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Organization Theory and Design
Vocabulary
324
Management
Graduate
01/17/2010

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Term
Define "Adaptability Culture"
Definition
A culture characterized by strategic focus on the external environment through flexibility and change to meet customer needs.
Term
Define "Adhocracy"
Definition
An organization form that develops in a complex, rapidly changing environment and is designed to support innovation and change.
Term
Define "Administrative Principles"
Definition
A management perspective that focuses on the design and functioning of the organization as a whole.
Term
Define "Ambidextrous Approach"
Definition
A design approach that incorporates structures and management processes that are appropriate to both the creation and the implementation of innovation.
Term
Define "Analyzability"
Definition
A dimension of technology in which work can be reduced to mechanical steps and particpants can follow an objective, computational procedure to solve problems.
Term
Define "Analyzer"
Definition
A business strategy based on maintaining a stable business while innovating on the periphery.
Term
Define "Authority"
Definition
A force for achieving desired outcomes that is prescribed by the formal hierarchy and reporting relationships.
Term
Define "Balanced Scorecard"
Definition
A comprehensive management control system that balances traditional financial measures with operational measures relating to a company's critical success factors.
Term
Define "Behavior Control"
Definition
Manager observation of employee actions to see whether the individual follows desired procedures and performs tasks as instructed.
Term
Define "Benchmarking"
Definition
The process of continually measuring products, services, and practices against tough competitors or orther organizations recognized as industry leaders.
Term
Define "Blog"
Definition
A running Web log that allows an individual to post opinions and ideas.
Term
Define "Boundary-spanning Roles"
Definition
Activities that link and coordinate an organization with key elements in the external environment.
Term
Define "Bounded Rationality Perspective"
Definition
A perspective that describes how decisions are made when problems are ill-defined, numerous factors affect the decision, and time is limited.
Term
Define "Buffering Roles"
Definition
Activities that absorb uncertainty from the environment.
Term
Define "Bureaucracy"
Definition
An organizational framework marked by rules and procedures, specialization and division of labor, hierarchy of authority, emphasis on technically quallified personnel, and written communications and records.
Term
Define "Bureaucratic Control"
Definition
The use of rules, policies, hierarchy of authority, written documentation, standardization, and other bureaucratic mechanisims to standardize behavior and assess performance.
Term
Define "Bureaucratic Culture"
Definition
A culture with an internal focus and a consistency orientation for a stable environment.
Term
Define "Beureaucratic Organizations"
Definition
Organizations that emphasize designing and managing on an impersonal, rational basis through such elements as clearly defined authority and responsibility, formal recordkeeping, and uniform application of standard rules.
Term
Define "Business Intelligence"
Definition
High-tech analysis of large amounts of internal and external data to spot patterns and relationships that might be significant in helping managers make better strategic decisions.
Term
Define "Carnegie Model"
Definition
Organization decision making that involves many managers making a final choice based on a coalition among those managers.
Term
Define "Centrality"
Definition
A source of horizontal power for a department that is engaged in the primary activity of an organization.
Term
Define "Centralization"
Definition
Refers to the level of hierarchy with authority to make decisions.
Term
Define "Centralized Decision Making"
Definition
Decision making in which problems and decisions are funneled to top levels of the hierarchy for resolution.
Term
Define "Change Process"
Definition
The way in which changes occur in an organization.
Term
Define "Chaos Theory"
Definition
A theory that suggests that relationships in complex, adaptive systems (including organizations) are nonlinear and made up of numerous interconnections and divergent choices that create unintended effects and render the whole unpredictable.
Term
Define "Charismatic Authority"
Definition
Authority based on devotion to exemplary character or to the heroism of an individual person and the order defined by him or her.
Term
Define "Chief Ethics Officer"
Definition
A high-level company executive who oversees all aspects of ethics.
Term
Define "Clan Control"
Definition
The use of social characteristics, such as shared cultural values, commitment, traditions, and beliefs, to control behavior.
Term
Define "Clan Culture"
Definition
A culture with a primary focus on the involvement and participation of the organization's members and on rapidly changing expectations from the external environment.
Term
Define "Coalition"
Definition
An alliance among several managers who agree about organizational goals and problem priorities.
Term
Define "Code of Ethics"
Definition
A formal statement of the organization's values concerning ethics and social responsibility.
Term
Define "Coercive Forces"
Definition
The external pressures exerted on an organization to adopt structures, techniques, or behaviors similar to other organizations.
Term
Define "Cognitive Biases"
Definition
Severe errors in judgment that all humans are prone to and that typically lead to bad choices.
Term
Define "Collaborative Network"
Definition
A perspective whereby organizations join together to become more competitive and to share scarce resources to increase value and productivity for all.
Term
Define "Collective Bargaining"
Definition
The negotiation of an agreement between management and workers.
Term
Define "Collectivity Stage"
Definition
The life cycle phase in which an organization has strong leadership and begins to develop clear goals and direction.
Term
Define "Competition"
Definition
Rivalry among groups in the pursuit of a common prize.
Term
Define "Competitve Advantage"
Definition
What sets the organization apart from othersĀ and provides it with a distinctive edge for meeting customer or client needs in the marketplace.
Term
Define "Confrontation"
Definition
A situation in which parties in conflict directly engage one another and try to work out their differences.
Term
Define "Consortia"
Definition
Groups of independent companies (suppliers, customers, and possibly competitors) that join together to share skills, resources, costs, and access to one another's markets.
