Supervision Today 8th Edition Stephen P. Robbins - Solutions

A technique to make people more open and self-expressive is calleda. feedback training.b. assertiveness training.c. grapevine training.d. communications training.
What are the three conditions affecting the encoding process?
How does formal and informal communication assist supervisors in daily job-related activities?
Why is it a challenge for employees to engage in active listening?
How Good Are My Listening Skills? (II. A. 2.)
What’s My Face-to-Face Communications Style?(II. A. 1.)
Suppose you were asked by senior management to announce an impending restructuring exercise such as a retrenchment. How would you utilize the grapevine or corporate blogs to communicate the news without causing undue distress and heartache to the staff?
Analyze the communication between the lead supervisor, Sam Case, and the new supervisor in Section A, Paul Banks. What did Sam do wrong?
How could the problem have been prevented? In your answer discuss the requirement for active listening.
Discuss the barriers to effective communication.What should Sam and Paul learn from this experience that will make them better communicators and more effective supervisors?
What barriers were there to communication between the employees of General Mills and Pillsbury?
Although not a “different language” per se, how might the language of the functional areas within the organization have interfered with communication?
How did the employee roles from the combined organizations impact the communication process?
As a supervisor, what suggestions would you offer to improve the communication between groups?
Contrast a group and a team.
Define norms.
Explain the relationship between cohesiveness and group productivity.
Describe who is likely to become an emergent leader in an informal group.
Explain what a supervisor can do when group norms are hindering department performance.
Identify three categories of teams.
List the characteristics of real teams.
List actions a supervisor can take to improve team performance.
Describe the role of teams in continuous-improvement programs.
Two or more interacting and interdependent individuals who come together to achieve a particular objective are called aa. team.b. group.c. task force.d. all of the above.
Acceptable standards that are shared by team members are calleda. behaviors.b. organization culture.c. norms.d. work rules.
Which one of the following is not a reason people join groups?a. Self-esteemb. Securityc. Moneyd. Power
An emergent leader is one whoa. develops group norms for the group to follow.b. establishes group goals to be achieved.c. develops group cohesiveness.d. leads without having formal authority in the organization.
A potential team is one thata. represents a group of individuals who interact primarily to share information and make decisions.b. is heavily influenced by negative synergy.c. is moving in the right direction but is not quite there yet.d. has a set of common characteristics that lead to
Becoming a “free rider” in a group is frequently calleda. social loafing.b. social norming.c. social work teams.d. none of the above.
Which one of the following is not an obstacle to effective teams?a. Lack of trustb. Lack of infightingc. Lack of external supportd. Weak sense of direction
Why are teams central to continuous-improvement programs?a. They allow for specific goals to be set.b. They provide a natural vehicle for employees to share ideas and implement improvements.c. They allow for greater efficiencies and better use of resources.d. They promote workforce diversity.
How do rules and guidelines become norms?
What contributes to the existence of emergent leaders within workgroups?
Is it possible to not belong to a cohesive group and yet be productive at the workplace?
Explain the speed, linear progression, and dynamics of the stages of Tuckman and Jensen’s model of group development.
Why do you think a team was needed for the design of a complex project like the distribution center for HP? How would you classify this team?
Do you believe that the advantages accrued from specialization (see Chapter 4, “Organizing”) are lost or diminished when individuals from different specialties are put together on a team? Discuss.
Do you think Loretta Wilson’s team achieved its objective? Explain.
Thomas’ coach survived the fallout but was heavily criticized for claiming he was unaware of the fraternity-house behavior happening in the locker room. Is it reasonable to believe a coach or any supervisor responsible for creating and monitoring the workplace environment could not know what was
Discuss the topic of group norms as related to this case. How might revising the group norms improve this situation?
Is it reasonable to assume that regardless of your relationship with your teammates, or coworkers, you will still show them respect in the workplace?Why or why not?
Should an organization be expected to monitor and discipline employees engaged in abusive“locker room behavior” intended to toughen up fellow workers and develop an organizational“brotherhood?” Why or why not?
Is the concept of a team bonding through the subjugation and humiliation of some of its junior members valid or do these behaviors exist primarily for the amusement of the more senior members of the group? What does this behavior say about organizational values?
Describe the three purposes of the performance appraisal.
Differentiate formal and informal performance appraisals.
Describe key legal concerns in performance appraisals.
Identify the three most popular sets of criteria that supervisors appraise.
Contrast absolute and relative standards.
List human errors that can distort performance appraisal ratings.
Describe what is meant by the term 360-degree appraisal.
Describe the purpose of employee counseling.
Which one of the following is not a component of an effective performance appraisal system?a. Feedbackb. Developmentc. Salary increased. Documentation
Self-generated feedback about one’s performance is best referred to asa. extrinsic feedback.b. supervisory feedback.c. intrinsic feedback.d. self-performance feedback.
The type of appraisal method that involves a narrative of an employee’s strengths, weaknesses, past performance, potential, and suggestions for improvement is thea. critical incident.b. written essay.c. checklist.d. behaviorally anchored rating scale.
