loadingChapter 4 – Managing in a Global Environment
True/False Questions
A MANAGER’S DILEMMA
1. According to the company profile in “A Manager’s Dilemma,” Cemex is an example of a company that
suffers from parochialism. False (moderate)
2. Geocentric is the orientation that best describes the attitude of Cemex toward international business. True (moderate)
3. Cemex can be described as a company in Stage 1 of doing business globally. False (moderate)
4. The environmental factor that is most important to the adjustment of Cemex expatriate managers is the
economic environment. False (moderate)
WHAT’S YOUR GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE?
5. Americans tend to suffer from parochialism. True (moderate) 6. A drawback of the geocentric perspective is that it is inflexible. False (moderate)
7. Managers with an ethnocentric attitude would not trust foreign employees with key decisions or technology. True (moderate)
8. Managers with a polycentric attitude would view every foreign operation as difficult and hard to understand. True (moderate) 9. The polycentric attitude is a world-oriented view focusing on using the best approaches and people from
around the globe. False (moderate)
UNDERSTANDING THE GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT
10. The European Union and the North American Free Trade Agreement created regional trading and
cooperative agreements. True (easy)
11. The ultimate goal of the European Union (EU) is to have common customs duties and unified industrial and
commercial policies as well as a single currency and a regional central bank. True (difficult)
12. The primary motivation for the creation of the European Union (EU) was to allow Europeans to reassert
their position against the industrial strength of the U.S. and Japan. True (moderate)
13. The three original partners of NAFTA are the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. True (easy)
14. One of the effects of NAFTA has been greatly increased unemployment in the U.S.
15. 16. 17. 18.
False (difficult)
Mercosur is a trading group made up of South American countries. True (moderate)
Multinational corporations became commonplace in the mid 1960s. True (moderate)
Multinational corporations maintain significant operations in two or more countries simultaneously but are based in one home country. True (moderate)
The transnational corporation characterizes the ethnocentric attitude towards the management of an organization's global business. False (difficult)
19. Transnational corporations run their business from their home country. False (easy)
HOW ORGANIZATIONS GO GLOBAL
20. The first stage when an organization goes international is exporting its products to other countries. True (moderate)
21. The second stage of an organization going international is the initial overt entry where the organization
hires foreign representation or contracts with foreign manufacturers. True (difficult)
22. In stage three of an organization going international, managers aggressively pursue international markets
and may license or franchise to another firm the right to use the organization's brand name, technology, or product specifications. True (difficult)
MANAGING IN A GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT
23. The legal-political environment is an important factor of managing in a foreign environment. True (easy)
24. Only when a country's legal-political environment is unstable or revolutionary is it of concern to managers. False (easy)
25. Research indicates that organizational culture has a stronger impact on employees than national culture. False (difficult)
26. Mexico is an example of a collectivist nation. True (difficult)
27. The United States is an example of a country with lower power distance. True (moderate)
28. An increased level of anxiety among its people characterizes a society with high uncertainty avoidance. True (easy)
29. Hofstede found that the U.S. culture is well above average on quantity-of-life measures of culture. True (easy)
IS A GLOBAL ASSIGNMENT FOR YOU?
30. Organizational socialization refers to the process employees go through to adapt to an organization's culture. True (moderate)
Multiple Choice
A MANAGER’S DILEMMA
31. According to the company profile of Cemex in “A Manager’s Dilemma,” which of the following
environmental factors is most important in the adjustment of the Cemex expatriate managers? a. political environment b. legal environment c. economic environment
d. cultural environment (moderate) e. technological environment
32. At which of the following stages of doing business globally would Cemex best fit?
a. Stage 1 b. Stage 2
c. Stage 3 (moderate) d. Stage 4 e. Stage 5
33. Which of the following best describes Cemex as a global organization?
a. domestic corporation b. multinational corporation
c. transnational corporation (moderate) d. transparent corporation
34. Which of the following best describes the attitude toward international business of Cemex?
a. ethnocentric b. polycentric
c. geocentric (moderate) d. parochial
WHAT’S YOUR GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE?
35. One reason for parochialism in the U.S. is that Americans tend to study _____________ in school. a. only English (easy) b. only two languages c. English and French d. English and German e. German and Spanish
36. Which of the following describes the current state of world use of languages? a. Germans and Italians, unlike other Europeans, only speak their native language. b. Americans tend to study many other languages in school. c. Most Japanese begin learning English by their third year of high school. d. Americans tend to think of English as the only international business language. (moderate) e. Japanese is expected to be the most used international language by the year 2010.
37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 42. 43.
_____________ is a sign that Americans suffer from parochialism. a. Multinationalism
b. Monolinguism (moderate) c. Geocentrism d. Polycentrism e. Globalism
Parochialism is
a. acceptance of diverse points of view.
b. a desire to leave one's own culture for a foreign culture.
c. a tendency to view the world through a single perspective. (moderate) d. recognition of diverse religious beliefs.
e. acceptance of one dominant and one secondary \
Which of the following would be an example of a manager displaying a parochial attitude in a foreign environment?
a. enjoying the silence in a meeting with Japanese
b. learning how to drink alcohol with meals while negotiating with French counterparts c. wanting to speed up the pace of bargaining with Spanish traders (difficult) d. speaking Spanish in Mexico
e. reading about the Muslim faith prior to visiting Iraq
For U.S. businesses to have successful global management, which of the following statements provides the best advice?
a. Americans should continue to push for the use of English only. b. Stick to your own customs to avoid embarrassing incidents.
c. Make sure foreign business people know you are American so they will speak to you in English. d. Patronize foreign customs until your counterparts become comfortable with the American values. e. Develop an understanding of multicultural differences. (moderate)
A(n) _____________ attitude is a parochialist belief that home country practices are best. a. ethnocentric (easy) b. polycentric c. geocentric d. international e. global
Which of the following is the least favorable attitude for an American manager who wishes to be successful in international business? a. multicultural b. multicountry c. geocentric d. polycentric
e. ethnocentric (easy)
A(n) _____________ attitude is the view that host country managers know best practices for running their operations.
a. ethnocentric
b. polycentric (easy) c. geocentric d. international e. global
44.
45. Which of the following is not an advantage of a polycentric perspective? a. extensive knowledge of foreign market b. best people and work approaches used regardless of origin (difficult) c. more support from host government d. extensive knowledge of foreign workplace e. committed local managers with high morale
46. Which of the following is an advantage of a geocentric perspective? a. extensive knowledge of foreign market b. best people and work approaches used regardless of origin c. more support from host government (difficult) d. extensive knowledge of foreign workplace e. committed local managers with high morale
47. The geocentric attitude is a _____________ view. a. national b. country c. culture-bound d. narrow e. world (moderate)
48. _____________ management requires enhanced sensitivity to differences in national customs and practices. a. Ethnocentric b. Polycentric c. Global (moderate) d. Parochial e. Domestic
49. Successful global management requires _____________. a. rigid application of home country practices. b. enhanced sensitivity to differences in national customs and practices. (moderate) c. Americanization of foreign managers. d. teaching English to foreign nationals. e. a \
UNDERSTANDING THE GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT
50. The Maastricht Treaty was signed in _____________. a. 1989. b. 1990. c. 1991. d. 1992. (moderate) e. 1993.
A world-oriented view that focuses on using the best approaches and people from around the globe is
referred to as a _______________. a. ethnocentric b. polycentric
c. geocentric (easy) d. international e. global