Introduction to Management (MB111) : Section A

Section A : Basic Concepts (30 Marks)
• This section consists of questions with serial number 1 - 30.
• Answer all questions.
• Each question carries one mark.

1. The principles of management have evolved through different schools of thought. Achieving
cooperation of human beings rather than chaotic individualism is a principle of which of the following
management schools of thought?
a. Early views of management
b. Human relations approach
c. Scientific management
d. Administrative theory
e. Bureaucracy.
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2. According to Henry Mintzberg’s classification of managerial roles, a manager designing and initiating
change within the organization is said to be playing which of the following roles?
a. Figurehead
b. Leader
c. Disseminator
d. Entrepreneur
e. Disturbance handler.
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3. Managers at different levels in the organizational hierarchy require various sets of skills. Finding
rational and implementable solutions to the problems faced by the organization falls under which of the
following sets of skills?
a. Technical skills
b. Human skills
c. Conceptual skills
d. Design skills
e. None of the above.
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4. Ringi is a characteristic organizational feature of Japanese companies. What does ringi refer to?
a. Lifetime employment
b. Informal organization structure
c. A multistep procedure for building consensus
d. Paternalistic leadership style
e. Teamwork.
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5. Executives making ethical decisions pass through three stages of moral development – preconventional,
conventional, and (principle or) post-conventional. Which of the following statements is
true of the conventional stage of moral development?
a. Decisions are influenced exclusively by personal interest
b. Decisions are made in terms of the rewards and punishments resulting from different types of
behavior
c. Decisions are influenced by the expectations of others
d. Decisions are influenced by personal ethical principles
e. Decisions may or may not be in accordance with the rules or laws of society.
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6. Which of the following decision-making models emphasizes short-run solution of a problem rather than
long-term goal accomplishment?
a. Rational model
b. Incremental model
c. Satisficing model
d. Garbage can model
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e. Decision tree.
7. Behaviorally Anchored Rating Scales (BARS) is a sophisticated performance rating method. Which of
the following is not true with regard to BARS?
a. BARS minimizes subjective interpretation inherent in graphic rating scales
b. BARS makes use of ‘anchors’ (common reference points of performance)
c. BARS concentrates on job-specific behaviors and hence is highly meaningful
d. BARS is a simple and cost-effective rating method
e. BARS can be applied in organizations where a large number of people perform similar jobs.
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8. Which of the following theories of motivation assumes that elimination of the causes of employee
dissatisfaction does not automatically lead to satisfaction?
a. Expectancy theory
b. Need hierarchy theory
c. Two-factor theory
d. Equity theory
e. ERG (existence, relatedness, growth) theory.
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9. Blake and Mouton’s Managerial Grid is an approach to defining leadership styles based on a manager’s
concern for people and concern for production. Which of the following styles of management assumes
exertion of minimum effort to get required work done is appropriate to sustain organization
membership?
a. Authority-obedience management
b. Team management
c. Country Club management
d. Impoverished management
e. Organization-man management.
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10. Which of the following is not true with regard to functional authority?
a. Functional authority is the authority staff members have over line members within the limits of
their functions
b. Functional authority has the same effect as line authority but it doesn’t have the right that line
authority has, to punish violations or deviations in order to ensure compliance
c. Functional authority is limited to those areas where a staff member has some technical competence
d. The use of functional authority should be restricted to the procedural aspects of a function
e. Functional authority is in sync with the principle of unity of command.
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11. Creativity is an important factor in managing people. Which of the following is not true with regard to
the creative process?
a. Creativity is the ability to develop new ideas
b. The creative process starts with unconscious scanning
c. Intuition connects the unconscious with the conscious
d. Insight leads to intuition
e. Insight is tested against organizational reality.
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12. Which of the following forms of decision-making involves seeking expert opinion iteratively through
anonymous participation?
a. Brainstorming
b. Nominal group
c. Delphi group
d. Interactive group
e. None of the above.
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13. Colors is a medium-sized manufacturer of readymade garments having presence in AP, Tamilnadu, and
Karnataka. Which of the following forms of organization structures best suits the company?
a. Functional structure
b. Product structure
c. Territorial structure
d. Hybrid structure
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e. Matrix structure.
14. Vamsi, a candidate for the position of Professional Service Representative in Zydus Cadila, was
required to make a presentation on a new anti-asthma inhaler before a panel of physicians in the
company, as part of the selection process. Which of the following tests was Vamsi undergoing?
a. Knowledge test
b. Work sample test
c. Intelligence test
d. Personality test
e. None of the above.
