BCOC 132

What is Planning?

An analytical process of pre-determining a course of action to achieve future organizational goals.

What are 3 key characteristics of planning?

Goal-oriented, primary management function, pervasive across all levels, and continuous.

Why does planning reduce organizational risks?

It forces managers to look ahead, anticipate market shifts, and prepare structural contingency plans.

What is the role of planning in management control?

It establishes the baseline standard goals against which actual performance is monitored and evaluated.

What is the first step in the scientific decision-making process?

Defining and identifying the root core problem rather than its surface symptoms.

What is the final step in the scientific decision-making process?

Implementing the decision and establishing feedback loops to monitor real results against targets.

What is a Line organizational structure?

A vertical framework where absolute command flows directly downward from superior to subordinate.

What is a major limitation of a pure Line organizational structure?

It severely overburdens top executives with routine operational details.

What is a Functional organizational structure?

An architecture where work is grouped strictly by specialized domains like Marketing, Finance, or HR.

What is a Line and Staff organizational structure?

A hybrid framework combining vertical line command with auxiliary staff units (expert advisors).

Why is a Line and Staff structure best suited for a commercial bank?

It provides strict line control over funds while utilizing specialized staff experts for technical risks like compliance and cybersecurity.

What is an Informal Organisation?

A natural network of personal and social relationships that emerges organically outside formal bureaucratic protocols.

How can managers strategically use an informal organization's grapevine?

To accelerate internal communication speeds and gauge raw employee sentiment rapidly.

What is Motivation in a business context?

The psychological driving force that inspires employees to perform to the best of their capabilities to achieve organizational goals.

Name the 5 layers of Maslow's Needs Hierarchy from lowest to highest.

Physiological, Safety/Security, Social/Belongingness, Esteem, and Self-Actualization.

What is a major exam critique of Maslow's Needs Hierarchy?

Human needs do not follow a rigid linear sequence; multiple needs can motivate an individual simultaneously.

What are Financial Incentives?

Direct or indirect monetary rewards that satisfy lower-level basic survival and security needs.

What are Non-Financial Incentives?

Psychological or job-enriching rewards like autonomy and recognition that satisfy higher-level psychological needs.

What is a Cooperative Organisation?

A voluntary, self-help association formed on a democratic basis to protect members' economic interests and eliminate middlemen.

What is the voting rule in a Cooperative Organisation?

One Member, One Vote, regardless of individual capital size.

What is the primary motive of a Cooperative Organisation over a standard company?

Service value to its members rather than maximizing investor profit margins.

What are the 2 major limitations of a Cooperative Organisation?

Limited capital pooling capacity and high risk of inefficient management by amateur directors.

What is e-Commerce?

The buying, selling, and marketing of products or data over an electronic network, primarily the internet.

How do e-Commerce and Traditional Commerce differ in geographical scope?

e-Commerce is global and borderless; Traditional Commerce is strictly localized to a physical retail site.

How do e-Commerce and Traditional Commerce differ in operational hours?

e-Commerce is active continuously 24/7/365; Traditional Commerce is bound by fixed daily daytime hours.

What is the Trustee Theory of CSR?

The principle that businesses hold social and material wealth in moral trust for the betterment of the community.

What is the Stakeholder Theory of CSR?

The principle that a corporation is structurally accountable to its employees, suppliers, and society, not just equity shareholders.

What is the Product Life Cycle (PLC)?

A management concept charting a product's lifespan from initial market launch to its eventual removal.

What are the 4 sequential stages of the Product Life Cycle?

Introduction, Growth, Maturity, and Decline.

What defines the Growth stage of the PLC?

Rapid market adoption, steep upward profit trends, and entry of competitive brands.

What defines the Maturity stage of the PLC?

Peak sales volume, market saturation, fierce price competition, and declining net margins.

What is Cost-Oriented Pricing?

Setting prices by calculating total production expenses and adding a fixed percentage profit markup.

What is Demand-Oriented Pricing?

Setting prices based entirely on perceived consumer value and buyer demand strength, independent of production costs.

What is PERT?

Programme Evaluation and Review Technique; a statistical project management tool used to schedule tasks when individual times are uncertain.

What are the 3 time estimates used by PERT?

Optimistic time, Pessimistic time, and Most Likely time.

What is the Critical Path in PERT?

The longest continuous sequence of dependent tasks that determines the absolute minimum time required to finish a project.

What is the principle of Unity of Command?

A structural principle dictating that a subordinate must receive orders from and report to only one single superior manager.

What is Span of Control?

The exact numerical count of subordinates that a single supervisor can effectively manage and oversee without losing quality.

What is Business Ethics?

The formal system of moral rules, corporate principles, and values that govern a business's operational behaviors.

What is the core principle of Delegation of Authority?

Authority must explicitly equal Responsibility, and ultimate accountability can never be completely delegated away by a manager.