Business Communication (MB121) April 2004 - 1.2

51. In which of the following ways audience can be persuaded to act upon receiving the message?
(a) By sending repeated messages
(b) By pointing out their benefits
(c) By following up a written message with a telephone call
(d) By asking them to take action
(e) By threatening them with punishment.
(1 mark)
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52. While organizing the message what does the last section of the body of a sales letter usually do?
(a) It closes with a resale offer
(b) Asks the reader to take some action towards buying or getting more information about the product
(c) Concludes with a discussion of the benefits of the product
(d) It generates a desire in the audience to buy the product
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(e) Thanks the reader for his time.
(1 mark)
53. Which of the following situations requires a persuasive letter instead of a claim letter?
(a) A wholesaler marked down the price of a product two days after you placed the order.
(b) A wholesaler charged more for the product than advertised
(c) A company did not deliver a product by the date promised
(d) A product does not live up to advertised expectations
(e) A product does not live up to the quality of your previous purchase.
(2 marks)
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54. Listening is the most frequent, perhaps the most important type of on-the-job communication. Most
managers agree that “active listening” is the most crucial skill for becoming a successful manager.
Hence, the activities involved in effective listening are
(a) Looking at the speaker and physically hearing a message
(b) Physically receiving a message
(c) Physically receiving a message, interpreting, remembering, evaluating and responding
(d) Physically receiving a message and interpreting it
(e) Receiving a message and immediately responding to it.
(1 mark)
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55. Mr. Sreeram entered into boss’s room to submit his weekly report. As Sreeram sits in front of boss’s
table, boss sat back expansively, wraps his arm over the back of the chair and stretched out his legs in
front. The message boss is trying to convey to Sreeram in this situation is that, he is
(a) Disturbed (b) Confident (c) Happy (d) Not happy (e)
Attentive.
(1 mark)
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56. Many approaches are followed to write reports, based on the intended purpose of the report. In which
of the following situations the direct approach is more suitable in writing reports?
(a) When the reader is skeptical about the topic of the report
(b) When the reader is hostile to the topic of the report
(c) When the reader already trusts you and has a positive or neutral attitude towards your topic
(d) When the reader is doubtful about your credibility
(e) When you don’t know the reader personally.
(2 marks)
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57. An opening sentence can make or break your written communication. Suppose, you are sending a
potential customer a catalog he or she asked for. The best of the opening sentences for your message is
(a) ‘Enclosed is the catalog of our decorator lamps’
(b) ‘I am happy to be able to answer your inquiry’
(c) ‘In accordance with your instructions, we are happy to enclose our last catalog on decorator
lamps’
(d) ‘I have received your letter asking for the catalog’
(e) ‘This will acknowledge receipt of your June 10th message.’
(2 marks)
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58. While presenting a speech some times it is required to use some forms of support which is necessary
and beneficial to clarify and/or prove an important and fundamental assertion. One of the forms is
presenting Anecdotes. Which of the following is true regarding an anecdote?
(a) Real-life characters are usually mentioned
(b) Animal characters speak as if they were human beings
(c) A fictitious story from which a moral or religious lesson may be drawn
(d) Similarities are pointed out with regard to people, ideas, experiences, projects, institutions, or data,
and conclusions are drawn on the basis of those similarities.
(e) None of the above.
(1 mark)
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59. Researches have shown that, group decision-making follows a predictable pattern. Aubrey Fisher
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identified four stages in group problem solving. What are these stages (in order)?
(a) The orientation stage, the emergence stage, the conflict stage and the reinforcement stage
(b) The orientation stage, the conflict stage, the reinforcement stage and the emergence stage
(c) The emergence stage, the orientation stage, the conflict stage and the reinforcement stage
(d) The emergence stage, the orientation stage, the reinforcement stage and the conflict stage
(e) The orientation stage, the conflict stage, the emergence stage and the reinforcement stage.
(1 mark)
60. Identify the sentence that is grammatically correct and conveys the meaning clearly
(a) To keep birds from eating seeds, soak them in blue food coloring
(b) To keep birds from eating seeds, soak the seeds in blue food coloring
(c) Soak birds in blue food coloring to keep them from eating seeds away
(d) To keep birds from eating seeds, soak off the seeds in blue food coloring
(e) To keep birds from eating seeds, wash away in blue food coloring.
