management (exam 2) vocabulary

job design

creating jobs in an organization that can be done effectively and efficiently while providing meaningful work for the employee.

Skill Variety

the extent to which a job requires a worker to use a wide range of different skills and abilities.

task identity

the extent to which the job effects the lives of other people.

autonomy

the extent to which the employee is allowed to make choices about scheduling and how best to perform tasks.

Feedback

the extent to which the employee receives clear and direct information on how well they are performing the task.

organizational structure

the grouping together of jobs into work groups, the delegation of authority and responsibility within an organization, and the formal reporting relationships of employees to supervisors.

functional structure

groups jobs that require similar skills and experience together into a single work group reporting to the leader of the organization.

Divisional Structure

An organizational setup where employees with different skills are grouped together based on a product, customer type, or geographic area they serve.

Matrix Structure

groups jobs together simultaneously by function and by division.

Delegation of Authority

ultimate authority for decisions rests with the shareholders of the business

Centralized Organizational Structure

in this type of structure most decisions are made, or at least must be approved, by the senior executives at the top of the organization.

Decentralized Organization Structure

in this type of structure many decisions are delegated to lower levels of management with those managers accountable for the consequences of their decisions (good or bad)

Span of Control

the number of direct reports assigned to a manager

Levels of Hierarchy

the number of managerial levels between the top and bottom of an organization

Liaisons

individuals appointed with the responsibility to coordinate the activities of their group with the activities of one or more other groups

Task Forces

a group made up of multiple groups who are assembled to address a specific need for coordination

Cross Functional Teams

Teams made up of members from different departments or specialties who work together to manage an important ongoing activity in the organization.

Integrating Roles

Individuals who, alongside their main job duties, are also responsible for coordinating activities between different groups within the organization.

Organizational Culture

the set of norms, beliefs, values, and attitudes that are

shared by a group of individuals within an organization.

Dimension of Culture: Content

What is considered important in an organization—such as values like teamwork, accountability, or innovation.

Dimension of Culture: Consensus

The degree to which organizational norms and values are shared across members of the organization.

Dimension of Culture: Intensity of Feelings

How strongly employees feel about a norm and how much recognition or backlash someone gets for following or breaking it.

Level of Organizational Culture: Artifacts

Visible elements of an organization’s culture—like dress code, layout, how people talk, or official materials. Easy to see, but deeper meaning depends on how insiders react to them.

Level of Organizational Culture: Values

The stated beliefs, philosophies, and norms of the organization. These guide behavior, but understanding them requires knowing how people actually think and feel.

Level of Organizational Culture: Assumptions

Unspoken, deeply held beliefs that shape how members perceive and act. These are often unconscious but are the core of the organization's true culture.

Weak Organizational Culture

happens when there isn’t one clear, shared way of thinking, feeling, or behaving in an organization. People don’t all follow the same values or norms, leading to inconsistency across the organization.

Strong Organizational Culture

when most employees share the same values, beliefs, and work-related attitudes, even if they come from different backgrounds outside of work.

Strategic Human Resources Management

the process of identifying the people and skills a company needs to reach its goals, and creating plans to hire, train, support, and retain that talent.

Talent

helps organizations build unique strengths (competencies) that are essential for gaining a competitive advantage.

Succession Planning

identifying future candidates for key roles and evaluating employees’ potential to take on more responsibility.

Recruitment and Selection

It's the process of finding, attracting, and hiring qualified candidates for current and future job openings in an organization.

Training

helping employees learn the skills they need to do their current job well.

Development

preparing employees for future roles or greater responsibilities in their current job.

Performance & Appraisal Feedback

the process of evaluating an employee’s work and giving helpful feedback to improve performance and show how they contribute to the organization.

Compensation and Benefits

A program that offers fair pay and incentives to support the company’s goals, values, and strategy.

Employee Benefits

include health, dental, and life insurance, vacation and sick days, dependent care support, and other valuable programs offered to employees.

Goal of Compensation

help attract and retain qualified employees and to motivate them to perform to their fullest potential.

Employee Relations

programs and activities an organization uses to build and maintain a positive relationship with its employees.

Labor Relations in unionized organizations

refers to the management of relationships between the organization and its unionized employees, including negotiations, agreements, and conflict resolution.

Civil Rights Act of 1964

It prohibits discrimination in employment based on race, color, religion, gender, or national origin.

Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972 (EEOC)

It strengthened the enforcement of the Civil Rights Act by establishing itself to investigate and resolve workplace discrimination complaints.

Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967

It prohibits discrimination against workers aged 40 and older and bans mandatory retirement ages in most jobs.

Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973

It prohibits discrimination against individuals with physical or mental disabilities in programs receiving federal financial assistance.

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990

It bans employment discrimination against individuals with disabilities and requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations to help them perform their jobs.

Quid Pro Quo Sexual Harassment

occurs when agreeing to or refusing sexual acts affects job-related outcomes, like hiring, promotions, or keeping one’s job.

Hostile Work Environment Sexual Harassment

happens when unwelcomed sexual behavior creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive workplace. The behavior must be severe and pervasive

Employee Engagement

the mindset an employee has about their job and employer, along with how positively and productively they act at work.

State of Mind

refers to how employees feel and think about their job and organization, including their attitudes, motivation, and connection to the workplace.

Positive and Productive Actions

They are self-initiated efforts by employees to go above and beyond their job duties—showing extra effort, commitment, and support for their organization’s goals.

Discretionary Effort

going above and beyond the requirements and usual expectations of the job in order to further support the company’s success.

Say

Employees speak positively about the organization to coworkers, potential hires, and customers

Stay

Employees feel a strong sense of loyalty and want to remain with the organization

Strive

Employees are motivated to work hard and go above and beyond in their roles

Step 1 in improving employee engagement

Clearly explain what Employee Engagement means to the organization and why increasing it matters. Identify and share the benefits for both employees and the organization.

