
personal responsibility, receive concrete feedback on task performance, and a
single-minded preoccupation with task and task accomplishment. (T; p. 432)
____The managerial role of liaison needs both conceptual and interpersonal
knowledge and skills. (T; p. 432)
____One of the appropriate methods of doing a managerial person analysis is
360-degree feedback. (T; p. 437)
____Corporate universities are on the decline as they have become too
expensive to run effectively. (F; p. 439)
____A mentoring relationship is usually a longer term relationship than a
coach. (T; p. 443)
____When an executive is given a coach, it is a sign that the executives job is
in jeopardy. (F; pp. 443-444)
____Succession planning involves recruiting effective managers from
competing organizations. (F; p. 446)

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTIONS
48.

List four reasons why a company should be concerned about developing its
employees.
In todays economy, employees have less loyalty to an organization and
are quite willing to move to another organization to advance their
careers.
There is a shortage of skilled workers in the labor pool.

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49.

Skilled and knowledgeable employees are becoming ever more important

in the quest for high-quality goods and services in a competitive
marketplace.
To be effective, organizations need to become more flexible. Employees
who are able to do more than just one job on a moments notice give the
organization a lot more flexibility.
Indicate the parties who have responsibility for employee development and
summarize what their responsibilities are.
Responsible For

Organization

Climate for development

Resources and support

HR unit

Creation and maintenance of emp. development systems:

HRIS
Training process systems (needs analysis, etc.)

Supervisor

Performance feedback
Special assignments
OJT, Coach
Motivating employee to develop

Employee

Motivated to be effective performer

Ask for feedback and be open to areas of improvement
Take on new work and request stretch assignments
Make it known that development is desired

50.

List the three reasons, and a short explanation of each, why management
development is an important focus.
A complete answer should contain the following
Managers get a lot of training - management training is seen as a vital
part of improving organizational performance.
Managers are accountable for success - they carry a different and
more complex burden for ensuring the success of the organization
than do non-managers.
The complexity of the managers job lies in the nature of managerial
effectiveness.
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51.

Explain employee-oriented styles. Make sure to include an explanation of the

two employee-oriented styles explained in the text.
Employee-oriented styles can be said to be reflected in participative or
supportive managerial actions and require higher levels of the
interpersonal skills.
Participative style emphasizes involving subordinates in decision
making, particularly how they go about achieving their task. Reason
suggests that participative styles are more effective in market leader
organizations.
Supportive style is characterized by friendliness, empathy, and
concern for meeting employees needs. There is no evidence to show
that a supportive style is more or less effective in any organizational
context.

52.

Explain both technical knowledge and skills, and interpersonal knowledge and
skills.
Technical knowledge and skills are necessary to carry out the operations
of a particular functional area. The most frequently mentioned are
financial analysis, budgeting, managerial accounting, and marketing.
Interpersonal knowledge and skills, often called human skills, refer to
the ability to work with, understand, and motivate others, both
individually and in groups. It is the managers interpersonal skills and
knowledge of human behavior that will be the primary determinant of
his/her success in influencing others and developing necessary
information networks.

53.

What are the specific problems that are associated with development of
executives and why does coaching seem to deal with these problems?
Executives are at the top of the organization so it is difficult for them to
ask for or even know they need it. They are very busy and work long
hours, seldom having the luxury of taking off time for development.
Coaching is particularly amenable to dealing with these problems. First,
if it is standard procedure for all executives to have a coach at one time or
another, suggesting an executive take one on is not threatening. Second,
as an outsider, the coach is usually an expert in the field that deals with
the credibility issue. Third, the personal coach can be scheduled in at any
time, allowing the executive to still meet his/her busy schedule. It is one
on one so it is directly focused on the needs of the particular executive.

ESSAY QUESTIONS

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54.

Discuss the differences in developing employees for their current job versus
for a future job and include an explanation of how the needs analysis differs.
A good answer will include a discussion of the reactive (current job) and
proactive (future job) approaches to needs analysis. It will also discuss the
types of training that are likely for each (traditional for current job and
job rotation, and special assignments for the future job).

55.

A successful manager at one company will be successful at any company. Do

you agree or disagree? Why?
From the contingent approach we have taken, the answer here is no.
Skills of a manager as cost leaders are different than market leaders.
Discussion of these differences, and the need to be sure managers have the
requisite skills should be discussed.

56.

Provide a list and a short explanation of the four interpersonal skills in which
management styles are often addressed in training.
A complete answer should contain the following points.
Interactive skills training - uses simulations and feedback from which
observers provide trainees with ways of interacting more effectively
with others.
Leader match training - trains managers to diagnose their situation
and themselves to determine the best fit; the manager is shown how to
create a situation in which the managers style is most appropriate.
Grid management - two most important managerial characteristics
are the managers concern for work outcomes and concern for people;
managers who have concerns in both these areas are the best
managers.
Workshops and seminars - typically focus on a particular skill area.

57.

Describe some advantages of 360-DF for managers.

58.

360-DF can identify areas of development for individual managers.

It can be used to identify cause-and-effect relationships between the
managers behavior and others reactions.
It provides the perspective of peers, subordinates, and superiors.
It provides feedback about personal characteristics that do not
typically show up in other instruments.
Succession planning for top executives is very time consuming and
expensive to initiate, so many organizations do not have one in place. Also, it
is suggested that all the time preparing excellent candidates only results in
them leaving the organization if they are not selected for the promotion,
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which means you helped groom an executive for your competition. Explain
why, even given the above, it is a good idea to have such a program in place.
Succession planning is a huge and costly undertaking, but there
are a number of reasons why it is important to have one.
The faster you replace a senior executive, the better off you are.
Having a succession plan keeps talent as you are developing them. If
you do not have one, employees will likely be looking elsewhere.
The pool of available managers to fill executive positions is shrinking.
Recruiting costs for high-level executives is increasing.
Turnover of executives is going to remain high.
When you do choose a candidate to replace an executive, you often
lose some employees who thought they should have gotten the job.
However, you got first choice from among the candidates, so those
that leave are second best. Also, you got your replacement almost
immediately. The organization that got your second-place person
likely searched for 6 months at a great expense. You are still way
ahead in terms of being effective in this regard.

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