(2 marks)
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61. Groups formed for short-term goals, such as to arrange a dinner, usually focus more on the task at hand.
What do the groups formed for long-term assignments primarily focus on?
(a) Reaching the set targets
(b) Maintaining relations with the outside world
(c) Maintaining relations with their respective bosses
(d) Maintaining interpersonal relationships
(e) Maintaining relations with different people in the organization.
(2 marks)
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62. The seating arrangements in a meeting can have a bearing on the final outcome of the meeting. Studies
have shown that people react in certain predictable ways to certain physical surroundings. Which of the
following types is suitable for large groups that are meeting to obtain information?
(a) The banquet style (b) T formation style
(c) Participative style (d) Equalizing style (e) Theatre style.
(2 marks)
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63. In a report if you have any bulky information consisting of graphs, large technical diagrams, charts and
test supporting documents which will be of interest to only a small number of the report’s readers, the
best place for putting the information is?
(a) Appendixes (b) Conclusions (c) Title page
(d) List of illustrations (e) Executive summary.
(1 mark)
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64. Which of the following statements contains platitudes or other offensive expressions?
(a) Our reputation is important to us and we will work day and night to satisfy our customers
(b) We have forwarded your recent letter to the shipping department and they will contact you within
the week
(c) Evaluations are based on your performance in the last six months and are the basis for your pay
raise
(d) When you pay your rent by the first of each month, you will maintain your excellent credit
reputation
(e) Because we value your good will, we have taken these steps to ensure your satisfaction.
(2 marks)
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65. You have decided to send a message to your supervisor requesting vacation time. You brainstorm some
basic concepts and now must decide how to phrase this information for your supervisor. You are at
which of the following steps in the communication process?
(a) Sending (b) Receiving (c) Encoding
(d) Decoding (e) None of the above.
(1 mark)
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66. While communicating in either written or oral form, style of communication has an impact on the
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receiver. In which of the following messages it is appropriate to talk about your emotions?
(a) Apology (b) Layoff or termination
(c) Congratulations or condolence (d) Offer of appointment
(e) None of the above.
(1 mark)
67. While writing the letter denying the credit request of a customer, which of the following is/are
suggested as the first paragraph?
I. “Your order of March 28 has been received, and your request for credit privileges has been
received. At this time, we do not believe it is in our best interest to sell to you on a credit basis.”
II. “The items listed in your order of March 28 have been selling very rapidly in recent weeks.
Supplying customer’s demands for the latest in electronic technology is consistent with sound
business practice.”
III. “We do not want you to give you any false hopes regarding the credit request. Hence, we are
sorry to inform you that your credit request has been denied. The reasons for the same are as
follows:….
(a) Only I (b) Only II (c) Only III (d) Only I or II (e) Only I
or III.
(2 marks)
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68. Resume is primarily a sales letter, selling a particular commodity i.e.,you. There are many kinds of
resumes; which of the following provides relevant information about educational qualifications and
employment history sequentially in reverse order?
(a) The functional resume (b) The Chronological
resume
(c) Combination of chronological and functional resume
(d) The formal resume (e) Extraordinary resume.
(1 mark)
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69. An order letter is a letter sent to any person who has the goods we intend to buy. In this letter details are
usually tabulated, especially when more than one item is ordered. The order letter should not start with
which of the following sentences?
(a) “Please send” (b) “I am interested,” (c) “Please ship” (d) “I order” (e) “Please
mail”.
(2 marks)
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70. Groups, follow many methods to take decisions. In which of the following techniques, are members
encouraged to generate as many ideas about a topic as they can, no idea is rejected at the initial stage
and finally, the group returns to all the ideas and adopts those that seem most feasible or most useful?
(a) Brainstorming (b) Reflective thinking
(c) Consensus (d) Nominal group technique (e) None of the above.
(1 mark)
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71. Which of the following documents is called an interoffice correspondence?
(a) Letter (b) Report (c) Oral presentation slides
(d) Memo (e) News letter
(1 mark)
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72. Which of the following best defines a “buffer”
(a) It is a neutral, uncontroversial statement that is closely related to the point of the message
(b) It is a protective zone that the writer of a bad-news message creates around himself or herself
(c) It is a statement in a bad-news message that is not related to the point of the message
(d) It is a statement that changes the topic after the delivery of the bad news in a negative
message
(e) It is a statement intended to provoke the audience.
