Buissiness Leadership Exam

Key Terms

• Performance Efficiency: This means getting good results while using as little time, money, and resources as possible. It's about being effective and smart with what you have.

• Organizational Performance: This is how well a company is doing at reaching its goals. A company can be successful in many ways, like making a lot of money, creating a great product, or keeping employees happy.

• Organization: A group of people who come together to achieve specific goals. Examples include schools, businesses, or sports teams.

• Functional Manager: This is a type of manager who is in charge of a specific department, like marketing, finance, or human resources. They focus on one part of the organization, making sure everything runs smoothly in their area.

• Open System: An open system means the company doesn’t just work by itself. It interacts with the outside world, like customers, suppliers, or other businesses. It needs to stay connected to succeed.

• Top/Middle/Lower Level Manager:

  • Top-Level Managers are the big decision-makers, like CEOs or company founders. They set the overall direction and vision for the company.

  • Middle-Level Managers manage smaller departments or groups, helping execute the top-level managers’ plans.

  • Lower-Level Managers work directly with the staff to make sure the daily tasks are done correctly.

• Productivity: This is how much work is done compared to the amount of resources used. A company can improve productivity by doing more with less, like using fewer materials or less time to make the same or better products.

• Automation: Automation is when machines, computers, or robots do the work instead of humans. For example, a factory may use a robot to put pieces together, which makes work faster and reduces errors.

• Performance Effectiveness: This means achieving the right outcomes and meeting the goals set for a task or project. It's about getting the job done well.

• Henry Mintzberg’s 10 Managerial Roles: These are different tasks that managers perform. They are grouped into three categories:

  1. Interpersonal roles: Managers build relationships, like being a leader or a figurehead.

  2. Informational roles: Managers gather and share information, like being a spokesperson.

  3. Decisional roles: Managers make important decisions, like handling conflicts or setting goals.

• Team Leader: A manager who guides a team, making sure everyone works well together and moves toward the team’s goal. They don’t just give orders; they help the team stay motivated and focused.

• Front-Line Manager: These are managers who supervise the workers directly doing the day-to-day tasks, like salespeople or factory workers. They make sure things run smoothly in the short term.

• Scientific Management: This is a theory by Frederick Taylor that focuses on improving the efficiency of workers through research and analysis. It looks at finding the best way to do a job to make it quicker and easier.

• Katz’s Essential Managerial Skills:

  1. Technical skills: Knowing how to do specific tasks or work in the company.

  2. Human skills: Being good at working with people, understanding emotions, and solving conflicts.

  3. Conceptual skills: The ability to think about big ideas, solve complex problems, and understand how different parts of the company fit together.

• Emotional Intelligence: This is the ability to understand and control your own emotions, as well as recognize and influence the emotions of others. It’s important for leaders to handle stress, communicate well, and build relationships.

• Mission Statement: A short sentence that explains the purpose of a company. It describes what the company stands for and what it aims to achieve.

• Leadership: Leadership is about inspiring and guiding people to work towards a common goal. It’s about making decisions, motivating others, and creating a vision for the future.

• Visionary Leadership: This type of leadership focuses on seeing the future and guiding people toward it. Visionary leaders inspire others by creating a compelling future and making plans to get there.

• Strategic Plans: These are long-term plans that set out the goals and direction of a company. They are usually for the next few years and focus on big-picture goals.

• Tactical Plans: These are short-term plans that support the strategic plan. They are focused on specific actions or projects that help achieve the bigger goals.

• Operational Plans: These plans focus on day-to-day activities. They are the smallest, most detailed plans that guide employees to do their work effectively.

• Planning Tools and Techniques: These are methods and tools that help companies create good plans, like Gantt charts (for tracking tasks), SWOT analysis (to look at strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats), and the BCG Matrix (to decide where to focus efforts in the company).

• Transformational/Transactional Leadership:

  • Transformational leadership: Leaders inspire and motivate people by encouraging them to work towards big, meaningful goals.

  • Transactional leadership: Leaders focus on giving rewards or punishments based on performance. It’s more about day-to-day tasks and maintaining order.

• Motivation: Motivation is what drives people to work hard and achieve their goals. It can come from within (intrinsic motivation, like pride in your work) or from outside (extrinsic motivation, like rewards or recognition).

• Intrinsic/Extrinsic Rewards:

  • Intrinsic rewards: Internal rewards, like feeling good about yourself or proud of your work.

  • Extrinsic rewards: External rewards, like money, prizes, or praise.

• Flexibility: This is the ability to adapt to changes or unexpected situations. It helps companies and workers handle challenges and stay productive.

• Job Satisfaction: Job satisfaction is how happy or content a person is with their job. If a person likes their work, feels valued, and enjoys their environment, they are satisfied with their job.

