Q&A Hero

Q: Which of the following is not a guideline to select and deploy measures well?a. Use measures that challenge employees but are achievableb. Use measures that are perceived as fairc. Ensure accurate datad. Focus on measures that were previously used to determine the success of the organization

Q: What does a diagnostic control system enable a change leader to do?a. Understand critical performance variables and adjust their approach to accomplish the change goalsb. Decide midway through the change project whether the vision was indeed the right onec. Helps deal with strategic uncertaintiesd. Identifies risks to be avoided and when those lines are being crossed

Q: At the end of a change project, measures shift in what way?a. Measures become more importantb. Measures are communicated more heavilyc. Measures are used to determine impact rather than be diagnostic in natured. Measures get more complex and increase in number as the project moves toward its end

Q: There is an optimal risk score that fits all organizations.a. Trueb. False

Q: What is the purpose of using the DICE model?

Q: Commitment needs to be measured on what two levels?a. Financial and processb. Individual and organizationalc. Actions and wordsd. Senior management and employees

Q: What does the DICE framework acronym stand for?a. Duration, Initiative, Commitment, Effortb. Duration, Integrity, Commitment, Effortc. Durability, Initiative, Commitment, Effectivenessd. Durability, Integrity, Commitment, Effectiveness

Q: What, if any, are the dangers of an organization with low risk?

Q: One of the risks measured in the risk exposure calculator is the level of ambiguity present.a. Trueb. False

Q: The three areas that Simons risk exposure calculator measures include all of the following except:a. Rate of growthb. Culturec. Information managementd. Competition

Q: When developing a balanced scorecard, the customer perspective should focus solely on consumers of the organizations product.a. Trueb. False

Q: What is the purpose of a balanced scorecard?a. To link capabilities, change strategies, and outcomesb. To integrate measures into the strategy to track critical success factorsc. To provide action items for day-to-day execution of the strategyd. To measure risk associated with the strategy

Q: The financial perspective should always be at the top of the strategy map.a. Trueb. False

Q: What are the four perspectives in a strategy map?a. Financial, customer, internal, and learning & growthb. Financial, stakeholder, employee, and efficiencyc. Profit, systems, culture, and peopled. Profit, systems, learning, and stakeholders

Q: Which tool is a visual representation of the desired end states and the action paths that will get the organization there?a. DICE modelb. Risk exposure calculatorc. Strategy mapd. Balanced scorecard

Q: Change leaders need to consider how measures can help them think about contingencies and unforeseen circumstances.a. Trueb. False

Q: Why should change agents be mindful of what are leading versus lagging indicators?

Q: What is the purpose of understanding an organizations belief system in relation to developing measurement systems?a. It helps change agents understand critical variables and milestonesb. It allows change leaders to frame initiatives according to the core values of the organizationc. It helps change leaders understand what is off-limitsd. It sensitizes change leaders to environmental shifts

Q: What is an example of an interactive control?a. Limits on spending authority at a managerial levelb. Stated organizational valuesc. Sales data based on changed selling effortsd. Market intelligence data

Q: All of the following are change levers that Robert Simon suggests focusing on except:a. Interactive controlsb. Diagnostic controlsc. Alignment metricsd. Belief systems

Q: Under which circumstance should change agents choose more approximate measures and focus on vision rather than using explicit goal-focused measures?a. When complexity and ambiguity are highb. When time to completion is shortc. When complexity and ambiguity are lowd. When sanctions and rewards must be used

Q: Change leaders should develop their measures based on all of the following except:a. How quickly the information is neededb. Who the measures will be analyzed byc. How accurate the information must bed. How much it will cost

Q: What might interfere with the accuracy of data?a. Trust in the people who the data will be analyzed byb. Keeping pressure at reasonable levelsc. Providing excessive rewards for successd. Belief that the data will not be used to harm them

Q: What will most likely hinder a measurement system from being accepted?a. It’s not clearb. The follow-up is too arduousc. There are too many measurementsd. The process of developing them is perceived as unfair

Q: Goals are best set at what level?*a. Challenging yet attainableb. Lofty to inspire visionc. Low to encourage incremental progressd. Attainable so employees don’t fear they won’t meet expectations

Q: Measurement and control systems can impede the process.a. Trueb. False

Q: Measurement and control occur at what stage in the change process?a. At the endb. Throughoutc. At the beginning and at the endd. In the middle until everything is established

Q: Measurement and control systems enable change managers to do all of the following except:a. Frame the need for change and the expected outcomesb. Monitor the environmentc. Guide the change and make midcourse correctionsd. Communicate the cultural and emotional effects of the change

Q: What is a main concern of change agents about measurement and control systems?a. They worry that measurement systems aren’t properly calibratedb. They worry that measurement systems don’t accurately represent the work they put into the projectc. They worry that critics will use measurements to undermine the changed. They worry that measuring will take too much time

Q: What gets measured affects the direction and outcome of a change initiative.a. Trueb. False

Q: When things are complex and ambiguous, the richness of the communications channel needs to increase.a. Trueb. False

Q: Describe the four phases of a communication plan.

