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Acceptance theory of management
principle that emphasizes the willingness of subordinates to accept those with authority to act.
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Accountability
the answering for one's actions and accepting the consequences.
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Affirmative Action
a plan that requires employers to make an extra effort to hire and promote people who belong to a protected group.
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Authority
the formal and legitimate right of a manager to make decisions, issue orders, and allocate resources to achieve organizational goals.
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Behavioral management theory
a method that focuses on people as individuals with needs (also known as the human relations movement).
human relations movement: see behavioral management theory.
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Boundary spanning
the process of gathering information from the external environment to identify current or likely events and determine how those events will affect the organization.
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Brainstorming
an idea-generating process that encourages the development of alternatives while withholding criticism of those alternatives.
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Bureaucracy
a form of organization based on logic, order, and legitimate use of formal authority.
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Centralized organization
authority is concentrated at the top of the organization.
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Chain of command
a line of authority that links all persons in an organization and defines who reports to whom.
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Classical administrative
the branch of classical management theory that emphasizes the flow of information in organizations.
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Classical management theory
a theory, developed during the Industrial Revolution, that proposes "one best way" to perform tasks. Classical management theory developed into two separate branches: the classical scientific school and the classical administrative school.
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Classical Scientific
a branch of the school of classical management theory, whose emphasis is on increasing productivity and efficiency.
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Closed System
an organization that interacts little with its external or outside environment.
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Coercive Power
authority to punish or recommend punishment.
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Communication
the exchange of ideas, messages, or information, by speech, signals, or writing.
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Compensation
all work-related payments, including wages, commissions, insurance, and other benefits.
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Competitive advantage
any aspect of an organization that distinguishes it from its competitors in a positive way.
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Condition of certainty
situation that occurs when the decision maker has perfect knowledge of all the information needed to make a decision.
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Content Theory
identifies physical or psychological conditions that act as stimuli for human behavior.
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Contingency Planning
development of alternative courses of action that can be implemented if and when the original plan proves inadequate because of changing circumstances.
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Contingency Theory
this principle examines the fit between the leader and the situation and provides guidelines for managers to achieve an effective fit (also known as situational theory).
situational theory: see contingency theory.
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Continuous Process
a system that produces goods by continuously feeding raw materials through highly automated technology.
ongoing plans: see continuing plans.
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Control
the systematic process of regulating organization activities to make them consistent with the expectations established in plans, targets, and standards of performance.
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Concurrent Control
method of regulation applied to processes as they are happening.
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Cost-leadership Strategy
system that focuses on keeping costs as low as possible through efficient operations and tight controls.
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Crisis Problem
an unexpected problem that has the potential to lead to disaster if not resolved quickly and appropriately.
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Cross-Functional Teams
groups of experts in various specialties (or functions) who work together on solutions to organizational problems.
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Decentralized Organizations
firms that consciously attempt to spread authority to the lowest possible levels.
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Decision Tree
a diagram that analyzes hiring, marketing, investment, equipment purchases, pricing, and similar decisions. Decision trees assign probabilities to each possible outcome and calculate payoffs for each decision path.
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Delegation
the downward transfer of authority from a manager to a subordinate.
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Demographics
measurements of various characteristics of the people and social groups who make up a society.
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Development Plans
a series of steps that can help employees acquire skills to reach long-term goals, such as job promotions.
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Differentiation Strategy
a plan whereby a company attempts to set the organization's products or services apart form those of other companies.
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Embargo
a prohibition on trade in a particular area.
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Employee Benefits
legally required or voluntary compensation provided to employees in addition to their salaries.
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Empowerment
giving individuals an organization autonomy.
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Expectancy Theory
a motivational theory stating that the three factors that influence behavior are the value of the reward, the relationship of the reward to performance, and the effort required for performance
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Expert Power
a leader's special knowledge or skills regarding the tasks performed by followers.
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Exporting
selling of an organization's products to a foreign broker or agent.
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Feed Forward Controls
method used to identify and prevent defects and deviations from standards.
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Financial Audits
formal investigations to ensure that procedures, policies, laws, and ethical guidelines are followed in the handling and reporting of financial activities.
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Financial Ratio Analysis
the relationship between specific figures on an organization's financial statements; helps explain the significance of those figures.
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Financial Statements
reports that provide management with information to monitor financial resources.
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First-Line Management
the lowest level of management.
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Flextime
an employment alternative that allows employees to decide, within a certain range, when to begin and end each work day.
