Finance Essay

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BBB 1014 UNDERSTANDING MANAGEMENT Chapter 1 Managing in Turbulent Times Tutorial 1 1. How do you feel about having a manager’s responsibility in today’s world characterized by uncertainty, ambiguity, and sudden changes or threats from the environment? Describe some skills and qualities that are important to managers under these conditions. 2. Assume you are a project manager at a biotechnology company, working with managers from research, production, and marketing on a major product modification. You notice that every memo you receive from the marketing manager has been copied to senior management. At every company function she spends time talking to the big shots. You are also aware that sometimes when you and the other project members are slaving away over the project, she is playing golf with senior managers. What is your evaluation of her behavior? As project manager, what do you 3. Jeff Immelt of GE said that the most valuable thing he learned in business school was that “there are 24 hours in a day, and you can use all of them.” Do you agree or disagree? What are some of the advantages to this approach to being a manager? What are some of the drawbacks? 4. Why do some organizations seem to have a new CEO every year or two, whereas others have top leaders who stay with the company for many years (e.g., Jack Welch’s 20 years as CEO at General Electric)? What factors about the manager or about the company might account for this difference? 5. Think about Toyota’s highly publicized safety problems. One observer said that a goal of efficiency had taken precedent over a goal of quality within Toyota. Do you think managers can improve both efficiency and effectiveness simultaneously? Discuss. How do you think Toyota’s leaders should respond to the safety situation? 6. You are a bright, hard-working entry-level manager who fully intends to rise up through the
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