Q&A Hero

Q: To resolve conflict successfully, it helps to get feelings out in the open before dealing with the main issues.

Q: In productive teams, conflict is always handled politely--regardless of how strongly team members feel about their viewpoints.

Q: Conflict between persons or groups in an organization is always destructive and must be avoided at all costs.

Q: When making a decision, groups usually go through five phases: orientation, conflict, brainstorm, emergence, and reinforcement.

Q: Group members who play task-facilitating roles are motivated to fulfill personal needs, so they tend to be less productive than other members.

Q: Group members who play team-maintenance roles help everyone to work better together.

Q: Despite the advantages of teamwork, the costs can be high.

Q: In the phenomenon of groupthink, the team may arrive at poor-quality decisions and even act unethically.

Q: One characteristic of effective teams is that one leader tends to take charge and make all the major decisions.

Q: Teams usually achieve lower performance levels than what would have been accomplished by the members working independently.

Q: Cross-functional teams perform several roles, but contain employees from the same department or division.

Q: Solving a temporary problem involving office renovations would call for the formation of a task force rather than a committee.

Q: A team consists of two or more people who share a mission and the responsibility for working to achieve their goals.

Q: When it comes to online etiquette, A) spelling, punctuation, and capitalization are not important. B) do not assume that people are available to discuss work matters around the clock. C) avoiding "flames" is really all that matters. D) you can rest assured that there's almost nothing you can do that will offend your audience.

Q: Using mobile phones during meetings is A) routine in today's high-tech workplace. B) now restricted or prohibited in many organizations. C) an effective way to show your professionalism. D) all of the above.

Q: When introducing yourself to someone in a business context, you should always include a brief description of A) one of your personal interests or hobbies. B) your role in the company. C) your company's history. D) all of the above.

Q: A new co-worker from Russia asks you about North American greeting customs. You explain that in most business contexts, A) women are expected to shake hands differently than men. B) it is not necessary to stand up before shaking hands if you are already seated. C) shaking hands is now widely regarded as an outdated custom. D) a firm handshake is expected when two people meet.

Q: When receiving business-related phone calls, A) you should use frequent verbal responses (such as, "I see") to show that you are listening. B) it is impolite to say things such as, "I understand" while the other person is speaking. C) it is perfectly acceptable to put the caller on hold without explanation. D) do none of the above.

Q: Which of the following is not an important consideration related to etiquette in the workplace? A) The clothing you wear to work B) Your grooming habits C) Your telephone skills D) Your height and weight

Q: Touch A) is the least important form of nonverbal communication. B) is the great equalizer, putting people of different status on the same footing. C) should be completely avoided in all business situations. D) is governed by cultural customs that establish who can touch whom and when.

Q: In part, poor listening occurs because listeners A) can think faster than speakers can speak. B) concentrate on each word the speaker says, rather than the overall point. C) are unable to think originally. D) do all of the above.

Q: Selective listening refers to A) a highly focused form of listening. B) letting one's mind wander until something personally relevant is said. C) a form of defensive listening. D) listening only long enough to get a word in edgewise.

Q: The first step in the basic listening process is A) physically receiving the message. B) interpreting the message. C) evaluating the message. D) encoding the message.

Q: Within 48 hours, people tend to forget approximately ________ percent of what was said in a 10-minute conversation. A) 1 B) 10 C) 50 D) 90

Q: A reliable employee you supervise has come to speak with you about a leave of absence related to personal issues. To understand her feelings and needs, you should engage in A) content listening. B) empathic listening. C) critical listening. D) sustained listening.

Q: If you are engaging in critical listening, your goal is to A) understand and retain information. B) understand the speaker's feelings, needs, and wants. C) evaluate the logic and validity of the message. D) appreciate the speaker's point of view.

Q: If you are listening mainly to understand the speaker's message, you are engaging in A) content listening. B) critical listening. C) empathic listening. D) active listening.

Q: Which of the following meeting technologies would be most effective for negotiations, collaborative problem solving, and other complex discussions? A) Instant messaging B) Teleconference C) Telepresence D) None of the above

Q: When conducting a meeting A) if some people are too quiet, leave them alone; they probably have nothing to contribute. B) if some people dominate the conversation, let them do so, since they are probably the most knowledgeable attendees. C) try to simply act as an observer, and let the meeting "run itself." D) do none of the above.

Q: At the last staff meeting, someone suggested that using parliamentary procedure would help make the meetings more efficient. To learn more about parliamentary procedure, which of the following should you consult? A) SEC Standards of Ethics B) Robert's Rules of Order C) Generally Accepted Accounting Principles D) Fundamental Meeting Management

Q: Use of parliamentary procedure A) tends to slow meetings down. B) contributes to dissent among participants. C) helps meetings run more smoothly. D) is only useful for meetings with more than a dozen participants.

Q: A meeting agenda A) is a formality that most groups skip these days. B) should be circulated before the meeting, providing participants with enough time to prepare. C) should be general rather than specific. D) is only a guideline, and deviations are common and expected.

Q: The key to a productive meeting is careful planning that addresses A) its purpose. B) its participants. C) its location and agenda. D) all of the above.

Q: The primary difference between constructive feedback and destructive feedback is A) constructive feedback is focused on the people involved. B) destructive feedback is focused on the process and outcomes of communication . C) constructive feedback can hurt people's feelings. D) destructive feedback delivers criticism with no guidance for improvement.

Q: Social networking technologies that are specifically designed for business are best used to A) discourage employees from socializing at work. B) help dissatisfied employees air their complaints. C) discourage socializing so individual employees can reach their full potential. D) create virtual communities.