Term
Define "Contextual Dimensions"
Definition
Traits that characterize the whole organization, including its size, technology, environment, and goals.
Term
Define "Contingency"
Definition
Theory meaning that one thing depends on other things; for organizations to be effective, there must be a "goodness of fit" between their structure and the conditions in their external environment.
Term
Define "Continency Decision-Making Framework"
Definition
A perspective that brings together the two organizational dimensions of problem consensus and technical knowledge about solutions.
Term
Define "Continuous-Process Production"
Definition
A completely mechanized manufacturing process in which there is no starting or stopping.
Term
Define "Cooptation"
Definition
Occurs when leaders from important sectors in the environment are made part of an organization and thus are more engaged in that organization's interests.
Term
Define "Coping with Uncertainty"
Definition
A source of horizontal power for a department that reduces uncertainty for other departments by obtaining prior information, prevention, or absorption.
Term
Define "Core Competence"
Definition
Describes what the organization does especially well in comparison to its competitors.
Term
Define "Core Technology"
Definition
The work process that is directly related to the organization's mission.
Term
Define "Corporate Social Responsibilty (CSR)"
Definition
The concept of management's obligation to make choices and take action so that the organization contributes to the welfare and interest of all organizational stakeholders.
Term
Define "Craft Technology"
Definition
Technology characterized by a fairly stable stream of activities, but the conversion process is not analyzable or well understood.
Term
Define "Creative Departments"
Definition
Departments that initiatet change, such as research and development, engineering, design, and systems analysis.
Term
Define "Creativity"
Definition
The generation of novel ideas that may meet perceived needs or respond to opportunities.
Term
Define "Culture"
Definition
The set of values, norms, guiding beliefs, and understandings that is shared by members of an organization and taught to new members as the correct way to think, feel and behave.
Term
Define "Culture Change"
Definition
Change in the values, attitudes, expecatations, beliefs, and behavior of employees.
Term
Define "Culture Strength"
Definition
The degree of agreement among members of an organization about the importance of specific values.
Term
Define "Customer Relationship Management (CRM)"
Definition
Systems that help companies track customers' interactions with the firm and allow employees to call up a customer's past sales and service records, outstanding orders, or unresolved problems.
Term
Define "Data Warehousing"
Definition
The use of huge databases that combine all of a company's data and allow users to access the data directly, create reports, and obtain responses to what-if questions.
Term
Define "Decentralized Decision Making"
Definition
Decision making in which authority is pushed down to lower organizational levels.
Term
Define "Decision Learning"
Definition
A process of recognizing and admitting mistakes that allows managers to acquire sufficient experience and knowledge to perform more effectively in the future.
Term
Define "Decision Premises"
Definition
Constraining frames of reference and guidelines placed by top managers on decisions made at lower levels.
Term
Define "Decision Support System (DSS)"
Definition
An interactive, computer-based system that relies on decision models and integrated databases.
Term
Define "Defender"
Definition
A business strategy that is concerned with stability or even retrenchment.
Term
Define "Departmental Grouping"
Definition
A grouping in which employees share a common supervisor and common resources, are jointly responsible for performance, and tend to identify and collaborate with one another.
Term
Define "Dependency"
Definition
An aspect of horizontal power, in which one department is dependent on another and the latter is in a position of greater power.
Term
Define "Devil's Advocate"
Definition
The role of challenging the assumptions and assertions made by the group.
Term
Define "Differentiation"
Definition
The cognitive and emotional differences among managers in various functional departments of an organization and formal structure differences among these departments.
Term
Define "Differentiation Strategy"
Definition
A business strategy that attempts to distinguish an organization's products or services from others in the industry.
Term
Define "Direct Interlock"
Definition
Occurs when one individual is the link between two companies, such as when a member of one company's board also sits on the board of another company.
Term
Define "Diversified Form"
Definition
An organization form that occurs when large, mature firms are subdivided into product or market groups.
Term
Define "Divisional Grouping"
Definition
A grouping in which employees are organized according to what the organization produces.
Term
prDefine "Divisional Structure"
Definition
Structure in which divisions can be organized according to individual products, services, product groups, major projects or programs, divisions, businesses, or profit centers; sometimes called a product structure or strategic business units.
Term
Define "Domain"
Definition
The chosen environmental field of action; the territory an organization stakes out for itself with respect to products, services, and markets served.
Term
Define "Domains of Political Activity"
Definition
Areas in which politics plays a role.  Three domains in organizations are structural change, management succession, and resource allocation.
Term
Define "Domestic Stage"
Definition
The first stage of international development in which a company is domestically oriented while managers are aware of the global environment.
Term
Define "Downsizing"
Definition
Intentionally reducing the size of a company's workforce by laying off employees.
Term
Define "Dual-core Approach"
Definition
An organizational change perspective that identifies the unique processes associated with administrative change compared to those associated with technical change.
Term
Define "E-business"
Definition
Any business that takes place by digital processes over a computer network rather than in physical space.
Term
Define "Economies by Scale"
Definition
Achieving lower costs through large volume production; often made possible by global expansion.
Term
Define "Economies by Scope"
Definition
Achieving economies by having a presence in many product lines, technologies, or geographic areas.
Term
Define "Effectiveness"
Definition
The degree to which an organization achieves its goals.
Term
Define "Efficiency"
Definition
The amount of resources used to achieve an organization's goals; based on the quantity of raw materials, money, and employees necessary to produce a given level of output.