Which one of the following is not an absolute-standards measurement?a. Group-order rankingb. Critical incidentc. Checklistd. Adjective rating scale
The type of performance appraisal error that overstates or understates performance based on the rater’s value system is calleda. similarity error.b. recency error.c. halo error.d. leniency error.
Central tendency isa. rating others in a way that gives special consideration to qualities that appraisers perceive in themselves.b. a tendency to rate an individual high or low based on the impression of some specific factor.c. assigning all ratings as average.d. none of the above.
Which one of the following is not a recommendation for overcoming performance appraisal hurdles?a. Use single ratersb. Use behaviorally based measuresc. Rate selectivelyd. Train appraisers
An emphasis on encouraging training and development efforts in a situation in which an employee’s unwillingness or inability to perform their job satisfactorily is either voluntary or involuntary is descriptive ofa. performance feedback.b. employee counseling.c. 360-degree appraisal.d. discipline.
What are the advantages of an informal appraisal over a formal appraisal?
Why is there a close relationship between the legal framework and performance appraisal?
Are students’ evaluations of their teachers good metrics for their performance appraisal?
How Good Am I at Giving Performance Feedback?(III. A. 3.)
What Are My Course Performance Goals? (I. C. 5.)
Conduct a search on the Internet for articles pertaining to lawsuits between companies and their ex-employees. Is the number of cases increasing or decreasing? Is there any specific industry that tends to have more cases than others? Summarize the articles and present your findings in class.
Many supervisors say that evaluating an employee’s performance is one of their most difficult tasks. Why do you think they feel that way?
What can supervisors do to make performance appraisal an effective process?
What could J.C. Penney leadership have done to make this process more effective?
Why do you think Bill Martin is so concerned about his meeting with his area manager? Should he change the rating methods he uses to evaluate his employees? Why or why not?
What are some of the benefits Bill Martin’s employees get from their performance reviews? What are some drawbacks?
What could Bill do to improve the performance evaluation process in his store?
What are the legal issues Martin and other supervisors need to consider in conducting performance appraisals? Develop a list of guidelines Bill could follow to avoid legal problems.
Discuss the supervisory effects of the Occupational Safety and Health Act.
List the enforcement priorities of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).
Describe what supervisors must do to comply with OSHA record-keeping requirements.
Explain what punitive actions OSHA can impose on an organization.
Describe the leading causes of safety and health accidents.
Explain what supervisors can do to prevent workplace violence.
Explain how a supervisor can create a healthy work site.
Define stress.
Describe the purposes of employee assistance and wellness programs.
A condition in which an accident is about to happen is calleda. an OSHA violation.b. imminent danger.c. serious injury or death.d. none of the above.
A “standard” metric used to compare injuries, illness, or lost workdays in organizations is thea. incidence rate.b. work-related injury log.c. recordability metric.d. OSHA Form 100.
The maximum fine imposed by OSHA on an organization should the violation be severe, willful, and repetitive isa. $10,000.b. $25,000.c. $55,000.d. $70,000.
Laws that help to identify hazardous chemicals in the workplace and require organizations to inform employees of potential exposures are calleda. right-to-work laws.b. right-to-know laws.c. right-to-life laws.d. rights and ethics laws.
Which one of the following is not an accident prevention mechanism?a. Skills trainingb. Protectionc. Valid selection criteriad. Regulation enforcement
Workplace homicide is the number _____ cause of work-related deaths in the United States.a. fourb. threec. twod. one
An unhealthy work environment is best described as a(n)a. OSHA violation.b. sick building.c. imminent danger.d. none of the above.
Injuries sustained by continuous movements of a body part are calleda. musculoskeletal problems.b. carpal tunnel syndrome.c. eye–hand coordination disease.d. none of the above.
What two factors must be present for stress to exist?a. Importance and uncertaintyb. Importance and certaintyc. Unimportance and certaintyd. Unimportance and uncertainty
Describe some of the probable causes of violence in the workplace.
Why is it important for supervisors to play a pivotal role with regard to workplace health and safety?
What are the key criteria needed to implement a successful employee wellness program for organizations?
Conduct a search on the Internet for potentially hazardous industries such as mining, sawmilling, oil and gas refinery, and chemical manufacturing companies. Select one company from each of the four categories and describe what actions have been put in place to create and ensure a safe and healthy
One in five companies offers some form of stress management program. Although such programs are available, many employees may choose not to participate. They may be reluctant to ask for help, especially if a major source of that stress is job insecurity. After all, there’s still a stigma
What do you think about Warren’s approach to controlling employee healthcare costs? Do you agree with it? Why or why not?
What benefits or drawbacks are there to this type of wellness program for employees and the company?
Research company wellness programs. What types of things are companies doing to encourage employee wellness? Are there any things you found that you would recommend Warren implement? Describe.
Do you think Joe would have handled the situation differently if Tim had been a less valued worker?Why?
What is the probable outcome of not filing the accident report on time and with complete honesty?

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Supervision Today 8th Edition Stephen P. Robbins - Solutions

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