chapter 14

Review Questions 1. We read an article the other day that said it's getting harder to find good people willing to serve on a corporate board of directors. Given what you learned in this chapter, speculate on why it's hard to attract good people to this job. 2. What makes professional/scientist jobs different, such that they qualify for special group status in many companies? Why is the compensation of knowledge workers so frequently linked to the amount of time these workers have been out of school? 3. The differential between the salary of top executives and the lowest paid workers in the same country is quite small in Japan, at least in comparison to the United States. The same is true in unions (president of union versus union workers). Explain why the differential might be small in Japan and in U.S. unions but much larger in pri- vate U.S. corporations. 4. Romance Novels, Inc, located in Cheektowaga, NY, has gradually increased the number of contingent workers (full-time, temporary) from 10 percent of the workforce to about 28 percent today. Why might they do this? Also, what equity problems can arise from hiring contingent workers, especially when they work alongside regular employees? 5. Why is it easier to explain a $2 million payout to Jordan Spieth for working four days to win a Masters Championship than it is to explain why William Clay Ford made $30 million as CEO of Ford Motor Company? USA Today