POM Midterm – Modules 1-2 Fall 2026

Principles of Management midterm prep: Module 1.1 Why Humanistic Management, 1.2 What We Have in Common, 2.1 Building Effective Teams, 2.2 Creating Team Culture, 2.3 Communicating with Teams. 53 written-exam Q&A cards.

Traditional management education emphasizes knowing and doing. What does the third dimension, being, add, and why does Pirson argue it matters?

Being adds character and identity — who you are becoming: values, self-awareness, moral judgment. | Pirson argues knowing + doing alone produce merely competent managers; adding being develops the whole person into leaders who protect human dignity, foster well-being, and contribute positively to society.

Choose one concept from the course list. Explain what it means to know it, to do it, and to be it. (Example: leadership)

Know leadership = understand theories and frameworks (trait theory, Tuckman, humanistic management). | Do leadership = apply the skills: communicate vision, make decisions, run effective meetings, give feedback. | Be leadership = embody it as identity: an ethical, purpose-driven person whose values and character show up consistently, especially under pressure.

Weber's bureaucratic management focuses on structure. Name two of its core principles. How have you seen this show up in organizations?

Two principles (any two): hierarchical management structure | division of labor | formal selection process | career orientation | formal rules and regulations | impersonality. | Shows up as: rigid chain of command, everything done by written SOPs/policy, hiring and promotion by credentials and seniority rather than relationships.

Summarize Taylor's scientific management. Why does he suggest there is "one best way"?

Taylor: study each task scientifically to find the most efficient method; select and train workers for tasks; managers plan while workers execute; managers and workers cooperate for efficiency. | "One best way" because he believed science should replace rule-of-thumb guesswork — time/motion study reveals the single optimal method, and standardization maximizes output.

Distinguish management from leadership. Name one thing each provides that the other does not.

Management = controlling, monitoring, maintaining the status quo (provides order, stability, reliable execution). | Leadership = inspiring and motivating people toward a shared purpose and desired future (provides vision, change, and direction).

Studies suggest roughly 30% of leadership emergence may be inheritable. What does that figure tell us, and what does it not tell us?

Tells us: genetics influence who emerges as a leader — nature supplies potential and personality predispositions (Arvey et al., 2006). | Does NOT tell us: which genes or traits, nor that leadership is fixed — 70% is non-genetic, and development (education, experience, coaching) matters more for actual effectiveness.

Explain one of the main arguments in Larry Fink's 2026 letter to investors.

"Growing with Your Country": economic growth created through capital markets flows mostly to people who already own assets. | Fink argues leaders must ensure more people participate in and benefit from future growth — think long term, invest in innovation and AI while managing its social consequences, because AI will create enormous wealth but widen inequality if gains stay concentrated.

Describe 2 UN Sustainable Development Goals that your CCIP company could address.

Goal 4 – Quality Education: e.g., affordable tutoring or skill-building services for underserved students. | Goal 8 – Decent Work & Economic Growth: e.g., fair-wage jobs or supporting small local businesses. | (Other valid picks: Goal 10 Reduced Inequalities, Goal 13 Climate Action — any two with a concrete company link work.)

Name one thing Chobani CEO Hamdi Ulukaya did that represents his leadership approach. How is this representative of what a humanistic manager would do?

In his "Anti-CEO Playbook," Ulukaya hired refugees and gave employees an ownership stake (about 10% of the company), putting people and community ahead of profit-first thinking. | This is humanistic management in action: treating employees as ends with inherent dignity (not costs), stakeholder focus over shareholder primacy, and business as a vehicle for well-being.

What does the "Dancing Guy" tell us about leadership and followership? How might this impact the team dynamics in your CCIP team?

A leader without followers is just a guy dancing — the first follower transforms a lone nut into a leader by publicly joining in. | Leadership is co-created; followership legitimizes it. | For a CCIP team: shared leadership — anyone can lead by visibly supporting a good idea, and creating momentum matters more than having a title.

Explain any 3 determinants of job satisfaction. Which one is most important to you and why?

Three determinants (from course research): meaningful work and autonomy (Hackman & Oldham job characteristics) | fair pay, quality of supervision, and coworker relationships (work attitudes) | fit between the person and the job/values (Kristof-Brown) | growth and purpose (Deci & Ryan self-determination; Herzberg motivators). | Most important = your pick — defend it with a personal reason (e.g., autonomy because you do your best work when trusted).

Gallup attributes roughly 70% of the variance in employee engagement to what? What is one specific thing an organization can do about this?

About 70% of engagement variance comes from managers — "fix management first." | One specific action: invest in leadership development, e.g., train managers in coaching and recognition, or build a strong recognition program (companies with one see 31% lower voluntary turnover, SHRM 2023).

According to Gallup's State of the Global Workplace 2023, 77% of people are disengaged or actively disengaged. What is the financial toll, and how much has disengagement cost globally?