Term
Define "Elaboration Stage"
Definition
A mature stage of the life cycle in which a red tape crisis is resolved through the development of a new sense of teamwork and collaboration.
Term
Define "Empowerment"
Definition
The delegation of power or authority to subordinates in an organization, also known as power sharing.
Term
Define "Engineering Technology"
Definition
Technology that tends to be complex because there is substantial variety in the tasks performed, but activities are usually handled on the basis of established formulas, procedures, and techniques.
Term
Define "Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)"
Definition
A system that collects, processes, and provides information about a company's entire enterprise.
Term
Define "Entrepreneurial Stage"
Definition
The life cycle stage in which an organization is born and its emphasis is on creating a product and surviving in the marketplace.
Term
Define "Entrepreneurial Structure"
Definition
An organization form that consists mainly of a top manager and workers in the technical core; occurs typically in small start-up companies.
Term
Define "Escalating Commitment"
Definition
Persisting to invest time and money in a solution despite strong evidence that it is not working.
Term
Define "Ethical Dilemma"
Definition
The result of when each alternative choice or behavior seems undesirable beacause of a potentially negative ethical consequence.
Term
Define "Ethics"
Definition
The code of moral principles and values that governs the behaviors of a person or group with respect to what is right or wrong.
Term
Define "Ethics Committee"
Definition
A cross-functional group of executives who oversee company ethics.
Term
Define "Ethics Hotline"
Definition
A telephone number employees can call to seek guidance as well as report questionable behavior.
Term
Define "Evidence-Based Management"
Definition
A commitment to make more informed and intelligent decisions based on the best available facts and evidence.
Term
Define "Executive Dashboard"
Definition
A software program that presents key business information in graphical, easy-to-interpret form and alerts managers to any deviations or unusual patterns in the data; sometimes called a business performance dashboard.
Term
Define "Executive Information System (EIS)"
Definition
A higher-level application that facilitates decision making at the highest levels of management, these systems are typically based on software that can convert large amounts of complex data into pertinent information and provide that information to top managers in a timely fashion.
Term
Define "Explicit Knowledge"
Definition
Formal, systematic knowledge that can be codified, written down, and passed on to others in documents or general instructions.
Term
Define "External Adaptation"
Definition
The manner in which an organization meets goals and deals with outsiders.
Term
Define "Extranet"
Definition
An external communications system that uses the Internet and is shared by two or more organizations.
Term
Define "Factors of Production"
Definition
Resources necessary for production, such as land, raw materials, and labor.
Term
Define "Feedback Control Model"
Definition
A control cycle that involves setting goals, establishing standards of performance, measuring actual performance and comparing it to standards, and changing activities as needed based on the feedback.
Term
Define "Financial Resources"
Definition
A source of horizontal power when a person or department has control over money in an organization.
Term
Define "Flexible Manufacturing Systems (FMS)"
Definition
Using computers to link together manufacturing components such as robots, machines, product design, and engineering analysis to enable fast switching from one product to another.
Term
Define "Focus Strategy"
Definition
A business strategy that concentrates on a specific regional market or buyer group.
Term
Define "Formalization"
Definition
The degree to which an organization has rules, procedures, and written documentation.
Term
Define "Formalization Stage"
Definition
The life cycle stage that involves the installation and use of rules, procedures, and control systems.
Term
Define "Functional Grouping"
Definition
A grouping that consists of employees who perform similar functions or work processes or who bring similar knowledge and skills to bear.
Term
Define "Functional Matrix"
Definition
Type of matrix structure in which the functional bosses have primary authority and the project or product managers simply coordinate product activities.
Term
Define "Functional Structure"
Definition
Organization structure in which activities are grouped together by common function from the bottom to the top of the organization.
Term
Define "Garbage Can Model"
Definition
Decision-making model that describes the pattern or flow of multiple decisions within an organization
Term
Define "General Environment"
Definition
Those sectors that might not have a direct impact on the daily operations of a firm but will indirectly influence it.
Term
Define "Generalist"
Definition
An organization that offers a broad range of products or services or serves a broad market.
Term
Define "Global Companies"
Definition
Companies that no longer think of themselves as having a single home country; sometimes called stateless corporations.
Term
Define "Global Geographic Structure"
Definition
Structure that divides the world into geographic regions, with each geographic division reporting to the CEO.
Term
Define "Global Matrix Structure"
Definition
A form of horizontal linkage in an international organization in which both product and geographical structures are implemented simultaneously to achieve a balance between standardization and globalization.
Term
Define "Global Product Structure"
Definition
Structure in which the product divisions take responsibility for global operations in their specific product area.
Term
Define "Global Stage"
Definition
The stage of international development in which the company transcends any one country.
Term
Define "Global Teams"
Definition
Cross-border work groups made up of multiskilled, multinational members whose activities span multiple countries; also called transnational teams.
Term
Define "Globalization Strategy"
Definition
The standardization of product design, manufacturing, and marketing strategy throughout the world.
Term
Define "Goal Approach"
Definition
An approach to effectiveness that is concerned with an organization's outputs and how well the organization has met its output goals.
Term
Define "Groupthink"
Definition
The tendency of people in groups to suppress contrary opinions for the sake of group harmony.
Term
Define "Hawthorne Studies"
Definition
A series of experiments on worker productivity begun in 1924 at the Hawthorne plant of Western Electric Company in Illinois; attributed employees' inreased output to managers' better treatment of them during the study.