Q: Which of the following is not one of the four major goals of a communication plan?a. To brand the change project so people will like itb. To infuse a need for change into the organizationc. To keep people informedd. To communicate impacts the change will have on each person

Q: Why are good communication plans essential?a. It encourages people to conquer their fear of public speakingb. It is easy to convince employees that they’ve been heard, so it’s a big return on an investmentc. Most everyone in the organization has the same general idea of the change but needs additional detailsd. It minimizes rumors and helps mobilize support

Q: What does working the plan entail?

Q: Which of the following is a challenge of leverage analysis?a. It does little to move people on the adoption continuumb. Building sufficient support to bridge the gap between early adopters and the early majorityc. It can only be done with an outsider’s objective view of the organizationd. Any employee’s support can be used to leverage support, so it is often difficult to choose who to focus o

Q: The AIDA continuum outlines how the stakeholders will be affected by the change.a. Trueb. False

Q: What is the benefit of creating a commitment analysis chart?a. It can exhibit to others that you are prepared for the changeb. It is a useful project management tool since it divides responsibilitiesc. It relies on the emotional response of stakeholdersd. It analyzes engagement and is instrumental in planning tactics to alter those predispositions

Q: Which of the following is not true of parallel initiatives?a. It recognizes that different things can be worked on simultaneouslyb. It can shrink the time required to complete a changec. It requires care and sophistication in planningd. It carries very little risk or chances for failure

Q: What do critical path methods require of planners?a. For planners to only focus on the critical tasksb. To estimate based on past experience how long the project will takec. To identify when the project should be completed and plan backward from that pointd. To critically assess the plans of others against the reality of time and resources

Q: Survey feedback allows survey responders to rate the quality of the survey.a. Trueb. False

Q: What are the benefits and downsides of using surveys?

Q: Forecasting and scenario planning are basically the same exercise.a. Trueb. False

Q: Which of the following is NOT a question managers should ask regarding a scenario they had developed in a scenario-planning exercise?a. How likely is this to happen?b. What would need to happen to make this scenario a reality?c. How much money would it take to eliminate this possibility entirely?d. What contingencies might arise that need to be addressed?

Q: What is the purpose of responsibility charting?a. To add to the annual report as a change-action documentb. To keep the projects at the forefront of employees’ minds, even if the responsibilities are irrelevantc. To keep projects on track and provide accountabilityd. To use guilt and public shame to get people to finish their assigned tasks

Q: Which of the following is not a suggested tool for action planning?a. A pro/con listb. A to do listc. Surveysd. Responsibility charts

Q: According to the book, in what situations should others NOT be engaged in action planning?a. When employees may not agree with the planb. When there is little respect for the senior leadershipc. When there are too many opinions to considerd. When there is too much competitive risk and plans should be kept secret

Q: Carefully laid-out plans should be taken seriously and adhered to despite any dissention that may arise.a. Trueb. False

Q: Beer, Eisenstat, and Spectors prescriptive steps to change rely on all of the assumptions except:a. A fundamental cooperative orientation and commonality of goalsb. Change is most effective when initiated by top managementc. Change will evolve over timed. Shared vision is possible

Q: According to Waldersee and Griffiths, direct action taken by managers is more effective than staff participation.a. Trueb. False

Q: What is the danger of a unilateral approach?a. Things may not get doneb. Stakeholders may feel their concerns are not heard or valued and resist the changec. Employees may be given too much power and overtake the change processd. It is likely to be ineffective because employees will just ignore it

Q: What is the difference between a participative approach and a unilateral approach?a. A participative approach assumes that employees will have the right ideas on their ownb. A unilateral approach focuses on behavioral changesc. A unilateral approach expects crowd sourcing of informationd. A unilateral approach changes system first; a participative approach changes behavior first

Q: What are the benefits of using employee engagement and feedback?a. Employees will feel as though they’ve been heard and will be pacifiedb. It provides more flexibility in the timelinec. Ambiguity will be reduced and it may build support by communicating why the change was undertakend. It may lessen the chances of revolt

Q: Which of the following is an example of emergent change?a. Organizational downsizing due to rapid growthb. A change initiative to modify the culture piloted by customer and staff feedbackc. A situation when the magnitude of the change is incremental in natured. Top-down structural changes to respond to changes in the market