Q: "Virtual offices" that give everyone on a team access to the same set of resources and information are called A) instant messaging software. B) videoconferencing systems. C) shared workspaces. D) none of the above.

Q: When composing collaborative messages, the best strategy is to A) avoid writing as a group. B) begin by letting all members "do their own thing" and then seeing what they all produce. C) let all members use their own preferred software. D) make the team as large as possible so that every possible area of expertise will be covered.

Q: When it comes to overcoming resistance to change in groups, it is a good idea to A) avoid all conflict in the first place. B) hold off dealing with minor problems until the conflict becomes major. C) deal directly with resistance. D) encourage participants to repress their emotions about the situation.

Q: Only one sales representative can go to the conference in Hawaii, but both Susan and Sean want to go. After much discussion and arguing, they draw straws and Susan gets the trip. This is an example of A) a win-lose situation. B) the five-step decision-making process. C) the best way to deal with a conflict. D) all of the above.

Q: The first phase that a team typically goes through is A) conflict. B) reinforcement. C) orientation. D) brainstorming.

Q: One member of a task force on which you serve is particularly good at helping other members get along and work through their differences. This individual plays a A) team-maintenance role. B) task-oriented role. C) self-oriented role. D) coordinating role.

Q: Group members who are motivated mainly to fulfill personal needs play a A) team-maintenance role. B) task-facilitating role. C) self-oriented role. D) coordinating role.

Q: ________ are informal standards of conduct that team members share. A) Group maintenance roles B) Rules of parliamentary procedure C) Group norms D) Robert's Rules

Q: You and several coworkers serve on a task force charged with updating the company personnel policy manual. To proceed effectively, you should concentrate on A) pointing out as many typos, misspellings, and grammatical errors as possible. B) ensuring that all members have a clear and shared sense of purpose. C) making other team members feel good. D) doing all of the above.

Q: A hidden agenda refers to A) a meeting agenda that is not revealed to others outside the meeting group. B) individuals harboring motives that are concealed from the rest of the group. C) an agenda that members must look for before they can attend a meeting. D) an approach to group dynamics that helps facilitate group functioning.

Q: Groupthink refers to A) the willingness of individual group members to withhold contrary or unpopular opinions, even when those objections are legitimate, and to favor majority opinion. B) the four-step decision-making process in groups. C) software programs that help groups make decisions. D) the basic rules that underlie a group's behavior and guide the group to make its decisions that operates primarily in large groups but can also be seen in small groups.

Q: Which of the following is not a way teams help organizations to succeed? A) Increase information and knowledge B) Increase groupthink among members C) Increase performance levels D) Increase diversity of views

Q: In participative management A) employees are involved in the company's decision making. B) all top-level managers participate in profit sharing. C) teams are discouraged in favor of individual achievement. D) an authoritarian management model is used.

Q: Briefly define Business Communication 2.0, and explain how it differs from a more traditional approach to business communication.

Q: Describe four common types of communication barriers.

Q: Outline the eight steps of the communication process.

Q: Explain the increasing dependence on knowledge workers in business, and provide at least two examples that illustrate the value of information in today's economy.

Q: Describe five characteristics of effective business messages.

Q: Briefly explain the difference between an ethical dilemma and an ethical lapse.

Q: How can the overuse or misuse of communication technology become a barrier to effective communication?

Q: What is the relationship between Web 2.0 and Business Communication 2.0?

Q: Briefly describe at least one hypothetical or actual example of an organization utilizing the 2.0 approach to business communication.

Q: List three social media tools that have inspired and enabled a more conversational approach to business communication.

Q: Briefly explain the nature and importance of the final phase in the communication process.

Q: What does it mean for an audience to "decode" a message?

Q: To adopt an audience-centered approach to communication, what do you need to learn about your audience? List at least three specific attributes.

Q: When does the rumor mill tend to be most active within an organization? Include an example of a situation that might cause the rumor mill to become more active.

Q: How does the primary function of upward-flowing communication differ from that of downward-flowing communication?

Q: An ethical ________ involves making a clearly unethical choice.

Q: An ethical ________ involves choosing between conflicting alternatives that are not clear-cut.

Q: ________ are the accepted principles of conduct that govern behavior within a society.

Q: According to the "information technology ________," information tools such as email and the Internet can waste as much time as they save.

Q: Above all, the ________ communication model for business communication is more interactive and conversational than a traditional publishing or broadcasting approach.

Q: Social ________ tools such as blogs, wikis, and social networks have paved the way for companies to embrace the "2.0" approach to business communication.

Q: Selective ________ is the process of distorting or ignoring information that does not fit one's view of reality.

Q: In the communication process, ________ describes the step in which the audience extracts the idea from a message.

Q: When a sender puts an idea into a message, the sender is ________ the idea.

Q: ________ ________ refers to the ability to relate to the needs of others, and is widely considered to be a vital characteristic of successful managers and leaders.

Q: Understanding and respecting the members of your audience and making every effort to get your message across in a meaningful way is necessary to adopt an ________ -________ approach.

Q: A ________ ________ is the mixture of values, traditions, and habits that give a company its atmosphere or personality.

Q: Workforce ________ refers to all the differences among the people you come into contact with on the job, including age, gender, sexual orientation, education, and so forth.

Q: Groups affected in some way by a company's actions are referred to as ________.

Q: Communication is the process of transferring ________ and ________ between senders and receivers.

Q: Although intellectual property laws were once a serious concern, the ease of sharing information through social media has decreased the need to be concerned with them.

Q: When people must choose between alternatives that aren't completely wrong or completely right, they are facing an ethical lapse.