• ERG Theory: This theory suggests that people need three things to be happy:

  1. Existence (basic needs like food and safety)

  2. Relatedness (the need for good relationships with others)

  3. Growth (the need to learn, develop, and reach potential)

• Empowerment: Empowerment is about giving employees more control and responsibility over their work. It helps people feel more valued and motivated.

• Organizational Behaviour: This is the study of how people act and work in organizations. It helps companies understand why people behave the way they do at work and how to improve performance.

• Job Enrichment/Job Design/Alt Work Schedules:

  • Job Enrichment: Making a job more interesting by adding tasks or responsibilities.

  • Job Design: Organizing tasks and responsibilities in a way that is motivating and efficient.

  • Alternative Work Schedules: Flexible work hours or working from home to give employees more control over their time.

• Ethical Imperialism/Universalism:

  • Ethical Imperialism: The belief that your own ethical beliefs should apply everywhere, regardless of culture.

  • Universalism: The belief that some ethical principles are the same for everyone, everywhere, no matter the culture.

• Active Listening/Feedback:

  • Active Listening: Paying full attention when someone is speaking, making sure you understand, and asking questions to clarify.

  • Feedback: Giving advice or comments to help someone improve or continue doing a good job.

• Teams/Teamwork/Synergy:

  • Teams: Groups of people working together to achieve a common goal.

  • Teamwork: The effort of everyone working together.

  • Synergy: When a team works well together, the result is better than if each person worked alone.

• Social Loafing: This is when people do less work because they are part of a group. They rely on others to do the job instead of helping themselves.

• Formal/Informal Groups:

  • Formal Groups: Groups that are created by the organization, like a work team or department.

  • Informal Groups: Groups that form naturally, like friends or coworkers who like to spend time together.

• Virtual Team: A team that works together online or through technology, without meeting in person.

• Self-Managing Work Teams: These are teams that don’t have a boss. The team members work together to manage their tasks and make decisions on their own.

• Norms and Cohesiveness:

  • Norms: The rules or expectations that a group follows.

  • Cohesiveness: How well the group members get along and work together. A strong sense of teamwork leads to greater success.

• Effective Communication: This is about sharing information clearly and understanding what others say. Good communication helps teams work well and makes sure everyone knows what’s going on.

Study Questions

• Four functions of management: These are the basic tasks managers do:

  1. Planning: Deciding what to do and how to do it.

  2. Organizing: Getting the right people and resources to do the work.

  3. Leading: Inspiring and guiding people to do their best.

  4. Controlling: Checking if things are going as planned and making changes if needed.

• Social Responsibility Strategies: These are the ways a company can help society, like donating to charity or reducing pollution, while still making money.

• Short-range vs. Long-range Plans:

  • Short-range plans are for the near future (weeks or months).

  • Long-range plans are for the far future (years).

• SWOT Analysis and BCG Matrix:

  • SWOT Analysis: A way to look at a company’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats.

  • BCG Matrix: A tool that helps businesses decide where to focus by looking at products as Stars (successful), Cash Cows (steady income), Dogs (low growth), and Question Marks (uncertain future).

• Classic Leadership Styles:

  1. Autocratic: The boss makes all the decisions.

  2. Democratic: The boss includes the team in decisions.

  3. Laissez-faire: The boss lets the team make decisions.

• Power and Influence – Position vs. Personal Power:

  • Position Power: Power from being in charge (like a manager or CEO).

  • Personal Power: Power from being liked or trusted by others.

• Vroom’s Expectancy Theory: This says people will work hard if they believe their effort will lead to a good outcome (like a reward or promotion).

• Positive/Negative Reinforcement, Punishment, and Extinction:

  • Positive Reinforcement: Giving a reward for good work.

  • Negative Reinforcement: Taking away something bad as a reward.

  • Punishment: Giving a consequence for bad work.

  • Extinction: Stopping a behavior by not giving any reward or attention.

• Motivating Each Generation:

  • Older workers may value job security.

  • Younger workers may want flexibility and opportunities to learn.

• Human Resources: The people in a company. They help the company succeed by doing their jobs well.

• Why We Need More Female Leaders: Female leaders bring different perspectives, help create inclusive environments, and are good at solving problems. More female leaders can help make better decisions.

• Performance Equation: Performance = Ability × Effort × Resources. To do well, a person needs to have the right skills, put in enough effort, and have the necessary tools or resources.

• Effective Team: A team where everyone works together and shares the same goals. An effective team communicates well and supports each other.

• Stages of Team Development:

  1. Forming: Getting to know each other.

  2. Storming: Working through disagreements.

  3. Norming: Settling into a routine.

  4. Performing: Doing great work together.

  5. Adjourning: Finishing the work and going separate ways.

• 5 Conflict Management Styles:

  1. Avoiding: Not addressing the problem.

  2. Accommodating: Giving in to others’ needs.

  3. Competing: Trying to win at all costs.

  4. Compromising: Finding a middle ground.

  5. Collaborating: Working together to find a solution that works for everyone.