Term
Define "Heroes"
Definition
Organization members who serve as models or ideals that illustrate and support desired cultural norms and values.
Term
Define "High-velocity Environments"
Definition
Industries in which competitive and technological change is so extreme that market data is either unavailable or obsolete, strategic windows open and shut quickly, and decisions must be made quickly with limited information.
Term
Define "Horizontal Coordination Model"
Definition
A model of the three components of organizational design deeded to achieve new product innovation: departmental specialization, boundary spanning, and horizontal linkages.
Term
Define "Horizontal Grouping"
Definition
A grouping in which employees are organized around core work processes, the end-to-end work, information, and material flows that provide value directly to customers.
Term
Define "Horizontal Linkage"
Definition
Communication and coordination horizontally across organizational departments.
Term
Define "Horizontal Structure"
Definition
Organization structure that organizes employees around core processes rather than by function, product, or geography.
Term
Define "Hybrid Structure"
Definition
Structure that combines characteristics of various structural approaches tailored to specific strategic needs.
Term
Define "Idea Champions"
Definition
Organization members who provide the time and energy to make change happen; sometimes called advocates, intrapreneurs, and change agents.
Term
Define "Idea Incubator"
Definition
A safe harbor in which ideas from employees throughout the organization can be developed without interference from company bureaucracy or politics.
Term
Define "Imitation"
Definition
The act of adopting a decision tried elsewhere in the hope that it will work in this situation.
Term
Define "Incremental Decision Model"
Definition
Decision-making model that describes the structured sequence of activities undertaken from the discovery of a problem to its solution.
Term
Define "Indirect Interlock"
Definition
Occurs when a director of company A and a director of company B and both directors of company C.
Term
Define "Information Reporting System"
Definition
The most common form of management information system, this type of system provides mid-level managers with reports that summarize data and support day-to-day decision making.
Term
Define "Inspiration"
Definition
An innovative, creative solution that is not reached by logical means.
Term
Define "Institutional Environment"
Definition
Norms, values, and expectations from stakeholders (customers, investors, boards, government, community, etc).
Term
Define "Institutional Perspective"
Definition
The view of how organizations survive and succeed through congruence between an organization and the expectations from its institutional environment.
Term
Define "Institutional Similarity"
Definition
The emergence of a common structure and approach among organizations in the same field; called institutional isomorphism in the academic literature.
Term
Define "Integrated Enterprise"
Definition
An organization that uses advanced IT to enable close coordination within the company as well as with suppliers, customers, and partners.
Term
Define "Integration"
Definition
The quality of collaboration among departments or organizations.
Term
Define "Integrator"
Definition
A position or department created solely to coordinate several departments.
Term
Define "Intellectual Capital"
Definition
The sum of an organization's knowledge, experience, understanding, relationships, processes, innovations, and discoveries.
Term
Define "Intelligence Team"
Definition
Cross-functional group of managers and employees, usually led by a competitive intelligence professional, who work together to gain a deep understanding of a specific competitive issue.
Term
Define "Intensive Technology"
Definition
Technology that provides a variety of products or services in combination to a client.
Term
Define "Interdependence"
Definition
The extent to which departments depend on each other for resources or materials to acomplish their tasks.
Term
Define "Intergroup Conflict"
Definition
The behavior that occurs among organizational groups when participants identify with one group and perceive that other groups may block their group's goal achievement or expectations.
Term
Define "Interlocking Directorate"
Definition
Formal linkage that occurs when a member of the board of directors of one company sits on the board of directors of another company.
Term
Define "Internal Integration"
Definition
A state in which members develop a collective identity and know how to work together effectively.
Term
Define "Internal Process Approach"
Definition
An approach that looks at internal activities and assesses effectiveness by indicators of internal health and efficiency.
Term
Define "International Division"
Definition
A division organized to handle business in other countries.
Term
Define "International Stage"
Definition
The second stage of international development, in which the company takes exports seriously and begins to think multidomestically.
Term
Define "Interorganizational Relationships"
Definition
The relatively enduring resource transactions, flows, and linkages that occur among two or more organizations.
Term
Define "Intranet"
Definition
A private, companywide information system that uses the communications protocols and standards of the Internet and the World Wide Web but is accessible only to people within the company.
Term
Define "Intuitive Decision Making"
Definition
Decision making based on experience and judgement rather than sequential logic or explicit reasoning.
Term
Define "Job Design"
Definition
The assignment of goals and tasks to be accomplished by employees.
Term
Define "Job Enlargement"
Definition
An expansion of the number of different tasks performed by an employee in a job.
Term
Define "Job Enrichment"
Definition
Designing a job to provide greater responsibility, recognition, and opportunities for growth and development.
Term
Define "Job Rotation"
Definition
Moving employees from job to job to give them a greater variety of tasks.
Term
Define "Job Simplification"
Definition
The variety and difficulty of tasks performed by a single person are reduced.
Term
Define "Joint Optimization"
Definition
The goal of the sociotechnical systems approach, which states that an organization functions best when the social and technical systems are designed to fit the needs of one another.
Term
Define "Joint Venture"
Definition
A separate entity created with two or more active firms as sponsors.
Term
Define "Knowledge"
Definition
A conclusion drawn from information that has been linked to other information and compared to what is already known.
Term
Define "Knowledge Management"
Definition
The ability to systematically find, organize, and make available a company's intellectual capital and to foster a culture of continuous learning and knowledge sharing so that organizational activities build on what is already known.