Global cost: $8.8 trillion in lost productivity per year. | Per disengaged employee toll: 34% lower productivity, 18% lower sales, 81% greater absenteeism, 23% higher healthcare costs vs. engaged peers.

Name the four drives in Lawrence and Nohria's model and give one organizational practice that could satisfy each.

Drive to Acquire (rewards, status, achievement) — practice: performance bonuses and clear promotion paths. | Drive to Bond (relationships, belonging) — practice: team rituals and an inclusive culture. | Drive to Comprehend (learning, meaning) — practice: challenging assignments and growth opportunities. | Drive to Defend (fairness, security) — practice: transparent policies and job security.

How does Hicks define dignity? How is it different from respect? What kinds of things lead to someone receiving respect?

Hicks: dignity is the inherent worth of every person and the fundamental need to have that worth recognized by others. | Different from respect: dignity is inherent and unearned — everyone has it; respect is earned through actions and admired qualities. | Respect comes from things like competence, integrity, hard work, and contributions.

Name three of Hicks' ten essential elements of dignity and describe what honoring each could look like in practice.

Acceptance of identity — let people express themselves without judgment (e.g., welcome different viewpoints in discussion). | Recognition — acknowledge talents and contributions (e.g., credit someone's idea by name). | Inclusion — make people feel they belong (e.g., invite the quiet teammate into the conversation).

Describe a time your own dignity was undermined at work or school. Which of Hicks' ten elements was violated, and how could dignity be restored?

Template: describe a specific moment (e.g., a boss dismissed your concern in front of others). | Violated element: e.g., Acknowledgment — you weren't listened to or validated; or Recognition — your work went uncredited. | Restore it: the other person listens fully, validates the concern, apologizes sincerely, and changes the behavior going forward.

Barry-Wehmiller employs "Truly Human Leadership." Name and explain one situation from the film in which BW demonstrates how it supports employees.

Bob Chapman's Barry-Wehmiller measures success by the lives it touches: e.g., during business downturns the company avoided layoffs through shared furloughs so no family lost its livelihood, and it puts leaders through "Truly Human Leadership" training focused on listening and care. | This treats employees as people with families and dignity — ends in themselves, not means to profit.

Which of the four drives are present in the humanistic perspective? What about the economistic perspective? Why does this matter for business?

Humanistic perspective honors all four drives — acquire, bond, comprehend, and defend — treating people as whole humans. | Economistic perspective centers mainly on acquire (and defend of assets), treating people as resources for shareholder gain. | It matters because organizations that satisfy all four drives get higher engagement, well-being, and sustainable performance; neglecting drives fuels the disengagement epidemic.

Contrast the economistic and the humanistic perspective in terms of who is prioritized and whose voices are heard (governance). How does this shape business?

Economistic: shareholders are prioritized; governance is top-down and investor voices dominate — business is shaped around profit maximization. | Humanistic: all stakeholders (employees, customers, communities, investors) are prioritized; governance is inclusive and employee voices are heard — business is shaped around dignity, purpose, and shared prosperity alongside profit.

What is B Corp? Is it a legal entity, or something else? Give an example.

B Corp is a certification by B Lab — not a legal entity. | It's voluntary and assesses the triple bottom line: profit, people, planet. | Example: Patagonia (also: Athleta, Ben & Jerry's, TOMS, Bombas).

Explain 3 out of 6 principles of Humanistic Management.

Human Dignity — every person has inherent worth and must be treated as an end, not a means. | Well-Being — organizations should support human flourishing, not just output. | Ethics & Responsibility — decisions must weigh societal consequences. | (Also: Stakeholder Focus, Purpose Beyond Profit, sustainable prosperity.)

Teams are often misused in organizations. Under what conditions are they most necessary? When are they not required or even desirable?

Most necessary with high task complexity, high interdependence, and need for innovation/creativity — where synergy (interactive effort beating the sum of individual efforts) is possible. | Not needed for simple, independent tasks — a group of individuals working separately is faster and cheaper; forcing a team there wastes time.

Name Tuckman's five stages of team formation, in order, and say what happens in each.

1. Forming — members meet, polite, avoid conflict, establish roles. | 2. Storming — differences surface, disagreements and tension emerge. | 3. Norming — shared norms and trust develop, common ground found. | 4. Performing — high productivity and synergy, roles clear, self-managing. | 5. Adjourning — task ends, reflect on achievements, closure and transition.

Why can a team not simply skip the storming stage? How can it help the team's effectiveness?

Storming surfaces real differences in ideas, expectations, and work styles that must be addressed. | Working through it builds genuine trust, clarifies norms, and improves decisions — skipping it just buries conflict, which resurfaces later and damages effectiveness.

Which Tuckman stage is your CCIP team in right now? Provide the evidence and specify what the team needs to do at that stage.