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Force-Field Analysis
a technique to implement change by determining which forces drive change and which forces resist it.
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Formal Structure
the hierarchical arrangement of tasks and people within an organization.
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Functional Authority
authority to make decisions about specific activities undertaken by personnel in other departments.
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Functional Structure
an organizational design that groups positions into departments on the basis of the specialized activities of the business.
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Functional Teams
work groups that perform specific organizational functions with members from several vertical levels of the hierarchy.
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Grapevine
the informal communications network within an organization (also known as social network and informal channels).
- informal channels: see grapevine.
- social network: see grapevine.
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Incentive Pay
links compensation and performance by paying employees for actual results, not for seniority or hours worked.
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Income Statement
a report that presents the difference between an organization's income and expenses to determine whether the firm operated at a profit or loss over a specified time.
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Informal Organization
the pattern, behavior, and interaction that stems from personal rather than official relationships.
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Interpersonal Communication
real-time, face-to-face, or voice-to-voice conversation that allows immediate feedback.
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Intrapreneurship
organizational culture that allows employees flexibility and authority in pursuing and developing new ideas.
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Job Analysis
a study that determines all tasks and qualifications needed for each position.
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Job Description
a written statement of a job's requirements, processes, and rationale.
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Job Enlargement
a type of job re-design that increases the variety of tasks a position includes (also known as horizontal job loading).
horizontal job loading: see job enlargement.
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Job Enrichment
a type of job re-design that not only includes an increased variety of tasks, but also provides the employee with more responsibility and authority (also known as vertical job loading).
vertical job loading: see job enrichment.
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Job Rotation
temporarily assigning employees to different job, or tasks to different people, on a rotating basis.
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Job Sharing
process in which one full-time job is split between two or more persons (also known as twinning).
twinning: see job sharing.
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Joint Venture
a business relationship formed between a domestic and foreign firm.
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Kaizen
a Japanese term used in the business setting to mean incremental, continuous improvement.
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Leading
establishing and influencing others to follow a specific direction.
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Learning Organizations
firms thatutilize people, values, and systems to continuously change and improve performance based on the lessons of experience.
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Legitimate Power
vested authority stemming from a formal management position in an organization.
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Licensure Agreement
Contract that grants one firm the right to make or sell another company's products.
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Line Authority
a manager's right to direct the work of his or her employees and make decisions without consulting others.
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Liquidity Ratios
measurements of an organization's ability to generate cash.
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Management
the process of administering and coordinating resources effectively, efficiently, and in an effort to achieve the goals of the organization.
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Management Information Systems
(MIS)collects, organizes, and distributes data in such a way that the information meets managers' needs.
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Manager
a person responsible for the work performance of one or more other persons.
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Mass Production
a system used to manufacture a large number of uniform products in an assembly line.
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Means-End Chain
the effective design of organizational goals that encourages the accomplishment of low-level goals as a way of achieving high-level goals.
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Mechanistic Structure
a highly bureaucratic organizational method, with centralized authority, detailed rules and procedures, a clear-cut division of labor, narrow span of controls, and formal coordination.
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Mission Statement
a document that describes what an organization stands for and why it exists.
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Motion Study
research designed to isolate the best possible method of performing a given job.
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Multinational Corporations (MNC)
organizations operating facilities in one or more countries.
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Need Theory
a construct of motivation based upon physical or psychological conditions that act as stimuli for human behavior.
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Network Structure
an operating process that relies on other organizations to perform critical functions on a contractual basis.
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Nonverbal Communication
actions, gestures, and other aspects of physical appearance that can be a powerful means of transmitting messages (also known as body language).
Body language: see nonverbal communication.
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Open System
a method in which an individual or organization must interact with various and constantly changing components in both the external and internal environments.
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Operational Goals
specific, measurable results expected from first-level managers, work groups, and individuals.
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Operational Plan
developed by a first level supervisor as the means to achieve operational objectives in support of tactical plans.
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Organic Structure
a management system founded on cooperation and knowledge-based authority.
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Organization
a group of individuals who work together to accomplish a common goal.
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Organizational Change
a significant change that affects an entire company.
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Organizational Chart
a pictorial display of the official lines of authority and communication within an organization.
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Organizational Climate
the byproduct of organizational culture; it is the barometer for determining the morale of the employees.
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Organizational Culture
an organization's personality.
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Organizational Design
the creation or change of an organization's structure, the configuration and interrelationships of positions and departments.