Term
Define "Labor-Management Teams"
Definition
A cooperative apprach designed to increase worker participation and provide a cooperative model for union-management problems.
Term
Define "Large Group Intervention"
Definition
An approach that brings together participants from all parts of the organization, often including key stakeholders from outside the organization as well, in an off-site setting to discuss problems or opportunities and plan for change.
Term
Define "Large-batch Production"
Definition
A manufacturing process characterized by long production runs for standardized parts.
Term
Define "Lean Manufacturing"
Definition
A process that uses highly trained employees at every stage of the production process, who take a painstaking approach to details and problem solving to cut waste and improve quality.
Term
Define "Learning Organization"
Definition
An organization that promotes communication and collaboration so that everyone is engaged in identifying and solving problems, enabling the organization to continuously experiment, improve, and increase its capability.
Term
Define "Legends"
Definition
Stories of historic events that may have been embellished with fictional details.
Term
Define "Legitimacy"
Definition
The general perception taht an organization's actions are desirable, proper, and appropriate within the environment's system of norms, values, and beliefs.
Term
Define "Level of Analysis"
Definition
In systems theory, the subsystem on which the primary focus is placed; four levels of analysis normally characterize organizations.
Term
Define "Liaison Role"
Definition
A role in which a person is located in one department but has the responsibility for communicating and achieving coordination with another department.
Term
Define "Life Cycle"
Definition
The concept that organizations are born, grow older, and eventually die.
Term
Define "Long-Linked Technology"
Definition
The combination within one organization of successive stages of production, with each stage using as its inputs the production of the preceding stage.
Term
Define "Low-cost Leadership Strategy"
Definition
A strategy of increasing market share by keeping costs low compared to competitors.
Term
Define "Machine Bureaucracy"
Definition
An oganization form suited to a simple, stable environment, in which there is extensive formalization and specialization, a tall heirarchy, a goal of efficiency, and a technical core typically oriented to mass production.
Term
Define "Management Champion"
Definition
A manager who acts as a supporter and sponsor of a technical champion to shield and promote an idea within the organization.
Term
Define "Management Control Systems"
Definition
Broadly defined as the formal routines, reports, and procedures that use information to maintian or alter patterns in organizational activities.
Term
Define "Managerial Decision Making (MIS)"
Definition
A computer-based system that provides information and support for managerial decision making.
Term
Define "Management Science Approach"
Definition
Organization decision making that uses quantitative models to analyze numerous variables and arrive at the best solution; the analog to the rational approach by individual managers.
Term
Define "Managerial Ethics"
Definition
Principles that guide the decisions and behaviors of managers with regard to whether they are right or wrong.
Term
Define "Market Control"
Definition
The use of price competition to evaluate the output and productivity of an organization or its major departments and divisions.
Term
Define "Mass Customization"
Definition
Using mass-production technology to quickly and cost-effectively assemble goods that are uniquely designed to fit the deands of individual customers.
Term
Define "Matrix Structure"
Definition
Organizational structure in which both product division and functional structures (horizontal and vertical) are implemented simultaneously.
Term
Define "Mechanistic"
Definition
An organization system marked by rules, procedures, a clear hierarchy of authority, and centralized decision making.
Term
Define "Mediating Technology"
Definition
Technology that allows each department to work independently by virtue of providing products or services that mediate or link clients from the external environment.
Term
Define "Meso Theory"
Definition
An approach to organization studies that concerns the integration of both micro and maro levels of analysis.
Term
Define "Mimetic Forces"
Definition
The pressure to copy or model other organizations that appear to be successful.
Term
Define "Mission"
Definition
The organization's reason for existence; describes the organization's shared values and beliefs and its reason for being.
Term
Define "Mission Culture"
Definition
A culture characterized by emphasis on a clear vision of the organization's purpose and on the achievement of goals, such as sales growth, profitability, or market share, to help acheive the purpose.
Term
Define "Multidomestic"
Definition
Manager mindset in which competitive issues in each country are viewed independently of other countries; the company deals with each country individually.
Term
Define "Multidomestic Strategy"
Definition
Strategy in which competition in each country is handled independently of competition in other countries.
Term
Define "Multifocused Grouping"
Definition
A grouping in which the organization embraces two or more structural grouping alternatives simultaneously, often called matrix or hybrid.
Term
Define "Multinational Stage"
Definition
The stage of international development in which a company has marketing and production facilities in many countries and more than one-third of its sales outside its home country.
Term
Define "Myths"
Definition
Stories that are consistent with the values and beliefs of the organization but are not supported by facts.
Term
Define "Negotiation"
Definition
The bargaining process that often occurs during confrontation and that enables the parties to systematically reach a solution.
Term
Define "Network Centrality"
Definition
A source of power based on being centrally located in the organization and having access to information and people that are critical to the company's success.
Term
Define "Networking"
Definition
Electronically linking people and departments within a particular building or across corporate offices, enabling them to share information and cooperate on projects.
Term
Define "New-venture Fund"
Definition
A fund that provides financial resources for employees to develop new ideas, products, or businesses.
Term
Define "Niche"
Definition
A domain of unique environmental resources and needs.
Term
Define "Non-Core Technology"
Definition
A department work process that is important to the organization but is not directly related to its primary mission.
Term
Define "Nonprogrammed Decision"
Definition
Novel and poorly defined, these decisions are required when no procedure exists for solving a problem.
Term
Define "Nonroutine Technology"
Definition
Technology characterized by high task variety, and the conversion process is not analyzable or well understood.