Q: Discontinuous change involves a major break from the change.a. Trueb. False

Q: Which of the following is a risk of implementing programmatic change?a. Lack of sufficient control to enforce the changeb. Confusion over directionc. Overreliance on a one-size-fits-all solutiond. Progress may be too slow

Q: When does a doing first strategy work best?a. When creativity, commitment, and communication are most essentialb. When the situation is novel and confusingc. When data are clear and reliabled. When discipline can be established in routine processes

Q: What are Mintzberg and Westlys generic approaches to change?a. Stop, look, listenb. Plan, ask, doc. Think, see, dod. Try, fail, try again

Q: Change agents should approach change with which of the following attitudes?a. Work to acquire necessary authority before attempting changeb. Continue with a change project only when management’s approval has been obtainedc. Understanding the concrete lines of systems boundariesd. Test the limits of their empowerment

Q: One of the first steps for a change agent at the beginning of a change project is:a. Seek senior-level supportb. Develop a detailed plan of how the change will goc. Try and brainstorm all possible roadblocks and compile mitigation plansd. To have full confidence that their change idea will work for the organization

Q: Employees dont need to take explicit action to incite change. Organizations are constantly changing, and change opportunities will present themselves regularly.a. Trueb. False

Q: Which of the following is not a challenge for middle managers?a. They are trying to influence change at the top while those at the top are directing themb. They need to enforce change on subordinates while subordinates may be trying to initiate changec. They are tempted to intervene in most all disputes and issues, even when it may not be helpfuld. Their managers will tell them exactly what decisions to make and how to proceed

Q: Change initiative is really best used and practiced by people with formal power.a. Trueb. False

Q: It is usually not necessary for change teams to be highly cohesive.a. Trueb. False

Q: Which of the following is not a good design rule for developing a change team?a. Consider every piece of information fair game to discussb. Decisions are made swiftlyc. The change team is incentivized with financial rewards based on performanced. The change team should be between 15 and 20 members

Q: A project manager is responsible for which of the following things in a change project:a. Being the immovable visionary forceb. Advising the team on directionc. Coordinating logistics and tracking progressd. Dealing with stakeholders

Q: Describe the role of a steering team.

Q: Characteristics of a strong change team member are often contradictory.a. Trueb. False

Q: Change teams may include all of the following people except:a. Outside consultantsb. People who are completely committed to the changec. People who are open-minded and flexibled. A brand-new employee who has fresh eyes on the organization

Q: The quality of external change agents determines the success of change projects.a. Trueb. False

Q: External change agents are often hired because of which of the following strengths?a. They are a frugal option for organizations with tight budgetsb. They are independent and crediblec. They have deep knowledge of the organizationd. They can take charge of final decision making

Q: What is the main benefit of an internal change agent?a. They have defining relationships with people within the organization that make them objectiveb. They have the highest level of specialized skills for the jobc. They tend to have plenty of power to affect the changed. They have knowledge of the systems and norms of how things get done

Q: What are Hunsakers four internal roles a change agent can play?a. Catalyst, solution giver, process helper, and resource linkerb. Positional leader, respected leader, knowledge leader, and networking leaderc. Starter, worker, helper, and finisherd. Dissenter, critical thinker, encourager, and champion

Q: Which type of change agent engages in big-picture thinking about strategic change and understands the fit of systems and structures?a. The emotional championb. The intuitive adapterc. The developmental strategistd. The continuous improver

Q: Describe the characteristics that an emotional champion is likely to have.

Q: Which is more effective at driving change: pull or push tactics?a. Push tactics are more effective because they can utilize reward-and-punishment powerb. Agents should try to only use pull tactics because they appeal to higher-order purposec. Neither push nor pull tactics are more effective than the otherd. Both push and pull tactics are effective in their own way, but pull tactics tend to bring everything together under a larger vision

Q: What is the difference between an experienced change agent and an expert change agent according to Miller?a. Experienced agents believe that powerful communication will convince people to sign on to a changeb. Experts understand that people have a limited capacity to absorb change and power, and sanctions aren’t sufficient to convince othersc. Experts believe that people may not be ready to change, so a comprehension plan must be developed to implement the visiond. Experienced agents understand that clear communication is the key to getting others on board with change

Q: All change agents must proceed through their developmental changes by being actively involved in leading a change.a. Trueb. False

Q: Appreciate Inquiry (AI) is the engagement of individuals in an organizational system in its renewal.a. Trueb. False

Q: In order for individuals to shift their mental maps, what is required?a. Workshops and presentationsb. Curiosity and ambitionc. Teamwork and flexibilityd. Openness and reflection