Template: name the stage and cite evidence (e.g., "Storming — we've started openly disagreeing about roles and two members clashed over the project direction"). | Then state what the stage needs: e.g., in storming — address affective conflict early, communicate openly, let shared leadership rise; in norming — lock in communication and accountability norms; in performing — support each other and keep improving.

Name the three ABC components from the "Team Composition and ABCs of Teamwork" article and give one example of each.

Affective/Motivational — how members feel: e.g., trust or cohesion (or conflict, efficacy). | Behavioral Processes — what members do: e.g., coordination, backup behavior, communication. | Cognitive States — what members think together: e.g., shared mental models, team learning.

Distinguish surface-level from deep-level attributes in team composition. Which does research find has the greater influence on team performance?

Surface-level attributes are visible demographics like age, gender, and function. | Deep-level attributes are underlying traits like values, personality, and ability. | Research finds deep-level attributes have the greater influence — they shape trust, cooperation, self-regulation, shared cognition, and learning.

Explain Collins' "first who, then what" principle. Why is it important for team success? How can you ensure the right people on the bus in your CCIP team?

"First who, then what": get the right people on the bus (and in the right seats) before deciding where to drive it. | Important because the right team can adapt to any strategy, while the wrong team fails even with a good plan. | In an assigned CCIP team: surface each member's strengths early, assign roles to fit those strengths, and build shared norms so everyone contributes where they're strongest.

Name the three parts of the "Input-Output" framework and give one example from each.

Inputs — e.g., member traits and skills, goals/objectives, resources like time and technology, leadership. | Team processes — e.g., conflict management, communication, accountability, decision making. | Outputs — e.g., performance results measured by KPIs, and relationship outcomes like cohesion.

What are the three elements of Hackman's model of team effectiveness? Name them and explain why each is important.

1. Team performance — delivers high-quality work that creates real value. | 2. Team capability — the team gets stronger at coordinating, learning, and solving problems together. | 3. Individual growth — members gain knowledge, confidence, and skills. | Each matters because of Hackman's trap: a team can hit today's target yet burn out or fall apart tomorrow if capability and growth are ignored.

Which team effectiveness framework did we use in class as a diagnostic tool to assess breakdowns within a team? What are its three components? How was it applied?

The Input-Output framework. | Three components: Inputs, Team processes, Outputs. | Applied in the "miserable on my team" activity: students asked the professor only yes/no questions framed by the model to diagnose whether the breakdown lived in inputs, processes, or outputs.

What are Lencioni's five dysfunctions of a team?

1. Absence of trust | 2. Fear of conflict | 3. Lack of commitment | 4. Avoidance of accountability | 5. Inattention to results.

According to Lencioni, peer-to-peer accountability can be the hardest dysfunction to overcome. Why is holding a peer accountable harder than being held accountable by a boss?

A boss has formal authority, so accountability from above feels role-legitimized. | Holding a peer accountable has no positional cover — it risks the personal relationship, feels confrontational, and people avoid the discomfort of calling out someone at their own level.

In Lost at Sea, team scores are usually better than most individual scores. Explain why, and then explain a condition under which the team would do worse than its best individual.

Teams usually win by pooling knowledge and catching each other's errors — collective wisdom corrects individual blind spots. | A team does worse than its best individual when a dominant voice or groupthink suppresses dissent, the expert defers to the group, or social loafing lets weak input dilute the best thinking.

Define team culture. What is the difference between a strong and a weak team culture?

Team culture = shared values, beliefs, assumptions, and norms developed over time — "how we do things around here." | Strong culture = members highly agree on and consistently follow the same norms (clarity + consistency). | Weak culture = low agreement and inconsistency about how the team works.

Give one benefit and one risk of a strong team culture.

Benefit: clear norms and expectations — faster coordination, stronger identity and belonging. | Risk: conformity and groupthink — the team resists change and dysfunctional norms get deeply embedded.

What is the main argument of Social Identity Theory? Give one potential benefit and one potential downside of social identity within a team.

Tajfel: people derive part of their identity from group membership and naturally favor their ingroup. | Benefit: stronger commitment, trust, and belonging. | Downside: "us vs. them" divisions — intergroup bias and conflict with other teams.

Define psychological safety. Give two examples of behaviors you would be more likely to see in a psychologically safe team.

Psychological safety = team members feel free to speak up, ask questions, admit mistakes, and offer different viewpoints without fear of humiliation. | Examples: someone admits an error early so the team can fix it; a member asks a "basic" question without shame; someone respectfully challenges the group's plan.

Define groupthink and identify two warning signs that it may be occurring.

Groupthink = the desire for unanimity within a cohesive group overrides realistic evaluation of alternatives, producing poor decisions. | Warning signs (any two): self-censorship / suppression of dissent | illusion of unanimity | pressure to conform | failure to consider alternatives | overconfidence in the decision.

