Answer all questions.
1. Compare and contrast the relative importance of the four characteristics that companies look for in managers as they rise through the management hierarchy. That is, describe the similarities and differences in these characteristics among lower, middle, and upper-level managers and explain the reasons for the differences.
2. Top managers are responsible for (1) creating a context for change, (2) developing attitudes of commitment and ownership, (3) creating a positive organizational culture through words and actions, and (4) monitoring their company’s business environment. Of these four dimensions, which ones do you think can also be significantly impacted by the day-to-day actions of middle managers, first-line managers, and team leaders? Explain the rationale for your answer.
3. Compare and contrast the managerial roles of liaison, spokesperson, and negotiator. Explain both the similarities that link these roles behaviorally and the differences Mintzberg draws between them.
4. Describe environmental change and its relationship to punctuated equilibrium theory. Give an example of an industry whose environments are characterized by the punctuated equilibrium model in recent years.
5. Identify and discuss the implications of changes in the political/legal component of the general environment facing organizations over the past decade. Give one example of a relevant recent change. What is the best way for companies to manage their legal responsibilities?
6. Identify and explain the three-step process that managers use to make sense of changes in their external environments. Explain how environmental scanning contributes to organizational performance.
7. Discuss the nature and value of integrity testing to management as a tool in encouraging ethical decision making in their organizations.
8. What is social responsiveness? Identify the four strategies that can be used to respond to social responsibility problems. How do these strategies differ? Use the relationship between social responsibility and economic performance to explain why a company might choose one strategy over another in a given set of circumstances.