Step 2 in improving employee engagement

Measure current engagement levels using surveys, focus groups, and observations. Identify key drivers, set improvement goals, and prioritize initiatives likely to boost engagement.

Step 3 in improving employee engagement

Create detailed action plans for each priority area. Monitor progress, adjust as needed, and verify if engagement goals and expected benefits are being met.

Step 4 in improving employee engagement

Recognize those who contributed to improvements and share the progress organization-wide to reinforce commitment and success in boosting engagement.

Performance Management

the process of achieving strong results by continuously measuring, assessing, evaluating, and improving an organization’s performance.

Role of Leadership in Performance Management

involves setting and clearly communicating the organization’s direction and investing in the people and resources needed to achieve that vision

Customer Focus in Performance Management

creating superior value by understanding customer needs and delivering solutions more effectively and efficiently than competitors.

High-Performance Environment

integrates different functions and processes to work collaboratively toward outstanding organizational results

Fact-Based Management

uses balanced, data-driven assessments to track performance, identify gaps, and guide continuous improvement based on objective standards

Relentless Improvement

a continuous effort to enhance performance using proven tools and strategies, led by trained experts.

Innovation and Renewal in Performance Management

constantly seeking new ideas and practices to improve and transform the organization beyond today’s standards

Business Process Management (BPM)

the use of processes as a framework to understand how activities in an organization are connected. In this textbook, it focuses specifically on managing these inter-related activities rather than all aspects of performance management.

Process

a series of steps or actions taken to convert a set of inputs into a set

of outputs.

Effective Process

a process that delivers outputs that result in obtaining the desired behaviors from the intended users (customers) of the process.

Efficient Process

aa process that operates effectively (delivers desired outputs) while also generating an adequate return on the capital invested, ensuring profitability.

Process Map

a visual depiction of the multiple steps involved in converting inputs into outputs.

SIPOC

Suppliers, Inputs, Process, Outputs, and Customers.

Swimlane Process Map

a process map that visually organizes steps of a process into "lanes" representing different participants or departments, showing how tasks flow between them and clarifying roles and responsibilities.

Lean Value Process Map

a process map that visually identifies value-creating steps and eliminates waste in a process, focusing on optimizing efficiency and delivering value to customers by streamlining unnecessary activities.

Business Measurement, Assessment, and Evaluation

helps organizations understand how effectively and efficiently processes are performing and how well the organization is doing overall, to identify and prioritize improvement opportunities.

Lagging Measures

to provide data on the organization’s performance after the processes are completed. 

Leading Measures

to evaluate a process while it's in progress or before it starts, and can predict likely outcomes.

“Well Dressed” Measure

a chart that includes all necessary information for quick, complete, and accurate interpretation of the data.

Balanced Scorecard

a performance management tool that helps organizations track both financial and non-financial goals across four perspectives: Financial, Customer, Internal Processes, and Organizational Capacity.

Business Evaluation

the process of collecting and analyzing internal and external data to assess overall performance and identify and prioritize improvement opportunities.

Six Sigma

a performance management approach aiming for extremely high quality by reducing variation in processes. It’s process produces no more than 3.4 defects per million outputs, meaning it consistently meets customer requirements with minimal variation.

DMAIC

a structured Six Sigma improvement cycle: Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control. It’s used to enhance process performance and reduce defects.

Lean Methodology

focuses on eliminating waste in processes to improve efficiency, speed, and value delivered to the customer.

Waste

any activity that is not creating value for the customer or the converter in a process. 

Leadership

the ability to influence others, shown through followers' motivation, loyalty, and high performance in support of the leader’s vision and goals.

Leadership Effectiveness

The overall performance of the organization the leader oversees. The satisfaction of the leader’s subordinates (and sometimes peers and superiors).

Character Traits Leadership Theory

This theory focuses on personal and psychological traits of leaders. Key traits linked to leadership are: physical energy, above-average intelligence, and prosocial influence (helping others and society).

Behavior-Based Leadership Theory

This theory focuses on leader behaviors or styles. It identifies two main types: Task-Oriented Leadership (focus on completing tasks) and Person-Oriented Leadership (focus on building relationships).

Charismatic Leadership

Influences others through an engaging, persuasive, and attractive personality.

Servant Leadership

Builds support from subordinates by proactively helping them succeed in their roles.

Transformational Leadership

A style that drives major organizational change by promoting a clear vision and goals, explaining the rationale for change, and connecting subordinates' identity and interests to those goals to gain their support.

Strategic Leadership

Focuses on the vision and strategies needed for success, motivating others to plan and act on those strategies.

Empowerment-Oriented Leadership

Gives subordinates resources and authority to independently develop and carry out goal-aligned plans.

Transactional Leadership

Motivates subordinates through rewards, punishments, and authority to reinforce desired behaviors.

Contingency Leadership Theory

A theory by Fred Fiedler that suggests leadership effectiveness depends on the leader's traits or behaviors and the situation or context in which they lead.

Decision-Making

the process of choosing from a set of alternative options.

Communication

the sharing of information between two or more people.

Process of Communication

A sender shares a message, and a receiver interprets it.

Organizational Communication

Communication directed to a broad audience within or outside the organization, such as employees, customers, or stakeholders.

Interpersonal Communication

Message exchanges between two or several people, either within the organization or with external parties.

Importance of Preparation in Negotiation

It involves knowing your goals, key issues, sources of power, alternatives, and what incentives you can offer to achieve your ideal outcome.

Source of Power in Negotiation

It comes from knowing your BATNA (Best Alternative to a Negotiated Agreement). If a deal is worse than your BATNA, walk away to avoid the "Agreement Trap."