Explain social loafing with an example. Name two conditions that make it more likely.

Social loafing = people exert less effort in a group than when working alone. | Example: in a group project one member coasts while others do the work. | More likely when: individual contributions aren't identifiable or evaluated | team is large (anonymity) | responsibility is diffused | the task feels unimportant.

How does Hurley define trust in his article "Decision to Trust"? Explain the two types of factors affecting trust in organizations.

Hurley: trust is a decision people make when they feel vulnerable, weighing multiple factors — it is measurable, not mysterious. | Two types: personal factors (risk tolerance, level of adjustment, relative power) and situational factors (security, similarities, alignment of interests, benevolent concern, capability, predictability & integrity, communication).

A teammate doesn't trust you because you repeatedly miss deadlines and don't tell them when your work will be late. Identify TWO of Hurley's situational factors you could improve and give one specific action for each.

Predictability & integrity — action: if you'll miss a deadline, message the teammate the moment you know, with a new committed time. | Communication — action: send a brief proactive status update twice a week so they're never guessing.

What does the "super chicken" podcast teach us about balancing competition and cooperation? Give some examples.

Breeding only the most productive "super chickens" produced aggressive flocks with lower total output — selecting for individual stars destroyed the group. | Lesson: hyper-competitive, star-focused cultures underperform cooperative ones. | Example: a sales team ranked stack-style stops sharing leads; a team rewarded for collective results collaborates and wins more overall.

Identify the 5 major phases in the Process View of Conflict and briefly explain what happens in each phase.

1. Prelude — the history, mood, and baggage each party brings. | 2. Triggering event — what ignites the conflict. | 3. Initiation — the conflict becomes obvious through someone's communication or behavior. | 4. Differentiation — parties openly disagree; tension is expressed and the conflict ripens. | 5. Resolution — the conflict is addressed and the parties agree to some outcome.

Conflict is often described with "war" or "storm" metaphors. How might viewing conflict as a "dance" or "tapestry" change the approach? One benefit and one limitation.

A dance/tapestry frame treats conflict as co-created and potentially constructive rather than threatening. | Benefit: less defensiveness, more curiosity — people engage instead of avoiding or escalating. | Limitation: it can minimize real harm or power imbalances and feel naive for serious, high-stakes conflicts.

According to the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict model, what are the five possible modes? Choose 2 and describe when each is most appropriate.

Competing (high assertive, low cooperative) | Collaborating (high/high) | Compromising (medium/medium) | Avoiding (low/low) | Accommodating (low/high). | E.g., Competing fits emergencies needing fast, decisive action. | Accommodating fits when the relationship matters more than the issue, or when you realize you're wrong.

Define advocacy and inquiry with examples.

Advocacy = stating your view forcefully to win converts — win/lose orientation (e.g., "We should do X, and here's why every other option fails"). | Inquiry = asking genuine questions to understand others' views and reach the best solution — problem-solving orientation (e.g., "What concerns you most about X? What are we missing?").

According to "How Management Teams Can Have a Good Fight," name two strategies teams can use to engage in productive conflict.

Any two: remember you're all on the same team | debate on the basis of facts and data | develop multiple alternatives (even ones nobody supports) | share agreed-upon goals | inject humor | keep power balanced | resolve issues without forcing consensus | don't make it personal | stay intellectually humble.

Explain the three components of active-empathic listening.

Sensing — notice explicit and implicit emotional/relational cues (what's not being said). | Processing — comprehend, remember, and integrate: assure them you'll remember, summarize points of agreement and disagreement, track what's said. | Responding — show engagement: reflect back feelings, acknowledge without immediately jumping to solutions.

What is feedforward, and how does it differ from traditional feedback?

Feedforward = future-focused suggestions for improvement and development. | It differs because traditional feedback looks backward at past performance and triggers a social-threat response (raising heart rate, clouding thinking); feedforward is developmental, about potential — e.g., AstraZeneca replaced performance feedback with "feedforward and performance development."

In the 12 Angry Men movie, was the foreman the group's leader? Explain how shared leadership emerged.

The foreman was the formal/positional leader — he ran procedure — but not the group's real leader. | Juror 8 (Davis) earned influence without a title through calm inquiry and courage in dissenting. | Shared leadership emerged as others took ownership: requesting the secret ballot, re-examining evidence, and voicing changed votes.

Apply the Input-Output framework to evaluate team dynamics in the 12 Angry Men movie. Name one input and one process that shaped the verdict.

Input: member traits and attitudes — e.g., Juror 3's personal bias and Juror 8's integrity shaped what each brought in. | Process: conflict management — disagreement shifted from personal attacks to task-focused debate, and inquiry-driven communication let evidence change minds, producing the not-guilty outcome.