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Organizational Development (OD)
a plan that focuses on changing an entire organization by changing processes and organizational culture.
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Organizing
the process of establishing the orderly use of resources by assigning and coordinating tasks.
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Orientation
a socialization process designed to provide necessary information to new employees and welcome them into the organization.
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Performance Appraisal
a formal, structured system designed to measure an employee's job performance against designated standards.
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Philosophy of Management
a manager's set of personal beliefs and values about people and work.
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Plan
a blueprint for goal achievement that specifies the necessary resource allocations, schedules, tasks, and other actions.
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Planned Change
the deliberate structuring of operations and behaviors in anticipation of environmental forces.
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Planning
the act of determining the organization's goals and defining the means for achieving them.
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Privacy Laws
legal rights of employees regarding who has access to information about their work history and job performance.
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Procedure
a set of step-by-step directions that explain how activities or tasks are to be carried out.
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Process Theories
rationales that attempt to explain how workers select behavioral actions to meet their needs and determine their choices.
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Profitability Ratios
measurements of an organization's ability to generate profits.
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Quality
reflects the degree to which a goods or services meet the demands and requirements of the marketplace.
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Quantitative Approach
using quantitative techniques, such as statistics, information models, and computer simulations, to improve decision making.
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Queuing Theory
a rationale that helps allocate services or workstations to minimize customer waiting and service cost.
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Quotas
government regulations that limit the import of specific products within the year.
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Recruitment
activities an organization uses to attract a pool of viable candidates.
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Reengineering
redesigning processes requiring input from every employee in the company to achieve dramatic improvements in cost, quality, service, and speed.
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Referent Power
influence that results from leadership characteristics that command identification, respect, and admiration from subordinates (also known as charismatic power).
Charismatic power: see referent power.
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Resources
the people, information, facilities, infrastructure, machinery, equipment, supplies, and finances at an organization's disposal.
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Reward Power
the authority to reward others.
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Risk
the environment that exists when a manager must make a decision without complete information.
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Rule
an explicit statement that tells a supervisor what he or she can and cannot do.
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Satisfice
the making of the best decision possible with the information, resources, and time available.
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Scalar Principle
a system that demonstrates a clearly defined line of authority in the organization that includes all employees.
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Selective Perception
the tendency to single out for attention those aspects of a situation or person that reinforce or appear consistent with one's existing beliefs, values, or needs.
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Self-Fulfilling Prophecy
a belief that a manager can, through his or her behavior, create a situation where subordinates act in ways that confirm his or her original expectations.
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Simulation
a broad term indicating any type of activity that attempts to imitate an existing system or situation in a simplified manner.
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Small-Batch Production
manufacturing of a variety of custom, made-to-order products.
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Strategic Change
revision that takes place when a company changes its tactics (strategy) - possibly even its mission statement - to achieve current goals.
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Strategic Plan
an outline of steps designed with the goals of the entire organization as a whole in mind, rather than with the goals of specific divisions or departments.
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Structural Change
variation that occurs when a company changes its procedures, policies, and rules, and as a result, its organizational structure.
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Structured Problems
familiar, straightforward, and clear difficulties with respect to the information needed to resolve them.
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Tactical Plan
steps detailing the actions needed to achieve the organization's larger strategic plan.
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Tariffs
taxes placed on imports and/or exports in response to a political event.
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Team Structure
organizational design that places separate functions into a group according to one overall objective.
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Technology
the knowledge, machinery, work procedures, and materials that transform inputs into outputs.
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Telecommuting
a work arrangement that allows at least a portion of scheduled work hours to be completed outside of the office, with work at home as one of the options (also known as flexiplace).
flexiplace: see telecommuting.
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Total Quality Management (TQM)
a philosophy that states that uniform commitment to quality in all areas of the organization promotes a culture that meets consumers' perceptions of quality.
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Unity of Command
principle that states that an employee should have one and only one supervisor to whom he or she is directly responsible.
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Unstructured Problems
difficulties that involve ambiguities and information deficiencies and often occur as new or unexpected situations.
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Validity
proof that the relationship between a selection device and some relevant job criterion exists.
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Vision
the ability of the leader to bind people together with an idea.
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Wholly-Owned Subsidiary
a foreign firm owned outright, or with a controlling interest, by an out-of-country firm.
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Work Specialization
the degree to which organizational tasks are divided into separate jobs (also known as the division of labor).
division of labor: see work specialization.
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Zero Defects
a program that emphasizes doing it right the first time.
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