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15. Power is the ability to influence other people and events and different types of power can be derived
from different sources. Which of the following types of power do sportspersons and film stars have?
a. Expert power
b. Legitimate power
c. Referent power
d. Coercive power
e. Reward power.
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16. Ratio analysis helps a manager compare the performance of the organization with its previous
performance or the performance of its competitors. Which of the following is a ratio of creditors’
contribution to that of the owners?
a. Current ratio
b. Debt-equity ratio
c. Return on Investment (ROI)
d. Net profit margin
e. Inventory turnover.
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17. Which of the following techniques for improving productivity aims at reducing costs by analyzing and
improving individual operations of a product or service?
a. Work simplification
b. Time-event network
c. Value engineering
d. Total Quality Management
e. Quality Circle.
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18. Information provided by market intelligence agencies is part of which of the following types of
information system?
a. Management Information System
b. Decision Support System
c. Executive Support System
d. Transaction Processing System
e. Office Automation System.
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19. Control is of three types – feed forward, concurrent, and feedback control. Which of the following is
not an example of feed forward control?
a. Sales forecast
b. Budgetary control
c. Inventory control
d. Programme Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT)
e. Quality control.
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20. Mahesh strongly believes that employees should value organizational goals more than individual goals.
Which of the following are we talking about?
a. Perception
b. Attitude
c. Personality
d. Values
e. Learning.
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21. Tangent Electronics Ltd. is faced with the problem of allocating resources to its newly set up computer
peripherals division. Which of the following decision-making techniques can help solve the problem?
a. Linear Programming
b. Decision tree
c. Simulation
d. Waiting-line method
e. Game theory.
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22. Divisional organization structure takes three forms: product division, geographic division and customer
division. Which of the following is an advantage of a product divisional structure?
a. It addresses the special and widely varied needs of customers for clearly defined services
b. It encourages the development of expertise in functional areas
c. It allows better understanding of local markets
d. It brings about order and clarity to the activities of the organization
e. It facilitates comparison of the performance of various product lines.
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23. Decentralization is the systematic delegation of authority in an organization-wide context. Which of the
following factors does not influence the degree of decentralization in an organization?
a. Size of the organization
b. External environment
c. Geographical location of the organization
d. Geographical dispersion of the organization
e. Competence of the managers.
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24. A skills inventory is a computerized database containing basic information about each employee that
can be used to assess the availability of candidates for meeting current and future human resource
needs. Which of the following is an application of skills inventory?
a. Forecasting manpower demand
b. Forecasting manpower supply
c. Replacement training
d. Succession planning
e. Planning human resource actions.
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25. Organization Development (OD) is a systematic, integrated, and planned approach to improving
enterprise effectiveness. Which of the following OD intervention techniques involves giving feedback
on interpersonal relations and dynamics operating in work groups?
a. Survey feedback
b. Process consultation
c. Team building
d. Third-party intervention
e. Techno structural activities.
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26. Which of the following is not true with regard to the Porter and Lawler model of motivation?
a. It’s built on Vroom’s expectancy theory
b. It means motivation is not a simple cause-and-effect matter
c. It assumes satisfaction leads to performance
d. It emphasizes reward structure
e. It assumes performance leads to intrinsic as well as extrinsic rewards.
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27. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is seriously considering the impact of the company’s actions on
society. Which of the following is not true with regard to corporate social responsibility?
a. CSR involves fulfilling obligations to various interest groups
b. CSR involves three types of behavior – positive, neutral and negative
c. The management of every organization must be conscious of its CSR
d. The organization’s obligations to the interest groups may vary from society to society
e. CSR is essentially the same as Social Responsiveness.
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28. Organizational culture is the collection of shared values, beliefs, rituals, stories, myths and specialized
language that foster a feeling of community among organization members. Which of the following is
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not a characteristic of organization culture?
a. It differentiates one organization from another
b. It defines the internal environment of an organization
c. It ensures consistency in the behavior of organization members
d. It remains absolutely stable throughout the life of an organization
e. It is perceived by the organization members as well as by outsiders.
29. Management By Objectives (MBO) is a system for achieving organizational objectives, enhancement of
employee commitment and participation. Which of the following is not an advantage of MBO?
a. Role clarity
b. Clarity in organizational action
c. Personnel satisfaction
d. Basis for organizational change
e. Flexibility.
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30. When Vision Informatics Ltd. invited external experts for performance appraisal, the employees resisted
the move. To overcome the resistance, the management invited the leader of the employees’ union to
participate in the decision-making process. Which of the following measures to overcome resistance did
Vision Informatics adopt?
a. Participation and involvement
b. Facilitation and support
c. Negotiation and agreement
d. Manipulation and co-optation
e. Education and communication.
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END OF SECTION A