Lesson 1

Question 1

Organizational Behaviour

Answer 1

The study of what people think, feel, and do in and around organizations.

Question 2

Organizations

Answer 2

Groups of people who work interdependently towards some purpose.

Question 3

Organizational effectiveness

Answer 3

A broad concept represented by several perspectives, including the organizations fit with the external environment, internal subsystems configuration for high performance, emphasis on organizational learning, and ability to satisfy the needs of key steakholders.

Question 4

Open systems

Answer 4

A perspective which holds that organizations depend on the external environment for resources, affect the environment through their output, and consist of internal subsystems that transforms inputs into outputs.

Question 5

Organizational efficiency

Answer 5

The amount of outputs relative to inputs in the organization’s transformation process.

Question 6

Organizational learning

Answer 6

A perspective which holds that organizational effectiveness depends on the organization’s capacity to acquire, share, use, and store valuable knowledge.

Question 7

Intellectual capital

Answer 7

A company’s stock of knowledge, including human capital, structural capital, and relationship capital.

Question 8

Human capital

Answer 8

The stock of knowledge, skills, and abilities among employees that provide economic value to the organization.

Question 9

Structural capital

Answer 9

Knowledge embedded in an organization’s systems and structure.

Question 10

Relationship capital

Answer 10

The value derived from an organization’s relationship with customers, suppliers, and others.

Question 11

High-performance work practices (HPWP)

Answer 11

A perspective which holds that effective organizations incorporate several workplace practices that leverage the potential of human capital.

Question 12

Stakeholders

Answer 12

Individuals, groups, and other entities that affect, or are affected by, the organization’s objectives and actions.

Question 13

Values

Answer 13

Relatively stable, evaluative beliefs that guide a person’s preferences for outcomes or courses of actions in a variety of situations.

Question 14

Ethics

Answer 14

The study of moral principles or values that determine whether actions are right or wrong and outcomes are good or bad.

Question 15

Corporate social responsibility (CSR)

Answer 15

Organizational activities intended to benefit society and the environment beyond the firm’s immediate financial interests or legal obligations.

Question 16

Four perspectives of organizational effectiveness

Answer 16

• open systems
• organizational learning
• high-performance work practices
• stakeholders

Question 17

Globalization

Answer 17

Economic, social, and cultural connective with people in other parts of the world.

Question 18

Surface-level diversity

Answer 18

The observable demographic or physiological differences in people, such as their race, ethnicity, gender, age, and physical disabilities.

Question 19

Deep-level diversity

Answer 19

Differences in the psychological characteristics of employees, including personalities, beliefs, values, and attitudes.

Question 20

Work-life balance

Answer 20

The degree to which a person minimizes conflict between work and non-work demands

Question 21

Virtual work

Answer 21

Work performed away from the traditional physical workplace by using information technology.

Question 22

Evidence-based management

Answer 22

The practice of making decisions and taking actions based on research evidence.

Question 23

The 4 anchors of organizational behaviour knowledge

Answer 23

• systematic research anchor
• multidisciplinary anchor
• contingency anchor
• multiple levels of analysis anchor

Question 24

Systematic research anchor

Answer 24

Study organizations using systematic research methods.

Question 25

Multidisciplinary anchor

Answer 25

Import knowledge from other disciplines, not just create its own knowledge.

Question 26

Contingency anchor

Answer 26

Recognize that the effectiveness of an action may depend on the situation.

Question 27

Multiple levels of analysis anchor

Answer 27

Understand OB events from three levels of analysis: individual, team, and organization.

Question 28

OB theory helps people to:

Answer 28

• make sense of the workplace
• question and rebuild their personal mental models
• get things done in organizations

Question 29

Contemporary challenges for organizations

Answer 29

• globalization
• increased workforce diversity
• emerging employment relationships

Question 30

Organizational inputs include:

Answer 30

• raw materials
• human resources
• information
• financial resources
• equipment

Question 31

Organizational outputs include:

Answer 31

• Products/services
• employee behaviour
• profits/losses
• waste/pollution

Question 32

Knowledge sharing

Answer 32

• communication
• training
• information systems
• observation

Question 33

Knowledge use

Answer 33

• knowledge awareness
• sensemaking
• autonomy
• empowerment

Question 34

Knowledge storage

Answer 34

• human memory
• documentation
• practices/habits
• databases

Question 35

Knowledge acquisition

Answer 35

• individual learning
• environment scanning
• grafting
• experimentation

Question 36

Intellectual capital is the sum of:

Answer 36

Human capital + structural capital + relationship capital

Question 37

Human capital

Answer 37

Knowledge that people possess and generate.

Question 38

Structural capital

Answer 38

Knowledge captures in the systems and structure.

Question 39

Relationship capital

Answer 39

Value derived from satisfied customers, reliable suppliers, etc.