Term
Define "Nonsubstitutability"
Definition
A source of horizontal power when a department's function cannot be performed by other readily available resources.
Term
Define "Normative Forces"
Definition
Pressures to achieve standards of professionalism and to adopt techniques that are considered by the professional community to be up to date and effective.
Term
Define "Official Goals"
Definition
Formally stated definition of business scope and outcomes the organization is trying to achieve.
Term
Define "Open Innovation"
Definition
An approach that extends the search for and commercialization of new products beyond the boundaries of the organization.
Term
Define "Operative Goals"
Definition
Goals stated in terms of outcomes sought through the actual operating procedures of the organization.
Term
Define "Organic"
Definition
An organization system marked by free-flowing, adaptive processes, an unclear hierarchy of authority, and decentralized decision making.
Term
Define "Organization Development (OD)"
Definition
A behavioral science field devoted to improving performance through trust, open confrontation of problems, employee empowerment and participation, the design of meaningful work, cooperation between groups, and the full use of human potential.
Term
Define "Organization Structure"
Definition
Designates formal reporting relationships, including the number of levels in teh hierarchy and the span of control of managers and supervisors; identifies the grouping together of individuals into departments and of departments into the total organization; and includes the design of systems to ensure effective communication, coordination, and integration of efforts accross departments.
Term
Define "Organization Theory"
Definition
A macro examination of organizations that analyzes the whole organization as a unit.
Term
Define "Organizational Behavior"
Definition
A micro approach to organizations that focuses on the individuals within organizations as the relevant units of analysis.
Term
Define "Organizational Change"
Definition
The adoption of a new idea or behavior by an organization.
Term
Define "Organizational Decision Making"
Definition
The process of identifying and solving problems.
Term
Define "Organizational Decline"
Definition
A condition in which a substantial, absolute decrease in an organization's resource base occurs over a period of time.
Term
Define "Organizational Ecosystem"
Definition
A system formed by the interaction of a community of organizations and their environment.
Term
Define "Organizational Environment"
Definition
All elements that exist outside the boundary of the organization and have the potential to affect all or part of the organization.
Term
Define "Organizational Form"
Definition
An organization's specific technology, structure, products, goals, and personnel.
Term
Define "Organizational Goal"
Definition
A desired state of affairs that the organization attempts to reach.
Term
Define "Organizational Innovation"
Definition
The adoption of an idea or behavior that is new to the organization's industry, market, or general environment.
Term
Define "Organizational Politics"
Definition
The activities of acquiring, developing, and using power and other resources to influence others and obtain the preferred outcome when there is uncertainty or disagreement about choices.
Term
Define "Organizations"
Definition
Social entities that are goal-directed, designed as deliberately structured and coordinated activity systems, and are linked to the external environment.
Term
Define "Organized Anarchy"
Definition
Extreemly organic organizations characterized by highly uncertain conditions.
Term
Define "Outcome Control"
Definition
A management focus on monitoring and rewarding results rather than on how those results are obtained.
Term
Define "Outsourcing"
Definition
Contracting out certain functions or tasks, such as manufacturing or credit processing, to other companies.
Term
Define "Personnel Ratios"
Definition
The proportions of administrative, clerical, and professional support staff.
Term
Define "Point-Counterpoint"
Definition
A decision-making technique that divides decision makers into two groups and assigns them different, often competing responsibilities.
Term
Define "Political Model"
Definition
A definition of an organization as being made up of groups that have separate interests, goals, and values in which power and influence are needed to reach decisions.
Term
Define "Political Tactics for Using Power"
Definition
These include building coalitions, expanding networks, controlling decision premises, enhancing legitimacy and expertise, and making a direct appeal.
Term
Define "Pooled Interdependence"
Definition
The lowest form of interdependence, in which work does not flow between departments.
Term
Define "Population"
Definition
A set of organizations engaged in similar activities with similar patterns of resource utilization and outcomes.
Term
Define "Population-ecology Perspetive"
Definition
Focuses on organizational diversity and adaptation within a population of organizations.
Term
Define "Power"
Definition
The potential ability of one person (or department) to influence other people (or departments) to carry out orders or to do something they would not otherwise have done.
Term
Define "Power Distance"
Definition
The level of inequality people are willing to accept in an organization.
Term
Define "Power Sources"
Definition
The five sources of horizontal power in organizations are dependency, financial resources, centrality, nonsubstitutability, and the ability to cope with uncertainty.
Term
Define "Problem Consensus"
Definition
The level of agreement among managers about the nature of a problem or opportunity and about which goals and outcomes to pursue.
Term
Define "Problem Identification"
Definition
The decision-making stage during which information about environmental and organizational conditions is monitored to determine if performance is unsatisfactory and to diagnose the cause of shortcomings.
Term
Define "Problem Solution"
Definition
The decision making stage during which alternative courses of action are considered and one alternative is selected and implemented.
Term
Define "Problemistic Search"
Definition
Search that occurs when managers look around in the immediate environment for a solution to quickly resolve a problem.
Term
Define "Process"
Definition
An organized group of related tasks and activities that work together to transform inputs into outputs that create value for customers.
Term
Define "Professional Bureaucracy"
Definition
A form of organization made up primarily of highly skilled professionals, such as in hospitals, universities, law firms, and consulting firms.
Term
Define "Product and Service Change"
Definition
Change that pertains to the product or service outputs of an organization.