(2 marks)
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73. When faced with a conflict, different people respond in different ways. One of them is ‘avoiding’ the
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conflict—unwillingness to talk things out, pretending that a conflict does not exist. In which of the
following situations ‘avoiding’ is advisable?
I. When you need time to gather facts or think about a situation
II. When you think delaying of the problem will solve the problem
III. When you perceive that you have no chance of satisfying your concerns.
(a) Only (I) above (b) Only (II) above
(c) Only (III) above (d) Both (I) and (III) above
(e) All (I), (II) and (III) above.
(1 mark)
74. Consider the following statements and identify, with which of the sentence/s an application letter
should not be started?
I. “I wish to be considered an applicant for the position of sales representative”
II. “A degree in marketing and my interpersonal skills would enable me to be the ‘enthusiastic, hardworking
sales representative’ you advertised for in the Economic Times dated October 12”
III. “This is an application for the post of sales representative”.
(a) Only (I) above (b) Only (II) above
(c) Both (I) and (II) above (d) Both (I) and (III) above
(e) All (I), (II) and (III) above.
(2 marks)
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75. Identify the sentence(s) which is/are grammatically correct and convey(s) the meaning clearly.
(a) The workers removed all the furniture from the room and cleaned it
(b) After removing all the furniture from it, the workers cleaned the room
(c) The workers cleaned all the furniture after removing it from the room
(d) The workers cleaned it after removing all the furniture
(e) Both (b) and (c) above.
(2 marks)
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76. Conducting a successful interview requires three important skills: questioning, listening, and the third
one is
(a) Mentoring (b) Criticizing (c) Summarizing (d) Predicting (e)
Eliminating.
(1 mark)
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77. Which of the following is not a purpose of a persuasive message?
(a) To have the reader act
(b) To overcome any objections which might prevent action
(c) To provide enough information so that the reader knows exactly what to do
(d) To have the reader request more information from the writer
(e) Generating desire for the product through convincing evidence.
(1 mark)
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78. Once the interviewer has decided on the format, he can start formulating specific questions. The
question “Tell me about yourself” comes under which type of question?
(a) Open-ended question (b) Closed-ended question
(c) Critical question (d) Common question
(e) Probing question.
(1 mark)
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79. Where is the signature block in the commercial letter placed?
(a) Double space below the body
(b) Double space below the salutation
(c) Four spaces below the complimentary close
(d) Double space below the inside address
(e) Four spaces below the dateline.
(1 mark)
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80. In which of the following stages, in-group decision making, the group members get to know each other?
(a) The conflict stage (b) The reinforcement stage
(c) The orientation stage (d) The emergence stage
(e) None of the above.
(1 mark)
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81. Reports have been classified in numerous ways, accounting reports, marketing reports, financial reports
etc. Such reports are termed as
(a) Formal reports (b) Short reports
(c) Informational reports (d) The proposal reports
(e) Functional reports.
(1 mark)
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82. When Managers depend on formal channels of communication, sometimes they risk encountering
“distortion”. One way to minimize distortion is
(a) Including all relevant information that is true in every sense and is not deceptive in any way
(b) Keeping audience in mind at all times
(c) Exchanging messages with customers, vendors, distributors, competitors, investors, journalists,
and govt. representatives
(d) There are no ways to stop distortions
(e) Reducing the number of levels in the organization structure.
(1 mark)
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83 An effective job search begins with careful career planning. Which of the following does not come in
the career planning process?
(a) Self Analysis (b) Career Analysis (c) Job Analysis
(d) Company Analysis (e) None of the above.
(1 mark)
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84. The ability to communicate bad news demands skillful handling of the correspondence. A skillful
manager will attempt to say “no” in which of the following ways?
(a) In a way that discourages the receiver from asking for a favor again
(b) In a way that makes him a favorite to the boss
(c) In a way that makes the receiver, as well as the others, think twice before writing a letter of
request
(d) In a way that the reader supports the decision and is willing to continue the relationship
(e) None of the above.
(1 mark)
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END OF SECTION B