Term
Define "Product Matrix"
Definition
Type of matrix structure in which the project or product managers have primary authority and functional managers simply assign technical personnel to projects and provide advisory expertise as needed.
Term
Define "Programmed Decisions"
Definition
Repetitive and well defined, these decisions are used when procedures exist for resolving the problem.
Term
Define "Prospect Theory"
Definition
Theory that suggests that the threat of a loss has a greater impact on a decision than the possibility of an equivalent gain.
Term
Define "Prospector"
Definition
A business strategy of innovating, taking risks, seeking out new opportunities, and growing.
Term
Define Rational Approach"
Definition
Decision-making process based on systematic analysis of a problem followed by choice and implementation in a logical sequence.
Term
Define "Rational Model"
Definition
A model of organization characterized by rational decision processes, clear goals and choices, centralized power and control, an efficiency orientation, and little conflict among groups; an ideal not fully achievable in the real world.
Term
Define "Rational-legal Authority"
Definition
Authority based on employees' belief in the legality of rules and the right of those elevated to positions of authority to issue commands.
Term
Define "Reactor"
Definition
A response to environmental threats and opportunities in an ad hoc rather than strategic fashion.
Term
Define "Reciprocal Interdependence"
Definition
The highest level of interdependence, in which the output of one operation is the input of a second, and the output of the second operation is the input of the first (for example, a hospital).
Term
Define "Reengineering"
Definition
The redesign of a vertical organization along its horizontal workflows and processes.
Term
Define "Resource Dependence"
Definition
A situation in which organizations depend on the environment but strive to acquire control over resources to minimize their dependence.
Term
Define "Resource-based Approach"
Definition
An organizational perspective that assesses effectiveness by observing how successfully the organization obtains, integrates, and manages valued resources.
Term
Define "Resource-dependence Theory"
Definition
Theory that organizations try to minimize their dependence on other organizations for the supply of important resources and try to influence the environment to make resources available.
Term
Define "Retention"
Definition
The preservation and institutionalization of selected organizational forms.
Term
Define "Rites and Ceremonies"
Definition
The elaborate, planned activities that make up a special event and are often conducted for the benefit of an audience.
Term
Define "Role"
Definition
A part in a dynamic social system that allows an employee to use his or her discretion and ability to achieve an outcome or meet a goal.
Term
Define "Routine Technology"
Definition
Technology characterized by little task variety and the use of objective, computational procedures.
Term
Define "Rule of Law"
Definition
That which arises from a set of codified principles and regulations that describe how people are required to act, that are generally accepted in society, and that are enforceable in the courts.
Term
Define "Satasficing"
Definition
The acceptance of a satisfactory rather tahn a maximum level of performance, enabling an organization to achieve several goals simultaneously.
Term
Define "Scientific Management"
Definition
Emphasizes scientifically determined jobs and management practices as the way to improve efficiency and labor productivity.
Term
Define "Sectors"
Definition
Subdivisions of the external environment that contain similar elements.
Term
Define "Selectionn"
Definition
The process by which a new organizational form is determined to suit the environment and survive, or is "selected out" and fails.
Term
Define "Sequential Interdependence"
Definition
A serial form of interdependence in which the output of one operation becomes the input to another operation.
Term
Define "Service Technology"
Definition
Technology characterized by simultaneous production and consumption, customized output, customer participation, intangible output, and being labor intensive.
Term
Define "Simple-Complex Dimension"
Definition
The number and dissimilarity of external elements relevant to an organization's operation.
Term
Define "Six Sigma"
Definition
A highly ambitious quality standard that specifies a goal of no more than 3.4 defects per million parts; also, a set of control procedures that emphasizes teh relentless pursuit of quality.
Term
Define "Skunkworks"
Definition
A separate, small, informal, highly autonomous, and often secretive group that focuses on breakthrough ideas for the business.
Term
Define "Small-Batch Production"
Definition
A manufacturing process, often custom work, that relies heavily on the human operator and is not highly mechanized.
Term
Define "Social Audit"
Definition
Measures and reports the ethical, social, and environmental impact of an organization's operations.
Term
Define "Social Capital"
Definition
The quality of interactions among people and the degree in which they share a common perspective.
Term
Define "Social Networking"
Definition
A peer-to-peer communication channel, where people interact in an online community, share personal data and photos, and produce and share a variety of information and opinions.
Term
Define "Sociotechnical Systems Approach"
Definition
An approach that combines the needs of people with the organization's need for technical efficiency.
Term
Define "Sources of Intergroup Conflict"
Definition
Factors that generate conflict, including goal incompatibility, differentiation, task interdependence, and limited resources.
Term
Define "Specialist"
Definition
An organization that provides a narrower range of goods or services or that serves a narrower market.
Term
Define "Stable-unstable Dimension"
Definition
Refers to whether elements in the environment are dynamic.
Term
Define "Stakeholder"
Definition
Any group within or outside of an organization that has a stake in the organization's performance.
Term
Define "Stakeholder Approach"
Definition
Integrates and balances diverse organizational activities by looking at various organizational stakeholders and what they want from the organization.
Term
Define "Standardization"
Definition
Policies that ensure all branches of the company at all locations operate in the same way.
Term
Define "Stories"
Definition
Narratives based on true events that are frequently shared among organizational employees and told to new employees to inform them about an organization.
Term
Define "Strategic Contingencies"
Definition
Events and activites both inside and outside an organization that are essential for attaining organizational goals.
Term
Define "Strategic Intent"
Definition
A situation in which all the organization's energies and resources are directed toward a focused, unifying, and compelling overall goal.
Term
Define "Strategy"
Definition
a plan for interacting with the competitive environment to achieve organizational goals.
Term
Define "Strategy and Structure Change"
Definition
Change that pertains to the administrative domain in an organization.
Term
Define "Strategy Map"
Definition
A visual representation of teh key drivers of an organization's success that shows how specific outcomes in each area are linked.
Term
Define "Structural Dimensions"
Definition
Describe the internal characteristics of an organization, and create a basis for measuring and comparing organizations.
Term
Define "Structure"
Definition
The formal reporting relationships, groupings, and systems of an organization.
Term
Define "Struggle for Existence"
Definition
The concept that organizations and populations of organizations are engaged in a competitive struggle over resources, and each organizational form is fighting to survive.
Term
Define "Subcultures"
Definition
Cultures that develop within an organization that reflect the common problems, goals, and experiences that members of a team, department, and other unit share.
Term
Define "Supply Chain Management"
Definition
Managing the sequence of suppliers and purchasers, covering all stages of processing from obtaining raw materials to distributing finished goods to consumers.
Term
Define "Switching Structures"
Definition
An organization creates an organic structure when such a structure is needed for teh initiation of new ideas and reverts to a more mechanistic structure to implement the ideas.
Term
Define "Symbol"
Definition
Something that represents another thing.
Term
Define "Symptoms of Structural Deficiency"
Definition
Signs that the organization structure is out of alignment, includig delayed or poor-quality decision making, failure to repsond innovatively to environmental changes, and too much conflict.
Term
Define "Tacit Knowledge"
Definition
Knowledge based on personal experience, rules of thumb, intuition, and judgment; knowledge that is difficult to put into writing.
Term
Define "Tactics for Enhancing Collaboration"
Definition
These include techniques such as integration devices, confrontation and negotiation, intergroup consultation, member rotation, and shared mission and superordinate goals that enable groups to overcome differences and work together.
Term
Define "Tactics for Increasing Power"
Definition
These include entering areas of high uncertainty, creating dependencies, providing resources, and satisfying strategic contingencies.
Term
Define "Task"
Definition
A narrowly defined piece of work assigned to a person.
Term
Define "Task Environment"
Definition
Setors with which the organization interacts directly and that have a direct impact on the organization's ability to achieve its gaols.
Term
Define "Task Force"
Definition
A temporary committee composed of representatives from each organizational unit affected by a problem.
Term
Define "Team Building"
Definition
Activities that promote the idea that people who work together can work as a team.
Term
Define "Teams"
Definition
Permanent task forces, often used in conjunction with a full-time integrator.
Term
Define "Technical Complexity"
Definition
The extent of mechanization of the manufacturing process.
Term
Define "Technical Knowledge"
Definition
The degree of understanding and agreement about how to solve problems and reach organizational goals.
Term
Define "Technology"
Definition
The work processes, techniques, machines, and actions used to transform organizational inputs into outputs.
Term
Define "Technology Change"
Definition
Change in an organization's production process, including its knowledge and skill base, that enables distinctive competence.
Term
Define "Time-based Competition"
Definition
Competition based on delivering products and services faster than competitors, giving companies a competitive edge.
Term
Define "Traditional Authority"
Definition
Authority based on a belief in traditions and in the legitimacy of the status of people exercising authority through those traditions.
Term
Define "Transaction Processing System (TPS)"
Definition
A system that automates the organization's routine, day-to-day business transactions.
Term
Define "Transnational Model"
Definition
A form of horizontal organization that has multiple centers, subsidiary managers who intiate strategy and innovations for the company as a whole, and unity and coordination achieved through corporate culture and shared vision and values.
Term
Define "Uncertainty"
Definition
Condition that exists when decision makers do not have sufficient information about environmental factors, and they have a difficult time predicting external changes.
Term
Define "Uncertainty Avoidance"
Definition
Within a cultural group, the degree to which members are uncomfortable with uncertainty and ambiguity and thus support beliefs that promise certainty.
Term
Define "Values-based Leadership"
Definition
A relationship between a leader and followers taht is based on shared, strongly internalized values that are advocated and acted upon by the leader.
Term
Define "Variation"
Definition
The appearance of new, diverse forms in a population of organizations.
Term
Define "Variety"
Definition
In terms of tasks, the frequency of unexpected and novel events that occur in the conversion process.
Term
Define "Venture Teams"
Definition
A technique used to foster creativity within an organization by setting up a small team as its own company to pursue innovations.
Term
Define "Vertical Information System"
Definition
A strategy for increasing vertical information capacity.
Term
Define "Vertical Linkages"
Definition
Communication and coordination activities connecting the top and bottom of an organization.
Term
Define "Virtual Network Grouping"
Definition
A loosely connected cluster of separate components.
Term
Define "Virtual Network Structure"
Definition
The firm subcontracts many or most of its major processes to separate companies and coordinates their activities from a small headquarters organization, sometimes called a modular structure.
Term
Define "Virtual Team"
Definition
A team made up of organizationally or geographically dispersed members who are linked primarily through advanced information and communications technologies.
Term
Define "Whistle-blowing"
Definition
Employee disclosure of illegal, immoral, or illegitimate practices on the part of the organization.
Term
Define "Wiki"
Definition
A Web page or collection of pages designed to allow people to freely create, share, and edit content using any Web browser.
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